Kids

How to Talk With Your Kids About Sex, Sexuality, and Consent

Many parents drag their feet into the dreaded “sex talk” with their children. Maybe it’s time we take the pressure off of that single talk. If we want the sex and relationships our children ultimately have to be physically, psychologically, and emotionally healthy then we’d better start talking to them about it early and often.…  Read More

Parent frustrated while setting limits

7 Ways Setting Limits Can Go Awry

And what to try instead

“Sometimes I feel like my kids are out of control,” worried one parent. Another quickly added, “My daughter knows just how to push my buttons.” A third chimed in with, “I’m always in a power struggle with my four-year-old son.” Comments like these are common in parenting workshops, and I’ve uttered versions of my own…  Read More

Child eating a marshmallow similar to Stanford University's famous "marshmallow experiment"

Grade for Grit? Not A Good Idea

A lot of parents have asked us over the years whether or not they should do the marshmallow experiment with their kids to ‘test’ their self-control. While asked half in jest, it is clearly tempting for them to want to assess this critical character trait in their children. If self-discipline is so important, the logic…  Read More

Little kids dressed like superheroes playing with tablet

Three Ways to Get the Most Out of Screen Time for Kids

Raising our tiny digital trailblazers can feel like taking a long walk in the dark. While we have a lot of evidence on the impact of television on children, we don’t have decades of data yet on the impact of interactive media on the youngest among us. The technology is just too new. What we…  Read More

Four kids going back to school with their backpacks at their feet

Six Back To School Essentials

Hint: They Won't Fit In Your Child's Backpack

Students will enter school this year with all sorts of supplies, habits, skills, and feelings. The pens, notebooks, books and class schedules will fit neatly inside their backpacks. The other things can be harder to pin down but have a much greater impact on our kids’ success. Empathy Empathy is one of the core “pro-social…  Read More

Young man using his curiosity to explore the natural world with a magnifying glass.

Nurturing Curious Minds

If you have ever spent any time with preschoolers, you know that their curious minds are incessant. “Why is that bird chirping so loudly? Where do you think it lives? Why does it live in that tree? Where are the other birds? Why? How come?” For us parents, these endless questions can be exasperating. However,…  Read More

Two kids using a tablet with an adult

Get Creative With Children and Technology

5 Activities to Get the Most Out of Screentime

We’ve written regularly about the importance of screen-free play and setting screen time limits. These posts, of course, echo the chorus of child development experts warning about the risks associated with too much or age-inappropriate screen time. But there is less guidance for parents about how to use technology to enhance child development. We have…  Read More

Tips: How to Eat a Variety of Foods

This may come as a surprise, but the goal to “eat a variety of foods” is the hardest one for me to implement in my house. Introducing new foods can be met with skepticism (or outright displeasure or disgust) and personally I find it frustrating to spend time making a meal to have everyone turn…  Read More

How to Talk to Kids About Body Image and Healthy Eating Habits

It is impossible to walk through a grocery store these days and not feel conflicted by the images plastered over magazine covers. Headlines like “Lose Your Belly Fat in Just 10 Days!” or “Best and Worst Beach Bodies” are stacked right alongside cooking magazines with recipes for Decadent Chocolate Cake and Triple Cheeseburgers. Not all…  Read More