14 Skills Your Kids Should Have Before Moving Out
Both of my children moved out of the house when they went off to college. I was proud of them for managing life on their own. On the other hand, at one point during their twenties, both of my adult children moved back home at a point of transition. “Adulting” is now an official term, a verb of sorts, describing the
Six Guidelines to Teach Ethics to Students
Did you know that students today are more curious about becoming a leader than previous student populations, according to a Universum Global Study? That’s right. Generation Z showed a greater interest in leadership than the previous three generations. Some of the greatest differences were in developing nations. Many U.S. high school students see themselves as “activists” and “entrepreneurs.” My concern today,
How Nick Saban Develops Grit in His Players
Coach Nick Saban came up with a new way to define mental toughness for his football team. During spring training, 2018, the national champion head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide told a story to his players. While Saban was weather-proofing his Florida home, storm windows were being chosen and installed. During the decision process, he asked the workers how they
Three Ways to Relieve Teen Anxiety Today
The rise in anxiety, depression and panic attacks in our students today should give every one of us pause. It is astoundingly high. Anxiety and depression in high school kids have been on the rise since the early 2000s after several years of plateau. It is a reality that crosses all demographics, urban, suburban and rural; and among adolescents who
Why Today’s Athletes Are Lonely & What to Do About It
I’m not sure what you think NBA players do between games, but my guess is, it’s wrong. Those young players are not merely signing autographs, attending parties in their honor and soaking up culture and society. According to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, many of them are lonely. In fact, Silver plainly said that supporting players’ mental health is an ongoing initiative;
Three Statistics that Will Change the Way You Think about Generation Z
Today’s blog is from Andrew McPeak. Andrew is a next gen researcher, speaker, and author for Growing Leaders. How well do you think you know Generation Z? Years ago I was speaking to a group of adults who were leading students in schools across the country. While most of them were leading Millennials at the time, I reminded them that a new generation was coming.
How Generation Z is Changing the World of Dating
Have you noticed? High school and college students from Generation Z are approaching "dating"…uh…differently. I just spoke to Sophia, a sophomore in high school. The last time she and I talked she was dating a guy named Conner. In our recent conversation I asked if they were still dating and Sophia replied, “I don’t think so.” Wait. What? Why wouldn’t you know
Getting the Most Out of Advisement Period
Thousands of middle and high schools in the U.S. have changed “homeroom” to a block of time called, “Advisement Period.” It’s usually a period anywhere from 25-40 minutes at the start of a day that students can focus on non-academic topics. Or, they can simply waste time. Too often, that’s what I hear is happening. A 2017 Gallup Education poll on
Three Leadership Secrets from Bohemian Rhapsody
I turn 60 years old this year. I share this fact because it will explain my next few sentences. As a teen, I listened to the rock band, Queen. They were eccentric, even edgy, and their tunes got stuck in my head. (It’s precisely what musicians want.) A few months ago, I saw the movie, “Bohemian Rhapsody” (twice) and later,
Five Technology Rules Every Parent Must Follow
Sonia Bokhari was an 8th grader when she joined the world of social media for the first time. She was excited, to say the least, to jump on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and other platforms her friends were already on. What she discovered made her feel betrayed. Upon setting up her profile, she quickly found out her mom and sister had been posting
What Short-Term Thinking Does to Our Kids
Have you read the latest updates on the largest college admissions bribery scandal in our history? The original story was—at least 50 parents paid bribes to get their children admitted into prestigious universities, like Stanford, Yale, UCLA, Wake Forest, USC and others. It was an atrocious attempt by parents to control outcomes and is an ugly sign of the times—that
Three Huge Mistakes We Make Leading Kids…and How to Correct Them
While I applaud the engagement of this generation of parents and teachers, it’s important to recognize these three mistakes we make leading kids.
Six Defining Characteristics of Generation Z
I wish you could meet Lizzy. Or Dane. Or, for that matter, Seth and Carly. These students have all been born since September 11, 2001—a marker in our U.S. history that will always divide those born in the 20th century from those born afterward. I was with these students recently and immediately noticed a different perspective in them as teens
Three Steps to Help a Student with a Learning Disability
Today’s blog is from Nautrie Jones, a contributing writer for the Growing Leaders Blog. Nautrie is the Director of Teacher Leadership Development at Teach For America where she manages coaches, develops strategy, and designs trainings focused on content, pedagogy, classroom management, racial identity development, culturally responsive teaching, and adaptive coaching. After years of confusion, we finally had an answer. We knew
The Dark Side of a College Student’s Brain
I know. That’s quite an audacious headline for a blog article, isn’t it? In fact, you may suspect the content would be rated NC17 or X, assuming I’m talking about students’ preoccupation with parties, sex and drinking. But I’m not talking about those topics. I am talking about what’s looming beneath their goofy humor on social media, or the trash talk on
“In Other Words” – Why is Teaching with Images so Effective? (Part 1)
Over a period of five days, I plan to blog about the research and history behind the idea of teaching with pictures. It’s actually quite fascinating, and sets up our release of three Habitudes® resources this month. Yesterday, we took a brief look at history and how cultures engaged their people with images. Below is part two. Picture Perfect Training Since the
How Adults are Stealing Ambition From Kids
We are raising a generation of kids who are used to receiving recognition for participating. One of the most valuable commodities we can cultivate in this emerging generation of kids is ambition.
Six Steps to Help Students Overcome Being Overwhelmed
It’s interesting to note that the number one word college students use to describe their life is the word: “overwhelmed.”
Six Criteria for Good Teachers
We’re receiving lots of questions from educators on what criteria should be used to evaluate the effectiveness of teachers. Many came in as a response to a blog we posted a few weeks back called, “The Cost of Bad Teachers.” I believe the vast majority of teachers are good, and got into the education “gig” because they love kids and love