Positive Discipline Parenting Blog
Sproutable's Positive Discipline blog.
Real tips. Real talk. Read & grow.
Latest post
How to Help Your Teen Quit Vaping: A Compassionate Approach
As a parent, it can be incredibly difficult to watch your teen struggle with nicotine addiction. Whether they’ve just started vaping or have been using nicotine for years, the journey to quitting is rarely a[...]By Casey O'Roarty
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Want to Raise Happy Kids? Teach Gratitude.
Ask any parent what they want for their children and they will likely say, “I just want her to be happy.” It is what we strive for within our own lives, and what we anguish over for our children. It guides education decisions, discipline, and even shopping. Lately there has been a surge of books, documentaries, and research that lay out the “guide” to happiness, with a common theme arising again and again: gratitude.By Julietta Skoog
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An Open Letter to the World ~from a mom of a transgender child
“Humans are diverse and beautiful just like our planet. We are so lucky to live in a world where there are not just one or two or even three ways of being, but so many we can’t even count them. Humans aren’t just boys or girls. Gender is a spectrum. It’s like a rainbow of possibilities. First, there’s how we identify: girl, boy, neither, both, or more! Then, there’s how we want to express ourselves through our clothes, hair, etc.”By Alanna Beebe
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Masks & Kids
We can help keep our communities stay safe and slow the spread of COVID-19 by wearing face coverings and helping our children to do this as well. Public Health recommends both parents and children to wear face coverings when you are at any indoor or outdoor public space where you may be within 6 feet […]By Julietta Skoog
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Calming Tantrums
Ah, the tantrum. This is a sharp trigger for adults. The last straw that ultimately makes US display our own grown-up version of a tantrum. Tantrums are burned in my memory like a scrapbook. The one on the way to sign the mortgage papers (no reschedule there), or the one in front of 25 parents I teach, or the one in the restaurant on vacation (I think my tantrum in reaction was bigger than hers).By Julietta Skoog
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Positive Discipline Family Meetings
On more than one occasion, you will find my husband rescuing somebody from a seemingly crazy person. That crazy person would be me. It is HARD. Whenever I get into a casual conversation about parenting I find myself wanting to offer what to me, has been the biggest game-changer and secret sauce of the last […]By Julietta Skoog
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Special Time, a Super Tool to Stop Attention Seeking
I have a secret. I am not enough. Yep, not enough. No matter what the self-help books and Instagram quotes say, I will never ever be enough. My kids will always want more. Once I realized I am THAT loved by them, and THAT important to them, I stopped trying to chase the “end.” One more game, one more hug- nope, they will never be filled. This is a GOOD thing. It means that our open channel of attachment, love, and connection is always flowing. It also means I am human and so are they. This is when I started implementing, with fidelity, the simple Positive Discipline tool called Special Time.By Julietta Skoog
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5 Ways to Use the Wheel of Choice
The Positive Discipline tool Wheel of Choice not only sounds like a carnival game, it is also a way to find the fun, teach independence, and increase intrinsic motivation through choice. We can all use a little bridge to support us through transitions, and this is especially true for kids.By Julietta Skoog
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How to Talk to Kids about Social Distancing
We can’t expect young children to truly understand what social distancing looks like in public spaces. Just like any skill, we have to break it down into small steps and meet them where they are developmentally. It’s important to understand that the ability to inhibit our actions actually comes from a very high-level brain function […]By Julietta Skoog
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Separation Anxiety
Saying goodbye is hard for everyone! Whether it is dropping off at daycare or school, or leaving them home with a caregiver or babysitter even if they are family, that moment of disconnection can feel painful for you both. Separation anxiety is common for our little ones, with a big peak between 9 and 12 months, and then again during the preschool years, when their sense of self and identity are growing by leaps and bounds. When separated from important adults in their life, they can feel scared. You are their safety net! This is a good sign showing positive attachment...By Julietta Skoog
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My Life with Boobs
I’m two weeks into this whole parenting thing, and so far, it’s unbelievably amazing. Thanks to the hormones allowing me to function on 2-hour increments (or sometimes 1 hr) of sleep, I’m coping pretty well. Here are my sleep-deprived and total overshare musings on how my body has changed thus far after having a baby. When I was pregnant, […]By Alanna Beebe
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