February 2013 Study: Kindness Leads Kids to Happiness and Peer Acceptance Research published in the journal PLOS ONE reports that nine- to 12-year-olds who perform kind acts are not only happier, but find greater peer acceptance. The authors write that “a simple and relatively brief pro-social activity can […]
February 2013 UCLA Bullying Study: It’s Cool to be Cruel UCLA psychologists report that when it comes to bullying behavior among middle school students, both physical aggression and spreading rumors are rewarded by middle school peers. “The ones who are cool bully more, and the ones who bully more are seen […]
February 2013 BFFs Beware: Study Finds Friends’ Alcohol Use and Access Most Predictive Factor in Underage Drinking Chances are the only thing you remember about your first swig of alcohol is how bad the stuff tasted. What you didn’t know is the person who gave you that first drink and when you had […]
February 2013 Does Facebook Make Us Feel Sad? According to a new research reported by Reuters, the constant viewing of happy, smile-filled photos and posts on Facebook is fueling comparison and evaluation that makes us feel bad about ourselves. Researchers from the Institute of Information Systems at Berlin’s Humboldt University studied 600 people who […]
January 2013 Monitoring the Future Study Results: Teen Marijuana Use Still High Researchers are sounding the alarm on the continued high use of marijuana by the nation’s eighth, 10th and 12th graders — along with a drop in perceptions of its potential harm. Consider these key findings of the recently released […]
January 2013 Living Strong: Help Kids to Play Fair and Drug-Free As the news du jour moves beyond Lance Armstrong and Tour de France doping, health-class, ethics and dinner table conversations might very well transition to middle school and high school sports, and the pressure and prevalence of a no less dangerous […]
January 2013 Helping Kids Feel Safe: Building A Caring, Connected School Climate May Be More Important than Increasing School Security School safety and security is top-of- mind in light of recent school shootings. Beyond visible uniformed guards, metal detectors and searches, research indicates that taking measures to increase a supportive, connected school culture may […]
December 2012 Words of Wisdom: ‘Go Home and Love Your Family’ The Sandy Hook tragedy has affected parents, educators and students nationwide. In schools and homes around the country, we’re asking, “what to do?” At Connect with Kids, it’s Mother Teresa’s wisdom that comes to mind. When presented with the Nobel Peace Prize in […]
October 10, 2012 Education Trends Why Educators Instead of TV News Anchors Should Define Bullying Stacey DeWitt Connect with Kids Founder and President The viral video of Jennifer Livingston, a Wisconsin television morning news anchor, who called a critical viewer a “bully,” raised quite a stir in Connect with Kids offices. A colleague who was moved […]
October 1, 2012 Education Trends Academic Achievement: Are We Cheating Success? The latest alleged cheating scandal at Harvard University, one of the nation’s most respected and elite academic institutions, has once again raised questions about the conscience and caliber of our nation’s youth. In our quest for a competitive edge, are we cheating long-term success by […]
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