Archive for the ‘What can Dr. Doug do for you?’ Category

Making Homeschool PE Class Fun by Craig Middleton offers ideas for parents who homeschool their children by choice. His suggestions are also good for parents who want to add exercise options beyond what their kids get at school. His advice on nutrition is also good for all parents. Remember, all parents are teachers weather they homeschool or not.

Introduction

• Homeschooling is becoming more popular and can be both stressful and rewarding. (Doug: During the pandemic, many more parents have been homeschooling, but not by choice.) In addition to the core subjects of math, reading, and writing, an often overlooked requirement is Physical Education. Not all states require an organized PE curriculum, but any well-rounded education includes some form of the subject.
• Going outside to play is a fantastic way to fulfill your state’s requirements while still teaching your children safe behaviors. There’s no need for a formal schedule or events. All you have to do now is get your kids going and have some fun while doing it.
• Go outside and play with your kids if you live in the country or a neighborhood with playgrounds or popular play areas, or if you have a large yard. Yes, you can send your kids outside to play if they’re old enough, but setting a good example by going outside and being involved with them is even better. To be frank, adults need to get out and exercise more as well. It’s good for mental health and overall health, and it sets a good example for your children. Here are a few ideas to keep things interesting during your home PE sessions.

Indoor Activities

• If you are a homeschooler of an older child, you can do more focused activities such as weight lifting, yoga, meditation, and nutritional meal planning. You can even investigate the possible benefits of supplements like protein powder, spices, and vitamins. For the younger kids, think more along the line of games like hopscotch, hot lava, or an obstacle course. Beginning yoga is a fun way to get kids to stretch and control movement. Simon Says a classic that involves listening skills and movement. Sometimes, a good old-fashioned pillow fight will leave you all breathless and in fits of laughter.
• Don’t skimp on nutritional activities with the younger ones either. Let them help you plan and make simple meals. Hands-on activities will cement the message and teach lasting skills. You don’t necessarily have to stay home either. If it’s a rainy day, consider a trip to the local bowling alley or roller rink. Many towns also have indoor play areas set up with safe games and activities that should be opening soon. They may even offer homeschooler discounts on group admissions.

Outdoor Activities

• Everybody needs fresh air. Options for outdoor activities for PE classes are almost endless. Pretty much anything that gets you moving is fair game. Riding bikes can be a great way to get exercise and teach the rules of the road. Relay races and obstacle courses are other favorites with kids of all ages. An excellent way to teach conservation and get some fresh air is to go for a hike in the woods. Have them collect objects like rocks, nuts, or leaves to examine later. Trips to parks or lakes are other fun options. Just remember to practice safety on the water. Don’t forget to take your frisbees and sports gear for impromptu games. You also might find disc golf courses where you live.

Co-op Activities

• Most communities have organizations that offer cooperative homeschooling activities, including PE classes. These can be official organizations or simply a few families that get together to play games. These afford more opportunities for team activities like basketball, baseball, and soccer. Many times, recreation centers may offer their spaces free of charge to homeschoolers, giving access to equipment that may be challenging to obtain otherwise. Co-ops are excellent places for you and your kids to make friends and socialize while fulfilling an important educational requirement.

Organized Sports

• Most states and communities allow homeschooled children to participate in organized sports through their local school systems. They will still be subject to any tryouts or requirements, but these programs could be a good way to play sports that most homeschoolers can’t provide. They also will fulfill the necessary PE requirements. If the local schools aren’t an option, most cities also offer intermural sports organizations kids can participate in that aren’t associated with public schools. AAU teams also accept homeschooled students.

Final Thoughts

• When developing your homeschool curriculum, it’s important to remember some of the non-core subjects like PE, art, and music. Homeschooling can be very rewarding and a great way to give a wonderful education to your children. Make it fun!

Craig Middleton

• Craig is a New York City-based retired business consultant, who is an expert in education and cultural trends. He has a Masters of Business Administration and a Masters in Education from St. Johns and loves sharing his knowledge on the side through his writing. If you have any questions or comments you can direct them to Craig at craigmiddleton18@gmail.com.

