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For Release: August 15, 2005
Contact: Elizabeth Upham Howell
802/860-1814
elizabeth@emilypost.com
or Teresa Brady
212-207-7170
teresa.brady@harpercollins.com

The Gift of Good Manners :
A Parent's Guide to Raising Respectful, Kind, Considerate Children

By Peggy Post & Cindy Post Senning, Ed.D.

Burlington, VT- Can respect be taught? Are parents failing to teach manners to children? Can a 14-year-old boy be convinced that table manners matter? How can you help a child withstand teasing and bullying without becoming resentful? What to do when another parent's or teacher's rules vary greatly from your own? Was it easier to teach manners to children forty years ago?

Answers and solutions are found in the new , paperback edition of the book hailed by Dr. Phil as "belonging in every household in America:" " THE GIFT OF GOOD MANNERS : A Parent's Guide to Raising Respectful, Kind, Considerate Children ," (Collins; August, 2005; $17.95) by Peggy Post and Cindy Post Senning, Ed.D. The Posts-the third generation family members of Emily Post-argue that manners are unquestionably essential for every child's lifelong success and self confidence.

According to Cindy Post Senning, the book's approach is positive: "Parents can teach manners by following two simple principles: know what to expect and then expect it, and model the behavior you wish your children to emulate."

The book is organized around three key concepts: 1) you can model and teach manners virtually from birth to adolescence; 2) manners education is most effective when geared to a child's normal development; and 3) manners give both children and adults the self confidence to navigate daily life.

The book is divided into six sections, based on age, from birth through the high school years. Manners and teaching methods are geared to children's particular capabilities during those years. Each section of " THE GIFT OF GOOD MANNERS " is divided into five chapters that deal with core manners topics including:

• Values and ethics: For each age: how to model and teach the values you want to instill in your child-from empathy and truthfulness to sportsmanship and self-discipline.
• Respect for self and others: How to teach it at any age. Building relationships with sibling, peers, family members, coaches and teachers; sharing; good sportsmanship; care of personal property, and taking responsibility for chores.
• Spoken and written communications: The art of conversation, listening and speaking skills, on the telephone, e-mail, writing letters and thank-you notes-the importance of the learning to be a good communicator.
• Table manners: From the mechanics of eating to the social aspects of dining, an age by age guide for teaching manners at the table.
• Out and about: For any situation outside the home: restaurant outings, in the car, on the school bus, attending parties, introducing people, shopping, going to a friend's house or the library. Everything you need to know to teach your child to handle these situations.

According to Peggy Post, who writes a monthly manners column in Parents and Good Housekeeping magazines, "Manners education is inseparable from the other things a parent or primary caregiver must do to raise a responsible, self-sufficient child. It's not an optional add-on that be attended to after the schoolwork and the soccer, ballet and piano lessons are done. Instead, teaching and modeling good manners are integral to daily family life."

The Posts also weigh in on topics such as children with special needs, the over-programmed child, etiquette for the new American family, overcoming obstacles in parent-to-parent relationships, dealing with problems at school and helping teenagers through the college application process. " THE GIFT OF GOOD MANNERS " combines 80 years of Post family experience in etiquette and is the third Post text on the importance of teaching manners to children. Emily Post wrote " Children are People " in 1940 and Elizabeth Post wrote " Please, Say Please " in 1972.

Previously, the Posts have written " THE GUIDE TO GOOD MANNERS FOR KIDS ," (HarperCollins Children's Books; August, 2004; $15.99) for eight to twelve year olds. The authors traveled to ten cities and conducted free, children's manners workshops at public and private schools, and public libraries across the country.* * *

About the Authors
PEGGY POST has written eleven books on etiquette, most recently "Emily Post's Etiquette, 17th edition" (HarperCollins, 2004). Peggy is a nationally recognized authority on etiquette, and millions seek her advice through her monthly columns in Good Housekeeping and Parents magazines and on WeddingChannel.com; through appearances on national radio and television, including Dr. Phil, Oprah!, Live with Regis & Kelly, Good Morning, America, and Today; and in hundreds of newspapers and radio stations across the country. Peggy conducts speeches and seminars across the country, and teaches manners workshops to children of all ages.

CINDY POST SENNING, ED.D., is co-director of The Emily Post Institute, Inc. and oversees the book program, writes columns on children's etiquette, and develops etiquette curriculum for children's programs. She is the co-author of "The Guide to Good Manners for Kids," (HarperCollins, 2004). She has conducted manners workshops across the country for children of all ages. Her professional background spans nearly thirty years in education and health; she taught health care to middle and high school students and served as principal of the Duxbury Elementary School in Duxbury, Vermont. She also was the clinical director of the Central Vermont Home Health and Hospice.

THE GIFT OF GOOD MANNERS
A Parent's Guide to Raising Respectful, Kind, Considerate Children
Peggy Post & Cindy Post Senning, Ed.D.
Collins
Publication month: August 2005
ISBN: 0-06-093347-X; $17.95/$23.95 (Canada); 480 pages

TOUR INFORMATION

• September 16 2005: New York City
• November 19, 2005: Austin, TX

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