Locals psychologist Annie Thiel and publisher Tena Fanning publish a series of books aimed at young children and their parents.
By Melonie Magruder / Special to The Malibu Times
It’s tough being a parent these days. The challenges presented by modern day society are overwhelming. There are drugs, peer pressures, casual sex, and alarmingly relaxed attitudes toward cheating. And that’s just for teenagers. Even young children are subject to bewildering choices with shifting mores and an increasingly mobile society. Where can a parent find guidance when facing life-changing events such as divorce, ill health or moving far away from all that is familiar?
Into the breach steps Dr. Annie Thiel and “Playdate Kids.” Thiel has managed a demanding private practice in family therapy and marriage counseling in Malibu for more than 30 years. A clinical member of both the California Psychological Association and the American Psychological Association, she is frequently published in peer-reviewed journals, has hosted cable TV programs focusing on parent-child relationships and is the author (along with her late husband) of “When Your Child Isn’t Doing Well in School.”
“Playdate Kids,” a new series of books aimed at young children and their parents, is the brainchild of Malibu-based publisher Tena Fanning, president of Playdate Kids Publishing. The goal of the series is to “address a huge gap in the children’s books market… books that teach the very young life’s lessons in today’s world,” Fanning explained. Designed to appeal to children aged three to six years, “Playdate Kids” features colorful characters in an ethnically diverse community who learn basic life skills such as helping with chores and waiting one’s turn, as well as dealing with more sensitive subjects such as a new baby in the family, the loss of a pet or moving to a new city.
“We want to help children understand their feelings,” Thiel said. “And life changes can be difficult to articulate for the very young. We want them to feel safe in learning to express how they are feeling. It is about empowerment.”
Illustrated by Disney and Fox studio alumnus William B. Edwards, the books are printed in large, glossy page format, with inviting graphics, recognizable running characters and social situations explained very simply. In “Chloe’s New Baby Brother,” for example, “Chloe used her words and told her parents how she was feeling. ‘Sometimes I love having a new baby brother, but sometimes I feel left out.'” Chloe’s mom assures her that it is OK to feel sad or glad or even confused. “The important thing is to talk to someone you can trust about your feelings,” Chloe’s dad reminds her. Each book in the series ends with an activity the child can enjoy relating to the book, such as drawing a picture of the situation, and a list of helpful tips-strategies parents can use to guide their child through the experience.
This sort of behavioral-themed approach to children’s book is not necessarily new, Thiel said, “but most ‘self help’ books for kids have the family dog dealing with the problem. There is not much for a child to relate to directly.”
The characters also are not all white and coming from traditional families.
“We wanted to have the Playdate Kids live in multicultural, multidynamic situations, reflecting real life,” Fanning said.
Accordingly, “Danny” lives in a single-parent home with his mother, the parents of “Dakota” are a racially mixed couple and the parents of “Cosmos” get a divorce. In each case, the children are reminded that all of their feelings are normal and are urged to share their thoughts with someone they trust.
“Children aged three to six are still at that ‘pre-concrete’ stage of development when it is scary to speak of your feelings,” Thiel said. “‘Is it OK for me to feel angry?’ Children in today’s society just have so many complex issues to face that we want to help them through what are really very adult situations.”
Thiel has practiced at the same location in Malibu since opening her offices in 1974 and she has now seen two generations of youngsters and their parents come through her doors. When asked what changes marriage and family counseling has seen, she is pensive: “I am concerned about the current addiction to electronic devices-X Boxes, video games and increasingly violent computer games. It affects kids’ empathy and creativity.”
She also takes great issue with the lack of family togetherness in today’s busy society.
“Kids have overburdened schedules these days with classes and practices, and yet another workshop. And, with their parents so busy at work, the family dinner is becoming a thing of the past.”
Lamenting the fragmentation of family unity segues naturally into concern for another social trend. “There is way too much emphasis on material things. Kids define themselves by what they ‘have’ now,” Thiel said.
Whether that is a media-driven phenomenon or reflects their parents’ growing capacity for consumption, Thiel and Fanning aim to give young children the skills to cope with rising social demands and emotional transitions.
“It really is about life skills,” Thiel said.
The “Playdate Kids” series’ ambitious publication schedule plans to release up to eight books a year-all dealing with diverse and increasingly sensitive subjects. In the pipeline are books dealing with respect, trust and shyness, but even darker subjects like childhood obesity, substance abuse and secrets-physical and sexual abuse. Thiel said she also wants to address the fears of children whose military parents are going to war. From the enthusiastic response to “Playdate Kids” at the American Book Association convention and the American Library show, Thiel and Fanning said they are convinced their series is filling an under-served niche. They have already been asked to present the “Playdate Kids” series at the health education program meetings for school districts providing health education teaching units and classes to ensure that campuses are violence and drug free.
“All our vocabulary is from APA [American Psychology Association)] guidelines and we are currently negotiating licenses for foreign language translations,” Fanning said. “We’d like to see the ‘Playdate Kids’ books not only in private homes, but in libraries, community centers and other family counseling centers across the country.”
The publisher’s goals don’t stop there. Fanning and Thiel said they would also like to see Playdate Kids counseling centers open around the U.S.
“We want to offer free counseling to the kids who most need it, as well as effective parenting classes to their parents,” Thiel said.
This type of philanthropy is reflected in both women’s devotion to Malibu Global Awareness -a fundraiser for the international organization Doctors Without Borders. But the first step is to get the Playdate Kids books to market, with official publication slated for September.
“Currently, we are available on Amazon or at our website: www.theplaydatekids.com,” Fanning said.