Faculty of Education and Psychology organises sessions on the challenges of parenthood

Tantrums, digital literacy, healthy parenting after divorce, warning signs in children and young people in terms of mental health, children's socio-emotional development and how to reconcile the multiple roles in parenting are some of the themes of the sessions in another cycle of the Learning to Educate initiative, promoted by the Faculty of Education and Psychology at Universidade Católica Portuguesa.

Organised by psychologists, the sessions are aimed at parents and take place at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa in Porto on Fridays from 9.30pm to 11.30pm.

"The Learning to Educate programme is a valuable tool for all parents who want to explore and develop parenting skills and strengthen parent-child relationships," says Lurdes Veríssimo, a lecturer at the Faculty of Education and Psychology and coordinator of the Learning to Educate initiative. "We are constantly learning and evolving and parenting is no exception," says Lurdes Veríssimo, adding that "as well as being marvellous, parenting is also challenging because it is always adapting with the times and so we have to find strategies to embrace these challenges."

The first session will take place on 12 April on "Contextualising and Discussing Strategies to Prevent and Manage Tantrums", with the presence of Lurdes Veríssimo, a psychologist at the University Psychology Clinic of the Faculty of Education and Psychology of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa. The second is scheduled for 19 April and will cover the topic of "Digital literacy: how do I deal with the time my child spends on their mobile phone?", with Raquel Duarte, a psychologist at the Clínica Universitária de Psicologia. On 10 May, the session will be on "Healthy Parenting After Divorce", with Benedita Silva Pereira, a psychologist at the Clínica Universitária de Psicologia. "Mental Health: warning signs in children and young people!" is the theme of the session scheduled for 24 May, with Alexandra Carneiro, a psychologist at the Clínica Universitária de Psicologia. Under the theme "I want my child to be happy!", the 7 June session will feature Lurdes Veríssimo, a psychologist at the Clínica Universitária de Psicologia. The last session is scheduled for 21 June and will address the theme "I'm a parent, but not only... how do I reconcile my multiple roles?", with Francisca Pereira, a psychologist at the Clínica Universitária de Psicologia, speaking.

Developed by experts in psychology, the programme aims to spark reflection and debate around important current challenges in the education of children and young people, discussing practical strategies that optimise the parental role. The programme is aimed at anyone who recognises the need to learn and reflect more on the task of educating.

The "Learning to Educate" programme is always held on Fridays, from 9.30pm to 11.30pm, at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa in Porto, allowing parents to choose the topics they would most like to study in depth, thus adapting to their interests and needs.