Week in Review from ParentingintheLoop

Posted on October 19, 2012 by llpitlwp

It’s Friday, so here are some quick, informative reads that I came across this week.

Do you ever wonder what your pediatrician would like you to do for your preschooler?
Below is a quick highlight of a post from one of my favorite sites Baby Center.

Top 5 things doctors wish you’d do for your preschooler | BabyCenter.

1. Don’t make potty training a battle

2. Have two-way conversations

3. Stop germs at the sink

4. Enforce the helmet law, even at home

5. Don’t use the doctor as punishment

How do you raise children without using punishment when their behavior gets out of line?
I found a blogger, who does just that…read her tips for a punishment free home!

What does a punishment-free home look like?.

What we have in our home is a lot of love, a lot of respect, a lot of empathy, and a lot of communication.

We are a tech savvy home and we have books everywhere including on e-readers.
In particular I have a series from the Smithsonian Institution about T-Rex, Penguins and Polar Bears, my 4 year old grandchild loves these books on my i-Phone…you can read them yourself or you can listen to them being read to you. They are delightful.

Should Your Child Be Using an E-Reader? | CSH Greenwich Middle School Parent Blog

Adults with e-readers and tablets continue to report that they’re reading more, a trend that we can hope trickles down to younger readers. After all, we should always be happy seeing children reading, no matter the format.

Toast Tuesday…

Posted on October 9, 2012 by llpitlwp

“Fostering Self-Directed Play: ten tips to help pre-schoolers entertain themselves “| Loving Earth, Mama!.

It is Tuesday…and I like to recommend a blog once a week. Today, I found “Loving Earth, Mama”.

Motherhood is a journey, a fun if challenging ride – won’t you join me on mine?

I never considered myself an “earth” mother but as a grandmother I am reading more and more about parenting styles…there are so many styles and the differences are sometimes so slight that at this point they are all melding together in my head. This melding is not a bad thing. In fact, I rather think that it is the way it should be. I find when I get fanatic about any one thing I soon get tired of it and close myself off to so many other good things. For me balance is key. It isn’t easy but I prefer it.

I hope you enjoy “Loving Earth Mama” and don’t let the name push you away…it is like judging a book by its cover but in the age of technology we often do not even see the book cover any more.

“Week in Review” from ParentingintheLoop

Posted on August 31, 2012 by llpitlwp

Tantrum discussions are trending…but then when aren’t they trending online somewhere in the parenting/grandparenting sphere?

Here are my picks this week.

I hope you all have a wonderful Labor Day Weekend…we are trying to capture some last rays of the summer, leaving our footprints in the sand and making memories to last us through the coming Fall and Winter.

The study, led by Lauren Wakschlag, Ph.D., also debunked the common belief that temper tantrums are rampant among young children. Although temper tantrums among preschoolers are common, they are not particularly frequent, the research shows. Less than 10 percent of young children have a daily tantrum. That pattern is similar for girls and boys, poor and non-poor children, and Hispanic, white, and African-American children.The study found key differences between “typical” tantrums and “atypical” tantrums.

When Tantrums Signal Something More | Strollerderby.

Very interesting information regarding typical and atypical tantrums, if you have a question about your preschooler’s meltdowns you might want to check out this new information from Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

When to Worry about Kids Temper Tantrums: Feinberg School of Medicine: Northwestern University.

This post from Core Parenting, discusses how to deal with a tantrum with emotional competence. Agree or disagree it just might help get you through the next toddler/preschooler meltdown.

So the next time your child has big emotion, change the way you think and see and respond in the moment. Change your thoughts from “Oh no, not again!” to “Yes! Another opportunity to practice emotional competence!” Take a deep breath and be amazed at the hard work your child is doing. Learning about emotions is difficult, engaging work. Be there, by their side.

For The Love Of A Tantrum | Core Parenting – Parenting Resources in Portland, Oregon..

Preschool Problems…

Posted on August 23, 2012 by llpitlwp

I recently read a post which discussed whether we should be teaching our kids to hit back when another child hits them in preschool.

Personally, I think hitting back in school should not encouraged at any age much less in preschool. If a child is being hit at school, it seems to me that the teacher should intervene. If the offending child keeps hitting that calls for parent/teacher discussions.

Our preschool does not tolerate hitting and deals with these issues directly with the offending child’s family. Apologies are expected from the child doing the hitting to the child or children that he/she hit. That is usually the end of it. I am not sure what happens if this type of behavior continues.

It seems that encouraging a child to hit back does nothing to solve the problem…it merely tells another child that hitting is okay in certain instances. To me, preschoolers, do not seem to have the ability to differentiate between when hitting back may in fact be appropriate.

I think preschoolers should defend themselves by telling the teacher and telling their parents.

The parent should then make sure that this is resolved swiftly and appropriately.

What do you think about teaching your preschool child to defend him/herself? Would you encourage hitting back? If so under what circumstances would you think hitting back was okay?

Do dads feel differently about this problem?