needing some advice
kimhoussenloge
My son, Lewi is 7. At the moment he has a real fascination for, and
interest, in knives. As much as I possibly can I have been nurturing
this interest. I'm finding it difficult though because of the safety
issues involved. He likes the look of sharp blades and is interested
in what they're used for. He constantly admires the ones in our
kitchen drawers and gets them out and puts them on our bread boards
to look at.I'm very present with him when he's handling the knives
and have given lots of info about how to handle them safely etc.
There are a couple of things that concern me. One is the reactions
I'm getting from others who aren't understanding why he'd be
interested in something like a knife. They have alot of fear about it
(which I totally understand) and have questioned him and me about
why the interest is there. The other is my concern for his safety and
the safety of others if he happens to show them the knives. I trust
that he won't do anything dangerous with them on purpose and again,
I'm very present when this is happening, but am worried nonetheless,
that an accident could happen. Not sure where my boundaries need to
be with it all. I've talked to him about the inportance of not
walking around with them etc and that the drawer is a really safe
spot for them unless we're cutting up vegies etc with them.
He also desperately wants to purchase big types of knives -at the
moment it's a machette. We've had lots of discussion about this, and
that will continue. I'm really feeling like I need to say no to alot
of these sorts of things though because of his age. We've been into
the King Of Knives store (while we were in Sydney) and he found a
sword letter opener that he wants to buy. This would be safe as it's
not really sharp. We're talking about getting a small pocket knife as
well. My dad has found him an antique scythe that he's going to hang
up on his wall in his room and we've been to Allens and got a nice
new knife set for the kitchen which includes a meat cleaver
(something he's loved for awhile now). I'm feeling like I'm doing as
much as I can to help him get what he needs but the machette etc
feels like it's way too much at the moment. He's very upset about my
decision and my saying no to it. I guess I just needed to hear what
some of your thoughts are on this and whether I could handle this in
a much better way.
thanks so much
Kim
interest, in knives. As much as I possibly can I have been nurturing
this interest. I'm finding it difficult though because of the safety
issues involved. He likes the look of sharp blades and is interested
in what they're used for. He constantly admires the ones in our
kitchen drawers and gets them out and puts them on our bread boards
to look at.I'm very present with him when he's handling the knives
and have given lots of info about how to handle them safely etc.
There are a couple of things that concern me. One is the reactions
I'm getting from others who aren't understanding why he'd be
interested in something like a knife. They have alot of fear about it
(which I totally understand) and have questioned him and me about
why the interest is there. The other is my concern for his safety and
the safety of others if he happens to show them the knives. I trust
that he won't do anything dangerous with them on purpose and again,
I'm very present when this is happening, but am worried nonetheless,
that an accident could happen. Not sure where my boundaries need to
be with it all. I've talked to him about the inportance of not
walking around with them etc and that the drawer is a really safe
spot for them unless we're cutting up vegies etc with them.
He also desperately wants to purchase big types of knives -at the
moment it's a machette. We've had lots of discussion about this, and
that will continue. I'm really feeling like I need to say no to alot
of these sorts of things though because of his age. We've been into
the King Of Knives store (while we were in Sydney) and he found a
sword letter opener that he wants to buy. This would be safe as it's
not really sharp. We're talking about getting a small pocket knife as
well. My dad has found him an antique scythe that he's going to hang
up on his wall in his room and we've been to Allens and got a nice
new knife set for the kitchen which includes a meat cleaver
(something he's loved for awhile now). I'm feeling like I'm doing as
much as I can to help him get what he needs but the machette etc
feels like it's way too much at the moment. He's very upset about my
decision and my saying no to it. I guess I just needed to hear what
some of your thoughts are on this and whether I could handle this in
a much better way.
thanks so much
Kim
Meredith
--- In [email protected], "kimhoussenloge"
<kimlewismark@...> wrote:
in adult tools - its part of how they learn about the world, after
all. If these doubters in your life would be more reassured by
schoolish methods, you might want to look into some Montessori
resources which recommend teaching children as young as 3 to handle
knives.
