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How do I make sure that my son has positive male influences in his life? What can I do to help him develop a strong character?
Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
Masculinity is a delicate topic. You’re right to be cautious and aware of your son’s development, especially at a young age. However, it’s important to build a healthy definition of masculinity.
Remember that while your son is born with a biological sex, he doesn’t automatically get an understanding of what it means to be male. He needs your help to embrace his God-given design.
Here a few things you can do right now to build his identity and grow his confidence.
Providing secure attachment for your son is critical but can be difficult given culture’s current messages around the topics of sexuality and masculinity. If you need more guidance on this topic explore our resources here or speak with a professional counselor here.
Vice President, Parenting and Youth
Dr. Huerta oversees Focus’ initiatives that equip mothers and fathers with biblical and research based principles and guidance for raising healthy, resilient children rooted in a thriving faith in Christ.
Dr. Huerta is a bilingual psychologist, licensed clinical social worker, author of 7 Traits of Effective Parenting, and co-author of Focus on the Family’s Age and Stage resource, and various other resources. He is also the co-host and expert on the Focus on Parenting and the Practice Makes Parent podcasts.
For many years, he has provided families with practical, biblically-based, and research-based parenting advice on key parenting topics. He has been interviewed by various media outlets including Fox News, Fatherly, Christianity Today, WORLD Magazine, The Christian Post and CBN, and regularly speaks on Christian radio stations and podcasts across the United States. He’s also written for various publications and is a regular speaker at retreats, conventions, family camps, online events worldwide, and on various social media channels.
Dr. Huerta has maintained a private practice serving families in Colorado Springs since 2003 and has also served families as an employee of Focus on the Family since 2004.
He and his wife, Heather, love the outdoors, have been married since 1997, and love spending time with their two adult children.
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As a mother, you can provide advice, encouragement, and love to your son. Explore the 13 essential lessons moms can teach their sons to create positive and long-lasting momentum in their lives.
I can’t remember a day that there wasn’t some kind of “learning lesson” going on in our home. But most of those lessons didn’t involve sitting down and doing homework. Instead, my mom employed active ways to help us learn how to learn.
Ethan graduated from kindergarten and college…on crutches. As a mom, I’m wired to nurture him and keep him safe. But I’ve learned that boys need to take risks.
We’d love to hear from you! Share your questions about parenting here.
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