More than 140 parents of tweens (grades 5 through 8) braved the December chill to learn more about “Warmhearted-Coolheaded Parenting.”

The event, which was the first in a series of several evenings planned to support parents of kids in this age group, featured presenters Karolynn Flynn and Kathie McCarthy, and was offered by a partnership between Raising Resilience, Hyla Middle School, and the Bainbridge Island School District, and funded by a grant from the Bainbridge Community Foundation.

The series focuses on a model of parenting called “Intentional Parenting.” Flynn and McCarthy presented the foundation for the series, which included the research and science behind an approach that combines warmth, support, stability, emotional responsiveness (which is the “warmhearted” part) with limit-setting and parents’ own (“coolheaded”) self-regulation.

Flynn and McCarthy referred to this event as the “lecture” while subsequent events in January, February and March will be more like a “lab.”

“Information doesn’t change us; practice does,” Flynn noted.

Along with information about this model, the presenters reminded participants of the positive outcomes parents can expect from the tween years, and reasons not to wish this stage away.

“The process becomes more manageable when we remember we really do want our kids to become adults, and they need our help!” McCarthy said.

“The kick-off was an effort to provide the parents with a map of the territory of parenting tweens,” Flynn said. “In the next events, we’ll practice strategies that can help parents build confidence and effectiveness as they journey through this territory with their kids.”

Parents reported that they found the December kickoff event worthwhile.

Participant Bonnie Albin Fraik, a parent of an 11-year-old, said, “What was most valuable and struck a chord was when one of the speakers asked us to look around. [She said] ‘The people that you see in this room are your community and they are here with the same intention to raise our children in the best way we can.’ My hope for future events is to continue to build community and specifically for me, to learn how best to give the space for my daughter to talk to me.”

Parents who didn’t attend are welcome to jump in later; four more events are planned for January, February, March and April. And throughout this school year, participants will receive weekly email messages that include “TIPs” – Tools for Intentional Parenting.

These messages will also be posted on Facebook and the Raising Resilience blog at www.raisingresilience.org/blog. Included will be responses to questions raised by program participants.

Learn more at www.raisingresilience.org.