They're really great for cutting brush, if they're sharp. Its
helpful to have someone who knows how to use it to show you what to
do - how to slash away from the body, rather than down towards the
legs.
How physical is your guy in general and what's his "body sense"
like? Some kids are really coordinated and have the ability and
sense to be careful - even when doing complex and dangerous things.
That's a much more important factor than age. My mom managed to sew
through her finger tip on a sewing machine, once, but I've helped
several young children over the years use sewing machines without
mishaps.
Is he more interested in doing useful things with knives etc,
or "fighting" with them? If its the latter, is he interested in
taking lessons of some kind or joining a club?
---Meredith (Mo 5.5, Ray 13)
<kimlewismark@...> wrote:
>> There are a couple of things that concern me. One is thereactions
> I'm getting from others who aren't understanding why he'd beit
> interested in something like a knife. They have alot of fear about
> (which I totally understand) and have questioned him and me aboutWhy wouldn't he be interested in knives? Kids are often interested
> why the interest is there.
in adult tools - its part of how they learn about the world, after
all. If these doubters in your life would be more reassured by
schoolish methods, you might want to look into some Montessori
resources which recommend teaching children as young as 3 to handle
knives.
> He also desperately wants to purchase big types of knives -at theand
> moment it's a machette. We've had lots of discussion about this,
> that will continue. I'm really feeling like I need to say no toalot
> of these sorts of things though because of his age.Is there something in particular he wants to use a machette for?
They're really great for cutting brush, if they're sharp. Its
helpful to have someone who knows how to use it to show you what to
do - how to slash away from the body, rather than down towards the
legs.
How physical is your guy in general and what's his "body sense"
like? Some kids are really coordinated and have the ability and
sense to be careful - even when doing complex and dangerous things.
That's a much more important factor than age. My mom managed to sew
through her finger tip on a sewing machine, once, but I've helped
several young children over the years use sewing machines without
mishaps.
Is he more interested in doing useful things with knives etc,
or "fighting" with them? If its the latter, is he interested in
taking lessons of some kind or joining a club?
---Meredith (Mo 5.5, Ray 13)
Cece
I know Im rarely on here but I just thought I would comment.I have 4
sons and all of them have had a pocketknife by the time they were
6.The reason is the fascination that knives seem to have on kids.I
found my firstborn in the backyard with a huge kitchen knife when he
was five.I needed to come up with a good solution so they wouldnt
feel the need to steal a kitchen knife and hide with it.I buy them
one of those cool Swiss army knives with all the tools on it.They had
a few safety rules that I had to remind them of every now and again.I
showed them how to use it and watched them from the corner of my eye
to make sure they used the knife correctly..But seriously no bad
accidents ever.Aside from that first cut finger.I did have to make a
rule no open bladed knives till they were older.Couldnt find an
option for that one.My middle son has a whole collection of knives
now and even some nice swords.
The only stitches we ever had was when one of my sons decided to use
a razor blade to make a mini teepee and it slipped..But lesson
learned and only 5 stitches.
My sister inlaw went ballistic when I bought her son a pocketknife
for his 8th birthday.He loved though(LOL)..
--- In [email protected], "kimhoussenloge"
<kimlewismark@...> wrote:
sons and all of them have had a pocketknife by the time they were
6.The reason is the fascination that knives seem to have on kids.I
found my firstborn in the backyard with a huge kitchen knife when he
was five.I needed to come up with a good solution so they wouldnt
feel the need to steal a kitchen knife and hide with it.I buy them
one of those cool Swiss army knives with all the tools on it.They had
a few safety rules that I had to remind them of every now and again.I
showed them how to use it and watched them from the corner of my eye
to make sure they used the knife correctly..But seriously no bad
accidents ever.Aside from that first cut finger.I did have to make a
rule no open bladed knives till they were older.Couldnt find an
option for that one.My middle son has a whole collection of knives
now and even some nice swords.
The only stitches we ever had was when one of my sons decided to use
a razor blade to make a mini teepee and it slipped..But lesson
learned and only 5 stitches.
My sister inlaw went ballistic when I bought her son a pocketknife
for his 8th birthday.He loved though(LOL)..
