A word from the authors
“To Dr. Ginott, who gave us the skills to be more helpful to our children and more generous to ourselves, we owe much. We can never repay him. What we can do is record our experience and share it with other parents, in hope that they will take from it what is useful to them.” – Adele Faber et Elaine Mazlish.
In the beginning : two mothers…
Adele Faber
Mother and co-author of the How to Talk approach
Adele Faber graduated from Queens College with a B.A. in theater and drama, earned her master’s degree in education from New York University, and taught in the New York City High schools for eight years. Born in 1928, she continues her work alongside her daughter, Joanna Faber.
Internationally acclaimed experts on communication between adults and children, Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish have produced a body of work that has won the gratitude of parents and the enthusiastic praise of the professional community.
Their first book, Liberated Parents/Liberated Children, was selected by the Book of the Month club and received the Christopher Award for “literary achievement affirming the highest values of the human spirit.” Their subsequent books, How To Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk and Siblings Without Rivalry (#1 on The New York Times bestseller list) have sold over three million copies and have been translated into over thirty languages. This was followed by How To Talk So Kids Can Learn – At Home and in School, cited by Child Magazine as the “best book of the year for excellence in family issues in education.” They have also created books for children, teaching them communication skills, Bobby and the Brockles and Bobby and The Brockles Go To School, and a book of photographs and poetry, Between Brothers and Sisters – A Celebration of Life’s Most Enduring Relationship.
The authors’ group workshop programs are currently being used by thousands of parent and teacher groups around the world to improve relationships with children. Their most recent book, How To Talk So Teens Will Listen & Listen So Teens Will Talk, tackles the tough problems of the teenage years. Their work has been documented in Who’s Who in America for the past three decades.
Both authors studied with the late child psychologist, Dr. Haim Ginott, and are former members of the faculty of The New School for Social Research in New York and The Family Life Institute of Long Island University. In addition to their frequent lectures throughout the United States, Canada and abroad, they have appeared on every major television talk show from Oprah to Good Morning America. Each is the parent of three children.
Elaine Mazlish
Mother and co-author of the How to Talk approach
Elaine Mazlish graduated from New York University with a Bachelor of Science degree in theater arts and directed children’s programs at Grosvenor house and Lenox Hill Settlements. She was also a professional artist and composer. She passed away in 2017, at the age of 92 years old.
The Next Generation: The Adventure Continues!
Joanna Faber
Mother and co-author
Joanna Faber is a parenting and education expert. She contributed heavily to her mother’s award-winning book How to Talk So Kids Can Learn and wrote a new afterword for the thirtieth-anniversary edition of How to talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk. She lectures and conducts workshops based on her mother’s work and her own experiences as a parent and educator. Joanna lives in the Hudson Valley region of New-York with her husband, three sons, dogs, cats, and an assortment of chickens.
Julie King
Mother and co-author
Julie King has been educating and supporting parents and professionals since 1995. In addition to her work with individual parents and couples, she leads “How to Talk…” workshops for numerous schools, nonprofits, and parent groups. Julie received her AB from Princeton University and a JD from Yale Law School. She lives in the Sanfrisco Bay Area and is the mother of three. Julie and Joanna have been friends since they were six and ten months old, respectively.
Adele Faber talks about it with enthusiasm and emotion...
Excerpt from the foreword by Adele Faber, in their book ‘How to Talk So Little Kids Will Listen’: :
“The first hint I had of the passion that would fuel the creation of this book came when it was my turn to carpool the authors to nursery school.
[···] The little girls I drove to nursery school are grown, married, and each has three children of her own. Each has lived abroad and explored different areas of study.
[···] Finally, each woman found herself responding to the urgent need for parenting workshops in her part of the world: Joanna on the East Coast, Julie on the West. After years of helping parents, many of whom had young children who presented a wide variety of challenges, they decided to join forces and produce a book of their own: “How to Talk So Little Kids Will listen: A Survival Guide to Life with Children Ages 2 to 7″. Elaine and I expect you’ll be delighted and enlightened by all the discoveries you’ll make as you turn its pages.”
– It is our hope to create a community of adults who share ideas and support each other in our most important task: raising the next generation. – Joanna et Julie
Roseline Roy
Mother and co-author of the "How to Talk So Kids Can Learn" workshop
Roseline Roy has translated and published all the works of Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish. She has made their material known throughout Canada and internationally by offering workshops and conferences throughout the francophone world. Thousands of parents, teachers and professionals who work with children have benefited from her experience in the field of adult-child communication. Her enthusiasm for this work has led her to transpose the Faber-Mazlish workshops to the school context, with the collaboration of Christine Dapvril, Adele Faber and Joanna Faber.
Roseline is the mother of five, and lives in New Brunswick, Canada. She has graduate degrees in education and psychology. As the director of the publishing company Aux Éditions du Phare, she and her team continue to translate, publish and promote the How to Talk approach, now including Joanna Faber’s publications.
Christine Dapvril
Mother and co-author of the "How to Talk So Kids Can Learn" workshop
Christine Dapvril, a high school teacher of 25 years, has trained in many techniques to help children struggling in schools. She was also searching for practical means to support teachers and parents. With the How to Talk approach, she found skills to convey the values of tolerance and respect for others and to motivate children to succeed in school. She has been leading Faber-Mazlish workshops with parents for many years.
Eager to share her experience with other teachers, she teamed up with Roseline, Adele and Joanna to create the How to Talk So Kids Can Learn Workshop. Christine now devotes her time to promoting respectful communication in the schools and conducting workshops on communication skills and educational guidance for students.
Christine lives in France and is the mother of four.
Christine's story
As soon as I discovered Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish’s books, I understood that I had a treasure in my hands. Of course, I immediately started practicing the skills in my daily life as a mother and a teacher. I was so excited about the effects on the children and on myself that I wanted to create a workshop for teachers.
After contacting Roseline, I learned that she’s also had this wish for a long time. After numerous email exchanges, we met in Paris, during a training course to lead Faber-Mazlish workshops. I discovered a woman full of enthusiasm and humor! Driven by our common passion for the material and our complementary experiences, with the agreement of Adele Faber, we have created a new workshop: How to Talk So Kids Can Learn.
Given the importance of the task, Adele joined us, and then Joanna. Thanks to this precious collaboration, the result exceeded our expectations! Not only is it accessible in French and English, it’s also ready to translate to other languages.
Roseline and I hope that you will enjoy your journey with the skills offered during this workshop. Like many teachers and parents already, we want you to be able to rejoice in the evolution of your relationship with your students and your children, the evolution of the relationship between them, as well as the evolution of their relationship to the learning.