Category Archive:
Brain development

We Have Two Seconds To Change Behavior

two seconds to change behavior

“Look, mommy! I’m daddy!” Three-year-old Scotty opened a blue marker and scribbled on the wall as his mom, Margie, cut vegetables for dinner. Scotty had watched his dad paint the kitchen over the weekend. Now Scotty was trying to help, or so Margie surmised in the split second of disbelief and dismay as she took […]


Relight the Candle

relight the candle

Five-year-old Tommy walked over to his mother, Judy. ”Write my name for me, Mommy.” ”Tommy, you know how to write your name.” ”But I don’t ‘member,” he said. Tommy’s mother, Judy, phoned me, near tears, about this conversation. Judy’s concern was that Tommy had forgotten something as seemingly simple as the three letters in Tom. […]


Characteristics of the Adolescent

adolescent characteristics

For centuries the Judeo-Christian tradition has held a coming of age ritual for thirteen-year-olds. The Jewish Bar and Bat Mitzvahs and the Christian confirmation announce an adolescent’s provisional membership in his or her religious adult communities. With changing legislation over the past 50 years young people’s official entry into the adult world occurs eight years […]


The Neglected Needs of Teens

neglected needs of teens

Around age 12 with the onset of puberty, the human being undergoes physical and psychological metamorphoses. The child changes into an adolescent, and life will never be the same, for parent or child. The young adolescent needs opportunities to step outside his or her familiar community of home, church and school, while still using these […]


Children Love Routine, But…

children love routine but

The art of a parent or a teacher is to keep a child’s environment predictable enough to feel safe, but challenging enough to be exciting. Winston Churchill wrote, ”Human beings are of three classes: those who are toiled to death, those who are worried to death and those who are bored to death.” So it […]


The Stressed-Out Child

stressed-out child

“My seven-year-old daughter says she’s stressed-out. But what kid isn’t stressed-out nowadays?” my dentist said. As I lay there mouth opened, unable to speak, I thought about my dentist’s daughter and other stressed out kids. Seven seems young to say you’re stressed-out. Maybe ninety-seven is too young to say you’re stressed-out. Are kids more stressed-out […]


Cloud Watching

cloud watching

Summer will officially begin today with the summer solstice. For kids, I believe in the words of the Nat King Cole song, ”Roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer.” June, July and August should allow all of us time to luxuriate in some slow goofiness. Summer is a period of tremendous physical growth […]


The Danger of Fantasy

The Danger of Fantasy

Dear Father, hear and bless thy beasts and singing birds; And guard with tenderness small things that have no words. Perhaps you remember this childhood prayer. For me it is a call to duty. Young children often do not have the words to express themselves. I see our job as adults is to help children […]


Drawing With Children

teaching children drawing

Betty Edwards in her book, Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, explains that around age ten our logical “left-brain” style of thinking begins to dominate and overrides our creative “right-brain” type of thinking. Our left-brain thinking criticizes our work, and out of our mouth comes words like: That doesn’t look like a bird. You can’t draw […]


Left Brain + Right Brain = Whole Brain

left brain right brain whole brain

Over the past 30 years, researchers have made great inroads into inner space, trying to figure out how our brains work. Scientists know that certain parts of the brain control specific brain and body functions. Two hemispheres form the basic structure of the brain, connected by a bundle of neurons called the corpus callosum. Between […]