by Susie Windle | May 6, 2015 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, The Power of Play, Your Child's Brain
Adults can easily forget that kids learn a lot through physical play. Physical play might involve roughhousing, wrestling, climbing, swinging, and running around. All children need this kind of play, and participating in it is one of the ways kids can learn to solve...
by Susie Windle | Apr 29, 2015 | Discipline and Trying Times, Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Sensory Information, The Importance of Emotions, Your Child's Brain
A nurturing relationship involves open, honest communication, and that kind of communication involves listening as well as talking. We need to listen to our children. When we listen, really listen, we show our children that we respect them and that we care about their...
by Susie Windle | Apr 22, 2015 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Parents: Practice Self Care
Imagine our ancestors moving to the rhythm of the seasons and the sunrise and sunset of each day. Though life for them was tough in some ways, they did have more downtime. Our bodies and minds evolved accustomed to taking some breaks. Now we are in the twenty-first...
by Susie Windle | Apr 15, 2015 | Discipline and Trying Times, Parenting Playbook, The Power of Play, Your Child's Brain
You can see signs of your child developing a more complex form of thinking as he or she logically links ideas with the sequences of action in pretend play. Perhaps you will see a stuffed animal have a birthday with a pretend birthday cake and pretend candles that are...
by Susie Windle | Apr 8, 2015 | Discipline and Trying Times, Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Parents: Practice Self Care, The Importance of Emotions, Your Child's Brain
Thinking clearly is a lot easier if we have a way to keep our emotions in check. Some researchers refer to this as “separation of affect.” This ability to detach from emotions caused by frustration is a skill that allows people to think through solutions to problems...
by Susie Windle | Apr 1, 2015 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, The Importance of Emotions, The Power of Play, Your Child's Brain
Children love it when a parent will play with them, and child-led play builds a strong emotional bond. When children lead parents in play, opioids—the natural chemicals that give us a general sense of well-being—are activated in their brains. Child-led play has been...
by Susie Windle | Mar 25, 2015 | Discipline and Trying Times, Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, The Power of Play
It can be hard to understand aggressive play: things like teasing, pretend fighting, mimicking of superheroes, pointing toy or pretend guns, horsing around in a rough-and-tumble way, and dramatizing battles for dominance and power. It can sometimes be difficult to...
by Susie Windle | Mar 18, 2015 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, The Importance of Emotions, Your Child's Brain
Language is an important part of communicating, but words have limitations. Words seldom tell the whole story in an emotional situation. Nuances are inherent in subjective experiences. Because of the limitations of language, using only words can cut off important,...
by Susie Windle | Mar 11, 2015 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Your Child's Brain
Why questions are tough questions for young children to answer because they require examination of less-than-obvious origins to wishes, desires, or feelings. Three- or four-year-olds will usually answer why questions in a concrete manner. “Why did you throw your pizza...
by Susie Windle | Mar 4, 2015 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, The Importance of Emotions
Infants are capable of wonderful conversations through touch and eye contact. When an infant begins to engage actively with the eyes as you hold him or her, the mutual gaze is a conversation with your child. In fact, the ability to light you up in this process is the...
