A Three-Step Plan To Help With Afterschool Upsets
I had come to pick up my six-year-old from school one day. We had planned on eating lunch at a restaurant for a change. She had asked me, before she left for school, to bring
Category: Staylistening
Respond To Children’s Hurts In A Way That Builds Confidence
How can you respond to a hurt child calmly, when you feel panicked yourself? Instructor Emilie Leeks discovers it takes some practice, but the results are easy to see. “We’d only just left for the
Tantrums: Should I Talk About Them With My Child?
Dear Hand in Hand I’ve worked really hard to support my daughter when she cries recently. When I hold her and tell her I’m listening she does come to a point when her tears clear,
Why Does My Child Always Want Mom?
Our son is nearly three years old. He still goes through some separation anxiety when he’s without his mom. We usually put him to bed together, but the other night, my wife needed a break.
How The Opposite of Worry Works With Children on the Spectrum (a guest book review)
In his fantastic book, The Opposite of Worry, Lawrence Cohen introduces us to what anxiety in children looks like, and what we can do to help. He covers a great deal of current theory in a
Whining? Potty Words? Hitting? How Does Your Child Tell You She Needs You?
My three-year old daughter had been seeking quite a bit of connection from me for the last day or two. She had been employing all of the tactics we’ve developed over time to get me
How Can I Handle My Child’s Picky Eating Without Disrupting the Whole Family?
Setting Limits and Staylistening Those of you with picky eaters are familiar with requests—or demands—for “something else” to eat. Rigidity around food is like rigidity around anything else: it signals a need for help. We
How Connection Helps Create Trauma Sensitive Classrooms
Trauma can really undermine a children’s ability to thrive at school, affecting relationships and making it hard for them to follow school structure and directives. Dealing with these behaviours can be taxing on teaching staff, but
Unexplained Crying May Come from an Emotional Need
With Laura Minnigerode You thought you’d covered everything. It’s late in the day, your baby is fed, healthy, and her diaper is changed, you’ve jiggled and jostled her until you are exhausted, and she is still
Why Crying Helps Calm Fearful Children
A guest post by Laura Minnigerode Children’s brains are wired to connect with caregivers. And if they cry it means they feel especially safe and secure. Since a child’s limbic system works brilliantly to protect
Listening to Little Kids Helps Them Sleep
By Laura Minnigerode Carmela is 21 months old, and a student in my classroom in a community college lab school. Because she loves to play and is not as sleepy as many of the other
How to Confront Separation Anxiety Supportively
Every Monday morning, just as soon as he wakes up, my son remembers that he’s supposed to go to the kindergarten and starts protesting: “I don’t like it, mommy and I don’t want to go; please let
When Life Gives You Lemons, Try Play: A Playful Solution Helps Angry Tween
The outburst happened immediately after my two children’s father brought them to my home. My twelve-year-old son wanted to use his father’s phone, but his sister wouldn’t share it. He screamed, “She always gets her way!”
How to Say No to Your Child with Love
Saying no can be hard. Some of us avoid saying it if we feel like we just don’t have the energy for another fight and we skirt around saying “No.” For others it brings up a lot
Some Staylistening Success Helped my Baby Son Take Naps
A Guest Post By Lisa Tripp My six-month-old son, has had some challenges falling asleep for naps for several months, but the challenges have gotten easier and sleep has gotten more flexible for him as
What To Do When Your Child Won’t Nap
How often have you told your child that it’s naptime only to be met with complete disapproval? We know our children benefit from a rest midday, and may of us look forward to that window, either
Why Kids Throw Big Tantrums Over Small Things
Have you ever got home from a really crap day where EVERYTHING went wrong? You see that your darling partner has accidentally left the milk out of the fridge and you just LOSE it, ranting
How Listening to My Angry Son Helped Us Connect
I have been trying to figure out respectful and efficient ways of supporting my six years old unload his negative emotions for a few years. It’s been very hard, even more, because there is no