The following web sites are recommended by OTThrive staff members as useful online resources for parents and caregivers:
Parenting.com is the site affiliated with Parents Magazine. Parenting.com covers virtually every topic related to parenting, from popular baby names to potty training to planning a road trip with kids to saving for college. We like that this site design incorporates lots of white space and is easy on the eyes. They offer a wide variety of information and ideas we need throughout the week—healthy lunch menus, business ideas for moms, and how to plan a birthday party, to name a few.
Foundational Learning is a fabulous blog filled with purposeful activities to enhance cognitive, physical, social and emotional development. The blogger, Stacey Benge, M.S., posts book and toy recommendations, techniques for purposeful play, perspectives on current events, and lots advice for raising adjusted, well-developed children. Stacey emphasizes attunement to developmental milestones as the way to go when planning activities and choosing books or toys. We love that the blog makes for easy reading but doesn’t talk down to parents.
Though not specifically for parents, Brene Brown‘s site offers wisdome from this social worker-researcher, who also happens to be a best-selling author and blogger. Brene’s work focuses on the complex elements of vulnerability, courage, and shame. It does sound a bit heavy, but Brene’s style is warm and inviting. Her books as well as her blog, Ordinary Courage, are highly accessible, even humorous. She focuses on helping others, build inner strength, resilience, and self-respect. And which parent can’t use a boost in inner strength, resilience, and self-respect?
The Children’s Success Foundation is an organization founded by Howard Glasser that focuses on advancing the work of a parenting method called the Nurtured Heart Approach. The Nurtured Heart Approach (NHA) is based on building healthy relationships and helping children recognize their innate greatness. NHA is a method of guiding children’s intense behaviors in ways that recognize children for who they are and what they are capable of, not for their misbehavior as is so common with traditional discipline. Thrive! recommends the NHA program. Books, CDs, and DVDs are available for purchase on the Foundation’s site.
Photo Credit: nuttakit
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