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Tag: screen time

How to help your family survive the next Internet hoax

How to help your family survive the next Internet hoax

April 9, 2019 | Posted in: Elementary, Middle Years

“Can you kill Momo?” Those were probably not the first words a rookie school resource officer in Upstate New York expected to hear the first time he visited a classroom of third graders in late February. But it’s 2019, and the “Momo Challenge” had just gone viral. At the time of the encounter, that particular […]

Flipped learning can have several benefits for students

Flipped learning can have several benefits for students

May 3, 2018 | Posted in: Elementary, High School, Middle Years

Homework is almost always a struggle at my house, especially when it’s math. I try to help my fifth-grade son but am thrown back into a time warp to my own elementary and middle school mathematics challenges. With both of us floundering, homework time is less than pleasant. I recently learned that some sixth-grade teachers […]

Ideas for stronger dinner conversations with your kids

Ideas for stronger dinner conversations with your kids

December 6, 2017 | Posted in: Early Learners, Elementary, High School, Middle Years

You just worked a full day, rushed home to make dinner, sit down to eat with your family and open with this showstopper: “How was school today?” A popular answer to this question is, “K,” or perhaps you’re familiar with: “It was fine,” or “Good.” Or even worse, an answer doesn’t come. Just your child, […]

Reducing family screen time is easier than it seems

Reducing family screen time is easier than it seems

February 10, 2017 | Posted in: Elementary, High School, Middle Years

For Nicole, a mom of two children, ages 4 and 8, the start of 2017 was an opportunity to tackle a growing problem in her house: family screen time. For parents raising children in today’s digital age, it can seem daunting to set limits on screen time and technology. “This year, in order to actually […]

Keeping connected in today’s classroom: Teachers utilizing digital tools to better communicate with parents

Keeping connected in today’s classroom: Teachers utilizing digital tools to better communicate with parents

October 17, 2016 | Posted in: Early Learners, Elementary, High School, Middle Years

I can distinctly remember that yellow piece of paper with six little words, “Please call at your convenience. IMPORTANT.” “Uh oh,” I thought. Written on a pad from the “Desk of Mrs. Hinchey,” my fifth-grade teacher – poor Mrs. H wasted quite a few sheets of her personalized paper trying to get in touch with […]

Screen time for school, work and play is a balancing act

Screen time for school, work and play is a balancing act

October 4, 2016 | Posted in: Early Learners, Elementary, High School, Middle Years

I heard the sirens shortly before 6 p.m. It was as normal a Wednesday evening as you could have as the parent of a 6-year-old and an 8-year-old. I was at my desk in the backroom tinkering with an old HAM radio. The kids were watching a show on Netflix after a busy day during […]

Mindfulness: Why it’s becoming more prevalent in schools

Mindfulness: Why it’s becoming more prevalent in schools

September 12, 2016 | Posted in: Early Learners, Elementary, High School, Middle Years

Aside from an occasional yoga class, I would have never considered myself the “meditating” type. Type A? Totally. Zen master? Not so much. That was, until I was preparing for the birth of my first child and my doctor suggested mindful meditation as a way to help me be well (see: less of a stressed […]

‘Reading deeply’ not as easy on electronic devices

December 8, 2014 | Posted in: Early Learners, Elementary, High School, Middle Years

Students have greater access to reading materials as electronic devices are incorporated into classroom learning, but some educators question how well students comprehend when reading in a digital format. The question is, can students actually “go deep” with digital reading? “Deep reading” is a concept frequently connected to Common Core Learning Standards. It’s slow reading, […]

Simple math: Texting + Driving = Bad News

June 10, 2014 | Posted in: High School

The statistics are frightening: 77 percent of young adults are very or somewhat confident they can safely text while driving 55 percent of young adult drivers say it is easy to text while driving. 13 percent of drivers age 18-20 involved in a crash admitted to texting or talking on the phone just prior to […]

‘What a day for a daydream, custom made for a daydreamin’ boy or girl’

April 30, 2014 | Posted in: Early Learners, Elementary, High School, Middle Years

This electronic world we live in may be depriving us of a much-needed pastime: daydreaming. Psychologists say daydreaming helps us formulate goals and understand our deepest hopes, wishes and fears. It also contributes to creativity, social-emotional well-being and school performance. But researchers say distractions such as social media and video games may keep children from […]