December Update
Hi, I hope you all have a happy and relaxing holiday season — whatever shape it takes. As I said in a recent Your Teen article (below), it’s perfectly okay to aim for “good enough.” I know…
4 Ways to Help Your Quarantined Tween Preserve Friendships
Under the best of circumstances, middle schoolers have to navigate a complex social landscape. They care deeply about their friends, but their empathy is developing, they’re insecure, and they’re still learning how to self-regulate and…
5 Ways to Recover from a Raw Deal
We’ve all experienced setbacks—times when we feel like we got a raw deal. In this blog for PsychReg in the UK, Phyllis shares a personal story and offers five strategies that help restore confidence and…
Facebook Live with "My Life Suckers"
I had fun doing a Facebook Live episode with the hilarious Deva Dalporto of My Life Suckers. We talked about how parents can teach kids to make good, safe and smart choices—whether it involves drinking…
Responsibility.Org Summit
I keynoted the Responsibility.Org summit in Washington, D.C. on October 12, 2018, presenting on how parents and other adults can help kids become smart decision-makers. I covered a wide age range, starting with the social-emotional…
9 ways parents can help kids cope with jealousy
Jealousy is a tough emotion that can’t be vanquished. As kids get bombarded daily with messages that they’re not enough, we need to connect them with their strengths & help them appreciate that no one’s…
7 strategies to help prepare your child for the rapidly changing work world
As jobs disappear to automation, soft skills such as agility, creativity and inventiveness may predict success more than grades, scores or core knowledge. There’s no one path to success, but here are seven strategies that…
9 ways to help boys form the close friendships they crave
Boys want to share the full range of their feelings, but many of them consider that too risky, feminine and “touchy feely.” If we give them the means to buck male stereotypes and form the…
After yet another school shooting, educators have more questions than answers
In addition to teaching, it seems we’re expected to be human shields,” one teacher says. Principals are hearing about school systems training teachers to use guns, or practicing drills with swarms of police officers and…
Ten Mindfulness Strategies for Educators
When we put our own oxygen masks on first, everyone benefits. We become less reactive and more giving colleagues, better friends, calmer parents — and, for those of us who work in schools — more…
Parent/Teen Purple Hibiscus Review
I love to talk about books with students, but reading together is also a great, not-too-intrusive way to gain access to your own child’s thoughts. I learned this firsthand when my 14-year-old daughter Emily and…
Reinforcing Values In Children
Tim, a young single dad on another continent, woke up feeling lost and alone. His tween son had made a big mistake, and Tim had raged at him the night before. He’s extremely close to…
9 ways parents can empower a child who has learning issues
If we want to empower kids with learning differences or ADHD, parents and schools need to ensure we’re identifying the right issues. We also need to understand that every challenge comes with built-in strengths, and…
When this 7th grader lost all his friends it took one bold move to evoke their compassion
When this seventh grade boy was shunned for making a mistake, he chose to do something incredibly courageous. His classmates’ reaction blew me away and made all the adults in the room cry. Sean sat…
10 Life Lessons from a Principal Who Led a Middle School for Four Decades
Michael Gordon ran a middle school for 40 years. That’s right, four DECADES. As principal, he got tough kids to soften and overprotective parents to loosen their grip. Under his watch, troublemakers fell into…
How to give reserved kids (and adults) a voice
In eighth grade, my social studies teacher asked for a volunteer to define “sagacious.” Atypically, I raised my hand. Ms. F. called on me, surprised to see me participating. But when I gave the correct…
