Do You Know About the Mama Rules?

“Parents make decisions for their children based on what they know, what they feel will make them safe and it’s not in our place to say what they do is wrong. It is our place to say maybe we can add a set of rules that they don’t know about.” Rita Pierson

It’s true that some parents are more extreme than others in the way they raise their children, they tell or allow them to do things that should make one wonder (fighting, not getting homework done, stealing, bullying, cheating for tests, use of strong words, aggression, etc.). At the long run, these things put the children in a displeasing situation at school. So, what do you do when a child says, but my mum knows about it or my dad says I should do that anytime…?

“How can your mummy tell you that? This is my class and you will do as I say, go back home and tell your mummy I said so.” How do you like that statement? Thinking back at one time I must have said it, what I ask myself now is, “Would I have handled the situation differently?” My answer is “yes.”

I have grown to understand that a parent is the hero/heroine of his/her child. It is wrong to express ill feelings by words or actions to a child about his/her parents. By doing so, you are disrespecting the authority of the child’s parents over him/her. Wisdom must be applied in dealing with parental rules.

However, it is in your place to make the parents understand that the personal rules they have set for their child contradict with that of the school. Rita Pierson suggests that you could help parents identify the loop holes in their rules and offer to help in modifying them.What do you think about this  point of view?

Nancy and Hawah are playing, suddenly Emeka comes to them uninvited and begins to call them funny names. They tell him to stop but he wouldn’t; Nancy cries  while Hawah is enraged. Hawah slaps and punches him while he throws punches back as well. The matter is investigated and Hawah says her father had told her to fight anyone who tried to bully her. How would you handle this situation?