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Adolescence can be the cruelest place on earth. It can really be heartless.  ( Tori Amos)

If it  was going to be easy to raise kids, it never would have started with something called "labour".

The way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice. (Peggy O'Mara)

"Unexpressed feeling never die. They are buried alive and come back later in ugly ways." (Stephen Covey)

Being a parent of a teenager can cure a person of narcissism.

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

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

Whining and crying are employed by kids for the purpose of getting something. If it works, then it was worth the effort and will be repeated.

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

Early intervention is always better than crisis management - but it is never too late to do the right thing.

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Separating from Parents

    Being a parent of a teen can cure a person of narcissism. When your child was born, you were the center of  his/her universe. You were special . Now that you have an adolescent, you have become less central. No matter what you do, your teen continues to invest in the outside world more than at home. This is how it should be. Teens slowly move away from their parents physically and  emotionally. […]

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Sad or Depressed – What’s the Difference?

    Sadness is an unpleasant emotion in response to certain events: Examples – loss of a loved one – disappointment in missing a hoped- for opportunity – struggling to adapt to unwelcome changes These and a multitude of other circumstances can result in a process that takes us through a sequence of emotions including worry, anxiety, tears, grieving which ultimately brings us relief. This is a healthy process. Depression is not healthy. Depression occurs […]

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Angry, Hurting Kids Who Swear

    An excerpt from Kirk Martin’s newsletter that is worth passing on: Angry children, kids who curse: what to say to them A sweet grandmother approached me after a workshop one day and asked, “What can we do to get my grandson to stop cursing? He’s got a foul mouth and talks disrespectfully.” This is beyond simple eye rolling and normal teenage attitude. Kids don’t usually use foul or aggressive language unless they have […]

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There’s Something Wrong Here!

  If a child doesn’t know how to read: we teach. If a child doesn’t know how to swim: we teach. If a child doesn’t know how to say “Please” and “Thank you”: we teach. If a child doesn’t know how to behave: we punish. There’s something wrong with this picture !

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The Most Important Job in the World

    Raising a child is the most important job you will ever do. It is challenging, scary, fulfilling, exciting, frustrating – ALL AT THE SAME TIME – Parenting is tough because we have so little training, yet the results are so important. If you’re in sales and you lose a sale, your pay cheque is smaller. If you’re in accounting and the books don’t balance, you stay late to find your error and correct […]

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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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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

“He is a wealth of knowledge coupled with first hand experience.”

(E.K. – London)