Virtual learning freed my daughter from peer pressure and acting 'feminine'

The pandemic has allowed my eight-year-old daughter to take a break from a culture that was demanding she grow up too fast

Before New York’s mayor ordered public schools to go totally online in March, my daughter, M, was already dealing with a crisis that had begun at the start of second grade. Her teacher had introduced a points system – sort of like Yelp stars for kids – in which she awarded students points for things like remembering putting their bags away in their cubbies or paying attention during morning meetings. M came home upset almost every day. Because of her quixotic, day-dreaming nature, she had the least points in the class. Kids began teasing her for it.

School is a one-size coat meant to envelop kids of all shapes and sizes. For a lucky few, it is a perfect fit, but for others, it chafes and pinches, or feels so big and strange that they end up losing themselves in it. Elementary school has become fertile ground for problems I hadn’t expected to crop up until middle school: bullying, cliques, premature social media use, peer pressure to have crushes, girl drama, and more.

For online class, M doesn’t need to perform femininity by carefully curating her outfits

Continue reading...

from Children | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2HFE8K3