| April is National Child Abuse Prevention | | | | The Confident Parenting Program's versatility |
| Month as well as the National Month of the | | | | and utility is reflected in the fact that in |
| Young Child. Both serve to focus public | | | | addition to being used to prevent child |
| attention on the needs of children and their | | | | abuse, it has also been used extensively in |
| families, particularly the need for quality | | | | regular and special education settings, Head |
| parenting education. | | | | Start agencies, private practices and in |
| | | | churches and temples. Its value-free |
| Lack of parenting skills and the frustration | | | | application of child management skills has |
| that comes from not knowing how to deal with | | | | allowed for its successful use with a wide |
| and manage a child's behavior significantly | | | | variety of ethnic minority groups. |
| increases the risk of child abuse. Parents | | | | |
| often feel controlled by their children's | | | | The program is usually conducted for small |
| misbehaviors because they do not know how to | | | | groups of parents in ten two-hour sessions. |
| set limits effectively. They may pay so much | | | | Its specific skills, such as effective |
| attention when their children misbehave that | | | | praising, can be the focus of one-session |
| they forget to notice the cooperative and | | | | parent meetings. There is also a one-day |
| peaceful times. | | | | seminar version available. |
| | | | |
| The Center for the Improvement of Child | | | | Research studies demonstrate that CICC's |
| Caring's Confident Parenting Program teaches | | | | Confident Parenting Program reduces the need |
| parents how to pay attention to and how to | | | | for additional family or child services, |
| increase the times when their children's | | | | significantly diminishes a variety of child |
| behavior is good. It also teaches effective | | | | behavior problems, improves overall family |
| limit-setting skills so that parents will not | | | | relations and provides useful alternatives to |
| feel victimized by their children's | | | | corporal punishment. |
| misbehavior. | | | | |
| | | | Thus, it can provide a community with an |
| The program provides parents effective skills | | | | intervention to promote child mental health |
| to manage such child behaviors as: | | | | and prevent child abuse and school failure. |
| | | | By so doing, the program also aids in |
| 1. Disruptiveness | | | | preventing drug abuse, delinquency and gang |
| | | | involvement. |
| 2. Fears | | | | |
| | | | Parents and others can learn about and use |
| 3. Shyness | | | | the program's parenting skills and strategies |
| | | | by purchasing the parent handbook which is |
| 4. Tantrums | | | | available on the CICC Website ( |
| | | | |
| 5. Bedwetting | | | | CICC can arrange to have a professional |
| | | | instructor come to a community, school or |
| 6. Restlessness | | | | business and deliver a one-day parenting |
| | | | seminar, on the program. ( |
| 7. Disobedience | | | | |
| | | | Individuals can also enroll in an Instructor |
| 8. Laziness | | | | Training Workshop, where they can become a |
| | | | certified parenting instructor and conduct |
| 9. Aggressiveness | | | | the program themselves. ( |
| | | | |
| The Confident Parenting Program has been used | | | | Parenting educators or group leaders can also |
| for over two decades within community mental | | | | purchase and use the materials in the |
| health agencies, and it was selected to | | | | workshop to run the program on their own. ( |
| represent the social learning or behavioral | | | | |
| approach to parent training as part of the | | | | A detailed description of the Confident |
| continuing education program sponsored by the | | | | Parenting Program's content, history and |
| National Institute of Mental Health. | | | | evaluation research studies is available on |
| | | | the CICC Web site. ( |
| Recently the program was updated and three | | | | |
| new sections have been added. These include | | | | For more information about CICC's Confident |
| Corporal Punishment, Modeling and Family | | | | Parenting Program e-mail or call toll-free |
| Rules. | | | | 1(800) 325-CICC (2422). |
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