Anna Partridge

Resilience goes hand in hand with mental wellness. With the alarming rates of children suffering from anxiety, depression and other mental health issues, resilience is a buffer to mental wellness. Resilience is the ability to bounce back mentally, physically and emotionally and to develop this skill in our children through many and varied strategies is one of the best gifts we can give. I have seen the dearth of resilience many times with the students I have taught as well as in my own family. As a Military family we have moved around to many different cities and even countries. By the time my daughter was 10, she had moved house seven times which meant she had been to seven different schools by high school. She struggled with the moves and rightly so. I started research parenting styles and ways to help her move from one place to the next as well as talking to many Military wives and families who had come before me. It seemed that having resilience was the main trait to maintaining a smooth transition. The questions came up time and again, how do I instil resilience in my 5 year old (and subsequent children)? As a school teacher, this experience coincided with the dearth of resilience I was seeing in classrooms and with the conversations I was having with parents. It set me on a path of exploration.... I interviewed hundreds of parents, school principals, teachers, parent educators, elders in communities, well respected community members and mental health experts as well as researched for many, many months to come up with a road map to raise children who are resilient and can navigate the ups and downs of life. With a focus on raising a child with a strong mind, brave heart and healthy body, this book sets out practical ideas to instil resilience in our children and protect our children's mental health along the way.

You have been drawn to this book as a parent. This book will provide ideas and strategies for both you and your child to raise a resilient child. It is now your job to think about the research, education and conversations I have had with others to use what you need to raise your child to be resilient, confident and emotionally intelligent. With a parent lens on, whatever resonated, take - whatever doesn't, leave. That is what research and reading is all about. I don't profess to be a parenting expert, but rather a parent and teacher who came across a problem and found a path that suited my own children as well as many other children and families who I have worked with over the years. Whatever you take with you from this book - thank you for including me for a short time on your parenting journey. I look forward to hearing your stories.