Kid as a Perjorative?

[DaveA]

I had a run-in with our local "Supernanny" at the library. She enjoys correcting "mistakes" other providers whether they want the advice or not. I was told I should "know better" than use the word "kid" to describe a child as kid is not the appropriate term and is belittling or dismissive on the child. She got my usual "Thanks for the advice I wasn't asking for" response.

Has anyone else heard this? Or is my streak of finding the nutcases when I go out in public continuing?

[Rockgirl]

I've heard it, but choose to ignore it....I say 'kid' all the time!

[laundrymom]

Sorry. Old school here.
Why shouldn't I call kids.. Kids?

[Unregistered]

LOL! When I was in college, I had a retired elementary school teacher correct me by saying, "Kids are young goats." (I bet these people are a lot of fun at parties!)

[AmyLeigh]

I've heard it too. I even stopped using kid to refer to children for quite some time. I get the reasoning, but language changes and it doesn't carry quite the disrespect it did years ago. I have since started to use it on occasion, but it still feels awkward at times. My go to word is kiddos. It feels, I don't know, maybe more affectionate.

But yeah, you seem to be attracting some 'interesting' people while out in public. ::

[Unregistered]

I had a run-in with our local "Supernanny" at the library. She enjoys correcting "mistakes" other providers whether they want the advice or not. I was told I should "know better" than use the word "kid" to describe a child as kid is not the appropriate term and is belittling or dismissive on the child. She got my usual "Thanks for the advice I wasn't asking for" response.

Has anyone else heard this? Or is my streak of finding the nutcases when I go out in public continuing?

When I'm striving to sound professional, such as at interviews, I use 'child' and 'children' but in everyday daycare life, I say 'kid' and 'kids'. I think it sounds friendlier and warmer.

[Blackcat31]

Its part of the "text book" politically correct stuff.....

You know the stuff that sounds fantastic on paper but is ridiculously silly when applied to real life.

Calling a child anything but what they are is considered demeaning and/or inappropriate. Much like saying I am a girl. I am not a girl, I am a woman. Whatever.... gal, lady, woman, girl, female, lassie.... it's all silly if you ask me....

The one thing I learned in college is whoever came up with some of this stuff has obviously never actually worked with children. or kids.

[Kabob]

I get what she's saying but it sounds like her delivery is a little tough to deal with (for lack of better words).

As far as "kids" go, I've heard certain ways we refer to people can be offensive, but often I think it depends on the delivery and each person. I call the children here nicknames like "hun" or "kiddo" affectionately and then their full name is used when I need their attention...usually my ds gets his middle name used too when he is in trouble. ::

Kind of like how some words are used to describe everyday things (not sure if those words are allowed here) but some people try to use those same words to refer to something they believe is stupid. We still use the words for the original purpose, even though some people have used the word in a hurtful manner intentionally or unintentionally.

The English language feels like a mine field sometimes.

[Blackcat31]

The English language feels like a mine field sometimes.

"The Chaos"

Dearest creature in creation,
Study English pronunciation.
I will teach you in my verse
Sounds like corpse, corps, horse, and worse.
I will keep you, Suzy, busy,
Make your head with heat grow dizzy.
Tear in eye, your dress will tear.
So shall I! Oh hear my prayer.

Just compare heart, beard, and heard,
Dies and diet, lord and word,
Sword and sward, retain and Britain.
(Mind the latter, how it's written.)
Now I surely will not plague you
With such words as plaque and ague.
But be careful how you speak:
Say break and steak, but bleak and streak;
Cloven, oven, how and low,
Script, receipt, show, poem, and toe.

Hear me say, devoid of trickery,
Daughter, laughter, and Terpsichore,
Typhoid, measles, topsails, aisles,
Exiles, similes, and reviles;
Scholar, vicar, and cigar,
Solar, mica, war and far;
One, anemone, Balmoral,
Kitchen, lichen, laundry, laurel;
Gertrude, German, wind and mind,
Scene, Melpomene, mankind.

Billet does not rhyme with ballet,
Bouquet, wallet, mallet, chalet.
Blood and flood are not like food,
Nor is mould like should and would.
Viscous, viscount, load and broad,
Toward, to forward, to reward.
And your pronunciation's OK
When you correctly say croquet,
Rounded, wounded, grieve and sieve,
Friend and fiend, alive and live.

