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For years, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith have been criticized for bringing up their kids in an unconventional way. While it doesn’t seem like the couple has any regrets about raising children who are free-spirited and go against society’s norms, their two kids, Willow and Jaden, haven’t always been pleased with the way they were brought up.

Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith's family
Trey Smith, Jaden Smith, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Willow Smith, and Will Smith | Randy Shropshire/Getty Images for Environmental Media Association

Will and Jada Smith have an unorthodox approach to parenting

Since they’re two of the most famous celebrities in the world, Will and Jada Smith have received a lot of attention for their unique parenting style.

For years, the couple has been criticized for not believing in disciplining their children and giving them a lot of freedom. And since there’s been so much discussion surrounding the Smith’s parenting techniques, the couple has found themselves defending their unorthodox approach to parenting several times in the past.

In 2013, the Men In Black actor opened up to Metro, via E! News, about his and wife’s philosophy behind not disciplining their kids.

Smith Family
Jada Pinkett Smith, Will Smith, Willow Smith, Jaden Smith, and Trey Smith | Donna Ward/Getty Images

“We don’t do punishment. The way that we deal with our kids is, they are responsible for their lives. Our concept is, as young as possible, give them as much control over their lives as possible and the concept of punishment, our experience has been — it has a little too much of a negative quality,” Smith explained. “So when they do things — and you know, Jaden, he’s done things — you can do anything you want as long as you can explain to me why that was the right thing to do for your life.”

That same year, Smith revealed to Haute Living that he and his wife treat their kids as equals rather than their inferior.

“We tell our kids, ‘You don’t have a room, that’s our room and we are letting you borrow it.’ So the same way you would say to an adult if you let them use your car, you say, ‘Yo man, clean my car! Don’t drive around all filthy like that!’ And it’s perfectly reasonable for you to want an adult to clean your car, so we feel it’s perfectly reasonable to ask our kids to clean the rooms that we are letting them use.”

Willow and Jaden Smith previously discussed their issues with Jada’s parenting

Though having Jada and Will Smith as parents might seem like the coolest thing in the world, Willow and Jaden Smith have had some issues with the couple’s parenting techniques in the past.

During a June 2018 episode of Facebook Watch’s Red Table Talk, the brother-sister duo opened up about being raised by movie star parents. They also aired out some grievances regarding their mother and father’s parenting style.

Smith family
Willow Smith, Jaden Smith, Will Smith, and Jada Pinkett Smith | George Pimentel/Getty Images
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Willow started the conversation by telling Jada that she was upset with how she and Will handled the success of her 2010 hit, “Whip My Hair.”

“I only have one terrible experience, which is ‘Whip My Hair,'” Willow said. “Just that the values of the people around me should have been the opposite. You and daddy should have been like, ‘OK, we value her musical growth and knowledge more than her popularity.'”

Jaden then noted that he experienced a similar struggle after starring in his 2010 film The Karate Kid.

“Make them a freaking workaholic soldier so that they can always take care of themselves,” he chimed in.

After hearing her kids express their issues with her parenting, Pinkett-Smith broke down in tears while acknowledging that parents make mistakes when raising children.

“You know what? I think parents have to give themselves much more forgiveness,” she said, trying to hold back tears. “When you become a parent, you have these huge ideals, even for yourself, because we all are coming into parenting with our own childhood traumas. And you’re hoping you can fix all that through your own rearing of your children, and you can’t. Your kids are gonna have their burdens. And even though I see how it might have hurt you, it’s what I knew.”

Despite some people not agreeing with Will and Jada Smith’s parenting methods, the couple still raised three creative and talented individuals. To us, it looks like they did a pretty good job raising their kids.

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