Northern Colorado Gazette

by Vanessa Dominguez

After reading endless books on parenting, listening to advice from family members, and trying all of the methods, you may be even more confused than when you first began.

Parenting is a journey and everyone seems to have their own opinion on what you should do about this or that.

There are methods that say time-outs are okay, others that say nay, and all of that is okay.

So how do we decide how to effectively parent our children?
When you purchased your latest cell phone, how much time did you spend asking questions, researching, and price shopping? You wanted to be sure that it would have everything you need and you searched high and low to be sure it met your needs. Parenting is the same way.
It’s important to know about several methods and find out where the research came from. For example, according to the Academy of Pediatrics, watching television is not beneficial to a child’s development. However, there are studies published that refute that. So what is the correct answer?

The correct answer depends on you. What works for you and what kind of environment do you choose to raise your child in? What is important to you and your spouse? What family values are important? Once you have a solid foundation, you can choose what style of parenting works for you and  then stick to it.
Consistency is key. It is important to pick a style and stick to it. If time-outs are used one week and not the next, you will confuse your toddler.

Many people will have lots of advice and suggestions. Thank them politely and use what you think is appropriate and forget the rest. Some may be close family members. It’s ok if you choose a different style that others may not be familiar with.

Parenting is different for everyone and learning styles are different as well. Children may require different parenting methods and learning styles as they grow and develop.

Remember, don’t take advice or criticism personally, most of the time, people are just trying to help. Their intentions are good, even if their advice may not be.

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Tags: Academy, Academy Pediatrics, cell, child, development, environment, help, opinion, Pediatrics, rest, spouse, television, time, use, week