Disciplining in an Effect Manner

June 30, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Asian Teenager

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When most parents think of the teenage years and the difficulties they present, a good number of them see visions of tantrums, rages, out-of-control hormones, misunderstood feelings and any number of other scenarios. Many parents wonder if it’s possible to maintain a good relationship with their teens, while maintaining discipline. As most of us know, this is a balancing act at best.

Here are a few tips that can help you when you need to discipline your teenager, without damaging your parental relationship.

Be consistent. This is very important at any age, when dealing with your children, but is especially important during the teenage years. Your teenager will feel high levels of frustration if a certain behavior is acceptable on one day, but not the next. Establish rules with consequences. This type of action will provide your teen with direction, as well as a feeling of security.

Make sure you listen to what your teen is saying. This may be difficult for some parents; however, if your teen feels as if his opinions are not valued they may act out in frustration. Even if you may disagree with what is being said, you must at least take the time to listen as he is expressing himself.

Don’t punish in anger. Many parents make the mistake of waiting until they are pushed beyond the breaking point before using disciplinary tactics. This type of action lets the teen to act out or misbehave before any consequence or punishment is meted out. Don’t lose your patience and act out abusively or in anger.

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Filed Under: General, Parenting Tagged With: , ,

What To Do When Your Teen’s Grades Fall

June 28, 2011 by Leave a Comment

As a parent raising a teen, you know how important a good education is, not only for his or her current life, but for the future as well. You may find that your teen has become distracted or sidetracked by other outside activities and may find his or her grades falling. You need to help keep them motivated and you may need to provide consequences for those bad grades.

It may not be easy to find the perfect way to discipline your teen, but you will find that the outcome is satisfactory. Here are a few tips to help you when disciplining your child for bad or poor grades.

Don’t allow your teen to participate in any activities such as sports or other extracurricular activities until there has been a rise in grades. Make sure the coaches and other people involved in these activities understand and will provide support.

Take away distractions such as phone, stereo and computer access. This will provide a more suitable study atmosphere. The fewer interruptions and distractions that your teen has, the higher concentration level will be attained.

You may need to consider getting a tutor. A tutor can help your teen comprehend and understand any subjects that may be presenting problems.

If your teen has a car or access to the family car, curb those privileges. Without access to transportation, you will probably find that your teen will become very motivated to raise his or her grades.

If poor grades continue, you may want to consider consulting a learning specialist to see if there are deeper problems that need to be addressed.

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Helping Your Teen With Fighting

June 27, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Hormones that control puberty table 08

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Because teenagers’ hormones are in states of imbalance during puberty, these children will more than likely experience very intense emotions. If your teen cannot or does not handle these emotions in a healthy manner, you may see them react violently. Fights occur in high school among both females and males — it is not a gender-based situation.

Here are a few tips to help if find you need to provide your teenager with an outlet for these intense feelings, thus preventing any violent outbursts.

Provide physical activity outlets. Because teens are experience mood swings caused by the imbalance of progesterone, testosterone and estrogen, releasing energy will help regain some hormonal balance. Regular exercise and activities will help. This will burn energy and give them less time to act out in ways such as fighting.

Because of a teen’s susceptibility to peer pressure, your teen make act out of the norm when trying to impress their friends. Discuss issues such as drug and alcohol use with your teen, including the health detriments of illicit drug use. Talk to them about gun safety as well.

Teach them by setting a good example. You may not be aware that they are picking up on your behaviors, both good and bad. You need to make sure that you are setting a good example for your children. Giving them good examples of how to work through anger and stress will provide them with a strong foundation for their future behaviors. If you act out in anger, they will think that that is an acceptable reaction.

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Filed Under: Advice & Guidance, General, Parenting Tagged With: , ,

American Girl Dolls Are Educational

June 12, 2011 by Leave a Comment

American Girl dolls are the envy and desire of many young girls across the United States. Although many moms and dads out there know all about these dolls, there are many who don’t. These moms and dads may not be aware of the highly educational aspect of these dolls.

American Girl dolls were founded in 1986 by Pleasant Rowland. The dolls are all based on a young girl, around the age of ten. Each doll depicts a girl character living in a certain time period in the United States from a specific ethnic or cultural background.

The American Girl dolls are educational in many ways. They provide an insight into a different way of life through the depiction of the dolls:

  • American girl doll clothes, which help to depict the girl’s particular ethnicity or cultural background as well as the time period in which they live
  • Accessories, such as fashion accessories, furniture and culturally relevant items
  • Story books, which help to paint a picture of the doll’s history and current life (Each doll comes with 6 books, rich with stories of that American Girl.)

American Girl dolls provide young girls the opportunity to learn about themselves and their own cultural, ethnic, and religious backgrounds via fun and accessible forms of education that are present in the story books. The dolls also provide the opportunity to learn about other cultures, ethnicities, and religions, which a girl might not otherwise have the opportunity to learn about.
In this way American Girl dolls are an important way for many young girls of the United States to become educated about themselves and others.

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Positive Reinforcement with Stickers

June 2, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Implementing a sticker chart system is an effective way to encourage your child’s good behavior. It’s a fun, creative visual for positive reinforcement and one that can save a lot of frustration in your household.

Sticker charts work because they give a child instant gratification. If they do something well, they instantly get to put a sticker on the chart. It gives them a sense of motivation and confidence to see their chart fill with stickers. Many children are already familiar with this type of system at school, so talk to your child’s teacher if he or she uses a sticker system in the classroom. The teacher may be able to give you advice on what works best for your child.

Sticker freak.. yup

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Some parents choose to use a sticker chart only for specific goals that have a foreseeable end, like potty training. That way, children won’t expect rewards every time they do something good.

To create a chart, list the behaviors or chores you want your child to do. Make it big, easy to read, and colorful. Get stickers that would be appealing to your child. These can be of their favorite cartoon characters or even personalized stickers. Sticker printing services are affordable and will offer your child something special.

Place the chart in an accessible location so it can be seen throughout the day. Anytime your child reaches a goal on the chart, put a sticker next to it. Help your child accomplish these goals by explaining the system, the importance of achieving the goal, and offer plenty of encouragement.

Filed Under: Parenting