(Family Features) Every family experiences changes. Some are planned, others are unexpected. Some are joyful, others are marked by pain or uncertainty.

Whether it’s divorce, the death of a loved one, welcoming a new sibling or moving to a new home, these events impact every member of the family. For young children, even small changes can feel monumental, and how adults talk with them affects how they respond and cope.

Dr. Lauren Loquasto, senior vice president and chief academic officer at The Goddard School, shares this guidance to help families navigate change.

Why Transitions Matter to Young Children
To understand why transitions affect children so deeply, it’s important to remember children see the world differently than adults. Their routines, relationships and surroundings establish a sense of security and safety. Their families and role within them form their initial identities. Any disruption, big or small, can shake their foundation. Children can handle change, but adults must help them process it.

Children are naturally perceptive. When something changes, they notice. When they lack the language or understanding to ask questions, they express their feelings through behavior. It’s how young children express, “I’m feeling something, but I don’t have the words for it.”

When children become clingier after a new sibling is born or struggle with meltdowns in a new classroom, they’re trying to process the changes in their lives. These behaviors signal, “I’m not sure what to do with all these feelings.”

View Changes Through Children’s Eyes
Everyone experiences changes differently. Even within the same family, adults and children may perceive and respond to the same event in unique ways. An adult may see moving to a new home as an exciting fresh start while children may see it as leaving behind the only bedroom they’ve ever known.

Approaching changes through a child’s lens helps reframe what’s happening. Instead of minimizing feelings, adults can acknowledge the shift children are experiencing and guide them with care.

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Proactively Communicate
When families face big changes, one of the most common questions is, “What do we tell the kids?” There’s often a struggle between wanting to protect children from overwhelming emotions and offering them enough information to make sense of what’s going on.

Rather than avoiding the conversation, discuss what’s happening using this framework:

1. Acknowledge what’s happening. Use clear, simple language, such as: “Daddy is moving to a different house and you’ll have two homes now.”
2. Focus on the present or immediate future. Young children often don’t have a solid grasp of time. While they can understand routines and orders of events, it takes well into elementary school for them to truly conceptualize time.
3. Name the feelings. Give children words for what they might be feeling. “It’s OK to feel sad or confused right now. Sometimes changes feel hard.”
4. Provide reassurance. Let them know that even though things are changing, they’re still safe and loved.
5. Encourage questions. If you don’t have an answer, it’s OK to say, “I’m not sure, but I’ll find out,” or “We’re figuring this out together.”

Avoidance is a natural instinct, but silence leaves children to fill in the gaps with their imaginations, which can be scarier than reality. Moreover, when they sense something is different but no one is talking about it, children might feel alone in their confusion. By proactively communicating, you tell them, “I’m here with you.”

Embrace Feelings
Transitions can be emotional and children need space to express their feelings without judgment. When a child cries or lashes out, instead of responding with, “Don’t be sad,” validate the experience by saying, “I see you have big feelings right now. I’m here with you.”  Help your child manage these feelings by encouraging active expressions, such as drawing, writing or moving to music.

Transitions can be challenging, but they’re also opportunities to build resilience and deeper connections. Approaching big changes with empathy, proactive communication and an open heart helps children feel more secure and confident to move forward.

To watch a webinar featuring Loquasto sharing additional guidance and access parenting insights and resources, visit the Parent Resource Center at GoddardSchool.com.

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock

SOURCE:
The Goddard School

Our Lifestyle section on STM Daily News is a hub of inspiration and practical information, offering a range of articles that touch on various aspects of daily life. From tips on family finances to guides for maintaining health and wellness, we strive to empower our readers with knowledge and resources to enhance their lifestyles. Whether you’re seeking outdoor activity ideas, fashion trends, or travel recommendations, our lifestyle section has got you covered. Visit us today at https://stmdailynews.com/category/lifestyle/

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(Family Features) Making money from everyday items in your home may be easier than you think. With a growing number of companies simplifying the process, turning unused items into cash has never been simpler.

Making Cash

These companies are part of the circular economy, where you get to make money from your items and feel good about it at the same time. By reselling items you don’t use, you can give these items a second home or repurpose them into something that has practical applications.

For example, unused gold and precious metal jewelry can be given a second home to or repurposed for vital technology sectors like health care. This reduces the need for environmentally taxing mining operations and gives these valuable resources a second purpose.

Whether it’s clothing, jewelry or tech, consider these simple ways to make extra cash by selling items online.

Sell Used Clothing

Some newer platforms offer a less hands-on approach to selling used clothing online. Unlike popular online platforms that require you to take pictures or create listings for your items, look for outlets that allow you to simply package your items and send them out with an insured label. This makes selling clothing online a breeze and reduces the potential headaches of dealing with buyers directly and managing listings.

Sell Unworn Jewelry
For precious metals like gold jewelry or silver jewelry, selling directly to a trusted buyer can provide a fast, secure way to unlock their value. Consider TheAlloyMarket.com, a company featured in trusted outlets like Forbes, NBC and US News & World Report that offers a streamlined process with free, insured shipping and no hidden fees or commissions. Unlike platforms that require complex listings or charge extra fees, you keep 100% of the quoted price. On average, customers earn $1,700 or more for gold jewelry and other precious metal items, offering a straightforward, easy and rewarding way to sell unused valuables.

