Posted on 4/6/2021
Many times have I warned parents of the pitfalls of micromanaging their children’s academic responsibilities lest said children deduce that the responsibilities in question are not theirs at all...
Read MorePosted on 2/23/2021
A therapist takes a 10-year-old boy into what she calls “therapy.” The young fellow is belligerently defiant toward his parents and throws titanic tantrums when things don’t go his way. At school...
Read MorePosted on 8/28/2018
It has long been known, but only spoken of in hushed tones by university professors sitting in darkened rooms wearing Fat Elvis masks, that pre-Kindergarten “jump-start” (aka, “push-down”)...
Read MorePosted on 9/23/2014
A second-grade teacher writes: “I teach in a very competitive school where parents have developed a ‘mob mentality’ for bullying administrators and teachers. They have gone beyond helicopter...
Read MorePosted on 9/9/2014
Q: I homeschooled my oldest, an 8-year-old boy, until this year. He started third grade in public school in August. As a homeschooling mom, I was not a micromanager and don’t want to...
Read MorePosted on 6/3/2014
I recently asked a group of 50 teachers: “Raise your hand if you agree that when a child comes to an adult asking for help with an academic problem, the adult should help.” ...
Read MorePosted on 9/3/1989
In last week's column, I said that for a child to benefit from homework, the child must have full "ownership" of the responsibility. Parents should help when help is truly needed, but must be...
Read MorePosted on 5/6/2021
Our 14 year old son has been home schooled this year with a combination of online classes with teachers and online self paced classes. He is struggling with time management. He is behind in most...
Read MorePosted on 3/4/2021
I know I’ve read in one of your books or perhaps somewhere on your website a suggestion for how elementary school age kids can practice spelling words on their own. At the time, I didn’t have a...
Read MorePosted on 3/4/2021
Would love some feedback on chores for my 6 and 8 year olds. Every Saturday they are expected to each clean their own mirror and sink in the bathroom, clean either the play room or their bedroom...
Read MorePosted on 12/2/2020
I am homeschooling my Grandson, who is in first grade. He is a bright child, but not motivated for school. He has struggled with handwriting and anything which requires manual dexterity, or fine...
Read MorePosted on 8/20/2020
My son is going in the 3rd grade and so far has had great performance at school both with academics and behavior. When school went virtual in the spring, it was a horrible few months for both of...
Read MorePosted on 7/23/2020
Based on the book The Well Behaved Child, what age/grade should a parent stop assisting with homework?
Read MorePosted on 5/2/2020
My 14 year old got a phone for christmas this year much to my regret. We put guidelines and restrictions in place to monitor her. I have her phone after bedtime and in looking at her texting...
Read MorePosted on 12/9/2019
This is a Part II to an early question submitted about a very strong-willed and increasingly mouthy 16-year old daughter. Please bear with someone who has subscribed for YEARS without submitting...
Read MorePosted on 12/2/2019
Finally: school and studies. Being in junior high now we are trying to encourage better study habits for our son. He has always found school easy and not brought work home to review while still...
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