Q: At what age does a nervous tic become a problem you need to treat or have children be aware that they have this problem?

A: Seeing as you've described your son's tic as a nervous one, you may have already consulted with his pediatrician. If you haven't, that is clearly the first thing you should do. Tics can be caused by many problems, and they can even sometimes be a side effect of medications.

If you've ruled out any medical cause that is recognizable to your children's doctor, I would suggest you say nothing about it to your son, but keep a journal of times during the day and circumstances when you notice his tics in order to determine whether any specific activity or pace of life seems to increase or decrease his tics. For example, did he have them as frequently during the summer as he did during the school year? Are there incidents at school, either peer- or curriculum-related, that are tied to increases in his tics? While you are recording your observations but not talking about them at all, you may find that you identify a direct cause, or they may even disappear for no apparent reason.

If they continue after your physician's observations and yours, that is the time to mention them to your son and ask whether he's noticed them in himself and whether he can think of any causes of his tics. He may actually be able to describe a fear or anxiety that you can help him to overcome. With luck, the tics will be gone before you receive my answer.

Creative Child Needs to Value Honesty

Q: My child has a very active imagination. She has just started first grade. I want to stress the importance of being honest about what is real versus pretend without squashing her imagination. Do you have any advice?

A: It is really true that creative children with vivid imaginations can easily become confused about what is real and what is imaginary. They can become very defensive and uncomfortable when accused of lying, even when they are doing exactly that. Parents struggle with encouraging their imagination while still teaching them to be honest.

It usually is relatively easy for parents to explain to the child that they value her imagination but also want to be able to trust her to tell the truth. The parents can tell the child to label her stories as true, pretend or a lie. In that way, parents and the child's friends and siblings can enjoy the stories without worrying about whether they are true.

After the parents explain this to the child, she may forget at first about the labeling. If she's telling a story, parents can just stop her sweetly and say, "I think that's a pretend story, isn't it?" In that way, the child will quickly catch on to the labeling. Even after the child has begun her story, she will soon learn to stop and say something like, "Oops, I forgot to label this one as part true and part pretend."

Dr. Sylvia B. Rimm is the director of the Family Achievement Clinic in Cleveland, a clinical professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and the author of many books on parenting. More information on raising kids is available at www.sylviarimm.com. Please send questions to: Sylvia B. Rimm on Raising Kids, P.O. Box 32, Watertown, WI 53094 or srimm@sylviarimm.com. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.