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Lisa Bolin 🌸's avatar

I love this and am a little sad it has to be said. The rushing to do chores means kids are missing out on really important exposure to the big wide world. I’m glad took my kids to the supermarket and markets. They’re both foodies now they’re adults ✨

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Jennifer Shonkoff's avatar

Exactly, Lisa! I love hearing that both of your kids have turned into foodies :)

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Whitney's avatar

I love the section on how the store is laid out and organized. I’m a librarian and am always looking for ways to explain how our school library works to students. Makes me think about the difference between a store, whose primary objective is to sell something, and a library, where the objective is more learning and exploration. Lots of food for thought (ha!)

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Jennifer Shonkoff's avatar

oh purpose definitely plays a role, but i’m curious if you feel the same way comparing a library to a book store? since they have the same function

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Anna Maija's avatar

Such great advice. Not just for younger children, either. As a parent of a newly diagnosed neurodiverse teen, I’m currently unlearning a lot of my parenting assumptions and started doing exactly what you describe - explaining the why. Social interactions are difficult anyway in puberty and encouraging our teen into ‘awkward’ situations like participating in extended family dinners or going out in a group from their extracurriculars is really important for skill building. (As long as it’s balanced out with caving in their room! 🫣)

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Jennifer Shonkoff's avatar

exactly! and in the pre-teen and teen stage it can be especially hard to decipher if it’s just the age or truly a challenge

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