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Jul. 2nd, 2023 06:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
conulyDear Amy: I had a 42-year career as a speech-language pathologist, working with young children. Early childhood development was my professional specialty. I made sure to provide my own children with play-based preschool opportunities. As they grew and showed interest in certain activities, we provided those opportunities for them in art, music and sports. Both children are now successful professionals.
Our son and his wife are the parents of two children, ages 3 and 1. They let us know early on that they would accept no input or support, even when they shared their struggles and challenges. Not even a book suggestion was welcome. I have respected their wishes, and I respond to texts, e-mails and rare phone calls with generic positive statements like, “Thanks for sharing that photo!” and “It looks like he’s doing great!”
Now, our daughter-in-law is sending photos and videos of our 3-year-old granddaughter in a peewee “cheer” program. She is on a “performance team,” complete with uniforms with short-shorts and bare midriffs. For the competitions, she wears full makeup, including bright red lipstick. Her parents haven’t enrolled her in a regular preschool yet, but they apparently are fine with this environment.
I have not responded to the most recent “cheer” photos and am not sure how to approach my son and his wife about my concerns. I am sick to my stomach that this child is not receiving typical child-focused, play-based learning opportunities – and worse, that she has been put into a program that appears to me to be sexualizing young girls, to their future detriment.
I feel I must speak up and advocate for this child by trying to protect her childhood. How should I do this?
( Read more... )
Our son and his wife are the parents of two children, ages 3 and 1. They let us know early on that they would accept no input or support, even when they shared their struggles and challenges. Not even a book suggestion was welcome. I have respected their wishes, and I respond to texts, e-mails and rare phone calls with generic positive statements like, “Thanks for sharing that photo!” and “It looks like he’s doing great!”
Now, our daughter-in-law is sending photos and videos of our 3-year-old granddaughter in a peewee “cheer” program. She is on a “performance team,” complete with uniforms with short-shorts and bare midriffs. For the competitions, she wears full makeup, including bright red lipstick. Her parents haven’t enrolled her in a regular preschool yet, but they apparently are fine with this environment.
I have not responded to the most recent “cheer” photos and am not sure how to approach my son and his wife about my concerns. I am sick to my stomach that this child is not receiving typical child-focused, play-based learning opportunities – and worse, that she has been put into a program that appears to me to be sexualizing young girls, to their future detriment.
I feel I must speak up and advocate for this child by trying to protect her childhood. How should I do this?
( Read more... )