Zoom Out Parenting: The Big Picture Approach to Raising Children
()
About this ebook
Zoom Out Parenting provides parents with a framework for teaching our children the skills that will be needed in their lifetimes, with a simple and warm approach to one of the most important roles we'll ever have- parenting the next generation.
When we gain a big picture perspective, parenting is less stressful and more rewarding. The bonus: Our children are better equipped to navigate and build a better world.
Related to Zoom Out Parenting
Related ebooks
How to Talk to Kids About Poverty and Homelessness: DEI Parent Guidebooks Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Happy Child: Changing the Heart of Education Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Raising Toddlers: A guide to raising curious and creative children in the 21st century Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsParenting Well in a Media Age: Keeping Our Kids Human Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5How to Talk to Your Child's School About Bullying so They Will Actually Listen and Help Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHanging on Every Word: 48 of the world's greatest stories, retold for reading aloud Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEmbracing Failure: Learning and Growing Through Creative Setbacks Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHappy, Healthy & Hyperconnected: Raise a Thoughtful Communicator in a Digital World Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLight Ignited, Miracles Unleashed: A Cosmic Blueprint for Your Miracles Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Big Purple Book of Badass Stories 2021 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsExplore your Hidden Talents: Over 40 self analysis module to help you bring out your hidden potential and excel in career. Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsANGER MANAGEMENT for Kids 5 - 8: An Essential Guide to Teach Kids about Emotions and Anger Management Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTo Be A TEACHER: The World's Greatest Profession Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHearing Is Believing: How Words Can Make or Break Our Kids Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ask Dr. Gramma Karen: Helping Young Parents and Grandparents Deal with Thorny Issues Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Job Inner-View Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Boss from Outer Space and Other Aliens at Work Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsParents First: Parents and Children Learning Together Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Motivating Adolescents: Practical Wisdom To Help Ignite Your Teen’s Inner Drive Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMoney Is Best Learned ,Before It’s Earned: #Moneymind Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCrames: Creative Games to Help Children Learn to Think and Problem Solve (in only 5 minutes a day!) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Power of Connection: Secrets To Successful Communication Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBecoming a Conscious Leader:: Gateway to the Fifth Dimension Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Playful Life: The Power of Play in Our Every Day Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Power of Persuasion: Mastering the Art of Influence Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRaising a Reader, Naturally Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLady Stuff: Secrets to Being a Woman Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Relationships For You
Mating in Captivity: Unlocking Erotic Intelligence Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Child Called It: One Child's Courage to Survive Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5She Comes First: The Thinking Man's Guide to Pleasuring a Woman Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Big Book of 30-Day Challenges: 60 Habit-Forming Programs to Live an Infinitely Better Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I'm Glad My Mom Died Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Good Girl's Guide to Great Sex: Creating a Marriage That's Both Holy and Hot Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, HER Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What Makes Love Last?: How to Build Trust and Avoid Betrayal Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Your Brain's Not Broken: Strategies for Navigating Your Emotions and Life with ADHD Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Polysecure: Attachment, Trauma and Consensual Nonmonogamy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5ADHD: A Hunter in a Farmer's World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Adult ADHD: How to Succeed as a Hunter in a Farmer's World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Talk so Little Kids Will Listen: A Survival Guide to Life with Children Ages 2-7 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Covert Passive Aggressive Narcissist: The Narcissism Series, #1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The ADHD Effect on Marriage: Understand and Rebuild Your Relationship in Six Steps Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Doing Life with Your Adult Children: Keep Your Mouth Shut and the Welcome Mat Out Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/58 Rules of Love: How to Find It, Keep It, and Let It Go Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Codependence and the Power of Detachment: How to Set Boundaries and Make Your Life Your Own Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5All About Love: New Visions Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Like Switch: An Ex-FBI Agent's Guide to Influencing, Attracting, and Winning People Over Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It's Not Supposed to Be This Way: Finding Unexpected Strength When Disappointments Leave You Shattered Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Zoom Out Parenting
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Zoom Out Parenting - Bonnie W. Bricker
words.
Introduction
When your child is grown, many of your early child-rearing decisions may seem insignificant. It may not matter which diaper he wore, which spoon she used, or if you only read Caldecott-award winning books while sitting on your bamboo floor. All of your good choices reflect your great intentionality toward your child and your lifestyle, of course. But if those choices are made in a family with little care or action towards actually building something meaningful outside your home, it won't matter much. What will matter is the recognition that a zoomed out, big picture approach to life is essential to helping your child be a part of a better generation to come. And whether your child is developing in a more-or-less typical way, or if he is developing along a different path, it is this perspective that will make each day easier as you revel in the joys of parenthood and minimize those challenges that can ruin a day.
It is far too easy to become immersed in meaningless details in the early years of parenting. The array of baby equipment that fills your house requires endless research. The experts, bloggers, friends and family members providing advice on the most mundane details of life are invaluable-and overwhelming. Parents are spending so much time zoomed in on the details that the big picture seems to have disappeared. Parents want and need quick answers to big, important questions. But answers to the complicated questions of parenting are never quick, and rarely easy.
I have had the privilege of being a part of many parents' journeys as a teacher, a friend, a parent coach, and even (so happily!) as Nana. I have also been writing commentaries about public policy for a number of years, in my hopes of increasing public discussion around the big topics that ultimately affect all of us, and the generations to come—wars, political behavior, foreign policy. Hopping onto the journeys of other parents, from this zoomed out perspective, always imparts a lesson. And one of the biggest lessons I have learned is that there are many ways to be a good parent. Across the world and over time, there have been many approaches to parenting, and still the human race survives.
But that does not mean that parents should be careless in their approach to parenting. Every generation has the capacity to pull down the existing framework of society and make it new. Whether it is for the better or worse is always the question. The challenge of this generation and the many more to come is to manage the vast complexity of lives washed in a sea of information, and to emerge ready to face the challenges effectively.
Zooming in on the minutiae of daily details-from strollers, to childcare, to soccer coaches-is essential in the every-day life of your family. But staying in that zoomed in space, without looking at a bigger picture of the life ahead, does nothing to build the world for that next generation. And this rapidly changing world of ours requires that we apply thought to our actions, looking ahead to what will be needed to thrive in the next generation.
Zooming out to look at a bigger picture can free you as a parent. Once you allow yourself some perspective on life, some of the decisions you need to make can be seen for what they really are– small and insignificant. Look at your family and friends. Stand on a street corner and watch people go by. Think about the vastness of human beings on this planet. There are so many good people, doing good in the world, and the kind of spoon they used as a child or the month they were weaned is of little consequence. Of greater consequence—they were loved. They were taught to survive in difficult circumstances. They were taught the value of hard work. Personal strengths were developed into talents and personal weaknesses were helped to be stronger. They solve problems with patience and creativity. And when they need help, they have the relationships that will foster support.
Yet a zoomed out approach is not always easy. It's hard to think of the big picture when the little one just dumped her milk on her brother, or the two-year-old is refusing to put on his socks. But having a simple framework as a reference of thought can help you to quickly zoom out to gain perspective before you act; it can help you to plan opportunities to help your child gain needed skills and perspectives; it can even help you to reflect on your own blow-up over your child's refusal to share her toys. More important-if many of us raise our children with this kind of intentionality,