Five Ways How NOT to Raise Bullies and Mean Girls

Quentin, three-and-a-half, was happily darting around the playground, like usual, when out of nowhere another little boy ran right up and kicked him in the shins. Quentin looked stunned, like he couldn't believe what had just happened. But he didn't kick back. First, he cried for a few minutes -- not unusual for a small child. But then he collected himself and walked right up to the boy. "Martin," said Quentin, calmly but with emotion. "I do not like what you did. I would not kick you -- you should never kick, and that's the truth!"

Quentin is among a new generation of boys being raised in households led by women -- women who've chosen to parent alone, by choice and circumstance, or who parent with another woman. We hear a lot about these groups of mothers -- mostly that they're "depriving" their children of crucial male influence, and heading up homes described as "inadequate, broken, or flawed." And yet Quentin is just one example of the types of boys some of these women are raising: stable, independent, caring, creative, and exceptional. And we have a lot to learn from them.         More Read