Lesson Tag: communication

Teachers and administrators regularly communicate with all school community stakeholders. It can be a challenge to meet the communication needs of students, parents, and staff, all while planning, implementing and evaluating curriculum. 

Forget the blame game and enjoy the school-family partnership. Students are best served when everyone is working toward their academic and personal interests. You will gain practical skills in conducting productive conversations with parents and caregivers

After this session, educators will be able to:

• Apply approaches that help parents support students to self-advocate
• Invite parents and caregivers into productive conversations
• Identify methods to effectively set common expectations

We want our children to live healthy, happy lives with strong connections and a positive sense of self. Conversation is a pathway to developing and sustaining a healthy and trusting relationship with your child and for having a positive impact on how they see themselves.

After this class you will be able to:

• Start conversations that matter
• Define self-esteem
• Recognize the importance of self-esteem for children with autism and ADHD
• Apply practical strategies to strengthen your child’s self-esteem

Does the idea of talking with your child about sexual orientation feel difficult or even a little scary?

Are you confused about the changing ways that many in our society see these issues?

Worried about knowing how to support your child?

The issues of sexual orientation can be daunting for both kids and parents. Your child will look to you for guidance about how to feel and act. This class will help you prepare for an open, ongoing dialogue with your child or teen that is candid, authentic and supportive. Participants in this class will be able to:

• Recognize key issues and biases related to sexual orientation for your child and for yourself
• Apply listening and talking strategies that help your child feel safe enough to express their true thoughts and feelings
• Apply approaches that will support your child’s positive thoughts and feelings about themself

School refusal, also known as school avoidance, is a misunderstood and complex challenge. While school refusal is often viewed as misbehavior, in most cases students are simply too anxious to enter the school environment and, in the cases of some students, have trouble leaving their homes at all. Often,children with school refusal behaviors may complain of physical symptoms such as headaches or stomach aches before school, or repeatedly ask to visit the school nurse.

In this class you will learn:

• The ways in which your own emotions and anxiety about truancy affect your child’s recovery or escalation
• How to frame the problem for yourself and child in a way that encourages confidence, patience, and compassion
• Ways to work with the school to support your child through this difficult time

Sometimes children don’t outgrow fears that are typical in younger children like being apart from parents or extreme fears about specific things or situations like dogs or going to the doctor’s office. Sometimes fears or worries may interfere with home, school or play activities. Sometimes children may seem irritable and angry or experience physical symptoms like stomach aches, and still other kids turn their symptoms inward causing us to miss them. In any of these cases, your child may be experiencing anxiety and will benefit from focused support and sometimes professional services. As parents, we may sometimes be inclined to help in ways that actually make symptoms worse like allowing children to avoid certain situations or getting worried about our children’s worries. After this class you will be able to:

• Recognize symptoms of anxiety, types of anxiety and related family stressors
• Identify ways that your child manages anxiety and how to help them do so more effectively
• Apply strategies to balance between challenging your child to tolerate anxiety and letting them decide when they are overloaded.
• Define and apply self-regulation and co-regulation as effective support strategies
• Identify treatment options when needed

Your child’s brain is in a process of intense physical, cognitive and social development. They are becoming more aware of themselves and forming identity. As their brain changes and struggles to adapt to their social environment, they may be vulnerable to depression. Risk factors for depression include depression in the family, psycho-social, and environmental stressors.

In this class you will:

• Recognize the risk factors for depression
• Identify red flags
• Learn strategies to support your child and foster resilience

Bullying is a topic of concern in schools across the country. With convenient access to digital devices and social media, hurtful messages are easily spread. Adding to the distress, kids can post harmful messages with anonymity, ease and without a real-time reaction from the victim. In addition, children increasingly look to peers for direction including values, identity and codes of behavior. In this class you will learn:

• The importance of emotional intelligence and how to help your child develop it
• Strategies to help your child form positive peer relationships
• The role of brain development in peer pressure
• How to recognize bullying in its many forms
• What you can do to protect your child

Strong, positive parent-child relationships are the foundation of good mental health. This class will help you focus on practical strategies to build those relationships whether you grew up in families with those kinds of connections or not. After this class you will be able to:

• Recognize the connection between relationships and mental health
• Define attachment and recognize its importance for your child’s development
• Identify and apply 10 practical steps to build a strong positive relationship with your child

Parents play an important role in children’s psychotherapy. It is important that you share concerns with the therapist and with your child, participate in creating goals for treatment. Ideally child therapists work with parents to support their child’s healthy development and address symptoms in ways that help. After this class you will be able to:

• Recognize the nature of your role in your child’s therapy and how to effectively carry out that role including changing your beliefs and parenting approaches
• Identify ways to participate in goal setting with your child and their therapist
• Identify indicators of progress and when to consider ending therapy or changing therapists

Children develop in different ways. There are a wide range of behaviors that may be “normal” for your child. But you may be wondering if your child needs an assessment or added support from a professional. After this class you will be able to:

• Identify indicators that your child may benefit from meeting with a therapist or other kind of clinical professional
• Apply strategies to choose a therapist who is a good match for your child including specific questions to ask 
• Apply effective ways to communicate with your child about therapy
• Recognize what to expect from the therapist at the start of the process