We sat, afraid to move lest we interfere with the learning and interaction we were witnessing. Children — young children — moved throughout the classroom, carrying various materials while maneuvering around tables with teapots and an occasional flower vase before landing and unpacking their selected treasures. The materials were designed to foster discovery, engage imagination,.. read more →

After a Toronto District School Board survey revealed high levels of anxiety in teenagers, we asked online readers to submit their questions about anxiety in that age group to Dr. Alexa Bagnell in Halifax. Here are some of her answers.   What is normal anxiety for a teenager? Worries, fears and anxiety are very common.. read more →

The problem “My kid just won’t take ‘no’ for an answer. It drives me crazy. Why can’t he ever accept it for what it means? ‘No.’ Why is it that whenever I say ‘no,’ it triggers an endless flood of objections?” “But why not?” “You have to.” “That’s not fair.” Why can’t you ever get.. read more →

The other day I gave a talk to a parents’ group at a boys’ school. It was a big group. I asked them if they’d ever known a boy who hadn’t made a pretend gun with his fingers and gone bang-bang. Not a single hand went up. No surprise there. Boys have been fighting with.. read more →

Margaret Wente  |  The Globe and Mail From Vancouver to St. John’s, the demand for French immersion has been soaring out of sight. Anxious parents camp out on the sidewalk to snag precious enrolment spots for their kids. School districts such as the sprawling Peel Region west of Toronto have been forced to introduce a.. read more →