The battle waged between good and evil bacteria

By Neil Davis Jr.

Kids are gross. No, not your kids. Other people’s kids.

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You, too, can spend a ton and have some fun at Disney

By Neil Davis Jr.

So you finally caved. Every parent who can (almost) afford to does, eventually. There’s only so much begging you can tolerate before you give in and say those exalted words.

 

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What to tell our kids about the hazards of life

By Neil Davis Jr.

My daughter grew up. I try not to blame her, as this apparently just happens.

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Can you compare pet ownership to parenting?

By Neil Davis Jr.

If you ever want the attention of a room full of adults, I suggest this sentence: “Getting a puppy is exactly like having a baby.”

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Raising a child together means communicating, even if you’d rather not

By Neil Davis Jr.

A long time ago, after college graduation, two of my ex-roommates attempted joint ownership of a beloved armchair.

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Expectant parents face another momentous decision | By Neil Davis Jr.

You thought of everything. You painted ducks in the nursery, mapped out a route to the hospital and downed prenatal vitamins like they were Tic Tacs. You researched pediatricians and became an expert in car seats. You even calculated what Harvard will cost in 2035.

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Where dancing can lead your child

By Neil Davis Jr.

My daughter was barely 4 when she decided she wanted to be a dancer. When I say she decided, I mean that we fastened a pink tutu around her waist and she offered little objection. Dancing through the living room didn’t interfere with her agenda of watching Dora the Explorer or hosting doll tea parties. Plus, a pink tutu apparently goes with everything.

 

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Maybe it’s time to put down the camera (or phone)

By Neil Davis Jr.

Picture this: Your child earns a new Scout badge, lands a triple Lutz or nails that tough violin solo—but you don’tphotograph it. No, really. You don’t record a video you can pretend you will someday watch. You don’t capture an image that surely would garner a bevy of online likes and comments. In fact, your phone stays in your pocket or purse the entire time. Instead, you sit there and soak in the moment, enjoying your child’s accomplishment in full-color, high-definition reality.

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A perplexed pop copes with his child’s aversion to hot dogs

By Neil Davis Jr.

My daughter refuses to eat hot dogs. (Or vegetables. But first, the hot dogs.) I was aware she had some reservations about them, but a recent trip to Heid’s revealed her true colors.

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City schools are trying a new way to achieve peace in the classroom

By Michael Gilbert

How should schools respond to behavioral infractions? What needs to happen when there is defiance, aggression or other destructive behavior? How is justice viewed and applied?

 

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Showing that a girl can aspire to be president

By Linda Lowen

What kind of mother is Hillary Clinton? I don’t care, and neither should you. No man has ever made his mark as a great dad first . . . and, oh yeah, a world leader second.

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All students can benefit by learning computer science

By Pamela Puri

Times are definitely different from when I was a kid.

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Standardized exams don’t help students

By Michael Gilbert

In April, public school students in grades 3 through 8 will take Common Core ELA (English Language Arts) and mathematics tests required by the New York State Testing Program.

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Exceeding the Common Core.

Students need opportunities to explore their passions

By Scott Wiggin

Our entire educational system has gone through such enormous change and turmoil in recent years that significant concerns abound for parents and teachers alike. And in a metropolitan environment like Syracuse, these concerns create their own set of special challenges.

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Mother’s intuition possibly saved my son’s life

By Laura Livingston Snyder

A mother’s intuition is a powerful feeling I’ve learned not to ignore. The moment that gut feeling became unbearable was when Evan was 11 months old.

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Can a single household rule cover all eventualities?

By Reid Sullivan

We have a rule in our house: “Don’t do dumb stuff.”

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Schools need parental involvement more than ever

By Tammy DiDomenico

When kids head back to school, many parents also return to an important side project—participation in their children’s school parent-teacher organizations.

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This mom insists her sons wear bike helmets

By Tammy DiDomenico

Yes, it’s true. It’s time for the kids to dust off their bikes—and their bike helmets.

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Having children doesn't lead to parental bliss

By Arthur C. Brooks

When my wife and I had our first child in 1998, our life changed dramatically. We were sleep-deprived for a year and often had little energy for each other. With no family within 2,000 miles and few friends with kids, our social life seemed to dry up. Despite the love we had for our baby, some days it appeared to us as if we were less happy than before he was born.

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School lunch needs a makeover

By Merrilee Witherell

Those of us who survived public education know school lunches are supposed to be the subject of ridicule. We were never really sure about the "mystery meat" on the bun or the whiter shade of pale that constituted our turkey in gravy, but we nonetheless ate up and lived to tell the tale. I wonder if our own kids will be so lucky.

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Grandparents can play a vital role in children's lives.

By James Bates

After the birth of our third child this past summer, my parents and my wife’s parents traveled thousands of miles to see their new granddaughter. Each grandmother and grandfather spent hours holding the baby, singing to her, burping her, struggling to get her to go to sleep, and doing everything they could to get her to smile. And to their great pleasure, she smiled at them.

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Why all children need inclusive education

By Mara Sapon-Shevin

John, a quiet 12-year-old sixth-grader at your local middle school, goes through the cafeteria lunch line at noon. After he pays for his food and drink, he starts to put his tray on a table already occupied by other students. One of the boys at the table says, "Go away." John leaves the table and approaches the students at another table. There he is told, "Get out of here." John walks away and puts his tray down at a third table, realizes he's forgotten his straw, and goes back to the lunch line to get one. When he returns to the table where he left his lunch, he finds his tray gone.

John, a quiet 12-year-old sixth-grader at your local middle school, goes through the cafeteria lunch line at noon. After he pays for his food and drink, he starts to put his tray on a table already occupied by other students. One of the boys at the table says, "Go away." John leaves the table and approaches the students at another table. There he is told, "Get out of here." John walks away and puts his tray down at a third table, realizes he's forgotten his straw, and goes back to the lunch line to get one. When he returns to the table where he left his lunch, he finds his tray gone.