During one of the recent snow days home, my kids were getting really sick of being cooped up inside and struggling to be able to play with one another successfully. They both needed more space than was available inside, and they were both sick of trying to play bundled up in the snow, and the … Read more
We sort of organically invented a game outside that I thought was pretty great for kids who are what’s sometimes called “destructive”, or who are wanting to take things apart, knock towers over, break things, etc. The game basically consisted of my daughter (4) and me writing and drawing with chalk on the house, the … Read more
The last thing that I wanted you to know this week, as I wrap up my talks about sensory mismatch (the other four posts are here: one, two, three, four), is that kids will typically become better at managing this mismatch themselves over time, so you don’t have to feel like this will take active … Read more
I wrote a post about myself, an adult, not freaking out when my children said things that were factually incorrect because I knew they were playing at having that skill. Like pretending to read a sign, or drawing scribbles and then “reading” them to me. The point of my post was that I don’t need … Read more
A little moment from my life: The kids (5 and 4) ran to get in the car. They began arguing: Apollo: I got here first! Summer: No, I got here first! Apollo: No, I got here first! Summer: No, I got here first! I was a solid 45 seconds behind either of them. As I … Read more
This post has an audio and video recorded version for those who prefer to learn by hearing rather than by reading. Scroll to the bottom for the video of me reading it. “I wish I could let my kids learn to work out their own fights, but it turns from verbal to physical in the … Read more
Kids learn through play. Left to themselves, almost everything a child will do is playing, and all of it is learning. If you watched a lot of parents and teachers, though, you might come to the mistaken conclusion that kids learn primarily through being lectured. 😉 Why is that? Why is it so hard to … Read more
When we introduce a new baby to the family, our kids might hear a lot of the following (from us, or from family members, or from well-meaning well-wishers): “You’re going to be such a good big brother/sister!” “Aren’t you so excited to be the big brother/sister?” “Isn’t it so fun having a new baby?” …etc, … Read more
This post has an audio and video recorded version for those who prefer to learn by hearing rather than by reading. Scroll to the bottom for the video of me reading it. Someone recently asked me, “I want my child to know that they can feel their full range of emotions without any emotion being … Read more
While going through old posts, I found a great exchange in the comments that now I’m turning into its own post… Q: It’s important to me as a parent to let my child play freely and explore and learn through playing. However, their older sibling feels like they need to “teach” them how to do … Read more