Parenting During the Holidays
Does Parenting change with the amount of sugar in your childs diet? I wonder The 4th Quarter of the Calendar Year does its best to confound every parent. Here are a few tools for the Big People that just might help even out the score!
Raising Your Kids Without Raising Your Voice by Sarah Chana Radcliffe (Collins) A frequent speaker on the parenting tour, Radcliffe has created this book based on her 25 years of counseling experience. One concept that grabbed my attention is her 80/20 rule - - 80% of your experiences with your child should be positive, 20% negative. She asks parents to visualize the adult you want your child to be. Her views on Parental Anger Management might mimic the Golden Rule, which is so much easier said than done. Radcliffe gives the reader concrete solutions to put this in action.
Raising a Self-Disciplined Child by Robert Brooks and Sam Goldstein (McGraw Hill) From the authors of Raising Resilient Children , this book focuses on the tougher topics of self-control, self-reliance and self-assurance. (Bigger kids, bigger problems, right?) If the parenting bell curve goes from neglectful to overprotective, this book tries to move us towards the middle. The reader might just recognize some areas to model this type of behavior as well.
The No-Cry Discipline Solution by Elizabeth Pantley (McGraw Hill) The author of the No-Cry Sleep Solution, Pantley returns with a guide to parenting younger children. Parenting is about teaching, and her four-part plan towards discipline helps build a strong relationship between parent and child so the teaching can be effective. A helpful resource at the back of the book outlines specific problems such as backtalk, hitting or sibling rivalry and what-to-do/what-not-to-do suggestions.
Ready or Not, Here Life Comes by Mel Levine (Simon & Schuster) Pediatrician Levine addresses the issue of work-life unreadiness in todays children. Success in school or on the athletic fields does not always translate into a life of independence. Overscheduled kids who are coached through childhood need to learn to make decisions on their own. Four key strengths of kids who make the transition to the adult world are: self-awareness, keen observation skills, mastery of tools to learn new skills and strong communication skills. Wheres the class that teaches these things?
80% parent, 20% child, Julie Hubble lives in Leawood.