What is a snowflake?

[punkin]

YFrank McCourt put it best in his first chapter of Angela's Ashes:

Frank McCourt was a jerk.

Sorry, completely OT.

 

[Magpie]

My family didn't even have a car until I was a teen, so I must be from Mars.

I think I'm still living on Mars. We have one car now, but for many years we didn't have a car at all. We really don't need one.

 

[goofy!]

But the children aren't snowflakes in this example, are they?. The children aren't DEMANDING to be driven. It's simply the school policy.
.

But who drove the change in school policy? The helicopter parents that banded together and forced a change to have school busing 5 blocks away.

FWIW - our district policy is 2 miles. So either you drive your kids or you let them walk. We live 1.97 miles away as the crow flies, so no bus. i am a partial helicopter parent. While I allowed my k-5 children to walk by themselves to their elementary school, about 1/2 mile and across a 4-lane street, I do participate in a carpool for the middle school which is 1.97 miles away. There are too many after school sports that the kids need to get to on time to wait an hour for them to walk home. Although, they often walk home on nice days when there are no practices.

I was watching a show where some psychologists were discussing this trend of this over parenting of children. They attributed it to the "me" generation now raising kids. They were raised to believe that the world revolves around them, so they naturally think the world revolves even more around their children. There is no longer any thought of what is best for the collective community, only what is good for their child.

Another real-life example - university mid-terms. Teacup has his schedule set up so that he doesn't have any classes till 10am because he/she needs their sleep according to Mom. His 10am class schedules his mid-term for 7am. Mommy goes Mama-Bear and calls the school, the professor, demanding that the mid-term be changed because Teacup won't do as well if he/she has to wake up that early.

Never mind that the mid-terms were carefully scheduled to best accommodate all the students in the major so that there would be minimal students that had scheduling conflicts with mid-terms. And god-forbid that Teacup schedule a meeting with his professor on his own to discuss the possibility of taking the midterm a bit later. Mama-Helicopter took it upon herself to be the voice of her Teacup, of her adult child.

And this is not an isolated situation. The over parenting of children has become more and more prevalent, hence the naming of the trend as Snowflakes, Teacups and Helicopter parents. If it was an isolated incident here and there, nobody would have come up with terminology for it.

 

[mhsjax]

You have to remember that when I was a child, having Autism or a neurological impairment was considered something to be embarassed about and hidden. Normal children walked to school and learned how to deal with life, so that's what I did from five years old through 18. I'm not saying it was easy and, at times, it was incredibly difficult. These where the days when a "personal attack" meant bloody noses and broken arms, not saying something that hurt your feelings.

But I learned how to avoid those kinds of bullies when I could, run when I couldn't avoid them, and take my beatings when I got caught. Frank McCourt put it best in his first chapter of Angela's Ashes:

OMG. Really?

 

[msjprincess]

Lady, you have lost your every loving mind. Sorry if my parents could afford 2 cars. Guess what, they NEVER used them to take me to school, I walked. Cant' you read. They never involved themselves in what was going on at my school, as long as I brought home good grades, so be it.

Again, as I posted earlier to someone, most people here have no idea what they are talking about.

PS, I grew up int he 70's too.l Everyone I knew had 2 cars.

I grew up in the 60's or 70's most people I knew only had one car. I guess we were all poor and didn't even realize it.

 

[jrmasm]

I grew up in the 60's or 70's most people I knew only had one car. I guess we were all poor and didn't even realize it.

Me too.

 

[Carly_Roach]

Snowflake, teacups, and helicopters have been pretty standard terms in colleges and universities for several years now.

Agreed. What I find interesting (and maybe a little sad) is that people of my age raised our snowflakes, and now those snowflakes are raising their teacups thinking it's normal.

If America is ever invaded, the enemy won't even need guns. All they'll have to do is blow up AT&T, Verizon or other communication centers and all the Americans will be frozen in place with no idea of what to do.

 

[mhsjax]

And where and when did you grow up that you only had one car. That is bazaar, everyone I knew growing up had SAHM and 2 cars. Does that make me a snowflake? Just curious. BTW, I walked and rode my bike over a mile to school even though we did have 2 cars.
[/QU What in the world is bazaar about not having 2 cars??I'm 43. I grew up in Brooklyn. There weren't any SAHMs on our block. All of my friends (school and neighborhood) parents worked. A few families had 1 car. Most didn't own cars at all. We walked, rode the city bus or took the subway to school.

And it isn't unusual for families to have 2 cars either, you can't have it both ways. So, because my parents had 2 cars, along with most of my friends, we are snowflakes? And as I stated, we all walked to school, over a mile. In fact we couldn't wait until 3rd grade, because that is when we were allowed, according to school rules, to ride our bikes You were really cool at that point.

Sorry, but in my area and in the 70's most families I knew had 2 cars. I won't apologize for that, this is the way I grew up.

 

[RitaE]

Anybody see the Free Range Blog last fall when she talked about the newest trend in Suburbia.

