Parenting 101

There is an excellent book written by Dr. Haim Ginott called "Between Parent and Child." In this book Ginott outlines 7 principles of emphatic communication. These include: The beginning of wisdom is listening. Do not deny your child's perceptions. Instead of criticism, use guidance. State the problem and possible solution.  When angry, describe what you see, what you feel, and what you expect, starting with the pronoun "I." Praising. Learn to say "no." Give children a choice and a voice in matters that affect their lives. For this post I am going to focus on principle #4. It is helpful to have a basic outline of what to say when your child needs correction. When we don't have the fundamentals of what should be said in our mind beforehand, we more often find ourselves reacting inappropriately and allowing our anger to take over in the moment.  Dr. Ginott says that we should be "strict when dealing with children's misbehavior...but all feel

Forming our own parenting style can be very difficult. We all grew up with different types of parents. Some had very strict parents, some had parents who were overly lax or disinterested. Others had parents who were strict but nurturing. It can be especially difficult if you and your spouse had parents with differing styles. How do we know the correct style to use? The different styles of parenting can be broken down into 4 categories: authoritarian, authoritative, permissive, and uninvolved. Let's look at this graphic provided by Amy Morin at Very Well Family: In the first box we have authoritarian parents. These parents are very strict. They require children to obey, without question, no matter the circumstance. They are quick to punish and slow to validate or listen to the child.  In the box below that are the permissive parents. These parents are the opposite of authoritarian parents. Rules don't exist in these homes. Children are allowed free reign with little to no bounda