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Some hope their children will be like sponges soaking up the truth and wisdom imparted by their parents. However appealing this philosophy might be, it seldom seems to catch on with their children.

The mistake that Sharon and I both made is we never set any boundaries.  (Ozzy Osbourne)

The best inheritance  parents can give their children is a few minutes of their time each day.

The teenage years require a delicate balance between the young person's need to gain independence, and the parent's need to retain authority.

Children fare better when expectations on them are clear and firm.

Setting limits teaches your children valuable skills they will use the rest of their lives. One day, they will report to a job where their ability to follow rules will dictate their success.

The challenge of adolescence is to balance the right of the parents to feel they are in charge with the need of the adolescent to gain independence.

Hurt people hurt people.

Relationships matter:  change comes through forming trusting relationships. People, not programs change people.

It is what we say and do when we're angry that creates the very model our children will follow when dealing with their own frustrations.

Learn more.

Alcohol Abuse in College Age Women

The following data comes from the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse in the U.S. (similar in Canada ? ? ?)

In the 1960’s, only 7 % of American girls reported having their first alcoholic drink between the ages of 10 and 14. Today, nearly 1/4 of all American girls report beginning to drink before age 13. Over the past 50 years, the rate at which boys abuse alcohol has remained roughly constant. Over the same time period, the rate at which girls abuse alcohol has roughly quadrupled. Today, about 40% of girls in grade 9 drink alcohol, compared with about 42% grade 9 boys. More than 1 in 4 high school girls engage in binge drinking. Among college students who meet clinical criteria  for alcohol abuse, young women now slightly outnumber young men, 5 to 4. Between 1999 and 2008, the number of males arrested for driving while intoxicated (DUI) dropped by 7%; the number of females arrested for DUI rose by 35% over the same period.

Statistics like these give the phrase “gender equality” a whole new meaning. (Dr. Leonard Sax – Girls on the Edge 2010)

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Workshops

+ Behaviour Management (now available online)

This full day or 2 evening workshop will introduce you […]

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+ A Parent’s Guide to the Teenage Brain

  A teenager’s brain is not just an adult brain […]

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+ Reading Rescue

A program for children with reading problems

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+ A Guided Tour of ADHD (now available online)

This workshop will present the facts, myths, misconceptions, controversy and […]

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See more of our workshops


Contact

2720 Rath Street, Putnam, Ontario
NOL 2BO

Phone: (519) 485-4678
Fax: (519) 485-0281

Email: info@rickharper.ca

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Parents' Comments

“We are foster parents who took in a 13 year old girl (going on 18!) and she ran us through the wringer. Rick helped us learn how to set limits that made the difference.”

(G.E. – Strathroy)