Prologue: A Brilliant Encouragement for Children and Their Parents
A being who takes care of himself, each other, and the world before the text

Part 1.
Are you and your child satisfied with your current life?

Chapter 1.
“Am I doing well?”
To the anxious parent now

01.
Parenting is education plus ○○
02.
City parents struggling alone
03.
Choose to be a consumer
04.
Caregiver Resilience
05.
The Good Parent Complex and Stage 2 Parenting
06.
Teachers who try to solve problems on their own
07.
Technology and Digital Commercialism Aiding Education

Chapter 2.
“That’s not what I mean…”
The true feelings that children do not express

01.
“How are kids these days?”
02.
Career education like a fish-shaped bread mold
03.
How do children cope in an uncertain world?
04.
The child's social development is delayed.
05.
The Body, Mind, and Relationships of Children Who Experienced the Corona Pandemic
06.
Questions, literacy, awareness, and empathy for children living in a rapidly changing era

Part 2.
What do children and their caregivers grow into?

Chapter 3.
Amazing things happen when you trust your child's strength.

01.
From being an ‘object of care’ to being a ‘person who takes care of himself’
02.
Misconceptions about self-directed activities and study
03.
You should be able to delegate tasks to your child.
04.
The power of children to connect people
05.
Let's instill self-direction in your child's daily life.
06.
Give yourself time and opportunity to solve problems.
07.
Let's send our children outside the adult-created scenarios.
08.
“Why will my child become a borrowed barley sack?”

Chapter 4.
Amazing things happen when a parent changes by 5%.

01.
Is there space for the child to breathe?
02.
A child who changes a cold city
03.
From Consumer Parents to Nurturer Parents
04.
Our neighborhood has educational power.
05.
How to Connect as a Single Parent
06.
Building flexible and harmonious relationships
07.
A heart that welcomes children
08.
A Request to the City's Parents

“Are you satisfied with your current life with your child?”

On weekday mornings, people flock to bus stops and subways from early in the morning.
This is especially true in front of schools, daycare centers, and kindergartens.
The caregiver's footsteps quicken, and the child holding the hand also takes quick steps.
When a child starts to fuss, you can also hear the sound of urging them to eat.
The daily life of a parent living in the city is not easy.
I'm busy more than anything.
And I'm anxious.

When asked, “Are you satisfied with your life with your child now?” most parents unanimously say, “No.”
What about children? Hard spaces that make it difficult for them to run around freely tire them out, and children who don't know how to spend their free time often say they feel more comfortable in the world of screens than with friends.
Author Lee Seung-hoon, who has achieved remarkable results by working to help children and youth experience the joy and accomplishment of creating their own lives in the heart of Seoul, says:


“I see parents and children everywhere, acting as if nothing is wrong, but exhausted.”

Author Seunghoon Lee, who has received attention from various local governments and organizations, won numerous major awards, and given lectures at the request of people all over the country, has a special reason for writing "City Nurturer."
Because I wanted to share with more people about creating a happy life with children.
To parents who endure dissatisfied days, thinking, "I can only be happier with my child if I make a big decision or give up something," I wanted to confidently tell them, "With just small choices, both the child and the parent can be much happier."


Amazing things happen when a parent changes by 5%!
The first step is to abandon the 'parent-friendly method'.

Many parents believe that great determination and action are necessary for a child to achieve great things and for the home to be filled with great joy.
He said that he needed to make a drastic decision, such as moving to a better neighborhood, finding a better tutor, spending more time studying, or if even that doesn't work out, moving to a faraway country.


But dramatic choices only provide temporary relief and do not create lasting satisfaction and happiness.
It is often a temporary fix.
Happiness is everyday life.
Raising children is also a daily routine that fills parents' lives.
Children and caregivers must get into a routine.
The author emphasizes that by continuing to do 95% of what they were doing before and doing just 5% differently, children can fill their bodies and minds with what they need for life.
It is said that it can foster curiosity, friendship, love, responsibility, achievement, courage, altruism, self-reliance, cooperation, optimism and will, perseverance and pride, which are necessary for a good human life.