--- In [email protected], "kimhoussenloge"
<kimlewismark@...> wrote:
>nurturing
> My son, Lewi is 7. At the moment he has a real fascination for, and
> interest, in knives. As much as I possibly can I have been
> this interest. I'm finding it difficult though because of thesafety
> issues involved. He likes the look of sharp blades and isinterested
> in what they're used for. He constantly admires the ones in ourit
> kitchen drawers and gets them out and puts them on our bread boards
> to look at.I'm very present with him when he's handling the knives
> and have given lots of info about how to handle them safely etc.
>
> There are a couple of things that concern me. One is the reactions
> I'm getting from others who aren't understanding why he'd be
> interested in something like a knife. They have alot of fear about
> (which I totally understand) and have questioned him and me aboutand
> why the interest is there. The other is my concern for his safety
> the safety of others if he happens to show them the knives. I trustnonetheless,
> that he won't do anything dangerous with them on purpose and again,
> I'm very present when this is happening, but am worried
> that an accident could happen. Not sure where my boundaries need toand
> be with it all. I've talked to him about the inportance of not
> walking around with them etc and that the drawer is a really safe
> spot for them unless we're cutting up vegies etc with them.
>
> He also desperately wants to purchase big types of knives -at the
> moment it's a machette. We've had lots of discussion about this,
> that will continue. I'm really feeling like I need to say no toalot
> of these sorts of things though because of his age. We've been intoit's
> the King Of Knives store (while we were in Sydney) and he found a
> sword letter opener that he wants to buy. This would be safe as
> not really sharp. We're talking about getting a small pocket knifeas
> well. My dad has found him an antique scythe that he's going tohang
> up on his wall in his room and we've been to Allens and got a niceas
> new knife set for the kitchen which includes a meat cleaver
> (something he's loved for awhile now). I'm feeling like I'm doing
> much as I can to help him get what he needs but the machette etcmy
> feels like it's way too much at the moment. He's very upset about
> decision and my saying no to it. I guess I just needed to hear whatin
> some of your thoughts are on this and whether I could handle this
> a much better way.
>
> thanks so much
>
> Kim
>
[email protected]
In a message dated 6/8/2007 9:34:39 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
meredith@... writes:
My mom managed to sew
through her finger tip on a sewing machine, once, but I've helped
several young children over the years use sewing machines without
mishaps.
I stapled through my finger with a mini stapler once.
I remember wanting to shave my legs when I was a young teen. I kept asking
my mother, but she kept telling me I was "too young". I remember wondering how
thick the hair on my legs had to get before I was "old enough", but I got
tired of waiting, so I snuck my mom's disposable razor and started shaving my
legs dry. I didn't know to use anything as a lubricant/barrier and it didn't
occur to me until that first draw up my leg that there would be hair in the
razor. I was pretty certain I shouldn't go again without cleaning the hair off,
and having no experience with razor blades, I took a square of toilet paper,
laid it over my finger and wiped the blade sideways. Ouch. Luckily, I was
well-versed in nursing my own wounds by that point and since I *was* often in
need of Neosporin and band-aids, my mother didn't think to ask any questions.
Come to think of it, I made lots of mistakes sneaking things I wanted to do
but wasn't *allowed*....
Peace,
Sang
************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
meredith@... writes:
My mom managed to sew
through her finger tip on a sewing machine, once, but I've helped
several young children over the years use sewing machines without
mishaps.
I stapled through my finger with a mini stapler once.
I remember wanting to shave my legs when I was a young teen. I kept asking
my mother, but she kept telling me I was "too young". I remember wondering how
thick the hair on my legs had to get before I was "old enough", but I got
tired of waiting, so I snuck my mom's disposable razor and started shaving my
legs dry. I didn't know to use anything as a lubricant/barrier and it didn't
occur to me until that first draw up my leg that there would be hair in the
razor. I was pretty certain I shouldn't go again without cleaning the hair off,
and having no experience with razor blades, I took a square of toilet paper,
laid it over my finger and wiped the blade sideways. Ouch. Luckily, I was
well-versed in nursing my own wounds by that point and since I *was* often in
need of Neosporin and band-aids, my mother didn't think to ask any questions.
