We are now just three weeks away from the Positive Parenting Conference and there is so much goodness to share this year! One masterclass that is a must-watch is with someone with whom many of you are already familiar: Julie King. 

Julie’s book, How to Talk When Kids Won’t Listen: Whining, Fighting, Meltdowns, Defiance, and Other Challenges of Childhood, is a thorough and extremely helpful follow up to her earlier gem How to Talk so Little Kids Will Listen. Both of Julie’s books give very practical ideas of how to connect with our children and make them feel heard (which, in turn, makes most parenting situations easier). Spoiler alert, this is a really important part of the overall message!

Julie writes with a very personable tone; it often feels like she is sitting in your living room having a chat about parenting. This masterclass has that tone as well–and this time you can be in your living room with Julie right there with you (well, on screen).  

As a highly regarded parenting workshop leader and presenter, Julie has conducted presentations for schools, parents, professional organizations and companies of all sizes for several decades. She is also a dear friend of the AFineParent community and has done numerous live calls within the Academy. 

I was the researcher for this masterclass so I got an early look at all the goodness Julie has to share with us. While there are so many helpful ideas in this class, I decided on three that I hope will give you a little something to think about until you can watch the whole masterclass.  [Read more…]

Very soon we will have the opportunity to delve deep into the world of positive parenting— that’s right, the Positive Parenting Conference is right around the corner! One really powerful masterclass this year is with Dr. Larry Cohen and focuses on his book The Art of Roughhousing: Good Old-Fashioned Horseplay and Why Every Kid Needs It. 

I imagine many people have a preconceived idea of what roughhousing is and how to do it. “Just wrestle!” Right? Or maybe, “That sounds dangerous.” Dr. Cohen’s grounding and encouraging spirit will not only open your eyes to the many varieties of roughhousing that are possible, but he will also help you prepare for high-quality roughhousing, which (spoiler alert!) is very helpful in raising confident, happy, ethical kids. 

Dr. Cohen, who co-authored the book, is most well-known for his book Playful Parenting, which has been translated into 14 languages and was the winner of the NAPPA Gold Award for parenting resources. He is also a licensed psychologist specializing in child’s play and play therapy; has a private psychotherapy and play therapy practice. So, he really knows roughhousing. 

If you are already a Dr. Cohen fan, this masterclass will take you deeper into his favorite ways to roughhouse with kids. It’ll help support you on your roughhousing journey. If you haven’t yet engaged with Dr. Cohen’s work, this masterclass is a great way to learn all about why you want to start roughhousing with your family right away! [Read more…]

In just a few weeks we will have the opportunity to open ourselves up to a wealth of learning at the 2022 Positive Parenting Conference. If you are anything like me, you might try to build in a little extra time that week to be able to watch as many of the masterclasses as possible and let the ideas sink in. In preparation for the conference this year, we are giving you a little sneak peek at some of the masterclasses and some key learning moments to anticipate! 

One expert, Dr. Vanessa Lapointe, gives us a heartfelt take on how we can show up for our kids in the ways that they need. In the Discipline Without Damage Masterclass, Dr. Lapointe gets beautifully personal in her examples of how important the work of knowing what our kids need is for our families. 

Dr. Lapointe is a registered psychologist, parenting educator, best-selling author and international speaker. Having founded The Wishing Star Lapointe Developmental Clinic and also serving as its director, she has been supporting families and children for over 20 years. She is also–very importantly–a mom; her work comes straight from her heart. 

I was the masterclass researcher for Discipline Without Damage: How to Get Your Kids to Behave Without Messing Them Up, which is the inspiration book for this masterclass. So, I got an early look at Dr. Lapointe’s masterclass interview with Lisa Hoashi from our AFineParent Team. I am excited to share my favorite takeaways with you today! Take a look below to see if this is a masterclass you want to add to your “Must-Watch” list so you can tailor your conference experience to your family’s needs! [Read more…]