In light of my recent post on Birth Order: How it Affects Children and Family I thought I would follow up with some parenting advice specific to your children based on their birth order.  Now, do not misconstrue this as though I am trying to tell you how to raise your children, or what to do with them.  You can take it or leave it, because all that matters is that you know your children, and what is best for them.  This is just meant to be some friendly help, as it may work for some, and that is my hope.

A healthy family comes in all shapes and sizes, and means all sorts of different things to different people.  A healthy family for one, does not mean a healthy family for another, so what this advice means to you, it may not mean to others.  Every child is different, as is every situation, and of course this cannot account for all of them.

Instead of regurgitating things I have read from other sources, I thought I would provide links to more information for each group.  Of course, so that this blog becomes my own instead of a few trackbacks to other people’s work, I’ll provide a sneak peek of what each one offers, and some of my own thoughts!

For your First Born: This article from parents.com provides ten tips for parenting your first born child.  This includes things like: letting the child make their own decision, not making the child your “eyes and ears”/primary caretakers for his or her siblings, and making time for them if there are lots of other siblings.  This makes sense because the first born is often the babysitter for his or her siblings, and often is expected to lead.  It will allow the child to be his or her age, instead of a mini-adult too soon.

For your Middle Child:  This article from parents.com provides ten tips for parenting your middle child.  This includes things like: making special time for the child without the others around, encouraging differences between the children, and recognizing his or her accomplishments.  This will help the child from getting lost between the one before him or her, and the one after him or her.

For Youngest Child: This article from parents.com provides ten tips for parenting your last born child. This inclueds things like:  playing fair, holding the child accountable for his or her actions, and being careful not to show too much attention to the youngest child in comparision to how much attention you give the other child or children in your family.  This will help the child see that he or she is equal to his or her siblings, and the siblings will not feel as though this child is favored any more or less than they are.

This makes sense to me, of course, but is not the only thing I would ever rely on.  So, tell me what you think about it, and if it has helped you in anyway.  Does any of this advice help your family, or do you think it would?

Photo Credit: Cindy Watrous (personal photo of my son from 2006)