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S U B S C R I B E
Kids in Mind
Mondays at 1 pm during The Mix (repeats at 9 am Sundays)
No jargon, no talking over your head—just good, solid, tested parenting advice from child psychotherapist Rachel Melville-Thomas. Have a question for Rachel? Send it to kidsinmind@worldradio.ch.
Kids in Mind: Banishing teenage boredom during summer vacations
Monday, 11 July, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas offers novel advice to parents to deter teenaged offspring from getting bored during the summer holiday. She says adolescents love to do silly things, such as jumping in a pool fully-clothed or having a water-balloon battle. Other activities to keep boredom at bay include holding “dance-off” competitions among friends or playing hide and seek in a mall:
Monday, 11 July, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas offers novel advice to parents to deter teenaged offspring from getting bored during the summer holiday. She says adolescents love to do silly things, such as jumping in a pool fully-clothed or having a water-balloon battle. Other activities to keep boredom at bay include holding “dance-off” competitions among friends or playing hide and seek in a mall:
Kids in Mind: Improving learning skills the old-fashioned way
Monday, 4 July, 2011WRS’s resident child psychotherapist Rachel Melville-Thomas discusses the promise held for improving children’s learning skills by using an abacus. Rachel talks to Arul Subramaniam, an Indian expert who is promoting the ancient counting device as an educational tool in Switzerland and France. He maintains its widespread use in Asia helps boost the concentration and mathematical abilities of kids, even those with little interest in maths:
Monday, 4 July, 2011WRS’s resident child psychotherapist Rachel Melville-Thomas discusses the promise held for improving children’s learning skills by using an abacus. Rachel talks to Arul Subramaniam, an Indian expert who is promoting the ancient counting device as an educational tool in Switzerland and France. He maintains its widespread use in Asia helps boost the concentration and mathematical abilities of kids, even those with little interest in maths:
Kids in Mind: How parents can help children change schools
Monday, 27 June, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks about the issues that can arise for kids changing schools. The change come as a result of progressing from elementary to high school, learning problems, language issues or because of a family move. In all these situations, it’s important for parents to think about what the child is leaving behind. Also, Rachel says parents need to help kids understand the timeline of the change. Most importantly, children need to be given time to say goodbye to what they are leaving behind:
Monday, 27 June, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks about the issues that can arise for kids changing schools. The change come as a result of progressing from elementary to high school, learning problems, language issues or because of a family move. In all these situations, it’s important for parents to think about what the child is leaving behind. Also, Rachel says parents need to help kids understand the timeline of the change. Most importantly, children need to be given time to say goodbye to what they are leaving behind:
Kids in Mind: How to help children surf the web responsibly
Monday, 13 June, 2011Most experts agree that the Internet plays an essential part in kids’ education today. The downside is that children can become addicted to games, surfing and social networking. Rachel Melville-Thomas talks with representatives from Institut Polycours, a home-tutoring service based in Lausanne, about responsible web surfing. One of the keys is for parents to keep a close eye on what their children are doing on the Internet, say the experts, who are presenting a forum on the subject on Wednesday in Lausanne:
Monday, 13 June, 2011Most experts agree that the Internet plays an essential part in kids’ education today. The downside is that children can become addicted to games, surfing and social networking. Rachel Melville-Thomas talks with representatives from Institut Polycours, a home-tutoring service based in Lausanne, about responsible web surfing. One of the keys is for parents to keep a close eye on what their children are doing on the Internet, say the experts, who are presenting a forum on the subject on Wednesday in Lausanne:
Kids in Mind: Keeping the family connection as a working parent
Monday, 6 June, 2011Child expert Rachel Melville-Thomas discusses how to make the most out of limited time with kids when both parents have to earn a living. She says even if children tell their parents they don’t mind when parents are away from home, in fact, they do. That’s especially true when parents have to travel for work. Rachel says it’s important to acknowledge kids’ true feelings and not pretend everything will be okay. Regarding childcare, she advises parents whenever possible to keep the same person to look after kids:
