It’s my opinion people in the world are exposing their children to too much adult activities and allowing them to hear too much adult information during their early years; and it is causing them to be under pressure to grow up and to be like an adult. I know that I too, was in a denying mode as I raised my children. It’s because people are living in the fast-lane and don’t take the time to be in control of what their children are watching and seeing, hearing and learning.
Little girls rush to wear make-up and bras and boys slick or frizz their hair and wear baggy pants down to their knees like one of their idols on television. They look like adults walking around in grown-up bodies. I’ve seen young girls wearing make-up at an early age and have on an outfit looking like it belongs to an aged teenager this causes a terrible impact on children to be a grown-up. This pushes their age buttons too much and gives them a desire to be a grown up; and who’s doing it…we are?
Children that grow up too soon miss out on all their young childhood and it doesn’t offer them the time to grow and to mature mentally as they should. They never learn that child and playmate relationship because they feel they are too “grown-up.” They therefore feel like they have a mature and adult mind when they’re actually drowning in immaturity.
Children’s tiny antennas perk up when they hear mother and dad discussing many conversations and children are smart they hold onto every word of the information and keep it within to magnify and run through its contents when they’re alone. If parents discuss money and health issues, household and family problems, sexual happenings and other every day events, children soak it in like a sponge and many times they’ll go to bed at night and worry about the things they’ve heard their parents discuss.
I’m certain this happens because I had many restless nights as a child re-hashing what I’d accidently heard my parent discuss and if it was about money being scarce, I’d visualize all of the family in the poor-house behind bars looking out. Children will take something that maybe miniscule and magnify it into total disaster like I did.
Children who are exposed to alcohol, drugs, crime, abuse, violence, heavy petting and love making and sexual content are not educated in the proper adult manner; and if they’ve seen and experienced these type situations, they’ll tend to engage and act out these behaviors at an early age. Children have a tendency to copy parents and other adults and its best they’re not exposed to them. Don’t take me wrong parents are to socialize and live their adult lives but they should have a sitter for their children when they’re having an adult party where alcohol and foul language may take place.
It’s my opinion that children should never be in any activities where there’s alcohol, drugs, scantily dressed people, partying and having adult conversations that may not be censored and their talk is totally out of control; this should be for adults only, because children have a tendency to grasp all of the adult’s actions and to act accordingly.
If children are not exposed too many of the adult activities, they will not learn from them.
Parents can monitor what their children are watching, playing and listening to and allow them to know they’re there if they have questions about inappropriate content and behavior and that they’re there to discuss it with them.
If parents monitor the movies, Internet, and other content children are exposed to, they can greatly reduce the exposure their children are hearing and seeing. There needs to be a set and enforce limitation to what they watch and the amount of time. Parents can take advantage of the parental controls available on the Internet to reduce exposure to children. Parents can advise their children of the wrongful content they may receive but that they should question the validity of the content with their parents.
It’s important that children should hear from the parents about sex and other relationships because you are the “trusted” one in their life.
People we can root out a lot of the things our children are gathering from us and also the media and through personal friends. We can discuss life’s experience with them and trust that they will turn to us for answers instead of turning to movies, sexual photographs and other media.
It’s my firm belief, many problems in children’s lives happen because they’re exposed to adult actions.
Barbara Kasey Smith is the writer of this opinion and it is her view only. Barbara’s New Book Titled Jailbait is available through lulu.com; Amazon.com & Barnes & Noble.com – if you’re thinking of publishing a book for lower costs go to a real professional – http://publishingforless.webs.com.