Government
“How would you explain government to a 4-year-old?”, asked Mark. I posted a response, but then I wanted to see if it worked on my kids.
It turns out that we don’t get to see Bob the Builder—as much as we did while we were in Malaysia. Manny, the adorable hispanic handyman, appears to have replaced Bob.
To both the children, I first explained that “Government is a bunch of people who help us with things that we individually cannot do ourselves—like taking care of the roads for us, provide drinking water, protect us, punish robbers,” et al.
My 8-year-old understands this well. (She’s learning how Romans had their senate and all.) I then turned to my 4-year-old and asked the spot question: “So, who is a Government?” Pat came the reply: “Government is a bunch of people…,” a pause and then, “…who smell flowers!”
I guess my explanation was not working for her; we had to try something else. My wife suggested “a special helper.” S understands the concept of a special helper. Everyday, one of the children in her class is assigned a task of helping the rest of the group.
That worked. So for my 4-year-old, “Government is bunch of special helpers.”
The way I would explain a government(to a 16 year old maybe..), especially ours in the sub-continent would be “almost always full of crap; if not, it’s just a matter of time ..” .
May 16, 08 at 22:23Madhu Rao: Let’s hope things change for good
by the time they turn 16.
May 17, 08 at 00:28