I had a vision for how I wanted to be as a mom, even before I was pregnant. I imagined all the fun things I would do with my future kids.
I went through all the ways I would support them as they grew older and the long chats we would have. I even made mental lists of the many things I would do differently to how my own parents had done them.
So when I found myself 6 years later, with 3 kids, yelling at the top of my voice ‘because I told you so!’ for the third time – and in the exact same tone my mother would use when I was younger – I felt that something was wrong.
When is it time to get help with parenting?
If like me, you’re shouting at the kids every day, feeling overwhelmed, or that things are out of control, it’s probably time to look for some help.
Aside from feeling ashamed and guilty every time I would shout at my kids, I was also worried that it was becoming our way of life. Every day I would have to shout in order to get anyone to do anything.
I knew that I was handling the kids’ behaviour in the wrong way. The stand-offs that we would get into weren’t making my life any easier, and I certainly didn’t feel it was good for the kids either. I kept thinking, ‘Should it really be this hard?’
It didn’t take much searching online to come across the parenting course Positive Parenting Solutions. It initially caught my attention because it promised to:
Get your kids to listen without yelling, nagging, or losing control.
As it promised gentle, nurturing parenting tactics that would allow me to get my kids to do what I wanted without having to yell, I was immediately interested in what the course was about.
If you are facing the same problems as myself, or are looking for some parenting guidance, I hope that this review of the Positive Parenting Solutions course and the Free Webinar they offer is useful.
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Amy McCready Free Webinar Review
Before we review the paid course, it’s worth looking at the free parenting webinar that Amy McCready is currently offering. You can sign up to this at a time that suits you by booking your timeslot here: Free Parenting Webinar.
This webinar is about 1 hour long, followed by 30 minutes of question-time afterward with the course leader, Amy McCready.
It’s a complete lesson from the paid online parenting course, so it includes the same tactics and strategies that parents can try to see some changes.
You don’t have to commit to anything, or pay anything, and it’s a useful parenting session on its own. So for those reasons – and because I found the teachings very helpful – I would definitely recommend it.
Free Webinar: Positive Parenting Solutions
Positive Parenting Solutions webinar reviews from other parents
Many parents found the content within Amy McCready’s webinar useful and helpful. It offers tools that you can use straight away to see if they work for you.
The comments about the webinar on Facebook largely praise the parenting lessons.
The tips and strategies gave some initial results for many reviewers. And a number of parents expressed how grateful they felt that it was offered to them for free.
If you want to try it they offer the webinar several times each day so you can find the right timeslot for you.
Free Parenting Webinar with Amy McCready
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What is included in the Positive Parenting Solutions course?
The foundation of the Positive Parenting Solutions course is the 7-Step parenting success system, which is made up of 7 Steps or modules. These Steps have a series of short videos, generally 10 minutes in length, along with tools and exercises you can try straight away.
The short videos help busy parents get through the course material more easily, and this was something that I personally really appreciated.
You also get access to a physical or downloadable workbook so that you can take notes at each step. In addition to this, with certain course tiers, you get:
- Specialist modules such as ‘Ending Entitlement’ and ‘Adult Relationships.’ These are longer videos, around 60-90 minutes long, which cover specialist topics. You can access these as you need them.
- Personalized success coaching where you can speak to Amy McCready or one of her team for individual coaching.
- Access to Coaching Calls of other parents so that you can hear about solutions to parenting problems similar to your own.
- Access to the Positive Parenting Community on Facebook.
- Lifetime access to the course, including any updates that are added.
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What are the Positive Parenting Solutions video tutorials like?
Most video tutorials show Amy McCready teaching directly to us. Each one covers a particular parenting problem and offers her solution. They are all as concise as possible, she doesn’t go off onto other topics.
The video tutorials may include:
- Background psychology behind the problem you’re facing. The core reasoning behind the issues you’re having and the psychology behind her parenting tactic to solve that problem.
- Actionable ways to deal with the problem. The tactics you can use to solve that particular parenting problem.
- Exact scripts of what you can say to your child. What you can say to your children in any given situation. This is to avoid conflict and get them to understand what needs doing in a respectful way.
- Guidelines on how you can adapt her tools for your family. There are often guides on how you can adapt her methods to suit you. So you can customize the course for your family and preferences.
- Common questions from other parents. For each Step, she has about 10 of the most common questions asked by parents who have taken the course. It’s useful as it’s likely that at least 1 of these questions will be something on your mind as well.
- Interactive workshops. A few videos share pre-recorded workshops held by Amy McCready with real parents. They act out common parent-child battles and show you how to handle each one.
