Teaching point of view to children is not only a standard, but a really important life skill. This is one of my favorite picture books for introducing the concept, but gracious ... right now it sort of reminds me of my news feed: "Duck!" "Rabbit!" "No, it's a duck!" "No! It's a rabbit!" 🦆! 🐇! 🦆! 🐇! 🦆! 🐇! Insert different words and it sounds like a political conversation. But … [Read more...]
Calming Strategies for Kids
CALMING STRATEGIES FOR KIDS School counselors are amazing. When deciding what to be in life, these are the sweet people who thought, "I want to work with kids. I want to be a person they can talk to when the world feels upside down. I want them to know there is someone who will listen and help them feel safe." And when a school counselor gets to counsel, it's a beautiful thing. But if your school … [Read more...]
Big Ideas from The Other Side
I read The Other Side by Jacqueline Woodson at the start of each school year. It's perfect for introducing sophisticated topics to young children, such as exclusion and racial tension. The story deals with big ideas in kid-friendly ways, helping us have conversations about kindness in an effort to build healthy relationships and communities. The author explains how she hopes the story of Clover … [Read more...]
Make Your Own Breakout Games
When the pandemic forced us all inside last year, my family became a little bored. Suddenly, my own kids were back home from college and after about three weeks of Netflix, they were wondering "Ok. What's next?" Being a teacher's kid is always a risk You'd think they'd know by now not to ever admit to feeling bored. And yet, they fall for it every time. So I put everyone to work. A lot of it was … [Read more...]
Sofia Valdez, Future Prez
Sofia Valdez for president! Have you seen this new book by Andrea Beaty? She's written a few other books you may already know: Ada Twist, Scientist Rosie Revere, Engineer Iggy Peck, Architect Her books empower children, leaving them feeling like they can do anything and her new book doesn't disappoint. In Sofia Valdez, Future Prez, a young girl notices a problem in her community and … [Read more...]