School Age

My 7yo battles me on homework and rules. Help!

My 7yo son is a very good student and is also doing well socio-emotionally (I spoke with his teacher).  He is extremely proud of how he is doing, but when it comes to homework I basically have to strongly prod him and be on top of it. Also, he doesn’t like my “rules”.  I think this may be related to the homework issue but also me clamping down on YouTube/ iPad use which unfortunately he started using before I was entirely aware of all the risks for kids and restricted access. What do you think I should do? How should I talk to him about these things? 

How should I react when I have not witnessed a fight between mu children?

I wanted to ask you how I should react when I am not in the room and one of my boys (4.5 and 7) comes to me (sometimes crying, not always) saying that his brother hurt him or did something to one of his toys? It feels tricky because I didn’t see exactly what happened, but if I don’t do or say the right thing then it is bound to happen again.

How should I handle when one of the kids gets more of something than the other?

How should I handle when one of the kids gets more of something than the other? One of my sons gets jealous and asks his brother to give him more so that they have the same amount or the same stuff. Also how to handle my son not being nice to another kid in school?

Should I switch middle schools for my children or keep them where they know?

My girls have the option of staying put for middle school or going to South Miami Middle. Their current school is very small and is limited in their offering-plus they will be in the same class and there is only one 6th grade class. As you know they do not get along but it's a bubble and I know all of the teachers, parents etc. Do I keep them in the bubble or let them be exposed to the good and the bad a big middle school has to offer??

How do I handle one child feeling left out when I am with the other?

My kids are always comparing what we do for them. I try to be as fair as I can but given their ages (4 and 7) they will  never get the exact same things.  I have tried to explain that to them, but they probably can’t see that because they keep complaining/ comparing.  Any thoughts on how I should handle that? 

What are the academic benchmarks for Kindergarten?

What are the academic benchmarks for Kindergarten?
For example, should my son be able to read new 3 or 4 letter words with ease and no hesitation by the end of the school year? 
What should I look out for?
Is there an article/video/podcast I could listen to to educate myself on this?

How can I best handle my son's push back and resistance?

My son is resisting so much. I think we are doing a good job of understanding that this is not him calculating this but it’s an override in his brain, and are working hard to offer an option for him so it feels less like a demand and more autonomous but we are still met with a kiddo that simply WILL NOT. He just can’t seem to redirect away from his idea even if I give options of now or in 5 minutes or similar. What to do? Let him play with dirty teeth in his PJ’s all day?

I am having a hard time communicating with my 6yo son. Help!

I am having a very hard time with my 6yo son. As soon as he sees me he looks disappointed, gets angry with me, talks to me in a bad manner, starts acting up, and doing things that he knows he is not supposed to do. His brother tells me that he doesn’t do that with dad and at his house he does what he is told. I have had a lot of stress at work and with personal matters so I struggle sometimes to stay in the moment and be as fun as dad is. I try to talk to him and have patience but it gets to a point where I explode because he is just not listening to me and keeps escalating the situation. I tell him to stop several times, his brother does too and he keeps going.
Please remind me when he talks to me in a mad manner or screams at me what is the best way to handle.

My 5yo has zero impulse control and can be aggressive. How can I help them?

I would love to get your input regarding some behavior of my almost 5 year old boy. He can be very physically aggressive when playing and is showing no impulse control at all. The tantrums can be a lot. I need guidence.

How can I help my 5yo son make new friends?

I want to know how I can help my 5yo son make new friends without my help.
He is very social but he is very attached to his current friends so if he is in the park and there is no one he knows then he sits next to me and does not want to play at all.
How can I help him be more out going?

A schoolmate calls my son names constantly. What can I do about it?

There is a 4th grader (our son is in third grade) that keeps calling our kid “fatass”.
We tell him that there are people that sometimes, when they don’t feel good inside, say things to try to hurt people.
What else can we tell him to help him deal with mean comments?
Should we say something to the school?

Our almost 6yo is lying, breaking things and running away. I am terrified. What do I do?

Our almost 6yo is incredibly vivacious, social, happy, energetic, independent, constantly moving, demands attention and wants to be first for everything. He runs away in beaches, malls, parks, leaving me screaming at him to stop (he won’t) and then I have to run after him leaving his brother running behind me saying 'I abandoned him'. It’s nuts. I’d rather stay home. Why is this happening and how can we help him trust us and say the truth, listen and not run away?

Mornings are rough with my daughter. How do I help her?

My daughter has continued to struggle with big emotions!
Her mornings from the second she wakes up are full of anger. She is yelling, stomping, and just aggravated. I can’t figure out how to help. Have any ideas? Waking up to start the day like this is rough!

My child seems to be doing things to annoy me on purpose. How do I understand this?

What do you do when your child is doing everything in their power (and succeeding) to overwhelm you?
The other day, my daughter told me "mommy, you should have told me this doesn't overwhelm you because then I'd stop". So my child is well aware and doing it on purpose.

Are there any school modifications for my 8yo with ADHD?

At the end of last school year, my 8yo son was diagnosed with mild ADHD.
We have the report and sent it to his third grade teacher. Is there anything official that we need to do with the school so it is recorded and he is allowed certain modifications?