by Chris Jones | May 5, 2015 | Discipline & Behavior, Preteens & Teens
OMG, who am I? The tween and teen years are a time for seeking answers to this universal, developmentally appropriate and daunting question. The common belief that peers are the truth-tellers and parents are the ones who don’t understand is pervasive. They see...
by Chris Jones | Apr 22, 2015 | Discipline & Behavior, Preteens & Teens
By all accounts, Micah had a great freshman year—good grades, a nice mix of extracurricular activities, and some new friends who shared his passions for music, soccer, and anime comics. But by October of his sophomore year, Micah had lost interest in school, sports,...
by Chris Jones | Mar 30, 2015 | Leisure & Vacation, Parenting Tips
I call 4- and 5-year-olds the “adolescents of early childhood” because, emotionally speaking, they are going through many of the same things that preteens and teenagers experience. Children of this age generally feel pretty capable and on top of their world. They have...
by Chris Jones | Mar 16, 2015 | Birth - First Year, Parenting Tips
Little do we know during pregnancy that almost every waking minute immediately postpartum will be filled with baby-related tasks. All of our best laid plans during our “time off”—organize closets, decorate the baby’s room, paint the guest room, go out to lunch...
by Chris Jones | Mar 9, 2015 | Leisure & Vacation, Parenting Skills, Toddlers
“Storytelling is the interactive art of using words and actions to reveal the elements and images of a story while encouraging the listener’s imagination. An interactive process involving the teller who shares the tale, and the listeners who let their...
by Chris Jones | Mar 2, 2015 | Occupational Therapy, Parenting Skills, Parenting Tips, Special Challenges
Motor development for a child involves the ability to process the sensory information in their environment—touch, movement, sight, sound, taste, smell, and pressure—and integrate them, along with sensory-motor and perceptual-motor skills. If a child cannot process the...
by Chris Jones | Feb 23, 2015 | Discipline & Behavior, Parenting Tips, Toddlers
A new study out of McGill University re-evaluated an age-old question about children’s honesty over their misbehaviors.* Researchers observed hundreds of children between the ages of 4 and 8. The children were individually told that there was a toy in the room...
by Chris Jones | Feb 18, 2015 | Discipline & Behavior, Parenting Skills
There are many different ways to discipline a child. Often, we start out with the strategies we remember from our own childhood. Then, we may turn to advice from fellow parents. And finally, we stumble through trial and error as we learn what works directly from our...
by Chris Jones | Feb 12, 2015 | Media Safety, Parenting Skills, Parenting Tips
Do you recall life before cell phones? The days when mothers and caregivers strolled with their young and talked to them on the way to the park? How we looked into our child’s eyes with love and attention whenever possible? When we took the time to pass on the...
by Chris Jones | Feb 2, 2015 | Leisure & Vacation, Parenting Skills, Parenting Tips, Preteens & Teens
For parents, January is the month when we begin planning for activities for our children for the rest of the school year and for summer. It is the time to register for classes, sports teams, and summer camps. It is also a great time to evaluate our children’s...
