Kelly Clarkson is opening up about how she’s teaching her kids, particularly 3-year-old daughter River Rose, to defend both herself and others against bullies. The singer, who will be joining The Voice as a coach next season, said in a new interview that she’s already had a candid conversation with the youngster about bullying and is teaching her how important it is to stand up for herself.
Revealing how she approached the concept of bullying to her daughter, Clarkson admitted that she’s recently been speaking to River about what to do if someone does something “inappropriate” to her now that she’s started school.
“I said, ‘You tell mommy if somebody does anything inappropriate. You stand up for yourself,’” Kelly told People this week of how she’s teaching her daughter to protect herself and others in situations with bullies, explaining that she wants to instill in River that it’s important to stand up for both herself and those being picked on.
“Even from a young age, I think you should instill that people, your children, should always stand up for themselves or speak out when something is wrong,” Clarkson continued to People . “Not only for them, what’s happening to them, but maybe somebody in the class who you notice.”
Kelly also revealed in the new interview that her decision to start talking to River about bullies at such a young age is because she wants her firstborn to help to put an end to bullying once and for all.
“I think if we start it at that young age, and you start molding people and growing to these very elevated individuals that help elevate society,” she explained. “It’s a really crucial time when you have children right now.”
River is a big sister to Kelly’s son, 1-year-old Remington, and also has two step-siblings from his dad, Brandon Blackstock. Brandon is also dad to Seth and Savannah Blackstock from a previous relationship.
But don’t expect Kelly to be instilling her anti-bullying message to any more of her kids after River and Remington, as it sounds like being a mom and step-mom to four kids is enough for the former American Idol winner.
She recently joked that she and Brandon will not be having any more children after making a slightly TMI confession on the radio show Cubby and Carolina in the Morning last month.
When asked by the hosts if she and Brandon will potentially be expanding their family again and welcoming another baby into the world anytime soon, Clarkson made it pretty clear that she and Brandon they won’t be welcoming any more babies into the world together and exclaimed, “those tubes are gone!”
Explaining that her two pregnancies with River and Remington were “the worst,” Kelly joked that even the thought of getting pregnant again is now “blasphemy” in her house.
“We don’t even speak of it. We’re both fixed in our own ways,” she said of herself and her husband of four years, but joked that despite all their precautions to stop procreating, “we’ll probably get pregnant again somehow.”
What do you think of Kelly Clarkson getting candid about bullying with her daughter and teaching her to stand up for herself at such a young age?
[Featured Image by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images]