After being questioned by a parent about how sports affects children, Griffin examined the impact of sports on children and reflected upon his own experiences with sports. What effect does sports have on work habits, social skills, confidence, independence, and aspirations? Does a sports experience provide the foundation for achievement in school and later life? Is competition good or harmful? What about the effects of sports involvement on girls? What are the characteristics of good athletes? How can parents help their children be successful in sports?

Griffin shares with parents and other readers his investigations of the published research pertaining to these questions and offers his own experiences and analyses. He asserts that sports is best assessed as it relates to the central issues children and adolescents confront while growing up--the agenda of the childhood, as he calls it. Griffin's explorations lead him to an examination of schools, professional sports, race and class, and the popular media as they affect children's interest and involvement in sports. He also investigates the phenomena of achievement (not just in sports) and good parenting.

Myths and Lies About Dads: How They Hurt Us All is a groundbreaking book that destroys more than 100 of the most damaging beliefs about fathers. Using the most recent research, this pioneering work exposes these baseless beliefs and the toll they take on children's relationships with their fathers, parents' relationships with one another, and the physical and mental health of fathers and mothers. Tackling a wide range of topics from custody laws, to children's toys, to the sexist behavior of counselors, pediatricians, and lawyers, Dr Linda Nielsen describes in vivid detail how these myths are linked to many of our most pressing issues: Creating more gender equity in childcare and housework Reducing child abuse, post-partum depression, and fathers' suicide rates Expanding mothers' and fathers' options at home and at work Reducing children's academic, behavioral, and emotional problems Lessening the pressures of parenting for both parents Changing sexist policies and practices that hurt parents and children Improving the economic situations for parents and their children The book is not only a wake-up call for parents but also for students and professionals in medicine and family law, social work, child development, education, and in the publishing, advertising, media, and entertainment industries. Above all, the book empowers parents to free themselves from the myths and lies about fathers that bind them.

Go the F**k to Sleep is a bedtime book for parents who live in the real world, where a few snoozing kitties and cutesy rhymes don't always send a toddler sailing off to dreamland.

Profane, affectionate and refreshingly honest, it captures the familiar and unspoken tribulations of putting your child to bed for the night.

Colourfully illustrated and hilariously funny, this is a breath of fresh air for parents new, old and expectant*.

(*You should probably not read this to your children.)

Prayer can be your greatest asset and source of wisdom in raising teenagers in today's world. Now expanded, this book features updated content on issues like pornography, addiction, self-harm, anxiety, rebellion, technology use, dealing with disappointment, and more. It's never been tougher to be a teen--or the parent of one. Thankfully, from your teen's first date to the next time they borrow the car keys, you can take your concerns to God through prayer. Drawing on the power of God's Word, this updated and expanded edition of Praying the Scriptures for Your Teens equips you to pray about the difficult issues your teen may face: Relationship challenges Doubts about their faith Depression Rejection Sexual purity Substance abuse Eating disorders . . . and much more This book also guides you in praying about everything from your teen's character and safety to the purposes and plans that God has for his or her future. Filled with engaging illustrations, biblical insights, and compelling prayer principles, Praying the Scriptures for Your Teens shows how to make the Bible your source for prayers that can powerfully influence your teen's life. With a grace-filled approach and a warm, personal style, author Jodie Berndt encourages you that there is not a need your teen will face that God has not already thought of, and provided for, in his Word--and that, no matter how far away our kids may be, they are never out of his reach.

In the spirit of Wendy Mogel's The Blessing of a Skinned Knee and Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman's Nurture Shock, New York Times "Your Money" columnist Ron Lieber delivers a taboo-shattering manifesto that explains how talking openly to children about money can help parents raise modest, patient, grounded young adults who are financially wise beyond their years. For Ron Lieber, a personal finance columnist and father, good parenting means talking about money with our kids. Children are hyper-aware of money, and they have scores of questions about its nuances. But when parents shy away from the topic, they lose a tremendous opportunity-not just to model the basic financial behaviors that are increasingly important for young adults but also to imprint lessons about what the family truly values. Written in a warm, accessible voice, grounded in real-world experience and stories from families with a range of incomes, The Opposite of Spoiled is both a practical guidebook and a values-based philosophy. The foundation of the book is a detailed blueprint for the best ways to handle the basics: the tooth fairy, allowance, chores, charity, saving, birthdays, holidays, cell phones, checking accounts, clothing, cars, part-time jobs, and college tuition. It identifies a set of traits and virtues that embody the opposite of spoiled, and shares how to embrace the topic of money to help parents raise kids who are more generous and less materialistic. But The Opposite of Spoiled is also a promise to our kids that we will make them better with money than we are. It is for all of the parents who know that honest conversations about money with their curious children can help them become more patient and prudent, but who don't know how and when to start.

