Between the two of us, we spent close to seventy years in schools. Nancy worked closely with middle schoolers and their parents for three decades as a school counselor while Steven spent his time in classrooms, engaging students in experiential learning. If there’s one thing we noticed over and over again in that time,
By now, most of us have heard the statistics about youth mental health. The numbers are hard to ignore. According to the CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey in 2023, [40% of teenagers experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness in the past year]. Nearly a third reported poor mental health in the past month. Stanford
What We Get Wrong About Raising Emotionally Healthy Kids Read More »
Here’s something I’ve observed after 34 years in education: the kids who thrive, not just academically, but socially, emotionally, and in life after school, almost always share one thing in common. They believe in themselves. Not perfectly. Not without doubt. But fundamentally, at their core, they trust that they are capable and worthy. That belief
How to Increase Confidence in Children: A Parent’s Practical Guide Read More »
“It’s easier to build strong children than to repair broken adults.” — Frederick Douglass Because you only get one chance to raise amazing kids. You know the feeling. You walk into someone’s home and within minutes, sometimes within seconds, you just sense something. The way kids and parents talk to each other. The ease of
