Books about Bullying

Life Strategies for Dealing with Bullies by Jay McGraw (AKA Dr. Phil's son) is a good book about bullying to hand your kid. But I bet there's something better...

Life Strategies talks directly to kids - not parents - and the emphasis is on relating some important messages. Chiefly, "you're not alone" and "the situation isn't hopeless." On those accounts, it succeeds. However, I don't think it delivers on its title's promise. It's very short on practical advice about how kids can successfully handle bullying situations.

The primary advice - and it's good advice - is "tell an adult."

I'm happy about that, and I repeat, it's really, really good advice! So, if your kid is reluctant to read much on the subject and this one is palatable to him or her, by all means, grab it!

Still, bullying is a big problem and while "tell an adult" is good advice it's after-the-fact advice.  I'm looking for books on what we (kids AND adults) can do to alleviate, mitigate, reduce, or just plain wipe out the problem. How can we raise kids who don't bully? And raise kids who aren't bully-magnets?

Got recommendations? I'm all ears.

A Welcome Shock Makes a Great Teacher Gift

NurtureShock, by psychologists Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman, is some of the best non-fiction I've ever read. Each chapter is essentially a meta-review of current large, long-term studies on childhood development issues like sleep, sibling rivalry, achievement tests, and so on.  It could have been drier than toast. Instead, it's enjoyable reading; the authors and editors deserve lots of credit for bringing it to the mass market. Now let's all just take a few days to read it...

If only! Look, even if you don't plan to read it, consider the title as an excellent end-of-year gift for the terrific teachers in your life. (Or even for the bad ones.) The science is solid and the studies worthy of considerable thought and attention. The authors make the clearest case I've ever heard for pushing back the starting time for high school classes, for one thing. And yet they don't make the case - they simply present the information in clear, interesting prose and the book is so well-organized that it's not overwhelming.

I truly believe that the more school psychologists, teachers, and parents that read this book, the better off we'll all be. As a bonus, if you give NurtureShock to your kids' teachers as a gift, I'm pretty sure you'll make the parent honor roll. ;D 

Let's "book it" to School

School is fun! Well, it can be. Kindergarten, especially. (They still have snacks in kindergarten!) Yet when I was seeking enticing titles about kindergarten, my local librarian offered two titles. Two! The mammoth Amazon came up with fewer titles than I expected, and frankly, fewer still that appealed.

So what's up with the dearth of good, exciting, books about going to school?! If we read about one more kid who is afraid to go to school, my son might get the idea he should be worried about going to school.

Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten was OK (in case you like it, there's a series) and The Kissing Hand is also nice, if you like that sort of thing. It's kinda' mushy for my taste, however. And it conveys, like, zero excitement about starting school.

Any suggestions? Anyone? (Psst: You don't even have to raise your hand!)

Three Cups of Tea For Me

Greg Mortenson is the kind of guy that makes me feel really shallow.

After a couple of decades climbing (real mountains) and a short stint in the US Army, he became an ER nurse - you know, saving people's lives and all that jazz. Then he dedicated his life to building schools in Pakistan. He's still at it, and there are nearly 60 schools to show for it. The schools aren't a true measure of success, of course. The lives the students and their families can lead thanks to what they learn in those schools, now that's success. And joy. And possibly, a road to peace. Certainly, it's a start.

To learn more about the Central Asia Institute that Mortenson founded and the good deeds being done, visit the CAI's website.

If you haven't read Three Cups of Tea, I really think you should. Why should I be the only one getting an inferiority complex?

I'm reading the "grownup" version, and it's not taxing my brain :) but just to let you know, there's also a Young Adult edition and the essential story is soon-to-be-available in picture book format, too, under the title Listen to the Wind. Buy 'em through the link on the Three Cups of Tea website and Amazon makes a donation to the institute. Nice.