ParentLife Blog

October 2011: ParentLife Everyday

Each month ParentLife pulls together a one-page document for preschool and children's leaders and teachers that highlights articles that might help families they work with. But this also is a great tool for parents!

The articles below are in our current October 2011 issue of ParentLife. Read the articles that minister to your family and pass along a copy to those who might benefit from it!

Little Sponges: Preschoolers soak everything in just like a sponge! But what are the most important things they shoudl learn? Check out these five important life skills (p. 24).

Are You a Pushover? Are there families in your church who struggle with an imbalance of family power? Does the child hold more power than the parents? Provide these families with seven practical strategies for restoring order (pp. 40-41).

Guide Toward Godliness: Raising a preteen girl is more challenging than it has ever been given today's culture. What can parents do to help guide their daughters toward godliness? Provide parents with Nancy Rue's four effective suggestions for making the most of their daughters' formative years (pp. 38-39).

A Special Need: Finding a church home can be difficult for families of children with special needs. Be sure your ministry is a welcoming, safe place for all families in all walks of life (p. 48).

Developmental Milestones: Being familiar with the developmental milestones of preschoolers helps parents set realistic goals at home and allows teachers and volunteers to teach more effectively. Provide parents with this list of milestones as their kids grow (pp. 14-15).

Learning for Life: Don't forget the school-age children in your ministry. What important life skills can parents and teachers in your ministry teach? Don't miss these five important life skills (p. 28).

Absorbing Autumn: Fall abounds with teachable moments and many of those moments can be used to help build on a child's spiritual foundation. Help parents seize these opportunities and have fun with their children at the same time with these creative ideas (pp. 34-37).

5 million: The number of kids in the United States who reported being bullied in 2010. Is your church a bully-free zone (p. 42)?

You might also enjoy printing out and sharing our blog articles directly relating to ones in the October issue: When Parents Yield Too Much Power, 5 Tips for Parenting the Two-Child Family, and Autumn Investigations.

To download a PDF of the colorful ParentLife Everyday flyer for this month, click on the link below.