Helicopter parents hover over every aspect of their child’s life. They may feel the need to make sure their child does not face any risk or failure. Yet children learn by taking risks.
But this can be confusing for parents – how can you tell if you are just being protective or if you have gone too far?
Take, for example, a child who is learning to climb a tree. A helicopter parent will anxiously hover around telling the child to “be careful”.
Then there are parents who get too involved in their child’s activities. They might do their child’s homework or argue with teachers over poor grades.
Kids need to learn to do things for themselves. And they need to learn by taking some risks and making mistakes. If they aren’t given these chances, when will they grow up? It can get to the point where kids become so reliant on their parents doing things for them that they can’t make decisions for themselves.
The bottom line is, be aware of what you’re doing. Eventually you will learn to be more relaxed about how you monitor your child. You will get used to keeping an eye on your kids while also giving them space to grow.