Parenting Solutions Archive
Articles
Empowering Girls and Connecting with Boys
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
All children need roots and wings. They need encouragement to spread their wings so they can explore the world and be independent... read an excerpt>
The Emotional Roller-Coaster
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
I was baby-sitting my niece once when she was around two years old. She had a hard time saying goodbye to her mom and dad... read an excerpt>
The Benefits of a Little Frustration
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
I heard a great story the other day about the unexpected benefits of frustration—in this case the frustration of having a brand… read an excerpt>
Better than a “Spoonful of Sugar”
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
Mary Poppins suggests a spoonful of sugar to make the medicine go down, but I think that some playful parenting can help even more… read an excerpt>
Children are fascinated by similarities and differences between people...
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
Children are fascinated by similarities and difference between people, and they need guidance from us in order to avoid bias or prejudice, and in... read an excerpt>
Making it right
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
“Say you’re sorry!” You’ve heard it a thousand times and you’ve probably said it yourself a thousand times. I know I have. We all want our... read an excerpt>
Which comes first, aggression or trouble making friends?
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
Most toddlers are fairly aggressive, towards other toddlers, towards their older and younger siblings, and towards their parents. By the time they are preschoolers... read an excerpt>
"Are you trying to cheer me up?"--Handling Minor Upsets
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
As every parent knows, children can be sad, mad, frustrated beyond words, or just plain unhappy. Sometimes our job is... read an excerpt>
Your Competitive Preschooler
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
I was reading I'm OK--You're OK, the classic self-help book by Thomas Harris... read an excerpt>
The Kid Swap: "Outsourcing" the games you hate
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
All of us parents have things we can't stand to do with our kids. For some people it's messy play, for others it is loud play, and for still others it might be aggressive play... read an excerpt>
Sharing (or not)
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
Ah, the holidays. A time for sharing and giving...unless, of course, you are a toddler or preschooler... read an excerpt>
Playing with the rules
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
Preschoolers love rules. Don’t get me wrong, they don’t always love following rules! But they focus a lot... read an excerpt>
Balancing the need to be the best with the need to be a friend
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
A Mom wrote to me once about her four year old son, who was outside with his friend drawing with sidewalk chalk... read an excerpt>
When in doubt, follow the giggles
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
I read a study once that discovered that the average preschooler giggles over 400 times a day... read an excerpt>
Pretend
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
My niece Sofia, who is two-and-a-half, loves make-believe play, and she has taught me that the textbooks are wrong when they say... read an excerpt>
Nice Yelling
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
I asked a seven-year-old acquaintance of mine, Ellie, what parents should do when their children misbehave. I loved her answer: “If you get very angry, don’t yell... read an excerpt>
Fun Fright
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
One day I saw two boys riding their bikes down a hill. At the bottom, they fell off their bikes laughing...read an excerpt>
Connecting with children: A meal or a snack?
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
When it comes to good nutrition, you know that sometimes it’s time for a meal, and sometimes it’s time for a snack... read an excerpt>
A lesson about parenting -- from my cat.
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
For many years, child development experts have been advising parents that the best way to help young children develop a secure attachment... read an excerpt>
Connecting with your Child
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
When a child is happy, loving, friendly, and eager to please, it's pretty easy to maintain a good parent-child connection, which is the basis for healthy development... read an excerpt>
Learning and Understanding Rules
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
Don’t get me wrong. I don’t mean they love following rules. Especially your rules. But they do love the idea... read an excerpt>
Making a Friendly Connection with Other Parents
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
What do you do when you see a stranger’s child having a temper tantrum, or you see a parent yelling at or even hitting a child?... read an excerpt>
Should young kids just play?
Following the recent American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) report, which illustrates that free, unstructured play is essential for helping children reach important developmental milestones... read an excerpt>
High need for contact
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
Lots of toddlers and preschoolers hit, kick or bite when they are feeling angry and frustrated... read an excerpt>
Sometimes less is more
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
I was at a playground with my niece the other day, and I noticed a Mom “playing” with her toddler. It actually looked more like a... read an excerpt>
Cleanup Time
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
Are you tired of nagging (or yelling) when it’s clean up time and your preschooler doesn’t feel like cleaning up? Do you end up doing all the cleaning up, slowly building up resentment... read an excerpt>
Preschoolers demanding attention when you’re on the phone
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
One of the great mysteries of childhood is why preschoolers who are playing perfectly happily by themselves suddenly demand your attention as soon as you get on the phone... read an excerpt>
Making room for imaginative play
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
The other day I saw a child coloring at a picnic table. Her mother looked at the drawing and said, "Trees are green, honey." I have seen some young children throw away their crayons... read an excerpt>
The pleasures of loafing around
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
P.G. Wodehouse, the British writer who wrote dozens of popular novels, stories and plays, was once asked when he first started writing... read an excerpt>
The Importance of Play
Lawrence Cohen, PhD
Children play to have fun, but if we look closely there is a lot more going on. Play is how children learn about their world... read an excerpt>
The stop and go game
Lawrence Cohen, PhD May 2006
A friend of mine invented a game for his daughter when she was little and didn’t want to have her fingernails or toenails trimmed... read an excerpt>
Clever techniques for dealing with a clingy child
Last year I met three times with a small group of parents to discuss playful ideas for solving family troubles. I loved having the chance... read an excerpt>
Books
Toddler-Friendly Summer Celebrations
Robin McClure, from the PLAYSKOOL Toddler’s Busy Play Book
For fashionable summer fun, you and your child can make a unique pair of flip-flops for a caregiver, babysitter or friend…read an exceprt>
Why Is My Child Scared?
Rebecca Rutledge, PhD, from the PLAYSKOOL Guide to the Toddler Years
What scares toddlers most? A dog, the dentist, the dark, the loud grocery-store clerk—just about anything has the potential to...read an excerpt>
Sleeping Like a Baby
Jamie Loehr, MD and Jen Meyers, from the PLAYSKOOL Guide to Baby’s First Year
One of the great challenges of parenthood is getting your baby to sleep. And to stay asleep. For a newborn, this really isn’t an issue...read an excerpt>
