Are you "Anxious Parents"?

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-30-2006
Are you "Anxious Parents"?
1765
Wed, 11-15-2006 - 8:24am

Today's MSN News features this article

Sabina

Oh, life is a glorious cycle of song,

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iVillage Member
Registered: 01-13-2006
Mon, 11-20-2006 - 11:06pm
i dont think it helps dismiss the stereotype. the girls on my dds cheer team have to have a b average to be able to compete, much more strict than the grade average for any other school athelete. they are expected to promote their sport within the community by holding clinics for younger girls. they are expected to do x numbers of community service per year. they are expected to attend as many school related functions as possible. they are bright well spoken girls who represent the school they love
Jennie
iVillage Member
Registered: 01-12-2004
Tue, 11-21-2006 - 1:21am

I am only aware of one neighbor that the situation happened to. The school used the child's emergency contact list and found someone to pick her up. Not surprisingly, it just doesn't happen that often. Parents know what the school's policy is and they make sure that the child is met at the bus stop.

Robin

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-12-2004
Tue, 11-21-2006 - 1:32am

This is what bothers me about it! Why call it cheerleading if it isn't associated with a team??

Robin

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-13-2006
Tue, 11-21-2006 - 2:59am
ever been around high school wrestling. personally i have not but wrestling is very big around here and so i have sevearl friends whose sons are big in wrestling. you want to talk about losing weight, those boys will literally starve themselves to get inot whatever weight class they feel they iwll be most successful in. i have a friend whose 14 year old son over teh last couple of weeks would hardly eat and the last two dys before weigh in fasted to make sure he made the weight class he wanted, and now he has to keep the weight off to stay there. our cheerleaders wear there hair 11 different ways, that is the number of girls on the team, teh only requirement is that it be pulled back off teh neck and out of the face. as to makeup, they wear very little because they would just sweat it off. these are hardworking high school atheletes, not the dallas cowboy cheerleaders - the two have about as much in common as a cheerleader adn a ballet dancer. in fact the only similarity is the name
Jennie
iVillage Member
Registered: 05-09-2006
Tue, 11-21-2006 - 7:08am

<>

You've obviously never seen Bring It On. ;)

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-27-2005
Tue, 11-21-2006 - 8:12am
I think there are less kids in my area now too that hang out in the streets but I know it is still out there.
I totally think there are alot of parents on this board who are too lax. I don't know if it is just they don't want to bother and they want to be the "cool" parent. While I don't think you should be anxious about everything and everywhere your children go, you can't think that everything they are doing is good. Do they honestly think their children are going to come directly out and tell that they tried drugs, drinking, stealing, sex, etc? I doubt it very much.
iVillage Member
Registered: 06-30-2006
Tue, 11-21-2006 - 9:27am
Questions of whether or not cheerleading is a legitimate sport or whether it's about performance or competition are beside the point. According to some media coverage and even some posters here, certain aspects of cheerleading can sometimes involve objectification of young girls. YMMV, of course.

Sabina


Sabina

Oh, life is a glorious cycle of song,

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-30-2006
Tue, 11-21-2006 - 9:39am
Even if you're right, it makes no difference if kids are in some remote way being exploited. I tried hard to find media coverage of parents who were concerned about costumes, makeup or suggestive routines in gymnastics or ballet, but no luck.

Sabina


Sabina

Oh, life is a glorious cycle of song,

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-30-2006
Tue, 11-21-2006 - 9:45am
I didn't bring up wrestling, because I agree with you that it has nothing to do with cheerleading.

Sabina


Sabina

Oh, life is a glorious cycle of song,

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-30-2006
Tue, 11-21-2006 - 9:52am

I'm not sure what it means to say it doesn't dismiss the stereotype. Did you read the link I posted? When parents are concerned about inappropriateness on cheer teams their kids are on, are they basing that on a stereotype, or are they telling it like it is? Can they all be mistaken?

To point out that certain things sometimes happen isn't the same as creating a stereotype. Why bring up your personal experience if others' personal experience doesn't count?

Sabina


Sabina

Oh, life is a glorious cycle of song,

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