Dear Parents and Carers,
I am sure we all agree that as parents, we have the primary responsibility to morally educate our children; however, communities must actively support families if moral education is to be effective. As a mother, educator and the director of Minding Manners International, I sincerely thank you for allowing us to be a part of your ongoing efforts and dedication.
If you would like to receive quarterly Life Skills and Character Education information, articles and tips on raising polite, culturally aware and well-balanced children, building their self-esteem, communication and etiquette issues in general, then sign up now to receive our Newsletter by clicking here. We would also be delighted to communicate with you on our Facebook page (the link is located in the footer of this page.)
It is now my pleasure to invite you to browse and click on the links below for Web Links and Book suggestions regarding various developmental topics for children, teens, young adults and the parents or carers raising them. Additional recommendations are made in the Newsletter and on Facebook.
With best wishes,
Tamiko Brown-Zablith
N.B. If you would like to give a child the gift of increased coinfidence, good manners and strong life-skills through a course in London, please visit our Youth Etiquette page by clicking here.
Key:
Ages 4 – 7 ▲K
Ages 8 –12 ▲C
Ages 13 – 17 ▲A
Ages 18 – 22 ▲Y
WEB LINKS
▲K▲C▲A http://www.bu.edu/education/caec/files/10tips.htm
Ten tips for raising children of character.
▲K▲C http://www.bu.edu/education/caec/files/onthehome.htm
On the Homefront, a focus on Fatherhood.
▲A http://www.ceinfo.unh.edu/Family/Parent/PARADOL.htm
Learn tips to keep your children safe, happy, and healthy.
▲K▲C http://www.ceinfo.unh.edu/Family/Parent/PARSAC.htm
FAQs regarding “Parenting the School Age Child”.
▲K▲C▲A http://www.ed.gov/pubs/parents/internet/tips.html
Tips for ensuring that your children have safe, productive, and enjoyable experiences on the Internet.
▲K▲C▲A ▲Y http://www.emilypost.com
The Emily Post Institute “The” reference in etiquette and manners.
▲K▲C▲A http://www.mediafamily.org/facts/tips_tametube.shtml
12 Tips for taming the television.
▲K▲C▲A http://www.mediafamily.org/facts/tips_surfsafe.shtml
Safety tips for surfing the Web.
▲K▲C http://www.mediafamily.org/facts/facts_childadv.shtml
Fact sheet concerning children and advertising.
▲K▲C▲A http://www.mediafamily.org/facts/facts_tveffect.shtml
Televisions effect on reading and academic achievement.
▲K▲C▲A http://www.mediafamily.org/facts/facts_internet.shtml
Internet Filters: Making web surfing safer for children.
▲C▲A http://www.mediafamily.org/facts/facts_music.shtml
Fact sheet concerning music and children.
▲K▲C▲A http://www.mediafamily.org/facts/facts_internetads.shtml
Fact sheet concerning Internet advertising and children.
▲K▲C▲A http://www.cfw.tufts.edu
Child & Family Web Guide. A directory of Web sites that contain credible research based information about child development.
▲K▲C▲A http://www.dadsanddaughters.org
Tools to help fathers inspire, support and understand their daughters.
▲C▲A http://www.freevibe.com
Drug education & prevention information, message boards, games, and celebrity news. Goal: to provide positive peer reinforcement and highlight the benefits of a drug-free lifestyle.
▲K▲C▲A http://www.casel.org/downloads/Packet%20final%2010-20-03.pdf
Social & Emotional Learning: 10 things you can do at home & at school, tips & books for parents.
▲K▲C http://www.mediafamily.org/facts/facts_effect.shtml
Effects of video game playing on children. Tips and resources and what to look for when choosing a game.
▲A http://parentingteens.about.com/cs/moneymanagement/a/teens_money.htm
Teaching your teens about money management.
▲K▲C http://www.playkidsgames.com
Check out math, alphabet, memory, problem solving, vocabulary and logic games designed for younger children and their parents.
▲K▲C http://www.pbs.org/parents
Chock full of educational tips, games and articles for parents and children.
▲K▲C▲A http://www.bu.edu/education/caec/files/forstudents.htm
Excellent book recommendations for children of every age group.
BOOKS
▲K Mind Your Manners Ben Bunny by Mavis Smith
Children will enjoy lifting each colorful flap to see Ben Bunny and his friends change from dining room disasters into perfect gentlemen.
▲C The Guide to Good Manners for Kids by Peggy Post & Cindy Post Senning, Ed.D.
A hands-on look at how manners affect your everyday life. Advice for why manners matter, how to handle tricky situations, planning parties, getting along with your family and friends.
▲Y The Etiquette Advantage in Business: Personal Skills for Professional Success
by Peggy Post and Peter Post
Because corporate cultures run a wide gamut, this book provides advice and guidelines for handling a variety of business situations with grace and dignity.
▲K▲C▲A Building Moral Intelligence: The Seven Essential Virtues that Teach Kids to Do the Right Thing by Michele Borba
Designed as a guide for parents and caregivers, the book describes an epidemic deficiency in the moral development and outlines seven virtues to be engendered in children.
