"Go to bed and stay there!" "Ah, mom, please can I stay of a little longer tonight, I'm not tired." "Are you out of bed again, you had a drink, you've gone to the bathroom, I've kissed you good-nite, now just go in and go to sleep, you are going to be exhausted tomorrow." If these phrases are familiar to you, well you are not alone. Every night, around the world parents end their evenings with … [Read more...]

by Shirley King There isn't a parent who hasn't felt challenged by his or her child at one time or another. The child who says "No! You can't make me!" creates a feeling in the parent of "Oh yes, you will!" The child's heels then dig in deeper, while the parent gets angrier and angrier. Most parents are familiar with the term "power struggle." It definitely is a struggle for power between … [Read more...]

by Shirley King Attachment discipline is one aspect of attachment parenting, a term coined by pediatrician and author Dr. William Sears. Attachment parenting, he wrote in Creative Parenting, is a continuum of parenting which is "an uninterrupted, nurturing relationship, specifically attuned to a child's needs as he passes from one developmental stage to the next." Attachment parenting is … [Read more...]

Gentle Parenting T. Berry Brazelton has called him, " One of the leading psychiatrists of our time." He is the author of many books including First Feelings and Playground Politics. Now Stanley Greenspan, M.D. (With Jacqueline Salmon) has written a new book entitled The Challenging Child. Greenspan and others have identified five basic personality patterns which arise from inborn physical … [Read more...]

One of the most unsettling experiences in raising children is a temper tantrum--an explosion of frustration, anger, or rage from a child. Learning how to deal with, prevent, and survive toddler outbursts is something nearly every parent comes up against at one time or another. Tantruming can cause parents to feel frustrated, angry, powerless, out of control and certainly quite embarrassed if … [Read more...]

by Michael Tonjum, Ph.D. "You are loved, you are safe with us, your needs will be met, and you will be protected". When children are born into a family these basic messages are expressed. Divorce means everything you once took for granted as a child is going to change. Thus, change is the biggest threat to children during the initial stages of their parents divorce. "Who will take care of me … [Read more...]

Researchers estimate that children in the United States watch television on a daily basis, usually for about three to four hours. This of course causes many to speculate just how great an influence the television set has become, when comparing values expressed on TV with those children oftentimes express. Hand in hand with this wonderment is the concern that an increase in television violence … [Read more...]

Parenting is a challenging proposition no matter what the situation, but when a divorce is taking place, parenting becomes an obstacle course. Not only are you dealing with your personal tragedy and are attempting to keep your life moving forward, but in addition to dealing with your crisis you can only guess how your child is being affected, especially when the divorce is less than … [Read more...]

It is that time again, and little slips of paper are being sent home with your children, requesting a time when you and the teacher can get together to discuss your child's progress. These conferences offer the perfect chance to find out how well little Johnny is adjusting to his new class, more challenging studies, and the new teacher. Often, parent-teacher conferences turn out to be nothing … [Read more...]

By Shirley King All parents would like their children to share. As parents, we can help instill in our children a sense of what psychologist Alfred Adler called "social interest" -a concern for others that is larger and more desirable than the feeling of "what's in it for me?" In Raising a Responsible Child, Don Dinkmeyer and Gary McKay write, "The child with social interest is cooperative … [Read more...]