Deanna Mascle asked:


Parenting is the toughest, most important job most people will ever encounter and yet there is no license required, no training required, and no 24/7 hotline. This is rather short-sighted on the part of society as the cost of bad parenting is immense, but in truth the situation is not as dire as it seems. While no training is required for new parents, it is very easy for parents to learn the ways and means of good parents as well as the traps and pitfalls of bad parents. All it takes for parents to learn more about parenting is to watch, listen, and learn.

Watching is a key element to learning more about parenting. Watch the parents around you and you can learn all sorts of lessons about how to interact with your child, how to discipline your child, and how to teach your child. Almost everywhere you take your child there will be other parents and their children. Watching means observing but also listening. Hear the tone of voice as well as the words those parents use. Some parents use the right words but their tone and physical manner contradicts those words. Watch the children to note their response. Some children respond more readily to their parents. Why? What is different about that parent-child relationship? What can you take away for your own parent-child relationship?

Listen to advice. You don’t need to take every piece of advice that is offered to you. After all, there are many people who are free with advice and yet have clearly demonstrated they are in no position to offer it. However, there is often some really good advice shared by people you know and trust as well as good advice offered by passing strangers in the supermarket checkout line or in the stands at a soccer game. Be a sponge. Keep your ears open. You don’t have to take that advice but keeping your options open gives you the chance to sort out the jewels and benefit from them.

Be an active learner. Seek out information when you face a parenting challenge. Perhaps your child is acting out in a new way and your old discipline technique isn’t working. Search the internet, flip through parenting books, and ask some experts in your circle of friends. Sometimes great advice will come to you but other times you will need to seek it out. The more proactive you are about finding solutions to your parenting problems then the better parent you will become.

Parenting is a challenging job, no question about it, but it also comes with wonderful built-in rewards. Some times parents are forced to take a tough unpopular stand but in the end good parenting comes with its own rewards. Those rewards include a happy, successful child and a warm, loving relationship that will extend long past childhood and span the rest of your life. So who needs special training. If you watch, listen, and learn then you can be the parent you want to be and your child deserves.

Deanna Mascle asked:


Today the pressure to succeed at school begins even earlier than ever. Children in kindergarten and first grade are held to a standard of success that their parents never had to worry about. While in the past those first few years of schooling were pressure free and simply intended to introduce children to formal education, today children are tested on their knowledge and ability within the first weeks of kindergarten and that testing continues throughout the rest of their public school education. This places an enormous pressure on young children and yet many parents are not doing everything they can to give their child the edge and help them succeed at school. Giving your child the edge does not mean hiring a tutor, buying an expensive educational program, or spending hours every day drilling your child. There are several simple steps every parent can take to give their child the edge at school.

First, make sure your child has enough sleep the night before. Many parents do not send their children to bed until they themselves go to bed. Growing children need between 10-12 hours of sleep a night. While there are a few children who seem to require less, the majority of children need at least this much. If your child appears tired, is difficult to wake in the morning, or has circles under her eyes then you should move her bedtime up until you find the magic number that gives her the rest she needs. If she is tired and lacking energy then it is much more difficult for her to learn and pay attention at school.

Second, make sure your child has a good breakfast and is provided with a good lunch and snack. Growing children need to eat frequently. They should never be sent to school on any empty stomach and they should not be expected to succeed at school for an entire day without regular meals and snacks. If you are concerned about your child’s weight simply cutting back on the amount of meals and food is not a good choice. Instead, try to provide healthy snacks. That should be your goal even if weight is not a concern. Sugary snacks and empty calories are not much more helpful than no food at all when it comes to helping a child keep focused and energized throughout the day.

Fourth, make sure your child is appropriately dressed for the day and their school environment. When the weather is hot make sure they are dressed in cool clothing, when the weather is cold make sure they are dressed in warm clothing. When the weather or school environment is changeable then provide layers so the child can adjust accordingly. Also make sure the clothing is something the child can manage themselves. Many bathroom accidents occur among young children who have trouble with their clothing and the worry about this can provide a further distraction.

Fifth, project the right attitude toward school and your child’s education. If you send the message that school is not important, that the teacher is not worthy of respect, and that your child’s learning is not essential then your child will receive that message loud and clear. As early as kindergarten and first grade some children decide to give up on school. Make sure that does not happen to your child by projecting a positive attitude toward school and education.

