Parent Resources

Welcome to your resource list of podcasts, books, articles and more to further your learning and support in raising a young child. This list is curated by current and past families so you have the most useful resources in your toolbox!

Books 

• Adventuring Together: How to Create Connections and Make Lasting Memories with Your Kids, by Greta Eskridg: a modern, practical, and inspiring guide to creating deep heart connections with kids by regularly creating new experiences and intentional adventures together

• Cribsheet: A Data-Driven Guide to Better, More Relaxed Parenting, from Birth to Preschool, by Emily Oster: economics is the science of decision-making, and Cribsheet is a thinking parent's guide to the chaos and frequent misinformation of the early years.

• The Family Firm: A Data-Driven Guide to Better Decision Making in the Early School Years by Emily Oster: a classic business school framework for data-driven parents to think more deliberately about the key issues of the elementary years: school, health, extracurricular activities, and more.

• French Kids Eat Everything: How Our Family Moved to France, Cured Picky Eating, Banned Snacking, and Discovered 10 Simple Rules for Raising Happy, Healthy Eaters, by Karen Le Billon: a fun read that has really practical tips for encouraging kids to eat a wide range of foods.

• Good Inside: A Guide to Becoming the Parent You Want to Be, by Dr. Becky Kennedy: a wise and practical guide to raising resilient, emotionally healthy kids, a supportive resource for overwhelmed parents who need more compassion and less stress.

• How to Raise a Wild Child: The Art and Science of Falling in Love with Nature, by Scott D. Sampson: a timely and engaging antidote, offering teachers, parents, and other caregivers the necessary tools to engender a meaningful, lasting connection between children and the natural world.

• Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder, by Richard Louv: shows us an alternative future, one in which parents help their kids experience the natural world more deeply—and find the joy of family connectedness in the process.

• No Bad Kids: Toddler Discipline Without Shame, by Janet Lansbury: a collection of Janet's articles pertaining to common toddler behaviors and how respectful parenting practices can be applied to benefit both parents and children.

• The Opposite of Worry: The Playful Parenting Approach to Childhood Anxieties and Fears, by Lawrence J. Cohen: I recommend this book to anyone that has a kid that struggles with fear or anxiety -- lots of specific tools and strategies and interesting stories.

• Playful Parenting: An Exciting New Approach to Raising Children That Will Help You Nurture Close Connections, Solve Behavior Problems, and Encourage Confidence, Lawrence J. Cohen: written by a psychologist, providing specific ways to use play to raise confident and healthy kids.

• Simplicity Parenting: Using the Power of Less to Raise Happy, Secure Children, by Kim John Payne: for parents who want to slow down, but who don't know how and for families with too much stuff and too many choices. The author presents four simple steps for de-cluttering, quieting, and soothing family dynamics so that children can thrive at school, get along with peers, and nurture wellbeing

• The Sleepeasy Solution: The Exhausted Parent's Guide to Getting Your Child to Sleep from Birth to Age 5, by Jennifer Waldburger & Jill Spivack: Psychotherapists and sleep specialists share their sleep technique that will get any child snoozing in no time. The key to their method? It addresses the emotional needs of both the parent and child - a critical component of why other sleep methods fail.

• Social Justice Parenting: How to Raise Compassionate, Anti-Racist, Justice-Minded Kids in an Unjust World, by Traci Baxley: essential reading for all parents committed to social change, Social Justice Parenting offers parents everywhere the opportunity to nurture a future generation of humane, compassionate individuals.

• The Whole Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind, by Tina Payne Bryson and Dan Siegel: gives specific parenting strategies to foster healthy brain development, particularly navigating the balance between the emotions of the right brain and the logic of the left brain. 

Podcasts

• Good Inside parenting podcast, real parents’ questions answered directly by Dr. Becky

• Mindful Mama - Parenting with Mindfulness a mindful guide to breaking the cycle of reactive parenting and raising kind, confident kids.

• No One is Coming to Save Us - a weekly podcast covering America’s childcare crisis and the people of all ages who are crushed by it.

• ParentData by Emily Oster makes sense of the latest data about pregnancy and parenting.

• Raising Good Humans with Dr. Aliza Pressman putting evidence-based practices into everyday parenting. Judgment-free, science-backed, parent-empowering topics and tools hosted by a developmental psychologist.

• Respectful Parenting: Unruffled addressing specific parent issues using a respectful parenting philosophy.

• The Simplicity Parenting Podcast weekly insights on children and parenting from Kim John Payne, embraces a slower pace and provides strategies to support children through difficult everyday situations.

Articles

• Scientists Say Child's Play Helps Build A Better Brain (listen or read) NPR

• A Guide To Mosquito Repellents, From DEET To ... Gin And Tonic? NPR

• Tick Prevention by Whitney Schatz 

Other Helpful Things!

• 1000 Hours Outside - Promotes outdoor time by matching screen time with time outside through the 1000 hours/year challenge. Also has a weekly podcast and resources.

• Might & Bright calendars for all sorts of things (divorce, illness, etc) and they have a really wonderful message about strength in resilience through difficult experiences not just for kids but parents too!

• Slumberkins - Social/emotional learning tools. Dedicated to helping families raise caring, confident, and resilient children through affirmations, stories and creature characters.

• Stronger Starts In California, 1 in 3 kids are at risk for toxic stress. Learn more about it here and gain resources 

• Saving for Higher Education - Student Aid and Scholarships | First 5 California Here we list out a few resources available that may help you and your family save for future higher education expenses.