How to explain a tragic death of a classmate to their peers and friends Last year a  tragic fire touched the Windward School community in Connecticut –three children and their grandparents perished. This week a gunman opened fire at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut killing twenty school children and their teachers. Our hearts [...]

Parenting advice to reduce our kids’ worries about a sometimes mean, scary, unpredictable world and curb the growing “Mean World Syndrome” Bombings. Power storms. Terrorism. War. School shootings. Pedophiles.  Recession. Cyberbullying. Kidnappings. Global warming. Tsunamis. Earthquakes. Sexual abuse. It’s a scary world out there for us, but how do you think the kids are faring? [...]

REALITY CHECK: Studies show children can develop PTSD. If a child has encountered a serious trauma please don’t overlook the possibility of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and seek help of trained and credentialed mental health professionals. Storms. School shootings. Parent deaths. Bullying. Parental deployments. Terrorist attacks. Abuse. Hurricanes. Witnessing or experiencing violence. Gang activity. The commonality? [...]

Parent and educator guide to using the Penn State tragedy and Sandusky trial to talk about sexual abuse to kids and teens; rucial safety tips to prevent abuse and signs of sexual abuse Once again, the Penn State child sexual abuse case is in the news and has adults on full alert. “How could this have [...]

Parenting advice I shared on the TODAY show on how to talk to kids about troubling news and reduce their fears and jitters about world events Tsunamis. Radiation leaks. Earthquakes. Nuclear meltdowns. Air strikes. If you are feeling a bit jittery about the news lately, imagine how our kids must feel. We know that constantly [...]