Family Fun Night - and parents....

I am thoroughly exhausted.
It is 9:30 pm. I have been on the go since I left the house at 8pm. Work, then out to dinner and back to the Pre-school for Family Fun Night! I offered to help - they asked parents to volunteer for 1/2 slots. I was in the arts and crafts room then I was able to go around with DD to the other rooms (Dance, Tattoo, Snack, Games, Bingo). It was fun. As DD said on the way out "That was a WILD Party!".... LOL

But my brain stops to ponder -- about people. Other parents.
I see some volunteer to help in the room. They do nothing. One woman in the game room just chatted with other parents - didn't try to lure kids into play. For example there was a "stick the ice cream topping on the ice cream cone" game. No one was even showing kids it was there. I looked at it with a friend and it looked like just 6 stickers could be used and they were not removable. Later while in the room, I noticed on the counter that there were PACKAGES of other sticker toppings - so yes, all the kids could have been trying that game. But the parents were physically there but not really there. Granted you could say they might not have received instruction -- but they are parents and should know how to wing it!!

As opposed to me. One of the assistants of one of the other classes was in the Crafts room. I asked what she wanted to do. She didn't know - said one of the teachers is doing it. But then she asks them and they tell her basically to just run the room.
One of the crafts was a white cardboard mask that could be decorated. There were boxes of markers. I suggested putting markers and masks on one table and let them just come in and make the masks. I put all the masks in the middle of the table.
The other craft was a foam picture frame. There were three different packages to choose from... One that had like 20 jellybeans, one that had about 8-10 flowers and one that had 10 ladybugs and each bug was 4 or 5 pieces! Well, that's alot of pieces for 3 to 6 year olds to do when there are other rooms and other stuff to do in the short time of the event. On top of that, in each package, you had to punch out the pieces. And then use glue and foam and glue just don't work well sometimes.
The person from the school in the room wanted to just put one package at each seat. I first suggested at least making 3 piles of packages in the middle of the table so kids could come in and choose.
The first girl to make a frame picked the ladybugs but only but 3 bugs on her frame so there were many, many pieces left over. I think - lets open up kits - open up all the pieces and let the kids mix and match the pieces! I start to do that and more people showed up and I think it seemed like the kids liked coming right in, sitting right down and start the craft -- instead of coming in, having to open the package, punch it all out, then put it together. To me, it seemed like common sense in order to make the activity fun and quick so kids move onto other areas.

Then the parents that sort of guide their child from room to room and then leave. Maybe spending a 1/2 hour at most to visit all the rooms. Not letting their child stop to play. I don't understand. This is a special event - it may become a yearly thing - who knows. But I know DD has been talking about this "Party" all week long.

And then there are the parents who have to be "adults". They can't let loose and enjoy the moment. Like dance with your 5 year old and not care who else is watching. In fact, a little boy in DD's class asked me to dance with him and I don't think in a million years his mother would do that in a situation like this - with people watching. Besides, she was too busy chatting with other mothers.

As for me, I chatted a bit, but I stayed with my daughter. I played Bingo when she asked me to, I danced, I helped with the arts and crafts -- even later when we went into the room to "visit" I still helped some kids out.

Children are our future. They will be the ones controlling the world someday. We have to invest in them - invest our time and energy.

I feel a parent is responsible for trying to raise a responsible human being. If you are not ready to do that, to help mold a person for a productive life, then don't have children. Just my 2 cents.