- Online quizzes. One example is the Parent Personality test which is very useful for seeing how our own personality affects our parenting. These are available in the two higher member tiers.
- 25+ Bonus videos. These are feature-length modules on a particular topic. Unlike the core course, which has bitesize videos, these tend to be longer. Some are 1-2 hours long, but they cover the topic thoroughly.
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Does Positive Parenting Solutions really get kids to listen without nagging, reminding or yelling?
Positive Parenting Solutions has helped tens of thousands of families to have more peaceful home lives and get kids to listen without the need for shouting. In my own experience, I found that the tools learned made my conversations with the kids calmer, and we had fewer conflicts almost from day 1.
I feel a few key features set Positive Parenting Solutions apart from other parenting coaching courses online. These were the main differentiators for me:
It includes only Positive Parenting strategies
Unlike many books on how to discipline children effectively, this one focuses on positive parenting strategies only.
Children are never ‘punished’ or ‘shamed.’ Time-out is not a thing. Instead, they are disciplined in a firm way but in a way that is also respectful to them.
This is a key difference between this course and other resources that promise to improve ‘child behavior.’
The parenting course is for children of all ages
Many courses I found online looked great, but they were for a very specific age group or parenting problem.
This course is for parents of children aged 2½ all the way up to 16 years old. The same principles can be applied throughout the stages, and the course teaches you how to adapt them to suit the different age groups.
It also covers a wide range of challenges that parents face with each age group. And it gives clear guides of how to use each positive parenting tactic for those specific challenges too.
A huge amount of parenting material but in bitesize videos
The course is very thorough. It goes into different ages, behaviors, and parenting principles in depth.
For me, this was great as it meant that the course was good value for money. But it also meant there was a lot to learn, which can feel overwhelming if you need to watch it all in one go.
For this reason, it really helped that Amy McCready had split the course up into 49 shorter videos.
It enables busy parents to take the course however suits them, whether in small parts or longer sessions.
Positive Parenting Solutions is an established parenting course with a proven track record
According to the Positive Parenting Solutions website, the course has helped over 75,000 families. So it’s a tried and tested method which has established reviews and a good reputation.
It was hard to find a negative review of the course online.
The member reviews are mainly on the Positive Parenting Solutions website. However, even on Facebook, the comments from members of the course were overwhelmingly positive.
Amy McCready is an experienced parent coach
As it states on the website, Amy McCready is a certified Positive Discipline Instructor. She has been coaching families for 15 years. She has also written two bestselling parenting books. Each of these currently has 93% 4 to 5-star reviews on Amazon.
However, her most valuable experience for me is her one-to-one interaction with parents. These conversations with real families feature throughout the course, and it feels like they have even influenced the content of the parenting lessons.
She seems to know the everyday battles we have with our kids without actually being in our home.
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What are the topics in the Positive Parenting Solutions course?
The course is divided into 7 main Steps, which I’ve broken down below.
With the Silver and Gold Memberships, you also get a huge amount of bonus content called the ‘Survival Guides’ and ‘Battle-Tested Blueprints’ listed below.
These focus on certain specific problems parents encounter at home, and so these tend to be hugely helpful and focussed guides.
Each of the 7 Core Steps is divided up into short sections so that they’re easy to digest and take on board.
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Step 1: The science of misbehavior and how we as parents contribute
In order to make changes, we must first understand why our kids are misbehaving.
Amy dives into the psychology behind why kids act up so that we can start to understand things from our children’s perspectives.
She also discusses birth order and why it matters whether your child is the oldest, youngest, middle, or only child.
You get a parent personality assessment and an introduction to the most important ‘tool’ from her parent toolbox.
Step 2: How to empower your kids to be confident, capable, and independent
As parents we want to raise positive, capable kids, but in order to do this we need to empower them.
Amy goes into ways that we can empower children, which include giving them certain responsibilities.
The goal is for kids to feel more independent and capable in their own abilities, rather than having to rely on mom and dad for everything.
Step 3: Reset the power struggles
In this step Amy McCready goes into ways you can stop the cycle of power struggles that you’re seeing with your kids.
Instead, you can lay down new routines, which prevent things from escalating between you.
Step 4: How to handle extreme behaviors in a positive way
Step 4 continues from Step 3 but deals with more extreme behaviors and how we can respond to them in a positive way.
If you get badgered into submission by kids, or they start endlessly negotiating with you, then she has a few simple phrases which will shut down that cycle in a positive way.
Step 5: How to handle sibling fighting
Many of us struggle with sibling fighting at home. For me, this class was particularly interesting as my kids fight a lot.
