Dr. Sherri Singer's article from last week, Why Failure Is Not Always A Bad Thing For Kids, addresses the very important topic of learning and striving for success (meaning whatever you want to accomplish) and to keep going at it rather than giving up in the process. Dr. Singer's article has a wealth of wisdom that may be overlooked by some readers because it was written from more of a logical, academic perspective rather than a personal and passionate one--which is why I'm revisiting her article and using my own personal experience to examine how we can cultivate a passion for learning and to instill more awareness of the value of lifelong … [Read more...]
Archives for October 2013
Why Failure Is Not Always A Bad Thing For Kids
October 24, 2013 by Leave a Comment
We have all heard, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again." What happens when you don't succeed, though? Do you really try again? Or do you give up? A new study by French researchers found that children who were told learning can be difficult, and that failing is a natural part of the learning process, actually performed better on tests than kids not given such reassurances. As a Psychologist who works with success and the benefits of failure every day, I believe there is no better way to take the punch out of failure and keep a kid going on work than to train them to fail with grace. In the study, they focused on a … [Read more...]
So What’s Your Excuse?
October 21, 2013 by Leave a Comment
While driving my daughter to school on Friday morning the local radio hosts were talking about a Mother of three from Sacramento, California who posted a photo of herself that went viral on facebook. The photo showed an attractive, super-fit woman, three young boys aged 8 months, 2 years and 3 years, and the caption, "What's Your Excuse?" The radio hosts took phone calls from the listening audience, polling the listeners about whether the Mom was an inspiration to others, or whether she was just being obnoxious. (Most of the audience was positive and polite--at least in the limited time that I listened in.) And yesterday (Sunday) morning, the … [Read more...]
Seven Signs Your Teen Is Sleep Deprived
October 17, 2013 by Leave a Comment
...And Seven Tips To Prevent Severe Fatigue Does your teenager always want to sleep in the morning? Does he or she mope around in the morning? Do they drag to school? Most do. It turns out that there's usually a valid reason for this behavior. According to the Center for Sleep and Wake Disorders, tweens and teens need 8.5 to 9.25 hours of sleep each day. Between homework, part-time jobs and social activities, teens rarely seem to reach that ideal amount. Consequently, tweens and teens can become irritable and moody. Admittedly, it can be difficult to tell whether it's sleep deprivation or teen hormonal changes that are the cause of the … [Read more...]
The Benefits of Sports For Your Teenage Girl
October 15, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Is your preteen or teenage daughter involved in sports? Does she play on a school or club team? Then you're probably familiar with some of the benefits that sports involvement offer her. Teenage girls who are involved in sports are more likely to have good grades in school, a healthy self-esteem, a higher level of health and fitness as well as a lot of fun with their peers. Furthermore, they also experience the social benefits of working together as a team, they learn life-long skills and leadership skills that they will use in their college and work careers, and the experience of going to games and cheering her team on is a lot of fun for … [Read more...]
Listening To Your Teenager – Tips For This Important Skill That Can Improve Your Relationship
October 10, 2013 by Leave a Comment
By Karen Vincent A parenting skill that is very powerful with teenagers is Listening. I know... this can seem like a very basic and obvious skill, however, this is not necessarily the case and this can be a tricky skill with teenagers sometimes. The reason for this is because it can be scary for teenagers to think about how much they need you and rely on you as their parent or guardian. Think about how much energy they spend pushing you away in an effort to prove how much they DON'T need you (which FYI they are trying to prove to themselves more than to anyone else). Because of this, it is important for parents to take advantage of the … [Read more...]
The Next Level of Parenting
October 3, 2013 by Leave a Comment
By Nicholeen Peck So many people ask me how to take their parenting to the next level, even with their out-of-control children. A man I really admire named Jeffrey Holland said, "... the only real control in life is self-control." True self-control is the next level of parenting. Here's why. You can control the settings on your computer, and control the television choices that come into your home. You can control all the things written down as your Family Standard and you can control what your family eats for dinner, but you can't control another person. No matter how hard you try and how much power you try to look like you have, the … [Read more...]