Ivy, privy, famous; clamour
And enamour rhyme with hammer.
River, rival, tomb, bomb, comb,
Doll and roll and some and home.
Stranger does not rhyme with anger,
Neither does devour with clangour.
Souls but foul, haunt but aunt,
Font, front, wont, want, grand, and grant,
Shoes, goes, does. Now first say finger,
And then singer, ginger, linger,
Real, zeal, mauve, gauze, gouge and gauge,
Marriage, foliage, mirage, and age.

Query does not rhyme with very,
Nor does fury sound like bury.
Dost, lost, post and doth, cloth, loth.
Job, nob, bosom, transom, oath.
Though the differences seem little,
We say actual but victual.
Refer does not rhyme with deafer.
Foeffer does, and zephyr, heifer.
Mint, pint, senate and sedate;
Dull, bull, and George ate late.
Scenic, Arabic, Pacific,
Science, conscience, scientific.

Liberty, library, heave and heaven,
Rachel, ache, moustache, eleven.
We say hallowed, but allowed,
People, leopard, towed, but vowed.
Mark the differences, moreover,
Between mover, cover, clover;
Leeches, breeches, wise, precise,
Chalice, but police and lice;
Camel, constable, unstable,
Principle, disciple, label.

Petal, panel, and canal,
Wait, surprise, plait, promise, pal.
Worm and storm, chaise, chaos, chair,
Senator, spectator, mayor.
Tour, but our and succour, four.
Gas, alas, and Arkansas.
Sea, idea, Korea, area,
Psalm, Maria, but malaria.
Youth, south, southern, cleanse and clean.
Doctrine, turpentine, marine.

Compare alien with Italian,
Dandelion and battalion.
Sally with ally, yea, ye,
Eye, I, ay, aye, whey, and key.
Say aver, but ever, fever,
Neither, leisure, skein, deceiver.
Heron, granary, canary.
Crevice and device and aerie.

Face, but preface, not efface.
Phlegm, phlegmatic, ass, glass, bass.
Large, but target, gin, give, verging,
Ought, out, joust and scour, scourging.
Ear, but earn and wear and tear
Do not rhyme with here but ere.
Seven is right, but so is even,
Hyphen, roughen, nephew Stephen,
Monkey, donkey, Turk and jerk,
Ask, grasp, wasp, and cork and work.

Pronunciation -- think of Psyche!
Is a paling stout and spikey?
Won't it make you lose your wits,
Writing groats and saying grits?
It's a dark abyss or tunnel:
Strewn with stones, stowed, solace, gunwale,
Islington and Isle of Wight,
Housewife, verdict and indict.

Finally, which rhymes with enough --
Though, through, plough, or dough, or cough?
Hiccough has the sound of cup.
My advice is to give up!!!

http://www.wordsmith.org/awad/english.html

[Kabob]

I had a Swedish/Norwegian professor in college. He said the English language was the hardest to learn.

Great poem BC.

[DaveA]

Its part of the "text book" politically correct stuff.....

You know the stuff that sounds fantastic on paper but is ridiculously silly when applied to real life.

God save us from academics. PC stuff drives me nuts. And that poem is way too true.

But yeah, you seem to be attracting some 'interesting' people while out in public. ::

It amazes my wife. She thinks they have a map or something telling where I'm at.

[AmyLeigh]

I had a Swedish/Norwegian professor in college. He said the English language was the hardest to learn.

Great poem BC.

I have several friends who are from different countries and are multilingual, highly educated individuals. They ask my 8 year old how to pronounce certain words in English.

[Blackcat31]

I have several friends who are from different countries and are multilingual, highly educated individuals. They ask my 8 year old how to pronounce certain words in English.

Most folks FROM this country don't speak/pronounce things the same.

I feel sorry for those that are ELS.

[Josiegirl]

Guess she wouldn't want to hear what I call some of them when they're not around then.

I remember hearing that awhile back too, then started questioning myself as to how the particular person I was talking with would react if I said kid instead of child. Geez, so much stress just to have a conversation so I said forget this....they're kids.

Hahaha, yeh, some fun at parties.

[Leigh]

I had a run-in with our local "Supernanny" at the library. She enjoys correcting "mistakes" other providers whether they want the advice or not. I was told I should "know better" than use the word "kid" to describe a child as kid is not the appropriate term and is belittling or dismissive on the child. She got my usual "Thanks for the advice I wasn't asking for" response.

Has anyone else heard this? Or is my streak of finding the nutcases when I go out in public continuing?

Next time, instead of the "usual", try a 1-finger salute. Maybe she'll get the picture then! ::