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Do I need all this parenting advice?

Crazy world - but at what cost?

Becoming a parent can be 'a shock to the system' and is probably one of the most important jobs in life. Do we expect too much of our children? Gone are the days when the only weekly activity was Sunday school, Brownies or swimming lessons. Nowadays, we can take advantage of the raft of available activities - gymnastics, dancing, judo, football, music lessons.., the list goes on. Life seems to be constant rush of activity for many of us always afraid that our children may be missing out & keeping up with Jones'. In expecting too much and doing things the 'right way', are we taking away the opportunities to encourage our children's creative thinking? Have we eroded our children's confidence to trust their own instincts?

What's all the fuss these days

Our parents didn’t need any help or have access to the reams of advice and guidance on effective parenting, yet our generation has survived. There is clearly a demand for support for parents such as books and TV programmes like Supernanny, Nanny 911, and The House of Tiny Tearaways etc. because life today is different. The traditional family unit has changed - many families have two working parents, have moved away from supporting relatives, there is divorce and separation, all of which can leave parents feeling isolated and unsure where to look for the right support. What is the right kind of support? Surely any parenting guidance needs to be positive and reinforce our instinctive parenting skills rather than undermining and eroding confidence?

The Media

Hardly a week passes without the latest initiative to improve our youth of today. We‘re constantly told what we should be doing to prepare our children for life. But where do parents get the essential parenting skills training to be expert parents, child psychologists, motivational leaders, life gurus or amazing communicators? Do we, as parents, have all the skills? What responsibility do schools have? Where are the effective parenting skills courses - are we expected to be amazing life coaches overnight just because we have children? Are our own life skills polished and are we fantastic role models? Which parenting websites are any good and where do you find all the advice and guidance about discipline for children?

Skills for life

This is what BUDDI 4Kids is all about, helping us to nurture and develop some fundamental skills to make sure our children know how to handle difficult situations as they happen rather than running scared. The more intrinsically they develop the skills for life at a young age, the easier they will find it to overcome issues that they will inevitably face as they grow.

BUDDI 4Kids focuses on the four of these key skills encompassing communication, behaviour, confidence and organisation; as important as learning your ABC. With some attention they can be improved and it is never too late to start! In fact the earlier you do this the better. For example if they have an in built 'can do' attitude from an early age by the time they are 7 or 8 doing SATS tests at school, wanting to join a new club, make new friends…they take it all in their stride!!

BUDDI 4Kids is colour coded throughout to help you develop these core skills for life showing ideas and techniques in:

If you wish to focus on particular life skills with your children you simply work through the cards of those colours.