My oldest, about to turn 6, is getting really loud with us. A lot of fresh, back talk, a lot of ‘no’ , whining, etc...
I know it is normal, and we are remaining consistent and calm the best we can. But I am wondering if there are any books on “talking back”. It is difficult to explain and I am wondering if some stories would help. Ideas!?
I am having very difficult mornings with my child. How do I make this better for us?
I feel like I am losing my cool with my child during the morning routine in particular . In the past, I’ve mentioned my child’s difficulty following instructions, transitioning, inattentiveness etc...
Our morning routines have been the same with small tweaks for years. I have been very regimented and routine oriented. This school year, kindergarten, in particular, is a major issue with getting ready. We try and problem solve together and we come up with good plans, but they are short lived. I know she probably can’t help it, and I want to support her and not be mad! How do i do this?
How do we speak to our child about touching private parts so that they feel safe and open with us enough to share?
Our child has had two incidents at school in the past two weeks that we are very concerned about. The first time they exposed themself at dismissal to their classmates after being dared by others. The second time they were sitting in a circle with their peers and reached a hand up another child’s shorts. The child was very alarmed and upset of course.
There is no open access to the internet. We are starting to look at the time that has spent on FaceTime with the best friend that moved away.
Could this other child have been exposed and shared this with our child?
How do we speak to our child about this so that they feel safe and open with us enough to share?
I hesitate introducing video games to my son. Is there a healthy and safe way to do this?
All of my son’s friends at school have some type of gaming system. We have been really firm about not introducing this into our home mostly because of safety. Our main concern is that he has a tendency to fixate when he likes something. I am worried if we allow video games in our home this will get out of hand really quickly.
Should I pull my daughter out of Girl Scouts or stick with it?
This afternoon we had our 2nd Girl Scout meeting. It’s about 15 girls and moms that I don’t really know (combo of K & 1st graders). I told my daughter before the meeting that her vest may look a little different than the other girls as her yellow flag pin hadn’t arrived. When we got there and it was time for all the moms to pin a gold pin on the yellow flag my daughter had a fit and ran out of the room. I coaxed her back in but then she said “girls scouts is so stupid, it’s so boring, all we do is draw. I hate Girl Scouts.” I was mortified.
I am tempted to just quit. Should I just pull her out of Girl Scouts?
My soon to be 6yo daughter needs us with her in order to sleep. How do we shift this?
How do I know if I am being too harsh or too lenient?
Yesterday, I took the three kids to the movies and to a park. Before we left, my daughter grabbed her socks and I told her, she didn’t need socks because I was going to have them wear water shoes in case the sprinklers were on at the park and she wanted to get wet. She said she wanted to wear her regular shoes because she didn’t want to get wet. I asked if she was sure and she told me yes. Once at the park, she eventually began leaping through the sprinklers, telling me she wasn’t getting her shoes wet, only her clothes, which was not the case. Her shoes were getting wet.
My 6.5yo wants purple hair. Should I let her go for it?
My 6.5yo daughter wants to dye her hair purple! All because she’s been watching this show, the Descendants, and the main character has purple hair. From my experience, I know it’s just experimenting and a phase. But, is it OK for a 6-year-old to have such freedom or should I wait till she’s a little older to experiment?
Can you help guide us with winning and losing?
We often play board games, card games or have pool races at our house and are trying to teach my daughter to manage her disappointment when she loses and honestly she has been doing pretty well with it. But Saturday we were in the pool and she and her dad were racing and I was the judge calling out the winners (in hindsight I probably shouldn't have been doing that). In one of the races, dad won and she had a total meltdown saying "daddy cheated, I hate Daddy, etc. etc. etc."
My daughter creates alters with her toys. Should I be worried?
My daughter has a few toys that she has on her bedside table as a permanent fixture and refuses to have them moved. She also doesn't play with them but she likes to look at them, occasionally touch them, keep them in the same place always and no one can touch or move them. I find it freaky but I try to respect and not touch it. I worry that she may develop (more of) OCD if we do not show her that it's ok to move things and that toys are meant to be played with.
