Helicopter Parents - a Guest Post

This was an essay that my 12 year old daughter, Amanda, did for extra credit for one of her junior high classes. She got an A.

Is your parent overprotective? Are your parents overly concerned with your safety? If so, then chances are, you have a helicopter parent. A helicopter parent is a parent who is way over protective; a parent who won’t let you do anything without them or a trusted person. Do you think it is good or bad to have a helicopter parent?

It’s understandable for a parent to want their child safe. No parent wants anything bad to happen to their child. Some parents go too far in protecting their child. Some children need a lot of protecting, and some need their space. The metaphor started from a book written by Dr. Haim Ginott. In the book a teen complains that her mother hovers over her like a helicopter, meaning that her mother never lets her do what she wants and is always looking after her.

It’s not that great to have a helicopter parent. When you have this type of parent, you won’t be able to do a lot of things that other kids can. Your life will revolve around your parents. If you have a helicopter parent when you are younger, it will effect your future. In the future you might not be able to make your own choices because you never learned how to as a kid. The president of Frost State University, Jonathan Gibralter, has gone through situations where parents call his office about their child’s roommate. He has said, “rather than telling their son or daughter to talk to a [resident assistant] or [resident director], parents will immediately call my office. And that I consider to be a little over the top.” The parents who have called were all helicopter parents to their child when they were younger.

Yes, being a helicopter parent to a child can prevent your child from getting hurt, or from not making mistakes, but making mistakes is healthy. If you never make mistakes or get things wrong, you will never learn. You can’t learn how to problem solve if your parents are always problem solving for you. If you never get hurt you won’t know what to do or how to react when you do get hurt. If your child doesn’t have a bump or a bruise once in a while they won’t know that it’s no big deal. Parents can hurt their child with helicopter parenting more than they would get hurt without it.

In conclusion, being a helicopter parent can damage your kids future and live. Kids won’t be able to do things on their own. A lot of children just need their space. By making sure you don’t get hurt you aren’t learning anything new. Just remember, next time you want to hang out with your friends or want to go to a school dance, tell your parents, “Don’t be overprotective, don’t be so worried, don’t be a helicopter parent.”

 

I have to say… I do NOT consider myself a helicopter parent. At all. From my kids’ perspective… they might see things a little differently. We all think our parent’s hover too much. Just part of being a kid.