We’ve gathered our all-time favorite parenting tips from our board of advisors in one outstanding article that will have a profound effect on your whole family.
There are no perfect parents, but there are plenty of things you can do that will make you a fantastic one. Throughout the year, our board of advisors—a brain trust of the best pediatric doctors, developmental experts, and educators in the country—shares the latest thinking about raising happy and healthy kids.
Now we’ve gathered our all-time favorite nuggets of advice in one place. Broadly speaking, this is what the experts say about how to be a good parent:
Set limits
Spend quality time with your kids
Be a good role model
Praise your kids
Trust yourself
Teach your kids social skills
Teach gratitude
Make meal time family time
Say “I love you”
Encourage physical activity
Keep up with your kids’ routine health care
Read on to learn more about what this looks like in practice and how to put these expert tips to good use.
Set Smart Limits
Take charge. Children crave limits, which help them understand and manage an often confusing world. Show your love by setting boundaries so your kids can explore and discover their passions safely.
Don’t clip your child’s wings. Your toddler’s mission in life is to gain independence. So when they’re developmentally capable of putting their toys away, clearing their plate from the table, and dressing themselves, let them. Giving a child responsibility is good for their self-esteem (and your sanity!).
Don’t try to fix everything. Give young kids a chance to find their own solutions. When you lovingly acknowledge a child’s minor frustrations without immediately rushing in to save them, you teach them self-reliance and resilience.
Remember that discipline is not punishment. Enforcing limits is really about teaching kids how to behave in the world and helping them to become competent, caring, and in control.
Pick your battles. Kids can’t absorb too many rules without turning off and tuning out. Forget arguing about little stuff like fashion choices and occasional potty language. Focus on the things that really matter like no hitting, rude talk, or lying.
Create Your Own Quality Time
Play with your children. Let them choose the activity, and don’t worry about rules. Just go with the flow and have fun. That’s the name of the game.
Read books together every day. Get started when they’re a newborn; babies love listening to the sound of their parents’ voices. Cuddling up with your child and a book is a great bonding experience that will set them up for a lifetime of reading.