How do you help your kid when they are doing their best but it’s not enough?
My son has had a rough few days at nature school this week with impulse control and focus. He has been separated from the group a few times to try and calm his wiggles and lost privileges because of his behavior. Sometimes he just can’t sit, stay, listen, or complete a task. His brain just seems to override occasionally and I totally get it.
My oldest may be feeling jealous of his younger brother. How do I talk to him?
My younger son has been invited to train and be a guest player in a tournament for the soccer club every boy in south Florida wants to get in. He is doing great and excited with the opportunity. On the other hand, I have my older son that also plays soccer in a local club and he is very happy for his younger brother but at the same time, my older one has been very edgy, moody, “grosero” lately. How do I talk to him?
My daughters are clashing. How can I handle it better?
Both girls play better together at ages 6 and 8 but my 8yo tends to always talk over and correct her sister constantly. My 6yo gets offended whenever her big sister corrects her.
This is where they are both clashing now as one likes to fact check everything and say "you are wrong" and the other one just falls to pieces. How can I better handle this situation with both of them?
My older son screams at his 2yo sister and she screams right back. How can I break this cycle?
The sibling relationship in my home between my son and my daughter (2yo) has become unbearable. My son doesn’t want his sister near him but when she is playing or doing something else he goes and bothers her, screams at her - so naturally she “fights back” and screams at the top of her lungs. Help! I don’t know how to break this cycle…
How do I know if I am adding too much to my little ones schedule?
This year we have the option of extending my son’s usual PreK day by an hour, taking him from 1:30pm to 2:30pm, where instead of that hour continuing to serve as his quiet/decompressing time from school at home, it would be replaced with an active activity like gymnastics/sports/dance.
Should I give him another semester where we honor his usual "quiet time" block and try adding that extra hour next semester, giving him a little more time to navigate his energy levels?
Or just proceed with the extra hour of school, knowing that kids are adaptable and will eventually adjust?
Did I choose the right school for my child?
My daughter started Kindergarten on Wednesday and I wanted to get your honest opinion on the school we selected. It’s a Charter/Prep School and very focused on “rigorous academics.”
Every day we are sent home a behavior chart (1-5) and we have to sign and send it back to school. Apparently they are up in the classroom as well. 3 means “ready to learn” and 5 is something like “exceptional/leader”. She has been coming home with 3s asking why she isn’t getting 5s. She’s only in kindergarten! It’s my mommy gut that’s already thinking it’s not the right fit, but she says she really loves it.
Does my child need a tutor or an educational therapist?
My son’s reading assessment has him reading at kindergarten level. Given his anxiety and that he has been in a Waldorf environment in the past, reading/spelling has not been the focus and he’s struggling. I think we have found a new therapist but I was wondering if you could recommend a tutor or do you think an educational therapist that can work with him each week on reading and his feelings around it.
Is it ok if my child is the youngest in a class?
I signed my daughter up for an after school class called “Introduction to Theater” at an arts studio.
Do you think it would be ok to have her be the youngest in the class? Just concerned how she will be treated by the “older” kids and if they could expose her to things that kids their age are into (like tv shows or toys or whatever else that may not be age appropriate for her). Or would it be good for her to be around older kids, since she is already more mature for her age and being around older kids would help advance her more in theater?
My daughter had an epic tantrum over a gift for someone else. What is happening?
My daughter had an epic tantrum this morning. She went downstairs to make her cousin a birthday card and she remembered that we are giving her a gift that she has never had before. So my daughter came up the stairs crying and screaming how she needs to have the same gift as her cousin but in a crazy aggressive way. I tried to explain to her that when we want things that we don’t have, we can figure it out. She was still screaming and crying saying, “I hate my cousin, I neeeeeed the gift for myself”.
My son has big reactions when making mistakes. How can I guide him?
Recently there were a couple of situations when my son made a mistake but his reaction was exaggerated and made me worry about the way he deals with these situations. I would love tips please on what to monitor, how to help him develop the thick skin we need to face the world after making mistakes. I know how I struggled with this… Thanks!