5 Ways to Raise A Geek

SunnyChanel — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 06:15:08 +0000

I’ve had a mantra since my daughter was born. It is “please be geeky, please be geeky, please be geeky”. Over and over I chant this, hoping that it will come true. Which just means she’s totally going to rebel and end up being (as I shudder) a cool hipster chick. Why do I want my daughter to be a geek? Oh, so many reasons. I won’t have to buy overpriced designer duds, she won’t walk around looking like an underaged hooker, I won’t have to deal with her sneaking out her window at night, and she’ll never be invited to that high school keg party.

How do I accomplish this task? Well for a start I think I’ll need to run out and buy Marybeth Hicks book Bringing Up Geeks: How to Protect Your Kid’s Childhood in a Grow-Up-Too-Fast World as Urban Baby wrote, she “says today’s geek isn’t a social misfit. She’s just a good, wholesome kid who’s not so caught up in pop culture that she lets it define who she is. Hicks, a mother of four, advises parents on how to raise a genuine, enthusiastic, empowered kid (GEEK):”

Here are five ways in which you can attempt to breed your own brainiac.

1. Obedience. Teach them a respect for authority. “So as you move through the years from “don’t throw dirt” to “have the car home by 11pm,” you’ll get compliance.”

2. Enthusiasm for learning. Get involved in what ever they’re into be it dinosaurs, flower pressing, or fashioning busts of the presidents out of dried pasta. Support their passion with enthusiam and participation.

3. Control the Media – Make sure the culture (movies, music, TV shows, games) reflect your values. Yeah, they’re going to be bombarded by crap (Bratz, Britney, Barney) but in your own home, you can filter out the junk.

4. Friendships – You may not approve of the choices of friends, but when said friend is under your roof, let them know it’s your rules (so no, they can smoke out the bathroom window).

5. Knowing right from wrong and good from bad. “Authentic self-esteem comes from knowing you are truly good and exhibit proper behavior.”

(via Urban Baby) (image via One Horse Shy)

Nerd Indoctrination: 10 Geeky Movies to Raise Your Kids On

Amber Robinson — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 06:25:28 +0000

I tease my husband a lot for being a geek (he speaks fluent Linux and only reads sci-fi) but the fact is I’m kind of a geek too. I’m permanently glued to my laptop and have seen all six Star Wars films. So obviously, we want our child to be nerdy like us.

If you also have a hankering for a geeky kid, Wired has published a list of the top 10 geeky movies to indoctrinate them with. Here is a short selection:

The Dark Crystal: The best pure-fantasy movie out there for younger kids, period. There are no human characters in the film at all (yes, I know, they’re all puppets), but we still get attached to them and sucked into their world. An also-ran here would be Neverending Story, but I’d put Labyrinth in the tweens list for next time.
Goonies: The perfect geek-gang adventure story with home-made gadgets, pirates, treasure and all, this movie also helps reinforce finding and sticking to friendships. The talk about a sequel for this movie, with most or all of the original cast, really gets me excited (just like the Tr2n footage).
Back to the Future: The best way to initiate your kids into the joys of time-travel stories, and the joys of all things Christopher Lloyd. This is one of those cases where the whole series is enjoyable and family-friendly, and the great geeky repeatable dialog will keep you amused for a long time. Hello, McFly?!?!

See the full list here.

Babble Australia » geeks

5 Ways to Raise A Geek

Nerd Indoctrination: 10 Geeky Movies to Raise Your Kids On