Articles

Emerging trends regarding body positivity are so very encouraging! These societal shifts are going to tell our children different stories than the ones that we grew up with.  However, that’s only one part of the equation; the other part is how we adults use language to describe our bodies…

We talk a lot about how the child rearing years set the stage for the adults that our children will eventually become – and this seemingly small issue of interrupting is no different. Small problems at a young age can become much bigger problems as our kids get older and move into adulthood…

We know that too much screen time and social media can be detrimental to our children’s development and mental health, but childhood obesity is an American epidemic that we must actively fight against as well. Our job as parents is to help our kids by imposing boundaries that they cannot yet create for themselves…

There has been a significant amount of research conducted on the idea of “creativity.” But creativity wasn’t believed to be a behavior. It was a characteristic or personality trait – something a person is born with; right? Not so! There are actually things that we can do to increase our child’s ability to creatively play and problem solve. FREE DOWNLOAD available!

When it comes to addressing a behavioral issue with your child, both parents (if there are two) must be on the same page and hold the same expectations if there is going to be any significant change. If one parent doesn’t agree with the plan, then the effort will be ineffective and there will be no improvements in behavior…

From the time that they are born, babies begin absorbing everything around them.  Long before they ever utter a word on their own, they learn the names of things and categorize what they are exposed to. Speak to your baby LONG before you expect your child to start making sounds and talking… 

One of the most common questions we get from parents is, “How do I get my kid to stop [insert undesirable behavior here]?” The answer is: Extinction. Our children frequently try to access our attention through their misbehavior, and so the process of extinction involves NOT providing attention when the behavior occurs…

Many parents believe that in order for their child to eventually become a successful adult, their child should be involved in EVERYTHING: sports, music, dance, student council, tutoring, etc. The truth is, everyone (children, adults, and anyone in between) needs downtime. Parents play an important role in creating opportunities and setting a balance…

Being told ‘no’ can be disappointing (for kids and adults!), but it's also guaranteed to happen throughout life. So, it's best for parents to work on teaching kids how to best understand ‘no,’ respect it, and manage the resulting emotions because words are meaningful and powerful. FREE DOWNLOADS available!

Once each of my kids had a strong enough grasp on language, we started prompting them to say ‘please’ when making a request and ‘thank you’ at the time of receiving something. Reinforcing sincere usage of these magic words is vital to helping children understand the concept of gratefulness…

Sometimes, working through a specific behavioral challenge with our child can be utterly exhausting.  Most of the time, a behavior plan only requires one person to actively be implementing at any given point. Develop a system where you can ask for help from your partner, co-parent, family or friends…

As our children become adolescents, they enter the most fragile period of life.  Because their sense of self is still so unformed and malleable, adolescents are left vulnerable to influence from others. The best way to combat peer pressure with your child is to have a more solid parental influence that wins out…