Play Hard, Study Hard: What Cognitive Skills Tell Us
November 30, 2016
Research on cognitive skills gives powerful insight into what we should generally expect from children behaviorally, emotionally and academically at every age. Scientists from University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine Brain Behavior Lab evaluated nearly 10,000 children ages 8 to 21. They began with fMRI scans and then moved to an online assessment to analyze brain development at every age. Their data is fascinating. What We’ve Known About Cognitive Skills We’ve know for a long time that childhood is a period of rapid brain development. It is important that students shouldn’t be coasting and they shouldn’t be stretched too far beyond their comfort zone. In other words, they should be working in a state of “desirable difficulties” according to Dr. Robert A. Bjork. What’s News About Cognitive Skills from the Brain… Read More
It Takes A Village
September 27, 2016
Guest Blog by Jen Cort When kids are little, parents know they need trusted adults for events such as picking them up from school in case of emergency or hosting them on playdates. What we may not realize is that trusted adults are perhaps even more important in middle and high schools than in elementary school. Trusted adults are those adults you feel comfortable allowing your child to be in the care of and/or providing advice to your child in your absence. As your child grows, her/his needs also change. Therefore, it’s necessary to reevaluate the trusted adults in your child’s life on an ongoing basis. For example, social identifiers (such as race, gender and religion) may move into or out of… Read More
Raising Emotionally and Socially Healthy Kids: An Interview with Dr. Eileen Kennedy-Moore
September 21, 2015
We are supremely fortunate to share with you this week insight from a leading child psychologist Dr. Eileen Kennedy-Moore who has great advice on how to handle some sensitive parenting moments. Dr. Eileen Kennedy-Moore has a private practice in Princeton, NJ, where she works with adults, children, and families. In addition to co-authoring Smart Parenting for Smart Kids and The Unwritten Rules of Friendship, she has a new video series for parents, produced by The Great Courses: Raising Emotionally and Socially Healthy Kids. Your Great Course lectures cover 12 topics that touch on different challenges of parenting. Is there an overriding principle or philosophy you might say parents today should keep in mind as they approach their roles as parents to growing children? The… Read More