Come to think of it, I made lots of mistakes sneaking things I wanted to do
but wasn't *allowed*....
Peace,
Sang
************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Pamela Sorooshian
He might be interested in martial arts - especially a martial art
that involves a lot of weapon use. That might be really satisfying to
him - they'll use rubber knives as well as other weapons. My 16 yo
daughter teaches karate, and the young boys your son's age really do
love the weapons a lot. Don't worry, it isn't at all unusual. Give
him the gift of your trust and confidence and help, just as you are
doing, but maybe without the undertone of concern that there is
something wrong with this interest. There isn't.
-pam
that involves a lot of weapon use. That might be really satisfying to
him - they'll use rubber knives as well as other weapons. My 16 yo
daughter teaches karate, and the young boys your son's age really do
love the weapons a lot. Don't worry, it isn't at all unusual. Give
him the gift of your trust and confidence and help, just as you are
doing, but maybe without the undertone of concern that there is
something wrong with this interest. There isn't.
-pam
On Jun 7, 2007, at 11:42 PM, kimhoussenloge wrote:
> My son, Lewi is 7. At the moment he has a real fascination for, and
> interest, in knives.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Krisula Moyer
>>>There are a couple of things that concern me. One is the reactionsI'm getting from others who aren't understanding why he'd be
interested in something like a knife.<<<
------------------------------------------------------------
As I write this I feel like a little old cartoon lady "<voice cracking> Why,
when I was a girl... "
Maybe I'm the only one but I remember that when I was little (in the 70's) -
seven was a very typical age for a kid to learn how to whittle. It was
common for 7, 8, 9 yo's to have their own pocket knife or Swiss army knife
to whittle sticks. By the time kids were 10,11, 12 the interested ones
could make cool stuff. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised to hear that it
isn't common any more.
Krisula
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Pamela Sorooshian
Knives were a normal thing for kids to have when I was little (I'm 55
now). Kids commonly had pocket knives - little girls and boys had
them and carried them around.
Nowadays, even accidentally having a table knife means automatic
expulsion from school. A kid at our neighborhood school had been
helping his grandmother move and a table knife had fallen out of a
box of his grandmother's stuff. He was expelled for having a knife on
campus. There was a big hoopla over it, but his family lost because
the school district had a zero tolerance rule.
-pam
now). Kids commonly had pocket knives - little girls and boys had
them and carried them around.
Nowadays, even accidentally having a table knife means automatic
expulsion from school. A kid at our neighborhood school had been
helping his grandmother move and a table knife had fallen out of a
box of his grandmother's stuff. He was expelled for having a knife on
campus. There was a big hoopla over it, but his family lost because
the school district had a zero tolerance rule.
-pam
On Jun 8, 2007, at 7:04 AM, Cece wrote:
> My sister inlaw went ballistic when I bought her son a pocketknife
> for his 8th birthday.He loved though(LOL)..
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Meredith
--- In [email protected], Pamela Sorooshian
<pamsoroosh@...> wrote:
automatic suspension. If we hadn't pulled him out when we did he had
planned to bring a whole bunch in with him. I was just glad he had
condoms....
---Meredith (Mo 5.5, Ray 13)
<pamsoroosh@...> wrote:
>> Nowadays, even accidentally having a table knife means automaticHeck, at the school my stepson attended having a *condom* meant
> expulsion from school.
automatic suspension. If we hadn't pulled him out when we did he had
planned to bring a whole bunch in with him. I was just glad he had
condoms....
---Meredith (Mo 5.5, Ray 13)
Kim H
<<<Maybe I'm the only one but I remember that when I was little (in the 70's) -
seven was a very typical age for a kid to learn how to whittle. It was
common for 7, 8, 9 yo's to have their own pocket knife or Swiss army knife
to whittle sticks. By the time kids were 10,11, 12 the interested ones
could make cool stuff>>>
What a great idea! I'll put that idea to Lewi. Maybe we can find someone who can show us how to do it.
