Recently, some primary schools in South West London, Surrey and Kingston have banned students from having best friends!
No really...I wish I was kidding. Is it me or does it seem it like schools lately are more preoccupied with setting bizarre and unnecessary rules than with actually teaching our kids?
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I've always been a huge book nerd. I've been reading ever since I can remember. At first it was classic novels, then it moved on to today's top books and young adult fiction (which I love) even though I'm not that young anymore. Although I've always loved books, the one thing I very rarely saw was a protagonist that looked like me. Sadly, books, especially children's books, are heavily lacking Hispanic main characters.
Although Latino students make up nearly a quarter of the nation's public school's enrollment, today The New York Times wrote about the sad reality that our kids are just not seeing themselves in the books that are available. In fact, Hispanic books also very, very rarely win the Newbery Medal, the Oscars of the children's literature world. Despite this depressing news, there IS something you can do: Get them some great Latino books ASAP! Start with our list of the 16 essential Latino children's books with options ranging very young kids to young adults.
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It's one thing to be a protective mother. That's actually something I can understand. I mean, who doesn't want to have their kid's best interests at heart? One mom, though, is taking things WAY too far. A mom in Vaughan, Canada, is asking the city to cut down all oak trees near an elementary school because she's afraid that the fallen acorns are going to cause an allergic reaction in one of the kids. The only caveat in her worries? The kids aren't actually being forced to EAT the nuts, since the school itself is a nut-free zone.
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Attempting to keep your kids busy and entertained all summer is a difficult task for any parent…which is exactly why Massachusetts mother of two, Tracy Moutafis, was ecstatic when back-to-school season finally arrived! As can be seen in this HILARIOUS video, Moutafis is SO excited to send her two boys back into the care of their teachers that she literally breaks out into a happy dance as they get on the bus!
Although my daughter's first grade teacher has admitted to not being the most techy person in the world, I'm pretty sure she has her own Facebook account. After all, I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that, with few exceptions, most of the people I know have one regardless of how good they are with computers. I've no idea if my daughter's teacher has one, nor do I care to know. But what would happen if she did and she sent me a "friend" request?
Honestly, I would most likely ignore it.
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Parents, beware: A new report out recently has found that many toxic chemicals, including those linked to asthma, have been found in common children's school supplies, including backpacks like the one pictured here. The organization Center for Health, Environment & Justice tested an array of products that parents normally purchase for kids' back-to-school, like backpacks, plastic lunchboxes, and 3-ring binders. To their horror, these seemingly benign products contained phthalates, a supposedly damage-causing ingredient that should not be found anywhere near materials that children use.
But the findings get worse!
Fall is right around the corner and for kids and parents, that means one thing: school! This year, instead of relying on just your home computer, why not download a few easy and super helpful apps to help your kids transition into school mode? With everyone sporting a smartphone and tablets these days, parents and students have plenty of apps to choose from, all designed to make their classroom days--and yours--significantly easier. Below, seven of our favorites!
Ahora que comenzó el nuevo año escolar, tanto los padres como los niños tenemos ansiedades: nuevo salón de clases, nuevos amiguitos, y por supuesto nueva maestra. Creo que como madre, la preocupación --o digamos el deseo-- al principio de clases es que exista una buena conexión entre el niño y la maestra. Esta conexión entre ambos puede hacer que el año sea placentero o no, e incluso puede afectar el rendimiento académico del niño.
My kids went back to school last week, so we went through a series of steps in preparation for this more than a couple of weeks ago. We took a vacation the first week of August and as soon as we came back, I started implementing many of the things I'm about to share with you and I think they helped us all get back into the school routine. I must say, though, that the hardest one is getting them to go to bed earlier than they normally did this summer.
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My daughter Vanessa is only in first grade, but I've know since she started preschool that it's of utmost importance for me to connect with her teachers. In my book, it's the only way for things to run smoothly and to truly work out for all of those involved. In a little bit, I'll be attending Vanessa's back to school night at her school. I'm looking forward to getting to know her teacher a little bit better and explaining a few things I think she should know about Vanessa, including the fact that I only speak to her in Spanish at home.
Although most kids haven't gone back to school yet, in the next few weeks, everyone will. So, we figured this was a good time to give you some tips on how to connect with your child's teacher straight from an expert.
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