Easing Kid Worries About Our Unpredictable World
Parenting advice to reduce our kids' worries about a sometimes mean, scary, unpredictable world and curb the growing "Mean World Syndrome" Terrorism. ISIS. Bombings. Beheadings. War. School shootings. Pedophiles. Cyberbullying. Kidnappings. Global warming. Tsunamis. Earthquakes. Sexual abuse. It's a scary world out there for us, but how do you think the kids are faring? Let’s face it-we live in frightening, unpredictable times. But if you are feeling a bit jittery about violence, turbulent...
Identity Crisis: A Great New YA Book
Books have always been one of the best ways to tug at our children's hearts, help them explore new worlds and possibilities and also examine their own ideas or views. Finding the right book for the right child at the right time can be a challenge-especially for the teen set. Cyberbullying, romance and forming identities are always issues I know concern girls. That's why I love a particular new publication and wanted to share it with you. In her new book, IDENTITY CRISIS, YA author Melissa...
Untangled: A Guide for Raising Teen Girls
Worried about how to help your daughter navigate today’s plugged-in, complex, stressful-out world? Well, you can breathe. Lisa Damour has written the ultimate manual for raising today’s teen girls that will serve as your roadmap. It’s called, Untangled: Guiding Teenage Girls Through the Seven Transitions Into Adulthood. Lisa Damour, Ph.D. divides that journey into seven strands (or normal developmental phases) based on new research that turn girls into grown-ups. Those seven phases include:...
How to Teach Kids: “Kindness Wins”
New book shows how to raise our children to be kind both online and off. “Teaching kids that their online actions, words, and shares can have an impact on themselves breeds responsibility. But teaching them that their online choices may affect others encourages empathy, and therefore, kindness.” - Galit Breen, from Kindness Wins: A Simple, No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Our Kids How to Be Kind Online ne of the top questions I’m asked by parents is how to keep children...
Signs of Stress in Children and Teens
REALITY CHECK: Reports say that stress is mounting in our children, and that we parents are often unaware of just how stressed our kids are. Each child handles and shows stress differently. A big key to helping our children is learning to recognize their unique signs, which type of events or issues cause angst, and then teach healthy ways to manage stress. Stress: A Top Kid Health Concern The American Psychological Association (APA) released troubling survey results about our kids. The...
Raising Self-Reliant, Independent Kids (Part II)
In my last post (3 Skills That Teach Resourcefulness) I described three skills (brainstorming, self-reliance, and decision making) that help kids become resourceful and resilient. Here are three more essential and teachable skills (how to negotiate resist peer pressure, and bounce back from failure) in this special two-part series aimed at helping our children and teens become independent, self-reliant, resourceful and resilient. Skill #4. Show how to negotiate It’s a typical Saturday...
3 Skills That Teach Resourcefulness
Three crucial and teachable skills that help kids become self-reliant, resourceful and resilient. Raising your child to become independent is among your most important parenting tasks. After all, one of your key goals is to help your son or daughter survive as well as thrive without your guidance. That means you must prepare your child to handle life so he or she can deal with anything that comes along. But what are the essential skills that will boost your kid’s independence? That’s where I...
Mother Knew Best (Or Did She?) Facts & Fiction
The truth behind those words of wisdom from Dear Old Mom based on what the new science says about child development and parenting advice Remember the sage motherly advice that was the soundtrack to your childhood? If you’re not sure how much of her philosophy to keep and how much to take with a grain of salt, let the research decide. I consulted with recent scientific studies and weigh in on whether Mom really knew her stuff. Over the past decade significant research has unearthed proven ways...
How to Raise An Assertive Child
Let's face it. It's a tougher time to be growing up, and the data confirms it. Bullying is fiercer. Peer pressure is tougher. Kids are also more aggressive at younger ages. Girls are meaner. Of course we can't always be there to pick up the pieces or help our kids stand up for themselves, nor should we. After all, the more our children see us as their rescuers, the more they learn to rely on us to solve their problems. The secret is help our kids learn how to be more assertive and speak up for...
4 Ways to Nurture Kindness
The photograph is of a simple wreath of handprints. The idea came from a teacher who wanted to help her students develop strong hearts as well as minds. And so she set up an art center with construction paper, scissors, glue and marking pens. The directions were easy: "Any time someone is kind or caring to you or to someone else, trace around your hand, cut it out and glue it to the circle. Inside the hand write or draw what the person did that was kind, caring or helpful and write their...
