Workshops

1. Behaviour Management (6 hours)
This full day or 2 evening workshop will introduce you to the skills, techniques and strategies required to assess and control a wide range of behaviour problems (example: aggression, destruction, non-compliance, swearing, school problems, tantrums, sibling quarrelling, etc). You will learn how to determine the underlying causes of the inappropriate behaviours, develop logical interventions and establish a monitoring system to evaluate progress. Suitable for parents, teachers, day care, social workers, etc.

2. A Guided Tour of ADHD (3 hours)
This workshop will present the facts, myths, misconceptions, controversy and treatments associated with one of society's most common childhood disorders. ADHD can affect every area of a child's life producing feelings of failure, learning difficulties, inability to make and keep friends and stressful relationships within families.Suitable for parents, teachers, day care staff, social workers, etc.

3. Autism - A World Apart (3 hours)
This workshop will present the latest ideas concerning the diagnosis and treatments associated with autism. Emphasis will be placed on the practical aspects of the disorder, how it impacts family life and education and coping strategies. Suitable for parents, teachers, day care staff, social workers, etc.

4. Parenting a Teen Without Losing Your Mind (6 hours)
This sanity-saving workshop explores the bewildering years of a teenager. What forces turn many delightful, talkative 11 year olds into moody, hormone-infused, self absorbed teenagers? What forces lead some of them "over the edge" into choices that include drugs, sex, booze, skipping school and crime? This workshop presents a philosophy and strategies that can help parents help their teens make the right choices. (formally "Teens in Trouble")

5. Taming a Toddler (3 hours)
Most parents of newborns manage pretty well in the first year but as soon as the negative, stubborn, self-centred, unreasonable toddler appears, many parents wonder what has hit them. This workshop explores what constitutes normal toddler development and behaviour, common parental concerns and how to deal with those concerns.

6. Dry Bed Training (3 hours)
Can "bed wetting" contribute to emotional problems? Research clearly says yes! Nocturnal enuresis is a common complaint that not only affects a child's self esteem (helplessness, hopelessness, shame, guilt, ridicule, etc) but is also an unpleasant nuisance and inconvenience the whole family (laundry, odour, vacation complications, expense, etc). This workshop explores the latest research into the causes, effects and treatments and will provide you with concrete, practical ideas on how to help your child overcome bed wetting.

7. The "Difficult" Child (3 hours)
a) Do you find your child difficult to raise? yes or no
b) Do you find your child's behaviour hard to understand? yes or no
c) Are you often battling with your child? yes or no
d) Do you sometimes feel inadequate or guilty as a parent? yes or no
e) Is your marriage being affected by your child's behaviour? yes or no
"Yes" to any of the above questions may indicate you are dealing with a "difficult" child. Temperamentally difficult children confuse and upset even experienced parents and teachers. They often act in ways that are defiant, stubborn, loud, aggressive, whiny, hyperactive, clingy, shy, negative, picky and sometimes are impossible to deal with. This workshop offers practical, compassionate advice to parents of hard-to-raise children.

8. Living With A Child With Fetal Alcohol Related Behaviour Problems (3
hours)
This workshop offers solid information and practical advice for dealing with FAS/FAE's lifelong effects on behaviour and learning. It addresses historical, medical and societal aspects of FAS/FAE and details common behavioural characteristics associated with the condition. The workshop is presented in a developmental format and gives specific behavioural management strategies that are appropriate for individuals with FAS/FAE from infancy through young adulthood. Suitable for parents, teachers, social workers, day care, etc."

9. Positive Parenting (6 hours)
"Ten years ago I had three theories about raising children. Now I have three children and no theories." John Wilmot
Parenting is the most important job you will ever have, yet children come with no instruction manual, "mute" buttons or guarantees. This workshop explores what makes kids tick and includes some dynamite strategies to help you stop yelling, nagging, threatening, bossing, bribing and how to bring more peace and harmony into your home.

10. Behaviour Management in the Classroom (3 hours)
"I go home from school every night exhausted from the constant power struggles!"
"10% of the students in my classroom cause 90% of the behaviour problems!"
"Managing the children in my class takes as much time and energy as teaching them!"
"Teaching isn't fun anymore. I don't know how much longer I can keep doing this!"
This workshop presents proven strategies that replace "misbehaviour" in the classroom with "cooperation" without the need for lecturing, threatening, reasoning, taking away recesses, cajoling, yelling, writing names on the board, sending them to the office, giving detentions etc.

11. Living With An Attachment Disordered Child (3 hours)
A child with attachment disorder is a deeply wounded child who was denied the very basics of life - love and protection - in their early years. They have often been victims of abuse, neglect, abandonment and sexual exploitation. Though they can be removed from the source of their maltreatment, they take with them the invisible, internal scars of earlier maltreatment into their "new" families. This workshop explores what has gone wrong in their development and outlines a hopeful course of treatment.

12. Recognizing, Living With and Treating Depression in Young People (3 hours)
There is no sharp dividing line between "normal mood swings" of adolescence and depression. Parents are the key people to recognize signs of depression and recognition is the first step toward getting help.

