Old News: Notable Naivete?

2 October 2008
Why do children have to go to bed early? Especially when they don't want to and put up such a fuss? Why not let them stay awake until they wear themselves out? Then parents could just shovel them under the sheets, no sweat, no strain.

Clearly, I'm not a father ... yet. I know that children need boundaries and rules, but if you can avoid a crying fit at bedtime, why not give it a try?

Then, if the kids have trouble getting up the next morning for school, or can't function at "full capacity" in class, parents can say, "Look, we tried it your way, but see what's happened?" Maybe, then, kids would understand why they need to go to bed earlier.

Isn't it better to show children why they're given boundaries instead of just imposing them, seemingly arbitrarily?