Parenting Children Ages 2 - 6: Introduction

I’m super excited to share a series of videos and tips for parents with kiddos ages 2-6.

So this “Parenting Tips for Kids 2-6” series comes from some amazing resources developed by one of my all-time heroes and parenting scholars, and one of my best friends, Dr. Wally Goddard, a retired professor and family life extension specialist who produced award-winning parenting and marriage resources at the University of Arkansas and Auburn University. His family life books and hand outs are some of the very best in the world, in my opinion.

So I’ll be summarizing some resources he developed with the University of Arkansas Extension, called, “See the World Through My Eyes.” And I’ll do this in several short videos. So Dr. Wally basically took a look at the most frustratingand stressful experiences for parents, who have children between the ages of 2 and 6.And he wrote about 20 short handouts, but he wrote these from the child’s perspective, so they’re from the child’s voice. And I’ve never seen anyone else create anything close to this!

So I’ll share a link to this resource you can print out for free, or order online for $5.

https://www.uaex.edu/life-skills-wellness/personal-family-well-being/parenting/world-through-my-eyes.aspx

Okay, so if you are a parent, you get it. Children bring some of life’s greatest joys, but also all kinds of challenges and frustrations. Sometimes it seems like they are trying to make us crazy, but they aren’t. They’re just trying to figure out this world and how to grow up in it.

As parents, most of the time, we do things because they make sense to us. Such as waking up in the morning at a certain time, exercising, paying bills, solving problems and so on. We understand WHY we do things, and in our heads, we have good reasons for doing them.

And children are much the same. They do things for reasons that make sense to them, even when we don’t understand what in the world were they thinking!?Their goal is to get their wants and needs met, and they often don’t think about the consequences. They just do it! And when they’re young, it’s tough for them to communicate with words the things they want or need.

In many ways, children 2-6 are similar, but they are also individual and unique. If you have more than one child, you totally get it. You may wonder sometimes, “how are you so different from your brother, or sister!?” So it takes patience and time to figure out each child. And just when you think you have figured them out...you have another one, or that child changes on you! Wait, what!?

If you remember back to when your child was born, all they did was eat, sleep, cry, and fill their diaper, right!? During these first years of life their brains are growing like crazy! Like one million neural connections in their brains per second! They learn new things like smiling, crawling, walking, talking (and then later comes talking back), playing, sharing—and grabbing, helping, spilling, hugging, and so much more! There is SOO much to learn!

So this series of videos is all about trying to see the world from your child’s eyes, remembering that they do things for reasons that make sense to them. The goal is to help you through some of the most common challenges you’ll face when your children are between the ages of 2-6. It’s tough, it really is. And as we strive to be patient and kind, you’ll learn and grow together!

So enjoy this parenting journey and this series of videos, and I hope they’ll give you some tips to better understand them and love them even more.

Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss any of this series or all the other videos I’m doing on relationships, parenting, and personal well-being!