Episode Details

Hey, homeschoolers! Does your child struggle with self-control? Judging by the response to my session on self-control at the Great Homeschool Conventions, I’m going to guess that the answer for many is yes. Self-control is an overarching concept that includes emotion management and control of what we say and do. It means that our child can say no to their desires that can have immediate or long-term negative consequences–especially when in challenging situations.

Parents who want to talk to me about their child’s self-control are often concerned with how their child’s words or actions create sibling conflict, or they’re concerned about their child spending a lot of time spent in rewarding activities like gaming in lieu of doing chores or studying. These same parents admit that they too are struggling with some aspects of self-control. I have been there with both children’s struggles and my own.

In this episode, I want to spend time discussing why your child might be struggling and some solutions based on those root causes. In particular, I want to challenge the association we often make that can prevent us from choosing an effective solution.

Before we dive in though, I am happy to announce the release of the second level of Training Aliens, the story-based curriculum I created to help parents like you teach self-control and other vital social and emotional skills. For a limited time, you’ll save 20% on either level of the curriculum designed for K-8th graders. Level 2 has the alien siblings returning to space camp, learning how to turn acquaintances into friends, how to deal with worry, how to respond to someone who’s teasing them, how to help someone who’s grieving, and 12 more intermediate skills. As with Level 1, the curriculum includes a 5-minute story about the aliens struggling with a skill and two choices for dealing with it that are common but ineffective. The training manual includes discussion questions, dramatizations, games, and STEM activities in addition to the course where I am teaching the skill in a short, engaging video. As before, you need just one copy for your family or co-op group. Sara had this to say about Level 1:

I cannot recommend Training Aliens enough! Managing emotions is tough but Melanie makes it super fun and engaging for the kids. We are using this curriculum with a group of friends, doing one lesson a week. We chose to do the faith-based book. The kids have loved acting out the Bible passages, movement activities, and the show and tell. I’ve seen super shy kids coming out of their shell, some being more mindful of others, and overall have seen so much growth this year. It is great for families but even more fun with friends. We have been so blessed by Melanie and