Questions tagged [education]
Everything directly related to the process of learning; both formal and informal education.
241
questions
86
votes
19answers
13k views
Should I allow or forbid my son to visit the education of a religion that I do not share?
I'm an Agnostic. When the topic comes to religion, I try to explain to my seven-year-old son what religious persons believe and why I don't share that belief. Until recently, he shared my scepticism.
...
80
votes
12answers
7k views
What are some strategies for raising a bilingual child?
We are planning on raising our child bi-lingual. The plan is for my husband to only speak English to her and I would only speak Tagalog (a dialect of the Philippines). I have asked my parents to also ...
76
votes
10answers
17k views
My 2.5 years old daughter asks to learn to read
My daughter is a big fan of books. She can spend one hour in a row looking at her books, and often asks my wife and me to read her a story.
We are a french family.
For 2 weeks, she's been looking at ...
55
votes
11answers
10k views
How can I make my kids passionate in science while being religious?
Please be considerate in your answers.
We are an observant jewish family, although I was educated in secular institutions. I feel that I have a wealth of knowledge that I want to pass to my kids ...
48
votes
13answers
6k views
As an atheist, how should I explain theism to my children?
I have two competing interests here and I'm not entirely sure how to handle this. On one hand I feel that the short answer, to questions about gods, of "some people believe that, but it's not true" is ...
44
votes
13answers
6k views
How does one formally educate a gifted child without wrecking childhood?
I have a very bright child (just turned 7), he is not a genius by any stretch, but he reads way past his level (really liked Hatchet, and Call of the Wild), understands somewhat complex mathematics (...
43
votes
10answers
18k views
How can I convince my parents to accept my approach on school?
I'm a 16 year-old junior in high school. I often spar with my parents over the fact that I'm failing many classes. The issue, however, is not that I do not understand the material; it's that "failing" ...
43
votes
7answers
17k views
Toddler made “incorrect” animal identification that is actually correct. Better to correct her or not?
My niece is a year and a half old. I was reading a book on animals with her recently and helping her learn the names of the animals in it. I noticed that she identified the picture of a lion as a "...
38
votes
15answers
15k views
Why do I have negative feelings about my mother?
I am a 16 year old boy. My parents are divorced, my father didn't treat my mother well; he beat her and he thought she was cheating on him when she in fact never did. My mother tried to cope with him ...
38
votes
8answers
32k views
How to respond if my child is picked on by other children?
What can I do if other children pick on my children? Obviously I can't perform any disciplinary actions. Reprimanding might make my child look like a "mama's boy" and doing nothing might look like a ...
36
votes
8answers
4k views
What are some suggestions for punishing a child? [closed]
My daughters are clearly pushing the boundaries lately. They are trying to find out what is possible. I am really looking into ways to setting the boundaries. A friend recently suggested creating a ...
34
votes
11answers
2k views
How do you handle bilingual education in a country where you do not speak the language natively?
Our 2 year old son is growing up in a different country (New Zealand) than we did (Brazil).
We try to speak to him in portuguese all times, and we noticed that he is learning english reasonably well ...
30
votes
19answers
8k views
How do you explain to a five year-old what energy is?
The other day I told my son to not waste hot water, as it is a waste of energy. He then asked what that is. I want to explain it well, also from a physical point of view, since I find it important. ...
28
votes
14answers
13k views
How can I tell if my toddler is truly gifted or just bright?
I'm the father of a 2 years and 4 months old daughter. I can't understand if she's gifted or just very bright. We live in Italy, where giftedness is not recognized by law and there are no special ...
26
votes
6answers
15k views
How to deal with a 6 year old who was “caught” cheating?
This is regarding my son who is 6 years old and is studying in Grade 1. We got a call from his class teacher that he was caught "cheating" during dictation assessment. Actually, we revise the words at ...
25
votes
6answers
3k views
Explaining mental illness to children
We have a relative with some sort of undiagnosed mental illness who (among other symptoms) compulsively cleans everything regularly with fairly strong bleach. Her fear of germs and infection is the ...
25
votes
4answers
1k views
How often should I defeat my children in games?
