School-Readiness: Send Kindergarteners to School with These Key Social and Emotional Skills

Originally posted on my US News & World Report parenting blog (Aug 3)

FOR ALL PARENTS OF soon-to-be kindergarteners, by now, you’re well-acquainted with all the work that goes into preparing a child for school. Kindergarten readiness has long been associated with the ABCs and 123s, and understandably so. Mastering skills such as being able to count and recite the alphabet, and knowing one’s shapes and colors all serve to lay a strong foundation for reading, writing and arithmetic.

That said, it’s worth noting that an ability to develop and maintain relationships has recently been added to this list of so-called IQ skills. Its addition makes clear that social and emotional skills, along with several other skills often misleadingly described as “soft” and “non-cognitive,” are now being acknowledged as critical when it comes to school readiness.

Honing the ability to focus and pay attention, be a good listener, share, take turns and play nice with others may seem like common sense. Yet these types of “other” skills are now collectively being recognized to be of equal, if not greater importance, than IQ skills by everyone from educators, pediatricians and neuroscientists to economists, entrepreneurs and business leaders.

With that in mind, it’s important as the new school year begins that parents integrate teaching kids what I like to refer to as QI (think positive “life force”) skills as well, while helping them develop as students. This is something that you’ll want to do, of course, not just before their first day, but as they continue to grow and develop, both in the classroom and outside of it. Here’s a breakdown of QI skills – which I’ve also outlined in my book “The Toddler Brain” and my children’s book, “Jumping Into Kindergarten you’ll want to be sure to encourage and cultivate: ….

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Books and Young Children – 5 Reasons You Should Read Aloud to Your Kids

Originally posted on my US News & World Report parenting blog (Aug 17)

WHAT IF I WERE TO START this blog post with the phrase, “In a great green room…,” ask you what the brown bear sees, or simply inquire as to what very hungry caterpillars eat? I’m willing to bet that most of you, as parents (not to mention grandparents, child care providers and early educators), would be able to finish the sentence and answer the questions without pause.

I imagine that for many of you, these ever-so-simple references would likely also conjure up the colorful images and happy memories that tend to go hand in hand with reading such beloved children’s books as Margaret Wise Brown’s, “Goodnight Moon;” or “Brown Bear, Brown Bear” written by Bill Martin, Jr. and illustrated by Eric Carle; and “The Very Hungry Caterpillar,” written and illustrated by Carle. Yet all too often, I find that discussions about early literacy move away from what we all know and love about the experience of reading aloud with young children, and towards the more literal, academic advantages. That includes getting kids familiar with “sight words” – or commonly used words kids are encouraged to memorize, or know on sight; teaching them the sounds of letters; and all of the various other nuts and bolts of learning to read.

That’s not to say efforts focused on promoting early literacy and helping young children make the necessary connections between sounds, letters and words are without benefit. After all, learning to read affords children the ability to spend the rest of their lives reading to learn. There is no question that reading aloud with young children can facilitate their learning their ABCs and help set them up for reading and life success.

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Parenting & TED: Key Parenting Takeaways From the TED2017 Conference

Originally posted on my US News & World Report parenting blog (May 5, 2017)

AS ONE OF ONLY A FEW pediatricians at last week’s TED2017 conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, I want to let you in on a little secret I’m fairly sure most parents and conference attendees don’t know: The TED conference is actually a parentingconference.

Sure, influential people from around the globe gather to hear thought-provoking talks delivered on “the world’s largest stage.” But when you get right down to it, the 90-plus carefully curated talks collectively paint a picture of the world in which our children will live.

It is this glimpse into what the future holds for our kids that makes TED especially relevant to parents. Whether you’re the world’s greatest female athlete sharing thoughts on becoming a parent (as Serena Williams did), or a parent on the go, what unites us is our shared hopes and dreams for our children. The legacy we leave will depend on how well we prepare our children to live healthy, meaningful and productive lives in a rapidly changing, complex world. This makes parents the people most in need of knowing the direction in which the world is headed. Ironically, we are also the least likely to have enough spare time to watch a 15-minute video online. That’s why I’m so compelled to share a handful of key parenting takeaways from TED2017…

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Arming teachers with what they really need…pencils, books, and healthy, school-ready children!

There’s no ignoring it. The topic is everywhere. Our country is engaged in a national debate about gun control, and in many cases, whether or not we should arm our teachers. I certainly have concerns about putting guns in closer proximity to our children, since the absence of guns from their homes and communities has been proven the most effective way of preventing firearm-related injuries within this age group. And while the conversation about gun control is long overdue, I feel compelled to point out that there is a more important discussion when it comes to arming teachers.

Far less controversial and already proven “arms” exist, and we actually know a lot about what works when it comes to ensuring our children stay safe and healthy while at school. Here are a few ideas.

