by Stacey
Presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama used the occasion of Father’s Day last weekend to talk about the role of fathers in the lives of many black children. This article in the NY Times said that in a speech at a 20,000-member Apostolic Church of God on the South Side near Lake Michigan, Obama delivered […]

by Stacey
Some schools around the country are teaching students a controversial form of meditation to help battle stress. According to this article in Newsweek, transcendental meditation may help kids in inner city schools better handle stressful situations as well as improve their academic performance.
TM is the trademarked name of a meditation technique created by Maharishi […]

Cross-posted at MotherTalkers
by Stacey
Teenagers who want to scoop ice cream or sell clothing from their favorite store this summer may have a harder time than usual landing a job. This article in the NY Times says that little more than one-third of the 16- to 19-year-olds in the United States are likely to be employed […]

by Stacey
One in four late talking toddlers will continue to have language problems by age seven, according to new research out of Western Australia. This article in Science Daily says that the project, called LOOKING at Language, analyzed the speech development of 1766 children from infancy to age seven, with particular focus on environmental, neuro-developmental […]

by Stacey
Whether a young man’s mother earned a college degree or worked outside the home while he was growing up may influence his choice of a future wife, according to a new study by sociologists at the University of Iowa. Thanks to this article in ScienceDaily for the tip.
High-achieving men — those who earn salaries […]

by Stacey
A fascinating new study in the journal Cognition shows that three and four-year old children attune to those who provide them with reliable information. According to this short piece in the NY Times Science section, preschoolers spontaneously keep track of the trustworthiness of those around them.
“Humans make mistakes,” Susan A. J. Birch of the […]

Cross-posted at MotherTalkers
by Stacey
New software programs enable parents to learn of everything from their child’s daily class attendance and homework completion to test scores and overall grades throughout the semester, according to this article in the NY Times.
Boy am I glad I’m not a kid anymore. What a nightmare. Sorry if you’re one of […]

by Stacey
The informal style of writing that teens use in emails, text messages and on social networking sites is starting to show up in their academic work, according to this article in the NY Times.
Nearly two-thirds of 700 students surveyed said their e-communication style sometimes bled into school assignments, according to the study by […]

by Stacey
A few weeks ago I wrote about talking to my four-year old son Sage about sex. According to this recent article in the Washington Post, parents should plan on having “the talk” early and often.
Today, experts urge parents to welcome questions on sexuality by the time their kids can ask why the sky […]

Cross-posted at MotherTalkers
by Stacey
One of my favorite things to do is to listen to my four-year old son Sage talk to himself when he’s busy doing something. He totally uninhibited, talking about what he’s doing or pretending he’s hanging out with some of his imaginary friends. Often it happens when he’s concentrating, like building train […]