Welcome to Poised for Life School of Etiquette for Children

Do your children need self-confidence in face-to-face, peer group, or more formal public settings? Do they feel awkward when introduced to a potential new friend, become intimidated when speaking with a larger group of peers, or have difficulty interacting with adults or more formal institutions because they’re scared or “don’t know the rules”? Have they spent so much time in front of their screens that they’ve forgotten the basics of good social interaction? Do they have bad table manners, embarrassing themselves (and you) in front of others either at home or in a restaurant?

A few generations ago most children knew the basic rules of social etiquette, and most adults had the time to ensure ongoing character education remained a major part of their child’s personal development. These principles were reinforced at family gatherings, around the dinner table and at school. Now, with all the busy lifestyles of families where dinner is often eaten in the car, in front of the television or gobbled down quickly between activities, there isn’t unstructured time with our children to focus on the basics, including table manners. The social graces surrounding eating have seemingly disappeared.

At Poised For Life, your child’s path to poise and self-confidence will start with the basics of table manners. Then we’ll continue to build their social skills and confidence through learning how to better directly communicate with peers in individual and group settings. They’ll learn to feel comfortable making small talk with new children they meet rather than retreating to the anonymous comfort of texting or online gaming. Your child will gain additional self-assurance (and give back to the community) by modeling in a fashion show for senior citizens, walking on an elevated runway in front of the lights!

Hi, I’m Irene Gavenas and I truly enjoy helping young children become poised and gain self-confidence. Confident youths make safer, better choices in life, and have much stronger chances of becoming confident adults.

My wish is for your children to leave my classes holding their heads higher, confident not only from having learned better posture and making their parents proud when dining out in public and at home, but from feeling inner strength they didn’t capitalize on prior to our sessions. I want them to desire inner beauty, completely believing that is the single most important attribute one can have.

Thank you for entrusting your beautiful children with me. I look forward to meeting them and helping them on their journey to being confident, socially graceful adults.