1. Prioritizing Self-Care

• To be an effective teacher for your child, it’s crucial to prioritize your own wellness. This includes ensuring you’re getting enough sleep, eating balanced meals, incorporating movement into your routine, and managing your screen time. Remember, your child will appreciate you taking care of yourself.

2. Gradual Improvements

• Start with small steps and gradually build up. For instance, you could begin by adding 30 minutes to your sleep each week, or planning two proper meals per week and gradually increasing this to one proper meal per day. Similarly, find a way to incorporate movement into your daily routine, perhaps by combining it with a fun activity with your child.

3. Managing Screen Time

• Screen time can be distracting but is often not as relaxing as we think. Screen time is stimulating, not calming. Consider taking control of your screen time by starting with a media fast (no screen time at all), and then slowly reintroducing short amounts of screen time. Also, look at the Jump Starters. Some of them might be important for you to practice before you start teaching your child.

Remember, these are not overnight changes. They require time and patience. But with consistent effort, you’ll see significant improvements in your wellness. Your wellness will reflect in your teaching. It will help you become your child's best teacher.

*Take a look at the Jump Starters. Try practicing the skills above before you start teaching your child!

1. Building Relationships

• Cultivate your relationships by scheduling regular time with your partner or a friend. Start with a monthly catch-up and gradually increase the frequency as needed.

2. Scheduled Communication

• Establish a routine for communication, such as a monthly, weekly, or daily phone call or video chat. This is your dedicated time to share what’s important to you.

3. Intentional Conversations

• Be purposeful about your relationship time. Whether it’s casual chatting, voicing frustrations, or seeking specific feedback, make sure your needs are being met.

4. Celebrating Successes

• Recognize the small, daily successes that lead to big, long-term achievements. Encourage your family and friends to help you notice and celebrate these victories.

Remember, building and maintaining relationships is a journey, not a destination. It requires ongoing effort, but the rewards are well worth it.

1. Understanding Successful Partnerships

• A successful partnership involves mutual agreement on the objectives that you and your child's other parental figures all want your child to reach. It’s not about always doing things the same way. It's not always about getting along with your child's other parent(s). It's about sharing the teaching role and having a common goal.

2. Discussing Goals

• Have open discussions about the goals and objectives you both want your child to achieve. You will each follow a different path when teaching your child. That's OK. Just make sure the path you take goes where you both want it to go. Do you both want your child sleeping better? Eating better? following household rules? Great! Now, each of you develop a path go get there.

• Once you’ve reached an agreement, communicate these goals and objectives to your child. If there’s disagreement, hold off on teaching until you find common ground.

3. Choice of Strategies

• It’s okay to have different teaching styles. What’s important is being clear about the goals and objectives, and letting your child know how each of you plans to teach. Monitor your teaching success and focus on what works. Don't always focus on what you thinkk should work- or your preferred pathway for making things work.

4. Focusing on Successes

• Train your brain to focus on successes. This takes a lot of mindful practice! it won't happen right away. Notice what works best for your child. Understand that your child’s success will boost your confidence in your role as their teacher and will ultimately lead to a successful partnership.

Remember, building a successful partnership with your child's other parents is a journey that requires patience, understanding, and mutual respect. With these strategies, you’re well on your way to creating a positive learning environment for your child.

1. Create a List

• Set aside time each day to create a list of fun activities to do with your child.

2. Engage Your Child

• Involve your child in the process of building a positive relationship by asking them to suggest fun, cost-free activities.

3. Practice having Fun Together

• Make it a habit to do fun things with your child, even on workdays. Start with short activities and gradually increase the frequency and duration.

4. Practice Noticing

• Spend time observing your child and show interest in their activities. This is called 'connection time.' Your attention to your child is the best way to be connected with your child.

5. Express your love and affection

• Learn to express your love to your child, even when they’re not behaving as expected.

6. Talk with Your Child

• Have regular conversations with your child about the fun things you’ve done or plan to do.

7. Celebrate Successes

• Notice and celebrate when your relationship is going well.

8. Use Screen Time if you need to- -and then start using it less

• Use screen time as a starting point to build relationships. Aim to transition to non-screen-based activities over time.

9. Reduce Screen Time

• Find other ways to socialize that suit your child’s age, developmental stage, and disability.

10. Socialize Without Talking

• Remember that having fun with your child doesn’t always need to involve talking.

11. Manage your Frustration

• Understand that a positive relationship can withstand frustration, but avoid trying to build a positive relationship when you’re feeling frustrated, preoccupied, or unmotivated. Work on your own needs if you're feeling too frustrated, then go back to building your relationship with your child