We had the special honor of speaking with Dr. Neeta Bhushan, author of the Mom’s Choice Award-winning book, That Sucked. Now What?! That Sucked. Now What?: How To Embrace the Joy in Chaos and Find Magic in the Mess offers insight, wisdom, and a practical five-stage framework to embrace the possibilities in chaos, normalize sucky human moments, overcome setbacks with grace, and help redefine tough moments to fly forward every time. Read More
Interview with Mom’s Choice Award-Winner Judy Harmon Holmes, Ed. D.
We recently got the opportunity to sit down with Judy Harmon Holmes, author of the Mom’s Choice Award-winning book, Responsible Kids: 6 Steps to Creating Them in an Irresponsible World. Read More
Interview with Mom’s Choice Award-Winner Dr. Aaron Blight
Thank you so much for joining us today as we get to know more about our honoree Aaron Blight, Ed.D., and his Mom’s Choice Award-winning book When Caregiving Calls: Guidance as You Care for a Parent, Spouse, or Aging Relative! Caring for a parent, spouse, or relative who cannot care for themselves due to age, infirmity, or illness is one of the noblest human activities. It’s also one of the most stressful, posing challenges that can be painful, confusing, frustrating, and deeply rewarding—sometimes all at once. Read More
School Organizational Skills for Kids: A Parent’s Guide
As the new school year begins, minimize stress by organizing your child’s routine. Organization, or lack thereof, is based on executive functions which are natural neurological processes, a group of critical mental skills. Individuals with adequate executive function skills can plan, organize, strategize, and manage time. They know which assignments are on the agenda after school and can prioritize. Read More
Parents Still Need to Teach Children Good Manners
Living in a household with a strong-minded grandma, lovingly called “Yiayia”, for the last 30 years has served as a reminder of the importance of good manners and etiquette. There was no free pass for bad manners in our house. We didn’t realize the impact of her presence on our behavior and probably did not appreciate it as much as we should have until she was no longer with us. Read More
How to Talk to Children About Gun Violence
Recently, our society has endured profound grief and anger over the devasting loss of so many innocent children to senseless gun violence. Since the shooting in Columbine in 1999, it has been reported that more than 300,000 students have experienced school shootings in the course of their day. Over the last twenty years, these heart-wrenching events have increased exponentially. It is important that we remain dedicated to addressing the impact of gun violence on victims and their families. As we take the time to mourn and remember, it is also vital to address the social and emotional impact these events have on the survivors who were in those classrooms and also for the children who were not present but suffered by repeated exposure to such events through the media. Read More
Teacher’s Visual Lesson on Hand Washing Will Totally Gross You Out
No surprises here, but the pieces of bread that were wiped on the students’ Chromebooks and the pieces that were touched by unwashed hands were by far the moldiest by the end of the experiment. Read More
Interview With Heidi Stock, Creator of Whistlefritz CARNAVAL
The benefits of learning a second language are myriad. There are obvious benefits – such as being able to communicate with more people and learn about other cultures – but there are less obvious benefits too. Research shows that bilinguals develop stronger cognitive and brain processes that enable them to function better in areas that are both related and unrelated to speaking another language. Read More
How to Navigate Cultural Halloween Costumes With Sensitivity
Mia Moody-Ramirez is a professor of journalism and public relations at Baylor University. She is also a nationally recognized expert on mass media representations of minorities, women, and other underrepresented groups. She says, “Common cultural appropriation missteps include darkening one’s face, wearing ethnic garb, and/or dressing up to provoke laughter rather than show respect for a group or person.” Read More
5 Ways to Combat Bullying at School
School is right around the corner, and with the fun and excitement of any new environment with school-aged children comes the threat of bullies. Statistics show that 160,000 kids stay home from school each day to avoid being bullied. While most schools have a zero-tolerance policy in the handbooks for bullying behavior, it is important to teach your children what to do when they find themselves in an uncomfortable situation at school. Read More