The unofficial start to summer has begun. It’s time to enjoy the outdoors and socializing with friends a little more. This usually includes at least a few fun trips to the swimming pool for most children. To this day, I can still vividly remember being 6 or 7 years old and going to the swim […]
A few days ago, on the playground, I overheard two women discussing an incident where a grade-school child made a disparaging comment about another child’s intelligence. I was a little surprised at how they choose to assess the situation. Basically the sentiment was “what can you really do – that’s just how kids behave sometimes.” […]
You can’t fake good eye contact. It’s an incredibly powerful skill that must be communicated with finesse and honesty. Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote “An eye can threaten like a loaded gun, or it can insult like hissing or kicking, or, in its altered mood, by beams of kindness, it can make the heart dance for […]
Lately the topic of cyberbullying has been prominent in the news. The Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use describes cyberbullying as “being cruel to others by sending or posting material using the Internet or a cell phone.” This is a scary, potentially violent and a challenging issue for parents, schools, and the legal community. […]
When was the last time someone said, “you’re welcome” to you; or the last time you said, “you’re welcome” to someone else? At times it seems as if the phrase “you’re welcome” has been dropped from the English language. It’s an interesting phrase whose origins began in the early part of the 20th century. Since that […]
A few weeks ago, I was at the photo store using their computer to crop a holiday photo. The store was very busy that day, and I was waiting to pay. While waiting, an elderly woman asked me a few questions about using the photography computer. I’m in no way a computer photo expert, so […]
The holidays are now upon us. Festive, happy, social gatherings with family and friends are already under way. Well, let’s be honest – maybe not all gatherings are always happy and what we truly want to do with our time. Children tend to have similar feelings towards social events. Have you ever talked to a […]
The holidays are quickly approaching and that means socializing and dining with others. Children usually love the holiday season and the opportunity to eat and have fun. It’s also an excellent opportunity to teach your child about considerate and proper dining body mechanics. Proper dining body mechanics may seem like an odd topic, but it’s […]
The beginning of school and accompanying extracurricular activities can be an exciting, yet sometimes stressful time for some children, especially when it comes to meeting new people. Although I teach etiquette skills to children, I am always so delighted when I see them successfully applying etiquette skills in everyday life. When I accompanied my friend […]
Lately, there have been a lot of news stories about the decline of children’s manners. Some retail establishments have even tried to ban “misbehaving children” from their business. In an extreme effort to solve the problem some groups have fought for “child free” dining and compare eating with children to dining with cigarette smoke. Some […]