Some children adapt readily to peer socialization, but many struggle to find acceptance and form strong bonds with other children. Sometimes, this difficulty is related to a learning or developmental disorder (like High Functioning Autism or ADHD), in which case your child should receive both professional and parental assistance in building better social skills. In other cases, kids flounder socially ...
Throughout many areas of our lives, balance is key to success. Whether it’s achieving an optimal work-life balance or eating a more balanced diet, happiness can often be found in the middle ground between extremes. Cultivating a parenting style that reflects this wisdom has been shown to be similarly fruitful: Teens who are raised with a careful blend of ...
Though many things change when our children cross the threshold into adolescence, our desire to protect them remains the same. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing—teens still need our support and guidance, after all—but you’ll need to be prepared to let go of some of the control you’re used to. Taking measured risks and confronting ...
More often than not, parents live hectic and complicated lives. Naturally, because we’re already overburdened by complexity, easy answers can seem very appealing. This is especially true when it comes to understanding child development: Parents are often drawn to popular child-rearing strategies that focus on just one aspect of development. These theories generally state that by understanding a specific ...
For parents, even the little white lies that children sometimes tell - e.g., claiming to have completed their homework ...
Over the last two decades, ideological polarization has become a prominent threat to democracy, education, and society as a whole. ...
Too often, the emotional side of giftedness is overlooked; for all that we laud the intellectual complexity of giftedness, seldom ...
Though positive feelings play a big role in how we learn—providing a sense of reward and satisfaction—the importance of negative emotions shouldn’t be overlooked. Uncomfortable feelings often teach children essential lessons, and learning to manage these emotions early on can create the foundation for lifelong stability and success. Processing and contextualizing negative emotions helps kids become more ...
Many parents are reluctant to set limits because they don’t want to upset their children or incite power struggles. However, not establishing clear boundaries is proven to create emotional difficulties for children and make them more challenging to parent. Kids need limits to help them learn how to self-regulate. Without rules, they have no framework for coping with intense ...
With as busy as most parents are, it’s easy to overlook the many small opportunities we have to strengthen our relationship with our kids. Fortunately, building a solid, trusting bond with your child doesn’t require hours of research or complex parenting techniques. Instead, as is the case with any relationship, the parent-child connection thrives on consistent positive attention. ...
Adolescence is a period of intense growth. The parents of young teens often feel like their child has changed overnight, becoming moody, withdrawn, and difficult to reach. Newly altered behaviour and speech patterns can make it seem like your teen is suddenly speaking a foreign language—leading to frequent disagreements and misunderstandings. The first step to interacting with your teen ...
