How to read faces: a vital skill for your child
By Kathy Kuhl Some children with learning challenges are highly attuned to emotion and can read faces with ease. For other children (and adults, for that matter), faces speak in a code they cannot break. But almost all of us—adults, teens, and children—can improve our ability to read faces. Teens in particular struggle to read […]
Gifts your child can make
By Kathy Kuhl Our kids are restless with the holidays are upon us. In a world of advertisements, how to do we help our kids grow more generous, and less greedy? One way is to let them make gifts this season. But if you’re like me, you’re busy and a bit tired, and time and money are […]
Calming the angry child
By Kathy Kuhl How do you help an angry child? To help the child exercise self-control, we have to control ourselves, keep everyone safe, and then consider what will settle them. One mother I interviewed for Homeschooling Your Struggling Learner told a story illustrating this. At a playground, a child took something from her son. […]
When fireworks aren’t pretty
By Kathy Kuhl Fireworks aren’t so pretty–when they happen at the kitchen table. When my son was in school, some days he’d be so frustrated from trying to decode those dancing letters and not be distracted by his classmates, that he’d come home ready to explode. We homeschooled him for grades 4-12, which helped. But […]
Hidden Cost of Learning Disabilities for Family Life
When we find out a child has a learning disability, we often first think of how he or she struggles with academic work. It’s easy to overlook the hidden costs and the hidden pain of learning disabilities. Sarah Entine unveils how learning disabilities affect family and social life in her engaging, honest, award-winning film, Read […]
Unwritten Rules of Social Relationships: Book review
Review by Kathy Kuhl The Unwritten Rules of Social Relationships: Decoding Social Mysteries through the Unique Perspectives of Autism by Temple Grandin and Sean Barron. 383 pages. Future Horizons. We all know people who need help learning how to get along with others. Dr. Temple Grandin and Sean Barron, two very different successful adults with […]
Strangers: how should your child respond?
By Kathy Kuhl A scary video on Facebook launched a good conversation, for once. It showed an experiment repeated with several children. A stranger with puppy approached a child at a playground, chatted, let the child pet the puppy, and invited the child “to come see the other puppies.” In each case, the parents had […]
My Top Ten Holiday Resources & a gift or two
by Kathy Kuhl For a happier, saner, holiday: Instead of Christmas cards, send Easter cards and letters. Enjoy an Advent calendar. I don’t care if it’s a cheap chocolate one from the grocery store, one of the expensive Lego advent sets, or one you make. I’m fond of the traditional cardboard ones from Germany, which […]
Secrets of Social Success
(Part 3 on finding the right extra-curricular activities) By Kathy Kuhl Last time, I wrote about helping your child with learning challenges get ready for their new group (a club, scouts, choir, or the like.) But for some kids, getting the work done and getting the gear together is the easy part. It’s the social […]
Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child: Review of John Gottman’s book
Review by Kathy Kuhl of Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child: The Heart of Parenting by John Gottman, Ph.D., with Joan DeClaire. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1997. 220 pages. How do your children deal with feelings—their own and other people’s? Not being able to deal with emotion wisely can cripple your children’s future. John Gottman, […]