Sell Designer Bags
If you have any designer bags at home, look for platforms that let you sell handbags directly to them and provide upfront estimates before you ship your items. Some platforms provide free insured shipping and marketplaces where you can buy designer handbags at discounted prices.

Sell Books You’ve Already Read
While this likely won’t make you a fortune, selling used books is a simple way to make some extra cash and help preserve the environment. College students in particular can benefit from upfront estimates and free shipping or the ability to trade in used books for ones they’ll need next semester. Plus, some platforms also offer books for purchase at heavily discounted prices.

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Sell Tech After Upgrading
If you upgraded phones recently or have a used phone just collecting dust, get an upfront estimate for your phone from a trusted site. Some buyers provide free shipping and, with upfront estimates, you know exactly what you will get for your used phone before sending it in.

Sell Old Furniture
Turn your unused furniture into cash by listing items like sofas, tables or chairs on local marketplaces or apps. Clear photos and detailed descriptions can help attract buyers nearby, saving you the hassle of shipping. Selling old furniture not only earns extra money but also helps reduce waste by giving items a second life.

To learn more about how you can get a free, no-obligation estimate for gold jewelry or other precious metal items, visit TheAlloyMarket.com.

SOURCE:
Alloy Market

STM Daily News is a vibrant news blog dedicated to sharing the brighter side of human experiences. Emphasizing positive, uplifting stories, the site focuses on delivering inspiring, informative, and well-researched content. With a commitment to accurate, fair, and responsible journalism, STM Daily News aims to foster a community of readers passionate about positive change and engaged in meaningful conversations. Join the movement and explore stories that celebrate the positive impacts shaping our world.

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Annie Pezalla, Macalester College

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to [email protected].

Why do my parents always act like they know best? – Taliyah, age 12, Gwinnett, Georgia

Nobody likes getting bossed around, but your parents’ bossiness is probably well-intentioned.

As a psychologist who studies family relationships, I can tell you that a parent’s No. 1 job is to keep their kids safe. When a kid becomes a teenager, their world becomes more dangerous. Relationships with friends can become complicated and even toxic. Drugs and alcohol become more readily available and more tantalizing. Mental health can take a nosedive, and social media doesn’t help.

There are a bunch of reasons why these risks increase as you grow up, but peer pressure is mostly to blame.

To protect their teens from those dangers, parents have lots of strategies. They may discipline their kids – “You’re grounded!” – or challenge them to do better with phrases like, “When I was your age, I didn’t behave like that.” Or they might reprimand you: “I’m really disappointed in you.”

If your parents have ever acted like that with you, then it is likely about keeping you safe. Most parents understand the dangers you face. They may have experienced them personally and want you to avoid the same mistakes they made. If your parents’ guidance is keeping you from harm, I’d say that they really do know what’s best.

Your brain is still developing

OK, I got that out of the way. Are you still reading? I hope so, because this next part is more interesting and nuanced, and it’s about you and your brain.

Right now, your brain is undergoing remarkable growth. Starting around 10 years old, there’s a flurry of activity in what’s called the subcortical regions of your brain – a scientific term for the brain’s inner core. These parts of the brain are associated with emotions like anger, anxiety and defensiveness.

Are you feeling those emotions pretty regularly these days? If so, congratulations! You are 100% normal.

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As you get older, your brain’s outer regions will become more developed, too. The last bit to mature is right behind your forehead, in an area called the prefrontal cortex. That area is associated with the ability to understand how someone else feels, and to put yourself in their shoes.

Experts who study brain development call this skill “perspective-taking.” It means that when you’re reprimanded for breaking the rules – for example, by staying out late – you don’t lash out defensively. Instead, you acknowledge that the person doing the reprimanding is worried or scared, or simply looking out for you.

Seeing life from another perspective

For adults, this perspective-taking can be really hard. For teens, I’m sorry to say, it’s even harder. That’s because your prefrontal cortex simply hasn’t finished developing yet; it won’t be fully functional until about age 25.

Your teenage brain currently allows you to do many incredible things, but you are biologically inclined to see life from your own perspective and struggle to understand why other people act the way they do.

In other words, your perceptions of your parents as bossy are based on the abilities of your yet-to-be fully developed brain. Meanwhile, what is fully developed is the part of your brain associated with those big emotions. That’s a tough combination.

A final note: You might think that your parents “always act like they know what’s best,” but, in my parenting research, it’s clear that they’re often unsure how to handle certain situations. Over 40% of the parents in my last study shared self-critical thoughts about how they’re doing as a parent. In other words, they’re struggling, too.

If you can, give your parents a break – and maybe even a hug.

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Hello, curious kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to [email protected]. Please tell us your name, age and the city where you live.

And since curiosity has no age limit – adults, let us know what you’re wondering, too. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.

Annie Pezalla, Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology, Macalester College

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Our Lifestyle section on STM Daily News is a hub of inspiration and practical information, offering a range of articles that touch on various aspects of daily life. From tips on family finances to guides for maintaining health and wellness, we strive to empower our readers with knowledge and resources to enhance their lifestyles. Whether you’re seeking outdoor activity ideas, fashion trends, or travel recommendations, our lifestyle section has got you covered. Visit us today at https://stmdailynews.com/category/lifestyle/ and embark on a journey of discovery and self-improvement.

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