We can teach our children at a very young age to respect others’ body autonomy and space by paying attention to their body language. For example, we can make teachable moments when we point out to young children “see how Wyatt covers his face and frowns when you splash water on him? That tells us…
Read More
Did you know that anger is actually a normal human emotion? It’s no secret, we all get angry every now and then and that’s okay. It is normal to feel anger. What is not okay is trying to avoid the feeling of anger and not be able to manage or communicate it to others in…
Read More
Ever heard of the phrase “listen with your eyes and ears?” When it comes to communication, we listen with our ears for verbal cues and we listen with our eyes for nonverbal cues such as physical appearance. Communication helps us develop meaningful relationships with others but being able to better understand the other person’s nonverbal…
Read More
Stephen Covey’s famous book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, includes today’s communication technique. The Win-Win mentality is habit number four, and is also included in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens. This mentality is useful in nearly all facets of life from helping your child navigate friend conflict to negotiating at work.…
Read More
According to the Family Communication Patterns Theory, there are four different types of family communication patterns: consensual, pluralistic, protective, and laissez-faire. These patterns differ in their level of conversation and conformity so wherever your family is at on the spectrum, your family’s communication style will fall in one of the four patterns of communication. Take…
Read More
We know that communication within the family is important because it helps us express our thoughts and to strengthen our relationship with each other. There are multiple fun games and exercises for families to do together to improve their communication skills. “What If?” is one of the games families could play to improve how they…
Read More
Sometimes its hard to advocate for our children when we do not know the right questions to ask. Part of that is because we sometimes feel uncomfortable talking with the teachers about our concerns around our children’s behavioral health. However, teachers are excellent sources of information as they will help you understand your child’s classroom…
Read More
Effective communication skills not only allow us to express our needs and our feelings with others, it helps us improve our self-efficacy, empathy, and effective listening skill. Parents and caring adults are already teaching their kids communication skills and oftentimes, they are teaching kids communication skills without words. Nonverbal communication still allows us to express…
Read More
Giving gifts can be a wonderful way of practicing generosity. For many of us, gift-giving is our love language and can bring us so much holiday joy. Still, sometimes making it through our holiday shopping list can become overwhelming and burdensome. Remember, just as we are looking forward to being with the ones we love,…
Read More
Every year Positive Psychology News gives out Positive Psychology Awards for movies! If you plan to catch up on some movie watching over the holidays, these awards might provide some great discussion points. Please note OKPTA Cultivate hasn’t vetted every single movie and award justification in the list, but it is our hope that this…
Read More
OKPTA Cultivate 