Best of the Web: Tips for Reading to Kids, Why You Should be a Lazy Parent, and the Sadness of the Empty Nest

Five tips to help you make the most of reading to your children

(Margaret Kristin Merga, Paul Gardner, Saiyidi Mat Roni, Susan F Ledger, The Conversation)

Children love being read to, and it’s a great way to instill a love of reading, write the authors. But family lives are busy, and finding time to read to a child can be hard. A recent study by the authors found that more than a quarter of primary school students claimed they weren’t read to at home. In a bid to remedy the situation, the authors have produced five useful tips, including making sure you give your child and the book your full attention.

Being A Mum To A Middle Schooler Can Be The Toughest Gig Of All

(Juli Fraga, npr)

We know the struggle some women face with maternal depression after the birth of a child. But what about when the child is entering the tween years? A new study has identified that maternal depression is actually most common among the mothers of middle school children. Women can feel lonely, empty and dissatisfied with their mothering roles. ‘Ever since my daughter was 10 or 11,’ says one mother, ‘I’ve found myself feeling sad and irritable because I don’t know how to help her fit in at school or resolve conflicts with her girlfriends.’

The compelling case for being an ‘intentionally lazy’ parent

(Scott Lutostanski, The Washington Post)

Forgetting to study for a test, or leaving a piece of sports equipment at home: the pattern is repeated as a child struggles with what might seem basic organisational tasks. What’s missing is executive functioning, a skill set that includes working towards goals, and regulating emotions. The good news is that these skills can be learned. Enter the ‘intentionally lazy’ parent, who gives a child the independence to develop these vital skills, rather than jumping in and rescuing them.

Adjusting To An Empty Nest Brings Grief, But Also Freedom

(Connor Donevan, npr)

Despite the many travails and stresses of being a parent, there will inevitably come a time when you’ll actually miss it when it’s gone. This moment is explored in this piece that aired on the acclaimed All Things Considered program.  One parent who has been through it all offers advice to another whose son is about to leave for college. She says she enjoys the freedom, but still remembers how sad she felt preparing for them to move out – walking by their empty bedrooms and sitting down on the stairs and crying.

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