As I watched my almost 6 year old son play U6 soccer this weekend, I saw this transformation. My little sweet boy was suddenly much more aggressive and scoring goals all over the place. Now this was great but, in the process, I saw a few of the other kids feeling bad because they could not keep up with him. I also saw him engage in a few "not so sportsmanlike" comments with the other team.
As parents, we walk a fine line when helping our kids navigate the social landscape. Having been a quiet child, I don't want Zachary to be pushed around the way that I sometimes was but I also don't want him to be the bully. As I talk to other parents, it seems to be a common concern.
So how do you walk that line? And, as parents working together towards this goal, it's becoming apparent that my husband and I don't always share common beliefs. So there are also some stereotypes and gender parenting differences at play. I would welcome other thoughts on this subject so please feel free to post.
Cheers!
3 comments:
Interesting topic and something that we can relate to here in this house. Instead of leaving a comment about it here, I made a post on my blog that's on topic...it's kind of long and wordy but I just got in from playing hockey and at this hour it's the best I could come up with...and I don't take sides. :)
Thanks for your comments, Scott. I love the post out on your blog - it makes me realize that I spend lots of time wondering what Zachary's actions "mean" - and I even recognize this in my post. The reality is that I need to let him be himself. Sometimes, that might be shy, sometimes confident, sometimes inappopriate...but always learning and growing.
Cheers!
Renay - I am Scott's wife, Debbie. We were talking about your blog and I just read through some of your posts - I am blown away that I have so many of the same thoughts and experiences. It looks like you are an executive, as am I, and it takes a lot to balance it all. And, I can completely relate to the control freak post, as Scott can confirm! Keep writing - your posts are great!!!!!
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