Play Nice! Bullying, Playground Politics and How to Help Kids Make Friends

On the first day of preschool, Issaquah mom Megan Thomas watched as her 4-year-old son, Aiden, tried to make friends. He was “the new boy” — most of the children in his class had been together the previous year. For nearly a month, Aiden was left out during free play time. “He brought it up with my

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Classical Kids Part 1: A Child's Guide to Benaroya Hall

Editor's note: See also Part 2 of this series: "Musical Adventures Beyond Benaroya" You want your child to be emotionally intelligent? To work toward a goal, take turns, be patient, physically strong? The music called “classical” has been nurturing these skills in both players and audiences for man

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Eight Train Adventures for Seattle Kids and Families

1. The Seattle Center Monorail Want to make your little train lover shake with excitement? Take them on one (or seven) of these eight train mini-adventures this fall, starting with the Monorail from Seattle Center to Westlake Center. Kids will get a kick out of riding above the city streets; be sur

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Discipline: Is Time Up for Time-Outs?

Who hasn’t coped with a difficult child? Even the most serene kids occasionally exhibit what we like to call “behavior.” Maybe the child refuses to cooperate, tosses toys around or simply acts sassy. Which leaves parents with that familiar dilemma: how to deal?With spanking pretty much off the tabl

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20 Halloween Lunch Ideas for Kids

  Kooky Spooky Characters Lian Mama Obento features this fun idea for making a Halloween "haunted house" bento box lunch -- with all of the well-known Halloween haunters included! This charming confection is made out of an onion bagel with cream cheese and a hot dog slice for the front door. (Th

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6 No-Carve Halloween Pumpkin Ideas for Toddlers

  Mess-Free and Spooky-Cool Featured on Seattle-based site, Modern Parents, Messy Kids, we love these ideas for creating mess-free jack-o-lanterns. Mama Steph explains that her family first hits up the pumpkin patch in early October and then they wait for a couple of weeks before her tots get busy

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Handwriting and Literacy: Does Your Child Have the ‘Write’ Stuff?

A few years ago, Seattle parents Michelle Lewis and Henry Underhill noticed that their 5-year-old son did not seem interested in learning letters or their sounds. At that same time, the boy’s 3-year-old brother was trying to write his name. The parents saw the difference, but at first they weren’t t

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Music Matters: 14 Ways to Expose Your Baby or Toddler to Music

Parents discover early on the power of music. You sing a lullaby, and your infant is soothed. You make up a silly song about brushing teeth or putting on socks and your toddler makes it through a tough transition. You happen upon a guitar-and-fiddle duo at a farmer’s market and your shy preschooler

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