Author: laurenstauble
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When we find ourselves in the dark.
Winter Solstice has always been one of my favorite days. For one thing, it’s opposite my birthday (which is Summer Solstice). And more importantly it’s the day we have the least amount of sunlight here in the northern hemisphere. So, we find ourselves in the dark. One more time – and so, we find ourselves…
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Challenging behavior: is it the kids or the grown-ups?
I often get questions from teachers about how to handle behavior challenges in the classroom. And, sometimes I hear from parents who think their child may be the victim of unchecked implicit bias either in regards to race or special needs. Looking for data? This is an article I assign my ECE students regularly: https://medicine.yale.edu/childstudy/zigler/publications/Preschool%20Implicit%20Bias%20Policy%20Brief_final_9_26_276766_5379_v1.pdf.…
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Resistance
In yoga we sometimes play with the phrase, “what you resist persists”. The idea is that we spend a lot of effort trying to avoid discomfort by not seeing what’s in front of us, but if we pause and accept what’s in front of us then it might not be as scary as we thought…
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Isn’t that racist?
The first time I was called out for my whiteness was at the public library during a community dialogue about the film, Fruitvale Station. I wanted to crawl under my chair. I was quiet for the rest of the event and by the time it was over I promised myself I would stay awake and…
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Tantrums
If you search “tantrums” you’ll find an endless supply of information about what they are and how to handle them. My favorite definition is from Stanford Children’s Health (stanfordchildrens.org), “Temper tantrums are a way a young child lets out strong emotions before he or she is able to express them in socially acceptable ways. A…
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Self Care for All!
My work has always involved taking care of other people in some way and it took me a few years of reaching the point of burn-out annually before I finally established some solid self-care routines. Even so I forget about them from time to time. Every day, and especially when our brains and nervous systems…
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Where does my body begin and end?!
Are your kiddos jumping all over your newly confined space? Their developing sensory systems are looking to feel where the body begins and ends in order to figure out how to navigate the external world. In the words of Lisa Feldman Barrett, “Like those ancient, mummified Egyptian pharoahs, the brain spends eternity entombed in a…
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Chemical Reactions
Children test our patience. Not because they wish to irritate us, but because they are testing an equation to see if they get the same results each time. The equation might be something like: medium volume, whiney sound made by me six times + the presence of my parent = immediate adult attention including loud…
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Home School 2.0
Raid the trash and recycle bins for building materials! It is guaranteed to provide novelty and inspire innovation in play. Plan to spend some time together sorting and choosing the most interesting or the sturdiest or the most beautiful or the most whatever you and your children choose for limitations. There are many executive functions…
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Mind the Synaptic Gap
If you want to talk about changing your brain or behavior then there are some tiny, magical spaces in your brain that must be part of the conversation. The synaptic gap is the place between neurons where the information from one neuron is passed to the next through an electrical impulse. Say I’ve got a…
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