Building Respectful Learning Cultures
Many of today’s students lack an understanding of respect because their experiences with this essential character trait have been minimal. They simply haven't witnessed or heard respect in their lives. Nor may they be expected to be respectful. Think about it: If you are rarely around people who display respect and if you aren’t treated as though you are a valued and worthwhile individual, how can you possible “catch the behavior?” That’s the secret of learning new character building...
If You’re Worried About Your Kids’ Friends
Bad friends. It’s every parent’s worst nightmare: we imagine only the worse: drugs, smoking, sex, trouble with the law. But what should parents do if they notice that their daughter is hanging out more with a kid whose values don't seem in sync with their own? Is there ever a time when you should forbid your son from being with a particular friend? The bottom line on this one: It’s okay to have friends who are different from your child. After all, exposing our kids to diversity is a big part...
Seven Secrets for Calming Tempers
Sure, it’s great to be a parent, but it’s also one of the most stressful, exhausting roles on the planet. The fact is, meltdowns are inevitable in any home, and even more so these days when it everyone is leading treadmill-paced lives. So let’s be clear: Anger is normal, but how you choose to deal with yours can make you the Role Model for your family or the Wicked Witch of the North. The important parenting secret is finding a way to keep those meltdowns to a minimum. I was honored by Dr....
What to Do If Your Child Is Bullied
Parenting advice if your child is a repeated victim of bullying and the bullying intensifies. Why you must step in and how It’s been ten years, but I am still haunted by the memory. I had just finished giving a keynote address on bullying to a large group of educators. A gentleman was quietly waiting by the stairs of the stage to speak with me. As I approached the man, he silently handed me a picture of an adorable eleven-year old boy. With tears in his eyes, the man thanked me for my speech...
Helping Kids Who Fear Failure
One of the inevitable facts of life is that everyone makes mistakes. Granted, some mistakes are more significant than others and harder to get over, but they are a part of life. How individuals deal with those mistakes is significant to their self-esteem. Children with high self-esteem appear much better at coping with their errors. Watching children with positive self-perceptions deal with an error is always a magnificent sight. These children literally stand up, brush off their knees, and...
35 Activities to Teach Respect
RESPECT: a way of treating or thing about something or someone. If you respect your teacher, you admire her and treat her well. If you respect your friend you regard her highly and treat her with consideration. There are many ways people show respect to others, and the more aware that students are of what those actions look and sound like, the more likely they are to incorporate those behaviors in their daily lives. Here are 35 activities students can do to learn the meaning and value of...
How to Raise An Un-Entitled Kid
Truth be known: I am a huge Amy McCready fan. I love her common-sense approach to parenting, and her sage, practical advice. I devoured (and recommended) her last book, If I Have to Tell You One More Time), and bookmark her blog, Positive Parenting Solutions. But her latest book, The "Me, Me, Me" Epidemic: A Step-By-Step Guide to Raising Capable Grateful Kids in an Over-Entitled World has my vote for the "Must-Read Parenting Book of the Year." McCready's latest book is not only timely, but...
Boosting Sibling Harmony
Reality Check: University of Michigan Medical School: Research shows that siblings will fight more in families where there is no understanding of acceptable ways to solve conflicts. Make sure you teach your children how to resolve their bickering! I’ll never forget the time one of my kids accused me of one of the truly Deadly Mommy Sins: “Loving the Other Brother More.” To make things even worse, my girlfriend was the one to convey my youngest child’s feelings to me. “Did you know that your...
Protecting Kids From Online Predators
Troubling research about our kids' lack of online smarts and predators' new grooming techniques to lure them. Advice based on new studies to keep kids safer online and parents and child givers better educated. Studies show that predators are using more subtle and savvier ways to "befriend" kids including pretending to be another teen or child as a means of forming a relationship. The purpose of this blog is not to scare you or have you overreact and pull the plug on your computer. The chance...
Ending Chore Wars
Parenting advice to help kids learn to do household chores, boost responsibility muscles, and lend a hand without bickering. Really! Years ago I learned an important parenting secret from my girlfriend that I’ll never forget. Cindy and I were busy chatting away when she glanced at the clock and suddenly announced to: “Chore time!” to her kids. And just as quickly her two kids jumped up from what they were doing, scurried to the kitchen and proceeded to unload the dishwasher and put the clean...
10 Ways to Raise a Moral Child
Let’s play “Back to the Future” and pretend it’s twenty-five years from now. Your kids are grown, and they’re healthy and happy. (What we all hope, right?) So here's your key question to contemplate as you pretend to look at your adults: What character traits do you hope to see in your grown kids the most?" One crucial point to keep in mind: Character traits differ from temperament and personality like “outgoing, reserved, sensitive, shy, laid-back” and are largely genetically coded. The...