What's the deal with the sarcasim????

[BathrobeGoddess]

Is it just my kid or is it a all around 6-7 year old phenomominan? I am very sarcastic (though I like to think of myself as ironic instead:D ). So what is the deal...I thought this didn't happen untill the preteen-teen years? I take comfort in the fact that a lot of what she says IS fairly clever. So whats the deal with your kidos...?

[lil' love]

I would have to say that it is pretty normal. My son is also going through a sacastic, talk back to me phase. Just this morning, I had to remind him that he needs to listen to me and quit smart-mouthing....there is a time and place for everything.
I think bacuse I laugh at what he says sometimes, he thinks its ok now to say it, even when I mean buisness.

[jtsmom]

Ok, bathrobe goddess, I cannot reply about the sarcasm, I just wanted to say I love your name;)

jtsmom

[Alexander]

Well, kids will emulate their parents. That is what they are designed through evolution to do. So if you want them to modify their behavior, you should too!

Painfull isn't it! ;)

a

[Lucy]

It makes me wonder about pbs shows, Arthur in particular, who is full of sarcasm. Even his little sister, DW is soooo mouthy. I mean why would anyone want kids to view such behaviour? Of course then they try to imitate it. I thought I was doing ok basically limiting dd to pbs, but Arthur is a nightmare. Of course now she knows I don't like or allow the show, so it is forbidden fruit....

I have no advice on how to curb sarcasm, but I really try to watch I am never sarcastic. It is hard to do. They pick up on everything.

[Baby Phat]

This is a tough one, because the kids are a little young to understand all the in's and out's of sarcasm. Like the first two posters, I don't think sarcasm is something that necessarily must be squashed -- but kids do need to know that it will absolutely enrage some adults and that it's not appropriate at school and in certain situations!

My approach: after making it clear where sarcasm is absolutely never appropriate, I try to overlook the responses that are merely personally annoying. I try to focus on totally inappropriate instances and instances (like constantly repeating what another person says in an annoying way) that are likely to become habitual.

[BathrobeGoddess]

Thanks mamas for all the wonderful ideas! I will put them all into my bag of tricks!

[farmmom]

I guess unless my kids were directly quoting a line from Arthur I wouldn't blame him. I think some people are generally more sarcastic people and I do think being around sarcasm breeds sarcasm. It can be a very good way of communicating, especially when you need to make light of a situation. Don't we all, sometimes. Sarcasm can be an icebreaker, a laugh and it can be disrespectful.

I really like the show Arthur. Unlike most shows there is no one "bad" kid or one "good" kid. All the characters have good and bad sides and sometimes make good or bad decisions, like being sarcastic or mouthy at the wrong time.

[sleepies]

my 9 year old is from time to time.
im not sure when he started

it isn't really a "bad thing"......as it shows they have a mind of their own, intelligence, and that they aren't afraid.

it could be bad, if they were sarcastic to the wrong person, but I get a kick out of it sometimes. He doesn't do this to strangers.

The other day my DH was laughing at him for spilling something....and my son said, "be glad I didn't spill it on your precious rug">... my dh has this expensive rug that he is over protective of LOL

:)

[paula_bear]

Originally posted by Lucy
It makes me wonder about pbs shows, Arthur in particular, who is full of sarcasm.
Well, this is really off-topic, but I must point out that one of the major sponsors for Arthur is JuicyJuice, aka Libby's, aka Nestle! If they market formula as aggressively as they do and throw WHO guidelines out the window, how can we expect them to have our child's best interests in mind when it comes to TV? Just a thought... When I know Arthur is on, I skip over it - luckily I have two PBS stations from which to choose.
:p