Discovering Your Child’s Uniqueness
A grandma playing veterinarian with her five-year-old grandson picked up a stuffed animal and asked the “vet,” “What should I do about my...
Tuning In to Tone of Voice
The most exciting breakthroughs of the 21st century will not occur because of technology but because of an expanding concept of what it...
The Power of Affirmations
“This moment won’t last forever” – I’m not saying this to predict the future but to offer an example of a phrase that can reprogram our...
Internet Safety
Awareness and Supervision Minimize Online Risks Children today have never known a world without the internet. They can log on using home...
Visual Calendars Helpful on Many Levels
Make your child’s December manageable by creating a visual calendar. This month, always an exciting one, seems to offer up even more new...
Ensuring Your Child’s Safety On Playdates
Parents often ask me questions about sending their children on playdates. Understandably, they wonder about allowing their children to go...
Reflecting on the Day
“What were the happiest and hardest things that happened today?” One family posed that question at dinner each night, and invited family...
Tuning in to the Backstory
Arriving at school, a four-year-old has an unpleasant surprise. She reaches in her jacket pocket for her mask, but pulls out only a...
Validating Children's Feelings
“I’m sad my friend played with someone else the whole time after lunch.” Once up a time, best practices for raising a happy child meant...
Halloween’s Scary Images
Halloween gives all of us the opportunity to understand what kinds of scary images are manageable and fun for children and which ones...
Dealing With Children’s Stress, Anxiety, Frustration
Imagine finally making the long trip to a grandparent’s house after months away, then within hours having to leave because your child’s...
"We Can Help!"
“If you want to help, help, help, we can do it. We can clean, we can help, help, help.” A group of preschoolers sang these lyrics...
Harmonious Resolutions
“I know my voice can sound a little intense sometimes when I’m under stress, so I try to tune in to the way I sound with my co-workers,”...
Telling the Truth
The Nurtured Heart Approach helps us deal with many complicated issues in a straightforward, transformative way. One example is the...
The Need for Some Alone Time
“If I’m around people right now, I might bite someone,” a preschooler explained. She wanted to stay in the quiet space she had created...
Adding Whimsy to Our Lives
I never learned to blow bubble gum and pop it. My granddaughter told me it’s never too late and kindly broke bubble blowing into steps:...
A “Life-Changing” Approach
Before: “I was hesitant when I heard about it – it’s the opposite of the way I’ve always thought as a parent and a teacher.” “I felt like...
A Community Based on Caring, Inclusion
"When I becomes we, even illness becomes wellness.” Charles Roppel My grandson always loved giving me high-fives. That stopped during...
Communicating About the “Ripples”
Maria Montessori, the famous Italian educator, called the process of helping a child successfully adjust to a new class and be open to...
Nothing More Important
One evening I arrived punctually at an editor’s house to talk about a manuscript. “I’ll be a few minutes,” she said as she opened the...