Emma Brockes wrote an interesting and personal piece about parenting in New York City. The title of the article is, “Say goodbye to the ‘tiger mom.’ Welcome to the school of jellyfish parenting.” In the essay she essentially discusses breaking free from the parental overinvestment in extracurricular activities.
Tiger moms, or tiger parenting, is that strict model of parenting. The one where the parents are more than highly invested in the success of their children. Essentially the parents take it upon themselves to micromanage the children in an attempt to guarantee the child’s success.
Jellyfish parenting, according to Brockes, is essentially the exact opposite of tiger parenting. Like a jellyfish, the parent style is more free flowing. If the kid wants to try an activity try it. If, however, after a few weeks the kid loses interest in said activity there is no shame in dumping it.
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