By Corvo Rohwer, Puyallup Tribal News
Parents and local family members made sure to bring their books to the sixth Parent Engagement Night on June 18, where the community gathered at the Little Wild Wolves Youth Center to continue exploring parental study material and share in group forum over dinner.
This session largely focused on chapters 2 through 4 of “The Whole Brain-Child” by Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson. Wrap Around Program Director Ashley Howard said that more than 70 books had been shared with the community since starting the parent engagement book club, with more on the way for anybody recently joining. These chapters of the book delved into how children use their emotional brain versus their logical brain, and how parents can help their child during stressful or painful experiences.
“From 0 to 3 years old your children are completely right brain,” Howard said. “That’s why in toddlers, there’s an onset of the ‘why.’ Why is the sky blue and why do ducks quack? All of the why questions.”
Howard continued to explain how to gain a better understanding of how children think and discussed strategies to build respectful relationships between the parent and child. The discussion of the book’s materials continued as she encouraged parents to discuss the issues they face with their own children with the group. This opened up further conversation between attendees about problem solving various situations involving parenting struggles while integrating lessons from the learning materials about finding a way to connect with children.
“When it comes to kids, the focus is on connection first,” Howard said. “If you connect with your kid first, you will be able to redirect them. … It’s a good thing to try to practice.”
The Wrap Around Program will continue to host parent engagement nights on a monthly basis. The next session will take place July 25 at the Youth Center. For more information, look out for an event flyer on social media or check the calendar on the Tribal website at www.puyalluptribe-nsn.gov.
