Counsellor Corner

Tips for Parenting

A Parent is a Child's First Teacher! Learning happens in the everyday moment you share with your child! You play an important role in your child's development and learning! Here are some Tips on parenting how we can enhance their development period. Strive to be a great role model.

Encourage your child

Punishment is not as effective as using praise and rewards. Rather than focusing on weaknesses, find ways to assist your child in developing to his full potential. When encouraged, children will acquire talents to compensate for any deficiencies.

Avoid negative emotional reactions

Anger, Sarcasm, and Ridicule. If your child has problems with control, negativity will only make him feel worse. Use short and mild suggestions to remind your child to focus, like “P.A.” for “pay attention.”

Don’t compare siblings

If a child thinks his brother or sister is favored, it can create a rivalry that may last the rest of their lives and cause problems in your family. Make sure your kids know that they are loved equally.

Listening to children and spending time with them

Children need positive attention. If they do not receive positive attention from family, they may choose to seek out negative attention. This is because negative attention is still attention, and any attention is better than being ignored. Remember to communicate with your child, and spend some time with them. Love and care are the greatest healers.

Monitor your child’s use of the internet

The stuff kids can access in cyberspace can be dangerous. Get a program that will let you see the web sites they visit and monitor their chats.

Parent by example

Think of your kids as little bipedal copy machines who will mimic everything you do. If you behave badly, you are giving them permission to act in the same ways. Check in with yourself, and don’t lose it in front of the children.

Don't give up on your child

Ever! All of your child's problems can be worked through with humor, goodwill, and perseverance. With proper parental support, even the most troublesome teens can become amazing people.

The mystery of what your children will be and how you can affect that outcome is what family life is all about. Give all you can, keep yourself cool, and stay in the game. The results and your own joy will surprise and reward you.

Establish and set rules

Mental health helpers realise (but not all parents do) that self-discipline springs eventually from appropriate external discipline (read: boundaries set and rules followed) earlier on, as children learn to govern themselves based on how they were managed when younger. Parents should always be able to answer three questions: (1) “Where is my child?” (2) “Who is with my child?” (3) “What is my child doing?” Children who were reared without (reasonable) rules or boundaries enforced will have difficulty disciplining themselves later on.

Avoid harsh discipline

Parents invoke many forms of excessive discipline, but the worst is that of physical punishment,. Children who are spanked, hit, or slapped are more prone to fighting with other children. They are more likely to be bullies and more likely to use aggression to solve disputes with others. Parents should never hit a child; spanking causes aggression, which can lead to relationship problems with others. “Timeouts” are much more effective.

Treat your child with respect

If parents wish to get respectful treatment from their child, they must extend respect to them. Parents should speak politely, pay attention when the child is speaking to them, and treat him kindly. Parents should try to please children when that is possible. Children will treat others the way their parents treat them and their relationship with their child is that child’s foundation for relationships with others.

Identify your child's strengths

You can use them to build your child’s self-esteem, helping to provide the confidence he or she needs to tackle whatever seems difficult. Children will be more willing to listen and understand how to correct adverse behaviors if their dignity is intact.