Five o'Clock - Mindful Tea Time

Over a symbolic cup of tea, we explore how to raise children without losing ourselves. Five o'Clock brings together psychology, warmth, and humor — helping parents rebuild connection, curiosity, and empathy at home because peaceful evenings begin with understanding, not perfection.

🍵 About the Program — Five-o-Clock: Mindful Tea Time

Format & audience. Psycho-educational small group (10 sessions) for parents and caregivers; also relevant to educators and foster/kinship families. Focus: building empathic, confident day-to-day interaction at home.

Evidence-informed model.

The program is built on the ICDP – International Child Development Programme, specifically the parent curriculum known as “The Best Start for Families – A Health Equity Approach.” ICDP organizes caregiver–child interaction around Three Dialogues (with 8 guidelines):

Emotional Dialogue — warmth, shared feelings, praise/affirmation;
Meaning/Comprehension Dialogue — shared attention, naming, and making sense of experiences, connecting events;
Regulative Dialogue — guidance: clear limits, step-by-step support, routines, responsibility/morality.
Best Start implementations in the U.S. (ICDP-USA/LCFS) document these components and outcomes for parents and caregivers.

Learning design.

Each session blends micro-lecture, guided reflection, and practice aligned to ICDP’s Three Dialogues & 8 guidelines; we scaffold skills from awareness to application (Gagné/Bloom layering kept implicit in facilitation, not as content). Session themes include empathy vs. sympathy/projection, play and learning, attention and meaning-making, praise/encouragement, stepwise support, routines & limits, and responsibility/morality.

Methods used.

ICDP skills practice: emotional attunement, reading non-verbal cues, confirming/praising, shared attention, naming meanings, connecting experiences, gradual guidance, clear rules & predictable consequences.
Trauma-informed lens (ACES & SAMHSA 4R) for safety, predictability, and de-escalation.
Self-regulation & grounding: breathing, sensory anchors, cognitive 5-4-3-2-1, positive time-out.
Strength-based coaching & reflective dialogue (parent as “leader/coach,” stepwise transfer of responsibility).

Intended outcomes. Parents learn to (a) respond with warmth and curiosity, (b) co-construct meaning with the child, (c) set clear, positively framed limits and routines, and (d) use step-by-step support to grow self-control — producing calmer evenings, more trust, and sustainable family habits.