5 THINGS GERMAN PARENTS NEVER DO 🇩🇪 Parenting the German way

If you hear a german speaking in baby voice it's most likely to the dog 😂

German parent here: All points are true. I did babytalk to my baby. But since she is a toddler I just talk to her and I try to talk in a slow and calm voice with good pronunciation and as many different words as possible, but also breaking down complicated explanations into easy to understand sentences. And yes it is because she is currently learning how to speak and I want her to learn proper pronunciation and as many words as possible.

Always remember the why. If you explain kids why they can't do this or why they must do that, it will glide down much easier. As soon they understand why, they will do it/or not do it. It is completely natural that they need it explained, they are studying to become an adult.

It's extremely important to dissapoint kids from time to time.the ability to deal with dissapointments is the most valuable gift you can give.

If you constantly tell your kids in an over-the-top way how amazing everything the do is, you are in a way manipulating them. It is not about not praising them enough so they aim higher or work harder. It’s about being realistic about yourself and the world around you. If you’ve been taught your whole life that you are so talented that everything you do is amazing, it’ll hit hard once you realize your parents have been lying to you. Many times those are the kids, especially teenagers, that then can’t cope during this already vulnerable time, that they start to question everything about themselves. What I’m trying to say is, by praising your kid over the top, you are not necessarily improve their confidence because it’ll come and hit you harder in the end and really damage your confidence in an big way. Just be real with your kids. They don’t have to be perfect. They have to be happy and know their own worth!

"Temper Tantrum", most children go through this phase, with one having a "movie-worthy" outburst of anger, the other having theatrical tears and sighs. Sometimes anger because you really want something, sometimes exhaustion (for example, when mom or dad don't carry you after a long walk) As long as the parents react calmly and prudently, everything is fine.

Upon overhearing a conversation between a mother and a child in public, I once asked friends in the USA: are you talking to your child like it was a dog, or do you talk to your dog like it was your child?

To be honest, I have no idea why I keep watching your videos! I don't have kids, I have no contacts to New Zealand or anything. It must be your really nice accent and the fact that you're simply a really nice and sympathetic person! keep going, thanks for your videos! I'm subscribed now!

Thanks for the video. On hyperbole praise: If everything is amazing than nothing is amazing.

Children deseve an honest feedback. Otherwise you do not give them a chance to improve their skills.

I clearly remember an evening at a talent show at the Apollo in Harlem, NY, back in 1999, where there was a girl of about 14 or 15 years, who performed a song and she could not sing or hold a tune had her life depended on it. People thankfully were polite and did not laugh at her, but, by God, she was awful and of course, did not win the competition. I clearly remember having a discussion with my NY friends afterward, expressing my (German) shock at this girl taking part in a singing contest when clearly, she had zero skill in that area and probably excelled at completely other areas and I voiced my assumption that, as I had witnessed among my AuPair family and many American friend‘s families etc. that the constant parental oooohs and ahhhhs that children are given for every minor display or effort in anything, really, will at some point backfire when they are met with a) a professional environment that does not pamper their every move or when they are met with serious competition by real experts at what they are doing and they will then find out the harsh way that - honey, you‘re talents OBVIOUSLY lie somewhere else… So, I also really prefer the honest and constructive criticism from parents to being complimented over the moon for every mediocrity. It is somewhat like telling your child lies and keeping them from finding their real talent. Of course, very young children should not be discouraged from something they like, but I feel quite strongly that parents who know their children and their cognitive capacities will know the point in time when castles in the air must be met with a reality check… BTW: I likewise feel about putting your children down in areas in which they do show talent or have not really explored a talent. One should always be open to have children try out everything and I do not consent in PARENTS telling their children, they should NOT try to learn to play the piano, learn knitting, take a watercoloring class or get a snowboard because THEY assume their child will not develop some talent in a skill they themselves don‘t care for…

At the very start,baby voice is good,because the vowels are easier for the very small kid to pick up.but when they start to talk,just talk properly.

I really like your videos and it is very interesting (and sometimes surprising!) for me as a German when you talk about your observations. For example the "baby-voice". I never noticed that we Germans don't do that. And as far as tricycles are concerned: Until about 20 years ago, every child had a tricycle. But little by little they were somewhat displaced by the balance bikes.

A "baby voice" is also very condescending, and even little children will soon get the impression that they aren't taken seriously.

Balance bikes are relatively new in Germany. As a child, I had a tricycle and later a bike with training wheels. But that was several decades ago ...

The use of baby voice is something rarely seen outside English-speaking or Spanish-speaking countries, for any child of speaking age, and is not normal even for babies. My experience after 50+ yrs in paediatrics is that male relatives hardly ever do this. I have never understood this trait.

We do pitch up our voice but not so much. And maybe we stop it at an earlier age. But its in our DNA that we as child's give more attention to higher voices. And parents do that voice out of instinct.

i am german and i never thought of these things but yeah you are right... nice to think about it...

I grew up in the early 2000s, and back then balance bikes were basically u heard of. I had a bobby car, a tricycle, then a scooter, and later a bicycle with detachable training wheels. My parents tried so hard to teach me how to ride the bike without training wheels but I was always scared to fall off and I had never learnt to balance, so it took forever. Until one day the penny suddenly dropped when I was dared to ride friend's bicycle (who had no training wheels!) and suddenly got the hang of it. Then when my younger brother was 3 he got gifted a balance bike by our neighbours and it was a HUGE game changer. He rode it to and back from KiTa and when it got time for him to ride a pedal bicycle, it took him maybe one week to get the hang of it! I still remember me and my dad tossing my training wheels in the bin immediately afterwards. 😂

I can only say why I have never spoken to my or other children in a baby voice. Because I take my children seriously. I take their sensitivities, fears and insecurities seriously, but also their tantrums etc.. I hated not being taken seriously as a child and never wanted to treat my children like that. Now I have the opposite problem, my children think they don't have to take me seriously now that they are older. I am an old mom. My 16-year-old said the last time I told him that he wasn't allowed to do something he had done, but before I could even explain why, he said: "Yes, that's another one of those things that only you think that way because you're old. Everyone else doesn't care." Oh, that made me a bit more serious. I told him how much that had hurt me and that it definitely wouldn't work between us. I think he was a bit horrified to have hurt me because we have a great relationship. He apologized and gave me the opportunity to explain why he shouldn't do what we were talking about at the beginning, regardless of whether others do it or not. I think part of taking someone seriously is an explanation. Of course, this is difficult with small children. It's difficult to explain complex relationships and you can't pass on experiences, but it's important that you try. Because the explanation puts the child in a position to understand and only learn through it. If someone tells you that you have to do what I say because I want you to, without explanation, that makes you angry too, doesn't it?