Yes, everybody’s on edge, but when tensions escalated over a minor incident at the supermarket, it provided a hard-learned lesson in what it takes to stay sane and kind in these kind of insane times. Telling us that real-life story is Let Grow’s own Irshad Manji, author, professor and now our Director of Courage, Curiosity and Character. Read the tale by clicking here. I have to say — it gave me a flash of insight into how to deal with defensiveness. Mine, principally.
Author: lskenazy
Is there a way for kids to actually become LESS anxious during this EXTRA anxious time? Yes. The Let Grow Project is a super-simple idea that many schools have been doing: Kids go home with the assignment, “Do something new, on your own.” Walk the dog. Run an errand. Make a cake. The results have been so phenomenal, especially when it comes to anxiety, that we made the video below. Better still, we have a free “Independence Kit” for teachers to use in their on-line classes, or for parents to use on their own. Click here to get it, at…
Hop over to Let Grow to read 5 very basic tips about what to do when freaking out (and the kids are home!). Click here and take a deep breath!
“How to Talk to Your Kids About Amilia Earhart’s Disappearance” was not a thing. “How to Talk to Your Kids About #Coronavirus” articles are. These can be helpful, but you can also wing it. Experts are not better at talking to your kids than you are. Click here for my piece at Reason on how the “expert culture” can sap our confidence in ourselves and our kids.
Over at Let Grow, Tom Muir, creator of The Epic Classroom, has a lovely 90-second video about why it’s cool for kids to create maps of their neighborhood, and there’s a downloadable list of things for kids to look for and a map template too. Click here to go get ’em!
“Some parents seem to be under the impression that if their child doesn’t suffer from anxiety, then they’re not driven or working hard enough.” Read a 7th grade teacher’s essay on student life today, and what’s different from our own childhoods. The piece is at Let Grow — please click here. (And get ready for a knot in your stomach.)
“Why is my son so independent and my daughter keeps asking us to do things for her?” That’s the honest lament of a mom trying to figure out if she “made” her kids this way or not. Read her piece over at Let Grow by clicking here! Photo by Marie-Michèle Bouchard on Unsplash
Even if you are sick of the slush outside, it can be cool — literally — to have your kids make their own snow, inside. Over at Let Grow we have 7 different ways to do this — including the “how to” that interests me most: How to make your own snow globe. (Just don’t try getting it through the TSA.) Click here to start your snowy journey.
A dad talks about talking about college — and alternatives — with his high school sophomore son, 16. The son begs,”Can we stop talking about this?” but the dad soldiers on, because, “One of the reasons dealing with college can seem so terrifying is that success is defined so rigidly. You graduate high school, go to college, get a job, live happily ever after. But the truth is that most people don’t follow that path, and maybe most people shouldn’t. If a young person isn’t ready to go to college at 18, that’s not a disaster. ” Find his provocative…
It’s so easy to say “no” to kid activities that are messy, tiring, or even the teensiest bit risky. One mom decided to try saying yes. (Or at least thinking about why she was saying, “No!”) Click here to read about what it takes to change some parent-child dynamics. Photo by Craig Gary from Pexels