Millennials may have adopted new parenting techniques as an “improvement” over what they received from their own parents. However, some of these don’t sit right with older generations, especially boomers. We’ve compiled 19 that are too woke for comfort.
Gender-Neutral Parenting
Many millennial parents refuse to impose gender roles on their children, choosing instead to allow them to pick their genders later in life. According to the BBC, they do this with the belief that it allows children to live in a freer and more inclusive environment. However, boomers see this as confusing, preferring clear-cut distinctions from birth instead.
Gentle Parenting
In a bid to be more respectful and empathetic to children, millennials now adopt a gentle parenting style. They focus on understanding the feelings of children and imposing discipline through discussions. However, as we learn from the Independent, this is different from the authoritarian, rigid style boomers preferred, and it can also make parents feel confused, exhausted, and even ashamed.
Positive Reinforcement
Also, rather than focusing on punishment, millennials put more effort into rewarding good behavior. While this positive reinforcement, as it’s called, can encourage good behavior and improve self-esteem, boomers see it as too lenient or as a technique that could potentially end with everyone having spoiled children.
Helicopter Parenting
Constant supervision and involvement in every aspect of a child’s life, known as helicopter parenting, baffle boomers who value independence. They believe in giving children more freedom to learn from their mistakes, seeing this approach as overprotective and stifling their natural development.
Screen Time Management
Millennials meticulously monitor and limit their children’s screen time, fearing negative developmental impacts. Boomers find this excessive and recall their own childhoods with ample TV time and outdoor play. They believe kids need less restriction and more free playtime to develop creativity and social skills.
Participation Trophies
Millennials’ tendency to give out participation trophies to avoid hurt feelings annoys boomers. They think it dilutes the value of true achievement and hard work. To them, not everyone should get a reward just for showing up, as it undermines the concept of earning success.
Emotional Validation
Millennials emphasize validating their children’s emotions, teaching them to express feelings openly and constructively. Some boomers, however, having been raised with a “toughen up” mentality, view this as overindulgent and unnecessary. They think kids should learn to manage their emotions independently and not rely on constant affirmation.
Non-Traditional Education
Boomers are also skeptical of millennials’ enthusiasm for alternative education methods like unschooling or Montessori. They believe in traditional schooling’s structure and discipline, feeling these newer approaches lack academic rigor and proper socialization. Boomers worry about children’s future readiness in a conventional workforce.
Organic and Vegan Diets
Millennials often impose strict organic or vegan diets on their kids, focusing on health and ethics. Boomers see this as unnecessary and overly controlling, recalling their own childhoods with varied diets. They think children should enjoy a variety of foods, including those they grew up with, without dietary restrictions.
Co-Sleeping
Co-sleeping, where parents share a bed with their children, is frowned upon by boomers. They worry about safety and independence, believing children should sleep in their own beds to learn self-reliance and avoid potential attachment issues at an early age. The New York Post also shares that there’s a downside to this because it could strain the relationship between parents, too.
Minimalist Toys
Millennials’ preference for minimalist toys, focusing on quality over quantity and avoiding overstimulation, seems odd to boomers. They remember childhoods filled with diverse toys and think this minimalist approach limits creativity, fun, and the ability to explore varied interests through different types of play.
Encouraging Emotional Expression
Millennials encourage their children to express emotions freely, valuing open communication and emotional intelligence. Boomers, who were taught to keep feelings private, see this as overemphasizing emotions and unnecessary. They worry it makes children overly sensitive and less resilient to life’s inevitable challenges.
Flexible Bedtimes
Boomers also find millennials’ flexible approach to bedtimes chaotic and disruptive. They believe in strict schedules for children’s routines, seeing consistent bedtimes as crucial for discipline, good sleep habits, and overall health. Flexibility in bedtime, like The Conversation shares, only makes children sleep at progressively later times and have an “even more delayed wake time.”
Technology as Learning Tools
Millennials embrace technology for education, using tablets and apps for learning and development. Boomers, skeptical of screen time’s benefits, prefer traditional books and face-to-face teaching methods. They think kids rely too much on gadgets and miss out on essential interpersonal interactions.
Avoiding Conflict
Millennials often shield their children from conflicts, aiming for peaceful resolutions through dialogue. Boomers, who dealt with disputes directly, see this as avoiding reality and fostering avoidance behavior. They believe kids should learn to handle disagreements head-on to build resilience and negotiation skills.
Diverse Friendships
Encouraging diverse friendships, millennials promote inclusivity and cultural awareness from an early age. Boomers, who had less diverse social circles, sometimes see this as forced and artificial. They feel friendships should develop naturally without a deliberate focus on diversity, ensuring genuine connections.
Involved Fathers
Millennial dads are more involved in childcare than previous generations, sharing responsibilities equally with mothers. Some boomers, used to traditional gender roles, find this shift surprising and unnecessary. They believe fathers should focus on providing while mothers handle childcare, adhering to the roles they grew up with.
Negotiating Rules
Millennials also often negotiate rules with their kids. And by doing this, as we learn from Harvard, they believe “you’ll allow your child to express their views and listen better, and you will likely improve your relationship and communication.” Boomers see this as undermining authority, believing children should follow rules to learn discipline and respect.
Privacy Respect
We also see millennials respect their children’s privacy, giving them space to develop individually and make their own choices. Boomers, who had less personal privacy growing up, find this approach overly lenient and potentially risky. They believe parents should have more control and insight into their children’s lives to guide them effectively.
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