Its a cold snowy day here in Wiesbaden. Sipping a cup of coffee after my yoga practice and cathcing on on some cyber reading. Not looking forward to Monday when the kids are back in school...I'll miss them! I am so lucky that they go to a school that doesnt measure their success with "grades" or punish them if they "forget", but rather gives them the power to think, create and take their interests and run with it. This quote made me think of ISW today:


"Of course, the more choice, movement, action, freedom, cooperation, talk, variety, energy, excitement, and joy there is in a classroom (home…family…), and the less invidious comparison, testing, gold-starring, grading, pecking-ordering, humiliation, coearcion, threat, punishment, and fear, the better it will be for the children…" J HOLT

IN our home we avoid punishment, never use the "charts" for good behavior and try to give the "L's " ( as Joey calls them) as voice to be respected and recognized. I especially like being able to tell them "Hey, mom's cranky, and annoyed" instead of just directing poor behavior at them which could really has nothing to do with them. As always, striving to be the parent they deserve. Authoritative without being Authoritarian.....