For parents struggling to find ways to encourage their kids to eat a healthy and balanced diet, gardening can be an important tool. Don’t let the idea overwhelm you. Gardening doesn’t require a perfectly level, large or sunny backyard. Try planting in a small raised bed or growing a few edibles in existing landscaping. Lean […]
Do Some Simple But Great Summer Science Games
Summer has just arrived, and like you, we’ve been looking for new ways to get outside and do some great science. With both an eight-and-a-half-year-old and a five-year-old in the house, the question this summer is, how can we (and you) get your youngest children thinking like a scientist and engage different age levels at […]
Some helpful tips for beating the back-to-school blues.
There he was, our son, as sweet as a cinnamon bun, marching confidently into a new chapter of his life: his first day of preschool. We felt like celebrating—or at least doling out a healthy round of fist bumps watching him move into “big boy” status last fall. To be frankly, we were also relieved. […]
The Teacher Mixes Rap Songs Like ‘Bad And Boujee’ Into History Lessons
“You know, it’s your boy, honest Abe. Making this song to shut down the lames.” This is how middle school history teacher David Yancey began a lesson on the Civil War at Edwards Middle School in Conyers, Georgia. Yancey’s remake of Migos’ banger “Bad and Bougee” went viral on Sunday after a high school friend […]
Serving Up A Slice Of Einstein On Pi Day,Which Is Also Albert Einstein’s Birthday
It’s on this day each year that so many debate the merits of Dutch apple a la mode vs. lemon meringue pie. It’s the day pie lovers embrace the (other) Pi (3.14…), transforming March 14th into a good reason to globally celebrate Pi with pie. For those of us who celebrate fundamental scientific research every […]
Some strategies to help you both cope when the going gets tough
No matter how hard you try, your child may struggle academically at some point in his school career. Here are some strategies to help you both cope when the going gets tough. Let your kids get frustrated. When kids are having a hard time with homework or a school-related subject, they often explode with anger. […]
The Surprising Meaning and Benefits of Reading Nursery Rhymes To Children
When you sing nursery rhymes to your children, you may be telling the same poems and tales that, in some form, were told by firelight from parents to their children centuries ago, perhaps even as far back as the Middle Ages. Determining the origins of these famous tales before they were written down is impossible, […]
Tips For The Summer Reading
What comes to mind when you think about summer with your children? Swimming? Summer camp? Barbecues? Music in the park? This year, why not make sharing books part of your family’s summer fun? Teachers and literacy experts agree that children of all ages need to be read to or to read by themselves and to […]
“Read” Illustrations can Help Improve Literacy Skills
Snuggling up with my children and a good picture book was one of my favorite things to do when my son and daughter were young. As parents, we intuitively know the value of this intimate exchange, and understand that reading to our children helps them internalize the structure of language and develop their appreciation for […]
Qualities of a Good Classroom Is Benefit For Children
Decades of research about how young children learn have shown that good beginnings make a lifelong difference. Young children who spend time in homes and classrooms in which there is a great deal of conversation and daily exposure to books and writing are better prepared to become readers and writers when they enter kindergarten. School-aged […]