Education

From birth, your child is a sensory sponge, taking in the world with the five senses of vision, hearing smell, touch and taste. And the quality of these experiences has a deep effect on the development of a baby’s brain. But while you may feel obligated to constantly entertain your child, or buy complicated toys that seemingly guarantee rich sensory experiences, experts say that simple, thoughtful, consistent interaction is all a child needs to develop his senses and mind.

“Mom, are spiders insects?” Sophie asks. Inquisitive by nature, my five-year-old is now a month into kindergarten and wants to know everything...

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a last child in possession of a big family, must be in want of some individual attention from his mother.

Tobias suffers from last-child syndrome. A phrase I've coined just now to apply only and specifically to the matter of language development. It applies elsewhere (OK - everywhere!) no doubt, but I'm not inclined to shoulder a weighty guilt trip today.

Moms on Facebook is nothing new. In fact, I recall hearing recently that young adults were leaving the site in droves because it was so invaded by parents. But what about parents being Facebook friends with teachers – their own children’s teachers? Maybe this isn’t a trend sweeping the nation, but it is a disturbing development in my elementary school.

If one of the most basic pieces of parenting advice is “Don’t be your child’s friend,” then how could it be acceptable to friend their teacher? Especially if your child is actually in their class? Is this part of helicopter parenting? Or just the age-old attempt to curry favor with the person in charge of your child’s academic career...