Playing Games: Fun and Learning Parents and child development experts alike agree that play is an essential part of growing up. Kids learn while playing – there’s really no argument there. Like lion cubs wrestling in the den, we recognize that the games children play prepare them for life as adults. While our kids aren’t necessarily learning to fight for their lives by tooth and claw, they’re learning skills that
If you’re a parent of a teen, it can be confusing when you hear your teen talk to others, or try to read their texts. If you’re not familiar with teen slang, some of their exchanges may seem unfamiliar or downright odd. Adolescents today will also use words and phrases that mean totally different things than what you may think they mean. Many times, teen-speak can denote sexual- and drug-related
We recently posed an open question on our Facebook page: “Hey Parents of Teens! What Do You Want to Know? What topic would be the most helpful for you? If you’ve ever thought, I wish I had a guide to deal with this problem! Now is your chance to ask for that guide.” Members of our online community replied with their most pressing questions. One concerned parent asked: “When do
This is our second spring break post of this season. In our first spring break post, we discussed spring break in general and offered some ideas to keep your teen busy this time around, in case you don’t have a family trip or anything else planned already. In this post, we’re going to expand on a question we addressed very briefly in our first post: Should I let my teenager
Most school districts around the country schedule a week of spring break between mid-March and mid-April. That means spring break is right around the corner. If you haven’t made family plans yet, it’s time to get started. And if you have, we offer sincere congratulations. You’re ahead of the game, and we’re all a bit jealous: we’ve barely recovered from the winter holidays. One thing about vacations adults learn soon
This year, National Teenager Day falls on the same day as Incredible Kid Day – or rather Absolutely Incredible Kid Day – so parents and teens get to celebrate two novel holidays on one day: Thursday, March 21st, 2019. You may ask yourself: What is it with all these holidays? Who makes these things up? Let’s just remind you of one thing: all holidays are made up. Even New Year’s
The third Thursday of every March is Incredible Kid Day. It’s not just Incredible Kid Day, it’s Absolutely Incredible Kid Day. This fun holiday is an opportunity for you to recognize you kid’s general awesomeness. Use it honor their achievements and remind them how much you love them. You may do this every day, but if you surprise them with special recognition on what to them may seem a random
30 Million Words: Worlds of Difference In 2003, early childhood development researchers Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley published a paper entitled “The Early Catastrophe: The 30 Million Word Gap by Age 3.” In this study, Hart and Risley studied the language acquisition processes of children from 42 families across three different categories: professional families, middle-income families and families on welfare. The results they found were astonishing. By the time
Early Training for Life Parents, grandparents, and primary caregivers teach children so many things that it’s hard to know where to start naming them. They teach kids to walk, talk, eat, tie their shoes, brush their teeth, and dress themselves. They teach them how to treat others, how to say please and thank you, how to be patient, and how to share and how to express their feelings in productive
February 13th is International Self-Love Day. The fact that this day of self-love comes right before Valentine’s Day, the day of showing love to others, conveys an important message to struggling teens and their families: Taking care of yourself first is a prerequisite to showing love to others. In honor of the day, we’re sharing the most important thing you can do to increase your self-acceptance and self-love. As psychologists,
