Welcome to my blog!
This is where I share my thoughts, ideas, and activities to support the emotional growth of children.
Which leaf am I? Expressive play activity for children
This is a great activity for children ages four to ten. (These ages are approximate and are suggested guidelines only.) What’s the benefit? This activity can help a child to: release pent up energy engage sensorially with the world around them learn through embodied...
Heading Back to School – Finding Emotional Safety in Times of Stress
stress Backpacks are filled. New runners are bought. And lunch kits are once again on the counter. There is always a familiar feeling in the air as children head back to school. Nerves. Dread. Hope. Excitement. Worry. Who will my teacher be? Will I be in the same...
Emotional Safety: Why kids need a safe space to feel, learn, and grow
Emotional safety is foundational to learning and growth. It is the container that holds the space that allows children to feel, to be curious, to care, and to emerge as their unique selves. It can be hard to grasp what this looks and feels like in practical terms. It...
Resisting the Pressure to Make Play ‘Productive’
It’s Spring break and my son has two glorious weeks off of school. It’s been interesting for me to witness how our current culture’s values of ‘production and outcomes’ crept up on me. I have found myself having to be grounded again in what I know to be true: free...
Room Required – Feelings Getting too Big: The importance of making space for teens’ thoughts, feelings, and ideas.
My elderly parents are currently clearing out their house and, in the process, they found an old Creative Writing scribbler of mine from grade 7. This week I sat down and re-visited my 12-year-old self. What a gift it was to read back through my thoughts, feelings and...
I am not a Drama Queen – Why we cry over small things
Yesterday as I was walking up the stairs to my front door, I saw a little yellow finch, dead and laying by my doormat. It wasn't ruffled or bruised. It simply looked like it was peacefully sleeping. It was just too much. My eyes welled up and down came the tears. We...
We are Children! An activity exploring the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
*Please note that you can modify this activity should it not work for you for time constraints and/or for online versions or for social distancing needs. Ideas for modifications: Simply watch the video together and engage in a class discussion (discussion prompts are...
What Our Emotions have to do with Inclusive Classrooms
In my last blog, I spoke about the power of anchors as a tool for keeping our students connected to us and to one another. These consistent connection activities help to keep systems from falling apart. And embedding them as rituals gives us a break from having...
Why Every Family (and Class Family) Needs an Anchor
The above is a picture of my dining room table. This table is the anchor for my family. In an era of disconnection, with busy lives and so many devices that can pull us away from one another into our individual worlds, the dining room table can serve as an anchor for...
As Children Head Back Into Classrooms, Teachers Will Need To Focus On Emotions, Not Academics.
As schools begin welcoming students back to classrooms, their teachers will be tasked with not only getting them back on-track academically—but also helping them manage the psychological impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. And that emotional support must take...