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Medical Binder Printables to Keep Your Health Records Organized by Cristina Thorson offers forms you can use to keep track of your medical information so you can easily share it with your physicians rather than just talking about how you feel and neglecting what you can’t remember. Thanks, Cristina.

Introduction

• Whether you’re suffering from a chronic condition, wanting to keep your health information in order, or are somewhere in between, keeping a medical binder on hand can be beneficial. Having a medical binder not only helps you stay more organized, but it can also act as the single source of truth in case of an emergency.
• Thinking about possible “what-ifs” is never fun to do, but making sure you’re prepared for emergencies can make a worst-case scenario a little easier to manage. Use the medical binder printables to start putting together your own health binder. It might save your life one day.

Basic Health Information Sheet

• On a basic health information sheet, you should include the standard information that you might need to receive medical treatment. Usually, when you go in for an appointment, the healthcare clinic will need to have this information on file before you receive treatment.
• The information needed is your full name, emergency contact information, allergies, date of birth, blood type, and any immunization records. Keeping this information up to date and on file can save time if you decide to transfer doctors, or if you start going to a specialized healthcare professional.

Medication Tracker

• According to WebMD, about half the American population takes an average of four prescription pills. Some medications have conflicting effects which can have deadly consequences. If you keep track of your own medications, it will make it easier for doctors to ensure that they won’t prescribe anything that will have adverse effects on your health.
• Documenting your own medications can also help you and your doctor figure out what has worked in the past, and what hasn’t. It can help you avoid repeating medications, especially if you work with a new doctor or you haven’t been to a medical professional in a while.

• Keeping track of your blood pressure can save you a world of problems. Hypertension (or high blood pressure) has damaging effects over time, and many are unaware that they even have it. To record your own blood pressure, you should purchase a home blood pressure monitor.
• It’s best to avoid caffeine and exercise at least 30 minutes before you measure, and try to measure at the same time every day. Self-monitoring is actually recommended by the American Heart Association for people with high blood pressure treatments. Even though home monitoring isn’t an adequate substitute for visits, it can be helpful when healthcare professionals are trying to gauge the effectiveness of their treatments.



• It’s useful to be aware of your own medical conditions before a big life transition, like moving homes, leaving for college, or even planning for retirement. The temporary instability during these time periods may cause medical conditions to flare up. These changes may also influence your healthcare provider or the access to healthcare that you receive.
• Start surveying the information in advance of these changes so you’re not overwhelmed during the transitionary period. Make sure your information is up-to-date and easily understood. Many use their smartwatches or their phones to log health information, but you could also try an alternative tracking method, like our printable sheets.

Cristina Thorson

• Cristina is a part-time content writing intern at Siege and a full-time student at Boston University. She enjoys exploring new pockets of cities, culture, and cat websites (as well as alliterative expressions). In her spare time, she can be found reading books, commenting on movies, and writing anything from advertising copy to feminist satire.

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Music and Mind: Harnessing the Arts for Health and Wellness edited by Renée Fleming features chapters by researchers, medical practitioners, and artists that explain what we know about the healing capabilities of art therapies along with what we still don’t know about the magic of music and other art forms. Leaders and parents should read this to reinforce how they support and encourage access of the arts for all children.

Introduction

• Music and Mind has assembled the voices of leading figures in neuroscience and the musical and visual arts, providing an inspiring view of the emerging synthetic possibilities. You will find much here to love and much to encourage your support of and access to the arts. Most of the chapters are summarized here.

Part I: How and Why: Experts Explain the Basic Science Connecting Arts and Health, Including Origins in Evolution

Musicality, Evolution, and Animal Responses to Music? by Aniruddh D. Patel – Department of Psychology, Tufts University

• Music pervades human culture. Music neuroscience is a young field that includes music-based interventions for brain health. While we don’t know what survival benefits music behaviors have, it does seem likely that they have had some. We do know that musical abilities vary widely among adults. Current research on the musicality of humans involves the fields of developmental psychology, ethnographic and cross-cultural studies of music, cognitive neuroscience, genomics, and cross-species research.
• Synchronizing rhythmic body movements to musical beats emerges in children without formal instruction. Musical ability has some genetic influence, but experience plays a more important role. Singing emerges in every culture and coordinated group singing appears to have psychological benefits. While most people find music rewarding, some are not moved by it. Music can calm infants. The best current bet is that musicality as part of human nature.

