Research Report: How Positive Attitudes Toward Past, Present, and Future Affect Drug Use in Adolescents
A study published this year in the Journal of Addiction Research and Theory analyzed a concept that’s simultaneously familiar and unfamiliar. It’s the idea that the nature of our memories of the past, our feelings about the present, and our hopes for the future have an effect on whether we drink alcohol or smoke marijuana […]
What Is an IEP/504 Plan and How Will It Help My Teen?
Academic issues often go hand in hand with behavioral problems. Studies show that teens with ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), conduct disorder (CD), disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD), alcohol/substance use disorder (ADU/SUD), or other mental health issues often have trouble in school. They may have a hard time sitting still or paying attention during class. […]
Returning to the Classroom: Six Ways to Prepare For a Successful Transition
With the publication of the latest guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on opening schools safely, and updated safety guidance regarding the COVID-19 Delta variant, many educational institutions around the country are beginning to open for in-person instruction, if they haven’t opened already. This news comes as a relief for some parents who’ve […]
Virtual School: How to Reset for a Better Second Semester
By now we should all be experts at virtual school. We had a practice run last spring, time to recalibrate over the summer, and then a second shot at virtual school this fall. This article is for families that haven’t quite got the hang of virtual school yet. We understand. Virtual school is not for […]
Rates of Mental Health Symptoms and Substance Use in Santa Barbara High Schools
Teens in the Santa Barbara Unified School District (SBUSD) took a survey last year to gauge their rates of substance use and mental health issues. This survey, called the California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS), asked public school students statewide about a number of different issues in their lives: family connectedness, safety and crime at school, […]
How Do I Help My Teen Succeed at Virtual School This Fall?
This time last year, parents and teens were buying new school supplies and getting excited to go back to school. This year, though, the situation looks drastically different. Some school districts say they won’t open for in-person classes at all. Others are considering a hybrid schedule of virtual learning combined with limited face-to-face lessons. And […]
With Schools in Limbo, How Can Parents Plan for the School Year?
On July 13th, officials in Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco announced public schools will resume classes on August 17th online, rather than in-person. Some parents, concerned about their child attending school during the pandemic, are relieved. The hashtag #NotMyChild trended on Twitter last week in the U.S. Concerned parents across the country said […]
How Do Teachers Feel About Returning to Virtual Teaching?
The Santa Monica Unified School District (SMUSD) will resume classes via distance-learning this year. For Ms. Orah Gidanian, a special-education instructor at the Santa Monica Alternative School House (SMASH), this makes sense. “While I am definitely nervous thinking about how this will impact our students’ academic futures and their families, I didn’t see how we […]
My Teen Couldn’t Handle Virtual Learning This Spring. Should I Have Them Evaluated?
The nationwide pandemic abruptly shifted all schools to a distance-learning model last spring. And while some students might have thrived in this new educational setting, many students suffered. This article addresses this latter category: those whose academic performance suffered – maybe severely – when schools shifted to a virtual platform. If this happened to your […]
How to Help Your College Kid With COVID-19 Stress
The stress of the coronavirus pandemic affects everyone. The doctors, nurses, and frontline healthcare workers working every day feel it. Their patients sick with COVID-19 feel it. Their families feel it, too. Public health officials, elected officials, business owners, public safety officers, people who work in essential industries, people who lost their jobs, people who […]