Monday, 6 June, 2011Child expert Rachel Melville-Thomas discusses how to make the most out of limited time with kids when both parents have to earn a living. She says even if children tell their parents they don’t mind when parents are away from home, in fact, they do. That’s especially true when parents have to travel for work. Rachel says it’s important to acknowledge kids’ true feelings and not pretend everything will be okay. Regarding childcare, she advises parents whenever possible to keep the same person to look after kids:
Kids in Mind: How parents can stop annoying their children
Monday, 30 May, 2011Parents often complain about their kids’ annoying behavior. However, child psychotherapist Rachel Melville-Thomas looks at what parents do that annoys their children. For example, she says kids hate being corrected over and over again. So rather than saying, “I’ve told you three times now,” parents need to look at different ways of communicating. With toddlers, they can even try singing the command:
Monday, 30 May, 2011Parents often complain about their kids’ annoying behavior. However, child psychotherapist Rachel Melville-Thomas looks at what parents do that annoys their children. For example, she says kids hate being corrected over and over again. So rather than saying, “I’ve told you three times now,” parents need to look at different ways of communicating. With toddlers, they can even try singing the command:
Kids in Mind: How to encourage 'responsible' drinking in the home
Monday, 23 May, 2011
Monday, 23 May, 2011
A 2007 UNICEF study showed that 30 percent of children in the UK aged 11 to 15 had been drunk at least twice. In Switzerland, that figure was 13 percent and in France it was eight percent, despite the fact that drinking wine or other alcohol is a fact of life in family homes. What do young children understand about drinking and the ways adults consume alcohol? What is the best way to guide teenagers about drinking? Can adolescents be alcoholics? WRS’s Susan Flory discusses these questions with Rachel Melville-Thomas. The expert says an important factor in responsible alcohol use involves having a meal alongside the drink:
Kids in Mind: Resolving disputes on discipline between parents
Monday, 16 May, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks to WRS’s Susan Flory about how parents can deal with disagreements about how to discipline their children. She says parents first need to examine their own upbringings to understand how they might benefit from taking a slightly different approach with their offspring. And above all, she says parents should avoid arguing about their differing views in front of their children:
Monday, 16 May, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks to WRS’s Susan Flory about how parents can deal with disagreements about how to discipline their children. She says parents first need to examine their own upbringings to understand how they might benefit from taking a slightly different approach with their offspring. And above all, she says parents should avoid arguing about their differing views in front of their children:
Kids in Mind: Helping school children cope with exam anxiety
Monday, 9 May, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks with WRS’s Susan Flory about how to help children, especially teens, overcome the stress and even panic that can accompany exam time at school. In order to minimize the tension, kids need a good study plan with proper breaks, as well as healthy food and good sleep. Rachel also underlines that children and parents need to keep things in perspective because exams are only a small part of a kid’s life:
Monday, 9 May, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks with WRS’s Susan Flory about how to help children, especially teens, overcome the stress and even panic that can accompany exam time at school. In order to minimize the tension, kids need a good study plan with proper breaks, as well as healthy food and good sleep. Rachel also underlines that children and parents need to keep things in perspective because exams are only a small part of a kid’s life:
Kids in Mind: How to foster empathy in children
Monday, 2 May, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks with WRS’s Susan Flory about how to develop the natural capacity of children for empathy, the capacity to recognize and share feelings experienced by others. Rachel says this can allow kids to do things like share toys and avoid bullying. She says that parents can help children develop empathy by using “mind” words, which are words about thinking or imagining what someone feels. For example, a parent could say, “I wonder if Sophie was sad that she couldn’t come to the party?”
