Are French kids brought up differently to kids in England or were these just some super kids we met on holiday?

[XelaM]

Just returned from a boat day trip in Greece with my teen. There were a few other families there including a French family with two little kids aged five and six. Those kids were honestly some of the "toughest" (and most well-behaved) kids I have ever come across.

To start with, I have never seen kids that age swim so well. Those tiny kids were like fish - jumping from the side of the boat and swimming with zero aids in really really deep waters. We also visited some cliffs and some jumped from the cliffs into the sea (which was SO SCARY 😱) and those little kids did that as well! Even my adventurous teen said the jump from the cliffs was scary and she couldn't believe the two little kids did it.

We were also fed freshly caught sea urchin and sea potatoes (which were an acquired taste to say the least 🤣) and I was certain the kids wouldn't try them only to see those two taking one sea urchin after another with zero complaints.

They were up for anything and you never heard a single moan or complaint out of them (unlike my 14-year-old 😏). And it's not like their parents appeared strict or disinterested - they were having fun and engaged with the kids. The kids were super friendly and chatty (when spoken to by others) but otherwise completely did their own thing not bothering anyone at all.

At the end even my teen who usually has no time for little kids was impressed and commented that "those were some hard core kids" 😅 (her words).

So clearly I went wrong in my parenting somewhere 🤪 but it made me wonder - are French kids brought up differently - maybe more independent and resilient or were those some super-human robot kids? 😁

In other news, and in my experience Swiss kids are little shits and their parents are weak. Discipline is saying their name (which always ends in a vowel unless it’s Liam) in an exasperated voice.

Yes, princess Charlotte has a running commentary of stuff that Louis should be doing every time you see them in public.

Just remembered the local school has a 2 hour lunch. The kids leave school and walk over to the town hall dining area where it's freshly served.

A (very drunk) French man in a restaurant in Montpellier once started crying because my (English) DCs were so wonderfully behaved and we were such a 'beautiful family'.

On this basis, I'm going to conclude they represent all UK children.

AND THEY DRINK WINE

This. You should read the books, it's all very true!

On the eating side, that is definitely true. French kids are used to eating proper food, not 'kids food', and are not pandered to.
I am more surprised by the physicality side, which is not always typical. France seems to have extremes (either hyper sporty and go rock climbing every weekend, or the kids are not sporty at all). I think like others have said, they may live near the coasts or have very sporty parents.

You are correct. We visit France twice a year & French kids are much better at adapting to "adult" situations, don't expect kids menu etc..

I think French parents are big on extracurriculars & education. School is much more academic from an early age & French kids are expected to work very hard.

Just spent a week away with lots of french holidaymakers. Observations were that French parents are very strict (mums particularly, lots of scolding). Saw at least 5 smacking episodes. Nearly all the young kids I saw had armbands on. Parents generally seemed quite stressy (mums and dads bickering with each other around the pool and in restaurants etc). Didn’t see many older French kids though, only young ones under 10 so parents generally quite young. I was a bit surprised tbh, I thought French parents would be quite relaxed but none of the ones we saw were, at all. Not much smiling going on at all.

Except the French adults I've met aren't all that, so not sure how those kids will turn out.
I au paired for a French family in Corsica (normal home Paris). I didn't find them tough or particularly adventurous. They did have a wider diet - which my kids do too as I rarely did the 'nuggets and chips' type meal so many of my friends fell back on. My kids were happy to try frog legs and snails at ages 7 and 9 (age when travelling in Belgium). Exotic to us but not the Belgians/French.
Our old neighbours were French. Four kids. They did have high academic expectations and were strict about the amount of food they were allowed to eat (the kids were always hungry when they came over). The one in my son's class was a bit of a tornado (every time he came over he broke something), bit the teacher the first day of reception. Another French family's kids would bully that family in French at school. The parents were very demanding and were eventually asked to leave (not my neighbours, and it was a private school).

I lived in both France and here now. These are two completely different worlds.
When was auparing in France, la vielle madame next door babysat sometimes a two year old and told him if he does not listen, you know what.

I have never met also special needs kids. When came here, all the kids are special needs.

Why would the need two hours?
My British kid ,s are happy to have a much shorter lunch break and therefor finish earlier .

Oh they exist. I knew many family of French SEN kids, they lack awareness and education in France. We are much further ahead and better at recognising it in the UK. The waiting lists to see ASD/ADHD specialists run into years.

Our family live in France, and we have a few neices and nephews on that side that are being/were raised in France - so my experience is very limited and could be due to family personalities as opposed to a general French approach to parenting (before I get flamed!)

I agree they are tough kids. Will throw themselves into anything, very adventurous and never seem to fear much. They are also less likely to whinge..... however, I think its partly due to their parents' hands-off approach. They are far more laid back parents than we are (and we're certainly not typical MN helicopter parents and quite lax about some things!) and rarely ever intervene with their kids when, for example, a game they're playing is too rough or dangerous. I would say their kids are independent and there is a general expectation that the kids will figure it out themselves if they get into any bother. As a result, our nieces and nephews are pretty confident kids.

However..... the lack of adult supervision and intervention means they can be pretty rude at times! They aren't generally corrected for lack of manners and they can be quite nasty to each other during games (which my sensitive DS finds a bit alarming!)

I havent seen so many smacking episodes, but they do it and use the method or the thread that they will do it. Yes, also, French mothers do not accept nonsense from a young child and nip any such attemtp at the bud, by showing the amount of displeasure that will put off the kid from trying it again.

Having children like that isn't accident. It means the parents modelled to them that it was fun and that they were capable of diving into the water etc. If parents communicate fear, anxiety and a can't do attitude, then kids will follow their example and hang back, believing it is better not to join in. I would imagine you get both types everywhere.

Not true. Actually the opposite. French families do supervise and do teach manners.

yes, this is the same all over the Continent. This is how I was raised also in a country which no one thinks much of.

Ooooh you’ll be flamed for daring to suggest that some “sen” children are actually just very naughty NT kids 😂

is a wee bit regional able? if my kid jamp in any of the (fuckin millionty availble)options,burns streams lochs ...is it even se(scotland)hed die. end of.theres no freedom in that.its fuckin freezing
also if my kid ate a sea urchin...i would fuckin boke,vomit sick in my mouth am not even google sea potato.queasy has over ruled
also.do you speak their language? "aw haaw he hw-lets go kamakazee of the cliff to prove they dont love us"(wow i am a BITCH today.
they led their lives.is fuquin fantastique your teen acknowledged/noticed.theres yer lesson learnt.keep it real

I often think on summer holidays “European” kids are generally better at swimming than those at home. Equally, I find that, by and large, they’re all far ruder to people and I’m often surprised by the complete lack of manners.

I'm sorry but you could have been describing my own 3dc.. and we are English..
So no..I can't agree..

A family sat down at a bar next to us, the mum was very stern looking and was scolding the children (both under 5 I would say), but not sure what she was scolding them for as they were just sat there normally, not playing up or anything. She was just talking at them, couldn’t understand it all but it was a constant stream of stop this stop that. Then when the waiter was taking their order both kids started banging their plates on the table really loudly and both parents completely ignored it. I found it quite bizarre.

Generally though I find parents from other countries do tend to address nonsense much quicker than British parents do.

Yes.

I think everything in this country seems so noticeably child and family centric, and seems more segregated and less integrated into everyday life.

I mean I find families, kids eating out late isn’t so noticeable when you go abroad but my goodness in the UK it is!

As in when I go abroad there are more children and families out late but you don’t notice it in the same way if that were to happen in the UK generally speaking.

Every French kid ate multiple chocolate pastries and donuts for breakfast in our hotel 😆