I usually try to avoid reverse-snobbism disdain for the rich -- that's the left's job, and I wouldn't want to put anybody out of business. But every once in a while a story comes along that pushes my "they have way too much money to throw around" button:
Posh Manhattan moms and dads are taking parental obsessiveness to new heights — by hiring $400-an-hour recreation “experts” to organize play dates for their children.
These pricy pre-planned play times are monitored by instructors who teach them the proper way to socialize with their well-heeled peers in order to maximize their chances of getting into New York’s elite private schools.
“Some kids need a little bit more work” at learning how to play, said Suzanne Rheault, the CEO of one of the firms that organize play dates, called Aristotle Circle. “Sometimes [parents] hear from our experts that there are some areas to improve.”
Rheault’s pricey play dates involve groups of three to five 4-year-olds playing in a room. The experts closely monitor how the kids share crayons, color, follow directions in Simon Says, and hold a pencil.
All this child’s play is deadly serious for parents, because the toddlers will be judged on these skills when they apply to top-end schools, such as Trinity and Horace Mann.
Some kids need "a bit more work at learning how to play" -- now there's a telling phrase. I wonder, do the same instructors teach them how not to run with scissors, or is that a specialized field?
