re: Re: Cleaning up and other kid issues
From: mosss (mosssmscd.edu)
Date: Tue, 13 Jun 95 09:34 CDT
In response to David Mandel's queries about the expert mess-makers in the 
under-10 crowd (I have two of these aces myself):

At Nyland, we use the kids room (in the common house) for childcare during 
the week so we have a schedule for parents cleaning up the room daily to be 
ready for the next day. The room is locked with the key above the door ledge 
so it is handy for adults and only the more creative kids. Adults frequently 
unlock it and leave for a spell so often it is not clear which children are 
most responsible for the mess. Fortunately, an ethos to err on the side of 
neaten-up-anyway has developed. Parents try to round up the most likely 
"suspects" and help them straighten out the room. If the infamous "nobody" is 
around, parents tend to do it themselves. I have several times had the 
wonderful experience when it is my night to clean to arrive to a room that 
someone has already neatened up. At Nyland, at least on this issue, the 
attitude seems to be exert some energy for your fellow parent and the favor 
will be returned at some later date.

Since we live in a very safe environment, locking up has not been a problem. 
If an adult is not directly supervising children in the kids room, there is 
an implicit understanding that whoever let them in is responsible. When my 
wife and I cook for the community together, it is next to impossible to not 
leave our kids in the kids room by themselves for short periods of time. Like 
most parents, we do frequent checks. Then we have the added fun of cleaning 
the kitchen and the kids room!

As to the toy gun debate: we have a plethora of water squirting devices in 
the hands of kids ages 6-11. Although many of us wince at the idea of our 
kids playing with guns, moderately supervised play with some clear ground 
rules has made it nearly palatable, e.g., no ganging up on one kid, avoid the 
face, stop when a kid says stop, etc.

The debate will rage on...

Former lurker,

Steven Moss

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