Creativity and Time, Part I
I was listening to cartoonist Lynda Barry talk about a class she teaches at the University of Wisconsin. She described a creativity exercise she learned from Ivan Brunetti’s book Cartoon Philosophy and Practice. Brunetti (and now Barry) has students draw a car for three minutes, then they draw another car for two minutes, then one minute, […]
Creativity and Time, Part II: Keep Your Kids Creative This Summer
We’ve all heard that children can lose some 6-8 weeks’ worth of learning over the summer, but this doesn’t have to be the case with our kids. Here’s some techniques to consider for long car trips to keep the creative juices flowing. Mind Before Mindless: Hold off on video games and DVD players until AFTER […]
Don’t Ask Your Kids These Questions
Now that our kids are back at school (or soon will be), here are some good questions to ask after school (and two to avoid). DON’T ASK The number one question not to ask: “How was school?” We all know the answer: “Fine” Here’s another one to skip: “What did you learn at school today?” […]
Stop Rubbling!
When I was a kid I couldn’t sit still. I fidgeted in school. And at home. And pretty much everywhere. When I literally bounced off the walls in my bedroom, my grandmother yelled up the stairs “STOP RUBBLING AND GO OUTSIDE!” (English wasn’t her first language, but I’m pretty sure “rubbling” isn’t a word in […]
My daughter chipped her tooth! And here’s what I learned…
My happy, beautiful, brilliant 9-year old Hannah had a small accident and chipped her tooth at camp this summer. When I came to pick her up my stomach sank—she lost half of her adult front tooth. In the car (en route to the dentist) she begged me to show her what it looked like and […]