I don’t remember the reason. The precipitating incident that led to my father’s reaction was removed from my memory bank many years ago. I forgot most of the pieces of what led up to the one part I will never forget:  The spanking I got from my father.
Maybe I lied. Maybe I swore. Maybe I [...]

Charles was a fifty-year-old man who was a giver. He gave help, money, time, and energy to all who needed it.
When his grown children came to visit, he took them out to dinner and paid the bill. “When you come to see me, I treat,” he told them. When he went to visit his children, [...]

On Monday, Mrs. Williams pinned a fourth-grader up against his locker, stuck her finger in his chest, and stated loudly, “I told you to respect me!”
On Monday, Mrs. Morgan, using a serious tone, told a fourth grader, “I get frustrated when you talk while I am giving directions. Next time, please wait until I have [...]

“I don’t want to see you again. You’re wasting my time. Goodbye.”  These sentences, spoken to me yesterday, are some of the sweetest words I have ever heard!
“You’re wasting my time” is sweet? Yep, sweet. “I don’t want to see you again”? Yep, real sweet. “Goodbye”? Yep, sweeter  yet.
Put them all together and the communication [...]

The word no is a mysterious word. The mere utterance of this tiny word can produce great anger or deep sadness. It is said often, and used as a powerful parenting tool. Children hear this word early in their lives. It is spoken to them frequently.  “No, don’t touch that.” “No, you can’t have that.” [...]

I asked my two boys, Reese (13) and Parker (10), what they wanted to give their mom this Mother’s Day. They grinned slightly, looked out of the corners of their eyes at each other, and replied in unison, “A dedication to mom that you can post on your blog.” They had obviously been waiting for [...]

The spring sports season for children is in full swing. Youth soccer complexes are packed with boys and girls of all ages and sizes chasing colorful balls with their eager legs. Neighborhood parks and school baseball diamonds are filled with children swinging for the fences or simply happy to hit the ball. Riding arenas are [...]

I recently had an interesting conversation with two parents as they discussed holding their son back for an additional year of kindergarten. I questioned their decision to have their son repeat kindergarten, even though the teacher strongly recommends he be placed in first grade. After several minutes of dodging the question and stammering, the dad [...]

Yesterday I wrote about the North Carolina teacher who used the “L” Word, (Loser) with his students. He wrote it on their papers occasionally as a way to motivate the students with humor and relate to them using their language. I made it clear in that blog that it is not funny, motivational, or appropriate [...]

Name-calling and putdowns have been a part of schools for as long as I remember. Fatso, pig, and four-eyes were popular slams when I was in school. When I began my teaching career in 1965 I heard stupid, dork, and dog-breath. Since then, only the names and people have changed. The ritual has not. In [...]