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Posts tagged bullying
Don’t Carpe Diem: A Great Read on Parenting & the Pressure to Savor Every Moment
13 years
This writer hit it out of the park with her article about parenting, savoring moments, and how flippin’ hard it is to savor parenting at every moment!
http://momastery.com/blog/2012/01/04/2011-lesson-2-dont-carpe-diem/
There’s Nothing More Badass Than Being Yourself
13 years
Thought this photo was the PERFECT image to accompany the Huffington Post article I wrote yesterday, celebrating my daughter’s free spirit and creative thinking:
The Best Bad Report Card Ever: Why I Delight In the “Minus” on My Daughter’s Report Card
13 years
I’ve got two awesome, creative, outside-the-box-thinking, free-spirited daughters (if I do say so myself). While sometimes the fact that they like to do things their “own way” makes them more challenging to parent, I also think it makes them infinitely INTERESTING little people and I know it can make them wildly successful later in life if they channel their ideas well. That’s why it always concerns me when I see teachers who try to fit them into a box for their own convenience or penalize them for not conforming enough.
Do you have a little free thinker at home?
Please check out my article on the Huffington Post and let me know your thoughts. Share with your friends via your social networks. I’d love to hear what other parents think.
Spot-On Advice for Young Girls Pondering a “Friend Divorce”
13 years
If you’ve ever been in a situation where you need to find the right words to tell a young girl that what she’s about to do is wrong…then check out this column in Teen Vogue, written by Odd Girl Out author, Rachel Simmons.
If you read my blog, you know I’m a big fan of her work and her wisdom–and this is a perfect example of why. I love how Rachel is so honest and forthright in her advice to the girls–while never talking down to them and always maintaining respect for their experiences.
My fingers are crossed that when the time comes, I–and all of my Mom friends–will be able to advise my own daughters this well!
7 Skills Parents Can Teach Their Kids for Standing Up to Bullies
13 years
Click here to check out this article, posted on the website Parents Are Important, featuring 7 skills parents can teach their kids, for standing up to bullying.
http://www.parentsareimportant.com/2011/12/7-skills-for-teaching-your-child-to.html
A Stop to Bullying Starts with Changing a Mindset
13 years
“Sticks and Stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.”
When it comes to the damage that bullying can do to a young person’s self-esteem (not to mention desire to go to school, academic success, relationships at home, etc), this old adage has been proven untrue a million times over.
The article posted below talks about the importance of changing mindsets when it comes to the real and lasting damage that bullying can do. It also emphasizes the role of technology in bullying and how important it is that parents are aware of how their kids are using technology to impact others.
In Friendship & Other Weapons, I dedicate a chapter to teaching kids skills for the ethical use of technology and social media. The chapter is available for preview on amazon.com. Please check it out, along with this great article on changing mindsets:
http://brick.patch.com/articles/stopping-bullying-starts-with-changing-a-mindset
Rachel Simmons Offers Parents Advice on Cell Phone and Social Media Limits
60313 years
Rachel Simmons, bestselling author of Odd Girl Out and co-founder of the Girls Leadership Institute (GLI), offers great insights and advice for parents on how to walk the fine line between stalking their children’s technology usage and taking a totally hands-off approach. Her advice on effective limit-setting–and why limits are so important socially and academically–is great:
Girls Not as Nice as Sugar and Spice
013 years
Check out this news story from “across the pond:” Friendship & Other Weapons is featured in an article in the Irish Independent newspaper!
http://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/parenting/girls-not-as-nice-as-sugar-and-spice-2947208.html
The Nail in the Fence: A Story about the Scars Left by Words Said in Anger
67214 years
This story, most recently posted on Sue Atkins’ (The Parenting Expert) website, reminds me of an activity I recently posted that teaches kids about the impact of bullying words. The basic message of “The Nail in the Fence” is the same: words can wound, so use them with care.
If you are living or working with kids and teaching important lessons about anger management, this is a great read:
The Nail in the Fence
There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His Father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence.
Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.
Finally the day came when the boy didn’t lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone.
The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence He said, “You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one.”
Jane Lynch on Being an Advocate for Bullied Kids
118614 years
If you haven’t seen it yet, please go to my Facebook page to check out Jane Lynch’s amazing, spot-on anti-bullying video. My favorite part:
“Bullying makes children feel like they want to be invisible. Let’s let them know that we see them, we are listening, and they can count on us to make their lives better.”