As most of you gathered from my last post— and newsletter subscribers have been getting even more content on this– I’m been having a tough winter. I’m burned out, occasionally anxious, often depressed. I’m still functioning, but struggling. Why? Well, because I’m a public school teacher and a mother of two young children, both of […]
empathy
The Downside of Empathy
One of the biggest reasons to read fiction with a child is to develop his capacity for empathy: a good novel will put you into another person’s mindset. That’s a vital life skill. Empathy helps with everything from navigating relationships to negotiating business deals and peace treaties. If we all taught empathy to our children, […]
Why You Shouldn’t Feel Guilty About Using Social Media
When you spend time on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or any of the other myriad social media sites, do you feel a little guilty? It wouldn’t be surprising if you do. Study after study, article after article, blogger after blogger tell us that social media is wasting our time, dumbing us down, killing our productivity, taking […]