Children's Partnership

10/10/2026

👀 LOOK AGAIN.

Over the past week, we've looked at some everyday moments that can leave us asking:

“Why does my child do this?”

The repeated questions.
The “I don't know.”
The giving up when things get difficult.
The big reaction when plans change.
The constant need for reminders.
The tears when something goes wrong.
The insistence that “I'm right!”

At first glance, these behaviours can look like defiance, rigidity, dependence or simply “not trying.”

But what happens when we look again? 👀

Perhaps the child who keeps asking is learning to manage uncertainty.

The child who gives up is still developing persistence and problem-solving.

The child who struggles with change is learning flexibility.

The child who needs constant reminders is developing independent thinking.

The child who can't cope with mistakes is learning to recover, rethink and try again.

And the child who insists on being right is learning that another person can think differently—and we can still work things out together.

🌱 Looking beyond behaviour doesn't mean ignoring it or excusing it.

It means pausing long enough to become curious:

What is difficult for this child right now?

What developmental capacity are they still building?

How can I respond in a way that supports that development?

Our goal isn't simply to raise children who follow instructions, avoid mistakes or cope quietly with change.

We want children who can think, adapt, problem-solve, recover and connect.

And these capacities grow in the small moments of everyday life.

So the next time you find yourself thinking:

“Why is my child doing this?”

Pause.

Slow down.

LOOK AGAIN. 👀

Because sometimes, when we change what we see, we change what becomes possible.

🌱 Look Again. See the development.

09/10/2026

“It's just a mistake!”

To an adult, it might be a small moment.

To a child, making a mistake can sometimes feel much bigger.

They may become upset, abandon the task or decide:

“I can't do it.”

Rather than focusing only on getting the child to calm down and try again, we can Look Again 👀

What developmental capacity might we be building?

Can the child:

🔹 notice that something didn't work?
🔹 tolerate the discomfort?
🔹 consider what happened?
🔹 change their approach?
🔹 try again?

A mistake can become more than something to correct.

It can become an opportunity for reflection, flexibility and recovery.

Try:

“That wasn't what we expected. Hmm… what could we change?”

We're helping children learn that getting something wrong doesn't mean they have failed.

Sometimes it simply means:

“Now I have some information that can help me think differently.”

08/10/2026

A cancelled activity. A different route. A restaurant being closed.

For some children, these seemingly small changes can lead to very big reactions.

It's easy to think:

“They're being inflexible.”

But let's Look Again 👀

The challenge may be the gap between:

“What I expected”

and

“What is actually happening.”

Being flexible requires much more than simply accepting a change. It involves adjusting expectations, considering alternatives, tolerating disappointment and finding a new way forward.

When something changes, instead of immediately solving the problem for your child, try creating a small opportunity to think:

💬 “This isn't what we expected. What could we do now?”

The goal isn't to make children love change.

It's to help them discover:

“Things can change, and I can figure out what to do.”

07/10/2026

“I can't do it!”

We've all heard it.

Sometimes our first instinct is to encourage:

“Yes, you can!”

But what if we looked a little deeper?

For some children, giving up isn't simply about a lack of motivation. Difficulty can bring uncertainty, frustration or the fear of getting something wrong.

The developmental opportunity isn't just to make them keep going.

It's to help them learn how to:

🧠 stay engaged when something is difficult
🧠 consider another approach
🧠 learn from what didn't work
🧠 tolerate not knowing the answer
🧠 recover and try again

Instead of immediately saying, “Try again,” try creating a moment for thinking:

“That didn't work. What could we change?”

The message becomes:

“You don't have to know the answer immediately. You can figure it out.”

Often have questions about parenting but not sure where to ask them? Join us at our community at https://tinyurl.com/sharedstepscommunity for free! :)

06/10/2026

“But I already answered that!”

When your child asks the same question again and again, it can be tempting to think they're not listening.

Look Again 👀

Could the repeated question be helping them manage uncertainty?

For some children, knowing what happens next provides a sense of predictability and reassurance.

Instead of always giving another answer, try creating a small thinking opportunity:

💬 “What do you remember?”

💬 “What do you think?”

💬 “What could you do while we wait?”

The goal isn't simply to stop the questions.

It's to help children gradually learn:

“I don't know yet — and I can handle that.”

🌱 Look Again. See the development.

05/10/2026

“I don’t know.”

Three little words that can leave parents wondering:

“But you DO know!” 😅

👀 Look Again.

Sometimes “I don’t know” isn't about not knowing.

It may be a child's way of managing the discomfort of uncertainty.

If we're always quick to provide the answer, we may accidentally miss an opportunity for our child to practise thinking for themselves.

Try:

“What do you think?”

“What could it be?”

“I'm not sure either. What could we try?”

The goal isn't to make children answer every question correctly.

It's to help them become more comfortable with:

“I'm not sure… but I can think about it.”

🌱 Look Again. See the development.

Want to find out more? Join our community at https://tinyurl.com/sharedstepscommunity and start a conversation! :) All queries welcomed :)

05/10/2026

👀 THIS WEEK, WE CHALLENGE YOU TO LOOK AGAIN.

As parents, educators and professionals, we see children's behaviour every day.

A child who refuses.
A child who keeps asking.
A child who gives up.
A child who struggles when things change.
A child who needs constant reminders.

And it's easy to think:

“How do I stop this behaviour?”

But what if we paused for a moment?

What if we looked again? 👀

Behind a behaviour we may see frustration, refusal or rigidity.

But underneath, there may be a child who is still developing the capacity to manage uncertainty, adapt, persist, think flexibly or navigate relationships.

This week, we'll be taking a closer look at some everyday behaviours and asking a different question:

What might we see if we LOOK AGAIN?

Because sometimes, changing the way we see the behaviour changes the way we respond to the child.

🌱 Look Again. See the development.

Follow along this week as we explore six everyday moments through a different lens.

03/10/2026