Baby Knows Best: Is The Hands Off Approach For You?
The newest parenting trend among such celebrities as Penelope Cruz and “Spider-Man” actor Tobey Maggiore has less to do with parenting and more to do with treating little kids more like adults. The approach is called RIE, an acronym for Resources for Infant Educarers, and is pronounced “wry.” It encourages parents to eliminate baby talk, throw out the high chairs, toys and sippy cups and avoid yelling and traditional parenting punishments such as time-outs. The RIE philosophy is explained in the book “Baby Knows Best” by author Deborah Carlisle Solomon, who says the book’s title is really true.
“Parents have the bigger picture, but babies really do know more and are more competent than we often give them credit for,” Parents who follow the RIE method believe its hands-off approach instills independence, responsibility and patience in their offspring.
“Let’s just see what happens, and we are here to protect them and referee, but let’s give them a chance,” said one mom while observing playtime at the RIE center in Los Angeles. During snack time at the center, toddler-aged children choose their own bibs and pour their own water.
The more mellow approach of the RIE technique is what appealed to Fielding Edlow when she was thinking about how to parent her infant daughter, Ella. “It just really was in sync with how we want to live our lives, which is being present, slowing down and giving space to a child,” Edlow said.
Parenting expert Karyn Gordon said the RIE method has both its pluses and minuses. “I love the notion that they focus on independence and not rescuing, overindulging or spoiling a child,” Gordon told ABC News. “[But] this philosophy would say don’t interfere at all and let the kids figure it out and, to me, that is too extreme.”
Will this approach work in the Nigerian environment, given our notion of discipline is somewhat characterised by control?
Source: abc News
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Great!! I really love this approach to train babies or toddlers.please always keep me posted! Thnx a lot
Don’t interfere at all? That’s extreme oh.
I believe in the good old way of training children
That’s too extreme. .it defeats the biblical approach that says “Raise a child the right way so he never departs from it” you can’t let a child raise himself .yes it’s OK to instill independence in your child but it is very important to guide your child through it all.
I still believe in the ways of our mothers, we all turned out great you know, lol.
ok thanx mim