What Does it Mean to be Musical? by Daniel J. Levitin – Psychology Department, McGill University

• Music is organized sound. Genetic factors are essential for outstanding levels of musical ability. It is also clear that it takes a lot of hard work and practice to realize one’s genetic abilities. We haven’t discovered the specific music genes yet, but most think that we will. Musicality is hard to define and efforts to test for it have been less than effective.

The Parting Glass by Richard Powers – Pulitzer Prize Winning Novelist

• Powers is a novelist who reminisces here on music’s ability to make us sad in the absence of real tragedy thus making us more adept in sadness when life calls for the real thing. As an active listener, he sees joy in bird song and the fact that he can stream just about any song ever written as a form of cognitive therapy. The Parting Glass is one of his favorites. Check it out.

Sound Connects Us by Nina Kraus – Communications Science, Northwestern University

• Sound is a mnemonic, it helps us remember. Making sense of sound is one of the hardest jobs that we ask our brain to do. We hear pitch, timing, timbre, and loudness simultaneously. Making music strengthens our senses, our bodies, our cognition, and our ability to learn. Listening to music activates the reward circuits in our brain. Musicians are able to focus attention better. They outperform non-musicians on memory tasks. They tend to do better in reading, overall intelligence, and academic achievement.
• A sound mind is also shaped by athletic activity. Unfortunately, music defies the kind of quantification that science requires. This makes it difficult to study music systematically. There is hope, however, that the study of music will clarify how music and biological health coincide.

How Music Shows Us What It Means to Be Human: Rhiannon Giddens (Singer, Instrumentalist, and Composer)

• Music has the inherent power to bring humans together. It is a coping mechanism throughout our history. Many assume that it is a universal language. It creates an emotional pathway for people to help them cope with the ups and downs of life. Regardless of the technology, it’s the emotional aspect that is important. We are not different from each other and music is the key that holds us together.

Sounding Joy: Christopher Bailey – Arts and Health Lead, World Health Organization

• This is the story of one man’s blindness and how music and art made it much easier for him to deal with his lost vision. He found that music accelerated his rehabilitation and enhanced his mood. He found that music recreated his world. Unlike sight that only captures light reflected from a surface, sound is an energy that passes through matter and is therefore more palpable. All he had to do was close his eyes to find the healing power of music.

Can Singing Touch the Heart? Jacquelyn Kulinski – Director of Preventive Cardiology Program, University of Wisconsin

• We know that exercise is beneficial for health in general and your cardiovascular system in particular. The question here is does singing on a regular basis count as the kind of exercise that produces health benefits? It certainly seems like it should. The author is involved in a longitudinal study to see how singing can benefit health. The results are due in August of 2024 so stay tuned. In the mean time, sing your heart out.

Rabbit Hole: Roseanne Cash – Grammy Winning Singer and Songwriter

• Roseanne tells the story of her fight with a rare brain disorder that was treated surgically after it was finally diagnosed. Needless to say her recovery that is still ongoing was aided by the music she performed and wrote with collaborators like Kris Kristofferson and Elvis Costello. Here is a lyric that tells what music can do. “When you sing to the farthest rafter, with your big life full of love and laughter, you pull me up from the rabbit hole.”

Music For Chronic Pain Management: Joke Bradt – Arts Therapist Department, Drexel University

• There are a large number of studies that demonstrate music’s efficacy for the reduction of pain. Listening to music reduces self-reported pain, anxiety, and depression. Patients with severe emotional exhaustion, depression, and anger that often accompany chronic pain may also require the service of a music therapist.
• Making music, improvising, and creating music have all been shown to be beneficial as well. Making music with others offers a sense of support and activates social engagement, which also promotes healing as it combats isolation. Music increases self-efficacy. This gives you the confidence that you can accomplish what you set out to do. You feel like you have more control, which allows you to use less medication.

