Articles containing: healthy development

What Is Family Therapy?

Family therapy emphasizes the idea that a child lives and grows in relationship to others, particularly in relationship to members of his or her own family. There are many different family therapy approaches.

Helping Kids Fit In At School

For a good part of third grade, I sat by myself in the school cafeteria during lunch.

I don’t exactly recall feeling lonely during those isolating moments with my peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich, but I certainly feel sad as I look back today.

I just didn’t fit in—and that’s a truly awful feeling.

Why Chores Are Important for Kids

Chores.

We all remember them.

Some were associated with allowance, others simply mandatory. For many kids, and I bet for most of us, they were often an intrusion on other more important things to do.

Nutrition and Mental Health: It’s More Complicated Than You Think

The fact that March is National Nutrition Month makes me think of rats.

To be more specific, I think of two particular rats that lived in my first-grade classroom.

How Scary Is Too Scary?

Here is my most vivid memory of Halloween as a child:

I’m 8 years old. I have, to my father’s delight, developed an affinity for the “creature-features” that appear on the old UHF stations every Saturday from 10 AM to noon. I love Boris Karloff as Frankenstein and Bela Lugosi as Dracula.

The Importance of Stories for Child Health

Stories matter.

That’s not just an opinion.  That’s not an axiom or a homily or a saying or even a pithy bumper sticker slogan.

That’s a genuine biological imperative.

How to Manage, And Help Your Kids Cope, When The Family Dog Dies

My dog died.

Man, those are three tough words to write.

Tune in to a conversation with Dr.  Schlozman and Dr. Beresin on helping kids cope with the death of a pet.

I feel both silly about and proud of how much it hurts.

Who is Qualified to Conduct My Child’s Evaluation?

The number of professionals available to conduct evaluations of children can be quite overwhelming. Psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, educational consultants, counselors, and neuropsychologists are only a partial list of the professionals who can be helpful when you’re seeking more information about your child’s development.

The Importance Of Imaginative Play In Healthy Development

This post is not about Pokemon Go.

I thought it would be prudent to lead with that caveat. This post is about play—imaginative play, to be more specific—and, while I have no qualms with the notion that people of all ages “play” Pokemon, Go, that’s not the kind of play I want to discuss.

Helping Kids of All Ages in the Face of Terrorism or War

At times like these – in the face of terrorism or war – amid our shock, grief, and fear, we need to be particularly attuned to the impact such events have on our children. Kids of all ages have questions and various emotional reactions—compounded all the more by the footage and commentary they may be seeing and experiencing.