Thanks so much
Kim
seven was a very typical age for a kid to learn how to whittle. It was
common for 7, 8, 9 yo's to have their own pocket knife or Swiss army knife
to whittle sticks. By the time kids were 10,11, 12 the interested ones
could make cool stuff>>>
What a great idea! I'll put that idea to Lewi. Maybe we can find someone who can show us how to do it.
Thanks so much
Kim
----- Original Message -----
From: Krisula Moyer
To: [email protected]
Sent: Saturday, June 09, 2007 3:30 AM
Subject: [AlwaysLearning] Re:needing some advice
>>>There are a couple of things that concern me. One is the reactions
I'm getting from others who aren't understanding why he'd be
interested in something like a knife.<<<
----------------------------------------------------------
As I write this I feel like a little old cartoon lady "<voice cracking> Why,
when I was a girl... "
Maybe I'm the only one but I remember that when I was little (in the 70's) -
seven was a very typical age for a kid to learn how to whittle. It was
common for 7, 8, 9 yo's to have their own pocket knife or Swiss army knife
to whittle sticks. By the time kids were 10,11, 12 the interested ones
could make cool stuff. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised to hear that it
isn't common any more.
Krisula
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Nicole Willoughby
My 16 yo
daughter teaches karate, and the young boys your son's age really do
love the weapons a lot. Don't worry, it isn't at all unusual. >>>>>
It isnt just boys :) my 7 year old dd is constantly using a knife to strip bark off sticks and such. She loves looking at swords with her daddy , darts and other shiny, sharp pointy objects :)
She also wants a sling shot. Im about to look online ...you used to be able to just go into a toy store and buy one what happened??
Nicole
---------------------------------
You snooze, you lose. Get messages ASAP with AutoCheck
in the all-new Yahoo! Mail Beta.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
daughter teaches karate, and the young boys your son's age really do
love the weapons a lot. Don't worry, it isn't at all unusual. >>>>>
It isnt just boys :) my 7 year old dd is constantly using a knife to strip bark off sticks and such. She loves looking at swords with her daddy , darts and other shiny, sharp pointy objects :)
She also wants a sling shot. Im about to look online ...you used to be able to just go into a toy store and buy one what happened??
Nicole
---------------------------------
You snooze, you lose. Get messages ASAP with AutoCheck
in the all-new Yahoo! Mail Beta.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Sandra Dodd
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whittling
http://www.whittling.com/
Australian pages (maybe):
http://www.desiquintans.com/whittle
http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com.au/showthread.php?t=707
Maybe it's a more American thing, and I don't know what kind of local
wood would be good, but here people just use soft pine or any old
sticks, or practice on soap (as Diana mentioned).
Sandra
http://www.whittling.com/
Australian pages (maybe):
http://www.desiquintans.com/whittle
http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com.au/showthread.php?t=707
Maybe it's a more American thing, and I don't know what kind of local
wood would be good, but here people just use soft pine or any old
sticks, or practice on soap (as Diana mentioned).
Sandra
Kim H
<<Give him the gift of your trust and confidence and help, just as you are
doing, but maybe without the undertone of concern that there is
something wrong with this interest. There isn't.>>
Thank you so much , Pam for the reassurance. I know there's nothing wrong with his interest. It's hard when others have those undertones around him though. I need to just be assertive and say straight out (when someone says something) that this is OK and it's normal and he's not going to be an axe-murderer LOL! But, seriously I think that's what some people are worrying about - he must want to kill something or someone to be interested in something like knives. It reminds me of something someone's said on the list recently, just because they're into TV doesn't mean they're going to want to watch horror and violence; and just becasue they like magazines doesn't mean they're going to want to read porn.
Thanks so much it's helped me find my voice again.
Kim
doing, but maybe without the undertone of concern that there is
something wrong with this interest. There isn't.>>
Thank you so much , Pam for the reassurance. I know there's nothing wrong with his interest. It's hard when others have those undertones around him though. I need to just be assertive and say straight out (when someone says something) that this is OK and it's normal and he's not going to be an axe-murderer LOL! But, seriously I think that's what some people are worrying about - he must want to kill something or someone to be interested in something like knives. It reminds me of something someone's said on the list recently, just because they're into TV doesn't mean they're going to want to watch horror and violence; and just becasue they like magazines doesn't mean they're going to want to read porn.
