Today is National Spank Out Day, I'm sad to say. In a society where we speak out against the hitting of women, against the hitting of racial minorities, against the hitting of animals, against the hitting and bullying of anyone, there are still a large number of people who think hitting children is perfectly acceptable... Continue Reading →
I was up most of the night of December 2. I had been mixing applesauce cinnamon dough for a co-op class the next morning and had a severe allergic reaction. Around five o'clock in the morning of December 3, I kissed my husband goodbye as he headed to the airport for a week long business... Continue Reading →
I am proud and honored to be a volunteer with the Natural Parents Network (NPN), a community of natural-minded parents and parents-to-be where you will be informed, empowered, and inspired. When you visit the NPN’s website you can find articles and posts about Activism, Balance, Consistent Care, Ecological Responsibility, Family Safety, Feeding With Love, Gentle... Continue Reading →
Photo by Rev StanWhen we grow plants, we give them what they need to grow and be successful: sunlight, water, supports, fertilizer, and other nutrients. If they are having trouble growing, we look to see what else they may need or what we need to change. We don't blame them when they fail. Instead we... Continue Reading →
Photo by Justin LoweryI've often heard parents rationalizing punishments and rewards by citing the real world. When the kids grow up, they'll be in the real world. In the real world, they'll have to get a job and then, they had better be prepared. Punishments and rewards are everywhere, in the real world. This misses a... Continue Reading →
Behavioral training uses punishments and rewards in order to extract desired behaviors from the subject in question. Numerous studies support that the use of punishment in children, regardless of whether or not the punishment is physical in nature, has detrimental effects. Besides dissolving the connection between parent and child, punishments do not help the child to do better... Continue Reading →
A coworker was relegating to my husband at work about an incident he had experienced with his teenage daughter the night before. He had been yelling at her for something when she said something he felt was in a disrepectful tone - backtalk, at which point he slapped her across the face hard. I can... Continue Reading →
Misbehavior and punishment are not opposites which cancel one another out. They enforce each other,breeding resentment, hurt feelings, and more of the same. No matter how you look at it, two wrongs don't make a right.
Children's coping mechanisms to deal with parental power: Resistance, defiance, rebellion, and negativity. People will fight back when their freedom is threatened. Resentment, anger, and hostility. People want to be in control of themself. When others hold power over them, they feel resentful. Aggression, retaliation, and striking back. Parental domination via authority leads to frustration.... Continue Reading →
The no-lose method of conflict resolution allows parents to discover what is really going on with the child. When you use your power to enforce your own solutions, you don't unveil the true underlying feelings and needs. In order to deal with an issue, you have to know what the real problem is first. Once you have... Continue Reading →
living peacefully with children 