In a recent UNICEF study of children’s well-being, Dutch kids came in at the top. What makes them so well-adjusted and independent, and how can other countries achieve the same result? In their search for the secret of Dutch parents’ success, the authors, both of whom married Dutch men and live and work in the Netherlands—Acosta as the writer of the “Finding Dutchland” parenting blog, and Hutchison as a translator—observe that Dutch babies sleep on average fifteen hours a night, children are taught safe bicycling practices at school, and most students focus simply on passing rather than on getting the highest grade in the class. Perhaps most telling, the authors note, is that from an early age, young people are taught to put their energy into achieving a sustainable work-life balance.
This event is part of the Politics and Prose Parenting Series.
