Speaker Series Kicked Off October 7
Christine Carter, Ph.D. (pictured), kicked off this year's slate of Parent Education events on October with her SPEAK presentation in the Burke's Gym. Her topic? How to raise children that have grit and gratitude, especially in a high-stress environment for both parents and kids.
Parents from a broad range of local independent schools — including Cathedral, Town, MCDS and Hamlin — came to Burke's to hear the author of Raising Happiness: 10 Simple Steps for More Joyful Kids and Happier Parents share her blueprint for resilient, positive children.
That blueprint involves a lot of parents patterning behavior, whether it's saying out loud the kindnesses that someone else has shown to you or embracing a tough day as a learning experience. Carter, who has four children at home between the ages of 10 and 13, admitted that these habits can be tough to establish, but they can go a long way toward eliminating the kind of "snowplow" parenting that removes any obstacles that lie in a child's path and leads to a sense of entitlement. Entitled children grow into adults, according to Carter, that blame others whenever they make a mistake and ultimately end up unhappy.
Carter has another book, The Sweet Spot: How to Find Your Groove at Work and Home, coming out in January 2015. She works as a sociologist and happiness expert at UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center, and her blog (raisinghappiness.com) has been syndicated on websites such as the Huffington Post, PsychologyToday.com and Medium.com. Click here for more images from her appearance at Burke's.
Mark your calendars now for the next event in the Burke's Parent Speaker Series, which will take place on Wednesday, October 29 at 5:30 p.m. in the Media Room. Alison Park, a Harvard-educated English teacher and school-diversity specialist, will speak on "Stereotypes: Windows & Mirrors." Learn more about this year's full lineup on the Parent Education page.