Through it all — coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown haircuts and managing her children’s antics at events — Kate Middleton’s parenting style has included a simple yet “important” word. A commentator says the Princess of Wales uses a certain p-word “a lot.”
How Kate Middleton parents Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis is ‘all about positivity’
Kate’s approach to parenting her and the Prince of Wales’s three kids isn’t necessarily steeped in royal tradition. According to royal expert Jennie Bond, it’s rather forward-thinking with “mutual respect, understanding, and patience” between parent and child.
Calling it a “radical new way of parenting,” Bond told OK! Kate’s parenting style is “about exploring the child’s own feelings, confusions, and anguish,” (via Express).
To that end, it’s not Kate and William who take the lead and the kids who follow. Rather, it centers around “allowing” Prince George, 9, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5, “to lead the way.”
“It is about letting them express those emotions and sitting down to discuss them with the child, rather than ignoring the turmoil that growing up so often involves,” Bond explained, noting it’s “all about positivity” and creating an environment where George, Charlotte, and Louis can become “rounded young people.”
“It is fantastic and I believe Catherine will very much be the leader in this and William will be the follower,” she added. “He will have been learning from Catherine how to be a different kind of parent.”
‘Preventative’ is an ‘important word’ in Kate’s parenting style
After “positivity” comes another p-word Bond says is “important” to Kate’s parenting style — “preventative.”
“The other important word is preventative, which Kate has used a lot, and she believes in so strongly,” the expert said.
The goal, she explained, is to “prevent so much mental anguish turmoil or addictive habits or various troubles that might come along in adulthood” by handling emotions in childhood.
The family has a “chat sofa” in their home. William and Kate are also believed to make “enormous efforts” to keep Charlotte and Louis from becoming “spares” to George’s “heir.”
As for what the day-to-day might look like for George, Charlotte, and Louis, Bond noted they’re likely taught “mutual respect” and “good manners.” Meanwhile, their parents probably offer an explanation of “why good manners are important and that kindness begets kindness and that inclusivity should be natural.”
Time might be the most important part of Kate’s parenting style
Yes, all of the aforementioned elements of Kate’s parenting style are certainly important. However, according to Bond, those may not necessarily be the most important.
In the expert’s opinion, that particular honor may be reserved for something simpler, time. “Perhaps most importantly giving her children all of the time that she can,” Bond said.
“We’re all pressed, we’re all rushing, and she has a huge job,” the expert said of Kate. “But she gives them as much time as she can to sit down with them, discuss their problems and play with them and just be with them.”
Take, for instance, the children’s break from school in late May and early June 2023. Apart from a royal wedding appearance in Jordan, William and Kate are expected to do outdoor activities with their kids.
“All the activities are outdoorsy and there’s a lot of playing,” Bond previously told OK! Magazine. The parents of three, she highlighted, “like outdoor activities. So lots of sport, lots of fun, games in the garden, and cycling.”
“William and Catherine are very hands-on parents,” she said. “So they’ll probably be some educational play. Especially as early development is so important to Kate with her Shaping Us campaign.”