Parenting
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How to support a child through their sadness
Supporting children through their sadness can be challenging. It is often hard to hear our sweet child say ‘‘I’m sad my friend is moving away” or “I’m sad because a kid at school didn’t want to play with me”. Words like “I’m sad the holiday is over” or “I’m sad my favourite teacher is retiring” can be difficult to hear. Please note: the following article does not address prolonged sadness And it sometimes happens that when our child comes to us saying ‘I’m sad that…’, we often ‘but’ them, saying things like: ‘I know, BUT you’re gonna visit your friend next month’ when their friend is moving away. ‘I see,…
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What does hitting children actually teach them?
Spanking or hitting is a tool that has been used for generations. Even if in some countries it is now illegal, it is still used worldwide with the hope of teaching children ‘a lesson’ of safety, obedience, good manners, auto control and so on. But what do children feel and really learn when they are hit by their parents/caregivers? “Hitting a child doesn’t teach them that the road or stove or the outlet isn’t safe. It teaches them that the person hitting them isn’t safe.” – L. R. Knost When the child is hurt by the person to whom he should run for safety, he gets stuck: ‘My parent should…
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Lockdown with children – survival tips for parents
We are halfway through the second lockdown here in the UK. I know other countries have already been through a second lockdown or are soon to start one. And all these lockdowns have been hard on everyone, parents and kids included – and we could all use some survival tips to help us through a lockdown with children! In our case, we’ve been through a first lockdown with children that included 5 months of no school. What I’ve learnt then helps me through this one now – though having kids in school this time around makes it different. Yet we are all burned out and drained by the whole situation,…
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How to naturally be calm when your child is whining
Absolutely every parent finds out, sooner or later, what whining is, and not because they suddenly remember themselves whining as kids. It may seem like children are experts at whining, as they can do this often and for minutes on end. Keeping calm in those moments can be quite a challenge! Why does my child whine? It should not be ignored as it always has its reasons and holds messages like “I’m feeling helpless” or “I feel lonely”. However, I will dedicate a separate post to talk about the reasons why kids whine and what they actually need from their parents. In this post, I will talk about how we,…
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Sleeping like a bear – a funny talk at bedtime
“Kids fighting sleep” is a very common search on the internet, parents all over the world are facing this issue. My son makes no exception. He as well is fighting sleep most of the nights, bedtime always comes too early for him and the day is too short. I’ve tried all methods (except cry-it-out, this method contradicts my parenting beliefs) and one night I came with a new idea. It was bedtime and my son was tossing and turning in bed, asking questions, singing, laughing, talking. Telling him to stop and stay still never works, nor does any other commend like “be quiet”. In fact, I don’t know any child…
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6 tips to get your kid ready to start school
This is the big year for us, it’s the year my son starts school. I started school when I was 7, he starts it at 4. I find it quite challenging to say the least, to start school so young even though it’s just Reception in the first year, which is sort of a Pre-school. My son went to pre-school for 2 years and grew quite attached to it and to the whole team, teachers and colleagues. Therefore I do expect it to be quite a transition to the “big school” as some people refer to it. So I tried to find ways, through talking to other parents and teachers…
