Question 5 of 51intermediate🔍 AnalyzeLong Answer5 marks

What role can parents and community play to help children achieve their dreams?

Correct Answer

Parents and community play a vital role in helping children achieve their dreams. Parents inspire children to dream big, as great personalities in history were inspired by their parents. They serve as role models and sources of motivation.

Parents provide emotional support and encouragement. Like the mother in the letter who tells her daughter, "By all means follow that dream," parents can nurture their children's aspirations rather than discouraging them. A mother can share valuable insights into life, equipping her daughter for its challenges.

Parents also offer realistic guidance about the effort and sacrifice needed to realise dreams. They can help children understand that greatness requires pursuing the dream with conviction, and that reaching world-class standards demands years of singular, intensive pursuit. While parents may worry about practical concerns like financial stability, they ultimately want what is best for the child.

The community can help by creating supportive circumstances so that children do not have to trade their dreams for security. When circumstances like war or family responsibilities force people to abandon dreams, a strong community can provide resources and opportunities. With the combined support of parents and community, children can overcome obstacles and chase their dreams with burning conviction.

Exercise: Reflect and Respond | Q: II | (Page 1)
For More Understanding

Explanation

The textbook context highlights multiple ways parents and community support children's dreams. Parents inspire (as seen with great personalities), encourage (like Irene Chua's letter saying 'By all means follow that dream'), share life insights, and provide realistic guidance about effort and sacrifice needed. The context also shows that adverse circumstances can derail dreams, implying community support is crucial to prevent children from having to trade dreams for security.