What is Normal?   Adults often have unrealistic expectations for children’s behavior and may not understand what is going on when they misbehave.  Mountain Strong Families workshops cover the latest in neuroscience research to help us understand how children’s brains develop and how this impacts their emotions, social skills, and behavior.   

 Nurturing Ourselves.  Parents learn nurturing approaches to reducing their own stress and anger while parenting.  It is harder to be empathetic to our children’s big emotions and misbehavior when we are exhausted, hurried, or reactionary.  Learning how to self- reflect and do selfcare supports our loving relationship with our children.

  Positive Parenting Skills 101.  Parents learn how to connect deeply with their child, create routines and set limits, use positive encouragement & regular affirmations, and coach their child through big emotions and social skill-building, as well as coaching children how to effectively problem-solve conflicts, get their needs met, and respond compassionately to others.  The kind of discipline that develops whole human beings looks very different from what many of us grew up experiencing.   

 Improved Communication and Conflict Resolution.  When we learn how to express and assert ourselves nonviolently, when we learn specific skills for listening empathetically, and when we learn the steps to resolving conflicts and restoring relationships after there has been a tense rupture, we are teaching the social skills that will serve our children for a lifetime.

Finding Our Village. Parenting is hard work.  We don’t parent well in isolation.  Mountain Strong Families monthly gatherings are a great chance to connect with other local parents ~ to hear each other’s similar stories and find common ways to raise healthy children together.

Mountain Strong Families is facilitated by our Parenting Educator and Ann Sherman, with occasional guest presenters

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