It teaches you why siblings compete with each other and how sometimes we might make this competition worse without meaning to.
She then goes into strategies for dealing with the fighting, especially when it gets physical.
You can use her tactics, which are simple phrases and consequences, to help stop these conflicts.
There’s also a special section on how to handle fights between younger kids.
Step 6: How to have more fun as a family
This was one of my favorite classes as it helped to make family life better.
It shows us how we can help our children feel listened to by giving them choices.
It also outlines how negotiation can work in the family and how we can encourage our kids to ‘lead’ the family in a positive way.
Step 7: How to make the changes last as kids get older
These are ways that you can avoid slipping back into those old habits. And how you can keep the positive parenting strategies in place as kids get older.
Since this course covers such a broad age group, Amy is really good at suggesting ways to adapt the tactics for older kids.
It’s surprising how the same principles can work for young children and teens, simply by adapting the approach to suit each age group.
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Ultimate Survival Guides
This is bonus content for the Silver and Gold Members, and each video can be up to 1 hour long.
They are like ‘focus sessions’ on specific problems that many parents face:
- Taming Morning Mania
- Managing Mealtime Madness
- Curing the Bedtime Blues
- No More Chore Wars
- MBST: Secret Weapon for Better Behavior
Battle-Tested Blueprints
These are further resources offered with the Silver and Gold Packages. As you can see, they cover a whole range of common parenting challenges from toddlers to teens.
The LITTLES:
- Potty Training 101
- Bedwetting and Potty Accidents
- Stopping Sibling Bullying
TWEENS & TEENS:
- Terrific Teen Parenting Skills
- Technology Survival Plan
- Sex Talks…Simplified
- Responsible Social Media
- 14 Talks by Age 14
- The Addiction Innoculation
Kids with Differences:
- ADHD 101
- Homework Skills for ADHD/EFD Kids
- Help for Anxious Kids
- The Explosive Child
Homework & School
- Help for Homework Hassles
- The 3 R’s of Back To School Success
- Keeping Kids Safe from Bullying
- Help for Struggling Parents
Ending Entitlement
- Curing the Entitlement Epidemic
- ABCs of Allowance
- Say NO to Rewards & Praise
- Business Systems for the Family
Adult Relationships
- Stronger Than Ever Parenting Partners
- Divorce & Parenting Apart
- Getting Your Partner on the Same Page
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- lifetime access to the online course and bonus material
- 30-day money-back guarantee
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Course material and how to take the Positive Parenting Solutions course
As outlined above, she has divided the course into 7 main Steps, each with a different topic. As a member you get access to:
Bitesize Videos
Each step has 7-10 short videos about 8-20 minutes long each. You can watch them a little at a time each day or all at once. This gives parents some flexibility regarding how and when to take the course. She recommends going through the course in order from steps 1-7.
Parent Workbooks
You’re given a parent workbook for each step that you can fill in. These are simple books that you write your own family’s notes and goals in. They are helpful as they make sure you put the lessons into action at each stage.
Silver Members also get:
Audio Steaming Option
The Positive Parenting Solutions mobile app has Audio Streaming of the course. This means you can listen to the bitesize video content through headphones or in the car.
Gold Members also get:
Specialized video tutorials
These felt like having access to a whole load of separate parenting courses. They are 25 full-length videos going into specific topics in greater detail. A few examples are:
- Taming Morning Mania
- No More Chore Wars
- Homework Skills for ADHD
- Stopping Sibling Bullying
- Help for Anxious Kids
Although some of the topics didn’t apply to me, others, like Sibling Bullying, were very relevant. I found a lot of value in those because they focused on an issue that was very specific to my family.
Exclusive Facebook Community
You can connect with the Positive Parenting Community online. This means you can get feedback, ideas, and answers to your questions from other course members and Positive Parenting trainers.
Personalized success coaching
After you’ve done the course (or at least to Step 4), you can register for a Personalized Success Coaching Call.
Here you can get answers to your own specific questions. We all have concerns or questions that are particular to our own families. Having this personalized feedback and guidance in an online course can add a lot of value.
Coaching call recording library
At the bottom of the page, you are given access to Coaching Calls for the last 3 years.
These are audio recordings of Amy answering questions from other parents. We often have the same questions or face similar challenges to other families, so listening to these coaching calls can be helpful.
It also means that we can hear the way her methods can be adapted for different families and situations. This can give us some ideas of how we can make similar adjustments for our own families.
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Does Positive Parenting Solutions really work?
The main worry with purchasing online courses is whether they will be worth the investment of money and time. However, Positive Parenting Solutions is effective from the very first lesson.
