My Father’s Day Card in Heaven

I lost my father on August 28, 2022. This is my Father’s Day card to him in heaven.

By Shirin Yadegar

Dear Dad,
This is my second Father’s Day without your sweet smile, soft voice and strong embrace. The words for this card flow with the same rigor of my tears. There is so much lost in the past 22 months. The loss of hearing your genuine love, smelling your sweet scent and listening to your gentle voice. Camille, who you always called the “professor” hasn’t washed your sweatshirt she took from your closet so when she wears it she can hold on to your scent. (more…)

Final Exam Prep

By Angela B.
AngelaWe’re all familiar with finals season. Most teachers give you notice all year about their final exam. They tell you the things that might appear, give you a multitude of study guides, and yet the final exam always sneaks up on you when you’re least expecting it. It’s important to remember that you’re not alone. Everyone feels the antsy, jittery rush of May and June. (more…)

May Mother’s Day Recipe

Grilled Peaches, Burrata, Basil & Mint
Grilled Peaches Ready in 15 minutes
Serves 8 people
Summer in a salad! Grilling the peaches is a great way to release the sweet juices, and soften the peaches slightly. Burrata is essentially a creamy pouch of stretched mozzarella cheese filled with creamy soaked mozzarella; it is luscious and sweet. Serve with toasted sourdough bread and a glass of wine, and you have what I’d consider the perfect meal. (more…)

Lifestyle Habits and Food to Heal Inflammation

By Mariana Rossano

Inflammation is the body’s way of signaling us that it’s lacking balance. And when we lack balance in our lives, the first things to address are our sleep, hydration, movement, and nutrition.

Sleep Deeply
Are you getting restful sleep? Consistent deep sleep throughout the night is crucial to reducing inflammation. We all know how difficult the day can feel when we have a bad night’s rest. Now imagine if this was almost always the case.

Over time, the body’s norm becomes stress. While subtle for some and obvious for others, not resting well stresses the body. Therefore, when you try to reduce inflammation, developing a nightly routine before bed to ensure deep sleep is crucial. (more…)

Executive Functioning and Kindergarten Readiness

By Janis Adams

Whether your child is developmentally ready to make the move from preschool to kindergarten may depend on whether they are successfully mastering some very adult sounding competencies called “executive functioning.”

Executive functioning is a set of skills: the capacity to plan ahead and meet goals, display self-control, follow multiple-set directions even when interrupted, and stay focused despite distractions, among others.

In other words, executive functioning is the ability to prioritize tasks, filter distractions, and control impulses — lofty goals for a preschooler! (more…)

Finding Creative Ways of Engaging Our Children to Learn

By Nathalie Kunin
NathalieKunin

What education during Covid has taught us, and how we are applying those lessons to how we educate our children today.

Looking back on schooling during Covid gives many of us PTSD, but we have learned many valuable and positive lessons from this experience. We learned how adaptive and resilient our children are. Most pivoted quickly to virtual learning which illustrates how flexible children can be and that there are many different methods of teaching. While an in-person school setting is ideal for most, we have learned that students can thrive in non-traditional environments.

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