Something really upsetting happened to my daughter this week. She’s 4 and goes to a wonderful childcare center. Her teachers are awesome and the other kids are too. But for the first time something occurred that has left me upset and angry. Turns out that while my daughter was on the school playground she had… Read More To End Rape Culture We Have to Start With Our Boys
Dear Daughter, I beg of you, please don’t become someone who bullies. It’s not that I think you have it in you. I don’t. I desperately want to think of bullies as mean spirited little humans that come from mean spirited big humans. But I think bullying escalates because of mob mentality. It can start with one… Read More Dear Daughter, Please Don't Bully
One of the hardest things for me to tackle in parenting, as a self-admitted over protective mother, is bullying. I raise my children to be kind and open people. I teach them their letters and how to tie their shoes. Then, I send them off to this wonderful place called school where they will be… Read More What I Want My Children to Know About Bullying
Last week, I was asked by my son’s teacher to speak to all the 2nd grade classes about what I do to help the community. Part of my job is community education and training. I’ve dedicated 23 years to anti-violence efforts. I am somewhat well rehearsed in the safety/active bystander talk, so why did the… Read More The Quest to Impress My Kids
Last night I took my kids to a vigil in honor of runaway and homeless youth at a local partner agency, Women and Families Center. “Often called Connecticut’s ‘invisible’ population (Director of Prevention and Intervention Services, Carissa Conway), data shows that while runaway and homeless youth are present in Connecticut, they are rarely seen or recognized.” … Read More Runaway and Homeless Youth
It seems the price that moms must pay for raising a sweet, gentle child is that you will have to experience his being bullied. Bullies have radar for the kids who are innocent and nonviolent. How do I know this? Well, I am an expert based on my vast years of experience raising two gentle boys. … Read More Bullying: The Next Generation
I was going to write about my three-year-old’s experience this week starting pre-k in a brand new school, but this story prompted me to write about something else instead. Sadly, although back-to-school season is a time that kids of all ages look forward to with great excitement, some kids dread this time of year, because it’s a… Read More Teaching My Children the Strength of Practicing Kindness
Bullying. It comes in three forms: emotional, verbal, and physical. It’s prevalent among children and teens and the problem seems to only be getting worse. Now before you read any further, let me just preface this with the fact that I am NOT an expert by any means. I am a mother. I am a former kindergarten and first… Read More Bullying: What Can We Do?
When the weather is nice, my kids and I spend a lot of time at the park. While my four year old is pretty self-sufficient and can play on his own, I spend most of my time trailing my almost two year old, keeping him from leaping off the high platform at the top of… Read More Bullies at the Park
No matter how old I get, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to people being mean. When my kids were little, we knew a lot of mean kids. And mean parents! At one birthday party at our house, another kid’s mother said to me, “My son Johnny’s birthday party is next week, but your… Read More Meanness
CT Working Moms 