Absolutely Must Reads For Parents - Helping our children to cope with upsetting situations

No matter how hard we try, our children will always face situations in their lives where they will feel let down or hurt by those around them.  Friendships are vital parts of being a human being, they often help to define who we are.  Sometimes these friendships are not helpful.  We've all heard of mean girl behaviour, it also happens to a small degree between boys.  When relationships become rough and there is a struggle for power, or behaviour happens that bites into their self-esteem, children need to be resilient enough to cope, to walk away if need be and to build new relationships.  This can be hard, but as parents we play an important role in helping them to do this.

No matter how good a school is, there will always be things that happen that cause children upset.  KiVa is a fantastic programme, but it deals with bullying.  Often mean behaviour features a power struggle, where friendships are used as a weapon, the best way to solve these problems is to work behind the scenes to help your child recognise it, deal with it, and not to use this behaviour themselves.

Hopefully these articles can help you deal with these incidents in an appropriate way, that helps children and does not exacerbate the situation...wellbeing is crucial and as adults it is our role to help, not to make the situation worse or make 'monsters out of molehills.'

Really recommend this read - how to deal with mean girl behaviour, from a parent's perspective.

Boys and their frenemies, what every parent should know

Ten ways to prevent relational aggression in your child (mean girl behaviour)

Nine things to tell your daughter about mean girls - also applies to boys!

Ways to deal with relational aggression - (mean girl behaviour)

Helping girls deal with bullying and mean behaviour.


This is the most amazing website!

Encouraging resilience.

Helping with negative self-talk

Anxiety - how to turn avoidance behaviour into brave behaviour.

The importance of physical movement

When children lie - and they all do at some stage

Age by age guide of what to expect from kids and teens and how to support them.

Teaching kids and teens to have relationships in the real world, not the digital world.

Dealing with school anxiety

Empowering children to deal with school anxiety

Building emotional intelligence - dealing with sadness, loss and grief

Kind kids are cool kids!