Sixth, get involved. Know your child’s teachers and school administration. Be familiar with their classroom, routine, special events, and assignments. The more you know about your child’s school life then the more proactive you can be to head off potential problems and help them succeed in school.

If you make sure your child has adequate sleep, sufficient food, and appropriate clothing while you project the right attitude and get involved in their education then you have done everything you can to give your child an edge on success.

Sarah Beldo asked:


The current economic downturn has taken a toll on many aspects of American life, from the way we spend our leisure time to our hopes for the future.

Unless they are very young, it is impossible to completely shield kids from the effects of a struggling economy on the family finances – after all, stories about job loss and foreclosure fill the headlines on a daily basis.

And, in fact, a lot of experts’ parenting advice says it is a good idea to be honest with your children about money – without going overboard.

For instance, you could explain that they may have to wait longer to get that expensive toy because – like a lot of other families – you have had to deal with a lot of extra costs this year.

The key is to be open with the little ones without being scary. Make sure you are explaining things at an age-appropriate level and reassure them soundly that they should not be worried.

Talking to your kids about financial struggles can be stressful, but there are also opportunities to use your parenting skills to yield some positive results.

For example, has there ever been a better time to show your children – firsthand – that sound economic behavior such as spending within your means and saving for the future has benefit? And that delayed gratification can actually be rewarding?

There is more to be cheerful about. Many have suggested that as a result of the recession, hands-on parenting skills will become the norm, with families spending more time together and enjoying inexpensive and creative activities.

Libraries, for example, have reported growing numbers of families using their services, particularly to attend story time and to check out DVDs and books.

And in a holiday season in which retail sales are dismal at best, sales of family-centered video games – such as those for the Nintendo Wii platform – are managing to grow, while traditional board games remain resilient.

It just goes to show that with good parenting skills and the right attitude, your family can grow strong enough to withstand any financial storm.

Beverly OMalley asked:


We all want parenting advice that provides us with the tools we need to raise happy healthy children.

Good parenting does not result from using a standardized recipe or cookie cutter approach to the many challenges our offspring present to us. Good parenting really comes from learning as you go.

Ask yourself, “What kind of adults do I want my children to be?” and then set about to create the circumstances that will allow that to happen. You want your children to be “happy” but if you focus on making your children happy you will not be providing them with the skills they need to create their own happiness.

What you need to be doing is raising your children to be responsible, reliable, and productive adults.

Here are some parenting tips on how to raise responsible, reliable, and productive citizens for tomorrow’s society.

Let your children make mistakes – your child can never learn how to make a good decision if he is not allowed to make a bad one. As the parent you have more wisdom and knowledge about risk and it is your responsibility to assess the possible risk and consequences of a bad decision. Give your child the responsibility for making decisions that have consequences which are of low risk and age appropriate. Parents need to give over the responsibility of decision making and control to the child. This needs to be timed properly not only for the child’s age level but also by the child’s individual maturity level and trustworthiness.

Do not rescue your children from the consequences of their own mistakes. If your child harms someone else with her actions she needs to apologize and if she breaks someone else’s property then she needs to replace it. This can start with children when they are very young. If your child is never connected to the consequences of her own actions she can never develop a sense of responsibility and accountability for what she does. Your child has to make reparations for harm they caused someone else and it is highly recommended that you are involved in that reparation but only in a way that assists her. Your child should be involved from start to finish in carrying out the necessary apology or actions needed to make things right again.

Let your child see you make mistakes but more importantly let your child hear you talk about them and identify why that decision was wrong and what you learned from it. Then do not make the same mistake again! If you do not change your behaviour as a result of what you have learned your child will identify your insincerity and lack of integrity very quickly and know that your statements are meaningless. In short he will learn that you “talk the talk” but you do not “walk the walk”. Your child does not learn from your mistakes, your child learns by seeing you learn from your mistakes. Engaging your child in rationale analysis of why things went wrong will help them to develop skills of critical inquiry that will serve them well in adult life.

Take responsibility for your own mistakes. Most things that happen to you in life are the result of your own actions. If your child sees you taking responsibility she is less likely to see herself as a victim of circumstance and are more likely to feel empowered and in control of her own life.