Music Across the Continuum of Care: A Hospital Setting: J. Todd Frazier – Center of Performing Arts Medicine, Houston Methodist Hospital

• The Huston Methodist Hospital offers a continuum of care that features music. For everyone, environmental music shapes the overall public experience. Some patients receive music medicine to support their treatment process. Others receive music therapy to achieve individualized clinical goals. Dynamic teams work across all hospital departments in this effort.
• Some people learn a new way to speak through singing. It can also be used to help with memory cues. Music therapists work with physical therapists to help people walk. Music can impact the body’s internal rhythms, especially those of the heart. Music can speed up stroke recovery and lower anxiety.

“I Sing the Body Electric”: Music Psychotherapy in Medicine: Joanne Loewy – Director, Louis Armstrong Center for Music and Medicine

• Music therapy is an integrative field that has recently gained traction. Entrainment is a central concept. This is where two systems are locked in sync. For this purpose we mean a human body system or systems and something external like a system making music. An example is the way a lullaby can comfort a crying infant. This can facilitate medical procedures.
• Music therapy has been shown to help with Alzheimer’s, stroke, and early dementia among others. Syncing one’s breathing can help with COPD. It can help with relaxation and even act as a very safe sedative. It can lessen anxiety such as that associated with radiation. Treatments are safe, effective, and inexpensive. Musicians themselves are often candidates due to issues like job insecurity and drug use.

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A professional development plan is a strategic tool that guides your career trajectory toward success. It empowers you to take charge of your growth by providing a structured approach to achieving your professional goals. Embracing this plan can dramatically enhance your effectiveness and satisfaction in your
career.

Understanding the Role of Self-Assessment in Career Growth

Self-assessment plays a crucial role in any career development plan, serving as the bedrock for genuine professional growth. By critically evaluating your skills and weaknesses, you not only pinpoint areas that need enhancement but also recognize your strengths to capitalize on them. This process facilitates the setting of tailored, realistic goals that align with your broader career ambitions. Continuous self-reflection helps you adapt to changes in the professional environment, keeping your career trajectory on track.

Balancing Work and Life for Professional Success

Maintaining a work-life balance is essential, not only for personal well-being but also for peak professional performance. This balance helps prevent burnout and sustains your mental and emotional health, enabling you to excel at your job. Effective strategies like taking regular breaks, setting clear boundaries, and managing your time can keep both your career and personal life thriving. Ultimately, a harmonious work-life balance boosts productivity and fosters innovation in your professional endeavors.

Advancing Your Career by Earning a Degree Online

Earning a degree online can be a powerful way to advance your career while maintaining the flexibility to work and manage personal commitments. With a wide range of programs available, online education allows you to gain specialized knowledge and skills that can enhance your qualifications and make you more competitive in the job market. Pursuing an online EdD degree, in particular, enables you to influence curriculum development and policy, as well as evaluate instructional and assessment methods to improve learning outcomes, making a lasting impact on the education system.

Networking and Joining Professional Associations

Networking is a powerhouse tool for career advancement, opening doors to new opportunities and insights through robust professional relationships. Participating in conferences, joining professional associations, and engaging in online communities are effective strategies for expanding your professional network. Membership in professional associations also grants access to exclusive educational resources and industry insights. These networks can lead to pivotal career opportunities, including job offers and collaborations that can significantly propel your career forward.

Leveraging Feedback for Career Advancement

Receiving constructive feedback is invaluable for both personal and professional development. Feedback from peers and mentors provides perspectives that pinpoint both strengths and areas for improvement, often highlighting unseen opportunities for growth. Embracing this feedback and integrating it into your development strategy can dramatically enhance your career trajectory. Continually refining your skills in response to feedback ensures ongoing improvement and success in your professional life.

