My 11 year old daughter wants her hair dreaded???

Now that smthing to think about - Sientje (my daughter) has been getting interested in different colours and i did one natural brown with some red in it, but of course by the next couple of weeks she wanted another colour, at 11 years this was not going to happen, so now i will beable to say if she has dreads she can't bring even more attention to herself by having more colours. With my dreads when i tie them back you wouldn't even know i had dreads. Her hair is the same as mine so i recogn i could get away with doing abit of t&r on sectioned hair, have to do this or she would, like me, have one big combo!!
Christian Thomas Patton said:

My school allowed them. Most of my teachers actually found them exciting and different and were fascinated by how much they change over time. Which is surprising considering i live in a small close minded community that see's dreadlocks as "dirty" and "disgusting". They shouldn't have a problem with her hair unless it was unnatural or "distracting" colors.

updated by @sweet: 07/23/15 12:07:37AM

Ionly just realisedwhat you meant with the reactions different hairstyle evoke when i was reading Baba's reply, hadn't think of that, i know when i have had to go into her high school i have been consciouse about playing down my dreads by either typing up or putting a dread band on, i subconsciously though that i didn't want Sientje bought down or singled out because of my appearance. Maybe if i did 2 or 3 dreads first on her?
Laura Earle said:

Can you call the school beforehand and ask if dreadlocks are permissible there? And I agree with Baba -- a child who is eleven years old is definitely old enough to decide what they want to do with their hair, but they might not be fully aware of the different kinds of reactions different hairstyles evoke. I would definitely talk with her about dealing with these reactions, as well as dealing with the commitment that dreads require.

Hey, I was wondering what you and your daughter ended up deciding?

My daughter is 6 and has had her dreads for a year and a half. She is just finishing up Kindergarten here at a public school in the States. I've not had anyone from school say anything to me about it.

At the start of the year I wrote a little note to her teacher explaining that Gilly chose to have dreads and that if she ever had any questions about it, to just let me know.

She only VERY occasionally gets a "that girl needs to brush her hair" and then either Gill or her sister will chime in with "No, you don't brush dreads....." and sort of blink a lot at people as though they have said something really ridiculous.

Kids can be mean and I think the best thing we can do as parents is to remind them that things like how they do their hair is for them. I try to remind Gilly that as other people dont have to love or even like her dreads, it only matters that she does.

Thank you Gilly,s Mum for asking about my daughter Sientje,s dreads. Being a hairdresser myself I ended up doing the back half of Sientje,s hair with some t&r and back combing, unlike Gilly she couldn't stand the feeling of the dreads when she lay down in her bed, she tried for a couple of weeks but I ended up having to comb them out a few each night! She had no problems at the school in the end, but I think that is because we tied them back with some of her straight hair covering the dreads, the kids that did realise her hair was half dreaded all said they wish they could have their hair dreaded too! Living with me on a daily basis with dreads in my hair I think there will come at time again when Sientje will want to have them too again. I did add some coloured sheepskin wool to give a bit of length to Sientje fine hair and I think that's where I went wrong, unlike with Gilly,s hair being longer and the dreads sitting so beautifully tapered at the ends, there would of not been the bulk at the ends to lie on, where as Sientje,s length finished just after the nape of her neck and was think at the ends with the sheepskin wool! Something I too have learnt hopefully for a next time, she did look something cute though. I would love to see some recent pics of how Gilly,s dreads are now.

Gilly's Mum said:

Hey, I was wondering what you and your daughter ended up deciding?

My daughter is 6 and has had her dreads for a year and a half. She is just finishing up Kindergarten here at a public school in the States. I've not had anyone from school say anything to me about it.

At the start of the year I wrote a little note to her teacher explaining that Gilly chose to have dreads and that if she ever had any questions about it, to just let me know.

She only VERY occasionally gets a "that girl needs to brush her hair" and then either Gill or her sister will chime in with "No, you don't brush dreads....." and sort of blink a lot at people as though they have said something really ridiculous.

Kids can be mean and I think the best thing we can do as parents is to remind them that things like how they do their hair is for them. I try to remind Gilly that as other people dont have to love or even like her dreads, it only matters that she does.

know this was awhile ago discussion, but Schools usually dont say much about teenagers hair. I went to school with girls that dyed it every color under the rainbow, shaved their heads completely, tattoos, piercings everywhere, and there were kids with dreads in my high school, although that was in 2001. Not sure if things r diff now. Just say it's a spiritual belief. They are for most of us anyways. Schools cant discriminate against religious practices.

Peace Out,

Mandi

 Very interesting read and some really good opinions, makes you look at things differently 

My 12yr old son started his locks in Middle School.  Beforehand, he had watched his Dad and I grow & care for our locks for several years.  My son decided he would rather have locks than his normal curly hair... so we began the process without asking anyone's permission.  I do not allow other organizations to tell me how to parent my child, that includes school administrations.  I did, however, email my son's teacher to let her know that "this is the way it is" and that his locks would be clean, maintained and under control.  At the time, we lived in a small, rural town full of close-minded older people... but I never heard a word from anyone with complaints.  Towards the end of this past school year, my son's locks grew longer... and he ended up making more friends!

If anyone wants to argue the "dreadlock" point, you don't have to throw around religious philosophy... just simply ask them, "What do you think people looked like before the comb was invented?" ... and walk away!

--
Be Well! ♥ R☮ZE ✌️

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace." - Jimi Hendrix