Author: Chien Liu
-
What Is Emotional Regulation in Children? A Parent’s Guide
If you have ever watched a child completely fall apart over somethingthat seems trivial — a broken cracker, the wrong colored plate, asock that doesn’t feel right — and wondered why they cannot simplycalm down, you have encountered one of the most important conceptsin child development: emotional regulation. Understanding what emotional regulation actually is, why…
-
How to Talk to Your Child About Divorce: An Age by Age Guide
One of the questions parents going through a separation ask most oftenis also one of the hardest: what do I actually say to my child? Theanswer depends significantly on how old your child is — because atwo-year-old and a ten-year-old are not just different in size. Theyare genuinely different in what they can understand, what…
-
How to Handle Toddler Tantrums: What’s Actually Happening in Their Brain
If you have ever watched a toddler dissolve into a screaming,floor-prostrate meltdown over something that seems completelytrivial — the wrong color cup, a banana broken in half, a sockthat feels wrong — you have witnessed one of the mostmisunderstood events in early childhood. Toddler tantrums are not manipulation. They are not bad behavior.They are not…
-
Birth Order and Siblings: What the Research Actually Says
Birth order is one of the most popular topics in popular psychologyand one of the most misrepresented. The idea that firstborns arenatural leaders, middle children are neglected peacemakers, andyoungest children are charming rebels has been repeated so oftenthat it feels like established fact. The actual research tells a more complicated and more interestingstory. This article…
-
What Is Co-Parenting? A Practical Guide for Separated Parents
Co-parenting is one of those terms that gets used constantly inconversations about separation and divorce, and defined almost never.Most parents going through a separation have a general sense of whatit means — something about raising children together while livingapart — without a clear picture of what it actually requires, whatthe research says makes it work,…
-
What Is Serve and Return? The Simple Practice That Builds Your Baby’s Brain
If you have spent any time reading about early childhood development,you may have come across the term “serve and return.” It sounds simple— and it is. It is also one of the most well-supported findings inall of developmental neuroscience, and understanding it changes howyou think about every ordinary interaction with your baby. This article explains…
-
Sibling Rivalry vs Sibling Conflict: What’s the Difference and Why It Matters
Most parents use the terms sibling rivalry and sibling conflictinterchangeably. Developmental researchers don’t — and the distinctionmatters more than it might seem, because the two things call forgenuinely different responses. This article explains what each term actually means, what the researchsays about both, and what knowing the difference changes about how youparent through it. What…
-
Sibling Jealousy After a New Baby: How Long Does It Last and What Actually Helps
You prepared your toddler carefully. You read the books, had the conversations,involved them in the preparations. And then the baby came home — and yourolder child fell apart anyway. This is one of the most common and most distressing experiences for new parentsof two. The good news: sibling jealousy after a new baby is not…
-
How to Prepare Your Toddler for a New Baby: What the Research Says
A new baby is coming, and your toddler has no idea what that really means yet.You can say the words — “you’re going to be a big brother” or “a baby sister iscoming” — and watch your toddler nod along with complete cheerfulness, entirelyunaware that their whole world is about to change. That gap between…
-
How to Help Siblings Get Along: A Research-Backed Guide for Parents
If your children argue constantly, you are not alone — and you are not failing.Sibling conflict is one of the most universal experiences in family life, and oneof the most researched. The good news: there are specific, well-supported thingsparents can do to help siblings build a genuinely stronger bond, at every age. This guide covers…