As an Education Advocate, my work and passion focuses upon gaining an understanding of each child. This process of discovery uncovers the truth about a child’s ability to find success, which always evolves from the belief that “Every child is a blessing.” Within the mosaic of life, each child has the potential to contribute in immeasurable ways and it is our job as parents and advocates to help them discover their unique gifts. Like a detective, love for our children takes us on an adventure, asking us to notice each detail, nuance, and new discovery of who they truly are. In the words of Thich Nhat Hanh, “True love is understanding.”
[04.07.08]
That Fishing Feeling My name is Kiefer and I am eleven years old. The other day my dad got angry and yelled at me for not taking out the trash. So, I yelled back and said, “I forgot, okay? Big deal!” He told me not to talk to him that way and sent me to my room. I felt lousy. Why is it that I get sent to my room ...
[03.08.08]
A New Earth For Kids One of the most publicized books this month is A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle. It asks each of us to awaken to our own consciousness and it speaks of the power of consciousness to transform the world. As each generation leaps ahead of the ideas, beliefs, and limitations of the past, we evolve as a spe...
[01.02.08]
Baby Boundaries Your eight month old is heading for the dog food dish for the third time today. “No! Don’t do it!” but there she goes, dumping the food all over the floor again! What to do?
[01.01.08]
Tap In To What Matters Incredibly, it’s already 2008! I don’t know if time is moving faster or if we are all so busy that it just seems that way. The years seem to be flying by. With this in mind, let’s make the most of the time we have by combining Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) with our New Year’s Resolutions.
[01.01.08]
I AM Affirmations AFFIRMATION OF THE MONTH:I Am Infinite!Inside me there is a treasure,Of gifts I can give to everyone,Too countless to even measure.I Am Brilliance!And of all the things I know,Helping one another is theGreatest way to grow.QUOTE OF THE MONTH: “On behalf of the Rotary Club of San Marcos, CA and Thou...
[01.01.08]
Guided by NSFM January 2008 This month, we turned Guy’s car seat forward, marking his first birthday. He immediately beamed with his newfound ability to make eye contact with his parents while in the car. I also felt comforted by my ability to see him as he eats, sleeps, snacks, or observes life around him.
[01.01.08]
Dynamic Partnerships Dynamic partnerships are relationships between “equals in spirit” that encourage us to grow as individuals, as well as partners. These are the kind of relationships we want to encourage at home, at school, at work, with our partners, children, and friends.
[01.01.08]
A Surprise Package This is a true story about what happened to me over twenty years ago in the city of Chennai, India. I was four years old when my parents sent me to an English boarding school ten hours away. Now I was eighteen, already in my final year of college, but living on my own once again. I was used to li...
[01.01.08]
The Sue-Lution Place- January 2008 Dear Sue,My wife and I have been separated for the past five years. Our son Tom’s behavior seems to change after each visit with his mom. She gives him gifts, takes him to movies, and allows him to play with his Nintendo. I tend to spend quality time with him, trying to connect with how he feels. ...
[12.01.07]
The Sue-Lution Place December Dear Sue,My four year old suddenly seems defiant. If I say yes, he says no; if he says he wants cheese for lunch, I bring him cheese and he says he doesn’t want cheese. I say go get your shoes and coat on to leave for school and he says I am not wearing a coat. I am sure it is a phase, testing hi...
[12.01.07]
Read Right December Have you ever watched a child learn to figure out how to do something? Grasp a toy? Walk? Tie her shoes?Brains are wonderfully adept at figuring out how to do things. Think of everything your child could do moments after birth. It’s a short list, isn’t it? Think of everything she can do now! If ...
[12.01.07]
"I Am" Affirmations December Welcome to our read-aloud column for parents and kids based on The I AM! Affirmation Book: Discovering The Value of Who You Are. There are over 122,000 copies of The I AM! Affirmation Book in print; it has been gifted to children in 30 countries and over 708,000 books of many titles have been gifte...
[12.01.07]
Family Circle In our family, we call the bonds and closeness we share and feel “the family circle.” After all the time and effort parents devote to building a close family unit, it is difficult to experience the mixed emotions we feel when our children move into new and more independent lives, creating a change ...
[12.01.07]
Guided by NSFM December During my pregnancy, I committed myself to fixing all my quirks and flaws. As I saw it, I had nine months to become the perfect parent. By the time Guy was born, I felt prepared and confident—but far from perfect. Reading North Star Family Matters, I found myself making peace with my parenting abi...
[12.01.07]
Who Needs EFT? Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) is like acupuncture—you either believe it or not! It sounds ridiculous: Tap on some places on your body, say some phrases, hum, count, and voila! Your negative emotions seem to disappear. If you’re anything like me, you may be resistant to trying it. But twelve ...
