Your Number Story

SPOTLIGHT

Oprah Winfrey and Dr. Nadine Burke Harris talk ACEs.

American SPCC on Positive Parenting

Written by Genevieve Rivera, Executive Director, American SPCC

No parent or caregiver is perfect, but what's important is that we are aware that we can learn and improve over time.

Over the years of leading American Society for the Positive Care of Children (American SPCC), I’ve been amazed and inspired by the number of caregivers joining our community to find support along their journey of parenting. Because it’s certainly not easy. It’s a path of ups and downs, of uncertainty and frustration running into immense joy and fulfillment – sometimes on a daily basis.


But one key element along this journey is the power of positivity.


I’ve seen firsthand how Positive Parenting strategies have impacted families in dramatic ways. Not only can this approach build stronger parent-child bonds, but it also has the power to prevent generational cycles of trauma such as Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACEs. It’s something I’ve experienced in my own home, and within our global community of caregivers and child advocates at American SPCC.


That’s why American SPCC is honored and excited about our new partnership with ACE Resource Network – the team behind NumberStory.org – and the creation of a first-of-its-kind toolkit dedicated to ACEs awareness and Positive Parenting education for caregivers of young children.


This toolkit provides parents and caregivers with information to help them understand and meet their child’s needs, create healthy environments, and nurture their growth so children can thrive. It helps parents to reflect on their own childhood, the lasting impacts their own experiences may have had, and support them on their journey as they heal themselves and nurture their families.


Parenting doesn’t come with a manual. We’re often left to figure it out along the way – not knowing if the information we’re given or the actions we take are the best ones available to us. Some may come from a trauma-filled home and have a skewed understanding of what love from a parent looks like, so they pass down what they know. But my hope is that this new toolkit serves as a sort of “manual” for parents who want to grow in their personal parenting journey – to learn the power of Positive Parenting and guide them towards other free, reliable resources that empower them.


For any parent or caregiver with a young child in your life, I encourage you to check out this new toolkit. Whether it provides you with a few pieces of research-backed parenting advice you’ve never heard of or dramatically shifts your outlook on parenting, our intention is that these approaches will help create happy, healthy, and thriving first chapters in your children’s lives.

-Written by Genevieve Rivera, American SPCC executive director

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