Now not only does the school bus have to stop at the end of every driveway, you almost always see Mom and her little snowflake waiting for the bus in their big SUV because it is apparently "too dangerous" for a 4th grader to have to navigate the distance from the door to the street on his own and then stand their and wait unaccompanied by a responsible adult.

 

[Megan_J]

I think I'm still living on Mars. We have one car now, but for many years we didn't have a car at all. We really don't need one.

I wish I could do without one right now but there is no public transportation where I live. My boyfriend shared my car for over a year until he had to get one to get a higher paying job.

 

[Carly_Roach]

Anybody see the Free Range Blog last fall when she talked about the newest trend in Suburbia.

Now not only does the school bus have to stop at the end of every driveway, you almost always see Mom and her little snowflake waiting for the bus in their big SUV because it is apparently "too dangerous" for a 4th grader to have to navigate the distance from the door to the street on his own and then stand their and wait unaccompanied by a responsible adult.

Don't get me started on that. I see it every day. I'm glad I'm not behind the bus that has to wait for that child to get her goodbye kiss, collect all her paraphernalia, and get out of the car while the bus and traffic waits for her.

 

[mhsjax]

I grew up in the 60's or 70's most people I knew only had one car. I guess we were all poor and didn't even realize it.

This isn't about money, it is about being a snowflake because your parents had 2 cars.

BTW, My dads are was over 20 years old. so yeah, we weren't that rich. It was basically an antique, he had it for so long.

 

[msjprincess]

This isn't about money, it is about being a snowflake because your parents had 2 cars.

BTW, My dads are was over 20 years old. so yeah, we weren't that rich. It was basically an antique, he had it for so long.

You're the one who made it about money with this statement

Sorry if my parents could afford 2 cars

 

[Magpie]

But who drove the change in school policy? The helicopter parents that banded together and forced a change to have school busing 5 blocks away.

But you don't know that. It could be the school's insurance company that demanded the change, not the parents at all.

The only time I ever contacted the bus company to see if something could be changed, was because after more than two years of hiking up hill across a busy road to accompany my kids to their bus stop, I was tired. I wanted to be able to send the kids out to catch the bus on their own, and while I was happy enough to let them play outside on our street by themselves, I was NOT going to have them crossing that major intersection alone. Especially since I've nearly been run over on that corner myself, more than once.

The bus company said sure, no problem, and the new stop was in front of my house. Woot!

I'm not a helicopter parent. I just didn't want to have to stand out in a snowstorm with my first grader. She can stand out there by herself. Cold air is good for kids!

(BTW, I totally agree that parents of adults should not be contacting universities or colleges on their behalf. Except in cases of mental illness or disability.)

 

[jrmasm]

Anybody see the Free Range Blog last fall when she talked about the newest trend in Suburbia.

Now not only does the school bus have to stop at the end of every driveway, you almost always see Mom and her little snowflake waiting for the bus in their big SUV because it is apparently "too dangerous" for a 4th grader to have to navigate the distance from the door to the street on his own and then stand their and wait unaccompanied by a responsible adult.

You mean I'm supposed to pick up my kid at the bus stop?

 

[MissSixty]

It's an overused DIS term referring to a child that stands in front of an adult other than their parents while watching a parade.

 

[Momvic5]

It's funny I never hear the terms, snowflake, helicopter parent or Mama Bear used anywhere but here on the Dis boards

I have been a teacher and know many teachers. I never hear or have heard the term "Snowflake" used either....only on the Dis.

It may have its use among some educators, but here on the Dis, it seems the term "Snowflake" is frequently used to insult parents rather than to describe behaviors.

I view the term "Snowflake" as I do "Well, Bless your heart". Annoying, overused, and double-edged.

 

[punkin]

Anybody see the Free Range Blog last fall when she talked about the newest trend in Suburbia.

Now not only does the school bus have to stop at the end of every driveway, you almost always see Mom and her little snowflake waiting for the bus in their big SUV because it is apparently "too dangerous" for a 4th grader to have to navigate the distance from the door to the street on his own and then stand their and wait unaccompanied by a responsible adult.

I've never seen anything like this. Around here, everyone under a mile walks to school unless the parents drive them, which many do because it is on the way to work. The buses pick up on designated street corners. There are buses that take disabled kids to school, and those do go house to house.

I tend to agree with mhsjax that some people have no clue what they are talking about. It is just another way to say "oh those kids these days. Why, when I was a child, I had to walk to school each day barefoot in the snow, uphill both ways."

 

[mhsjax]

You're the one who made it about money with this statement

Yeah I did. Probably poor choice of words. But can you explain to me, how this makes me a snowflake as That person implied? I mean I am exhibit B.

 

[msjprincess]

Yeah I did. Probably poor choice of words. But can you explain to me, how this makes me a snowflake as That person implied? I mean I am exhibit B.

Can you point out the post? Because the one I saw just said that most parents only had one car back then so they couldn't drive their kids everywhere. I didn't see anything about having 2 cars making someone a snowflake.