The first step begins with the parent abandoning the direction of comfort.
There is a need to shift from being a "consumer parent" who leaves their child with a problem solver and tries to distance themselves from the problem to being a "caregiver parent."
Parents living in the city are accustomed to the life of a consumer parent.
I think it's a choice made out of love for the child, but in most cases, it's just what the parents feel comfortable with.
In addition to the attitude of trying to solve a child's problem by sending them to an academy and leaving it to the teacher, one of the mindsets of consumer parents is 'sending them to an experiential event.'
Parents send their children to programs every weekend and after school to provide them with a variety of experiences.
Most of these programs are not experiences that children create on their own, but rather experiences that adults plan and design.
A child who experiences only what adults provide does not become curious.
Rather than sending your child to a perfectly designed experience, you should encourage them to have spontaneous and proactive experiences.
In the book, the author specifically points out how the perspectives and attitudes of consumer parents and caregiver parents differ, and suggests a lifestyle that allows both children and caregivers to grow and mature.


“Is there a special way to raise a self-reliant child?”
Let's send our children outside the adult-created scenarios.

The author points out that we live in a critical time when we must raise children who think and act proactively, rather than children who simply do as they are told.
The book is generously filled with parenting wisdom on how to help children grow independently.

"City Parents" features many stories of courageous and high-achieving children.
These are all true stories that happened at a youth center run by the author.
Ingyu, who goes to a science high school, planned and ran a lecture program to share his knowledge with neighborhood children, Jinju, who is now a doctor, was active in animal protection activities throughout middle and high school, and Areum, who was exploring ways to help friends who were struggling with their studies, studied psychology and created and distributed a 'Youth Self-Esteem Diary'.
There is a child who changed the atmosphere of a neighborhood that was full of mutual hatred, another who planned and ran his own play camp, and Gyeongjun, who was interested in the nuclear power issue and campaigned, went on to major in nuclear energy.
There are now over 500 clubs where children gather in groups of three or five to complete projects.
The proactive attitude of children does not stop with the children, but becomes a culture of the caregivers.


Why do children and adolescents volunteer, try new and diverse initiatives, and achieve their goals at youth centers where authors are present? It's because the center focuses entirely on children.
Have children set goals to achieve over a period of time, allocate a budget to manage, and ensure they complete the program.
And we support each other so that the children can enjoy the joy of growing together while supporting each other.
Children learn that pursuing a goal alone can be lonely and difficult, but when there is someone by their side to support them, they can gain the strength to overcome difficulties.
It's difficult to have the opportunity to learn about the world if someone else does it for you.
It is also difficult to develop one's own thoughts and creativity.
The book provides detailed and friendly guidance on how to encourage children's creativity, freedom of experience, and practice.


In particular, the author emphasizes that there is a powerful secret in 'asking, showing, and waiting.'
'Ask, show, and wait' is a 'concept clarification process' that helps children draw out their thoughts and imaginations and put them into practice.
When you ask your child questions, show them possibilities, and wait for them to be clumsy, so that they can realize it on their own through life experiences, they will believe in their own potential, take on challenges with courage, and move forward.


Parenting attitudes are not innate, they are chosen!
The power to care for ourselves, for each other, and for the world

For a long time, we have overlooked the fact that children are the main subjects of parenting.
It was difficult to acknowledge that the child had the power to take care of himself.
I considered children as objects of care and tried to design and lead their lives.
Making children the main subjects of their upbringing is also a way to free parents from the responsibility of excessive and wrong parenting.
Parents must recognize that while children are beings who need care, they also have the power to care for themselves, each other, and the world.


There are times when parents feel like they are struggling alone in the process of raising a child.
At times like that, straighten your back, raise your head, and look around.
There are many people struggling with similar problems.
Among them, there is bound to be someone willing to take your hand.
That's how the heart and culture of welcoming children grow.
Let's move our bodies and minds for a small 5% change.
Small steps can make a difference in a child's life and home.
In this way, it can spread to one, two, three families, and more families and people can be specifically transformed.
Let's make a grand start with this book, which offers encouragement and solutions to all parents striving to be happier with their children.