Monday, 2 May, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks with WRS’s Susan Flory about how to develop the natural capacity of children for empathy, the capacity to recognize and share feelings experienced by others. Rachel says this can allow kids to do things like share toys and avoid bullying. She says that parents can help children develop empathy by using “mind” words, which are words about thinking or imagining what someone feels. For example, a parent could say, “I wonder if Sophie was sad that she couldn’t come to the party?”
Kids in Mind: Helping parents fight online bullying
Monday, 25 April, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks about the emerging problem of “cyber-bullying”, the use by kids of social media to pick on other children. To help fight the phenomenon, she says it’s imperative that parents know what online technology their kids are using, such as Skype, blogs, Facebook, and Twitter. And parents should know the passwords to these accounts. She also says computers should not be in kids’ bedrooms behind closed doors, so that parents can more easily monitor the screens:
Monday, 25 April, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks about the emerging problem of “cyber-bullying”, the use by kids of social media to pick on other children. To help fight the phenomenon, she says it’s imperative that parents know what online technology their kids are using, such as Skype, blogs, Facebook, and Twitter. And parents should know the passwords to these accounts. She also says computers should not be in kids’ bedrooms behind closed doors, so that parents can more easily monitor the screens:
Kids in Mind: Helping traumatized moms to bond with their babies
Monday, 18 April, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas and American child psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Schechter discuss how bonding between mothers and babies is affected when the mother has been severely traumatized. For these mothers, it is often impossible for them, when they are under stress, to read their child’s signals correctly. In a project at the University of Geneva, Schechter is offering these women techniques to help them change their minds about their children during difficult situations:
Monday, 18 April, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas and American child psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Schechter discuss how bonding between mothers and babies is affected when the mother has been severely traumatized. For these mothers, it is often impossible for them, when they are under stress, to read their child’s signals correctly. In a project at the University of Geneva, Schechter is offering these women techniques to help them change their minds about their children during difficult situations:
Kids in Mind: How to help a depressed teenager
Monday, 11 April, 2011Keeping up appearances is important for teens. So if they are depressed, they often deny it and the situation may be difficult to manage. Pyschotherapist Rachel Melville-Thomas talks about signs of depression in an adolescent, which include withdrawal from family and friends for two weeks or longer. As a parent, the way to help is to start by acknowledging the problem and by approaching the afflicted teen with respect and gentleness:
Monday, 11 April, 2011Keeping up appearances is important for teens. So if they are depressed, they often deny it and the situation may be difficult to manage. Pyschotherapist Rachel Melville-Thomas talks about signs of depression in an adolescent, which include withdrawal from family and friends for two weeks or longer. As a parent, the way to help is to start by acknowledging the problem and by approaching the afflicted teen with respect and gentleness:
Kids in Mind: Helping children handle harrowing news events
Monday, 4 April, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks to WRS’s Susan Flory about how to help kids deal with tragic or violent world events. The expert says children don’t have the brain processing power to make sense of what they hear and see on television news, such as coverage of Japan’s earthquake and tsunami. She explains how parents can help:
Monday, 4 April, 2011Rachel Melville-Thomas talks to WRS’s Susan Flory about how to help kids deal with tragic or violent world events. The expert says children don’t have the brain processing power to make sense of what they hear and see on television news, such as coverage of Japan’s earthquake and tsunami. She explains how parents can help:
Kids in Mind: What to do when a teen declares, 'I'm gay'
Monday, 28 March, 2011When a teen declares he or she is gay, many parents feel that their child is just trying to be different, or they wonder if it’s their fault. But child psychotherapist Rachel Melville-Thomas points out that research shows that parents don’t influence sexual orientation. Her advice is to firstly buy yourself some time by saying, “I’m glad you told me:”
Monday, 28 March, 2011When a teen declares he or she is gay, many parents feel that their child is just trying to be different, or they wonder if it’s their fault. But child psychotherapist Rachel Melville-Thomas points out that research shows that parents don’t influence sexual orientation. Her advice is to firstly buy yourself some time by saying, “I’m glad you told me:”