Thanks so much it's helped me find my voice again.
Kim
----- Original Message -----
From: Pamela Sorooshian
To: [email protected]
Sent: Saturday, June 09, 2007 3:10 AM
Subject: Re: [AlwaysLearning] needing some advice
He might be interested in martial arts - especially a martial art
that involves a lot of weapon use. That might be really satisfying to
him - they'll use rubber knives as well as other weapons. My 16 yo
daughter teaches karate, and the young boys your son's age really do
love the weapons a lot. Don't worry, it isn't at all unusual. Give
him the gift of your trust and confidence and help, just as you are
doing, but maybe without the undertone of concern that there is
something wrong with this interest. There isn't.
-pam
On Jun 7, 2007, at 11:42 PM, kimhoussenloge wrote:
> My son, Lewi is 7. At the moment he has a real fascination for, and
> interest, in knives.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Kim H
Thanks Meredith for your great advice.
<<How physical is your guy in general and what's his "body sense"
like? Some kids are really coordinated and have the ability and
sense to be careful - even when doing complex and dangerous things.
That's a much more important factor than age>>
Lewi's coordination in terms of throwing things and his awareness of people around him when he's got a long stick etc is still developing. So I do feel concerned about a machette for that reason alone. But maybe I could find someone who has one who could spend some time with him showing him how to use it and practicing abit for awhile.
He doesn't really want it for anything other than the look. That's what he keeps saying anyway. I'm sure though that he'd love to cut long grass etc too because he loves to do that with the gardening implements we have (it's darn helpful too! LOL).
Thanks again
Kim
<<How physical is your guy in general and what's his "body sense"
like? Some kids are really coordinated and have the ability and
sense to be careful - even when doing complex and dangerous things.
That's a much more important factor than age>>
Lewi's coordination in terms of throwing things and his awareness of people around him when he's got a long stick etc is still developing. So I do feel concerned about a machette for that reason alone. But maybe I could find someone who has one who could spend some time with him showing him how to use it and practicing abit for awhile.
He doesn't really want it for anything other than the look. That's what he keeps saying anyway. I'm sure though that he'd love to cut long grass etc too because he loves to do that with the gardening implements we have (it's darn helpful too! LOL).
Thanks again
Kim
----- Original Message -----
From: Meredith
To: [email protected]
Sent: Friday, June 08, 2007 11:33 PM
Subject: [AlwaysLearning] Re: needing some advice
--- In [email protected], "kimhoussenloge"
<kimlewismark@...> wrote:
>> There are a couple of things that concern me. One is the
reactions
> I'm getting from others who aren't understanding why he'd be
> interested in something like a knife. They have alot of fear about
it
> (which I totally understand) and have questioned him and me about
> why the interest is there.
Why wouldn't he be interested in knives? Kids are often interested
in adult tools - its part of how they learn about the world, after
all. If these doubters in your life would be more reassured by
schoolish methods, you might want to look into some Montessori
resources which recommend teaching children as young as 3 to handle
knives.
> He also desperately wants to purchase big types of knives -at the
> moment it's a machette. We've had lots of discussion about this,
and
> that will continue. I'm really feeling like I need to say no to
alot
> of these sorts of things though because of his age.
Is there something in particular he wants to use a machette for?
They're really great for cutting brush, if they're sharp. Its
helpful to have someone who knows how to use it to show you what to
do - how to slash away from the body, rather than down towards the
legs.
How physical is your guy in general and what's his "body sense"
like? Some kids are really coordinated and have the ability and
sense to be careful - even when doing complex and dangerous things.
That's a much more important factor than age. My mom managed to sew
through her finger tip on a sewing machine, once, but I've helped
several young children over the years use sewing machines without
mishaps.
Is he more interested in doing useful things with knives etc,
or "fighting" with them? If its the latter, is he interested in
taking lessons of some kind or joining a club?
