Recent Articles
Three Big-Kid Discipline Problems — Solved!
Experts in child development will tell you the tween or early-teen age can be a child’s most vulnerable. But if your kid is mouthing off, picking fights with brothers or sisters, possibly even lying to your face, you may feel like you’re the one getting pummeled. What to do? Tween and teen defiance
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Teaching teens to drive
Learning to drive is probably one of the great modern rites of passage for our children. With that coveted license comes independence — and responsibility! — unlike any they have ever known. According to Washington state law, teen student drivers must log a minimum of 50 hours behind the wheel with
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Ten tricks for banishing your child's bad mood
Know this feeling? You’re moving through your busy day, managing the kids like a supermom. Emergency snacks, sippy cups, favorite toys — you’ve thought of it all; what could go wrong? Plenty, when a big bad mood strikes a little kid. Too little sleep and too much junk food can trigger serious mood s
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Online Safety for Kids: Danger on the Digital Playground
Are you a “digital native” or a “digital immigrant”? If you’re older than 28, you’re probably an immigrant, according to Mike Donlin, manager of the cyberbullying, education and prevention program for the Seattle Public School District. That means the technology that’s practically second nature to y
Read More »Connecting teens to the environment
Creepy crawlies, mud and rocks -- kids are naturally drawn to nature when they're young. But how does one reach them when they've arrived in their teens? Some local educators have created innovative programs that engage older kids, and give them important job skills in the bargain. Building natural
Read More »Have regular talks with teens about sex
Parents may shudder at the prevalence of sexually suggestive teen clothing and popular stores that target girls with T-shirts like "I do my own nude scenes" and "Milk me," or, for boys, "Rises to the occasion." But the fact is, many teens are sexually active and are more sexually knowledgeable than
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Are girls acting sexy too young?
A 10-year-old Tacoma boy confides in his mom about a problem at school. A fourth-grade girl has repeatedly told him that he is “hot.” The boy is mortified and unsure what to do. A Seattle school library teacher overhears a conversation in the fitting rooms at Nordstrom. Two girls are discussing how
Read More »When a teen comes out
Zach Lundin considers himself lucky. It was relatively easy, he says, to tell his parents he was gay. His folks are open-minded, and Zach's a student at Lakeside School, an independent school in north Seattle that celebrates diversity and emphasizes acceptance and tolerance. What's more, Zach ad
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