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As you reflect on the holiday season, what images, sentiments, or traditions come to mind first? Maybe it’s religious services. Or family meals and tasty sweets. Perhaps it’s traveling near and far to see loved ones. Hosting large celebrations or enjoying more intimate affairs. Exchanging store-bought or homemade gifts, or maybe you forgo gift-giving altogether? Whatever your holiday rituals and customs involve, is there room to explore a new tradition? This year, I encourage everyone to …

What is literacy? The National Literacy Trust defines literacy as “the ability to read, write, speak, and listen in a way that lets us communicate effectively and make sense of the world.” Until I joined the team at Boys Town Press, I didn’t think much about literacy or the nuances around how a child becomes interested in reading. But looking back, I have several core childhood memories that I now see as paramount to my own love of reading and learning. Most of these memories c …

Your child comes home from school feeling sad, embarrassed, and angry. After probing, you find out your child has been the victim of untrue rumors being spread about him. Why is this happening? How can you support your child through this? How can your child prove something didn’t happen…when it didn’t happen? There are steps to take when dealing with rumors and gossip.First, find out where the rumors started. Ask your child if she knows how the rumors started? Does she know the child/ren wh …

Part 2: How to Teach Social Skills After exploring how social skills help us make connections, foster a sense of belonging, and strengthen our social-emotional health ( see Part 1 ), let’s take a step back and examine how, exactly, we can help kids learn and use these skills so they can succeed in the classroom, at home, and in our community. Here is a straightforward, five-step action plan you can follow to successfully teach social skills to any child in your care.1. Start …

Back to school.Sometimes it’s a time of hope and excitement. Sometimes, it’s a time of anxiety and dread.“Will they like me?”“What if the work is too much?” “What if I can’t handle it all this time?”No, I’m not talking about students – though they are likely experiencing similar emotions. I’m talking to school counselors.As counselors, we’re not immune to that weird conglomeration of emotions that accompany the back-to-school season. It starts in June when the school supply section goes up i …

Part 1: Social Skills Can Expand (and Limit) Life’s OpportunitiesWhen you hear the phrase “social skills,” you probably think about all the verbal and nonverbal actions and behaviors that happen while interacting with others. Your words. Their words. Your tone. Their tone. Your gestures. Their gestures. Your appearance. Their appearance. All the stuff that comes together and contributes to the success or failure of an interaction. Being human, we’re naturally social beings. However, the d …

In today's digital world, it's common for scenarios like this to play out: A teenage girl comes into the kitchen obviously upset. When her dad asks what's wrong, she says she is having a fight with a friend who said hurtful things to her.Her dad can't believe the friend would say some of the things his daughter told him about. For proof, she takes out her cell phone so he can "read" the argument. The entire thing was happening via text messages, and they hadn't actually spoken about the problem …

Do you feel overwhelmed when you think about parenting social media? Do you know where to start? What sites are more kid-friendly or how do you talk to your kid about the dangers of social media? Or what are the dangers of social media? You are not alone. Our goal is help to you navigate the world of social media by having your child earn their social media license. First, it is important to identify what your child knows about social media. This will help you assess your child's readiness …

You’ve noticed your child is upset, but you aren’t sure why? Is schoolwork overwhelming them? Is there a conflict with a teacher? Are they having trouble with a buddy or in their friend group? The first step is simply to ask your child if something is bothering them. If they can articulate why they’re upset, you’ll know how to help. But what if they can’t really explain the changes in their mood and behavior? This could be a sign your child is dealing with something more serious …

“I’m bad.”We’ve all heard it. A child has been told they’re “bad” to the point that they’ve integrated it into their sense of identity. “Bad” goes from being something a child does to who they think they are. Though adults may think this type of language can curb problematic behavior, it actually stands to produce the opposite effect. If a child is bad as a person, why should they try to change their behavior at all? If they are inherently “bad,” it’s not worth the effort. It creates a se …