Positive Parenting | Mr. Dad Armin Brott

Ann Gadzikowski, author of Creating a Beautiful Mess.

Topic: Essential play experiences for a joyous childhood.

Issues: Playing with blocks; turn-taking games; pretend and make believe; the joys of messes; finding and collecting; and more.

Katherine Ozment, author of Grace without God.

Topic: The search for meaning, purpose, and belonging in a secular age.

Issues: Percentage of adults who don’t identify with any organized religion is growing; are they skipping out on more than tired rituals and ancient folklore? How do non-religious people fill the need for community, more guidance, and meaning without religion?

Paul Tough, author of Helping Children Succeed.

Topic: What works to help low income kids and why.

Issues: What does growing up in poverty do to children’s mental and physical health and development? How does adversity at home affect their success in the classroom? What practical steps can parents, teachers, and policymakers take to improve their chances for a positive future.

Michele Borba, author of Unselfie,

Topic: Why empathetic kids succeed in our all-about-me world.

Issues: The hidden advantage of empathy and why it matters for children; how to develop empathy; what empathetic kids do that non-empathetic kids don’t; developing moral courage; becoming an empathetic leader

Ira Chasnoff, author of The Mystery of Risk.

Topic: Drugs, alcohol, pregnancy, and the vulnerable child.

Issues: An overview of biological and environmental risks to newborns; risks to children exposed to marijuana, alcohol, and harder drugs in utero; behavior, memory, and other problems in drug-/alcohol-exposed children; diagnosing and treating drug-/alcohol-exposed children.

Catherine Pearlman, author of Ignore It!

Topic: How selectively looking the other way can decrease behavior problems and increase parenting satisfaction.

Issues: What behaviors are appropriate to ignore and what to do when ignoring isn’t an option; use ignoring to eliminate problem behavior in just a few days; creating a reward system that actually works; use time-outs effectively so they don’t become a battle of wills; what to do when mom and dad aren’t on the same page.