Ambleside Parent Book Study

Raising Self-Reliant Children In a Self-Indulgent World – Seven Building Blocks for Developing Capable Young People by H. Stephen Glenn and Jane Nelson, Ed. D.

• When? Fridays beginning Oct. 2nd 8:30-9:30 a.m. You may come once or every week or every once in a while. If you miss the first week or the first few weeks, please join us when you are able. Young children may sit with us or play in the school yard while we meet.

We will meet October 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, November 6th and 13th and then resume meeting in January.

• Who should attend? Those who attended last year, those who were not able to attend and our new families.

• How do I get the book? Stop by the school office with $17 cash or a check made out to Ambleside.

• What is the book about? This parenting classic offers inspiring and workable ideas for developing a trusting relationship with children, as well as the skills to implement the necessary discipline to help your child become a responsible adult. Those who think in terms of leniency versus strictness will be disappointed. This book goes beyond these issues to teach children to be responsible and self-reliant – not through outer-directed concerns, such as fear and intimidation, but through inner-directed behavior, such as feeling accountable for one’s commitments.

Consider the following quote as a brief “appetizer” from the text:

“Every human being is born with the potential to become the world’s most capable creature, not with the capabilities themselves.  Unlike the amoeba, which is capable of functioning at its full potential from creation, humans acquire their capabilities primarily through apprenticeships:  young human beings learn from those who have preceded them.  When this apprenticeship is adequate, their toolboxes for life, which were empty at birth, are filled with the essential tools for effective living.

In times of change, these tools, which we call life resources, are particularly critical.  For convenience we usually refer to these assets as “the Significant Seven.”  Ironically, researchers initially identified them almost by their absence. (…) People who are living effectively and who were outstanding in many walks of life were characterized by unusual strength and adequacy in the Significant Seven.

More recent studies have focused on the quality of resiliency as a predictor of health, well-being, and the ability to thrive in the face of challenges and adversity.  Not surprisingly, exceptional strength in the Significant Seven have surfaced again as characteristics of highly resilient individuals.” (28)