Parenting Power

New year, fresh start – maybe this year, the homework struggles will cease! Einstein defined insanity as, “Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting it to change. The reality is, if homework was a struggle before Christmas, it likely will be now. If you are a hardened homework parent, you may be [...]

In a National Post article (Nov 19), British Chief Rabbi, Jonathan Sacks reminds us all that “Consumerism is the quickest way to unhappiness.” http://www.nationalpost.com/news/culture+stemmed+from+Jobs+chief+rabbi/5736788/story.html Rabbi Sacks made the following points: We are living in the “i” generation – in fact he calls it the selfish “i” Advertising makes shoppers aware of what they don’t have – this is [...]

  Just as we give our kids books to nurture their knowledge of reading, giving our kids money as a manipulative enables them to learn about money – spending, saving and giving. Whether you choose to link money to chores or to keep them separate is a family decision. We’ve put together some questions to [...]

This week in the Globe and Mail it was reported that according to the American Academy of Paediatrics, kids 2 and younger should be “screen free” as much as possible and those exposed to excessive amounts of media may experience developmental problems.  In 1999, the group recommended limited amounts of screen time, but since then [...]

A client asked our opinion about the behaviour of some parents of kids on his child’s sports team .   His son was on a level 4 team last year and is on a level 1 team this year.  He said he was quite surprised by the difference in the behaviour of the parents.  He went on to explain [...]

The best way to teach our kids anything is to live it. So when we want to teach gratitude, we model it. We take time to recognize what we have (through conversations with them and also with others) and when we receive something, we are sure to thank the person and might even send a [...]

Having read and re read the article Teachable Moment or the Wrong Message by Sarah Boesveld, National Post • Sept. 28, 2011, we were moved to share our position. There is no question of the value of teachable moments when educating and raising children. The real question is – When do we make use of [...]

  It starts as a toddler. Our little one refuses to hand over a toy or stop an activity. In his mind, the idea that anyone would want to stop him from doing what he is doing is inconceivable due to his egocentric stage of development. There is only one point of view – his [...]

When determining your family’s answer to this question, you will need to go back to the foundation – your own family values. Why does one apologize? When we feel remorseful for our behaviour, we find the courage to ask for forgiveness. This can be a difficult process and is most effective when it comes from [...]

When a second baby arrives, our toddlers suddenly seem so much more mature. We still need to have age-appropriate expectations of their abilities to set everyone up for success. Baby’s arrival can be as frustrating for Big Sibling as it is exciting for others. Big Sib didn’t want this new child and is no longer [...]