Parents Archives - Sound Discipline

Honor Legacies by Teaching Children to Take Action & Make Contributions

Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy is deeper than his famous quotes and speeches. This year, we are honoring his legacy through action. King believed that all people should be able to belong and contribute meaningfully within their communities, and that anti-blackness and oppression prohibit community care.

In our individualistic world, it’s vital to cultivate opportunities for young people to meaningfully contribute to the world around them. As children build and practice self-advocacy skills, they also can tune into what their community needs and how they can support one another.

Step back and allow your child to identify causes …

Self-regulation and Co-regulation are the Keys to More Peace and Fewer Power Struggles

Imagine you are on your way out the door and your 5-year-old is crying on the floor, your 8-year-old is yelling at them to stop crying, and you’re trying to talk over both of them to get them into the car. If this sounds familiar, keep reading! Almost every parent has experienced some rendition of this scene, power struggles and heightened stress levels included.

Brain science like that explained in this paper from the Duke University Center for Child and Family Policy tells us that co-regulation between adults and children is an extremely supportive practice, and it can help reduce …

Showing Up for Trans Kids Creates Equitable and Inclusive Communities for All Kids – Ideas and Resources for Parents and Caregivers

Whether you have a trans child in your own family or want to support trans kids in your community, we must first educate ourselves and work through our own biases.

If you’re parenting or in community with a trans child, your support could be a protective buffer for their mental health and development. If you’ve ever been stumped about how to answer your child’s questions about gender expression, pronouns, transitioning, or how to be an ally to trans and non-binary young people in your community, you are not alone.

Society is rapidly changing, and although progress has …

How Family Meetings Can Help Kids Learn to Use Their Voice

Now that the school year is in full swing, we find ourselves settled into the hectic monotony of rushing kids to school, prepping dinner, and getting ready for bed. How do you connect with your kids and give them a voice in the family amidst the daily chaos? Consider trying out family meetings.

Family meetings are a tangible way for kids to practice exercising their voice and sharing their opinions. Young people benefit so much when they have a say in how their environment is structured. When they can use their voice it also fosters feelings of self-worth and builds …

Back-to-School Tips – Setting Up Family Routines

Back-to-School time!

How do you help young people get back into the swing of a structured school day as summer fades away? No one likes to nag their kids to wake up, and just getting out the door on time can result in power struggles. If this sounds familiar, you are not alone! Here are a few tips to ease the transition back to school.

Reintroducing Routines

Family routines and structure help parents and young people alike. Kids feel safe and secure because they know what to expect, and parents feel confident because they know how to consistently respond …

7 Ways to Start the New School Year on a Positive Note

To start the new school year on a positive note, focus on connection, routines, and helping your kids make their own choices.

September is approaching, and whether this summer was relaxing or stressful (or a combination of both!), it is slowly coming to an end. It’s normal for kids and their parents and caregivers to feel a mix of anticipation, curiosity, and maybe even dread about what the new school year might bring.

Here are seven creative ideas and activities to do with your kids, to prepare for the transition from summer days to structured school days. To start this …

Ideas for Celebrating the Season!

It was far from normal, and this school year marked the first time since 2018-2019 that most kids were in real classrooms, in person, together. So, when they leave their classrooms and say goodbye to their teachers this month, it will be truly transitional.

Celebrating all that they accomplished this school year can help with the transition. And there is a great deal to celebrate! Celebrations during childhood help our kids apply structure to the world and create memories that will stay with them into adulthood. Here are some suggestions and ideas for how to mark these end-of-the-school year days …

It’s Teacher Appreciation Month and We See You

Teacher Appreciation messages from Sound Discipline Facilitators!

What a school year this has been! By many accounts, this year proved even more challenging than the previous two years, leaving many educators exhausted and discouraged. And yet, you keep showing up. You continue to be present and attentive to the needs of your students. Even though you may feel depleted, you keep dipping into a deep well of patience and commitment.

At Sound Discipline, we see you! We are grateful for all that you do. For Teacher Appreciation Month, we celebrate you for the heroes that you are!

Hopefully, your …

An Easy Way to Reduce Stress and Strengthen Relationships in Your Family

Want to play? What? Too busy doing important things to play? It turns out (check out this research), play is extremely important – for just about everyone and everything, but especially for learning and developing children. But why?

Stress: It turns out play reduces stress (and therefore) facilitates learning. We know stress lowers the amount of our brain available for real learning. Play is really the work that kids need to be doing. And not just kids. Adults benefit in the same ways!

Relationship: The National Institute of Play reports that playful communications and interactions, when …

Developing Firmness Tools for Parents

Kind compassion and grounded firmness are critical to effective parenting. If we can do both, our parenting takes on a strong even keel, so that in stormy times or calm, we know we are getting where we want to go with our children in a way that has direction and purpose. Both parents and kids feel the stability. We call this parenting with connected firmness. How do we do this, when many of us were not brought up with this modeled in our own families?

Ask More Questions: Instead of telling kids what to do all of the …