Peaceful Parents, Peaceful Kids - Practical Ways to Create a Calm and Happy Home. What can you do to help your children cope with stress? How can you give them the skills for talking over problems, instead of fighting about them? Where can you find time to help your kids be less volatile, more cooperative, and happier? In Peaceful Parents, Peaceful Kids, Naomi Drew brings the same revolutionary action plan she developed for the classroom to parents everywhere. Illustrated by concrete situations, hands-on examples, and testimonials from real-life parents. [$14.00 from The Peace Company]

Program Profile: Woodley Hills Elementary School Makes the Most of All Resources - Parents and community members are an important part of the mix at Woodley Hills Elementary School. Located in Alexandria, Virginia, Woodley Hills is a culturally diverse school where more than 50 percent of the students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunches.

Weekly Time Focusing on Family Brings Hard-to-Reach Parents to School - Today’s busy lifestyles can make getting even some of the most highly educated parents involved with their children’s education a challenge. The problems are compounded when parents lack formal education and confidence that they have the knowledge and skills to help their child.

Your Kids Need You - Our instincts tell us that individuals who live in loving families that spend time together make for better individuals – but how many of us actually live like we believe it?

Featured Resource: Children’s Scholarship Fund - Founded in 1998, the Children's Scholarship Fund provides partial tuition assistance for low-income families to send their children to private schools. More than 62,000 children have benefited from scholarships across the United States as part of our mission to open the doors of educational opportunity to families. Eligible families are required to demonstrate their financial need as measured by standards similar to the Federal school lunch program, which takes into account family size. The Fund focuses on elementary education because the earlier a child receives sound schooling, the better. Scholarships are awarded to all eligible children in a family to attend the school or schools of their choice.
 

IL Little League Faces Behavior Code - Starting next season, Little League players, coaches and parents in Lake in the Hills may have to promise, in writing, not to yell at, boo or argue with umpires.

How Do We Keep Him Safe? - Many things may run through a parent’s mind after he or she reads about certain tragedies. In the past month, you may have heard of three people with autism who died after wandering from their homes. One died as the result of being hit by an automobile; two drowned within a short distance of home. How do we keep Andrew, our 3 1/2-year-old son, safe? How does anyone keep his or her child safe?

What's to Blame For The Rise in ADHD? - A study published in the journal Pediatrics in April suggests TV viewing in very young children contributes to attention problems later in life. “The study revealed that each hour of television watched per day at ages 1 through 3 increases the risk of attention problems by almost 10 percent at age 7,” said Dr. Cristakis, lead author. Jane Healy, an education psychologist in Vail, Colorado, and author of "Your Child’s Growing Mind: Brain Development and Learning from Birth to Adolescence," believes common programming tactics designed to capture attention can have a deleterious affect on brain chemistry.

Teens Maintain a Positive Outlook - Today's teens: They don't like the idea of a military draft, they're stressed out about grades and they regard their parents as practically awesome. Those were among key findings unveiled Tuesday.
 

Checklists, Notes and Memory - I’ve never been diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome or Attention Deficit Disorder, as my son has. But, as my wife will attest, I certainly have some of the tendencies of both. Okay, more than some.

 
Educators Tackle Classroom Discipline - Schools have a grip on the most serious discipline problems like drugs and guns, what with police officers on many campuses and nearly universal zero-tolerance policies. What's harder to handle are the minor distractions in class--the pencil tappers, hair pullers, loudmouths and latecomers, according to a report released in May just as most schools were letting out for the summer. Smart-mouthed kids are quick to remind teachers that their parents can sue them.

The Best Teacher Ever - Think about the best teacher you ever had. It’s an uncommon pleasure to remember someone who believed in you before you were sure you were worth believing in.

Planning is The Key To Success - What do you want your child to achieve this year? What are your long-range goals for your child? What do you want your child to be able to do when he or she leaves the public school system? What steps do you need to take to help your child meet these goals?

What's A Dad Worth? - I heard a discussion about a dad's worth the other day as I was radio channel surfing in my car. Two talk show hosts were hotly debating some comments made by actress Nicole Kidman. The topic: does a rich single mom have anything to complain about? The female host said that even a famous, wealthy single mom can have it tough raising kids. The macho male host wasn't buying it. "Come on, she's got jillions of dollars! She can buy anything she needs."

Parental Stress Leaves Mark on Kids - Kids have it rough these days. Their parents' financial troubles are their troubles. Their parents' marital woes are their woes. And it's depressing them. The National Institute of Mental Health recently reported 2.5 percent of children up to age 12 suffer from depression. Region experts said our kids are depressed too, though no number of local children suffering from depression is available.

Violent Marriages May Make Violent Children - Children of violent marriages may be more than twice as likely to set fires intentionally or be cruel to animals than those from nonviolent homes, according to new research. The study shows that problems in the family, especially violent behavior among father figures, significantly increase the risk of fire setting and animal cruelty in children, and these behaviors set the stage for later adolescent delinquency.

Fathers and Kids, a Timeless Connection - Today's dads are more hands-on, but fathers of every generation are heroes to their children.

Becoming Dad the Incomparable (A Father's Day Refection) - I was awake most of the night last night - lying in bed thinking about being a dad. And thinking about two truths: It's tough being a dad. It's great being a dad.

Practicing Social Skills - When's the last time you got frustrated because you told your child not to do something, and two minutes later he or she is doing it again? I think of this as "Teflon Shelf Syndrome." If you consider the brain as a storehouse with shelves, some kids seem to have some shelves that are coated with Teflon - and are tilted so things slide off easily. So...maybe it's not your son's fault that his finger strays to his nostril. It's not your daughter's fault she doesn't make eye contact when you speak to her. Maybe it’s the way their brains work.