Healthy ParentChild Communication

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Healthy Parent/Child Communication

• Sheri Murphy, LCSW-C, Title I Elementary School
  Therapist
• Mitchell Ginsburg, PhD, FCPS School Psychologist

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Healthy Communication

• Builds a strong two-way bridge that is crucial in
  helping your child develop a healthy personality
  and good relationships with you and others.

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Healthy Commuication helps you and your child

• Feel cared for and loved
• Believe she matters and is important to you
• Feel safe and not all alone with his worries
• Learn to tell you what she feels and needs
  directly in words
• Learn how to manage his feelings safely so that
  he does not act on feelings without thinking (or
  overreact)
• Talk to you openly in the future.
• Feel close to your child
• Know your childs needs

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A RECIPE for Good Communication

• R Reflective Listening
• E Encouragement
• C Compromise and Cooperation
• I I messages
• P Practice and Patience
• E Engagement

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Reflective Listening

• Asking questions
• Paraphrasing or restating the message to make
  sure you understand the message correctly
• Empathizing, putting yourself in the other
  persons shoes.

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Encouragement

• Children thrive on positive attention
• They want to know that you appreciate what they
  have to say
• Encouraging responses can take the form of praise.

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Cooperation Compromise

• Critical ingredient for healthy communication
• It can be difficult for a parent to avoid
  imposing their own solutions, encouraging and
  modeling compromise and cooperation will lead to
  a conversation about solutions that everyone can
  agree with.
• Children are better imitators than listeners.

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I Messages

• They key to a successful I message is that is
  informs the child of your feelings without
  insulting or blaming.
• It also lets the child know what he is doing that
  is causing trouble.
• When you hit your brother, I feel sad and
  angry.
• When you leave your backpack on the floor, I
  feel frustrated.

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Practice and Patience

• Like any skill, good communication requires
  Practice, Practice, Practice.
• Create opportunities to practice enjoying healthy
  family activities that promote individual
  development and healthy communication
• Conversation talk about your day, school,
  books, etc.
• Outings put the fun into family weekends
• Reading together spend time together without
  leaving home
• Imaginative play comes naturally to young
  children, join in and learn with them
• Art, craft, and music family drawing, making
  music out of pots and pans, etc.

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Engagement

• If someone is speaking to you, give your whole
  attention.
• STOP what you are doing.
• LOOK look your child in the eye, come down to
  their level
• LISTEN and really hear what your child is
  saying.
• Children learn by imitating so model what you
  expect from them.

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Resources

• Websites used
• http//edis.ifas.ufl.edu
• Family Nutrition A RECIPE for Good
  Communication
• www.christian-mommies.com
• Stop, Look, Listen! Steps to Better Parenting
  communication
• www.medem.com
• American Academy of Pediatrics Communication
• Principals of Parenting
• Building a Strong Bridge Between You and Your
  Children