What Would Jo & Tootie Say?
I am sure that many of you remember The Facts of Life TV show that ran in the mid-to late 80s. One of the characters on that show was Blair…real-life name Lisa Whelchel. After viewing VH1s Where Are They Now, I now know that Lisa is a born-again and spends a lot of her time testifying around the country. I have no problem with that…even if I totally do not get the born-again thing.
However, she has started to spend some time dipping into writing books about parenting. Her book is titled, Creative Correction. seriously…
The following are a list of bon mots that Ms. Whelchel recommends:
(this list and the editorials are copied from faboomama)
–blindfolding children for an hour if they roll their eyes
–handcuffing quarreling siblings together
–putting quarreling siblings outside, whether it’s 30 degrees or 100 degrees
–making a child wear boxing gloves all day long for hitting; they are not to be removed for eating; as if this isn’t enough torture, she recommends videotaping the child trying to eat popcorn with the boxing gloves. This might be appropriate in the context of a family game night, but not in the context of humiliation and punishment.
–burning a few of the child’s toys if a child is caught playing with matches (what about putting the matches out of reach or doing some standard fire-safety education?)
–pinching a child’s tongue with a clothespin for disrespect
–pouring hot sauce on a child’s tongue
–saying “no to reasonable requests such as ‘may I go to the bathroom’” in the name of keeping children on their toes in terms of obedience
–restraining a one year old in a car seat if the child won’t stay in time out (time out is not appropriate for one year olds to begin with, and, with any child, if time out is not “working,” change your strategy– don’t restrain them!)
–making children stand in the center of the room for a long period of time if they are resisting bedtime (”make it tough” she says)
–making a child close the door quietly, like 100 times, for slamming a door
I think Dr. Sears might have a heart attack if he read this book.
SORRY HANKERS, no Creative “psycho” Correction for YOU!
Is the book for real? How sad if it is. One would hope parents would find more positive ways to teach/train their children. I’ve learned that empathy and logical consequences do more to correct behavior in children than anything negative. Plus, empathy preserves the relationship.
Also, if you do not feed the child, they have no energy to be a problem. I think “Blair” was angry about being an orphan (EVERYONE MUST PAY!)
Blair went bananas eh? I heard about this tripe she was feeding to parents. I guess all of that hair net she used back in the 80’s clouded her judgement and made her into a sadistic kidhater.
Oh Blair, what happened? Is she raising kids or training puppies?