Developing Adaptability

In today's dynamic professional landscape, adaptability is essential for career progression. Embracing new challenges, learning cutting-edge skills, and innovating within your field can distinguish you from your peers. Staying open to change not only prepares you for the evolving demands of the job market but also turns potential challenges into opportunities for growth. Cultivating a flexible approach to your career can lead to new roles and responsibilities that enhance your professional journey.

Continuous Learning and Certification as Career Boosters

Committing to lifelong learning is crucial for staying relevant and competitive in any field. Engaging in ongoing education through workshops, certifications, and keeping abreast of industry trends ensures you meet the evolving challenges in your sector. Certifications, in particular, underscore your dedication to your profession and can open doors to advanced career opportunities. Making continuous learning a cornerstone of your professional development guarantees
you are always ready for the next step in your career.

How Side Projects and Hobbies Can Enhance Your Career

Your personal interests and side projects can significantly enrich your professional skill set. These pursuits not only develop transferrable skills like creativity and problem-solving but also enhance your professional profile. For instance, managing a personal blog can sharpen your communication skills, while community service can bolster your leadership capabilities. Integrating hobbies and side projects into your career planning not only fosters personal satisfaction but also elevates your professional prospects.

Implementing a professional development plan can be transformative, offering a clear route to personal and professional fulfillment. By actively managing your career development, you ensure continuous progress and adaptability in a competitive world. This proactive approach is key to unlocking your full potential and achieving long-term career success.

Enhance your educational practices with professional development resources
from Dr. Doug Green, perfect for educators, administrators, and parents.

Emily Graham
Emily is the creator of MightyMoms.net. She believes being a mom is one of the hardest jobs around and wanted to create a support system for moms from all walks of life. On her site, she offers a wide range of info tailored for busy moms — from how to reduce stress to creative ways to spend time together as a family. You can email her at emilygraham@mightymoms.net. She lives in Arizona.

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Noise: A Flaw in Human Judgement by Daniel Kahneman, Oliver Sibony, and Cass Sunstein details how noise and bias result in errors in judgment. From our courts to fields as diverse as medicine and insurance they show how noise leads to unfair and harmful results. They also provide ways to identify noise and techniques that any organization can use to reduce it. This book is a must for any professional development library. (10-15 minute read)

Introducion: Two Kinds of Error

• Whenever you look at human judgments, you are likely to find noise. From the courtroom to medicine to forecasts to forensics and personal decisions our lives are full of noise. This book will help you recognize it and give some tips for getting rid of at least some of it. Start with an analogy that features targets and groups of shooters to see the difference between noise and bias If shots are scattered all over the target, that’s noise. It the shot are all in the lower right, that’s bias.

Part I: Finding Noise

1. Crime and Noisy Punishment

• We start with the noise associated with crime and the sentencing of the guilty parties. In 1973, Marvin Frankel, a famous judge, realized that people committing the same crime were getting vastly different sentences depending on who the judge was. Judges gave harsher sentences when they were hungry and the day after their team lost. Blacks got harsher sentences and people are less likely to be granted asylum when it’s hot. The sentencing reform act of 1984 helped narrow the differences, but the Supreme Court struck it down in 2005 and discrepancies increased again. Female and Democrat judges are more lenient.

2. A Noisy System

• Here we encounter he basic tool called the noise audit that all organizations need to consider. Its essence is to have many people look at the same information and make independent judgments. The variance in these judgments will give you a sense of the magnitude of the noise in the system. The authors use the median difference from the mean in the audit as a measure of noise. Keep in mind that errors do not cancel out, they add up. In many cases, the person making a judgment might as well be chosen by lottery. It’s important not to confuse judgment with taste or opinion. It’s important to have people with different perspectives when you are trying to solve a problem.

3. Singular Decisions

• Singular decisions are those that don’t recur with any great frequency. Getting married or buying a house are examples. While they are not free from the factors that produce noise, the definition of noise does not apply and you can’t do a noise audit. Practices that reduce error for recurrent decisions should be just as effective when it comes to singular decisions.