Some reviewers claim it has ‘transformed’ their families. Others see significant changes in their family lives in the very first weeks.
Maybe you’re wondering if these are really accurate or exaggerated statements?
This is how we found the course worked for us as a family.
Positive Parenting Solutions Review
The improvements were observed from day 1
After every video I watched, I would put the changes into action the next day. It was pretty incredible how much calmer the kids were. Small changes in my own behavior seemed to have a big impact on theirs.
The parenting tactics were easy to do
The changes that Amy advises in her course all feel like common sense. They each have psychological research behind them, but the changes themselves are small, practical and for us, they were effective.
The course was easy to follow
Even the most life-changing course can’t help you if it’s too hard to get through. However, the breakdown of the course into bitesize chunks helped me get through a large number of lessons without feeling overwhelmed.
It brings parents to a child’s perspective
From the beginning, I felt a shift in my thinking. I stopped seeing my days from my perspective. Instead, I began to see them from my child’s perspective.
There was less shouting
I started using the scripts from the course to get my kids to do things like getting dressed or brushing teeth. As I had a few of these phrases fresh in my mind, I didn’t feel the need to shout at them to be heard. It led to more getting done and a much calmer household.
The children are more independent
One unexpected result of the course was that the children became more independent. They began to complete tasks like getting dressed or doing piano practise on their own. So as well as lifting the burden from me to have to be there for everything, it also made them feel more confident in themselves.
It dealt with sibling relationships too
A further unexpected chapter in the course was about sibling rivalry and bullying. This was a very welcome module for me as our children fight a lot among themselves. You don’t consider it a natural part of positive parenting, but all that fighting affects the household’s energy. The course helped prevent those arguments and helped them to play calmly together.
For these reasons, and based on my experience with the course, I would have to say that it does work.
The Problem with Online Courses
It’s not a private consultation
Online courses do have one problem. You can’t interact with the teacher as you would in a live session or with a consultant in your home.
The course is Amy teaching directly to you. At the Silver and Gold Levels, you get online quizzes to customize the course to yourself and your family. However, you don’t get to have a conversation as you would in person.
The cost of having a private consultant in your home would be a lot higher. But everyone has questions or worries that are specific to their family. So it can be important to be able to get that help.
To address this, all members have access to a helpdesk. You can send in your questions, and you will get an answer within 24 hours.
Gold Level members are also provided with access to Amy’s Coaching Calls, where they can ask questions directly to Amy.
Technical Glitches
Again as with all online programs, there can be issues with internet signals. Others may have the occasional technical glitch. I believe there was 1 video out of the 49 where the title confused me. However, all the video modules played well for me and without problems.
The course videos are streamed and can’t be downloaded. So if you have weaker internet signal that struggles to play video, this might be a concern.
At Gold Level you can download the modules in Audio Version to listen to offline. This would offer a solution for taking the course offline or in areas with weaker internet.
Positive Parenting Solutions Pros and Cons
Pros and Cons of Amy McCready’s Parenting Course |
|
Pros |
Cons |
| Extensive course content. | Cost is more than a book although it does offer much more than a book. |
| Main course is divided into bitesize videos so it’s manageable. | Too much content. Though this does show it’s good value for money. |
| Online course – so you can take the modules whenever suits you. | Not an in-person course. Helpdesk is available to all members. Access to Amy’s in the Gold Level. |
| Practical tactics that are easy to start | Videos watched live and can’t be downloaded. This is only a problem if there is weak internet. Gold Level members can download Audio versions to listen offline. |
| Responsive helpdesk for questions for all levels. Access to Amy Coaching Calls at higher levels. | |
| Audio versions offered at Silver and Gold levels. | |
| Large amount of additional content for Gold level members. | |
| Access to common questions from other parents. | |
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Is Positive Parenting Solutions good value?
Due to the amount and quality of the content, I found that the Positive Parenting Solutions course was good value for money.
For a limited time you can also get 10% off plus a free plan upgrade: Positive Parenting Solutions
Online courses that offer this much content can be sold for upwards of $1,000. This course starts at $19.99 a month with a 10% discount ($22.21 per month without it) or $221.11 a year at the Bronze level.
The higher tiers are at $276.77 and $350 for Silver and Gold Levels, respectively.
These payments can also be split into monthly payments of between$22.12 and $35 a month.
Paid monthly, the course would cost parents a couple of Starbucks a month while helping them invest in their family and their family’s future.
30-Day money-back guarantee
If you find that the course isn’t for you, you can always ask for a full refund within 30 days of purchasing.