Apologize when you are wrong. You cannot and should not expect yourself to be perfect. If you were wrong in your judgement say so. “I am so sorry I yelled at you like that, it was very unkind and I apologize. However, you did not follow the rules and so the punishment still stands.”

Teach your child how to ask for help. Perhaps the greatest life skill you can teach your child is that nobody can do everything by themselves all the time. We spend so much time trying to raise independent citizens of tomorrow we forget to teach our children how to ask for help. In order to be productive and positive citizens your child needs to know when he is out of his league and how to seek out help from those who are best equipped to help him. So many problems could be solved so easily if people would just recognize that they have a problem and seek out ways to prevent it from developing into something more complicated.



The best common sense parenting advice for raising your children to be reliable responsible adults? Be a good role model.

Like it or not your children will quite likely grow up to be just like you but in a slightly different package.

Veronica Fisher asked:

There is nothing as exciting, fulfilling and joyful as becoming a parent for the first time. First time parenthood however, can also be fraught with tremendous stress brought about by anticipation, preparation and caring for a little creature who can’t tell you what he needs or wants. For people who have actively sought parenthood however, it is probably this additional aspect of stress and tension that makes parenthood such a wonderfully strengthening and humbling experience. For first time parents, a useful parenting resource is a must.

Since time immemorial, new parents could always have ready access to any parenting resource. They could either ask close relatives and friends for sound pieces of advice or they could look for other parenting resource traditional sources. The library or bookstore for example can have a good parenting resource or two lying around. Expectant parents usually read a parenting resource book or watch a parenting resource video or film. Many can attest that such methods have held some merit. This is especially so because most famous parenting resource materials that come out in print or film have been made by expert individuals who actually publish their credentials. Parents can also benefit from a bestseller parenting resource that is sure to contain effective information.

Recently however, with the arrival of the internet, parents can also choose to get a parenting resource online. The question is whether an online parenting resource is as good as traditional ones. The internet can offer a wealth of resources for a clueless parent. Aside from selling traditional resources online, one can also choose to use a parenting resource article or e-book. There are now also available support groups and blogs or forums were parents can interact and swap practical information. The good thing about the internet is that you can check on a parenting resource without having to go out of your way. You can stay in the comfort of your home and still be well advised or informed.

In a lot of cases, a parenting resource from the internet can truly dish out good and reliable information and tips. As with everything else however, one should be careful with an online parenting resource. It may be a generally good idea to take advice from seasoned parents in forums. You can also probably take some tips from articles and online parenting resource materials that are authored by experts. Be wary however of the parenting resource that has uncertain origins or that talk about such sensitive topics as child medication or treatment. You may be endangering your child if you take note of pieces of advice from ghost writers who may not actually know what they’re talking about or from internet entities masquerading as experts.

The best thing to do is to check the credentials or origin of your parenting resource. Try researching about the names of Dr. so and so and the applicability, effectiveness, disadvantages and side effects or suggested procedures or child raising strategies. If you are particularly interested in critical and serious areas of concern, try getting into web sites that carry a .org or .gov in its address. This is especially applicable for such concerns as child safety, treatment or grave physical or psychological problems.

Paul Banas asked:

Many fathers live a well-rounded healthy lifestyle with regular workouts that involve their kids. First-time dads who think a new baby will interfere with their exercise schedule need not sacrifice their workouts but do need to supplement their parenting skills to include exercising with their kids. The trick here is to come up with kid-friendly routines. These routines are equally rewarding and also help in establishing healthy habits among children.

In an interview to the Associated Press, Heidi Hill, author of Fit Family: The Infant, Toddler and Preschool Years ( Vitesse, 2008 ) explains how parents can hike, bike, run, and even kayak with their kids. Heidi and her husband, Tom have put this into practice by trying out many of these sports with their two daughters, aged 3 and 5 each. ”At the get-go, a lot of it can be miserable. You really have to persevere and know that you’re teaching a lifestyle.”, says Hill.

In the beginning, dads could try to fast walk with a jog stroller or jog alongside their kids as they bike. The key lies in using the right equipment that is not too clunky. A trail-a-bike is a one-wheel option that can be attached to the back of dad’s bike.

