Shrewsbury and surrounding residents, if one of your New Year’s resolutions is to be a more present, patient or all-around better mom or dad, then Needham Talks has just the seminar for you! In 2016, Needham Talks’ will be continuing its Parent Lecture Series, with the goal of “promoting supportive and healthy parenting practices.” The series is free, thanks to sponsorship from the Needham Education Foundation, and will feature New York Times bestselling authors and internationally-acclaimed speakers, all hoping to help Massachusetts residents learn how to better manage busy schedules while improving family relationships.

Some of the specific goals of the 2016 series are to help educate parents about how to better understand and relate to tweens and teens, how to have tough yet important conversations with your children, the importance of male role models for children’s development, and how to help raise emotionally intelligent girls.

Get Involved and Grow as a Parent

The next lecture will be a male-only event, designed specifically for fathers and father figures. Michael Thompson, Ph.D. will be speaking on “The Importance of Fathers/Male Role Models in Children’s Lives.” The lecture will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m., February 4, 2016.

Then, April 6, 2016 Joani Geltman, M.S.W. will present, “The Tween/Teen Years: Understanding Adolescence and How to Build A New Relationship With Your Child,” followed by Jeanine Fitzgerald, M.A. and “The Truth About The Hard or Sensitive Topics, on June 2, 2016.

All the series lectures will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the Newman Elementary School Auditorium, located at 1155 Central Avenue, Needham, MA 02492.

For more information about Needham Talks, you can email Angeline Maughan at [email protected].