responsibility :: Better Parents, Better Families

Post tagged with responsibility

Irresponsible Children: Why Nagging and Lecturing Don't Work

March 05th, 201202:22 PM ET

By Empowering Parents

If you're like most parents, you probably spend enormous amounts of time and energy teaching about the importance of being responsible. You encourage it, you explain why it's important, and you remind your child again and again why he should do the things he's supposed to do. You complain, nag and lecture, but to no avail. It probably seem...
Should You Negotiate Your Child’s Curfew?

December 19th, 201103:00 PM ET

By Empowering Parents

There are times when your thirteen year old may seem like a seasoned litigator, and your kitchen feels like a courtroom. Kids are surprisingly adept at negotiating, and sometimes it's hard to "beat them at their own game." It's important to teach kids how to negotiate because it's a necessary life skill, and it helps create kids who can functi...
Stop the Blame Game: How to Teach Your Child to Stop Making Excuses and Start Taking Responsibility

December 05th, 201103:09 PM ET

By Empowering Parents

When parents realize that their children might have either a behavioral or learning problem, the first thing many do is blame themselves. Parents are usually very frightened and worried about their children's behavior. This fear often manifests itself in negative ways. One of those ways is blame. As problems continue, they start to externalize t...
Kids, Chores and Responsibilities: 5 Questions to Help Them Get on Track

June 16th, 201101:19 PM ET

By Empowering Parents

Does your child ignore your requests to clean his room? Does he seem unable or unwilling to do even the simplest household chores? How do you teach a child to be responsible without nagging and screaming? In addition to being a mom herself, Janet Lehman, MSW, is a social worker who successfully ran residential treatment homes for troubled teens...
How to Create a Culture of Accountability in Your Home

April 15th, 201103:53 PM ET

By Empowering Parents

The father's voice on the other end of the Parental Support Line sounded exhausted and overwhelmed when he said, "I know you told me that I have to hold my child accountable, but what exactly does that mean?" It's an excellent question, and one that we receive often on the Support Line. You've probably noticed that we talk a lot about "acc...
Developing Responsibility in Your Teen

March 23rd, 201103:14 PM ET

By Mark Gregston

I have a word of advice that is applicable to almost every parent of a teenager in today’s world. Stop! More specifically, stop doing so many things for your teen. By doing too much, you are likely stifling their motivation, limiting their creativity, promoting irresponsibility and postponing maturity. You may even be taking away the sense of ...
Are You a Mother or a Martyr? How Much is Too Much When “Doing” for Your Child?

February 05th, 201010:07 AM ET

By Empowering Parents

Without even realizing it, well-meaning parents can turn into martyrs for their kids. I've worked with many of them. One woman, I'll call her "Karen," stands out. When I met Karen, she was exhausted and frustrated, because she'd been fighting the school, her family and everyone else since her son "Kyle" was born. He had a learning disability and be...
Teflon Kids: Why Children Avoid Responsibility—and How to Hold Them Accountable

January 15th, 201010:42 AM ET

By Empowering Parents

Responsibility slides off kids like water slides off a duck's back. It almost seems the way that nature meant it to be. Think of kids as being coated with Teflon, and nothing sticks-that's how they relate to responsibility. In some ways, it's no mystery: kids are born with no responsibilities, and everything they do is by instinct. They cry when th...

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