Red, Green & Blue: What’s a Green Parent to Do?
As my 4-year-old son starts his first year of preschool this month, my concerns for him have entered a whole new realm. School means new friends and new experiences, which are great. But it also means exposure to new habits, preferences and ideas that aren’t always good for him. Some kids might bring in lunches heavy in junk food, which I try not to feed my son. Some might be obsessed with the status of certain brand names, which I try to emphasize isn’t important. Some might brag about the TVs, DVD players and other electronics they might already have in their own rooms, something I don’t think any 4-year-old should have.
Still, I know I can’t shield my son from other lifestyle choices I find obnoxious. The best I can hope for is to establish, as early as possible, healthful and responsible — both personally and environmentally — habits that will set him on the right course over his lifetime. That, and finely-honed critical-thinking skills, will, I hope, guide him well over the years to come.
I try not to be overbearing about it, though. There are other parents, though, who insist their children follow a strictly vegan diet, no matter where they’re visiting or with whom they’re socializing. Other Moms and Dads prohibit gun toys, french fries, ice cream or any TV. I also remember once reading about a couple who kept the whole family, young children included, on a severely fat-restricted diet … which many experts say is a dangerous experiment on developing minds and bodies.
So how much is too much when it comes to teaching children habits for healthy, green living? I’m interested to know what others, especially parents with children of different ages from mine, have to say.
Tags: childhood, children, Community, Education, environmentally responsible, Family, green living, healthy habits, peer pressure, school
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September 11th, 2007 at 7:17 pm
I guess it’s good to be concerned like that Shirley. There are all kinds of corrupting influnces in the world and part of growing up is being subjected to them and learning from our mistakes. As long as the schools focus their efforts on education rather than social conditioning I think everything will work out just fine for him. Is that your son in the photo?
September 11th, 2007 at 7:42 pm
LOL! No, it’s not my son; I think it’s a photo of a German child … found it at Wikimedia Commons.
I agree completely: every child should have the freedom to make mistakes and learn from them. But there have to be limits, right? No right-minded parent would let their child learn for herself that fire is hot and can burn you.
But I think green-minded parents face special challenges beyond that: if you believe, for example, that some food additives are not only not healthful, but actually harmful, what’s the best way to ensure your child doesn’t eat too much of it? You can’t police what kids trade each other at the lunch table, and you’re making it likely your kid will be a social outcast if you prohibit him from eating, say, frosted cake or chicken "nuggets" (what part of a chicken is that, anyway?) at his friends’ birthday parties.
Like I said, the best solution I see is to try to instill healthy, environmentally habits in children as early as possible, and to teach them to think for themselves. Beyond that, though, you’re probably right: you have to let them go and hope for the best.
Re: emphasizing education over "social conditioning" at school, what do you think of all those workbooks, coloring sheets, special TV programs and other educational tools that are increasingly being underwritten (and/or produced by) corporations like McDonald’s, Kraft, Pizza Hut, etc.? To me, that seems an especially insidious form of social conditioning rather then education.
September 11th, 2007 at 8:06 pm
Well… I guess we’ll either homeschool or trust that the educators have made a good decision that the benefits out-weigh the costs.
Well… instead of tip-toeing around it anymore I’ll come right out and say it. Schools are using Al Gore’s hysterical global warming propaganda movie in science classes. What do you think about that kind of social conditioning? In my day tilting at windmills was limited to Literature… in the fiction category.
September 11th, 2007 at 8:22 pm
Rabble-rousing again, eh?
We’ve had more than a few disagreements on the merits of human-caused global warming, so I’ll try not to repeat past comments. I’d say, in the grand scheme of things taught and not taught in schools, a day spent viewing and discussing Al Gore’s film is well justified. Even if you don’t buy the anthropogenic, this-is-serious claim, it’s hard to find fault with teachers discussing global issues like desertification, conservation, energy efficiency, pollution and the like with their students. The more kids understand that they are part of a much larger community on Earth, and that they have choices that can better or harm that community, the better citizens they’re likely to be.
I’m not entirely certain how closely "your day" compares to "my day," but I think there was plenty of propaganda to be found in the classrooms of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. I seem to remember hearing a lot about the "Red Menace" and the Cold War, and very little — if anything — about Native American cultures, the victims of McCarthyism, world history (other than a glossed-over, West-centric version), etc. (How’s that for rabble-rousing? : ) )
Seriously, though, corporate-sponsored "educational" TV, snacks, play equipment, workbooks and other resources in public schools don’t bother you at all?
September 11th, 2007 at 8:46 pm
Again… I’d say that we’d have to trust that the educators weighed the benefits and costs there and found it to be a benefit.
My beef is with big Al’s movie not the science. If a teacher wanted to present the facts to the class I have no problem with that. Al’s ‘Worst Case Scenarios Version 1’ should be relegated to the round file; if you know what I mean.
This Mother Earth call to action needs to be balanced with the fact that there’s a cost to our environmental responses. To balance Al’s movie out you’d need a whole case of Ayn Rand hyperbole so I say let’s stick to Readin’ Writin’ and Arithmetic and leave the social programming alone.
I know it’s an impossibility given the political climate but a guy can dream, right?
Oh… just so you’ll know… there’s a very high likelihood I’ll go back into the classroom here in a few years as a stair-step toward early retirement.
September 11th, 2007 at 9:21 pm
Unfortunately, it’s been a long time since schools taught just readin’, writin’ and ‘rithmetic … I’ll grant you that. I’d also prefer to see a more focused, academic-oriented educational system, rather than one driven by test scores, feel-good classes and the need for kids to go out and raise funds for basic music, art and athletic supplies.
Also an impossibility, given the current political climate.
Still, though, you haven’t answered my question: "Seriously, though, corporate-sponsored "educational" TV, snacks, play equipment, workbooks and other resources in public schools don’t bother you at all?" It would seem to me of special interest to you, considering you might be teaching sometime soon. (What subject, by the way?)
P.S. In keeping with the "lively" nature of this discussion, I give you George Carlin’s latest assessment of our educational system. Enjoy! ; )
September 11th, 2007 at 9:34 pm
My Degree’s in Math but I’ll probably end up teaching Computer Science and Business.
As for your question I think I addressed it by saying the educators really have to strike the balance between benefit and potential cost.
Am I going to throw away a stack of free spiral bound notebooks because they’ve got an Office Max logo on them? I think not. I think concessions like soft-drinks and chips can be a problem because kids drink and eat too much crap anyway but if it covers the cost of a new bus for the band maybe it makes sense (for high-school anyway).
I think we need to be careful about the schools teaching right and wrong. My daughter came home and said her friend’s mom was ’stupid’. Obviously I inquired about it and it turns out the teacher had said her friend’s mom was ’stupid’ because she smoked. To use the phrase again ‘in my day’ that would have never happened. This (childless) teacher also wondered why the parent’s couldn’t better control their children. Hey… I’ve got an idea for her. If you want the parents to have the children’s respect don’t call the parents ’stupid’.
This pattern carries on with alcohol, drugs, fatty foods, etc. all through the social programming process and creates a self-feeding cycle of kids being less and less responsive to parental authority while the teachers who contribute to the problem further castigate the parents who are less and less respected by their children.