At What Age?
by Dr. Marian C. Fritzemeier, Ed.D.
At what age will you allow your children to DECIDE...
the condition of their bedroom?
the clothes they wear?
what television shows they view?
the music they listen to?
the movies they see?
the friends they choose?
how often they use their phone & texting?
what they do on their computer, IPod & other
electronics?
when they do their homework?
the classes they take at school?
whether to attend church with you?
how they spend their money?
who they date & when?
where to work?
where they will live?
what career they'll choose?
In the
last article, Dependence to Independence, the analogy of your children being
100% dependent on you at birth and becoming 100% independent from you as they
launch into young adulthood, is the foundation to these questions. Is your
nine-year-old making 50% of his/her daily decisions? Is your 12 1/2 year-old
making 75% of his/her decisions? Of course, this isn't an exact formula, but
the key question is, How are you
intentionally allowing your child to make increasingly more choices? I
realize this concept is frightening, but it is even more frightening to launch
a young person into today's secular world not possessing the life-skills,
responsibility, and decision making abilities to make God honoring choices
throughout adulthood. It's your privilege & responsibility to decide how
you will train up your sons and daughters in the way they should go (Proverbs
22:6).
© 2012
Coming soon: Decision Making & Choices; Skills for Independent
Living; Responsibility and Privileges.
Dr. Marian Fritzemeier, Ed.D. is a Child Development & Education
Specialist with extensive years teaching early childhood education and child
development at the high school and community college levels. She is also an
author & popular speaker on numerous parenting and adolescent topics. To
schedule Marian for your next event or class series, contact her at
209.596.4111 or drfritzemeier@gmail.com.
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