News, Work May Not Be Best for Young Kids. (teaching, baby, parents)

[JD59]

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 25 (HealthDay News) -- A new study suggests it's possible that too much work might turn a youngster into a juvenile delinquent.


Researchers found that fifth-graders who worked the most at jobs such as baby-sitting and newspaper routes were the most likely to smoke, drink and get into fights.

Work May Not Be Best for Young Kids (http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20090226/hl_hsn/workmaynotbebestforyoungkids;_ylt=AhZNof3EU7YfofIB QddBnxzgcbYF - broken link)

[Connecticut Pam]

Ok....who wrote this ridiculous article in the magazine you listed or quoted from? The only hint of what this is all about that I got was that now we have to be afraid, very afraid if our kids get ahold of money they have earned because they "all become juvenile delinquents"???? OMG...stop me from crawling through this computer. When did all the parenting responsibilities go down the tubes when it comes to your kids working?? When your kids work, then it is time for parents to teach them how to save their money, spend, and pay their bills. How do I know?? Here we go so hang on:

I was alone raising my son when he was 11 years old. He was in the 7th grade to be exact, turning 12 that fall. We had just left his Dad and we BOTH needed to find some kind of work..he wanted a paper route as he had one in Maine he loved. It was 1981 so rents were a lot cheaper back then but we still had to have food, pay utilities, needed clothing..all the normal stuff. I found a job clearing $150.00 a week and our rent was $200.00 a month. My ex only had to send $50.00 a week according to the court system so..........my son found his paper route and turned his money in to me WILLINGLY. That Christmas, he bought our first Christmas tree...an artificial one that we put up well before the holidays, I think on Thanksgiving. He was so proud he could help out.

By the time my son was 16 and in High School, although he played Football and was on the Track Team, he also worked part time at McDonald's. In between his hectic schedule, I took him to the bank for his very own first checking account then TAUGHT him how to use it. He saved most of his money but did insist on paying his own phone bill....we had his own phone installed so he could do that. This is called teaching your children responsibility. Yes, maybe because I was alone with him he felt some responsibility but he was far from a Juvenile Delinquent when he was doing his paper route at age 11 and 12...and...I know many, many of his friends who also worked young and have turned out ok.

Again, the deal here is the parents have to GET INVOLVED with their kids. You can't expect a child to grow straight and tall with a sense of values unless you are smart enough yourself to instill that sense of values in them to begin with.

What a ridiculous article that was.