Imagine you were the principal of the school that your child would be attending. Imagine that you were authorized to pick out which teachers to hire.
Who would you pick? Let's look at some of the applicants.
Would you hire someone to teach your children if she had not graduated from high school or college?
Would you want someone to teach your children who used four-letter words pulled directly out of the garbage dump?
Would you pick teachers who might drink, smoke pot, or use other illegal drugs in front of the students?
Would you hire teachers who would yell at the kids and called them filthy names?
Would you hire someone to teach if that person walked into the building with an attitude, mumbled responses to your questions, didn?t look you in the eye, and then made derogatory racial comments about some of the people she saw coming into the waiting room?
How would you feel about hiring teachers who hit, kicked or slapped your children?
Well, guess what folks! Those kids are teaching our children, and we don?t even have to pay them to teach. That's right! Every day, those people are teaching children right here in south Georgia.
What? You think this is a joke? Well, friends, look in the mirror. Or look around you when you go out in public, because every woman or man you see with a child is a teacher.
Our government has restrictions on who can marry, smoke, drive, drink and vote, but there are no restrictions on who may become a parent. Age, background and ability to raise and nurture a child are insignificant.
So, let?s ask a few questions here, and see how you fare.
Have you ever driven five miles over the speed limit? Or more?
If you answer yes, you may be teaching your children that they do not have to follow rules.
Do you ever make negative racial or gender comments or jokes around your children?
If you answer yes, you may be teaching them to be prejudiced in a world already too filled with strife.
Do you cuss, use profanity, or say vulgar words around your children?
If you reply yes, you may be teaching your children behaviors that are anti-social and unacceptable in public.
Do you laze around the house, unemployed, blaming everyone else in the world because you don?t have a job?
If you answer yes, you may be teaching your children to expect others to support them financially, and that they have no control over their future.
Do you drink and smoke around your children?
If you said yes, you may be teaching your children that unhealthy activities are okay.
Do you boast of sexual activities around your children? Or make inappropriate sexual gestures to others?
If you replied yes, you may be teaching your children that their bodies have no value, and that sex is unrelated to love or marriage.
Do you hit your husband, wife or children when they aren?t perfect, according to your standards?
If you do, you may be teaching your children to use violence, to bully, and to disrespect the rights of others.
Do you yell and scream at your children?
If so, you may be teaching your children that they are bad people.
Do you make fun of those who may be less attractive or less intelligent or less prosperous than you?
If so, you may be teaching your children to be intolerant of those who are different.
Do you allow your children to ride in the car without a seatbelt or on their bicycles without helmets?
If you answered yes, you are teaching them that they are invincible and that their safety does not matter.
Do you watch movies that show excessive violence and graphic sexual scenes?
If you answered yes, you may be encouraging them to try out both violence and sex as soon as possible so they will feel ?grown up.?
Now, back to the original question. What type of person do you want teaching your child? Would you hire yourself?
Many of us who have raised children see first-hand that they learned lessons we wish we had not taught them. If this has happened to you, we invite you to share. It may not be easy to admit a failing in public, but it takes courage to turn something around into a positive learning experience.
Quotation of the Week
"Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them." -- James Baldwin
I wish you peace.
Karyl Chastain Beal
ReluctantTraveler
Karyl Chastain Beal, Retired from teaching about 100 years Columbia, Tennessee. Writer - Chicken Soup for the Unsinkable Soul, newspaper and magazine articles and stories. http://grieving-parents.com
Memorial to daughter, Arlyn http://grieving-parents.com
Airbnb cleaning service Glenview ..Your child's leadership skills begin at the family dinner table.... Read More
Children and teenagers are relentlessly bombarded with merchandise that entices.... Read More
Reasearch into children's friendships shows that those children who are... Read More
If you are a parent, then more than likely you... Read More
Our back-to-school buying habits do not help kids succeed in... Read More
It's among the top criticism wives have of their husbands:... Read More
Joey steps away from his time out chair "I won't... Read More
Encouragement comes when you focus on your child's assets and... Read More
There are millions of young children in this country who... Read More
For any parent, learning that a convicted sex offender lives... Read More
To every thing there is a season, and a time... Read More
Last night Tom's daughter, Sue, came out of her room... Read More
Pool safety should be on the minds of every parent... Read More
Once, as a Learning Support Teacher, I made my way... Read More
Did you know there's a game children and parents play... Read More
Teens don't learn responsibility overnight. If you haven't been working... Read More
Often, the struggle at dinnertime with your picky eater is... Read More
The hot new reality TV show "Nanny 911" has been... Read More
Many companies advertise their products as being educational. How much... Read More
As thinking, acting human beings we have the ability to... Read More
There are so many learning labels floating around these days... Read More
You may remember The Red Couch Project, a book by... Read More
Picture this. Your child comes home with a special assignment... Read More
Raising a pre-teen or teenage daughter (or son) is not... Read More
When kids try new things, sometimes it's a 'fit' and... Read More
efficient cleaning crew Highland Park ..Economist John Kenneth Galbraith has said that more people die... Read More
There are a lot of sophisticated parenting theories and techniques... Read More
"Not another meeting!"That tends to be the reaction from many... Read More
Does this sound familiar? Have your kids not listened to... Read More
"Just turn the lights off and go to sleep"Do you... Read More
Lets face it becoming a mum is a bit of... Read More
Becoming a stepmother can undoubtedly be one of the most... Read More
"He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds... Read More
Ask any teacher or adolescent counselor what the most disturbing... Read More
I thought I was the only one in the world... Read More
The big yellow school bus is coming down my road... Read More
Home, home on the range, Where never is heard A... Read More
'Picky Eater' is a label coined to describe the phenomenon... Read More
One of the most powerful tools that parents have for... Read More
During the assessment process it is of great importance for... Read More
Individualism is a common thing in today's modern society. Many... Read More
When your child shows signs of potty training readiness, it's... Read More
As a parent there are lots of things that you... Read More
Child care costs are are one of the most expensive... Read More
A sure way to double the joys of parenthood is... Read More
Last night Tom's daughter, Sue, came out of her room... Read More
Identity and Your Fraternal TwinFor the most part, throughout this... Read More
It is extraordinary times that we find ourselves in. Change... Read More
One of the basic issues we need to understand is... Read More
More and more kids these days are diagnosed ADD, ADHD,... Read More
Parenting |