Parent Tips
| "Appreciate the value of play: it is a child's work. Play is critical to all aspects of a child's development, but is often overlooked as a valuable tool. Play can prevent discipline problems, offers a natural way for children to learn, and is essential in the formation of a positive relationship between parent and child." - Child Welfare League of America |
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| "Talk with and listen to your child. It's important to make eye contact and use gentle touch when communicating with your child. Give clear and consistent instructions -- but not too many at once. Remember the importance of non-verbal communication, and be sure to hold a child for comfort or to share smiles and hugs." - Child Welfare League of America |
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| "Build your child's brain and body. Provide healthful meals and snacks and model good eating habits. Encourage exercise by being active with your child and limiting time in front of the television or playing video games. Support your child's efforts in school and provide opportunities to learn and explore by visiting the library, museums, zoos and other places of interest." - Child Welfare League of America |
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| "Be your child's first source of information. Encouraging your children to ask questions now, makes it easier for them to ask questions when they are older. By answering questions from your child with honesty and openness, you can create a relationship of mutual trust and respect that can prevent your child from developing unsafe habits or taking unnecessary risks." - Child Welfare League of America |
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| "Learn how children develop and know your unique child. When it comes to your child, the real expert is you, the parent. Know all areas of your child's development -- physical, intellectual, social, emotional and moral -- and remember there is nothing to be ashamed of if your child needs special help to progress at his or her own best rate." - Child Welfare League of America |
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| "Cherish your child's individuality. Support your child's interests and talents. Try to spend time alone with each of your children every day. Praise your children's differences and avoid comparing them or asking why they can't be like someone else." - Child Welfare League of America |
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| "Set your household up for success -- make it work for the whole family. Model and teach good safety habits and establish routines. Discuss and enforce family rules that work for your household -- for example, putting toys away after play." - Child Welfare League of America |
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| "Take care of yourself. If you are tired, ill or just worn out, you cannot be an effective parent. Eat healthfully, get enough sleep, take occasional breaks from parenting if possible, and enlist the support of family, friends and neighbors when things seem overwhelming." - Child Welfare League of America |
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| "Make time for family activities. A sense of belonging is enhanced when families take time to engage in common activities such as having meals together and sharing tasks and responsibilities. Use family time to discuss need and feelings, to solve problems and promote cooperation." - Child Welfare League of America |
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| "Teach your child right from wrong. A child's understanding of right and wrong develops slowly, from within. Actively teach your children a code of moral conduct and lay the groundwork for them to develop their own moral guide." - Child Welfare League of America |
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| "When we thought about our top five positive parenting tips, this one came to mind first. It came to us first in our thinking of positive parenting tips, it did not come first to us with regard to when we learned it. We have always loved our children, we have not always liked what they did, what they said, or the decisions they made. When they have behaved, spoken, or decided something that we did not like, we have learned to really check our attitude. When we confront, discuss, dialogue, or talk with our kids, they can tell what we think about them. We have learned that when they get the feeling that we are trying to control them as opposed to teach them, they almost always resist our efforts. In order to have the greatest influence with our kids, we have learned that we have to be thinking good things about them in order to project our love and concern for them at all times (Yes, even when we have to hold them accountable, we want to make sure they know that we still love them.)" - Squidoo.com |
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| "We have found that treating our kids politely is the best way to encourage them to behave politely with us and others. We work really hard at using "please" and "thank-you" with them in the same way that we expect them to us it with us, with each other, and with people outside our family. We have found that treating our kids politely is the best way to encourage them to behave politely with us and others. We work really hard at using "please" and "thank-you" with them in the same way that we expect them to us it with us, with each other, and with people outside our family. Modeling "good" behavior is much better than just talking about it." - Squidoo.com |
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| "We find that talking about what you don't want is pretty easy to do, and that we often slip in to this bad habit. For example, we tend to gravitate to statements like: -Don't spill that milk -Don't leave your shoes on the floor! -Don't leave your shoes on the floor! -Don't forget to do your homework! -Don't speak to me that way! -Don't slam the door! When these statements get much better results: -Please be careful with that glass. -Put your shoes in the closet, please. -Remember to do your homework. -I would appreciate it if you would watch your tone when you speak to me. -Please close the door rather than slam it." - Squidoo.com |
