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From: rwh@aesat.UUCP (Russ Herman)
Newsgroups: net.kids
Subject: Re: Telling the Truth
Message-ID: <351@aesat.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 27-Feb-85 22:38:55 EST
Article-I.D.: aesat.351
Posted: Wed Feb 27 22:38:55 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 28-Feb-85 06:40:19 EST
References: <160@ski.UUCP>
Organization: AES Data Inc., Mississauga, Ont., CANADA L5N 3C9
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A good topic! We're starting off with our 3-1/2 yr. old on a tack suggested
by his receiving a tape of "Pinocchio" as a gift from someone. When we catch
him in a intentional fib, we simply smile and respond "Joel, I think your
nose is growing", and let it go at that. He knows that we know, and that,
we believe, is sufficient for now. I mean, if we can convince him that we're
omniscient, we won't have to worry about him trying to lie to us :-).

Seriously, I think it's important NOT to lie to a kid. Even if Joel is
going to undergo something unpleasant or painful, we'll warn him that
it will hurt. Not days before he's going to experience it, mind you;
there's no need to get him all worked up. We keep our promises to him
too, which means we don't make any rash ones just to shut him up. Looking
back on my own childhood, the thing I most disliked about my parents was
their tendency to hypocracy (not that I think they were any worse than
99% of the population in this regard).  I'm not going to replicate that
in my parenting.
-- 
  ______			Russ Herman
 /      \			{allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!aesat!rwh
@( ?  ? )@			
 (  ||  )			The opinions above are strictly personal, and 
 ( \__/ )			do not reflect those of my employer (or even
  \____/			possibly myself an hour from now.)