Montessori Radmoor

Have you ever thought about parenting styles and how they work?  You may have heard of the three types of parenting styles: Authoritarian, Permissive-indulgent, and Authoritative. We will get into more detail. You may find you have characteristics of more than one parenting style or that you are a very specific style. Let’s take a look and see.

A parent who is an Authoritarian is a person who is rigid with rules. He may punish the child for bad behavior. There typically isn’t much warmth to this person’s personality. There isn’t any positive involvement between the parent and child. The child’s opinions are not considered when making decisions. The child who is parented this way is usually fearful, moody, stressed, sulky, and may have no aim.

A parent who is Permissive doesn’t enforce the rules or the rules aren’t communicated clearly. There is a lot of inconsistency happening. This parent might accept or ignore bad behavior. This parent is moderate in warmth but gives few demands or expectations to the child. A child who is raised by this kind of parent lacks self-control, are sometimes aggressive, impulsive, domineering, and noncompliant with the parents.

The Authoritative parent is warm, involved and responsive. They offer alternatives and come up with solutions. This parent will confront a disobedient child and the rules are clear and enforced. Educational standards are set, joint activities are planned, cultural events are planned as well. This parent is supportive of the child. A child who is parented this way will become self-reliant, happy, and cooperative, become purposeful, cope well with stress, and have friendly relations with others.

As you can see, we all want to strive to be an authoritative parent but it’s not always easy. So how can you prepare yourself to give your child your best self? Well, we know the three things to strive for right? Prepare ourselves Physically, Intellectually, and Emotionally. These things can be pretty hard when we are trying to walk out the door in the morning as we’re running late.

First, let’s talk about taking care of yourself. If you’re not, then it’s much harder to take care of your child. Look at your nutrition and exercise. And, remember, you’re your child’s role model. Are you eating with your child in the morning? Are you eating the same food? Don’t expect them to eat all their fruit if you’re drinking a cup of coffee and eating a muffin but you don’t have any fruit. Take time for a walk, 30 minutes of yoga or some sort of exercise a day will help you all around.

Intellectually, there is so much out there for parents. We have a small parent library right at the school. There are so many articles on-line these days. Your access to information is endless. Not to mention talking to people at school or going to a PGA meeting. You can always ask me for ideas as well. I can point you in the right direction. Use all the resources that are right at your fingertips.

Emotionally preparing yourself can be the hardest part of parenting. You may have several things going on at work or too many events happening at once. You’re trying to figure out how to get everyone to school when you have one child at home that is sick. You may be tired, and choices just can’t be an option some mornings. First of all, give yourself a break some days. Give yourself time for reflection on how mornings could go more smoothly as you drink a nice cup of tea. Meditate after the children are in bed. Remember why you wanted children and how happy you all are as a family. Give yourself 5 minutes before pick up at the end of the day to decompress. Remember that your child is absorbing everything that includes your moods. If you can make a conscious effort to take care of yourself, then the day will go much better. Our goal is to give children the possibility to grow and develop in a positive environment. That begins with us.

Sincerely,

Kristy

Image Credit: Sustainingcommunity.com

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