Tried and tested with hundreds of families, in a variety of contexts and often with those facing life's most difficult circumstances...when many parents lack confidence in their ability as parents, especially when others, complaining about the younger generation, are quick to point their finger at them...and when young parents themselves are often the least confident...This course's easy-to-follow sessions let facilitators take parents - of children of any age - carers, grandparents, foster-carers and parents-to-be - through a variety of exercises to: become more self-aware; understand what influences the development of self-esteem; develop the capacity to make changes; and, provide an encouraging and caring environment for their children's self-esteem to develop.The manual acknowledges that many parents, regardless of their religious and ethnic background, social class, and level of literacy and language skills, lack confidence in themselves.
It: recognises there are many reasons why parents have difficulty in giving their children a loving, stable and encouraging home life; suggests ways of engaging with parents' strengths; and, helps facilitators work in partnership with parents to break the cycle of discouragement for themselves and their children. In common with other successful parenting programmes, this course: has been developed through regular monitoring, evaluations, and review, with quality ensured through training and supervision; uses evidence-based content for the sessions with a comprehensive manual of guidance; and, has been effective with parents from many different backgrounds and has sustained their attendance for at least 6-10 sessions.In addition, unlike many other courses and manuals, this course: is easy to follow for both parents and facilitators; eliminates the need for expensive training; may be adapted to suit specific needs of trainers and parent groups, and in response to parents' own ideas and evaluations; is accessible for use by smaller voluntary agencies, with restricted time and budgets, as easily as by larger organisations; provides user friendly handouts for parents; can be used entirely on its own or be linked to other training delivered by the author and her colleagues; and, encourages further learning about the underpinning ideas of Individual Psychology, a Person-Centred Approach, and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy.
"Self-Esteem: A Family Affair" offers guidance and materials that enable practitioners (counsellors, nurses, teachers, youth workers, social workers, family and children's centre staff) to offer a complete course of 6-10 sessions, including 12-20 hours contact time with parents, in groups of up to 15, or individuals. The session plans, facilitator's notes, photocopiable handouts and extension exercises can be adapted to suit needs. No audio-visual or IT equipment is necessary. The course's manageable length and bite-sized chunks reduce drop-out rates and tempt parents on to further learning. Purchasers of the manual can subsequently obtain - free from the publisher - the course's photocopiable material in electronic format, together with a follow-up email service from the author.