Jennifer Wilke-Deaton - Parenting Better Children: An 8 Week Skills Training Guide to Reach, Teach & Empower

Parenting
Better
Children

An 8-Week Skills Training Program
Guide To Reach, Teach & Empower

Jennifer L. Wilke-Deaton, MA, LPA

I love her simple, concrete examples that make even the most complex parent/child interactions accessible and doable. I would sign up for this class as I no doubt would glean even more insight into working with my own clients.

Brian R. King, LCSW

Author of the Perfect Moments in Relationships: Lessons in Connection for Work, Family, Love, and Life

Jennifer Wilke-Deaton has developed a fantastic resource for clinicians working with children and families. Her step by step Parenting Course takes the reader through a well-organized, easy to apply program. Jens perspective, drawn from years of clinical expertise, along with the detailed research she presents makes this book truly credible and applicable to todays parenting challenges.

Susan P. Epstein, LCSW

author of 55 Creative Approaches for Challenging & Resistant Children & Adolescents and Over 60 Techniques, Activities & Worksheets for Challenging Children & Adolescents

Weaving together her practical clinical experience and current research, Jennifer provides cleanly organized parenting strategies for both parents and clinicians. This class provides highly effective techniques I share on a daily basis with parents of youth involved in the juvenile justice system.

L.C. Jones, Attorney

Juvenile Specialist

Jennifer Wilke-Deaton has hit a home-run with this practical blueprint for improving parental success in the most common circumstances. She has standardized the basics and still managed to leave room for flexibility, so families can truly adapt these lessons to meet the needs of the particular challenges in their own home environment. I really like the movement away from reliance on arbitrary tokens to manage behavior and the focus on intentional relationship building to set new norms for family success. This will definitely improve our work to strengthen youth and family connections in the field.

Hasan Davis, J.D.,

former commissioner of Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice and Child and Family Advocate

Jennifer Wilke-Deaton, MA, LPA, is a licensed behavioral health therapist working in a private practice setting in Richmond, KY. Jen has more than 15 years of experience working with crisis management, psychological testing, inpatient/outpatient treatment, groups, families, and the court system. A tireless and passionate advocate for children and families, she developed a parent training program recognized by the Governors Commission for the Treatment of Children &Families and Kentuckys Child Protective Services. Jen helped create a regional childrens crisis stabilization unit, childrens advocacy center, and an intensive after-school program for behaviorally-challenged youth. She has published the Creative Parenting Handbook, CD Awareness In Focus: Modern Guided Imagery Techniques for Immediate Practice, CD Awareness in Focus By Kids For Kids, and The Mandala Workbook: Activities Across the Lifespan.

In addition to delivering her nationally recognized training programs for PESI/CMI and keynote presentations, Jen regularly speaks on mental health issues and child abuse for Morehead State University, Eastern Kentucky University, KY Child Protective Services, and National Public Radio; as well as providing psychological evaluations and therapeutic services for the Department of Disability Determinations and the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation. Jennifer consults regularly for private/state foster care organizations, social services, schools, psychiatric hospitals, Head Start programs, in-home therapy programs, and case management services. Her specialties are in the areas of child abuse, PTSD, DBT, behavioral disorders, anxiety, autistic spectrum, and attachment. Jen shares time-tested, real approaches from the trenches, using humor, energy and passion for helping others.

Dedication

To my beautiful and precocious daughter, Ella, who has given me perspective about parenting that I never would have gained without her.

To my husband, David, who supports me in every single endeavor without fail.

To my mother-in-law, Geraldine, for her insight, patience, and knowledge.

To my sister, LeAnn, who gave of her time generously (hours of playing princess, ponies and dress-up) so that this book could make it onto the pages.

My Grams.

And to the rest of my friends and family, who challenge me each day to be a better person and more effective clinician.

I am eternally grateful for you all!

Copyright 2014 by Jennifer L . Wilke-Deaton

Published by

PESI Publishing and Media
PESI, Inc.
3839 White Ave
Eau Claire, WI 54703

Cover Design: Amy Rubenzer

Layout: Kayla Huset
Editing: Kayla Huset

Printed in the United States of America

ISBN: 978-1-937661-60-1

All rights reserved. Reproduction of the handouts included in this book is highly encouraged for professional use with clients and students. All pages are copyrighted and permission to reproduce is only granted if the header and footer at the top and bottom of the page are included in the copy. Reproduction for all other purposes requires written permission from the author (except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review).

Authors Notes

As I have traveled around the US and taught individuals in the helping profession for the past decade; my insight to the problems facing our youth, and the needs of their care providers and families has expanded exponentially. I have been privileged to meet people in all capacities, from teachers, clinicians, and residential staff to occupational therapists, speech/language pathologists, and parents. All of whom are compelled to make the effort to help our children and youth in the best way we possibly can. I have met people hungry for more knowledge and eager to learn new techniques for helping all they come in contact with. As I often say at the start of my seminars, we are all colleagues and teachers. We are all working in the trenches, doing the very best we can to help improve the lives of those we have been given the responsibility to better. I know the people I have been honored to meet take this charge seriously. The desire to offer the most well-informed and empirically researched tools they possibly can is apparent in the many questions I answer, troubleshooting I try to offer for specific cases, and the emails I respond to. I am eternally appreciative of the contacts with all of these individuals, as they truly inspire me to attempt to think outside of the box and endeavor to find the most efficient way to communicate often difficult concepts in ways that are easily applied in diverse settings.

I, too, am constantly searching for something new and inspiring to engage the families and children I work with on a daily basis. I attend seminars as well, hoping to glean information and experience different ways of thinking about tools for kids to be the very best they can be. I am passionate in the belief that we all have the capacity to improve our ability to live in this ever changing world. This is our world of unpredictability, overwhelming expectations, and uncertain futures. It is a world that our children and our childrens children will inherit, and it is our duty to prepare them in the best way we possibly can to achieve and endeavor to be amazing.