According to renowned childrenB次元官网网址檚 psychiatrist Dr. Bruce Perry, resiliency is equal to stress plus support.
ThatB次元官网网址檚 part of what Cindy Andrew, chair of the Sooke School DistrictB次元官网网址檚 Healthy Schools Committee, hopes parents and guardians will get out of a parents education night Oct. 12 at Royal Bay secondary.
The evening is billed as Resilient and Flourishing Kids.
B次元官网网址淟ots of those typical kids-appropriate challenges are wonderful resiliency-building opportunities B次元官网网址� how do we help our kids manage through those? ThatB次元官网网址檚 really what this night is about,B次元官网网址� she said.
Andrew, who also works for the Centre for Addictions Research at the University of Victoria and the Psychology Foundation of Canada, believes that itB次元官网网址檚 healthy for children and youth to face adversity, because thatB次元官网网址檚 what gives them the ability to persevere.
B次元官网网址淭hese are skills that everybody needs B次元官网网址� kids need a lot more coping skills and the sorts of environments that we know are really good for helping kids B次元官网网址� and all of us B次元官网网址� thrive in this exciting world of ours,B次元官网网址� she said.
Kids need to be given support, Andrew said, but ultimately, B次元官网网址渟olving their problems for them doesnB次元官网网址檛 do anything. What we need to do is help our kids develop the problem solving skills so they have the capacity.B次元官网网址�
With that information in mind, itB次元官网网址檚 important for parents to avoid so-called B次元官网网址渉elicopter parentingB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� which includes being over-protective and attempting to minimize the adversity faced by children B次元官网网址� and employ a philosophy that Andrew likes to call B次元官网网址渉ummingbird parenting.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淵ou fly in when they really need you, but otherwise you back off,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淚t sounds pretty basic, and frankly it is B次元官网网址� so much of what kids need, we can help them develop it and they can learn it, but not without some attention and effort.B次元官网网址�
Christine McGregor, acting district principal of student support services for SD62, will be the primary speaker during the 90-minute session. That connection has Andrew particularly excited.
B次元官网网址淲hen we have a presenter from within our district, weB次元官网网址檙e not only helping parents think about and address the topic of the evening, but weB次元官网网址檙e also shining a light on some of the good work thatB次元官网网址檚 going on within the district,B次元官网网址� she said.
Open discussion and a question-and-answer period are also part of the evening session, which aims to build on a workshop from last fall.
The free event gets underway at 7 p.m. on Oct. 12 at Royal Bay. Interested parents are encouraged to RSVP by logging on to eventbrite.ca and searching for Resilient and Flourishing Kids. Complimentary child-minding services will be provided.
The series of parent educational opportunities will continue next month with a presentation about sex and drugs and how it relates to children and youth. That event will take place on Nov. 9 at Belmont secondary.
joel.tansey@goldstreamgazette.com