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Image: Freepik

Practical Strategies to Manage Stress in Daily Life by Emily Graham

offers great advice for teachers, parents, and kids. Please share.

In an era where demands on our time and energy are relentless, managing stress is not just beneficial but essential for maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The pressures of modern life can lead to overwhelming stress, affecting both mental and physical health. However, by adopting practical strategies, individuals can mitigate these effects and foster a more balanced existence.

Limit Exposure to Social Media

Social media often amplifies the pressures people feel to meet unrealistic expectations, fueling self-doubt and anxiety. The constant comparison to curated snapshots of others’ lives can distort perceptions of personal success and happiness. Overexposure to idealized images and narratives may also contribute to feelings of inadequacy or fear of missing out. These platforms can blur boundaries between reality and projection, leaving individuals vulnerable to heightened stress or diminished self-worth.

Find Stress Relief Through Hobbies and Recreation

Engaging in hobbies and recreational activities can be a powerful way to manage stress, offering both mental and physical benefits. Activities like painting, jogging, or even gardening can release endorphins, your body’s natural mood enhancers, which help reduce anxiety and elevate your mood. These pursuits also provide a mental break from daily responsibilities, allowing you to focus on the present moment and enjoy a sense of accomplishment. By incorporating hobbies into your routine, you not only improve your physical health but also foster a more positive mental state.

Try Holistic Approaches to Stress Management

Alternative therapies offer a natural approach to managing stress and fostering relaxation in everyday life. Magnesium is a vital mineral that helps relax muscles and calm the nervous system, making it a popular choice for stress relief. Ashwagandha, an adaptogen, supports the body’s stress response by balancing cortisol levels and promoting a sense of calm. CBD and THCa diamonds interact with the body’s endocannabinoid system to reduce tension and enhance relaxation without causing a high.

Leverage Technology for Effective Stress Management

In our fast-paced world, utilizing technology can be a powerful ally in managing stress. Wearable devices with biofeedback sensors, such as those that track heart rate, offer insights into your stress patterns. By pairing these devices with meditation apps, you can enhance relaxation and maintain a consistent sleep schedule, both crucial for reducing stress. Additionally, stress relief apps provide immediate interventions during high-stress situations, potentially improving your quality of life.

Try Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy taps into the powerful connection between scent and emotion, using essential oils to promote relaxation and balance. Certain fragrances, like lavender or chamomile, are known for their calming effects, while citrus or peppermint can uplift and energize. These oils are often diffused, applied topically, or added to baths, offering a simple way to create a soothing environment. Engaging the senses through these natural scents can ease tension and encourage a sense of well-being.

Integrate More Exercise into Your Routine

Exercise provides a natural outlet for stress, channeling physical energy into movements that promote mental clarity and calm. Activities like walking, swimming, or strength training stimulate the release of endorphins, which elevate mood and reduce tension. Beyond these immediate benefits, consistent physical activity helps regulate sleep patterns and build resilience to everyday challenges. The rhythmic nature of many exercises also creates a meditative state, offering a mental break from worries.

Seek Help from Healthcare Professionals

Healthcare professionals are essential in managing stress-related health conditions, offering a comprehensive approach that addresses both physical and psychological aspects. By collaborating with specialists like endocrinologists, they can tackle underlying metabolic issues that may worsen stress. This holistic strategy is crucial because stress can lead to significant physiological changes, such as altered hormone levels, potentially resulting in chronic health problems. Addressing these issues early can prevent the escalation of stress-related disorders, ultimately enhancing patient outcomes.
Stress management thrives on consistency and intentionality, weaving small but meaningful habits into daily life. By fostering mindful awareness and embracing supportive practices, it becomes easier to navigate challenges with greater ease. These approaches empower a stronger sense of control and emotional balance in the face of life’s demands.

Emily Graham
Emily is the creator of MightyMoms.net. She believes being a mom is one of the hardest jobs around and wanted to create a support system for moms from all walks of life. On her site, she offers a wide range of info tailored for busy moms — from how to reduce stress to creative ways to spend time together as a family. You can email her at emilygraham@mightymoms.net. She lives in Arizona.

