We tend to think of school as the main source of our children’s education.
However, for many children, formal classroom time only takes up around 20 per cent of their lives!
And while it’s the role of teachers to take charge of your children’s education, there’s so much you can do to encourage learning and important cognitive developments outside of school.
And the supermarket — surprisingly — is a great place to start.
An interesting article in The Age recently brought up concerns regarding parents who may be unnecessarily anxious about their children’s health.
The article cited a recent survey that showed that 75 per cent of pediatric specialists said many of their referrals could have been handled exclusively by the referring GP.
The relevant issue at hand here is that parents are increasingly seeking out specialist support for normal issues in childhood development…
Common issues such as bed-wetting, constipation, and even concerns about their children’s height.
This speaks to an increasing anxiety among parents, and their quest to ensure their child is developing ‘normally’.
Understandably, this kind of pattern of anxious parenting comes up not only in the physical development of the child, but also their emotional and psychological development.
So how can we know when we’re self- or over-diagnosing our children?
Bullying is likely to affect your child during some part of their young lives.
In fact, Government-funded research showed that one in four students will encounter bullying during their school years.
Yet the frequency with which bullying occurs doesn’t diminish the significance of its impact.
And as heartbreaking as it can be when your own child is the victim of bullying, learning that they may be the perpetrator can be an even bitterer pill to swallow.
But when it comes to bullying — on whichever side of the coin — it’s important to address the issues at hand, as soon as possible.
So what should we consider when we think our own child may be the bully?
If you saw our blog post about how to raise motivated children, you will be familiar with the concept of the ‘Fixed’ versus ‘Growth’ mindset.
In a nutshell, this distinction in ‘mindsets’ focuses on the idea that what makes people successful is motivation, dedication and commitment, rather than innate ability or intelligence.
And that the former are the qualities that we should be praising and instilling in our children.
A recent article in The Atlantic furthers some of the ideas that come from the Fixed versus Growth mindset model, in what one parent describes as the ‘crime against learning’.
Our aim with this blog is to help individuals with some of the challenges that come with being a parent or caretaker.
We aim to give professional, impartial and educated advice from our team of psychologists, while citing credible sources and expert references from around the world.
But even if you’re not looking for it and not on this blog, you — like so many others — are likely inundated with parenting advice from every man and their dog on a daily basis… in the news, on social media, from other parents, or from overheard conversations in cafes!
It’s no wonder that seeking out parenting advice, in general, can be a very overwhelming experience.
So a recent article in The New York Times brings up a single, inspiring piece of advice that can be universal to all concerned parents:
Stop thinking everything you do is wrong.
Lisa Wilkinson recently made some controversial comments about parents who let their children have ‘screen time’ under the age of five.
Wilkinson called these parents ‘crazy’ and said:
‘Come back to me when they’re 14 and they’re completely and utterly addicted to their screens, they have no social skills, that’s when you realise that what you did early has come back to bite you’.
Many parents have understandably been offended by Wilkinson’s comments.
Not only is the use of digital technology increasingly prevalent and useful in the adult world, but it’s also an important part of school curriculums — even in kindergarten.
And let’s be honest — the interactive and dynamic medium entrances kids, and can give parents some valuable time to get their own things done.
So what is the right amount of screen time for children, if any?
And how do we moderate their usage?
Our resident psychologists Dani and Christina were recently quoted in an article on mamamia about lying to your children.
Roxy Jacenko has gone on record to state that she has told her children their father is ‘in China’, while in reality he in jail for Insider Trading.
This is a difficult situation to deal with, and Roxy’s approach, while deemed irresponsible by some media outlets, is not uncommon.
There are many situations when the absence of a parent or loved one will need to be explained to a child.
And sometimes it may seem worth concealing the truth from your kids in order to protect them from the harsh reality of a situation.
What is most important when considering lying to your children is the future implications of that lie…
Many children (and adults!) will try to ‘chuck a sickie’ once in their lives.
But when the parents are in control, how can you tell when a sick day from school is justified?
There are a number of issues that come into play.
It may be a confronting question but it’s one that was answered with an emphatic ‘yes’ in a recent blog from The Huffington Post Australia, which also claims your ‘kids will thank you for it’.
And while it seems like the opposite of what is traditionally considered the right approach, the article raises some points worth considering.
So what are the factors that influenced this conclusion, and do we agree?
‘Tidy House, Tidy Mind’.
A phrase we have most likely all considered at some point in our lives… usually when we’re in the middle of a distinctly un-tidy situation!
And in recent years, the topics of cleaning and de-cluttering have even featured in the NYT best-seller list…
Why?
Because tidying has been linked with both good and bad outcomes.
Got any questions before you book? Click here to request a phone call and a psychologist will call you at a convenient time (prospective clients only). Please keep in mind we are often busy with clients but we do our best to respond to all enquiries within one business day. :-)
(*As of 24th July, 2019.)