Capitalist Kids Learn Quickly
On a recent hot day several folks in our neighborhood were outside doing yard work, washing cars and playing with their kids.
Two budding businessmen about 7 or 8 years old came down the street pulling a ice chest in a red wagon, stopping long enough to ask those who are drenched with sweat if they want to buy a soda pop for 25 cents.
At the house next door to us the boys became thrilled when the neighbors offered them double their price, buying two sodas for $1. So I followed suit, offering the boys 50 cents for a soda.
As they moved on to their next potential customers, all smiles with the money they made, one boy said, “I guess Dad had a good idea after all.”
* Dude, you need help. A California-based company that treats troubled youth offers 10 warning signs to parents that their teenager might need help. Among them: substance abuse, defiance toward authority, trouble in school, depression, confrontational or aggressive behavior and friendships with problem-plagued teens. Thanks, I never would have guessed that Junior’s hangovers and thugs for friends were signs of a problem.
* Another reason to envy your baby. As if an infant’s life didn’t already sound wonderful — sleeping for several hours each day and night, eating whenever you’re hungry, having people tend to your every need — there’s a new product out that will definitely make you jealous. Baby hammocks. They hook on the sides of the crib and cradle babies, keeping them on their backs (the recommended sleeping position) and feeling secure and cozy.
* Surviving the first day. Readers of the Families page offered these tips for helping a child cope with the first day of school:
“A few weeks before school begins, arrange your child’s schedule to match the schedule he or she will follow when school begins (bedtimes, meals and wake times). Show your child EXACTLY where he or she will be picked up and by whom. A child’s biggest fear on the first day of is that he or she will be forgotten at school. Be on time. — Gail Jessett, kindergarten teacher, Roosevelt Elementary.
“Tell the preschooler/kindergartener that you will not leave until he or she give you the OK to go. This method allows the child to be in control of something on this very stressful day. All the kids we used this method with gave us the nod within a few minutes.” — Gayle Goodman, Miami Fla.
“I always took my children into the classroom the day before school started so they could meet their teacher, see where they were going to sit and become familiar with the setting. I always said something positive on the way home. One year I remember telling my son, ‘Wow, not only is your teacher very nice but she’s pretty too. You’re going to have a great year.’ Years later this same son told me how much he appreciated me doing that for him.” — Vicki Powell, Deer Park