My kids are going around the house all day singing the song "I Got That Boom Boom Pow" by the Black Eyed Peas.  Is  there  anything wrong with that? I'd heard parts of this song on the radio and when I saw this question, it started playing on repeat in my head. It's such a catchy tune that it was near impossible to get out of my mind.  The chorus keeps repeating itself, " I got that Boom...

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I am looking for some help.  Recently I attended an Open House at my daughter’s school.  The kindergarten teacher mentioned the skills that children would be working on during the year.  She didn’t get into specifics in each area.  One thing that she mentioned was, “phonemic awareness.”  I am not sure what that is or how I can help my daughter.  If you have any suggestions, I would appreciate the help. To put it simply,...

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As a teacher, I’ve given advice to parents for years. Although not "new" in today’s fast paced technical revolution, social networking sites and the discussion regarding the pros and cons of parental involvement hadn’t really struck me as particularly important until this photo sparked (sorry) my interest. I am concerned about those of you who have children that are a few years younger. Should you be your child’s friend on Facebook, MySpace or other social...

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My four year- old son is really aggressive when I take him on play dates. He pushes other kids down and takes toys from them without asking. Any suggestions? Consistency is the key to good behavior.  Every time you observe these aggressive actions stop what you’re doing and pull him out of the situation for a brief time out (five minutes away from his peers) while explaining what he did wrong.  Before allowing him to...

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I was at my daughter’s open house at her school and the teacher kept talking about "fluency." Everyone seemed to know what it was (but me) so I was too embarrassed to ask. What is fluency? "Fluency" is an educator’s term which basically means the ability to read text quickly and accurately while comprehending the content. For example, a good reader who could decipher and pronounce the words about a complicated procedure in a medical...

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