---Meredith (Mo 5.5, Ray 13)
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Kim H
<<I buy them one of those cool Swiss army knives with all the tools on it.>>
Thanks for this suggestion and your reassurance that all's normal in our world. I'm definitely going to get Lewi a Swiss army knife. ASAP.
kim
Thanks for this suggestion and your reassurance that all's normal in our world. I'm definitely going to get Lewi a Swiss army knife. ASAP.
kim
----- Original Message -----
From: Cece
To: [email protected]
Sent: Saturday, June 09, 2007 12:04 AM
Subject: [AlwaysLearning] Re: needing some advice
I know Im rarely on here but I just thought I would comment.I have 4
sons and all of them have had a pocketknife by the time they were
6.The reason is the fascination that knives seem to have on kids.I
found my firstborn in the backyard with a huge kitchen knife when he
was five.I needed to come up with a good solution so they wouldnt
feel the need to steal a kitchen knife and hide with it.I buy them
one of those cool Swiss army knives with all the tools on it.They had
a few safety rules that I had to remind them of every now and again.I
showed them how to use it and watched them from the corner of my eye
to make sure they used the knife correctly..But seriously no bad
accidents ever.Aside from that first cut finger.I did have to make a
rule no open bladed knives till they were older.Couldnt find an
option for that one.My middle son has a whole collection of knives
now and even some nice swords.
The only stitches we ever had was when one of my sons decided to use
a razor blade to make a mini teepee and it slipped..But lesson
learned and only 5 stitches.
My sister inlaw went ballistic when I bought her son a pocketknife
for his 8th birthday.He loved though(LOL)..
--- In [email protected], "kimhoussenloge"
<kimlewismark@...> wrote:
>
> My son, Lewi is 7. At the moment he has a real fascination for, and
> interest, in knives. As much as I possibly can I have been
nurturing
> this interest. I'm finding it difficult though because of the
safety
> issues involved. He likes the look of sharp blades and is
interested
> in what they're used for. He constantly admires the ones in our
> kitchen drawers and gets them out and puts them on our bread boards
> to look at.I'm very present with him when he's handling the knives
> and have given lots of info about how to handle them safely etc.
>
> There are a couple of things that concern me. One is the reactions
> I'm getting from others who aren't understanding why he'd be
> interested in something like a knife. They have alot of fear about
it
> (which I totally understand) and have questioned him and me about
> why the interest is there. The other is my concern for his safety
and
> the safety of others if he happens to show them the knives. I trust
> that he won't do anything dangerous with them on purpose and again,
> I'm very present when this is happening, but am worried
nonetheless,
> that an accident could happen. Not sure where my boundaries need to
> be with it all. I've talked to him about the inportance of not
> walking around with them etc and that the drawer is a really safe
> spot for them unless we're cutting up vegies etc with them.
>
> He also desperately wants to purchase big types of knives -at the
> moment it's a machette. We've had lots of discussion about this,
and
> that will continue. I'm really feeling like I need to say no to
alot
> of these sorts of things though because of his age. We've been into
> the King Of Knives store (while we were in Sydney) and he found a
> sword letter opener that he wants to buy. This would be safe as
it's
> not really sharp. We're talking about getting a small pocket knife
as
> well. My dad has found him an antique scythe that he's going to
hang
> up on his wall in his room and we've been to Allens and got a nice
> new knife set for the kitchen which includes a meat cleaver
> (something he's loved for awhile now). I'm feeling like I'm doing
as
> much as I can to help him get what he needs but the machette etc
> feels like it's way too much at the moment. He's very upset about
my
> decision and my saying no to it. I guess I just needed to hear what
> some of your thoughts are on this and whether I could handle this
in
> a much better way.
>
> thanks so much
>
> Kim
>
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Kim H
<<Knives were a normal thing for kids to have when I was little (I'm 55
now). Kids commonly had pocket knives - little girls and boys had
them and carried them around>>
I guess it's like so many things these days, parents not letting kids climb trees or explore or use the stove, or ...use knives. The dangers of life seem so much in the forefront for the way our society now thinks.
Thank goodness we unschool!
