Even dads with average parenting skills can make a real impact on their children's lives

Four decades of research and hundreds of studies have proven what should be obvious to everyone: The more involved a dad is, the more successful his children will be. A father's influence can determine a child's social life, grades at school, and future achievements.

Having a hard time getting your children to follow directions? Me too. So my friends and I decided to try our own group therapy. Don't laugh -- it works!

A few months ago I crashed headfirst into my most frustrating parenting problem to date: My daughters were ignoring me. I could tell them five times to do anything -- get dressed, turn off the TV, brush their teeth -- and they either didn't hear me or didn't listen. So I'd tell them five more times, louder and louder. It seemed the only way I could inspire Blair, 6, and Drew, 4, to action was if I yelled like one of The Real Housewives of New Jersey and then threatened to throw their blankies away.

Here, fascinating answers to the question: How much does my baby understand?

Every parent thinks her baby is a genius. And maybe it's not such a far-out claim when you consider the startling amount a newborn does know. His senses began to develop while he was still in the womb, and they progress at an amazing pace during the first year. Far from being a helpless little bundle, your baby is processing tons of information -- and using it to become attached to you.

Many 1-year-olds use their teeth instead of their tongues. Here's how to take the bite out of toddlerhood.

Is it the teacher—or is it your kid? How to find out why your child's unhappy at school

There was no single incident that made Kim Black of River Ridge, LA, realize that all was not sunshine and warm fuzzies between her son Harrison, then 7, and his second-grade teacher. Rather, it was a constellation of things: Harrison insisting that "the teacher doesn't like me," that she yelled at him frequently in class, that she was picking on him in particular—as well as the dramatic change in her son's disposition. "I'd had this happy-go-lucky child, and now he's coming home crying every day as he gets off the bus," says Black, a mom of four.