The Blog
As a newspaper columnist, Nancy Devlin, Ph.D. has written over 700 articles on subjects related to education and parenting. Welcome to her Classroom!
PARENTS DEVELOP YOUR CHILD’S SELF-ESTEEM
There is a great deal written about self esteem and what teachers and parents can to do to help develop this attribute in children. Dr. Julius Segal in the Brown University Child Behavior and Development Letter writes that teachers have … Continue reading
Discipline, What Does It Mean?
Renee Polreis of Colorado was convicted of beating her adopted two-year old son to death with a wooden spoon. Like their parents before them, many adults feel it is necessary to use force to punish children “for their own good”. … Continue reading
Cooperative Learning Is the Cure For Bullying
Adults who model violent punitive behavior produce children who become bullies and who lack other techniques for solving problems. Don Olweus, a psychologist from Norway, studied 150,000 Norwegian and Swedish students and found that 8% of the children were bullies … Continue reading
THANKSGIVING — WE’RE FAMILY
Thanksgiving traditionally is the time for the whole familyto get together. Some members enjoy this, others do not. In the movie, “Home for the Holidays”, one family member says to another: ” We don’t have to like each other. … Continue reading
Remember Children Are Concrete Thinkers
Eliza Doolittle of “My Fair Lady” fame sings a song about words. With a few changes this song could well have been written for young children to sing to their parents and teachers. With apologies to Lerner and Loewe, here … Continue reading
Are You a Participant or an Observer?
The world seems to be made up of people who are either participants or observers. Which role we elect sometimes is a matter of choice and sometimes a matter of expediency. At some professional conferences, the role of the participant … Continue reading
Birth Rank
Alfred Adler’s theory of personality states that the way we react to people and situations depends upon our lifestyle. This, in turn, reflects our beliefs about ourselves, other people and the world. The structure for this fundamental personality trait is … Continue reading
Families are a Child’s First Resource in time of Trouble
Parents need to be certain that their children feel loved no matter what they do, do not do, become or do not become. You are their parents and while you may not approve or accept their behavior, you will always … Continue reading
Violence in Relationships — Unacceptable
Parents need to model appropriate behavior when their children are young to teach them that violence in relationships is unacceptable. Parents must counteract the dominant theme in many movies, television shows and pornographic publications which graphically depicts violence toward women. … Continue reading
