Learn and Discover Archives - Sleeping Should Be Easy

8 Life Skills Kids Need in Adulthood

Jun 07, 2023

Parenting includes teaching life skills kids need. Learn the most important things to teach before they leave home and become adults. It's hard to imagine, but our young children will be adults. We assume we have time before they really need to buckle down and learn a few things. We don't think about important life skills they need to learn before becoming adults. Author and former Dean of Freshman at Stanford, Julie Lythcott-Haims, says many young adults don't have the skills they should've learned throughout early childhood. Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. As an … [Read more...]

The Best Children’s Books about Space

Children's Books

Jun 06, 2023

Does your child enjoy the solar system, planets, and stars? Here are children's books about space to read with your curious space explorer. Something about outer space freaks me out. I mean, we're talking endless expanse of the universe. More suns than grains of sand on our planet. And just how long space has been around (hint: way longer than the billions of years we've imagined). But my kids? They can't get enough about space. Their concept of space and time aren't as detailed as yours and mine, but they love learning about our solar system, stars, and rockets galore. They can … [Read more...]

Potty Training Books for Toddlers

Children's Books

May 30, 2023

Want your child to start using the potty? Discover the best potty training books for toddlers to help them feel excited—and less anxious—about potty training. My son looked down at his bare bottoms—we were just about to start the three-day potty training process—glanced up at me, and bawled. The initial excitement about wearing undies faded into anxiety. He would no longer be able to rely on the familiarity of wearing diapers. Using a toilet seems like common sense to us, but it can feel strange, silly, and even downright scary to toddlers. No wonder that potty training is often the … [Read more...]

How to Keep Kids Learning in the Summer

School

May 29, 2023

Kids can forget what they learned during the school break. Avoid brain drain with these tips on how to keep kids learning in the summer. "We won't have homework the rest of the year," my son announced. I was shocked. I had hoped they wouldn't start getting ready for summer so soon. As much as I value downtime and free play, I also understood the downsides of long periods without active learning. That's when I realized "summer brain drain" is a real thing: "A conservative estimate of lost instructional time is approximately two months or roughly 22 percent of the school year... It's … [Read more...]

8 Long Term Benefits of Reading to Children

Reading

May 27, 2023

Wondering why it's important to read to your kids? Discover the long-term benefits of reading to children and how it can impact their future. We've all heard the advice to read to young children, often and early. You see immediate results, from your child enjoying picture books to feeling less cranky after a nap. Story time adds a certain rhythm to your day, and you feel confident that you're doing the right thing in introducing books. But the benefits of reading to children extend even beyond childhood. The steps you're taking now to read to your child can change the course of her … [Read more...]

Children’s Books About the Beach

Children's Books

May 23, 2023

These children's books about the beach are perfect to get kids excited about an upcoming visit, calm anxieties, and learn about our shores. These days, my kids never want to leave the beach. They're too busy looking for sand crabs, building channels and castles, and chasing the water with a pail. You'd never guess these were the same kids who'd cry if their feet so much as touched the sand. They wouldn't walk anywhere outside the beach towels, much less consider going into the water. But living in Los Angeles means easy access to the beach, giving us many opportunities for frequent … [Read more...]

Messy Play Ideas for 1 Year Olds

Activities

May 22, 2023

Looking for messy play ideas for 1 year olds? Check out these DIY activities, from sensory bins to edible play, perfect for this age! Does it feel like you and your 1 year old do the same basic things every day? You take him to the park, run some errands, read the same books, and play with the usual toys. You're a fan of routine, but after months of the same activities, you're looking for fun activities to do at home. Particularly, "messy" play ideas. You've noticed that he loves to explore with his hands, whether it's splashing in the tub or digging them in the sandbox. You don't … [Read more...]

Why We Need to Stop Telling Boys to “Man Up”

Communication

May 18, 2023

Want to raise strong, confident boys? Stop telling boys to man up. Learn the downsides of telling a boy to be a man and what to do instead. We value a certain kind of boy. The ambitious and popular boy all the girls have a crush on. The class clown who can make anyone laugh, and of course the boy who won't back down from insults or harsh words. Being ambitious, popular, funny, or assertive isn't the problem, but hiding other aspects of being a boy in the name of "manning up" is. The documentary The Mask You Live In addresses these issues and how often we tell little boys to man up … [Read more...]

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