[12.01.07]
Santa Fe Sisters My name is Kendra and I just turned thirteen years old last month but I don’t feel any better now that I am a teenager. Somehow I thought things would change. Nothing did. My mom is still not here, she left because she seemed to feel better drinking than not drinking, alcohol that is. We did eve...
[12.01.07]
New Year, New View The holidays are a great time to take note of just how difficult it is to change our ingrained tendencies and habits. This New Year take stock of your parenting habits, including what you’d like to do differently. Change is happening all around us all the time and as our children develop at a rema...
[12.01.07]
Unique & Normal Most of us are inundated with ideas about what is considered normal for children and, as parents, when we encounter a situation that falls outside of “normal,” we conclude that there must be something wrong with the child. Traditional education has convinced us that it is normal for all children to...
[12.01.07]
Holiday Expectations Tis the season to be jolly,” so why are the holidays known to kick up just as much grief as joy? You’d think that people would stop doing the things that drive us crazy, at least for a few days! “Why does he have to act like that on the holidays?” “Can’t she just stop complaining for now?” In f...
[11.05.07]
EFT Every Night “I hope that someday the public media will broadcast EFT and its benefits to the world. The idea, in my opinion, deserves a prominent place on 60 Minutes, Oprah, and in every parent/child-oriented publication on the planet. Properly done, this idea will launch our children into an adulthood filled...
[11.01.07]
I AM! Affirmations: For Self-Esteem Welcome to our new read-aloud column for parents and kids based on The I AM! Affirmation Book: Discovering The Value of Who You Are. There are over 120,000 copies of The I AM! Affirmation Book in print; it has been gifted to children in 30 countries and over 580,000 books in all have been gifted ac...
[11.01.07]
November Column Reading is a mosaic of subconscious activity in the brain that is dependent on foundational concepts such as these: books tell stories, books make sense, there is a right-side up and an upside-down to books, you always turn pages in the same direction, there is a proper time to turn the page, readin...
[11.01.07]
Appreciative Inquiry Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is based on an idea that many of us are already familiar with—that what we focus upon tends to increase. Founded in the business world1, AI explores current successes and how they happened instead of focusing upon problems. Emphasizing success helps recreate the excitemen...
[11.01.07]
Guided by NSFM In last month’s column I committed to trying EFT to release my pent up sadness, anger, and fear. I wanted to let go of these emotions, so they would not impact my son today or later in life. The exercise promised to offer me great benefits as well. How much better of a parent—and person—would I be ...
[11.01.07]
A Teacher & A Father Last month I received an enjoyable visit from the editors of this fine magazine. (I think that they wanted to see if I really had the family that I write about!) We had several conversations that inspired me with future topics for articles. One such topic arose when Wendy, who was a student of mi...
[11.01.07]
The Blame Game I came home from school and took my dog Magic for a walk in the woods. It was a beautiful fall day and we had so much fun. She loves to chase squirrels and roll in the leaves. When we got home, we headed to the kitchen, part of our daily routine, where I gave Magic a biscuit and poured myself a g...
[11.01.07]
Good Role Models True Story: Mel is eleven-years old and proudly says, “Well, I’m going to have my baby when I’m sixteen so that I can be a young mother like my cousin!” One of Mel’s role models is her older cousin, Jenn, who is eighteen and pregnant with her second child. How is it that Mel finds Jenn to be a go...
[10.02.07]
Un-Happy Halloween It’s Halloween soon and I don’t really understand the holiday. After all, I’m 12 years old so why is there a holiday that sends me out on the street to get scared?! I get scared enough right inside my home. Yesterday my mom asked me what I wanted to wear for Halloween, and I just didn’t know, or ...
[10.01.07]
Guided by NSFM October Our little one is officially walking with ease. He is happily on his feet all day, discovering the new places his little feet take him and looking for adventure around every corner. People say, “Oh, he’s going to be a handful, wait until he’s one or two or three.” It reminds me of all the friends...
[10.01.07]
Education for Life/Living Wisdom Schools Recently, the parent of a first grader told me she was grateful for the culture of calm and compassion at our Living Wisdom School. She had just seen her seven-year-old son offer to fill a classmate’s water bottle at the drinking fountain and attributed his service-mindedness to the teachers, curri...
[10.01.07]
EFT & Hugs With all of the emphasis on academic achievement, passing state tests, and preparing for college, it is possible that we are overlooking something even more important for our children’s long-term success. In doing some research this summer, I discovered that there is a scientific basis for somethin...
[10.01.07]
Read Right October October is the month of my mother’s birthday, and as I contemplate what I want to share with NSFM readers this month, my thoughts keep returning to her. She will be eighty-eight on this year’s birthday, and I have many years of remembrances of her. Predominant among them are the memories of her re...
[10.01.07]
Keeping On Track True Story: Tomas sat next to his best friend, Sam, at a shared desk, working on their second-grade schoolwork. The teacher told the class that as soon as they finished they could take out their puzzles and start playing. Tomas finished his work quickly, as he always did, and took out his puzzle....
