“My son used to love reading when he was a little guy,” a mom recently lamented. “Now I honestly can’t remember the last time he read for fun.” This parent isn’t alone in expressing concern about her child’s waning interest in reading as he grows older. The latest reports point to steep drops in literary… Read More →
Walk down the children’s toy aisle in any store these days and you will be greeted with a cacophony of noise. Instead of the excited voices of children that you might expect, however, much of the chatter emanates from the toys themselves. With one press of a little toddler finger, talking toys shout out encouragement,… Read More →
“Broken!” Miles exclaimed. “It’s broken!” He said again in an increasingly frustrated voice. It took me a couple of minutes to catch up. My son was positioned directly in front of the TV, trying diligently to move a character on Daniel Tiger with his index finger. I soon realized what he was trying to do… Read More →
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 →
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 →
I vividly remember a youth hockey coach once asked me to do some positive thinking before a big game, “Imagine that there are no obstacles standing in your way. You are fast and powerful and nothing is between you and the net.” Even with my eyes closed in the locker room, I could practically hear… Read More →
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 →
I have been cooking with my parents since I was a kid. Usually this involved sitting on the counter tasting the cookie dough batter (yes, with raw egg!), but not always. Sometimes I also helped by licking the brownie mix from the bowl with a spatula (wink, wink). My mom, in particular, loved to bake,… Read More →
When babies are born they are extremely attuned to their internal signals of hunger and fullness. When they are hungry they know, and they will let you know too! They also know when they are full, and they stop eating. This ability is so fine-tuned that – if left to determine their own intake –… Read More →
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 →
