“Proud Momma” was the title of a text I received this week from the parent of a fourth grader. To my surprise, it contained only a piece of artwork, a pencil drawing created by her daughter, a self-portrait of her with her friends. They were sitting, facing away from the artist, on a bench with their arms draped lovingly around each other’s backs. I immediately got why this mom was so proud. I had interviewed her for my book, The Best Things Mothers Do, and I understood that the art work...

Mornings aren’t always easy. In spite of our gentlest intentions, things sometimes go awry. Frustrations can sizzle like bacon frying on the stove. A question hovers over our morning routines: “How can we help children to start the day with good cheer?” In Room 7, the teachers (Mses. Indi, Izzy, and Natalie) have created instantaneous morning mood lifters for their kindergarten class. Instead of having their children repeat “here” when they take roll call, the teachers pose a daily question...

Are thinking and solving puzzles a form of play? Fifth grade teacher John Murphy is convinced they can be, and he loves to offer “brain start-ups” to his students, the equivalent of engaging them in a game of Frisbee or freeze-tag, only mentally. The “start-ups” aren’t part of their math lesson, they’re just fun, but they can infuse fractions and decimals with delight. Recently he asked, “Which is greater, the number of people on earth now or seconds since the Declaration of Independence was...