File photo from Flickr Very often parents come to me with a request for assistance after their child has, in their words, ‘disobeyed’ them. I know what they want from me. Most of those who work with children are forever in search of the same holy grail. They want the consequence of all consequences— the […]
Tag: Kate Martin
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The Purposeful Parent: The Art Of Yelling
Although I believe every day is the best day for a fresh start, I would like to post something that provides a sort of ‘reboot’ for parenting in the New Year. The best parenting tip I have for you at this time comes from a previous blog post earlier in 2017. I think all parents, […]
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How to honor your children’s thoughts and feelings.
Sitting in the coffee shop is my favorite place to observe parenting at its best and sometimes not so best. I just overheard the following from a caring and loving group as they addressed their two-and 1/2 year-old child. Grandpa: Now you’re not going to cry again when you come with us are you? Grandma: […]
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The grading system receives an ‘F’ for flawed
Your child’s grade report is right around the corner. What will you do when you see the grades? Will you reward your child for obtaining As and Bs? Will you punish him for those nasty Ds and Fs? Is a grade of C admissible because it is passing at an average level or are Cs […]
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Would You Please Pass Me That Pacifier Mr. Smith?
So, you are a new parent! Here is a list of questions for which you may want to be prepared: What if he is still sucking on that pacifier when he starts school? What if she gets so attached to sleeping with us she never leaves our bed? What if he develops attachment disorder because […]
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The Purposeful Parent: The Power of Pausing
Will you please just be quiet for one minute? Growing up in a home with seven other folks I can’t tell you the number of times I was kindly asked to bring it down just a bit. But today’s parenting tip is not about strategies to deal with a young ‘Chatty Kathy’ like myself —Perhaps […]
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The Purposeful Parent: The Recipe For Learning
So often as parents and teachers we find ourselves frustrated with those children who just won’t perform in school. Adults with great intentions attempt to come up with clever and complex recipes for learning. I ask you to consider this: If you gather all the best ingredients and carefully mix them to make the fanciest most delicious […]
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The Purposeful Parent: My Needs WILL Be Met, With Or Without You
Last week I explained how all of us are constantly behaving in order to meet certain needs and are doing so in the best way we know and to the best of our ability. Given this information, we can conclude that there are no bad children but rather simply poor behavior choices and for you, […]
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The Purposeful Parent: Naughty Versus Need Fulfilling
As a teacher and parent educator of many years, I am now able to inform any parent at any time at any place the motivation behind any behavior their child chooses and do so with confidence!  Pretty impressive, eh? Well, not really; it’s quite simple—Every child chooses every behavior in any situation in order to […]
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The Purposeful Parent: Correct Your Child In Private
When you feel the need to correct or redirect your child it is best to do so privately.  This includes instances when they are with their friends, family, at the grocery store, and yes, even during parent-teacher conferences. When you observe your child making poor choices you can do one of two things: hold off and bring […]
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Continued: The grading system receives an ‘F’ for flawed
Continued: The grading system receives an ‘F’ for failure! Lastly, there is something gravely amiss with the conventional grading system, and it doesn’t seem like anyone plans to address it anytime soon. It defies mathematical logic and actually sets our children up to fail. And, it doesn’t take a math degree to figure it out. […]