If we think back to our childhood days, we probably remember getting something shiny and new for our birthday or Christmas and usually loving it. And sometimes we got a sweater or socks or a book, and maybe we didn’t love that gift so much. Some might say that 2020 has been that less-preferred gift. […]
By Kylene Dalton-Koons and Brad VanDenend In schools these days, there is a lot of talk about trauma—and for good reason. According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, “One out of every 4 children attending school has been exposed to a traumatic event” (4). Not only does this research support the idea that educators […]
One of my favorite courses to teach in my role as a school counselor educator is social-emotional development. It’s not that other areas of development (e.g., academic or career development) are less important when working with children and adolescents but that social-emotional development plays a central role in shaping how we approach living our lives […]
Mindfulness has emerged as a leading intervention for dealing with stress in the school setting. But the term has become overused and watered down, and it can be difficult to sort through the clutter to understand what mindfulness is and how it fits with a Christian worldview. In fact, many Christians are wary of mindfulness […]
The summer after I graduated from high school, I walked into a piano lesson wanting to play like Ben Folds; I walked out wanting to be like Dr. Hsu. My teacher, the late Dr. Hsu, was a world-class pianist. He could have spent that hour networking with other elite musicians or instructing Juilliard-bound students, but […]
Schools today struggle to help students who daily deal with serious mental health issues that include anxiety, depression, eating disorders, addiction, and suicide. Christian schools, too, face challenges. They aren’t exempt, and they may be better equipped to address mental health issues than other schools, since they stand on God’s truth and are strengthened by […]
The fellowship hall at my church was the last place I expected to be one Sunday night several years ago. We were meeting there instead of in the sanctuary to grieve and process the suicide of a teen in our church family. As a teacher and a school administrator, I had been part of grieving […]
Young adult literature continues to be fertile ground for an amazing range of books covering almost every subject imaginable. Below are quick reviews of the best eleven books that I read in the past year. These books are appropriate for middle school and/or high school readers. Not all these books were published in 2019, but […]
I was teaching a grade twelve biblical studies class when something unexpected happened. In a class full of strong minds and bodies, I saw fear in my students’ eyes. They were afraid of University; not afraid of the workload or the professors, but afraid of not being able to answer the onslaught of questions about […]
by Martha Mahtani and Bill Boerman-Cornell The Holocaust perpetuated on the Jewish people by the German Nazi party during World War II has inspired a remarkable amount of excellent literature. Middle school and high school English teachers are quick to recognize the interest their students have for this era in history and are quick to […]