Mark My Words: Brandenburg On Parenting
Telling Your Stories
davidkirk
In today’s busy world, many parents have lost the art of telling their stories to their kids. Here are some reasons why these stories are so beneficial:
1. Use them to teach lessons about life.Stories will stimulate conversations with your kids more effectively than lecturing or “trying to get them to talk. There are a lot of issues happening for your kids these days, and stories give them a chance to reflect on them.
Tags: Top 10 Ways to Keep Your Kids from Fighting
davidkirk
Fighting among siblings is as natural as the changing of the seasons. And contrary to what many parents believe, sibling rivalry is a sign of mental health in a family! While there may be times when it’s difficult to deal with, there are some simple things you can do to limit fighting and make it tolerable:
1. Ignore Their FightingFighting is often a way for kids to get you to notice them. If you ignore their fighting (unless weapons are involved), there will be less incentive for them to do it.
Dads, Kids and Mistakes
davidkirk
Dads, Kids, and Mistakes AUTHOR: Mark Brandenburg MA, CPCC http://www.markbrandenburg.com mark@markbrandenburg.com We're sitting at the breakfast table, and we're in a hurry. The kids were slow to get dressed for school this morning, and we needed to get out the door soon. "Clank!" My five-year-old son spills his glass of milk all over the table and the floor. He and my daughter become statues as they gaze at the mess. I feel my mind begin to race and an urge to raise my voice. And then, I remember to take a breath.
Top Ten Ways to Teach Values to Your Kids
davidkirk
Top Ten Ways to Teach Values to Your Kids AUTHOR: Mark Brandenburg MA, CPCC, http://www.markbrandenburg.com mark@markbrandenburg.com Top Ten Ways to Teach Values to Your Kids: In a consumer-driven society that broadcasts values you don’t approve of, how can you teach values to your kids? Here are ten ideas to help you: 1. Tell them your life stories and teach through your stories. Kids love to hear stories about your childhood. Weave in some moral dilemmas, and you’ve got great opportunities to teach them values.
Prepare Your Child for the School Bully
davidkirk
Have You Prepared Your Child For The School Bully? Copyright 2010 Patricia Gatto School violence. The very words send shivers down a parent's spine. Does the phrase school bully evoke the same emotions? It should. As subtle as it may seem, bullying is a form of violence. Experts estimate that almost 75% of today's youth will be involved in some aspect of bullying before they enter high school. And the chances are, your child will be one of the statistics. Long gone is the idea that bullying is a natural process of youth, a coming of age.
Work vs. Kids vs. Guilt
davidkirk
“Do you want your kids to come over for awhile and play, so you can get some work done?”
“Sure,” I said to my sister-in-law, without a moment’s hesitation.
And as soon as I said it, the battle began again: Work vs. kids vs. guilt. Here was an opportunity to spend some extra time with my kids, and I was turning it down to spend time at work. Work that eventually needed to be done, but could have been done later.
Time-Tested Ideas for Raising Responsible Kids
davidkirk
Top Ten Ways to Raise Responsible Children
1. Start them with tasks and chores when they’re young.
Young kids have a strong desire to help out, even as young as age two. They can do a lot more than you think if you have patience and let them do it their way.
2. Don’t use rewards with your kids
If you want your kids to develop an intrinsic sense of responsibility, they need to learn the “big picture” value of the things they do. They won’t learn that if they’re focused on what they’re going to “get.”
3.
Do you encourage your children to play?
davidkirk
Your children need to play. They need to play for many reasons. Many fathers today remember spending countless hours playing with siblings or friends during their childhood. Parents would drop you off somewhere and your imaginations would take over as you became soldiers, famous ballplayers, dinosaur hunters, etc.
There are many factors that make it more difficult for children to play in today’s world. There is an emphasis on early academics. There is more TV watching today by children than ever before. There is the seductive attraction of video games.
Top 10 Ways to Raise Emotionally Intelligent Kids
davidkirk
Having a high level of emotional intelligence in your children is the best way to ensure that they live a happy, successful, and responsible life as an adult. Here are ten ways to help your kids attain a high degree of emotional intelligence:
1. Model emotional intelligence yourself
Yes, your kids are watching very closely. They see how you respond to frustration, they see how resilient you are, and they see whether you’re aware of your own feelings and the feelings of others.
2. Be willing to say “no” to your kids
There’s a lot of stuff out there for kids.
Do you keep your promises to your kids?
davidkirk
I was bringing my kids home from a long day of play one Fall night not long ago. It was a difficult ride home, and they were tired, hungry, and whiny. I wanted to get them home as fast as I could.
As we neared our house, my son exclaimed, “You said you’d take us for ice cream!” I cringed when I heard this, because I remembered that I’d promised that I’d take them for ice cream. I began to give excuses concerning why we needed to go home.
They would have none of it.
I turned the car around, and we went to get ice cream.
We got home past their bed time, and they were tired.