LCYG – Youth (Page 5)
The Heart of Christmas
• • • • • Parenting Tip December 11, 2014 The Heart of Christmas With so much advertising and emphasis on presents, programs, and parties, take some time to teach your children about the real meaning of Christmas. It’s so easy to get distracted by the celebration that one discussion or Christmas program isn’t enough to help children catch the meaning and significance of what Christmas is really all about. Here are some suggestions. Have a daily or weekly reminder…
The Heart is Where We Feel Close
• • • • • Parenting Tip December 7, 2014 The Heart is Where We Feel Close As parents, we long to connect with our children in meaningful ways. Those connections often provide opportunities to teach because feeling closeness softens the heart. When children are young, those special feelings of closeness happen regularly, even daily. You read a book to your four-year-old, he leans on your arm, and you cherish the time of connection. You correct your six-year-old, and she…
Practical Ways to Connect with Your Child’s Heart
• • • • • Parenting Tip December 1, 2014 Practical Ways to Connect with Your Child’s Heart Here are eleven suggestions to help you find ways to connect with your child’s heart. 1. Talking. Children often like to hear stories from your own childhood. Don’t feel like you have to tie a lesson into the story. Just tell it to them as if you were relating the details to a friend. 2. Listen to your kids. Take an interest…
Get a Response
• • • • • Parenting Tip November 21, 2014 Get a Response Parents give instructions many times a day. The difference between a drill sergeant and a parent has to do with relationship. The way you give an instruction helps a lot. In fact, a little forethought can head off resistance before it starts. In addition, we encourage parents to teach children to respond back with some kind of response such as, “Okay Mom,” or “Okay Dad.” This answer…
Raising Emotional Awareness
Parenting Tip November 17, 2014 Raising Emotional Awareness Some children have a rather narrow repertoire of emotional tools. They tend to react with anger whenever they experience any negative emotion. When they’re sad, they display anger. When they’re afraid, they show anger. When they’re disappointed, they take it out on others by getting mad. These children need to learn healthier ways of expressing their emotions, but first they need help understanding the feelings they’re experiencing. A child’s heart can be…
The Value of Listening
• • • • • Parenting Tip November 11, 2014 The Value of Listening Jesus said, “out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34). Parents can use this principle to gain some understanding and insight into a child’s heart. Listening becomes key. It’s surprising how many times we ask kids why they don’t talk to their parents and hear the answer, “Because they don’t listen to me.” Yes, it’s true some children confuse listening with agreeing.…
You Be The Leader Game
• • • • • Parenting Tip October 29, 2014 You Be The Leader Game One activity that fosters cooperation in family life is the “You be the Leader” game. This game has three parts. In the first part, choose an activity and someone to lead. The activity might be cleaning up the kitchen after dinner, washing the car, raking the leaves, organizing the playroom, shopping for groceries, or some other household chore. The leader could be Dad or Mom…
Talk to Teens about Character
• • • • • Parenting Tip October 23, 2014 Talk to Teens about Character Teens are at an important stage in life where they are developing their own value system. Sometimes teens seem unresponsive to parental leadership but what you say has more weight than you imagine. Take time to identify character strengths and weaknesses and then respond accordingly. When you see a problem, relating a consequence to the specific weakness can be more productive than just “grounding” a…
Suggestions for Influencing Teens
• • • • • Parenting Tip October 17, 2014 Suggestions for Influencing Teens Even the best of parents must make some changes in the way they parent as their children grow up. The old methods of relating don’t work the same way anymore. In fact, they seem to cause problems instead. Of all the changes teens make, the most important one is probably the adjustment in their relationship with their parents. They’re moving from a parent-child relationship to an…
Some Tips for Helping Kids Deal with Anger
• • • • • Parenting Tip October 6, 2014 Some Tips for Helping Kids Deal with Anger Anger damages relationships. We help parents every week in our office deal with anger in their families. Here are several guidelines we’ve found helpful for anger management in a home. When parents and kids work on these things, anger episodes are reduced. Make these a regular part of your routine and you’ll see tremendous progress. 1. Never argue with children who are…