February 21, 2019
Rituals don’t need to be rigid, occurring at exact moments of every day. We all lead busy lives and have off days, so giving yourself a little grace when you inevitably miss a moment of connection. Creating special moments each day with our children is a great way to improve your relationship with your child, while also boosting their self-esteem and setting them up with healthy ways to cope with the stresses of life as they grow older.
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February 14, 2019
One of my cherished memories from growing up is about family stories. Each summer my parents would rent a lake house and relatives would visit in a bit of a revolving-door style. Eventually, they would all have made a visit, often extended over several weeks. In the evenings we would sit around in the living room or outside around a campfire, and the stories would begin to flow.
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February 07, 2019
If you’d like to help a child in your life increase their EQ, that’s great! There are many wonderful ways to do this. In an effort to help facilitate such learning and growth, lessons that teach children about their moods are essential. Unlike the IQ, a person's EQ can be increased over time, and there are a variety of useful interventions to help children become more aware and in control of their feelings and choices.
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January 31, 2019
If you’ve been around kids for any length of time, you know that there are some universal truths: they all struggle at times, they are sometimes highly emotional for no discernable reason, and sometimes they achieve something monumental after a period of distress.
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January 21, 2019
How do we start to make and recognize facial expressions of emotion? It turns out that this complex process starts early in infancy and continues to develop throughout our lives.
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January 10, 2019
We all know what it’s like to let off steam after a stressful day. We walk through the door, a tight ball of emotions, ready to scream, cry, or collapse onto the floor. Now imagine you’re a child – a pop quiz fourth period, last pick in gym class, and the longest bus ride home with the neighborhood bully. You’re nervous, embarrassed, angry – all on the same day. How is a young brain supposed to cope with all those feelings?
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October 17, 2017
A temper tantrum in a young child is often seen as commonplace behavior in today’s society. Kicking, crying, screaming, and fussing are simply dismissed by parents and professionals alike as typical childhood behaviors. However, many of these actions may be symptoms or warning signs of a more serious behavioral disorder. This conundrum leads many disgruntled parents, teachers, and professionals alike to ask the question: “How can I tell the difference between a ‘bad mood’ or an underlying behavioral disorder?”
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October 17, 2017
Have you ever attempted to have a one on one, verbal discussion only, conversation with a young child? If you answered yes, you can almost unanimously confirm that this was an extremely difficult feat. Despite their emotional or mental capacity, children need stimulation other than verbal only communication to fully express themselves. Children typically tend to be visual, hands on learners that need more than a face to face conversation. A friendly, safe environment is essential in child therapy as well as physical tools to assist the child in conveying their feelings.
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October 13, 2017
While teaching children to identify their own feelings and emotions seems to be a giant hurdle that needs to be crossed, it is equally as important to teach children proper problem solving techniques and coping skills to deal with these emotions. These skills not only aid the child through school and building new and essential peer relations, but the skills that are learned are carried well through adolescence and into adulthood.
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September 27, 2017
When we created the My Moods, My Choices Flipbook, it was designed to help kids better identify their emotions and learn how to take positive actions. Sounds great, right? But how does it work in practice? Let’s take a look at a hypothetical scenario between a therapist and child who’s struggling with angst and aggression.
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September 11, 2017
It can be hard to remember how you processed things as a child, especially in your earliest years. As we get older, there are certain aspects of life that are so ingrained us that we don’t second guess how we jump to our own conclusions. When you become a parent or start working with children in therapy, you begin the realize that there are some things we take for granted, like finding the right ways to express our emotions.
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