Dear Parents and Guardians:
By now everyone should have heard that Mr. Andrew Matteo has been appointed to the position of principal here at Central School staring July 1, 2010. We are all pleased and proud of Andrew’s selection. If the staff and parents give half of the support that has been given me, it’ll be great.
We are well underway in replacing the windows here at Central. The third floor is near completion. The gym and auditorium are completed. If you’re in the building stop by and check them out.
I recently read an article on comedian Jerry Seinfeld that gave something to think about in raising our children. He has three children ages 4 to 9 and here are his thoughts:
Seinfeld works hard not to be too indulgent. He bemoans the way some parents cater to their children’s every whim. Seinfeld has three rules of parenting, what he calls ”the poison P’s”. The first is Praise – “We tell our kids, ‘Great job!’ too much, “he says. The second is Problem –solving –“We refuse to let our children have problems. Problem solving is the most important skill to develop for success in life, and we for some reason can’t stand it if our kids have a situation that they need to “fix”. Let them struggle – it’s a gift.
Just as he’s explaining the third P- “giving your child too much Pleasure” – a woman comes in the deli with her three young daughters and buys them all huge cookies. “Can you believe this?” Seinfeld says, gesturing like his TV counterpart used to. “It’s 5:30 p.m. – when will they have dinner? At 8?”
So why does he think we treat our kids like that? His eyes light up. “Do you want to hear my latest theory?” he asks. “It’s a little far-fetched.” He leans in and explains how children today aren’t as innocent as they used to be. “We feel so guilty for destroying that innocence –which is what we did- so we’re now trying to repair that by creating perfect childhoods for our children.” He laughs, but he’s serious at the same time. “The reason we overdo it so much is because we feel
so bad about it.”
Seinfeld also believes that it is best to teach children by example. “Kids are not going to do what you tell them to do or think like you tell them to think,” he says. “Kids are watching how you deal with that waiter or that handyman, and they are probably more like to imitate you.”
This time he wasn’t joking!
There is a Lincoln Assembly for all grades on Friday, February 19, 2010 at 10:00 p.m. in the auditorium.
Mr. D
Vito D'Alconzo