[10.01.07]
Encourage Curiosity Children enter this world with wonder, awe, and curiosity. Newly discovering the effects of gravity, inertia, and all the forces of life, they drop things on the floor, amazed at their power. “What’s this world about?” they wonder. “How does it work?” “What’s my place in it?” Once they learn to t...
[09.01.07]
True Success “Every child is a genius. That doesn’t mean that every child can paint like Picasso, compose like Mozart, or score 150 on an I.Q. test…Essentially, the real meaning of genius is to “give birth to the joy” that is within each child. Every child is born with that capacity. Each child comes into lif...
[09.01.07]
EFT For Better Mornings As a school counselor, I have seen many children struggle with starting a new school year. Before I knew about EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques), helping a child with separation anxiety was very difficult. I remember Justin, a first grader who was so afraid to go to school that his mother had to ...
[09.01.07]
Guided by NSFM My mom had finally transferred some of the old family film reels onto DVD. As I unwrapped the package, I couldn’t wait to see my parents as athletes, students, and friends and relive my own earliest yet foggy memories. As I watched the once-silent films, now accompanied by a jazzy soundtrack, I fe...
[09.01.07]
Good Communication Good communication is one of the most important habits for conscious parents to create. It opens the way for family members to resolve conflict, share feelings, and express their love in healthy ways. As we create the space for good communication in our families, we help our children build the hab...
[09.01.07]
Read RIght September Through the years I’ve heard parent after parent tell me about conversations nearly identical to the one I used to have with my son that went like this:Mom: “Kyle, do you want me to read you a story?”Kyle: “Oh, yes. Can you read Marvin K Mooney?”Mom: “We read that book three times yesterda...
[09.01.07]
Lucita and the Leopard All of us want to be happy, but how many people do you know who truly are? Having friends, money, or lots of toys doesn’t necessarily make us happy. On the other hand, sometimes people who are really sick or have encountered hardships are happy. Gadgets, money, new toys, or clothes might make us ...
[09.01.07]
Fit for Life The number of obese children keeps rising in the United States and, as adults sit confused about what to do, many children just sit—watching more television and eating more foods high in saturated fats, sodium, and sugar. Children are born with a natural connection to their bodies. Even newborn ba...
[09.01.07]
Sasha Dreams of Becoming an Author I ’m Sasha and I am fourteen years old. I get new ideas for different books everyday and I know that writing is what I’m supposed to do. By my second year of college, I will hopefully publish a book. I have been writing since I was eleven, after my parents divorced and I moved out of my family’s ...
[09.01.07]
Communication Gaps I have a degree and a half in child development and yet I still make the same mistakes as everyone else when it comes to communication. I even taught a workshop on communication and find myself struggling with the same pitfalls that I spoke of. All of this might make you think that I could empath...
[08.01.07]
Joshua Reese Dream of Being a Police Officer J oshua Reese is eleven years old and was born in Olympia, WA. He now lives with his grandma and grandpa, along with his younger brother and sister. Josh told us, “Mom and dad didn’t make the right choices, I guess. So my grandma made the right choice to take me and my siblings.”
[08.01.07]
Our Kids, Our Mirrors A s we drove down the road on one of our all-too-short but wonderful family vacations, my parent radar picked up on the typical, but seemingly minor, bickering going on in the back seat. This time I thought, “This could be much worse.” I reminded myself to stay out of the exchange and let my kids ...
[08.01.07]
EFT in Action On CJ’s first day of kindergarten the bus dropped her off at the wrong stop on the way home, a traumatic event for a child so young. Since then, her mom said CJ was more apprehensive about leaving her. She didn’t feel safe. I am a certified EFT practitioner, and use a simplified routine called the...
[08.01.07]
Guided by NSFM August I am a new mother with an eight-month-old son and am thrilled to be asked to be the first NSFM mother to write a column about my experiences raising a child on the tools and insights offered in this magazine. It all started when my husband and I met Wendy and Prem, the founders of the magazine, at ...
[08.01.07]
Read Right August W hen I taught special education years ago, I asked a sixth grade student to look carefully at a book I had handed him and tell me if he noticed anything different about it. He flipped through it lackadaisically and said, “No, I don’t.”“Please turn back to the beginning of the book and read it to m...
[08.01.07]
EFT For A New School Year Summer is winding down. It’s time to shift into a new routine. For some children this may their first year of school, or they might be moving to a new school, while still others may be returning to the same school to face a new teacher, classmates, and/or grade. Regardless of the situation, child...
[08.01.07]
Confidence From the Inside-Out F or years I’ve pondered the differences between my three daughters and myself. How is it that they are so confident as they travel through life, at any age, while at times I still struggle with knowing who I am and what I am capable of, even at the “wise” age of fifty-seven? Every now and then, t...
