“I only got four hours of sleep last night because I was cramming for the exam today,” said Matt to one of his teenage friends. “Oh yeah, I just got a couple of hours of sleep as I had to study for two exams today,” replied his friend. This type of exchange is common as…
Owwww! The scream of pain can be heard on the other side of the house. It is an all too familiar scream as Johnny has once again pulled his sister’s pigtails. The mother hustles from the living room to give Johnny a spanking while she yells, “how many times does this need to happen before…
As the mother rummages through her son’s backpack for his homework and other school letters, she finds a page with tables labeled Mathematics and Reading that is full of numbers. More importantly, her son’s name is at the top along with his elementary school. It certainly looks important and official but what it means is…
The mother clenches her teeth, lets out a sigh, and prepares for the homework battle with her son. It has become harder and harder to get him to complete the work he brings home from school. It was bad before because of her son’s difficulty paying attention but he now is so moody that it…
“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Benjamin Franklin came up with this proverb and most people focus on the final portion regarding death and taxes. What is often missed is the beginning of the proverb which is quite important, particularly when working with children. Uncertainty in the…
The first nine weeks of school arrives and the report card comes home. Mom opens her child’s report card to find that her little Einstein is failing a class and barely passing a couple of others. When she shows the report to the boy, he says, “My teacher is horrible. She never explains anything and…
The house is quiet as 7:00am slowly ticks by. Mom is enjoying her morning cup of coffee as the kids continue to sleep in. The summer morning routine is a leisurely affair rather than the stress-filled, anxiety provoking school year routine. As a result, the whole family is more relaxed and the kids are more…