‘Guiding Good Choices’: A dynamic way to connect with your children
by Joan Tucker
Raising children is the most challenging job faced by all parents. There’s a lot of literature available out there, but it is hard to know what would work best and be a good fit for the family. Then, there’s the difficulty of finding the time to read it during busy and stressful days.
As a result, many parents use examples from their own experiences when raising children. Cultural and religious beliefs have an impact on child rearing as well. Along with the distractions of technology, changing expectations, daily stresses of work and home education, little time is left for parents to have meaningful conversations with their children. That’s where a program such as “Guiding Good Choices” can help.
“Guiding Good Choices” was developed after 30 years of research by J. David Hawkins, Ph.D.; and Richard F. Catalano, Ph.D., both of the University of Washington. They observed that child-rearing practices, attitudes, values and behaviors of parents greatly influence how children express themselves. Children with self-confidence and resiliency make better choices involving risky behavior such as experimenting with drugs and alcohol or participating in reckless behavior. Confident children also have the skills to say no to activities that put them at risk.
The “Guiding Good Choices” program has five sessions to help parents of children, ages 9-14, develop stronger bonds and prevent the need to interact later. They are:
• Session 1: Planning a Family Meeting
• Session 2: Developing Healthy Beliefs and Clear Standards
• Session 3: Learning Refusal Skills
• Session 4: Managing Conflict
• Session 5: Strengthening Family Bonds
These free parent workshops are sponsored by a partnership of SRSLY, St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea and the Community Mental Health Partnership of Southeast Michigan.
Currently these interactive sessions are virtual via Zoom, but when the COVID situation improves, parents could attend programs in person. To get more information, email [email protected] or call 734-593-6806.
The “Guiding Good Choices” program gives families the tools to open communication and set expectations while keeping individual family style, cultural and religious beliefs in mind. Happy and respected youths are empowered to make good choices, something we all want for our children.