I love my children very much, but I sometimes I have to teach them a lesson. I'm afraid if I always allow them to win them, they'll turn out to be spoiled and rotten and have a sense of entitlement ...
24
votes
8answers
7k views
What would be a effective way to explain pornography?
With the availability of the internet and also the video mobile device (PSP, ...) our children will face pornography at an earlier age than we have. So I want to face this problem and explain things ...
24
votes
2answers
882 views
Should we tell our children that we 'spy' on them? When should we stop 'spying' on them?
We use a DIY motioning system (built with Raspberry Pi) to monitor our 2-year-old child while he plays in his own room, so we can have a dinner in the kitchen, study in the living room, and do other ...
23
votes
5answers
5k views
How much pressure should I put on my kids to learn?
My wife just started reading "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother", a book written by a Chinese mother who talks about the pros and cons of the high-pressure and rigid parenting style of some Chinese ...
23
votes
5answers
2k views
How does one address Christianity with their children in a mixed faith marriage?
I am Christian (though admittedly, liberally so) while my husband is Agnostic. He agrees that it is appropriate for our child to receive some education in my faith, but we have been unable to find a ...
23
votes
4answers
1k views
Introducing my children into my disbelief in a Christian environment
While most of my adult life I've been trying to accommodate myself as both an agnostic and a non-theistic Catholic Christian, recent events had lead me to reject being a Christian and embracing my ...
22
votes
13answers
5k views
How much time is too much time playing educational computer games?
I recently bought an iPad primarily for my 3-year-old daughter. I put nothing on it but educational apps and children's books. No YouTube, no Internet, no (non-educational) games. I've decided to let ...
22
votes
8answers
10k views
How do you explain World War II to young children?
My 7-year old son asks many questions about World War II. I have the habit not to hide anything, but concepts such as Nazism or the Holocaust are so inherently dreadful that he sometimes seems to ...
20
votes
6answers
10k views
Is it normal for a child just turned 3 to be able to read and how do I develop and nurture his intelligence?
Preamble
We have been home with our kid since birth, except for a 3 week detour of daycare before COVID hit and so he got full time attention from at least one of us (mother and father).
We never let ...
20
votes
7answers
2k views
How to create learning opportunities for the toddler who is already *extremely* interested in books?
Ahem :)
So, this toddler is two years old now. And, now, she is extremely interested in story books with big pictures. The level of interest is such that she prefers me to read aloud books to her ...
17
votes
15answers
7k views
How can I begin exposing my children to world news? [closed]
I have an 8-year old and a 4-year old. My 8-year-old recently asked me "Are wars are real?" At 8 years old, my elders watched TV news so I got little inklings of politics, wars, crime, etc. But we ...
16
votes
6answers
2k views
How do I get my overachiever to accept her mistakes and live up to her abilities?
My seven year old child is a perfectionist and I believe it holds her back. She is so afraid of making a mistake or "failing" that she is afraid to put herself out there. She is similarly afraid to be ...
16
votes
2answers
2k views
Is non-professional homeschooling detrimental to children?
In a comment to another question the following assertion was made:
Are you a qualified and trained teacher? Homeschooling would be detrimental if you are not a professional in this industry.
While ...
16
votes
2answers
6k views
How to restrain my 13-year-old pubescent sister?
Just to understand my position:
I, as her older brother (she is without father, 13 and I'm 24), have to sometimes act like her parent, because mom just can't restrain her, when she starts yelling or ...
16
votes
5answers
788 views
How do I talk to my child about homelessness and mental illness?
We live in Vancouver, Canada, which for various reasons (weather, policy effects, etc.) has a large homeless population. Many of them suffer mental illness of some degree. Panhandlers are a common ...
15
votes
4answers
3k views
What stories for children have strong female role models?
I notice that just about all young children's stories (fairy tales, etc) depict women in a subordinate role. This hit me while reading Cinderella: her ultimate goal in life is to be the prettiest so ...
14
votes
3answers
6k views
Does toddler keep hands around private parts?
My son is turning 3 years old and lately I been noticing he is playing/holding his penis, which I am really concerned about.