Workouts are a great way for dads to bond with their kids. As kids grow older, the positive effects of having family workouts increases exponentially. Dads need to listen to some good parenting advice by self-educating themselves and planning the workout in advance to make the experience fun for the entire family.

English Nanny asked:


10 parenting tips that all parents should implement every day to improve their family’s life and make it easier.

Parenting tip 1

Good parenting is remembering to tell your child you love them and not stopping – even when they so tall that they can look down on you. Do this regardless of how they behave because although you may not like his behavior you do love him.

Parenting tip 2

Speak words of affirmation to your child each day and as soon as they are old enough encourage them to speak these out to themselves. This will help you raise a more positive child which improves family life.

Parenting tip 3

Improve your parenting skills be encourage your child’s independence and tell him what he can do it, rather than what he can’t do. It can often seem quicker to do things for your child but instead leave enough so you child can learn and become more independent

Parenting tip 4

Spend time listening and talking to each child individually, this is the greatest investment you can make in your child’s life. It’s the best way to show them that you love them

Parenting tip 5

Tell you child what you want them to do not what you don’t want them to do. Using this positive parenting method is much more effect and gets the desired results much quicker. Parents if you don’t want your child to leave their clothes on the floor then say ” Please hang your clothes up” instead of “don’t leave your clothes on the floor.”

Parenting tip 6

Give yourself the space to make mistakes you will never be the perfect parent they don’t really exist. You will make mistakes, don’t worry, forgive yourself and learn.

Parenting tip 7

This is parenting advice. Do at least one fun or relaxing thing every day for yourself, this will help to keep you sane and give you a more enjoyable day.

Parenting tip 8

Set up situations daily that will allow your child to make choices, this helps him develop independence and can save you both many arguments. Children as young as 18 months can be given an opportunity to choose.

Parenting tip 9

Keep your boundaries and discipline strategies consistent even if you’re tired. A quick fix today often leads to more problems in the future.

Parenting tip 10

Keep in mind that your child will learn more by example than by what you say so set your child the best examples possible in everything.

Don’t just read these parenting tips put them into practice. Good parenting involves action.

Veronica Fisher asked:


All parents need a good parenting resource of their own. Since parenting is such a tough occupation a parenting resource can help make things easier for any parent. How and where can a parent find a relevant parenting resource? There is no one sure and perfect parenting resource for everyone. A parent may have to determine for himself/herself which parenting resource is helpful and applicable. There are however specific areas where one can get a parenting resource. You can get your parenting resource from the following:

The Book and Video Haven

Any place where they sell or lend a vast selection of books and videos may be a parenting resource. You can go around looking for a bestseller parenting resource or something created by experts in the field of parenting and psychology to get a good parenting resource. Surprisingly, an experiential parenting resource account or even fictional stories of parenting may be useful parenting resource for the discriminating parent.

Comprehensive Sites and Links

Not surprisingly, the internet can have every kind of parenting resource imaginable. You have the option of checking out sites that will provide you with a comprehensive parenting resource section or one that will provide you with specific parenting resource information. You can also check link or .net sites if you want to have a brief overview of some other sites that may be good places for a parenting resource.

Message Boards and Others

You may prefer a parenting resource that’s highly practical and that comes from people who have actually experienced parenting. You can use parents’ forums and message boards as your parenting resource. In this kind of parenting resource you can swap stories and practical tips and information. A lot of parents may warm up to this kind of parenting resource because it is conversational, light and a fun way to go about talking about parenting.

Formal Classes and Support Groups

A clear and structured parenting resource may come from such formal areas as parenting courses and support groups. This type of

parenting resource will surely offer highly professional pieces of information. There is no doubt that if you enroll in a parenting resource class, you will get a load of theories and actual practice accounts from trained professionals in the field of parenting. Support groups can also offer parenting resource that may be both categorized as formal expert quality and personally supportive and uplifting in nature.

People You Know

A practical parenting resource source would be people you actually know. Your own parents, family, friends and colleagues may each be a parenting resource. Ask these live, actual parenting resource people what they can share based on what they know and their experience. This may be the cheapest and best parenting resource you can ever have.

However and wherever you choose to get your parenting resource make sure that your parenting resource is applicable to you and your family. Remember, not all families are the same.