5 Rules That Mayim Bialik Has for Her Children That Could Reshape Parenting

Mayim Bialik is an American actress known for her titular role in Blossom as well as her award-winning performance as Amy Farrah Fowler on Big Bang Theory. Bialik has a doctorate in neuroscience and has become the co-host of Jeopardy alongside Ken Jennings. She has also written several books, including Beyond the Sling with co-author and pediatrician Jay Gordon about attachment parenting. Bialik has been open about her parenting style, talking about co-parenting her two sons with her ex-husband, about raising vegan kids, and about her homeschooling methods. [1]

5 Mayim Bialik Insights into Parenting

About Bed-Sharing

When her sons were 5 and 2, Balik spoke about how she had “never owned a crib or bassinet.” Instead, they all slept in the family bed of two futons side by side. “I know some of you think it’s unsafe,” she wrote on Today. “I know some of you think it’s unhealthy. I know some of you think my spoiled, coddled kids will never outgrow it. And let’s just be brutally honest: I know you think it’s weird.” [2]

First, Bialik addresses the “safety” issue, saying it’s actually a smart choice since the parent can keep tabs on how the child is doing. If a baby starts coughing or fussing, the parent knows right away and can help them. “Rolling onto a baby is an exaggerated fear that is not based on any research. It is not hard to make a bed safe for a baby. Either put it on the floor or get a bed rail to keep your little one from rolling out.”

She adds that bed-sharing makes breastfeeding easier and less stressful, which is important for the mother and child. “Sleeping with your baby stimulates hormones that encourage bonding, reduce anxiety and depression, and increase the chances that you will establish a strong supply of breast milk.” And there’s no need to worry about children becoming dependent on sleeping with their parents; they grow out of it as they would pacifiers and diapers. Meanwhile, the family can feel closer and more secure around each other.

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About Raising Vegan Kids

Mayim Bialik has faced many questions about her and her kids’ diet, but she was sure to address the most-asked one. “You can raise vegan children who are healthy children,” Bialik answered in a YouTube video. “Children can thrive without eating meat and without eating dairy. The only thing that vegans can’t get from the foods that we eat is vitamin B12.” [3]

So her boys take vitamin supplements and are overall happy and strong. She adds that they eat enough protein, another common question for vegans. But instead of meat, they get it from quinoa and other sources. At birthday parties, she brings vegan treats for her sons to eat instead of birthday cake. (They were allowed to have processed sugar after a few years of life.) She compared being vegan to other food restrictions, like keeping kosher or avoiding allergies. 

“I also tell my children that it is worthwhile to make sacrifices for a greater good,” Bialik said. “I don’t know if my children will always be vegan… but what I hope I have instilled in them is an appreciation for reflection, for sacrifice and for ethical standards above what’s trendy or what’s commonplace.” She added, “I want to raise my children to be people who question things, people who do research, people who make decisions based on facts and feeling together.”

About Letting Her Sons Go at Their Own Pace

Her sons did not go to daycare, pre-school, or kindergarten; so although her sons had some developmental delays, Mayim Bialik alongside their pediatrician decided to let them grow at their own pace and they reached developmental milestones in their own time. 

“Barring outstanding medical concerns, I believe in letting children progress in their own way and pace, modeling behavior while respecting the innate development of a child as an autonomous and purposeful creature,” Bialik wrote in a Today post. “I believe that children, like adults (and perhaps better than most adults?), generally know what works for them.” [4]

Read: Fans Are Divided After Eva Mendes Shares Parenting Quote About Spanking

About Homeschooling

Although homeschooling allowed Bialik’s sons set their own pace, that’s not the only reason for it. “…Optimal learning doesn’t usually happen in very, very crowded classes with little time for recess, or little distribution of resources for the arts, especially in urban areas where resources can be very scarce,” said Bialik in a YouTube video. [5] “In addition, may teachers, especially in public schools, are teaching towards testing standards and that’s not necessarily the best way for kids to learn.”

Then she refutes negative homeschooling stereotypes by explaining how her boys stay socialized through many extracurricular activities and classes, like soccer, taekwondo, music classes, art classes, and Shakespeare classes. Plus, she explains that homeschooled kids could apply to any college they’d like. Some even take community college courses while in high school then transfer the credits. “The application for homeschooled kids is way easier than it used to be,” she explained.

About Disciplining Without Shaming

In 2019, Bialik opened up about disciplining her sons, now a teen and a tween — without shaming them. “I’ve learned from people whose kids’ behavior I admire the most is that sometimes the way you keep control is by letting go,” she explained in a YouTube video. [6] Many people, especially in the past, chose to parent through hitting, punishment, threats, antagonism, etc. because it’s fast, easy, and sends a very clear message. Instead, she focuses on “facilitating” instead of “dominating” through communicating with her kids, logical consequences, respecting their needs, setting healthy boundaries, using playfulness instead of antagonism, while continuing to build their relationship. All of which takes a lot of time and patience.

“I don’t feel guilty when disciplining, which I think a lot of parents do. To control your children through punishment, hostility, and domination, doesn’t feel good for your child and it doesn’t feel good for you. Facilitating good behavior means we’re part of an ongoing communication about respecting each other.”

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