Parenting | The Irish Times

Parents are much more likely to caution their daughters about the dangers of climbing a playground pole while encouraging their same aged sons to do just that.

Risky business: Encouraging (safe) risk-taking behaviour in your child

Challenge and risk-taking activities are directly linked to children’s self-esteem

Gary and Annette with their children Cora (7), Ollie (4) and baby Páidí.

Gary O’Hanlon: ‘Guys are supposed to be fine about miscarriages. But I wasn’t’

Parenting in My Shoes: The television chef on fatherhood, loss, and birth in a pandemic

The O'Donovans: Sophie (12), Robyn (10), Katie (7) and Jack (17) are being homeschooled by their mother, Lynsey, while schools are closed by Covid-19

Will special needs classes reopen? ‘There are times we find it very hard to cope’

The pandemic has weighed particularly heavily on parents of children with additional needs

Of the 40 to 60 children a year now being adopted here from overseas, they are likely to come from Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines, Poland, the US or Haiti.

Adoption ‘is for children, not for people who wish to be parents’

CEO of Adoption Authority of Ireland makes no apologies for time-consuming rigour of system

Children

Focusing on the shyness can inadvertently make a child think something might be wrong with them. Photograph: iStockphoto

How to encourage your child’s potential . . . from toddler to teen

Saying ‘don’t be shy’ or ‘has the cat got your tongue?’ can increase his anxiety

Teenagers

For teenagers, bereavement can be particularly difficult to come to terms with. Photograph: iStockphoto

Ask the expert: Our daughter is struggling since the death of a classmate

She is struggling to get a proper night’s sleep and is very anxious before going to bed

Toddlers

Sleep training requires a lot of patience and does not yield immediate results. Photograph: Thinkstock

Ask the expert: How do we get a toddler to sleep all night?

If you have a parenting query, send your question to health@irishtimes.com

Babies

Pixie McKenna: ‘In an ideal world, if you can cook something, great. It’s cheaper, it’s more convenient, you can batch-cook and, ultimately, as you go through the stages, you can all eat the same thing, which is really important.’

Pixie McKenna on weaning: ‘I hadn’t a clue’

‘Dr Pixie’s First Foods’ examines weaning and babies’ first food recipes . . . sugar included

Relationships

As one of my boys is 12 and prepubescent, I’m concerned about telling him about his dad before he has established his own sexual identity. Photograph: Thinkstock

Ask the Expert: How do I tell my sons their father is bisexual?

John Sharry helps solve your parenting problems. Send your queries to health@irishtimes.com

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