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As a parent, you want to give the best to your children – the best food, the best toys, the best environment, and the best childcare. With the growth of full-time working parents, the demand for childcare is rising and even exceeds the supply of providers nationwide1. Selecting the right childcare center can be a challenging […]
The back-to-school season is upon us! Children all over are transitioning from summer schedules to meeting their teachers, making new friends, reuniting with classmates, learning about classroom rules, and getting used to a lot of new routines. ⬇️Be sure to read to the bottom, to get the downloadable Back to School Kit. It has worksheets, templates […]
In the upcoming weeks, millions of students of all ages will be heading back to school. We all remember those back-to-school jitters, a combination of being excited and nervous about a new school year, but how do we know whether our children are experiencing typical nervousness and anxiety or serious anxiety, and possibly depression, that […]
As a former English teacher and mother of two young children, I know literacy and storytelling can be powerful tools to support children’s development of emotional intelligence. In this blog, we will go over the importance of Emotional Intelligence and reading, provide tips for promoting emotional intelligence through books, and share some resources to help […]
There are consistent reports about the need for more school psychologists. While I agree that there certainly is a need for more of these essential behavioral health experts, they are only one piece of a much larger puzzle. A Systemic Approach to Supporting Mental Health is Needed As a psychologist with more than 35 years […]
Kindness is one of the most important skills we can have when it comes to connecting to other human beings. Showing and practicing kindness builds community and spreads care and compassion through helpful, empathetic actions and words. But just like any important skill, kindness needs to be nurtured, cultivated and practiced. This happens best when […]
Reflective Practice is Housman Institute’s adaptation of Reflective Supervision. It is a process that focuses on self-reflection of one’s experiences, interactions, feelings, reactions, and areas of growth to promote emotional awareness, critical thinking, and problem-solving. Reflective Practice creates an environment that promotes self-reflection, empathy, understanding, support, and both personal and professional growth. This comprehensive overview […]
Today is International Yoga Day – a wonderful opportunity to ground ourselves, move our bodies in intentional ways, and introduce young children to the world of mindfulness. While today may serve as a reminder to be mindful, the best outcomes will come from integrating mindfulness opportunities into children’s everyday routines. Mindfulness is all about focusing […]
I recently attended the NAEYC Professional Learning Institute and led an interactive session on improving Teacher-Child Interactions and addressing head-on many of the challenges teachers and young children have been experiencing over the past several years. It was a dynamic discussion about the importance of emotional intelligence. During the first 1,000 days of a child’s […]
In this blog, we will respond to common challenges (exclusion, “terrible” threes, and sharing) that teachers and families are facing with children at school and at home to show you how to apply these ECSEL strategies on your own. Your Challenges as Caregivers and Educators In the last blog, we went over teaching practices from ECSEL educators. We’d like to apply […]
As all early childhood educators and families know, children have a lot of big feelings that oftentimes come with even bigger behaviors. What all early childhood educators and families may not know is how to navigate these challenges. We asked parents, caregivers, and educators like you to share what you are experiencing with children in your classrooms and at […]
Two researchers, Tom Kane and Sean Reardon, a professor of education and economics at Harvard and a professor of education and sociology at Stanford, respectively, recently wrote Parents Don’t Understand How Far Behind Their Kids Are in School. The two gentlemen are part of a team of researchers from Harvard, Stanford, Dartmouth, Johns Hopkins, and the […]
In this blog, you see a parent and educator’s perspective on raising resilient kids through play-based learning. As a parent of two, and an educator of over 15 years working with every age group from babies through high schoolers, I have come to realize that though my education journey started with the intent of teaching high […]
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and to set the tone for the season and beyond, this blog is going to focus on an important part of our own mental health and well-being and the mental health and well-being of children: emotional regulation. Many children are currently navigating emotional meltdowns, social conflicts, chaotic transitions, and difficulty […]
It’s springtime! A welcome changing of the seasons brings some much-needed sunshine, warmth, and growth all around us. But, if you are an educator, you may be noticing some unwelcome changes in your classroom around this time of year – restlessness, dysregulation, children feeling “over it,” and teachers just trying to get through the day. […]
Infants’ and toddlers’ mental health has suffered significantly over the past several years. Emotions are universally babies’ first language and way of experiencing the world. As such, we have an opportunity to respond empathically to infants and young children and to connect with them in order to support their emotional well-being. Related: The Ultimate Guide […]
