Children, Teens, & Adolescents

I was talking to my sister the other day (I grew up an only child, but luckily got step-sisters when I was older). We haven’t seen each other in a while and were catching up on life. During our conversation, she said something that caught my attention: “You know how…

A toddler who gets overwhelmed when she hears a lawnmower. A kindergartner who can’t read your facial expressions. A grade-schooler who repeats the same phrase over and over. A teenager who will only wear one color. These can all be signs of neurodivergence: natural variations in the human brain. At…

Whether your toddler has received an autism diagnosis, or you suspect your young one is on the spectrum, there’s a host of activities you can use at home to keep your child both active and engaged. Homeschooling your autistic toddler may seem complex, but you don’t have to feel overwhelmed…

When we think about or discuss mental health topics such as depression, our minds tend to zero in on what the individual with the mental health condition is going through. But what about those closest to them—like their children? As a mental health condition that can leave sufferers feeling distant…

Just because the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be over, doesn’t mean  everything is back to normal. And if you’ve got children, you may be underestimating the ways in which virtual learning might’ve affected their social skills and sense of independence.  The development of socialization skills, along with…

A new study says that using cannabis as a teen or adolescent can have negative impacts on cognitive functioning, especially verbal memory. Researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine tested and analyzed siblings (unlike other similar studies) to rule out familial factors. The study used interviews and neuropsychological…

People new to or considering homeschooling often wonder what it takes to become a homeschool teacher—what makes a mom or dad qualified to teach their children? I believe any parent willing to invest their time and energy into their children’s education can successfully homeschool, but are there traits or actions…

Quick Summary A new study “A prefrontal-paraventricular thalamus circuit requires juvenile social experience to regulate adult sociability in mice” suggests that social isolation in childhood has a harmful impact on adult brain functioning and more specifically, in an area of the brain that’s responsible for regulating social behavior. In addition…

As schools prepare to reopen in September, the uncertainty of what to expect raises a myriad of questions and feelings for parents and students alike. What will the procedures be like in schools? Will children be asked to wear masks and social distance? Will full classroom learning continue, or will…

Every single day, you get emails about it. You open Facebook and see your friends talking about it. You pop onto twitter and it’s the number one trending hashtag. You’re on aisle D14 in Target and the woman looking at curtains next to you is talking about it. You, quite…

If you’re a recent high school grad, we want to first apologize. For many (if not all) of you, senior year was cut short. We know you must feel sad, angry, disappointed, confused. You’ve watched graduating classes before you and looked forward to your turn—to attend senior prom; to walk…

“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” When it comes to device addiction, this may very well be the case. As society becomes more dependent on smartphones and as we are bombarded with new apps on a daily basis, a large percentage of the population has become chained to devices….