Books. Helping children grow up with a love of reading in a literacy-rich environment is crucial for their future success and well being. Every educator and pediatrician I’ve met agrees – children must spend their first few years of school learning to read in order to spend the rest of their lives reading to learn. The sad fact is that far too many child care settings and elementary schools lack the books (or the budget) needed to make this happen. And Omaha is not immune to this problem.

Breakfast. As the co-author of Food Fights, a book that offers solutions to kid-related nutritional challenges, it should come as no surprise that I believe that good nutrition (all day every day) is essential for kids (and adults, for that matter). It’s needed for good physical health, concentration and the ability to learn. The fact of the matter is, hungry children simply don’t learn as well as others. So it’s time to ask the tough questions: How do we provide all children, especially those who are disadvantaged, with a nutritious breakfast?

School nurses and other health professionals. Our health and ability to learn are inextricably intertwined, especially in our children’s earliest years. Unfortunately, budget cuts often leave our schools with little, if any, access to a school nurse or other health professional. Even fewer child care centers have this much-needed access, despite the existence of clear justification for these health consultants.

Vaccines and other germ-fighting tools. Making sure children and teachers are fully vaccinated is so important. This also means insuring measures are in place to limit the spread of infection and missed school days. We need to arm our teachers not only with the paper and pencils, but with vaccinated children, cleaning supplies and disinfecting procedures. Access to hand washing sinks, soap, hand sanitizer, bleach water and/or disinfecting wipes are small investments that can yield big returns.

Children who are ready-to-learn. Key words here: when they enter kindergarten. We have irrefutable evidence that proves investing in early childhood and a strong foundation is hugely important for safety, health and lifelong well being. We also know this foundation must be laid in the earliest years of a child’s life – well before he or she enters kindergarten. That’s why efforts such as First Five Nebraska and Educare are so crucial.

Originally posted on Omaha World Herald’s Live Well Nebraska

The Importance of Early Literacy: Why We Need to Commit to Closing Nebraska’s Reading Gap

I recently learned the results of Nebraska’s first statewide reading assessment. I must admit that the test itself didn’t actually catch my attention until I received my own children’s scores in the mail. As a long-standing early literacy advocate and someone who read literally tens of thousands of pages aloud to my children even before they could read for themselves, I am proud to report that all three scored very well.

Unfortunately, I find it difficult to celebrate my own children’s reading success in light of how the rest of our state’s children scored. Sure, results released in August revealed that nearly 70 percent of Nebraska’s third through eighth grade and 11th grade public school students scored in a range that met or exceeded expectations, but that 70 percent doesn’t tell the whole story.

Last Friday, Joe Dejka and Paul Goodsell shared the rest of the story with Omaha World Herald readers in their article, Reading gap called troubling. In it, they paint a much more dismal picture, simply by offering a more detailed look at the test results: Fewer than half of Nebraska’s Hispanic, black and American Indian students can read proficiently – a number that is in stark contrast to the three out of four white students taking the same test. When poverty was factored into the equation, low-income students also were found to have scored significantly lower than their more well-to-do classmates (on the order of 53 percent compared to 80 percent, respectively).

So why should you or I find the results of Nebraska’s first statewide reading assessment so distressing? In addition to the obvious racial, ethnic and socio-economic disparities, the fact of the matter is that the ability to read matters. A lot. Learning to read, learning to love to read, and the ability to read well all play a fundamentally key role in children’s future school and life success. In fact, it is often said that children spend the first several years learning to read, and the rest of their lives reading to learn. Yet Nebraska is not the only state with a reading gap, as an estimated 34% of American children enter kindergarten without even the basic language skills needed to learn to read, and fewer than half of parents read to their young children daily.

Now for the good news: we already know what works when it comes to preparing America’s youngest children to succeed in school, thanks in no small part to the efforts of Reach Out and Read. By partnering with doctors who prescribe developmentally-appropriate books, encourage families to read together beginning at birth, and advise parents about the importance of reading aloud – this national non-profit organization now offers us all an effective, evidence-based model that reaches nearly 4 million children each year, with a particular focus on those living in poverty.

As a pediatrician who had the good fortune to train with one of the founders of Reach Out and Read nearly two decades ago and has championed the cause ever since, I hope you’ll not only commit to helping your own children learn to love to read, but also commit to helping close Nebraska’s reading gap.

The following are a few simple but important Reach Out and Read tips to help get all children started on the path to lifelong learning and success:

  • Host a book-themed baby shower.
  • Make reading books to your child a part of your daily routine.
  • Make reading fun: hold your child on your lap when you read stories together, point to the pictures, let your toddler fill in the ends of your sentences, and be willing to read the same book (or page) over and over again.
  • Ask your two-year old questions about the story.
  • Relate what you read to your child’s own experiences.
  • Visit reachoutandread.org to find out more about the developmental milestones of early literacy, recommended book lists, and information about Reach Out and Read programs right here in Nebraska.
  • Consider supporting organizations such as Reach Out and Read and play a role in helping all children reach their full potential.           

Originally posted on Omaha World Herald’s Live Well Nebraska