Element of a Confident Parent – Looking for the Good

Though the sunshine sparkles through the yellow leaves during these beautiful Fall days, there is less light in the morning and evening. And we’ve been doing this school thing for a few months now. We’ve poured it on and now we are slowing down a bit – tired. My husband and I noticed that some …

50 Constructive Alternatives to Detention or Punishment

Ideas for Parents and Educators “Are you okay, E?” I overheard a concerned classmate ask my son as he walked out of the school building yesterday at pick up time. “I’m okay.” he assured the friend. In my head, I was saying “Uh-oh!” bracing myself for the unknown challenge ahead. I ditched my errand-running plans …

Get Today’s Webinar and Mark your Calendar for October’s Webinar

Did you miss today’s webinar? You can still benefit from the strategies and tools shared. Click here to get the recording and follow-up email with tools and templates. You’ll learn how to limit screen time without power struggles, keep play time sacred, and get kids started on safe play while you attend to your household …

Introducing – Promoting Independent Play and Dealing with Attention-Seeking Behaviors

Watch this short video introduction of a special webinar coming later this week! Space is limited. Register – or learn more here!

Seven Surprising Facts About Emotions That Every Child Needs to Know

By Guest Writer, Ann Douglas Imagine how tough it must be to be a kid, trying to crack the code that is human emotion. Just when you think you’ve got everything all figured out, someone tosses you a curveball by reacting in a puzzling or unexpected way. Your mom is angry rather than happy about …

Join Me Tonight…

Frustrated with the political climate? Join me for our conversation tonight on how we can raise civic-minded kids. Constructive solutions begin at home. This is an important way to consider how you and your family are cultivating the value of acting as a contributor to the community and greater world. The conversation begins at 7 …

Bigger Than Me: Raising Civic-Minded Kids

Mark your calendar! Join me next Tuesday, September 20 at 7:00 p.m. EST on Twitter to discuss the timely and critical issue of how we can raise civic-minded kids! This is not just about helping kids learn about government. It’s about how they will develop compassion for others and responsibly contribute to their community, city, …

Tools to Support Learning at Home

I’ve been spending time setting up our home environment to support my son’s learning. These first few weeks of school, he has shown a number of emotions moving from worried to frustrated to panic-stricken consistently related to homework time. The amount and difficulty of his homework has significantly increased in his third-grade year already. And …

What’s Your Goal To Be Greater?

Check out NBC Parent Toolkit’s Goal To Be Greater campaign this back-to-school season! You can watch a short video of me and my eight-year-old son discussing our goal. There are also goals from The Honorable Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, Kate Snow of NBC News, Mary Ellen Daneels, a high school civics teacher and more. Take this …

Getting Set Up for Homework Success

“I am not doing my homework. No way!” said E. If you have school-age children, certainly a similar refrain has been asserted in your household – possibly on numerous occasions and maybe even every night after school. Education Week highlighted a study by the National Center on Families Learning who found that 60% of American …