▲A The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Sean Covey
Humorous, real-life stories of teens who have overcome obstacles to succeed, and step-by-step guides.
▲K▲C Teaching Kids to Care & Cooperate: 50 Easy Writing, Discussion & Art Activities That Help Develop Self-Esteem, Responsibility & Respect for Others by Kathy Pike
Like most solid life skills, the activities and ideas this book presents are timeless and ageless.
▲Y Essential Manners for Men by Peter Post
Quick, sensible and strategic advice. Post gives men a wake up call about the effects of their behavior, and provides some simple etiquette guidelines to smooth the way.
▲K▲C A Call to Character: A Family Treasury of Stories, Poems, Plays, Proverbs, and Fables to Guide the Development of Values for You and Your Children by Colin Greer
A 450-page collection of 217 stories, fables, and poems using the best of children's literature. The collection is rich and varied.
▲C From Boys to Men: All About Adolescence and You by Michael Gurian
Practical advice for preteens on how to cope with the emotional and physical changes that typically accompany adolescence.
▲K The Ant Bully by John Nickle
An enjoyable lesson about why it's best to do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
▲C How to Handle Bullies, Teasers and Other Meanies: A Book That Takes the Nuisance Out of Name Calling and Other Nonsense by Kate Cohen-Posey
Fun ideas for your child to no longer be somebody's victim or feel terrible and to understand to not act like a bully nor tease to protect themselves.
▲Y Emily Post's Guide to Business Etiquette by Peggy Post
Includes Advice on: Interviewing, Gender Roles in the Workplace and Conducting Meetings. Available on audio cassette.
▲K▲C The Educated Child: A Parent’s Guide from Preschool Through Eighth Grade by William Bennett
A traditional, back-to-basics resource for parents. It is a tome to page through and return to as the years go by, with chapters divided by subjects and grade levels.
▲K▲C▲A The Gift of Good Manners by Peggy Post & Cindy Post Senning, Ed.D
Provides parents and caregivers a roadmap for raising polite children by teaching manners to children by developmental age.
▲K It's a Spoon, Not a Shovel by Caralyn Buehner
A comical etiquette book with seek-and-find possibilities that will surely tickle juniors sloths while turning them into the very models of good manners.
▲A Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls by Mary Pipher
Alarming tales of a generation swamped by pain. Includes some prescriptions for changing society and helping girls resist.
▲K▲C Beetle Boy by Lawrence David
This book conveys important ideas about facing disappointment and how important love and recognition are. For ages 6+.
▲K▲C To Teach Nutrition to Kids: An Integrated, Creative Approach to Nutrition Education for Children Ages 6-10 by Connie L. Evers
A genuine “resource”. Deals with nutrition in school and at home and offers plenty of hands-on activities to help children learn about eating healthful.
▲C The Race Against Junk Food by Anthony Buono
The SNAK Posse (Super Nutritionally Active Kids) teaches kids to eat right and stay fit.
▲K▲C▲A▲Y Emily Post’s Etiquette, 17th Edition by Peggy Post
Deals with rudeness, netiquette, new wedding trends, raising polite children, family harmony and more. Real-life questions and answers, tip sheets and lists included.
▲K▲C▲A Teach Your Children Well: A Parent's Guide to Encouraging Character and Integrity by Madelyn Swift
Answers some of the basic questions we have as parents for our children. How can we help our children to develop the skills and character they need? What should our role be?
▲K▲C▲A Books That Build Character: A Guide to Teaching Your Child Moral Values Through Stories by William Kilpatrick
A family guide to classic novels, contemporary fiction, myths and legends, science fiction and fantasy, folktales, Bible stories, picture books, biographies, holiday stories, and many other books that celebrate virtues and values.
▲K▲C▲A Raising Good Children: From Birth to the Teenage Years by Thomas Lickona
A celebrated guide to teaching children values, respect, and responsibility.
▲K▲C Saving Childhood: How to Protect Your Children from the National Assault on Innocence by Michael Medved
Offers parents and grandparents practical strategies to cope with a society that seems perversely determined to frighten and corrupt its young.
▲K▲C▲A The Wonder of Boys: What Parents, Mentors, and Educators Can Do to Shape Boys into Exceptional Men by Michael Gurian
Offers a sweeping look at what makes boys and men act the way they do. A boy needs a tribe, says Gurian, and not one but three families are required to help him become a healthy man.
▲K▲C▲A Dads and Daughters by Joe Kelly
Solution-oriented, this valuable book gives father’s detailed advice to help them cultivate stronger, healthier relationships with their growing daughters.
▲K▲C Bullies and Victims: Helping Your Child Survive the Schoolyard Battlefield by Suellen Fried
Examines when harmless teasing crosses the line to become abuse. Looks at physical, verbal, emotional, and sexual abuse among peers, with key ideas clarified by real-life examples.
▲K▲C What to do When Children are Mean to Your Child by Elin McCoy
With the advice of parents and children, empowers parents to help their kids solve the "bully" problem.
NB: The above selections have been made based on some, but not all, of their content. Minding Manners International does not make endorsements, nor accept responsibility for any of the information contained within.
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