Sarah explains why she does not believe in spanking in a well researched and chatty post entitled, A person’s a person no matter how small. She also answers some common arguments for spanking with counter arguments, which many will find helpful.
More about Teaching
The Hippie Housewife explains the Basics of Gentle Discipline, focusing on Teaching Skills which makes a great follow up to yesterday’s post on Teaching Babies. She offers skills to prepare babies and children for the future. As she explains:
These future-oriented solutions provide the child with skills that will be used throughout and beyond childhood. The focus is on developing the child’s own internal control rather than on managing behaviour through external control, thereby assisting the child in navigating life in a way that keeps their dignity intact.
She also links to some very helpful posts to provide background which I also recommend and have linked to in the past.
Note that this post is part of the 2012 Carnival of Gentle Discipline which you can find at the bottom of the post.
Abuse Without Hitting
Dulce de Leche features an anonymous testimony about the damage of emotional and mental abuse in But He Never Hit Her.
Is Your Parenting Based on Fear or Faith?
Carissa Robinson compares Fear-Based and Faith-Based Parenting. Which one one do you think glorifies God? Which one do you use?
For more help, check out this post by Pearl in Oyster (PIO) about how we can use our God-given hormones to help us parent better in Oxytocin and “Time In.”
Contemplating Gentle Discipline
Molly contemplates what Gentle Discipline means to her in Beyond The Ideas.
A Psychology Professor Critiques the Pearls’ Teachings
Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas has uploaded a video from FOX News in which “SMU Psychology Professor George Holden, who specializes in child-parent relationships and positive child rearing, talks critically about Michael and Debi Pearl’s book “To Train Up A Child,” which advocates spanking.” More information about Professor Holden here.
Gentle Parenting and Defiance
MamaPsalmist considers how hard it is to leave punitive spanking behind when a child is being defiant and if it is worth it in, Coming Out of Hiding.
Spiritual Roots
Dulce de Leche looks at the Spiritual Roots of discipline.
Does God Want Us To Break Their Wills?
Elizabeth Esther has a post which discusses the idea that Even God Does Not Break Our Will.
Along the same lines, The Wartburg Watch has reposted a letter from Bob Dixon explaining Why He Finally Left Sovereign Grace Ministries After 30 years.
Looking at Bill Gothard
Dulce de Leche has shared some memories of Bill Gothard’s seminars and how his teachings affected her during her formative years in, Peering Underneath the Umbrella: Musings on Gothardism. This is an exposé as well as a testimony as she gives us an inside look at Gothard’s teachings.
Speaking of Bill Gothard, E. Stephen Burnett has an interesting post at Quivering Daughters called, Bill Gothard and Patriarchy: Re-routed Feminism? which analyzes a quote from Bill Gothard about submission and looks at why so many of Patriarchy’s promoters are women.
Control
The Peaceful Housewife doesn’t like to be controlled. Do you? Most people don’t. 😉 It shouldn’t come as any surprise that our children don’t like it much either.
Meanwhile, Dulce de Leche explains a bit of what not controlling your budding chef looks like.
Bethany Breaks Free
Bethany Basset, of Coffee Stained Clarity, reflects on the sadness she feels at finding out that her high school friends are following the Pearls’ teachings.
I see that Bethany was raised in the VF/Patriarchy mindset. She posts her story in 5 parts:
The Preface: The Stuff of Brains
Part 1: The Net
Part 2: The Reality
Part 3: The Hope
Part 4: The Outcome
And she has an epilogue about parenting with grace here. I love a happy ending. <3
To Control a Child
Cultured Mama has written some very good arguments against the manipulative and dangerous teachings of Michael and Debi Pearl in To Control a Child. She also warns against Ezzo and Babywise and gives a lot of links for further research.