609. Measuring

Most parents work hard to help their children grow up right. There are all kinds of ideas about what “right” means, and parents, therefore, have all kinds of goals as they teach their children how to live. They often see their children as reflections of themselves, and they can be proud of their children or…

In our society, when adults steal, they’re supposed to be punished. When children steal, they’re supposed to be taught not to. That’s the way our society works. Some people believe, as I do, that adults should also be taught not to steal, but I don’t know how to do that; I specialize in children. And…

One of Caleb Gattegno’s favorite statements was, “Memory is weak.” Another was, “The only thing educable in human beings is awareness.” Teachers try hard to get pupils to understand things. We try to increase children’s awareness. But we also want them to memorize several things, and we have all sorts of ways to try to…

I recently came to terms with a certain level of my own egocentrism, and it’s made it much easier for me to deal with other people’s. As students of child development, we’re taught about an “egocentric stage” all people go through. It’s supposed to taper off when the child is a toddler, but we all…

Did you ever have one of those days? We humans are always trying to explain why “those days” seem to happen. Drop into the teachers’ room on one of “those days” and you’ll hear the latest theory on what causes “those days.” A sugar high after a holiday. A snow day. An impending or recent…

Many of us adults allow ourselves to have days when we’re not at our best. Some of us find people or circumstances to blame, and to varying degrees, and in various ways, sometimes those people and circumstances actually do deserve some of the blame. As hard as we try to be in control of what…