Storytime with Author of Children's Etiquette Books

Teaching Kids Gratitude Is Secret to Happier Children
Etiquette teacher writes children’s book that teaches gratitude, empathy & good table manners!

Learning ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ not only teaches your child how to be polite, but studies show that teaching gratitude creates happier and more focused children.
 
“Manners are so important because they change how your child sees the world,” says manners teacher Karin Lefranc, and author of A Quest for Good Manners, a new children’s book published June 1. In this delightful picture book, Princess Rosalind and her pet dragon Sparkler are banished from the castle for their appalling manners. Young readers become enthralled in the story as they discover the answer to Princess Rosalind’s question, “What is the big deal with manners anyway?”
 
Good manners make others feel at ease and are the foundation of compassion and gratitude—Lefranc’s book is a wonderful tool to help parents and teachers instill these important traits. “Children are born with a sense of entitlement. As babies, of course we pick them up when they cry and feed them when they are hungry. As our child grows, we want to change this sense of entitlement into gratitude. If the result is a happier, more resilient, and more optimistic child, what choice to we have.” says Lefranc.
 
With four children of her own—all under 10 years old—Lefranc understands the never-ending quest for parents to teach young boys and girls empathy and consideration. “Our children become deaf to our perpetual pleas,” Lefranc said, “and so outside help like a book or a fun manners class are wonderful ways to reinforce what we are trying to teach at home.”
 
3 things Lefranc suggests parents do to help their children find good manners:
1.     Role play: practice being different people like a new teacher or neigbhor, and shake hands with your child, practicing eye contact and smiling.
2.     Have your child set the table: they learn the parts to a place setting, and it helps mom and dad get dinner on the table.
3.     Discuss appropriate behavior with kids before a birthday party, play date or sleepover: have your child brainstorm ways they can display good manners. Let them know how lucky they are to be invited, and ask them questions like why is it important when going home to say “Thank you for inviting me.”
 
Aside from writing and teaching etiquette, Lefranc runs The Firefly Center in Avon, Connecticut www.thefireflycenter.com), which offers Love & Logic Parenting classes, Kids Yoga, Fun Manners classes and more! She and her family settled in nearby Simsbury after Lefranc traveled the world, working for IDG Books to license the “Dummies” series (http://www.dummies.com/) into different languages. A Quest for Good Manners is Lefranc’s first children’s book.
 
“If we don’t teach kids gratitude and practice it with them, they grow up feeling entitled, and entitlement does not lead to happiness. On the contrary, it leads to feelings of disappointment and frustration. In contrast, gratitude makes us happy and satisfied with our lives”—Christine Carter — a sociologist, happiness expert, and director of UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Parents program.


“Well-Being: Grateful people report higher levels of positive emotions, life satisfaction, vitality, optimism and lower levels of depression and stress.”—Emmons Lab, UC Davis
 
Lefranc is taking the fun and etiquette lessons to Mount Pleasant, where she's hosting a few free events for children and their parents.

On July 15 from 12:50 to 1:15 p.m., Karin will be stopping by Fashion Camp to meet with the Junior Etiquette Team at the Mount Pleasant B&N (1716 Towne Centre Way).

And on the next day, July 16, she will be hosting a storytime at 2 p.m. at the Mount Pleasant B&N.

At each event, she will be reading from the new book and dolling out manners tips for kids and their parents to take home and try.


Learn more about Lefranc and A Quest for Good Manners: www.AQuestForGoodManners.com
 
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