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Articles on Parent-child relationships

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Strategies that may help reduce support for corporal punishment — as well as reduce its use and intentions to use it — include individual and group-based programs to develop positive parenting skills. (Shutterstock)

Time to abolish the Canadian law that allows adults to spank and hit children

Extensive evidence shows the harms of spanking, and 65 other countries or states worldwide have already banned it. Why has Canada not done the same by repealing Section 43 of the Criminal Code?
When sleep routines have gone haywire, there are things to keep in mind to help the whole family reset. Catherine Falls/Moment via Getty Images

Better sleep for kids starts with better sleep for parents – especially after holiday disruptions to routines

Sound sleep, for long enough every night, with consistent bed and wake-up times are critical for kids’ health. A child development expert suggests some overarching tips to help get you there.
Family traditions and being present provide children with trusted, safe, secure, loving experiences and relationships that are important for their healthy development and future self. (Shutterstock)

Give the gift of presence and love during the holidays

Parenting is difficult and there can be added pressure and stress during holidays. Creating safe, secure, loving environments and being present with your children is the greatest gift you can give.
Parents take different approaches to raising their kids. Maskot via Getty Images

Parenting styles vary across the US

In some regions of the country, mothers and fathers have different approaches than their counterparts in other regions.
If your family has decided to trick-or-treat or give out candy, you’ll want to sit down with your kids and lay some ground rules that take the pandemic into consideration. (Shutterstock)

5 tips for a safe Halloween during COVID-19 — and what to do if trick-or-treating is cancelled

Experts in child development and infectious disease help parents make informed decisions about Halloween and provide tips for communicating with children effectively.
Children may be struggling with feelings of abandonment and a loss of security in their lives. (Shutterstock)

Children’s grief in coronavirus quarantine may look like anger. Here’s how parents can respond

Grief encompasses our emotional responses to change and loss, and children’s grief might be expressed in what psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross described as the five common stages of grief.
Reading books with your child means children learn to connect reading with feelings of warmth and sharing. (Shutterstock)

Parents play a key role in fostering children’s love of reading

Early experiences sharing and developing positive connections, language and communication set the stage for home reading to start children on the path to literacy.
Parental communication can buffer against low self-esteem and poor academic achievement. (Shutterstock)

How to get kids talking about their school day

Children’s needs change as they grow and develop, so parents should attune themselves to talking to their children in age-appropriate ways that demonstrate ongoing care.
When newborns stay with their opioid-dependent mothers in hospital, they experience improved mother-infant bonding, greater chances of breastfeeding, less severe symptoms, less medication and much shorter hospital stays. (Shuterstock)

Hospitals must adapt so infants can ‘room-in’ with opioid-dependent mothers

The evidence is clear that newborn babies do better when they ‘room-in’ with their opioid-dependent mothers. So why are hospitals across Canada so slow to provide this recognized standard of care?
Migrants begin their day inside a former concert venue serving as a shelter, in Tijuana, Mexico, Dec. 2, 2018. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

The challenge of parenting in a migrant caravan

The psychological health of migrant children will be deeply impacted by their flight from gang violence, and the experience of crowded unhygienic conditions and tear gas at the U.S. border.

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