RESPECT THE CHILD

Keri Knight Feldkamp of Louisville, Kentucky, shares her view of parenting.*

1) What would you say are the most important ingredients for good parenting - and why?
Respect for your child as an individual, supporting the whole child (spiritual, emotional, psychological and physical), lots of love and encouragement and healthy limits

2) If you could change the way you were parented, or the way you yourself parented, what would those changes be - and why?
I wish my parents would have supported my creativity much more and let me explore my interests. Instead, I grew up self-conscious and afraid to own my creativity.

3) What suggestions would you make to new parents?
Listen to your child and look for the qualities that make them unique and special, then nurture those qualities. Most of all, teach them to love themselves.

4) What are your suggestions to maximize a child's potential?
A child must love himself first and foremost. If not, then he will not have the inner reserve and self esteem that it takes for him to maximize his potential.
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To share your views about parenting, answer Nellie's questionnaire online at
http://www.nelliejacobs.com/questionnaire/parenting_form.php