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From Homework Struggles to Success

These are questions that can help your child become more aware of their choices. First, you are encouraging your kids to choose for themselves what kind of self-discipline, what kind of work effort, and what kind of responsibility they want to bring to their schoolwork. Secondly, you are helping your children understand that there are both friendly and unfriendly, effective and ineffective ways they can motivate themselves—and that how they do this is also a choice they can make for themselves.

No Longer a Child, But Not Yet Grown Up

How do you parent a kid who is not a child anymore, but doesn’t seem to be ready to become an adult?

So Sad to Say Goodbye

The transition from home to college or another learning experience is a very big change.  It is quite likely the biggest change your teen has ever faced in his or […]

Dealing With Difficult People

Many people know someone who is difficult to deal with—it may be a difficult neighbor, a difficult co-worker, or even one of your own difficult family members.  Perhaps this is […]

Fighting, Biting Scratching and Hitting

It might seem to you as a grown-up that rules against biting, kicking and scratching are clear, but that is not necessarily true for very young children, whose first experiences are likely to be purely experimental.

When Your Child is Frightened by Worry

Fortunately, your son can learn to recognize that the feeling of being afraid of throwing up doesn’t always mean throwing up. In other words, by learning how to feel more comfortable with discomfort, worry or fear about anything—whether it is throwing up, teasing from classmates, or thunderstorms—your son will learn to become more confident, more resilient, and more courageous about everything.

Learning Never Ends (What a Relief!)

Not too long ago, science told us we had all the brain cells we were ever going to have by the time we finished childhood.  After becoming an adult, it […]

Interview with Emory on Fox5

Ask Allison: Grandmother Boundaries: MyFoxDC.com

The Real and True Happiness of Imperfection

When you were growing up, were you taught, “there’s no excuse for a mistake” and “mistakes are always your fault”?  Are you afraid you will become lazy and sloppy if […]

10 Tips for Not Feeling So SAD in the Winter

With the end of daylight savings time, it suddenly seems gloomy at 4pm and dark by 5pm.  Many of the people I consult with notice their spirits and energy diminishing when the […]

I Won’t Go to School!

Big kids who refuse to get out of bed and go to school remind me of little kids who refuse to stay in bed and go to sleep. One night […]

Easy Fun for Families

I’ve been thinking lately about the importance of fun in family life, and wondering why it seems in such short supply.  Sometimes I guess it is because parents are doing […]

Giving Up On Control

Take heart.  There are times when every parent feels like the situation is out of control.  Every parent has a personal threshold, and when we pass it we can feel […]

A Good-Enough Child

Suzie wanders into the kitchen, dressed for school and looking for breakfast.  Her Dad looks over at her and comments, “Good morning sunshine!  Oops, your pony tail is kind of […]

Go the F*** to Sleep!

Lots of parents play “Let’s Make a Deal” with their children at bedtime—and who can blame them? You are tired, and you know your child is tired.  You all need […]

Winning Agreement With Limits

Setting and upholding limits may be the toughest job of being a parent.  It wasn’t my favorite part of being a Mom, and I can understand if you don’t like […]

Tell the Truth!

We have all done it.  We see the cookie crumbs sprinkled down our child’s shirt or the purloined item held behind their back, and we have to ask the big […]

Creating Cooperation

How do you talk to your child when you want her to get ready, get started, and get going?  Perhaps you are in the habit of mostly talking to your […]

Stress-Proof Your Family

When did our most important annual holiday season become an experience to “survive”?  For every magazine or newspaper article focused on “Holiday Treats” and “Family Holiday Fun,” there are more […]

One-on-One Time

I have a confession to make…I’ve always loved my children, but I did not begin as a mom who really liked to spend one-on-one time just being with my children, without […]

Learning to Make Wrong Into Right

When you see your child making a mistake and ask him to stop or change his behavior–that is the first step.  “I’ll never do it again,” is the beginning, not […]

Helping Children Understand Tragedy

Recent sad events have unfortunately reminded us that we have a responsibility to our young children to help them hear and understand reports of violence and tragedy. I think it […]

10 Tips for Tired Parents

The more I talk with parents who are in the thick of it, raising children, the more convinced I am that many parents are working too darn hard! Yes, I […]

How to Have Happy Children

no matter how hard the parent works, his child continues to give him a hard time.  The parent is doing practically everything to make life easy, uncomplicated and comfortable for […]

Toddler Cooperation

No one can make a 3 ½ year old child care about the importance of washing up, eating at reasonable times, and getting a good night’s sleep.  And you are […]

The Sad Child

Some children are born taking life seriously from the start, and your child may be one of them.  He is sensitive to his own feelings and reactions to what is […]

I-Don’t-Want-To-Get Ready!

Normal, everyday events such as getting out of bed and getting dressed are really not a big deal for a seven-year-old—so why is your son making it into such a […]

Scary Stuff

I know that parents are sometimes worried about their children’s play.  I remember being pretty concerned too, when my 4 year old son was playing the “let’s kill all the […]

Whining

After rushing to finish her work early, Marta arrives with her son at the pediatrician’s office for his four-year-old checkup.  Checking in with the receptionist, she learns that the doctor […]

Friendship Troubles

Making and keeping friends is almost a full-time job for the 9-12 year old.  It’s much more complicated now than it was when they were younger, and a friend was […]

Knock it Off, Kids!

It can be really hard to listen to two or more people—especially little people—whom you love very much, being mean and hurtful to each other. One of the questions I […]

Sibling Fights

It can be really hard to listen to two or more people—especially little people whom you love very much–being mean and hurtful to each other. One of the questions I […]

The Importance of Feeling Useful

Consider asking your child the question, “If you had to leave your family for a long time, why would everyone miss you when you were gone?” Of course your child […]

The Selfish Child

Even the most angelic young children often surprise their parents by being quite selfish and self-centered.  After all, parents have unselfishly cared for their young child morning, noon, and night, […]

Learning to be a Giver

People who spend much time around kids soon realize that children are not naturally altruistic.   It seems to be part of nature’s plan that children start off in life being […]

Who’s In Charge Here?

When you think about your family and the concept of “power,” what comes to mind?  Is it trying to make your children do something?  Are you using yelling, pleas, bribes […]

Whose Homework Is It?

Marcus is sitting in the back of class passing notes back and forth to his buddy.  His teacher is describing an assignment that will be due next week, but Marcus […]

Your Drama Loving 4-year-old

Jamal has a cape tied around his shoulders, and while his mother shops, he flexes his biceps like a weight-lifter, fixes his face in a scowl, and stalks up and […]

The 9-year-old:Tough But Fair!

When Jeannie’s mother picks her up from after-care, 9-year-old Jeannie surprises her by bursting into tears and saying: “I hate Molly!  She said I was too bossy and she didn’t […]

Closer Through Communication

Katie, 10, storms in the front door, slams her backpack down, and screams with frustration that she hates her teacher.  Her father snaps back at her to calm down and […]