Visible Child

Resisting the Erosion of Trust

John Holt (1923-1985), an esteemed writer and advocate of homeschooling, unschooling, and children’s rights, is often quoted as saying: “To trust children we must first learn to trust ourselves…and most of us were taught as children that we could not be trusted.” In the words of Shakespeare (I mean, while we’re quoting people): “ay, there’s Resisting the Erosion of Trust

A Bloodhound with Picture Books

I’m not embarrassed to admit that I’m a picture book snob from way back. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not talking about controlling or censoring or even criticizing what children read or, more accurately, what parents read to children. Far from it. Read, read, and read some more. Anything. Everything. Read them the back of A Bloodhound with Picture Books

Methuselah Lived 900 Years

Today, a little departure from my regular Visible Child blog fare: a “blast from the past.” It happened quite accidentally. I was looking for an entirely different blogpost to share here, but then I ran across this one, and hey, maybe sharing this set of ideas and reflections is my fate today. I’m a big Methuselah Lived 900 Years

Visible Child Foundations 1: The What

Parenting groups and coaches are a dime a dozen these days. There’s even a plethora of “respectful” parenting philosophies or approaches to follow, all of which have some things in common, and of course, some differences. There are SO many words used to describe these approaches: positive parenting, conscious parenting, respectful parenting, connected parenting, gentle Visible Child Foundations 1: The What

Paving the Way to Take Risks

Most of us have been in a kitschy little gift shop that had some clever little sign or button or tchotchske that said “What would you do if you knew you could not fail?” If you’re like me, it made you stop and think, at least for a minute. What a question. What would I Paving the Way to Take Risks

Peeing. It’s a Control Thing.

Okay, folks. I don’t know if it’s the planets or the moon or something about the water or something else entirely, but there seems to be a sudden run on children peeing on the floor “on purpose.” Yes, I’m including all variations on this theme such as peeing in closets, on toys, on carpets, in Peeing. It’s a Control Thing.

Hitting: It Depends

“So, when my child hits, I should block and say “I won’t let you hit?” Sometimes. It depends. “What if I can’t be there or I don’t get there in time? Should I tell them firmly that it wasn’t okay to hit?” Sometimes. It depends.  (just an aside…do you think they don’t know that it Hitting: It Depends