Blog
“‘Spilling the Milk’ & ‘You Owe Me’ – Child Behavior in Two Acts”
Since my latest book, Beyond the Power Struggle: A Guide to Challenging Kids, was published some months ago, I have had some interesting interactions – a number of different interviews and parents contacting me about their kid’s behavior. A nice surprise was a small...
ADHD: The Trouble With Boredom
When was the last time your kid came home and said, “Mom, guess what, I got a really cool worksheet today!!!” My guess is it has not happened to date. Frankly, the worksheets that I see (and I see tons of them) can be pretty dreadful...
Dyslexia: The Misnomer
dys·lex·i·a [dis-lek-see-uh] noun Pathology . Any of various reading disorders associated with impairment of the ability to interpret spatial relationships or to integrate auditory and visual information. Much of my professional life is spent...
Watching Movies
When I listen to kids and parents talk about things that go on, there are times when I find myself feeling a bit cranky about what I am told. Here’s one story told me lately that increased my cranky meter. A kid in high school kid told me about an...
The Problem-Solving Voice: Is it too quiet?
Those of you who have read my stuff or know of the work that I’ve done with kids over the years, know I can be a bit “decoding obsessed.” This is primarily because I have witnessed the legions of struggling decoders (usually dyslexics)...
The Thing About Dyslexia is…(part 1)
The thing about dyslexia is almost everyone gets it wrong. As proof, try this experiment. Ask anyone you know the question, “What is dyslexia?” I would wager that 90% (perhaps 100%) will say… “Isn’t that when you read upside...
“It’s Miller Time”
Miller Time: “After a long hard day's work you come home, grab a Miller Lite out of the fridge and enjoy a few cold ones.” That’s what the Urban Dictionary defines as “Miller Time.” If you are old enough to remember...
And An Angry River Runs Through It
If you have a shut-down learner style teen (especially a boy) you know the scene – not handing in homework consistently, not getting started on tasks, poor follow through, lots of video game playing or cell phone activity – that fun package. Typically...
Talking About You At the Family Picnic
From what I can tell there are two essential types of children in terms of their behavioral repertoire. The first types are the kids who go along with the program. They are flexible. From a young age, you can take them to restaurants, off to the mall...
6 Things to Think About As You Start the School Year.
It's that time of year. You feel the pit in the stomach starting to form again. Here are a few miscellaneous thoughts to keep in mind to try and shrink the pit ever so slightly. What's the focus? Ask yourself what the focus will be in the coming school year. Is the...
Getting Over the Decoding Hurdle
When my kids were little I wasn’t too worried about developmental milestones. There was one developmental hurdle, though, that I was fixated upon - the “decoding hurdle.” Most kids get over the decoding...