Jo Frost warns modern parents about children lacking life skills
Global parenting expert Jo Frost, known as 'Supernanny,' discusses the alarming trend of modern parents inadvertently disadvantaging their children. She highlights how prioritizing convenience over development leads to a lack in basic life skills among children.
UK TV personality Jo Frost isn't afraid to make parents uncomfortable by calling out parenting mistakes she says are hurting children.
Frost, known for starring in the reality television show "Supernanny," recently went viral after posting a video on social media calling attention to parenting techniques she says are preventing children from learning to be resilient.
In an Instagram clip that was widely shared online, Frost said she's noticed a troubling pattern emerging in the families she works with, where parents are enabling their children to be dependent instead of teaching them to be independent.
"Supernanny" star Jo Frost called out parenting mistakes she says are preventing children from developing resilience and independence. (monkeybusinessimages via Getty Images)
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"And I don't see that lightly...children who are capable but not being taught," she began.
"We’re keeping children in strollers who should be walking, climbing, and building strength," she said in the video. "We’ve got four-year-olds still using dummies [pacifiers] when they were only ever meant to be a short-term aid. Seven-year-olds who can’t brush their teeth properly without an electric toothbrush. Eight-year-olds who can’t sit at a table and use a knife and fork. Nine-year-olds who don’t basically understand bathroom hygiene, and I find myself asking, when did we stop teaching these life skills?"
During an appearance on "Fox & Friends" on Friday, Frost explained why she felt compelled to speak out on the issue.
"SuperNanny" host Jo Frost called out modern parenting mistakes in a viral video. (David Livingston/Getty Images)
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She explained that she receives emails every day from parents who say their kids are struggling to accomplish "basic life skills" because of enabling parents.
"You have to allow them to struggle a little bit," she said. "We don't want to raise a generation where there is fragility and resilient, because they have become dependent on their parents doing everything for them."
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Instead of relying on "quick-fix" conveniences, she said parents should work toward reaching "long-term goals" to make their children into strong and capable adults.
Jo Frost encouraged parents to have kids contribute to the family and learn basic life skills. (iStock)
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For young children, she said, parents should go back to the basics to foster independence in their children in areas like hygiene, table manners, tying their own shoelaces, and doing chores. She also urged parents to take their kids outside to ride bikes, run and play.
"I understand modern life is busy, but this isn’t about time; it’s about intention," Frost also advised in her Instagram video. "Because every time we step in and do it for them or avoid teaching because it’s slower, messier, or inconvenient, we take away an opportunity for them to become capable, and children want to feel capable."
