Parenting Techniques From Around The World
There is no one "correct" way to raise children despite what the parenting books might say. It's common to have that experience of going over to a friend's house during childhood and being shocked by how different their parents acted compared to yours.
Further outside your own neighborhood or country, parenting techniques differ even more from what we're used to in ways that can seem absurd. These are some of the most shocking parenting techniques that are totally normal in other parts of the world.
Finnish Children Spend Less Time In The Classroom
While homework is barely existent and they have longer holiday breaks than most students worldwide, Finnish children rank amongst the smartest on a global level: they are consistently near or at the top of rankings for math, science, and literacy.
However, Finnish students start school later than most children in first-world countries at age seven. Prior to starting school, children are expected to play and be active while exercising creativity.
Scandinavian Children Are Put Outside For Naps
Even in sub-freezing weather, Scandinavian babies are bundled up, put in the stroller, and rolled outside to sleep unattended.
Parents believe in the concept of "friluftsliv" ("open-air living") and use the practice in hopes that exposure will help the babies grow up to be healthier and more resistant to disease in adulthood.
Childcare Isn't Restricted To Parents In Parts Of Africa
In many parts of Africa, entire extended families take on the responsibilities involved in raising a child, with even some non-relatives helping out with childcare and parenting.
In The Democratic Republic of Congo and parts of Kenya, it's not unusual for mothers to share breast milk with other people's children.
Chinese Babies Are Ahead Of The Curve On Potty Training
Tired of changing diapers all the time? Chinese parents clearly are because they start potty training with their offspring as early as a few months old.
Babies are taught to relieve themselves into the toilet on command at the sounds of a parent's whistle. Many kids are fully potty trained by the age of two.
Swedish Parents Treat Children As Equals
The relationship between parents and their children is quite egalitarian in Sweden. Parents and children generally have equal rights within a family in contrast to the hierarchal parent-child relationships prominent in most of the world.
Children are encouraged to express their opinions, are treated like adults in situations involving conflict, and participate in making family decisions.
Japanese Parents Let Their Children Have Independence At A Young Age
In Japan, children as young as six years old are allowed to walk to school and run errands without adult supervision. The country has very low crime rates and parents expect others in the community to help look after their children, even in bustling cities like Tokyo.
Children also clean up after themselves and first-grade Japanese students help sweep and mop their classrooms.
It's Okay To Let The Children Be Hungry In South Korea
In South Korea, eating is taught to children as a life skill. Similarly to other cultures, young kids are taught that food is best enjoyed as a communal experience and the value of waiting out their hunger until the entire family is ready to sit down and eat together.
Compared to American culture where snacking is totally normal, South Koreans don't believe that it's healthy to graze throughout the day.
Italian Children Drink Wine With Their Parents
In Italy, wine is deeply embedded into the culture and considered a regular, everyday drink. Adults aren't the only ones at the table pouring a glass of red though. Italian parents will also serve their children wine with dinner.
Before you boo them, a Boston University study showed that Italian children who were raised with wine at dinnertime were less likely to develop harmful drinking patterns in adulthood.
Polynesian Children Are In Charge Of Childcare
In Polynesian culture, adults will take care of children during their early months. However, once a child is able to walk, they are turned over to the care of other children around them.
Toddlers tend to become self-reliant and independent much sooner than most children worldwide because they're forced to catch up with their older peers.
Take Candy From Strangers In Chile
How many times have you been told not to take candy or objects from strangers on the street? It's a cultural norm here to be worried about "stranger danger", but that's not the case in Chile.
In Chile, giving treats to children is seen as a sign of affection. Parents who try to decline on their children's behalf will have a group of strangers try to convince them that the child needs a treat..
Children Live Separate From Their Family At Age 5 In Mountainous Peru
In some rural Peruvian communities who live at high altitude in the Andes Mountains, it's standard for the parents of young children in the community to send their five-year-old children to live together away from the family on the other side of a mountain for several months.
Before you freak out, these children and their parents can quickly maneuver the mountains, and are less than an hour's walk from help if needed.
Co-Sleeping With Babies Is Common In Serbia and Japan
In the U.S., there's been a lot of debate about whether babies and young children should sleep with parents or separated. In Japan and Serbia, children often sleep with their parents from birth until they are ready to go to school.
Co-sleeping is believed to be nurturing and create a better sense of well-being in young children.
Australian Aboriginals Send Their Male Children To Live In The Wild For Months
In Australian Aboriginal society, "Walkabout" is a rite of passage during which males ages 10-16 undergo a journey and live in the wilderness for a period of time up to as long as six months.
The time away is supposed to help them undergo the spiritual and traditional transition from childhood to manhood.
French Children Eat The Same Meals As Parents
The children's menu in France isn't packed with chicken nuggets and mini pizzas the way it is here. French kids are raised to be sophisticated eaters, and parents feed them the same nutritious, balanced meals with complex taste palettes and flavors that they would also feed themselves or other adult guests.
Gap Years Are Common Outside Of North America
In the United Kingdom and many other countries outside of North America, it's been a very normalized tradition for students to take a year off between the end of high school and the start of university or college.
A 2017 study showed that 230,000 people between the ages of 18 and 25 took a year off from school to travel abroad, work, or volunteer.
Irish Parents Let Their Kids Do The Stupid Thing
Parents always want the best for their kids and sometimes that can cause us to hover to protect them from getting hurt or upset. However, Irish parents tend to be much more relaxed and won't stop their children from making mistakes that might lead to them getting a little hurt or upset.
Parents believe these mistakes are important to learning patience, resilience, and better decision-making skills in the future.
Germans Are Paid To Parent
That's right: German parents get a monthly payment from the government called "Kindergeld". Parents receive about €200 per child each month depending on the number of children in the family to help pay for food, diapers, toys, and other parenting needs.
Parents are paid Kindergeld until their child is 18. If the child doesn't have a job at 18, the parents are paid until the child is 21 (or 25 if they are students).
Spanish Children Have Late Bedtimes
Life in Spain generally seems to take place later than elsewhere and childcare is no different. With the average dinnertime starting around 9-10 p.m., Spanish parents don't want their kids—even small children—to miss out on family events and nightlife. As a result, children aren't put to bed until after 10 p.m. on most days.
Obligation Takes Precedence Over Independence In China
In America, children gain more independence from their families as they get older, but the opposite occurs in many cultures. In many East Asian countries, family obligation is emphasized over independence as children age.
A study showed that, by parents reminding them of their responsibility to the family and the expectation that their hard work in school is one way to pay back a little for all they have received, Chinese adolescents do better in school.
Looks Matter At A Young Age In Mexico
In Mexico, schools are very involved in a child's grooming habits and physical presentation. Parents commonly receive teacher's notes from school if their children have uncombed hair that isn't properly styled with product.
Schools even have a segment of students' report cards with a line dedicated to "personal hygiene" grading.
