welcome image

Many clinicians find it easier to tell parents their child has a brain-based disorder than suggest parenting changes. Jennifer Harris (psychiatrist)

Don't wait for him to turn 10 before you reveal that you are not in fact the hired help whose job it is to clean up after him.

Removing a child from a traumatic environment does not remove the trauma from the child's memory.

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 do not develop on their own - they only develop within relationships.

Children mimic well. They catch what they see better than they follow what they hear.

Parenting style matters - a lot!

There has been an explosion in the prescribing of medication for very young children, particularly preschool and kindergarten boys (Juli Zito , Univ. of Maryland)

"Moody" and "unpredictable" are adjectives parents will often use when referring to their teenagers.

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

Learn more.

Meeting with Concerned Parents in Toronto

I recently had an invitation to visit a church community north of Toronto to share some ideas with a small group of parents who are concerned about choices their teenagers are making. I outlined the 5 conventional approaches to dealing with these kinds of issues (medical, biochemical. counselling, skills acquisition, behavioural) and explained the strengths and weaknesses of each. It is probable in each one of these families that the best approach would be to combine several of them but no matter how you combine them, you will be using the behavioural approach because all it means is what is the best way to respond to an inappropriate behaviour.

There is nothing more powerful than an idea.

Rick Harper of Behavioural Management Systems has been providing ideas to parents for over 40 years.

Back to Top

Workshops

+ Behaviour Management (now available online)

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

Learn more

+ A Parent’s Guide to the Teenage Brain

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

Learn more

+ Reading Rescue

A program for children with reading problems

Learn more

+ A Guided Tour of ADHD (now available online)

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

Learn more

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

Archive


Parents' Comments

“Our daughter was the joy of our life until she turned 13, then all hell broke loose. Rick helped us understand what was happening to her and we made some adjustments that helped us get through it. She’s now in University and doing well.”

(D.A. – St. Thomas)