Visible Child

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

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

It’s a heck of a job description, I’ll give you that. Every day, all day, I listen to and work with parents. One on one. One (me) with two (couples). Small groups. Large groups. Really large online groups. I’ve been doing it for years. And every once in a while, something hits me about the … Shattering Illusions, One Parent at a Time.

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

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

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.

“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

It’s the first day of a new year and a new decade (though, being who I am, I have some issues with that whole rah-rah new decade idea, because isn’t every 10 years a decade, regardless of the year that you count as year one, and geez, other people assert that a decade doesn’t start … Get Curious: The Heart of Observation