Camping in the garden, riding bikes through the woods, climbing trees, collecting bugs, picking wildflowers, running through piles of autumn leaves... These are the things childhood memories are made of. But for a whole generation of today's children the pleasures of a free-range childhood are missing, and their indoor habits contribute to epidemic obesity, attention-deficit disorder, isolation and childhood depression. This timely book shows how our children have become increasingly alienated and distanced from nature, why this matters and how we can make a difference. Last Child in the Woods is a clarion call, brilliantly written, compelling and irresistibly persuasive - a book that will change minds and lives.

For more than 40 years, mothers have depended on the wisdom and warmth of Nursing Your Baby. Now authors Karen Pryor and her daughter Gale Pryor have revised and updated their classic guide for today's generation of women. New information includes: Up-to-date studies on health benefits for breastfed infants and breastfeeding mothers Tips for getting the best start on breastfeeding during the first hours, weeks, and months after birth Breastfeeding advice for working mothers Legal rights as a nursing mother Choosing and using a breast pump How fathers and families can support new nursing mothers

With its unique blend of support, science, and research, this classic guide will continue to encourage mothers to nurse their babies as long as they both desire.

It might be said that adolescence as a process occurs because of a conflict of expectation between developing individuals and the society in which they live. Its onset can be defined by arrival of puberty but its termination is much harder to objectively define. This is a book that seeks to help those going through the process of mid-adolescence either from the point of view of the adolescent or their families. It attends to the serious strains that may have to be borne if the picture portrayed is to have any realism. Examined are many of the issues that adolescents may face including: their emotional and intellectual development; variation in physiological development and what this can mean to them; the importance of the peer group; the emergence of disturbed mental behavior; the frequency of eating disorders; self-harming; and suicide.The You and Your Child Series is aimed especially at parents but this book will also appeal to adolescents and those working with this group.

While children figure prominently in religious traditions, few books have directly explored the complex relationships between children and religion. This is the first book to examine the theme of children in major religions of the world. Each of six chapters, edited by world-class scholars, focuses on one religious tradition and includes an introduction and a selection of primary texts ranging from legal to liturgical and from the ancient to the contemporary. Through both the scholarly introductions and the primary sources, this comprehensive volume addresses a range of topics, from the sanctity of birth to a child's relationship to evil, showing that issues regarding children are central to understanding world religions and raising significant questions about our own conceptions of children today. The religions discussed in this book include: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and, Confucianism.

Adolescence! Just the word can cause us to both cringe and chuckle whether it is remembering our own rites of passage or dealing with the wonderful, weird and often totally exasperating sons, daughters, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, neighbors, siblings, students or just the kid behind us in line.This book is based on quotes from those same youngsters as they describe their fears, frustrations and dreams. You may be surprised to read that a thirteen-year-old boy would sometimes hug his parents' pillow when they are not at home or that a pre-teen wakes up and "breathes in the new day."As you read the thoughts of these young people, you will be presented with an opportunity to recall how you felt at that age in a variety of situations and to consider how those feelings may affect you today.It doesn't matter how or why this book came into your hands, you will never think of adolescents the same. As you reflect on the metamorphosis from child to young adult that we all go through, you will be reminded of the miracle that we do survive with a little love, patience and understanding from the people we meet on our journey.

Many parents struggle with finding effective ways to manage their children's behaviour. Can you discipline without punishing? How do you set limits while maintaining closeness and trust? Lou Harvey-Zahra, an experienced parenting coach and teacher, has developed a method that really works: creative discipline. Offering new perspectives on children's so-called 'bad behaviour', she helps parents solve immediate problems while fostering positive, lifelong family connections. This book is full of ideas for overcoming everyday issues like fussy eating, bedtime struggles and sibling squabbles. It also offers inspiration for addressing larger concerns, such as lying, anger and bereavement. With numerous examples, real-life stories and commonly asked questions, this is an encouraging, helpful guide for parenting children from toddler to twelve years old from the author of the bestselling Happy Child, Happy Home.