DadTalk Blog

Over the recent holiday season, the old adage “caring is sharing” often comes to mind. Sharing gifts. Sharing time with family and friends. Sharing food (perhaps a cookie or two). These are all wonderful ways to show others that we care about them, and excellent skills to be teaching our children.

But caring is more than sharing, and is fundamentally important to helping raise our children to be empathetic, responsible, successful, and...

The number of fathers in U.S. jails and prisons has increased four-fold since 1980.  Ninety-two percent of the more than 800,000 incarcerated parents in federal and state prisons are fathers.  Each year, nearly 700,000 prisoners are released from state and federal facilities, and many more are cycled through local jail facilities. As they return to their families and communities, they may face challenges in various areas, such as establishing...

Empathy is at the heart of what it means to be human.

Harvard University’s Making Caring Common project provides a clear understanding of empathy. Understanding the importance of empathy is key in preventing bullying and for developing healthy and positive relationships. Building skills to support empathetic behavior is incredibly important in helping children become successful adults.

Empathy is not only the ability to...

In December, families often take time to come together and celebrate the holidays. Whether you are taking part in traditions that have been in your family for generations or creating new ones with your own kids, the holiday season is a perfect time to reinforce the values of charity and generosity. It’s easy for kids to become wrapped up in getting presents, but during the holidays, you can show them that spending time giving back to others...

Ed. Note: This post first appeared on the CASA FamilyDay blog. Read the original post here.

Learn more tips on how fathers can share stories about their family history with their children to help them to value both their heritage and who they are as individuals. With our NRFC Spotlight on Dads Forever Family: Ancestors Who Shaped Our Lives, available in English and Spanish.

Knowing their family’s history can be a source of...

Ed note: This post originally appeared in the ACF Family Room Blog. View the original post here.

As the days and nights start to get colder, there are steps you and your family can take to ensure a safer winter.

Keep Temperatures Consistent

Home energy studies show that keeping homes a constant temperature of at least 68 degrees can prevent health and safety-related crises, such as asthma or hypothermia, that may result...

August 2016 celebrated the 21st anniversary of National Child Support Awareness Month. On August 5, 1995, President William J. Clinton signed Proclamation 6814 highlighting the importance of providing for our children as the “sum of our past and the promise of our future,” and acknowledging the role of all child support programs to ensuring children receive the necessary financial support to “lead secure and healthy lives.”

Today,...

The Thanksgiving holiday is the perfect time to reflect on what we have to be thankful for in our lives, spend quality time with family, take a break from work and school, and of course, eat some pie! Whether you travel to visit others or stay at home this year, here are some ideas for getting the most out of this Thanksgiving holiday with your kids.

November is a great month. For sports fans, baseball, football, hockey, and basketball are all active at the same time (if only for a few days of baseball). For lovers of the outdoors, cool weather and changing leaves in many parts of the country are a great opportunity to take a walk or hike as a family. At the end of the month many families will come together to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday.

November is also a month where we...

Ed note: This post originally appeared in the ACF Family Room Blog. View the original post here.

Domestic violence is a national public health challenge that crosses racial, cultural, and geographic boundaries. On average, 20 people per minute are victims of physical violence by an intimate partner in the United States — that’s about twelve million people each year.

We know the numbers of those experiencing such violence are far...