When building self-esteem, families and schools are natural partners. Together, you and the teachers in your child's school can show your child the way to be confident and to succeed.

Know your child's teachers and work together as a team. There are many ways to make real progress in school, such as:

• Making homework and daily attendance at school a top priority
• Giving children lots of ways to succeed
• Rewarding children for success in learning
• Helping children to get along with their classmates
• Giving children confidence by allowing them to make choices and to accept the results
• Going to school for meetings with teachers for open house and for other school events

A Memo From Your 2 Year Old

• Don't be afraid to be firm with me. I prefer it. It lets me know where I stand.
• Don't use force with me. It teaches me that power is all that counts. I will respond more readily to be led.
• Don't be inconsistent. That confuses me and makes me try harder to get away with everything I can.
• Don't make me feel smaller than I am. I will make up for by behaving like a "Big Shot".
• Don't do things for me that I can do myself. It makes me feel like a baby and I may continue to put you in my service.
• Don't try to discuss my behavior in the heat of conflict for some reason my hearing is not very good at this time and my cooperation is even worse. It is all right to take the action required, but let's not talk about it until later.
• Don't make me feel like my mistakes are sins. I have to learn to make mistakes without feeling that I'm no good.
• Don't forget that I love to experiment. I learn from it. So please put up with it.
• Don't ever think that it's beneath your dignity to apologize. An honest apology makes me feel warm towards you.
• Don't ever suggest that you are perfect and infallible. It gives me too much to live up to.
• Don't forget I can't thrive without lots of love, understanding and encouragement.
• Treat me the way you treat your friends, then I will be your friend too. Remember, I learn more from a model than from a critic. (From The Whole Pediatrician Catalog, Volume 2, Saunders Books, 1979, pages 456-457)