They’re getting younger and younger! Now there’s Junior Kumon, a program to teach your two year old academics. Seriously! In a recent New York Times article, Fast-Tracking to Kindergarten, http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/15/fashion/with-kumon-fast-tracking-to-kindergarten.html?_r=1&emc=eta1 author Kate Zernike highlights the proliferation of the new Kumon (and other) tutoring programs designed to jumpstart toddlers’ academic career. Are they kidding? Sadly, they are not. And more and … [Read more...] about Toddler Tutoring?
Learning
A Parent Should Be A Parent…Not A Friend
Every time I hear a parent brag that her child is her best friend, I cringe and think, “Well, that’s too bad.” The job description of parent is mighty long—nurturer, teacher, advisor, consultant, guide, spotter, disciplinarian, consoler, cheerleader. But I am quite sure “friend” is not on the list. I fully believe that you really like your child, that there are times when you get along like peas and carrots, that you say you can read each other’s minds. But your child, whether young or … [Read more...] about A Parent Should Be A Parent…Not A Friend
Roaring Back at the Tiger Mom
Was your parent one who asked, when you brought home an A-, “Why didn’t you get an A?” So many adults have a version of this tale to share. They have never forgotten it, twenty or thirty years later. Most children really do want their parents to be proud of them, proud for a variety of reasons. While we don’t actually remember the many times that they were, it is the composite of all those moments that contribute to the child feeling significant in his parents’ eyes. This is just one of the … [Read more...] about Roaring Back at the Tiger Mom
The Gift That Keeps On Giving
Every year my friend Freida gives me a surprising gift. Far out pop-up books, foodstuffs from the Homeboy Industries-Homegirl Catering and Kitchen, DVD’s of documentaries I might have missed. But this year’s is the best: Of Thee I Sing: A letter to my daughters by Barack Obama. I have been hearing about this book since its release, but shame on me for not reading it until now. It is my loss. Don’t let it be yours. Of Thee I Sing, a beautifully, joyfully illustrated book, will drop you … [Read more...] about The Gift That Keeps On Giving
Fifty Years Later
I answered the door at 10:00 a.m. Sunday morning, to find a good looking, gray haired gentleman. “Yes?” I said, somewhat perturbed that my racing to set up for the 12:30 p.m event was being interrupted. “I am Jeff Hearn” said the guest who was supposed to have arrived at that 12:30 start time. “You’re Jeff Hearn?” I choked, incredulous, not having seen Jeff since he was an 11 year old classmate, graduating from sixth grade at UES. (I also wondered if he never learned to tell time after 50 … [Read more...] about Fifty Years Later
Be the Person You Want Your Child to Be
“You will not believe this story,” began the email from a client who had just returned from family services for the Jewish New Year. She described the mother and three children sitting next to her own family. “She was knitting!” (Yes, you read it correctly, knitting.) “And when she was done knitting, she pulled out her Blackberry and began texting.” I queried as to her guess of the ages of the children. Elementary and middle school, was her reply. There really isn’t more I need to write … [Read more...] about Be the Person You Want Your Child to Be