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Parenting Skills

Parenting Tips by Jean Tracy, MSS, for grades K-6:

Are your children lively, noisy, and difficult to raise? Do you wish they???d calm down. Is your patience wearing thin?

Today???s Agenda for Building Character in Kids:

??         In our last post we discussed the tender style of parenting.

??         We noted the differences between tender and ???too tender.???

??         Today we???ll examine some parenting advice from Frederick Douglas.

??         We???ll also discuss the ???too tough??? style of parenting.

Raising kids isn???t easy. When you???re tired, worried, and at your wits??? end, parenting is downright tough. Yet, parenting is the most important job in the world. Frederick Douglass, a leading spokesperson for the abolition of slavery and for racial equality, had this to say,

???It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.???

There are many ways to break a child???s spirit. Let???s examine being ???too tough.??? When you???re at your wit???s end, it???s easy to call your child names, like brat, stupid, or just yell, ???Shut up!??? Recently, Alec Baldwin, the movie star, got caught yelling ???Pig!??? at his eleven year-old daughter. Sure, he was frustrated. He may have had his reasons. On the other hand, consider a child who is yelled at, called names, and put down by the most important person in her life, her parent. What might such a child think?

10 Inner Messages Kids Could Receive from Parents Who Are ???Too Tough:???

??         My parent hates me.

??         I???m not good enough.

??         I hate my parent.

??         I???m stupid.

??         I never do anything right.

??         I???m a failure.

??         Why try?

??         Who cares?

??         Nobody likes me.

??         I wish I was dead.

Parenting Advice ??? Negative Messages versus Positive Messages:

Frederick Douglass was right. A child, who hears negative messages and thinks negative thoughts, grows up with a broken spirit. Why not take the easier route and build strong children with positive messages? Why not be kind and firm?

If you had parents who frequently send you negative messages, do you remember how you thought and felt? Would you share some of your reactions with us?

In our next post, we???ll look at a quote from Ron Wild. We???ll also examine how to be tough but not ???too tough.???

If you liked these parenting tips, pick up our FREE Parenting Tips - 21 of the Best at http://www.KidsDiscuss.com   where you???ll find them at the top of the page.

Subscribe to our FREE Parenting Newsletter and receive 80 fun activities to share with your kids.

If you???d like to sharpen your parenting skills, check out our Parenting Skills Kit  with its Kind and Firm ???Discipline Stick???. Now is a great time to build character.

Category            

Parenting Skills

Parenting Tips by Jean Tracy, MSS, for grades K-6:

Are your children lively, noisy, and difficult to raise? Do you wish they’d calm down. Is your patience wearing thin?

Today’s Agenda for Building Character in Kids:

·         In our last post we discussed the tender style of parenting.

·         We noted the differences between tender and “too tender.”

·         Today we’ll examine some parenting advice from Frederick Douglas.

·         We’ll also discuss the “too tough” style of parenting.

Raising kids isn’t easy. When you’re tired, worried, and at your wits’ end, parenting is downright tough. Yet, parenting is the most important job in the world. Frederick Douglass, a leading spokesperson for the abolition of slavery and for racial equality, had this to say,

“It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.”

There are many ways to break a child’s spirit. Let’s examine being “too tough.” When you’re at your wit’s end, it’s easy to call your child names, like brat, stupid, or just yell, “Shut up!” Recently, Alec Baldwin, the movie star, got caught yelling “Pig!” at his eleven year-old daughter. Sure, he was frustrated. He may have had his reasons. On the other hand, consider a child who is yelled at, called names, and put down by the most important person in her life, her parent. What might such a child think?

10 Inner Messages Kids Could Receive from Parents Who Are “Too Tough:”

·         My parent hates me.

·         I’m not good enough.

·         I hate my parent.

·         I’m stupid.

·         I never do anything right.

·         I’m a failure.

·         Why try?

·         Who cares?

·         Nobody likes me.

·         I wish I was dead.

Parenting Advice – Negative Messages versus Positive Messages:

Frederick Douglass was right. A child, who hears negative messages and thinks negative thoughts, grows up with a broken spirit. Why not take the easier route and build strong children with positive messages? Why not be kind and firm?

If you had parents who frequently send you negative messages, do you remember how you thought and felt? Would you share some of your reactions with us?

In our next post, we’ll look at a quote from Ron Wild. We’ll also examine how to be tough but not “too tough.”

If you liked these parenting tips, pick up our FREE Parenting Tips - 21 of the Best at http://www.KidsDiscuss.com   where you’ll find them at the top of the page.

Subscribe to our FREE Parenting Newsletter and receive 80 fun activities to share with your kids.

If you’d like to sharpen your parenting skills, check out our Parenting Skills Kit  with its Kind and Firm “Discipline Stick”. Now is a great time to build character.

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Parenting Tips by Jean Tracy, MSS, for grades K-6:

If you’re divorced, working too hard, and lack time with your kids, do you feel sorry for your children? Perhaps you’re using the too tender approach to make up for your situation. If so, you’ll want to look to the consequences of being too kind.

Today’s Agenda for Building Character in Kids:

·         In our last post we discussed a parenting style for training your son to become a “star.”

·         Today we’ll discuss alternatives to being too tender with kids.

·         We’ll also look at some parenting advice from former President Truman.

“I have found the best way to give advice to your children is to find out what they want and then advise them to do it.” - Harry S. Truman

If you’re helping your kids think through a dilemma, a career, or some special decision, this could be great advice. If your kids rebel, make poor choices, and follow the wrong track, you might choose to ignore President Truman’s words. If your kids are on the wrong path you’ll want to make some adjustments in your parenting style.

Parenting Style When Using the Too Tender Approach with Kids:

Being too tender brings trouble. Too tender can be a result of guilt. If you’re divorced, you might feel sorry for your child and try to make life too easy for him. If you’re working too hard, you might not follow up on whether your child’s chores are completed. Lacking time for your child may prompt you to give material things to replace lost time with you. If you follow President Truman’s advice in these situations, you may be raising a weak self-centered child who gets what he wants, pouts when he doesn’t, and expects you to make him happy.

Parenting Advice Using the Tender Approach with Kids:

Being tender comes from love not guilt. Love teaches kids to meet life’s challenges with inner strength. Inner strength comes from your following through on your expectations like being respectful, doing homework, and completing chores. Love teaches kids to earn the things they want. Being tender but not too tender helps kids care about others too.

If you’re in doubt on how to parent, just ask yourself, “How can I be kind without being too kind?”

What do you think? Do you know parents who have trouble balancing tenderness? What advice would you give them?

In our next post, we’ll discuss some advice from Frederick Douglas and the problem with being too tough and not tender.

If you liked these parenting tips, pick up our FREE Parenting Tips - 21 of the Best at http://www.KidsDiscuss.com   where you’ll find them at the top of the page.

Subscribe to our FREE Parenting Newsletter and receive 80 fun activities to share with your kids.

If you’d like to sharpen your parenting skills, check out our Parenting Skills Kit  with its Kind and Firm “Discipline Stick”. Now is a great time to build character.