Category: Littles

Three Approaches to Authority Relationships Two Win-Lose approaches that can compromise the emotional safety of the environment: Powering: Adult Wins, Child Loses Strategies: Humiliation, loss of dignity, violation of self-esteem; criticism, shaming, verbal or emotional violence Threat to physical safety, physical violence Conditional approval or love; threat of emotional abandonment Deprivation of meaningful privilege or Read More

Childhood is boot camp for adult living. While in this training period, allow youngsters not only to see a working budget in the home, but also to participate in some of the decisions.  A trip to the grocery store to buy orange juice, lettuce, and ice cream was so much more delightful when I heard Read More

A very different approach! Here’s a new spin on the notion of “consequences,” a term familiar to every parent. But rather than looking at the negative outcome of behavioral choices your children make, let’s examine a more positive alternative, a shift in focus that is far more effective in generating the kinds of behaviors you want—and Read More

     “Momma, Help!” cried my frantic four-year old. Stubby little fingers tightly grasped a long twig; hanging mid-way down the branch was a chrysalis. The transparent covering was split and just barely visible were the bright velvet colors of a Viceroy butterfly’s wings. It was easy to see why my son was so distraught; the Read More