So I was driving home the other day when I heard this NPR story about how fierce the competition is for Manhattanites to get their children into elite preschools. These preschools can cost parents between $20,000-$30,000 per year! Apparently, it is so competitive to get into some of these preschools that parents can become quite …Read More
Self-Esteem or Self-Compassion?
Aug 19, 2011
In our culture there is a lot of concern for self-esteem. As parents and teachers we are always trying to foster children’s self-esteem, and many of my clients come to me asking for help to improve their self-esteem. But is self-esteem really all it is cracked up to be? Psychologist and researcher Dr. Kristin Neff …Read More
Family Therapy
Jul 20, 2011
One of the forms of therapy I am specialized in is family therapy, and I thought it would be helpful to write a blog about what family therapy is and why it could be helpful. Often when children are experiencing emotional or behavioral difficulties, these problems are related to stress or tension within the family. …Read More
Tips for Improving Family Communication
Apr 21, 2011
Families are busier than ever and one of the things I find they often struggle with is effective communication. When a family describes a situation where they feel “stuck” or as though they tend to face the same problems on a frequent basis, improving the family’s communication skills can be very helpful. Having effective communication …Read More
The Problem of Technology “Addiction” – What We Can Do About It
Apr 20, 2011
So, I’ve now gone through why I think that technology can be “addictive,” (see previous posts An Addiction vs. A Problem and The Neuroscience of Tech Addiction) although I think it is important to not got get too hung up on the exact terminology. It is typically easier to discern whether it is a problem by …Read More
Helping Your Child Succeed In School VI: A Growth Mindset
Apr 17, 2011
So, what does it take for a child to be successful at something like math or learning a language? Does it take talent? Research shows that there are certainly individual differences in predisposition for learning certain skills, but that this talent doesn’t get us very far. What really matters is putting in hours of hard …Read More
The Problem of Technology “Addiction” – An Addiction vs. A Problem
Mar 8, 2011
I was recently interviewed on KXAN regarding technology addiction. Too much technology may tweak your life: kxan.com Given some of the constraints inherent in a TV news cast, I thought I’d follow up with some additional thoughts on this fascinating and timely topic. I’ve presented on the topic of technology addiction to various schools around Austin, and …Read More
The Importance of Play
Mar 4, 2011
As parents we all want the best for our children and we want to provide them with as many opportunities to grow and develop themselves as we can. We want to expose our children to experiences that are enriching and will enhance many different aspects of their development. But sometimes these loving intentions result in …Read More
Helping Your Child Succeed In School V: Get Involved
Jan 15, 2011
One of the most important things that parents can do to help their child succeed in school is to become involved in their education. Decades of research shows that parent involvement has a positive influence on students’ school performance and social emotional well being in school. This is the fifth installment of a series of …Read More
Increasing Academic Motivation – Creating an Atmosphere for Exploration and Change
Dec 19, 2010
I would like to build upon my previous blog on increasing students’ academic motivation. In my prior blog I discussed the principles of motivation the benefit of creating a nurturing learning environment. Now, I’d like to build on that idea by presenting ideas for creating an atmosphere for exploration and change. By creating such an …Read More