His hand just wonders off to his willy, I have asked him what's wrong but ...
14
votes
10answers
9k views
2-year-old does not speak
My son will be two years old next month, and he doesn't speak. Actually, he speaks, but some other language which nobody can understand. If I point him out to something, he says it not perfectly, but ...
14
votes
2answers
670 views
How to further an aptitude toward early literacy?
Every so often in our 2.5-year old daughter's life I catch myself marveling at some skill that our daughter seems to master far beyond what I naively expected her to be able to do. I'm sure many ...
14
votes
3answers
261 views
Should I make a particular effort to present great women of history to my daughter?
I always had my heroes as I grew up. I always liked to read about great people, and of course this more often than not meant read about great men. On my time as a child very rarely important women of ...
13
votes
14answers
13k views
How do you explain “Right” and “Left” politics to a child without bias?
I'm curious what the correct way would be to explain the difference between right wing and left wing politics to a child without even a hint of bias and without indoctrinating them. Here's my stab:
...
13
votes
9answers
18k views
How and when do I teach my son to use chopsticks?
Even though I live in the U.S., I find using a fork inefficient and clumsy. I'd like to teach my son how to use chopsticks as an alternative.
What is the best way to do this without interfering with ...
13
votes
5answers
45k views
How do I teach my child to speak in sentences?
My son is 2.3yrs. Right now we keep reading books for him. He pays attention only for some time. We also keep teaching letters and numbers during his bed time or during his bath. When asked he repeats ...
13
votes
3answers
2k views
How long do children normally read without comprehending?
My son is six years old, nearly finished with his first year of school. He reads pretty well, on par with his age I believe. What concerns me is he has difficulty answering basic questions about a ...
13
votes
7answers
13k views
How to inspire a 7 year old to accelerate reading efforts?
I have a seven year old son who is having a hard time "getting inspired" to read regularly. This is somewhat of a struggle for me as his older brother was reading Harry Potter at around his age and ...
13
votes
3answers
12k views
At what age or developmental milestones is a child capable of critical thinking?
I am interested in pursuing a non-authoritarian approach to educating my son and I do not know at what age (or prerequisite milestones) the focus of education should switch from telling him facts to ...
13
votes
7answers
820 views
How can I teach a child to keep trying after a failure?
My niece is just under seven years old, and in her first year of school, where she is doing badly. The main problem seems to be that she doesn't do her homework or try to learn, and the reason there, ...
12
votes
3answers
3k views
What do I tell my child about her Learning Disability?
My daughter is 10 years old. Shes in the fourth grade. She was held back this year because she is having difficulties in Math and English Language & Arts (ELA). She was suppose to go into fifth ...
12
votes
5answers
3k views
How can I handle a situation with a faulty, cruel teacher that does not like me and takes it out on my child?
Let me start by offering to explain my situation. It is a lot more challenging to handle than the title presents, so I should definitely elaborate, then I'll ask my question.
My child is in 1st ...
12
votes
4answers
35k views
When is the best time in a child's development to move to a different area?
We're thinking of switching to a different region at some point in the future. We're not sure when would be best with regards to our child's education and development needs? Would it be best to move ...
12
votes
4answers
1k views
Should I financially assist my child in paying for college?
In Short
I’m wondering if there is any research to support the idea that paying for a child to attend college leads to a more desirable outcome than allowing them to pay their own way (either via ...
11
votes
10answers
5k views
Should we get her a doll?
Winter is coming, and with it, Christmas and presents. We have a 3 years old daughter, who has an almost 2 months old sister, and it's time thinking about which toys to get her (we have almost full ...
11
votes
10answers
8k views
What are the pros and cons of having an advanced student skip Kindergarten?
I have a 5 year old boy who is supposed to start Kindergarten in the US this year. He is advanced in many academic areas already, and we are worried he would be bored in Kindergarten. He is reading ...
11
votes
8answers
542 views
What to read or learn before expecting?
We want to be prepare for our 9 months period as a couple and be sure to give a proper environment for our baby. What should we read before and during the 9 month period?
Please note: answers should ...