More expensive than a book and cheaper than a private consultant
Many comments online compare the cost of this course with the cost of buying a parenting book. This course does cost much more than just buying a book. But it’s worth mentioning that they are two entirely different products.
- One is in plain text format; the other is offered in video and audio.
- One is ‘learn independently,’ while the other offers support through a helpdesk. Gold level members also get the Ask Amy Coaching Calls.
- With a book you are learning alone, whereas with a course you are becoming part of a community.
The alternative to a book would be to have a private consultant come and work with your family in your home. As it would need to be for a few days, again, this would probably cost you upwards of $1,000.
In terms of the course’s cost and the service it offers members, I find that it sits between a book and a private consultation service.
Positive Parenting Solutions is designed as a lifetime course
In the Silver and Gold tiers, you are granted Lifetime Access to the course once you have become a Member.
The amount of content in the course and the broad topics it covers, mean that it’s useful over many years.
The parenting tactics apply to a wide age range of children between 2½ – 16 years old.
The bonus content and the Facebook community in the Gold Level mean you can get additional support for any new problems you face as the children grow up.
Access to a lot of tutorials, in bitesize videos
There are a lot of videos included in the course. 49 videos for the 7 Steps of the course alone. The fact that these are short and bitesize means that you can get through them more easily.
Amy McCready also has 37 ‘Parenting Tools’ in the course ‘Toolbox.’ These are things you can say or do to handle everyday situations with the kids.
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Positive Parenting Solutions reviews from parents
On average Positive Parenting Solutions scored an impressive 4.9 stars from 636 reviews across 2 third-party websites: Google and Facebook. They also have hundreds of additional positive reviews from happy families on their own website.
What did parents have to say?
The reviews from parents who had taken the course were overwhelmingly positive. Many found that the parenting tactics had worked straight away. They reported having a calmer family life within the first few weeks.
The negative reviews that we found seemed to be from users who hadn’t taken the course. Most commented on the price. However, they didn’t seem aware of what exactly the course offered. And they hadn’t seen the videos or tried the strategies.
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Is Positive Parenting Solutions worth it?
If you’re feeling that your children are not listening to you and you end up shouting all the time, then the Positive Parenting Solutions course is definitely worth it.
The course offers great value. It provided much more content than I could have expected. The fact that it’s broken down into bitesize chunks that I could either watch or listen to was so helpful. I could complete it whenever was convenient for me.
The cost, which can be as little as $19.99 a month with the 10% discount, also made it worth the lessons offered.
The course itself offers simple, practical changes that are easy to do. Amy’s strategies worked for my family and led to an almost instant change in my children’s behavior.
For these reasons, I would recommend this course to parents and have recommended it to most of my friends too.
If you’re still unsure, you know you always have the 30-day money-back guarantee to fall back on if you find it’s not for you.
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Positive Parenting Solutions FAQs
Is Positive Parenting Solutions legit?
The Positive Parenting Solutions course is a legitimate and reliable course that has been around for over 10 years. It’s one of the most established online parenting courses being sold. Amy McCready herself has been coaching parents for 15 years.
When you first see the sales pages of the course on the website, some people may feel unsure about it. Amy herself looks very professionally dressed, and it’s hard to know whether this course will be useful for you.
Behind this polished exterior, though, is a course rooted in the everyday problems that many of us parents face.
There are no tactics that take a lot of time to implement or any that ‘would be nice’ to do someday. They’re all fast, effective, and easy to start straight away.
Amy herself is a talented parenting coach. Her experience with real parents comes through as she can almost predict the questions that are going through your mind as you follow the course. This helps her to answer a lot of them along the way.
As someone who has taken the course, I wish I had taken it sooner.
What are Positive Parenting techniques?
Positive parenting techniques focus on the positive parts of a child’s behavior. Rather than punishing them with time-outs, threats, and punishments, these techniques reward good behavior.
Bad behavior has certain ‘natural’ consequences that the child is aware of beforehand. For example, if they don’t tidy up their toys in the evening then there won’t be time for them to watch their favorite shows before bathtime.
The child is given the choice and must decide themselves which is the better option.
Promoting the independence of the child is one of the key principles of Positive Parenting Solutions and one that I liked the most.
What are Amy McCready’s credentials?
Amy McCready is a mother of 2, has a certificate in Positive Discipline. She has also trained over 75,000 families in Positive Parenting Solutions.
Is Positive Parenting Solutions free?
The Positive Parenting Solutions course is paid for, but Amy McCready offers a free webinar that covers the basic principles and tools of the course.
You get actionable advice on how to get your kids to listen without you nagging or yelling. And it’s a great way to get a feel of what the solutions are like to see if you’d like to move up to the paid tiers.
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