Kim
now). Kids commonly had pocket knives - little girls and boys had
them and carried them around>>
I guess it's like so many things these days, parents not letting kids climb trees or explore or use the stove, or ...use knives. The dangers of life seem so much in the forefront for the way our society now thinks.
Thank goodness we unschool!
Kim
----- Original Message -----
From: Pamela Sorooshian
To: [email protected]
Sent: Saturday, June 09, 2007 3:32 AM
Subject: Re: [AlwaysLearning] Re: needing some advice
Knives were a normal thing for kids to have when I was little (I'm 55
now). Kids commonly had pocket knives - little girls and boys had
them and carried them around.
Nowadays, even accidentally having a table knife means automatic
expulsion from school. A kid at our neighborhood school had been
helping his grandmother move and a table knife had fallen out of a
box of his grandmother's stuff. He was expelled for having a knife on
campus. There was a big hoopla over it, but his family lost because
the school district had a zero tolerance rule.
-pam
On Jun 8, 2007, at 7:04 AM, Cece wrote:
> My sister inlaw went ballistic when I bought her son a pocketknife
> for his 8th birthday.He loved though(LOL)..
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
diana jenner
On 6/8/07, Nicole Willoughby <cncnawilloughby@...> wrote:
Wall Drug -- Tourist Trap Extraordinare! It was made from stick that had
been split halfway and pried into a *Y*, which led to amazing conversations
(how'd they do that?!?) that may not have happened if we had found a plastic
one :)
The best rubber band and potato guns are also easily found at touristy
places (maybe because more parents are willing to *give in* to these
requests while on vacation??). Who'da thunk?
--
~diana :)
xoxoxoxo
hannahbearski.blogspot.com
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>We had a really hard time finding a slingshot, too!! We happened upon one at
> She also wants a sling shot. Im about to look online ...you used to be
> able to just go into a toy store and buy one what happened??
>
>
>
Wall Drug -- Tourist Trap Extraordinare! It was made from stick that had
been split halfway and pried into a *Y*, which led to amazing conversations
(how'd they do that?!?) that may not have happened if we had found a plastic
one :)
The best rubber band and potato guns are also easily found at touristy
places (maybe because more parents are willing to *give in* to these
requests while on vacation??). Who'da thunk?
--
~diana :)
xoxoxoxo
hannahbearski.blogspot.com
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Schuyler
When I was looking at airsoft guns I found a lot of slingshots, at least on
UK sites. Maybe you can find slingshots in toy arms internet sites in the US
as well?
Schuyler
www.waynforth.blogspot.com
UK sites. Maybe you can find slingshots in toy arms internet sites in the US
as well?
Schuyler
www.waynforth.blogspot.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "diana jenner" <hahamommy@...>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, June 08, 2007 10:45 PM
Subject: Re: [AlwaysLearning] needing some advice
> On 6/8/07, Nicole Willoughby <cncnawilloughby@...> wrote:
>>
>> She also wants a sling shot. Im about to look online ...you used to be
>> able to just go into a toy store and buy one what happened??
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> We had a really hard time finding a slingshot, too!! We happened upon one
> at
> Wall Drug -- Tourist Trap Extraordinare! It was made from stick that had
> been split halfway and pried into a *Y*, which led to amazing
> conversations
> (how'd they do that?!?) that may not have happened if we had found a
> plastic
> one :)
> The best rubber band and potato guns are also easily found at touristy
> places (maybe because more parents are willing to *give in* to these
> requests while on vacation??). Who'da thunk?
> --
> ~diana :)
> xoxoxoxo
> hannahbearski.blogspot.com
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
Ed Wendell
Our son got a sling shot at Wal-Mart in the sporting goods section this year - they had ones of various strength - we had to actually buy it / pay for it as he was not 18 - or some such older age yet. Same with his air soft and then BB gun. Though he has had "toy" sling shots all along this would be considered a "real" one from the sporting department.
Lisa W.
She also wants a sling shot. Im about to look online ...you used to be able to just go into a toy store and buy one what happened??
.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Lisa W.
She also wants a sling shot. Im about to look online ...you used to be able to just go into a toy store and buy one what happened??
.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]