Want to Be a Good Parent? Teach Self-Control

As I was reading the opinion section of the New York Times in February, another column on American child-rearing practices lept from the pages. It was at the height of “Bringing Up Bebe” and we American parents were getting bashed... again. But this article was more hopeful and had a great take away on what we can do as parents of ANY nationality to help raise our children: teach self control from an early age.

“American parents can make a child’s mind strong — by enlisting the child as an ally. In any culture, the development of self-control is crucial. This ability, which depends on the prefrontal cortex, provides the basis for mental flexibility, social skills and discipline. It predicts success in education, career and marriage. Indeed, childhood self-control is twice as important as intelligence in predicting academic achievement. Conversely, poor self-control in elementary school increases the risk of adult financial difficulties, criminal behavior, single parenthood and drug dependence.” from “Building Self-Control, the American Way”

Join us as we talk to the Sandra Aamodt, author of the book “Welcome to Your Child’s Brain: How the Mind Grows From Conception to College.” Sandra, former editor in chief of Nature Neuroscience, will share with us how to

- Effective approaches for building self-control
- How to harness our child’s own drives for play, social interaction and other rewards
- Play that allows children to practice skills that are useful in adult life.
- Ways to help children identify their emotions and think through possible consequences