Pre-K

How to Help Children and Youth Process the Capitol Insurrection

Since yesterday’s violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol many parents have reached out to us for advice on how to talk with and support their kids in the aftermath. As children and young people alike process the live feeds, memes, and coverage of the attack on the halls of Congress everyone will need extra space…  Read More

Kid and parent engaging in distance learning together

Building Family Resilience: Kids As Collaborators

As we head into winter with COVID cases spiking yet again, there is a lot of attention to building resilience to manage this difficult time. That makes it a good time to get clear on what resilience is, and what it isn’t. Too often we think of resilience as an individual trait that we either…  Read More

Children experiencing gratitude

What Gratitude Is – What It Isn’t – And How It Can Help Kids Cope

“It’s okay. Everything gets cancelled anyway.” This was my son’s response after we shared that we would be spending Thanksgiving week alone instead of driving to visit grandparents due to illness. This was certainly an honest and heartbreaking response to a long string of traditions and activities modified to stay safe and healthy in the…  Read More

Don’t Forget to Play (And Be Playful)

“PUG BREAK!!!” my six-year-old shouted. I heard my oldest’s feet pounding towards the kitchen and I quickly to ran down to join them. Despite the pandemic causing us to mentally and physically feel like we are often stuck in thick jello, the call for a well-timed “Pug break” during a day of distance-learning-work-juggling evokes a…  Read More

Child pressing folded hands against parents hands in an act of apology

Kids, Parenting, and Apologizing

In the first year of the pandemic, I was participating in a meeting last week with a group of parent educators when the facilitator posed these questions as “ice-breakers” before we got deeper into our agenda: What is something you have spent more time on during these challenging times? What has grounded you and your…  Read More

Ribbon on a typewriter with the words "stories matter" above

Parenting for Media Literacy

Pay Attention to the Stories and Storytellers

“Whoever tells the stories, defines the culture.” The power of story and storytelling is not new in 2020. Stories have always been the primary way that we pass down culture, values, and identity. We are hardwired for story. Storytelling focuses our kids’ attention, forms memories, and bolsters meaning across developmental stages. Far from being neutral…  Read More

Child blowing a dandelion seeds into the air.

Five Things Kids Need to Regulate and Recharge

“Are we still on summer break?” my oldest asked me yesterday. I wanted to respond, “Who knows anymore?” but I held my tongue. Instead, I answered with a cheery, “Yup! Still on summer break!” Then I handed him a popsicle in a somewhat feeble attempt to assert summer-ness into the day. I empathize with his…  Read More

Child smiling straight into camera.

“But Girls Can’t Play That Game!” How to Disrupt Gender Bias in Young Children

A single parent of a toddler sent me this message last week. “I know that this isn’t a huge deal and I have a lot of time to talk to my daughter about sexism and gender, but it all of a sudden feels very urgent.” “Why is that?” I asked. She went on to share…  Read More

Child raising her arms in defiance feeling lots of emotions

The Goal of Emotional Regulation is Not Quiet, Compliant Kids

The lessons we learn about feelings are powerful. From a very young age we are taught in both spoken and unspoken ways which feelings (and associated behaviors) are welcome and which aren’t. A parent shared with me after a workshop a couple of years ago, “I was always told in one hundred different ways that…  Read More

Raising Connected & Courageous Kids

A resource round-up for talking to kids about race and racism

It is clear over and over and over again that raising courageous and connected kids means talking about harmful stereotypes, racism, and bias and giving kids age appropriate tools to spot it and disrupt it in our beliefs, behaviors, and systems. This is by no means an exhaustive list. This work is never done. Talking…  Read More