Parentshift: Ten Universal Truths That Will Change the Way You Raise Your Kids, Paperback

"An encyclopedic exploration of the most effective methods for giving children the courage to realize their full potential." -- ADELE FABER, author of How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk Perfect for modern parents, grandparents, preschool teachers and caregivers, ParentShift offers a satisfying new approach to raising confident, healthy, whole human beings, from toddler to teen. Groundbreaking in both its scope and methodology, this extraordinary guidebook challenges some of our most popular disciplinary tools -- including punishments, threats, bribery, and rewards -- all of which, science has shown, damage the parent-child relationship and lower children's self-esteem, both which are tied to negative outcomes. Child development experts Linda and Ty Hatfield, along with award-winning journalist and author Wendy Thomas Russell, dismantle the pervasive myths that have given rise to these tactics, and then offer dozens of tools to replace them. All children -- regardless of geography, ethnicity or socio-economic status -- are bound together by ten universal truths. These truths account for the vast majority of children's everyday behavior, both positive and negative. They are things like: "All children have emotional needs," "All children model their primary caregivers," "All children have unique temperaments," and "All children need age-appropriate limits on their behavior." When caregivers understand and honor each of these truths, children are almost guaranteed to reach adulthood with close, trusting bonds to those caregivers, and feelings of self-worth. Unfortunately, so many of the tactics parents use today violate at least one of these truths. ParentShift explains this phenomenon, and shows what to do instead. In this book, readers will learn to: -Understand how their behavior is affecting the behavior of their children. - Set consistent limits and boundaries. -Curtail power struggles and sibling rivalry. -Move beyond timeouts, reward charts and other outdated tactics. -Respond thoughtfully to outbursts and tantrums. -Prepare children to meet life's challenges. -Ensure kids become strong boundary-setters. -Help prevent alcohol abuse, addiction, early sex, high-risk behavior and other disturbing trends among teens. -Build open, trusting parent-child bonds that keep kids turning to parents, instead of peers, for guidance. - Parent with the end in mind.