Friday, July 21, 2006

There's always the temptation to think of projects like the Nation Parenting Programme as something for inadequate parents, but the truth is that all parents need a few tips to help them with the most difficult and important job they will ever have.

Our children's world is very different from the one past generations grew up in, and this is especially true on Cayman Brac and Little Cayman.

The problems faced by kids today include a whole range of drugs and situations new to their generation, including such monsters such as date rape drugs and while there have always been sexual predators - never before on the Internet.

With a computer in many homes today, Internet access allows our children to find out information at the speed of light, not all of it to their parents' liking, and they very quickly become expert in a world that adults have a hard time adjusting to.

Parents are told they must talk to their children about their lives and the problems they might face, but to do that, it's important to catch up with what some of those problems might be.

Through the NPP, the Government and community leaders are offering an avenue to parents to get up to speed, and after the summer break, the Brac Committee have promised more presentations for parents and guardians.

Everyone who is involved with raising any child on this Island should make an effort to attend these meetings. As well as the pitfalls, there are more opportunities out there today and parents need to do all they can to help their children take advantage of them.

Back...