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Posted on Wed, Sep 23, 2009 : 11 a.m.

Parent Buzz: Links for 9-23-09

By Jen Eyer

Kids and racism: A Wall Street Journal column asks "When Should You Start Talking About Race With Your Kids?" A timely topic for Ann Arborites, in light of the recent incident at Skyline High School. The columnist writes:

"As I wrote here a year and a half ago, my wife and I have proceeded somewhat uncertainly on that front. We have read with our daughter and son, who’ll soon turn 8 and 5, about the lives of Martin Luther King, Jackie Robinson and Barack Obama, and we’ve shown by our own example that friendships shouldn’t be limited or defined by race. They’ve responded in kind and have shown no signs of judging anyone negatively (or positively, for that matter) based on race."
Source: Wall Street Journal.com

Stubborn behavior: What to do when your child absolutely won't do what you want them to do? Whether it's using the toilet, eating their vegetables, or taking baths without a fight, behavioral experts Alan E. Kazdin and Carlo Rotella have some advice: do nothing. Or rather, stop doing whatever you were doing to push the desired behavior, then do nothing. They say parents should:

"...stop asking their child to do the desired behavior and say it's OK not to do it at all, stop offering praise or other rewards for doing it, and mask their attitude of engaged enthusiasm or frustrated rage with an appearance of bland disinterest in whether the child does it or not. What happens next, frequently, is that within a day or two the child starts doing the behavior with no prompting from parents or anyone else."
Source: Slate.com