Visible Child

Attention: Paid Subscribers!

You may have already seen, or you may be seeing in the next few days, a mention that Visible Child is now on Substack. As you likely know, Substack offers both free and paid subscriptions, which will be made available to the public readership. I want to be clear that if you are a paid Attention: Paid Subscribers!

When Toddlers Hit

This week, a familiar question appeared in the Visible Child Facebook group, namely what to do with a toddler who is frequently hitting. So much hitting. The parents are, understandably, tired and feeling defeated–so defeated that they have even come to a place where they see their two-year-old as someone who has “always been a When Toddlers Hit

It’s Nothing New

You know, this “respectful parenting”, in the way that Visible Child promotes, is nothing new. Many can easily fall into the idea that this way of relating to children is somehow a contemporary fad, either because we were raised so differently or in response to loud voices around us, mocking “gentle parenting” or implying that It’s Nothing New

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.