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Early Learners
When I was in elementary school, one of the teachers had an incubator with chicken eggs set up in her classroom. The whole school would buzz when the eggs hatched and the adorable, yellow, fuzzy chicks made their debut. Everyone wanted to be in that class since the students helped monitor and care for the […]
On summer days when I was my children’s age, I spent a lot of time outside in the yard of our rural New York home. It was not unusual for cars to drive by our house slowly. The driver or the passenger, who looked to be as old as my grandparents did then, would gesture […]
If John Hancock had simply printed his name at the bottom of the Declaration of Independence, would we remember who he was? The president of the Continental Congress is famous for his bold script, but would today’s students be able to read the entire document he signed? Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis of Staten Island is among […]
“They grow up so fast.” – every parent, ever. Whether it’s the first day of school, high school graduation or marriage, you would be hard-pressed to find a parent that wouldn’t swear their child has grown up in the blink of an eye. If it seems as if today’s children are growing up faster than […]
Kindness matters. It just does. Many school districts are looking for creative ways of sharing messages of acceptance, respect and kindness with their students and faculty. But as we’ve learned, instilling a culture of kindness in our schools, which then extends to the world beyond, is not something that happens overnight. “Kindness changes the brain […]
My seven-year-old loves tape. I have gotten into the habit of buying a roll, or two (OK, sometimes three), whenever I’m at the store. He has created cars out of wooden blocks, a bridge stretching from the back of a living room chair to a nearby desk and a small cardboard house for his Lego […]
When I was in elementary school, the Cold War was all the rage. We had Red Dawn, Top Gun and The Day After. We had Mike and the Mechanics asking if we could hear them running. We had Nina Hagen standing pretty in the dust that was a city. One rainy day our local daily […]
“How was your day?” is a four word question that can elicit apathy from even the most communicative of children. Contrary to what they say, they do not spend all day at school and do “nothing.” So what’s a parent to do? According to David Ksanznak, principal of Hamagrael Elementary School (Bethlehem Central School District) […]
Crumpled balls of wrapping paper; delicious holiday fare; and happy kids with new gadgets, games and gizmos. These are a few of my favorite things. This year, with Christmas and New Year’s Day both on weekends, there may be many parents who are fortunate to have the full week off at the end of December. […]
The weather has turned, snow is the new norm and retail stores are decked out for the holiday season. The biggest indicator for me that the holiday season is here are the television commercials; commercials that showcase the latest and greatest toys that cause my seven- and nine-year-old sons to franticly yell for me to […]