The Evolution of 2e, by Dr. Dan Peters
This piece first appeared in the October 2018 issue of the 2e Newsletter. Dr. Dan Peters, and other past and current 2e Newsletter Advisory Board members, reflected on 15 years of 2e as the 2e Newsletter founders J. Mark Bade and Linda Neumann transition the publication to a new editor and publisher, Bridges Media. Learn more and subscribe at 2e News. I am sitting in Camp Summit, watching kids making sock puppets, engaging in LARP (live action role play), playing Dungeons & Dragons, and building a Rube Goldberg contraption. They are all gifted and twice-exceptional children and...
Read MoreThe Morning Bucket: Creating a Habit for Appreciation, by Deanna Kim, M.Ed./ET/P
If someone were to sneak into my house and eavesdrop on words weekday mornings, they would likely hear… “You still have boogers in one of your eyes.” “My brother is taking too long in the bathroom.” “Put socks on your toesies. It’s cold.” “Can you help me zip up my jacket?” “Are you going to take care of your milk mustache?” “I need you to walk into the car now.” “Are you saving omelette on your shirt for later?” The words of morning easily turn into directions, corrections, requests, and complaints rather than encouragement, appreciation, and...
Read MoreFlu Education 101: Managing Our Children’s Fears, by Dr. Dan Peters
When I was young, I distinctly remember being afraid of killer bees. What will happen to my family and me? What if killer bees attack me? Will I die? These are not comforting thoughts when you are a child. They are scary. Really scary. Well of course we weren’t attacked by killer bees and eventually I’m grew up and forgot all about this fear. Fast-forward to last night at the dinner table with my family and the topic of this year’s flu. My kids felt real fear and real worry. At the dinner table, my wife and I were calm. We explained the facts. We listened. We know with the reports of...
Read MoreLive Purposely in the New Year, by Dr. Dan Peters
I was sitting with a client a few weeks ago — someone I have known for some time. He is a hard-working professional, husband, and father. He was reflecting on the holidays and the stress in his home due to the loss of a close and loved family member, and the lingering feelings from a previous few years of more loss than one expects in such a short amount of time. He talked about how hard he is trying to support his wife and be patient with his kids. He is under a great deal of pressure at work and carries a lot of responsibility. He walks through the door each night with the goal of being...
Read MoreHomework 101, by Dr. Dan Peters
“Why do I need to do more work after I have been at school all day?“ “I never get any free time! I have school all day then homework when I get home!” “Why do we have to do the same thing over and over when I already know it?” Do these questions and pleas sound familiar? I am guessing they do! Many parents don’t remember having the amount of homework our children have today, and most do not remember homework starting in kindergarten! Homework has been become a regular parenting topic in my practice, and a primary cause of family arguments and stress. When it comes to homework,...
Read MoreWhat Skiers and Snowboarders Can Teach Us, by Dr. Dan Peters
My son asked if I could take he and a friend snowboarding for a Sunday adventure. It was short notice and a very long day (4 hours drive each way) but I agreed, looking forward to some quality time with my son and in nature after some big storms. My son was snowboarding with his friend and I decided to ski. I started my life as a skier and evolved to snowboarding over time. Lately though, between skiing with my youngest who was learning to ski, and because my body doesn’t handle snowboarding falls as well as it used to, I have been skiing more. Many of the lifts were double chairs so I...
Read MoreDigital Breaks: 5 Things to Help Our Kids Disconnect – by Dr. Dan Peters
Last weekend we had an extended family dinner with many relatives. I was sitting on a cushion on the fireplace and looking at a large couch and an oversized chair stuffed with nine cousins ranging from ages 12 to 22. They were smiling, laughing, sitting on each other and…they were all on their phones! I didn’t realize it at first because I guess it has become so normal to see screens. At that moment I realized I was observing — and living in — a social experiment that is universal to all families today. Media and technology are a regular and normal part of our kid’s lives and...
Read MoreParenting in Uncertain Times, by Dr. Dan Peters
Uncertainty. Worry. Fear. These are still the top themes in most of my counseling sessions as a psychologist — with adults, with teens, and even with children. Mainly, the discussions were about the presidential election, then it was about the winner of the election, and now it is about the very uncertain future. What will happen to immigrants? What will happen to trade policies? Will the right to choose disappear? Will gay marriage be overturned? What is going to happen with Russia? In my profession there is a saying that uncertainty breeds anxiety. I think most of us would agree with this...
Read More5 Steps to Be an Aware Parent, by Dr. Dan Peters
Parenting is not about getting it “right” and there is no way to be a “perfect” parent. I say this as someone has spent a lot of time trying to do the “right” thing “perfectly”. Parenting humbles us and tests us in ways we couldn’t have imagined. There is no manual for your child or how to best parent her. There is no grading system or report card. There is only who your child is, how he feels about himself, your relationship with your child, and your child’s ability to cope in the world. Here are a few things I have learned about being an aware parent as a parent and also...
Read More5 Steps To Managing Stress During the Holidays, by Dr. Dan Peters
Read this piece in Spanish Thanksgiving feels like weeks ago. Cities, stores, homes, schools, and entire towns are decorated for the holiday season. Lampposts and stop lights are dressed with red ribbons. Luxury cars sport antlers and Rudolph noses. And then there are the commercials. Everyone on tv (commercials and most shows) are smiling, celebrating, decorating and playing in the snow. All of these messages mean this must be the most wonderful time of the year, right? Well maybe it is and maybe it isn’t, and maybe it is both. For many, the holidays signify stress, unrealistic...
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