April 12th, 2017
Parent Talk
**formerly known as the Weekly Chatter
Child Abuse Prevention Month
According to the CDC , an estimated 1 in 4 children experiences some form of child abuse or neglect in their lifetime. In 2014 alone, over 700,000 American kids suffered from abuse or neglect and more than 1,500 died from it.

A recent  study  showed that parents who frequently threaten, hit and yell at their teens may be driving them toward poor academic performance, early sexual activity and delinquent behavior.



Another study showed that physical, social or emotional abuse in childhood was linked to poor reading and mathematics skills in adolescence, hampering their ability to find work and progress in the job market and lowering their odds of owning a home. 

Sometimes parents are unaware that their actions will have negative, long-term effects on their children. 

Researchers hope their findings will help bring awareness to these effects.

For more information
Distracted Driving Awareness: Protecting teen drivers
"Distracted driving is anything that takes your hands off the wheel, your eyes off the road or mind off driving." According to the CDC, each day in the US, over 8 people are killed and 1,161 injured in crashes that are reported to involve a distracted driver.


Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death for children and teens ; and drunk driving contributes to more than 1 in 4 motor vehicle fatalities for children, teens and young adults. 

Research shows nearly half of these deaths occurring at night or on weekends.  Even if youth themselves are not drinking and driving, they are more likely to be killed by adults who have been drinking and driving on weekends and evenings.



What Can Parents Do?
Parents can teach their kids and teens safe driving habits by
  • Never driving impaired
  • Always buckling up
  • Driving courteously
  • Refraining from using a cell phone or any other device
Parents should also keep young drivers off the road late at night and teach teens how to spot and avoid erratic drivers who might be drunk. 

Signs that a driver may be under the influence include
  • speed fluctuations,
  • hard braking, and
  • swerving between lanes.
As parents usually own the car and pay the insurance for teen drivers, they are especially responsible for keeping kids and teens safe on the road. 
Self-Regulation                                          
#WeeklyBlogPost
Learning self-regulation helps children to develop independence by learning to control their thoughts, emotions and even their physical bodies, as in the case of potty training and learning not to hit.

For more information on the importance of developing self-regulation for children,


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