Parenting Articles

How Do I Teach My Child Manners?

Manners are constantly changing from generation to generation and vary based on culture. Before we explore how to teach manners we need acknowledge that the manners that are important to some may be different from those we discuss. The universal ideas behind good manners remain: common sense, consideration of others, and custom.  The definition of MANNER is two part: a way in which a thing is done or happens a person’s outward bearing or way of behaving toward others. When you are focusing on teaching manners to your child, you are looking at their behavior and how they respond to …

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How Do I Help My Child Identify and Express Emotions?

There has been plenty of research over the years trying to pin down a list of emotions. Most agree are all born with emotions, but there is no common consensus about which emotions we are born with verses which emotions we learn. Many studies conclude that almost everyone is capable of feeling six basic states of emotion: anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise. In a study done at UC Berkley, Alan S. Cowen and Dacher Keltner used statistical methods to analyze reports of emotional states elicited by 2,185 emotionally evocative short videos with richly varying situational content. Dacher Keltner stated, “We found that 27 distinct …

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How Do I Teach My Child to Be a Problem Solver?

Problem-solving by definition is “the process of finding solutions to difficult or complex issues.” Henry Kaiser states, “Problems are only opportunities in work clothes.” How do we turn problems into opportunities so our children become problem solvers? Children learn best through modeled behavior, which is then practiced through play and everyday tasks. Consider puzzles; when children are young we give them puzzles that are simple. They match the shape with the matching cut out. Then as they get older and their fine motor skills develop, you give them puzzles with 12-24 pieces and are interlocking. They use their skills to …

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How Do I Help My Child Create Good Sleep Patterns?

Sleep is important for all ages for proper growth and development, as well as for overall health and well being. Typically children spend one-third to one-half of their life sleeping. Sleep is when the body restores itself as growth hormones are released. Getting enough sleep is key for a healthy immune system, proper learning, and memory. Not all children are able to put themselves to sleep. Establishing good sleep patterns start with the parents. There are many views on sleep within families and cultures. Establish the sleep patterns that are right for you and your family. In 2008 Dr. Mindell …

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What Do I Do When My Toddler Is Aggressive?

  It is part of normal development for toddlers and preschoolers to exhibit aggressive behavior. Just like all other aspects of development, there is a wide range when it comes to aggressive behavior. The aggression comes down to a child not being able to regulate their emotions during a particular situation. The aggression may occur because your child is tired or hungry. Others occur because your child has something unexpected happen and they don’t know how to manage their emotions in that situation. These are often referred to as triggers. Evaluating your child before and during the tantrum will help you …

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Why Does My Child Have Tantrums? How Can I Deal With the Tantrums?

As a parent, you will not escape your child having a tantrum, meltdown, or emotional outburst. Helping your child learn to regulate emotions is a normal part of development. For parents, it is important to understand why tantrums occur, how to respond, or how to respond to them effectively. These can be even harder to understand when they occur past the expected developmental “terrible twos”. Keep in mind for some children there may be underlying causes such as learning disabilities, sensory processing issues, ADHD, and/or being on the autism spectrum. Why does my child have tantrums? Many parents have a different classification …

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5 Mistakes You’re Making When Signing With Your Baby

By Colleen Brunetti, M.Ed., C.H.C. The decision to sign with your baby is a smart one. In fact, research has shown that signing with children from infancy to right through the time speech develops – and beyond- can contribute to improvements in IQ and language development in amazing ways. But is there a right and wrong way to get started? Here are five common pitfalls families face when signing with Baby. 1. Listening to the nay-sayers: I hear it all the time, “My mother-in-law says she’ll never speak if I sign!” or “My son’s daycare provider says signing delays language! …

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One Family’s Story – Sign Language to Law School

One of the most wonderful gifts we get here at Two Little Hands is hearing how sign language has made a difference in families lives. We received this story from a family in Indiana and we had to share it with you. Thank you, Bob, for taking the time to share your story with us. Sign Language at 3, to Law School, to Signing with Grandchildren I wanted to tell you about what happened almost 40 years ago. My wife and I decided to take a signing class at our church. One evening we were eating supper and our first daughter …

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Learn Color Signs plus Free Coloring eBooks

It’s Back-to-School and the perfect time to learn your colors. (Perfect savings, too!) Why not learn the colors of the rainbow – and put them to practice with our free coloring ebooks? Join in with the kids for a fun after-school activity. Learn ASL signs for colors This song from Box of Crayons is a fun way to help your child learn American Sign Language signs for all the colors of the rainbow – and then some! [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkiMTuyMjko?rel=0&showinfo=0] Practice the Signs Red Orange Yellow Green Blue Pink Purple White Black Brown Silver Gold Get the Video at a special price – just for you. Click here …

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Proven Benefits of Using Sign Language With Your Kids

By Colleen Brunetti, M.Ed., C.H.C. Baby sign language has lots of benefits and many people are on board with signing with babies. But what about using sign language for kids who have developed some spoken language? Should you still sign? While there may naturally be a (sometimes temporary) downturn in using sign after spoken language emerges, we say stick with it! The benefits are vast. In fact, we have 60 great reasons to keep signing compiled for you here. A big shout out and thanks to our amazing Signing Time Facebook communities for helping with this list! You should still sign …

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