Skills Training for Struggling Kids

Challenging kids don't behave badly on purpose -- they are simply struggling to "catch up" in key areas of psychological and cognitive development. If your child or teen's emotional or behavioral difficulties are getting in the way of success at home, at school, or in social situations, this is the book for you. Dr. Michael Bloomquist has spent decades helping parents to understand acting-out kids and support their healthy development. In these pages, he presents tried-and-true ways you can build your 5- to 17-year-old's skills to: *Follow rules and behave honestly.*Curb angry outbursts.*Make and maintain friendships. *Express feelings productively.*Stay on task at school.*Resolve conflicts with siblings. *Manage stress.Loads of checklists, worksheets, and troubleshooting tips help you select and implement the strategies that meet your child's specific needs. You'll also build your own skills for parenting effectively when the going gets tough. Systematic, compassionate, and practical, the book is grounded in state-of-the-art research. The road to positive changes for your child and family starts here.Mental health professionals, see also the related title The Practitioner Guide to Skills Training for Struggling Kids.

Dr. Bloomquist speaks frankly to parents and emphasizes ways to overcome barriers to change, such as a child's protests against following rules. He also helps you learn to cope with your own emotional reactions in difficult family situations.--John E. Lochman, PhD, ABPP, Director, Center for Prevention of Youth Behavior Problems, University of AlabamaWe have been using the methods in this book with our two children for a while--Dr. Bloomquist's positive skills-building program is powerful! Practicing the skills and making them part of our everyday life has helped us grow closer as a family.--Margaret N. Dr. Bloomquist's approach has given us insight into why our son acts (and reacts) the way he does. Learning these techniques was like being handed an indispensable toolbox for addressing problem behavior. Now we can resolve challenges with a lot less chaos and stress.--Marci and Matthew H.Bloomquist draws on a wealth of experience in both research and applied settings. Strengths of this parent guide include its focus on children's and teens' competencies across a broad age span; the inclusion of strategies to enhance parental well-being and family functioning; and the emphasis on skills building for both children and parents. Highly recommended!--Robert J. McMahon, PhD, Department of Psychology, Simon Fraser University, and Child and Family Research Institute, Canada -Bloomquist presents a wide variety of solutions for many of the behavioral and emotional challenges often experienced by children in the 5- to 17-year age range….The procedures presented are derived from behavior therapy techniques that are well-tested and well-proven. As with many current similar training books, this book can be modularized such that relevant sections can be utilized ensuring the skills training program is tailored for each particular child….Both the parental book and the practitioner book are complete in that they contain not only the training modules but all the forms and assessment tools necessary to enhance compliance and maintenance of treatment fidelity….Practitioners wanting a well-done, thorough, and comprehensive modularized book to offer to parents who wish to work along with the therapist would do well to recommend this pair of books.--Child and Family Behavior Therapy, 1/2/2014

Michael L. Bloomquist, PhD, a child psychologist, is Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Minnesota, where he conducts research and trains practitioners. The author of books including Skills Training for Struggling Kids (for parents) and The Practitioner Guide to Skills Training for Struggling Kids (for mental health professionals), Dr. Bloomquist has written extensively about effective intervention methods. He has worked with struggling kids and teens and their families for more than 30 years.