This workshop clearly explains:

- what depression is
- how to recognize it (it's more than being moody)
- how common is it
- the differences between depression in adults and young people
- the risk factors
- the warning signs
- survival tips for the family
- dealing with discipline and conflict
- what parents can't do
- what is bipolar, schizophrenia
- the nightmare of suicide
- treatment options
- what does the future hold

13. Healing a Teen's / Child's Grieving Heart (2 hours)
Quite naturally we grieve over the loss of anything important. If the loss is great,the very foundations of life are shaken and we can be thrown into deep despair. Life can be cruel for children also. When children suffer the loss of a precious relationship grieving results (death, divorce, uprooting, foster placement, foster home breakdown,etc.) and it is an especially painful experience. This workshop explores practical ways for a caregiver to help a teen / child heal a grieving heart.

14. Crash Test Mommy (6 hours - full day or 2 evenings)
Would you like to know how to get your children to willingly cooperate? Would you like to eliminate many of your daily battles and end the yelling, nagging and pleading? Would you like to handle discipline issues with knowledge, authority and skill. While doing all this, would you also like to boost your child's self-esteem? This workshop is filled with time tested, proven and practical ideas for real families. Issues discussed include: noncompliance, temper tantrums, sleep problems, meal time problems, bad language, the dawdler, lying, stealing, tattling, sibling squabbles and much much more.

15. 4 - 5 - 6 Magic (3 hours)
Thomas Phelan's 1-2-3 Magic has been magic for many families with children in the 2 to 12 years range. 4-5-6 Magic picks up where 1-2-3 ends and teaches parents new tricks on how to use the same proven principles with 13-18 years olds. The younger the child - the more control the parent has ! The older the child - the more control the child has ! 4-5-6 Magic help parents steer their way through the minefield of adolescence.

16. From Diapers to Driver's License (Child Development 101) (3 hours)
"Kids have an extraordinary capacity for finding endless ways to drive parents crazy!" Every parent can relate to the above statement. We lock horns with our toddlers, skirmish with our preschoolers, clash with our preteens and "knock heads" with our adolescents. Battling endlessly with your kids seldom resolves what you intended and instead gets replayed over and over straining family relationships. Part of the solution to breaking this damaging cycle is understanding child development and this workshop describes what is "normal" for each stage of a child's life from conception to 16 years.

17. Schizophrenia in Young People - How Parents Can Help (3 hours)
Schizophrenia is a cruel disease that attacks about 8 people out of every 1000. It often strikes in the adolescent years just as opportunities for most people are beginning to unfold. The financial costs involved in dealing with schizophrenia are staggering and the human costs within families are incalculable. This workshop will examine the nature, causes, symptoms, issues and treatment of schizophrenia. Most importantly, it will explain what this disease looks like in it’s early stages and will outline what parents can do to help their child.

18. It’s a Guy Thing! It’s a Girl Thing! (3 hours)
Be prepared for an “aha” experience! Are boys different from girls? Do they think differently? Do they play differently? Do they learn differently? Do they hear differently? Do they talk differently? Are they hard -wired differently? Finally modern science can now explain the many gender differences that influence every aspect of our lives. Understanding these differences will help parents in raising their sons and daughters and explain to married couples why their spouse thinks, talks and acts the way he/she does. This workshop is a good one to attend with your partner!

19. Fostering - Take This Job and "Love" It. (3 hours)
"Fostering has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my life. It is also one of the most difficult . I'm not sure I can keep this up much longer". (quote from a long time foster parent) Balancing the demands placed on foster parents is no easy task and not a job for the faint of heart. This workshop explores valuable insights into the "real world" of fostering - the good, the bad and the ugly. It provides practical steps foster parents can take to manage the stresses inherent in sharing your home and family with a child in need.

20. Working with Birth Parents (2 hours)
The Children's Aid Society has a legal responsibility to provide care for children who for a variety of reasons are unable to live with their birth family. The preferred arrangement for most of these children is to live temporarily within a foster home and work towards the reunification of the family. A respectful, working relationship between the foster parents and birth parents can provide an essential ingredient in the reunification process. A good relationship results in a win, win, win, win situation:
- win for the child
- win for the birth parents
- win for the foster parents
- win for the CAS
This workshop explores practical ideas on how foster parents can facilitate healthy outcomes for children and their families.

Comments from Workshop Participants

"Thanks for the 'hands on' materials you provided. We can start tomorrow implementing some of your ideas"

"Informative, practical - My teachers thought Rick's workshop was the best PD in years"

"He made it interesting and enjoyable"

"His enthusiasm is infectious"

"Everyone in childcare should hear him speak"

"It was great - I wish the workshop was longer"

"Thumbs up" "Wonderful notes"

"Professional, knowledgeable and stimulating"

"I liked his sense of humour and 'down to earth' reality"

"The format of the workshop was excellent. Easy to listen to. Teaching was clear. I liked the handouts."

"Your real life stories about real live kids brought the theory to life."

"My wife made me come to this workshop, I'm glad she did!"