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There is a degree of sheltering that should be enforced, but too much sheltering is not wise. You have to be clear what is right and what is wrong and set up rules and boundries that keep them from doing wrong. But at the same time you have to give your kids more privilages and responsibilities as the grow or you will never prepare them for life. As they grow able to do something, such as clean the dishes, the should be responsible with helping in that area. Also, if they are able to look both ways and safely cross the street, they should be privleged to automaticly be allowed to cross the street. This way, slowly, the child gets more privleges as well as more responsibilities just as you have as an adult, so the child ends up being more adult. I guess you can put it, if you treat them like an adult, they will act like an adult. Does that make sense?

I agree. 3nodding

I think sheltered is when you don't know kind of naive, but if you know what's out there and don't go out and expierience it then most of the time that's good judgement on the part of your parents

well growing up homeschooled is pretty sheltered, but i would have to wadger i ve been more sheltered than most of even my homeschool buddies. I mean i cant go to any of my friends homes before my parents meet their parnts, i cant even log on the internet without them putting in the password cuase they wont give it to me they time me when i drive home from school to make sure there's no detures and basically ruined everyfriendship i have!! I understand sheltering because youliove your kids but sometimes there's just too much!!!!!!!!!! eek

believe me i tried but my dads a cops cop and that just complicates everything so much more, im just thankful they dont homeschool me theres only so much one can take!

my parents try to shelter me; private school, censoring my stuff, stuff like that. but it doesn't work. half the things i see or listen to are not censored. the people at private schools aren't any nicer than the kids at public schools. too sheltered is people at age 13 who don't know what masturbation is. like my friend.

why should a 13y/o know what masturbation is? I didn't know at that age and I was in public school, I guess its that obvious that I was sheltered and I am grateful for it.

I have revisited this topic because now I am going to be a mother and I have some hard choices ahead of me. there are many levels of sheltering and I am def going to shelter my child. I look at the way I was raised and consider the benefits and the defects. Raising my child will have to be a balance of protecting them while teaching and preparing them for the world. I won't be letting my daughter go to friends' houses if I dont know their parents(or that they even have parents)... but I wont let my child find out about sex through some school health ed class either. I plan to talk to my child about everything they need to talk about and when the time comes (that is when I feel they are responsible enough) they will get priviliges and my trust.

the change from my parents is that they never talked to me or made me feel I could trust them. also they didnt trust that they raised me well enough to know better and held onto me for a bit too long (course if they talked to me they would have known when it was safe to let go)

I agree that sheltered children tend to rebel. but that is because any child placed under rules rebels. I had this discussion with my friend who is also christian but has never rebelled. I say thats cuz her parents let her do anything she wanted... they never said, no you cant pierce yuor tongue or have a bf or anything(well they had some rules of course and shes rebelled against them, only they were smaller less noticeable things like sneaking out/in the house). but bcuz her parents never set rules on the major issues her faith is very lax and she does not see anything wrong with a lot of things ppl do, like homosexuality, abortion, drinking, tattoos or piercings.

well I wont raise my daughter to be a lukewarm christian. I want her to know the TRUTH because God does not ask for us to give a piece of ourselves or to just give ourselves on sunday. He desires all of us, fully and only for Him.

My daughter will have to make her own choices and her own mistakes. I think that almost everyone goes out to the world to get a taste of it at some point in their lives, some for all of their lives. but if I allow my daughter to grow up in the world she will grow confused anf be without a proper guide of the way things should be. a day may come when she will leave the church regardless(Ive had my days, almost everyone has) but the bible says to raise a child in the way they should go and when they get older they will not depart from it. I know that even while i was in rebellion I had the knowledge of what was wrong and right, I knew that where I belonged was in God's arms and that always brought me back to Him. I plan to teach my daughter how to trust in God and that she can trust me too. and especially that if she ever strays too far home, God and I will be waiting for her to come back.