Substack · by Ana Lorena Fabrega · 27 May 2022
Fab Fridays 99: Your Child's Developing Brain
What the article says, in short
Nine-year-old Bella didn’t want to flush the toilet after seeing it overflow, until her dad had her tell the story.
What looks like defiance in kids is usually them struggling to process situations.
Rather than issuing demands, parents should connect with their right-brain emotions first, then redirect with logic.
Siegel and Bryson say the upstairs brain is like a muscle that grows stronger with use and weakens when ignored.
Read the full article ↗
Ideas will appear here.
Stories from the book
How kids' brains work
What to say in hard moments
Growing thoughtful kids
Moment
Nine-year-old Bella wouldn't flush the toilet after she saw it overflow once. Her dad sat her down and asked her to tell the story, and as she went through the details, her fear went away.
From the “2. Name it to tame it” section
Finding
When our kids push back, it can look like defiance. Usually they are struggling to process the situation, because the parts of their brain haven't learned to work together yet.
From the “5 tactics to nurture your child's developing brain” section
Rule
When a child says something unreasonable, I skip the demands. I connect with the feeling first, then redirect with logic, such as offering to leave a note tonight and talk homework tomorrow.
From the “1. Connect and redirect” section
Finding
Siegel and Bryson describe the upstairs brain as a muscle. Used often, it gets stronger and works better. Ignored, it loses some of its power.
From the “4. Use it or lose it” section
Pennywurth found 8 more ideas in the same article.
These are examples. Ana Lorena Fabrega didn't write or approve them.
Pennywurth