It’s that exciting time of year again – the start of school. I like the feeling of bustle and optimism that a new school year brings. It’s a time for fresh starts, a burst of activity, and for many, an…
Dr. Adam Cox
Connecting people with ideas for learning and living well. Helping to build purposeful lives.
Blog Archives
Bored with Summer, Starting School
Posted in Childhood, Early Childhood, Education, Executive Functions, Parenting, Professional Development, Psychology of Youth, School, Sports, Teaching Tagged with: ADHD, boredom, Executive Dysfunction, homework, School, summer
Some Students and Teachers Prefer Quiet
Michael Godsey’s recent article, “Why Introverted Teachers are Burning Out,“ included a link to a study on Giftedness and Introversion by Jill D. Burruss and Lisa Kaenzig, from the College of William and Mary Center for Gifted Education. The study…
Posted in Boys, Child Psychology, Communicating with Kids, Psychology of Youth, School, Teaching, Uncategorized Tagged with: Boys of Few Words, Education, Gifted, Introversion, Mindfulness, Quiet, Shy, Students, Teachers, Teaching
More Hands on Deck
Here’s an interesting blog I ran across, called “Wisdom of the Hands,” written by woodworker, teacher and author Doug Stowe. Here’s how he describes his topic: “This blog is dedicated to sharing the concept that our hands are essential to…
Posted in Boys, Child Psychology, Education, Girls, Parenting, Play, Psychology of Youth, School, Society & Culture, Teaching Tagged with: Brain, Browning School, Creativity, Doug Stowe, Handwork, John Botti, Landon School, Learning, Makers, Marcos Williams, Teaching, Woodworking
Big Sky Thinking
Spent last week visiting the Lake Pend Oreille School District near Sand Point Idaho. It was my first time in this part of the country, and what a pleasure. So great to roll out ideas on executive functions for this…
Posted in Brain, Child Psychology, Executive Functions, Professional Development, School Tagged with: Education, Schools, Teachers, wilderness therapy
How to Reduce Drama, Improve Grades
There is only so much emotion to go around during the course of the school day. If all of it gets invested in grades, relatively less is available for the important stuff, like discussion, debate and sustained attention. So, how…
Posted in Adolescence, Communicating with Kids, Education, Executive Functions, Professional Development, School Tagged with: anxiety, Boys, Education, Executive Functions, Girls, grades, Humanities, Reading, Teachers, Teaching
College Admissions Drama 101
If I were a high school junior or senior, I’d throw in the towel. How many opposing perspectives do we expect kids to comprehend when it comes to college admissions? Many, if not most teens, are subject to years of…
Posted in Adolescence, College, Communicating with Kids, Parenting, Psychology of Youth, School Tagged with: Admissions, College, College Admission, Competition, Education, Fairness, Frank Bruni, Life Narratives, Parenting, Purpose, Status
The War on Creativity
It shouldn’t be difficult to advocate for the basics. It should be obvious that some learning experiences are so fundamental to human life that they can’t be reasonably excluded from childhood. But in fact it is increasingly awkward to advocate…
Posted in Adolescence, Boys, Child Psychology, Childhood, Education, Parenting, Professional Development, Psychology of Youth, School, Society & Culture, Teaching Tagged with: Aesthetics, Art, Children's Arts Guild, Creativity, Education, Humanities, Music, Parenting, Public School, School, STEM, Teaching, Youth
America’s Meritocracy Primes Unrelenting School Competition
First, a confession. I am an idealist when it comes to education. I believe school is more than a means to an end, because I believe learning is one of life’s great privileges. Having said that, I have to take…
Posted in College, Communicating with Kids, Education, Parenting, Professional Development, Psychology of Youth, School, Society & Culture, Teaching Tagged with: Competition, Education, Exams, grades, Meritocracy, Parenting, School, Schools, Teachers, Teaching