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| "This positive parenting tip becomes even more important as your kids approach their teenage years. When they make a mistake, disobey you, break a household rule, or make a bad decision; you probably see the long-term implications clearly. In your effort to protect them from the same mistake in the future, you might even get angry with them. The anger, while often justified, can get you in trouble as you work to apply positive parenting techniques. Be careful to focus your disciplinary approach on teaching the lesson you want your child to learn and not on expressing the depth of your hurt or anger. If you focus too much on your feelings, you run a major risk of having them miss the whole point of your disciplinary choice. They might take your efforts as evidence of you "punishing" them rather than "holding them accountable" or "teaching them a valuable lesson." Venting your hurt, fear, or anger can do relational damage that you'll have a difficult time overcoming." - Squidoo.com |
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| "Consistently applying discipline, enforcing household rules, and teaching appropriate behavioral lessons has been among our biggest challenges. If you are anything like us, when you are tired, hungry, frustrated due to work pressures, or distracted by other tasks, you might overreact to an issue or ignore it because your are "too tired to deal with this." We found that having a clearly defined set of rules, expectations, and acceptable behaviors really helped us when our kids were younger. Having a system, like The Behavior Bucks System, helped our kids know what we expected of them and what they could expect as a result of their behavior. Because we thought things through in a calm moment, we were better able to respond appropriately to situations, either good ones or bad ones, when they occurred at times when our logical filters had a few holes in them due to fatigue or other factors." - Squidoo.com |
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| "Be consistent. If you set guidelines for behavior, stick to them. Don't "give in" to whines or tantrums when you've already said, "No." Try changing the environment, or the subject, and remain positive. You're teaching your children boundaries that make sense -- without anger." - National Runaway Switchboard |
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| "Follow through! Think before you set consequences for breaking the rules, because you must follow through if you want to be taken seriously. If you don't plan to carry out threats, don't make them. Have a plan for discipline; don't let your good or bad moods dictate your actions when it comes to your children." - National Runaway Switchboard |
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| "Be specific. Don't make children read your mind. Be crystal clear when explaining what behavior you would like to see from them." - National Runaway Switchboard |
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| "Learn to manage behavior. The secret: Children need to have your time, attention, praise and respect. There's just no substitute for YOU! A child who doesn't get enough positive attention will demand "negative" attention." - National Runaway Switchboard |
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| "Remain patient. It takes time and practice, but your child will appreciate it." - National Runaway Switchboard |
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| "Speak and listen with care. Try to listen more than you speak. Listen with your eyes and your heart. If a child feels understood, he will be more likely to listen when you speak, and respect what you say." - National Runaway Switchboard |
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| "Let kids be kids -- and have a sense of humor! Kids make mistakes; it's how they learn. As long as they're not in danger, try to have a sense of humor when your plans go awry." - National Runaway Switchboard |
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| "Experts agree the computer belongs in a public area of the home. When the computer is in a public place in the home, your children sense they are being observed. The more time children, tweens, and teens spend online, the more opportunities they have to be exposed to inappropriate content, cyber-bullying, online predators, or become a victim of Internet addiction. Children's time on the computer needs to be monitored." - MomLogic |
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| "Show by example! Eat fruits, vegetables, and whole grains with meals or as snacks. Let your child see that you like to munch on raw vegetables." - USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion |
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| "Reward your child with attention, not food! Show your love with hugs and kisses. Comfort with hugs and talks. Choose not to offer sweets as rewards. It lets your child think sweets or dessert foods are better than other foods. When meals are not eaten, kids do not need "extras"- such as candy or cookies-as replacement foods." - USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion |
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| "Focus on each other at the table! Talk about fun and happy things at mealtime. Turn off the television. Take phone calls later. Try to make meals a stress-free time for you and your family." - USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion |
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| "Encourage physical activity! Make physical activity fun for the whole family. Involve your children in the planning. Walk, run, and play with your child, instead of sitting on the sidelines. Set an example by being physically active and using safety gear, like bike helmets." - USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion |
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| "Be a good food role model! Try new foods yourself. Describe its taste, texture, and smell. Offer one new food at a time. Serve something your child likes along with the new food. Offer new foods at the beginning of a meal, when your child is very hungry. Avoid lecturing or forcing your child to eat." - USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion |
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