Visit DrDougGreen.Com to explore curated book summaries and educational resources to enhance your professional development.

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Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away by Annie Duke

goes beyond winners never quit to winners quit a lot. Everyone should read this to avoid sticking with goals that become no longer worthwhile. Grit can help you reach worthwhile goals, but it can also help you stick with goals that are no longer have positive expected value. Every school should have a copy in its professional development library.

Prologue: The Gifted Scale

• Success lies in picking the right things to stick to and quitting the rest. Just because you stubbornly stick to something doesn’t mean you will succeed at it. Unfortunately, quitting almost uniformly has negative implications, while being gritty and staying with something is considered in a positive light. The science of quitting spans disciplines from economics to game theory to behavioral psychology.

Section I: The Case for Quitting

1. The Opposite of a Great Virtue is also a Great Virtue

• On Mt. Everest, there is a quitting plan. It goes if you haven’t reached your goal, the summit or a camp higher up, by 1:00 pm, turn around. Over the years, people who have ignored this plan have been much more likely to die, as you are eight times more likely to die on the way down. In Silicon Valley, the motto is Fail Fast. Since most projects fail, knowing when to quit is key in terns of conserving resources.
• Luck often plays a big part in success. When we make a decision, we usually don’t have all the information we need. As we move forward after making a decision, we need to be constantly on the lookout for new information. As new information arrives, be sure to analyze it as it may point toward quitting or changing course. Once you quit, you won’t know what would have happened if you didn’t. You need to be ok with that. In poker, this is like folding hands that would have won. This is why pros play about half as many hands (15-25%) as amateurs (50%).

2. Quitting on Time Usually Feels Like Quitting Too Early

• We start with an owner of a computer game that appears to be successful as he’s adding players at 7% a week. When he sees that new players are much less likely to stick, he can see it will be a money pit and quits. The key concept here is to calculate expected future value be it a function of money, happiness, or anything else. This requires some mental time travel. This involves educated guesses and thinking like a poker player.
• You also need to look for clues from the past, be it your past or someone else’s. When a decision to quit is near 50-50, quitting is more likely the best choice. This includes big life decisions. If you are unhappy in a situation, you are likely to be unhappy in the future. This should make quitting an easy decision. Many athletes and TV shows have lingered too long. Those that went out on top are usually thought to have quit too soon. They didn’t.

3. Should I Stay or Should I Go

• Studies of cab drivers show that they generally use the wrong heuristic for deciding how long to drive. Most drive until they have reached an income goal. That means that they often stop when conditions are good and keep driving longer shifts when conditions are poor. Experienced cab drivers tend to do better. They seem to understand the concept of expected gain.
• The same is not true for professional stock traders. While they tend to make good buying decisions as they have studied the assets they are buying, their sell decisions are not as good. These people usually sell something to free up money for things they want to buy. What they sell tends to be either stocks that have gained the most or lost the most. They are not doing expected gain analysis. What they should also do is follow the sold stocks closely to get feedback on their decisions. Most don’t.
• For most decisions we make, feedback is hard to come by. If you change majors, colleges, or jobs, all you have is what if questions. We also tend to have a greater negative emotional impact for losses than positive emotions for gains. This loss aversion creates a preference for options associated with a lower chance of loss.

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Relocating: Helping Your Children Learn in a New Environment by Amanda Winstead offers great advice for parents who have to move. It’s now easy for children, but here are some things to ease the pain. Thanks. Amanda.

Introduction

• Moving can be the beginning of a new adventure. It can be a chance to start fresh. It can also be an opportunity to expand your network of friends and colleagues. Moving to a new location holds all sorts of potential — it is what you make of it.
• Unfortunately, many kids don’t see moving in that light. For many, the idea of moving to a new place is terrifying. It is taking them away from something they know and are comfortable with and putting them into a completely new situation. This means a new bedroom, a new school, and new friends. Starting over is enough to make any child struggle.
• Thankfully, there is a lot parents can do to help make the transition a bit easier. Helping children adapt quickly and successfully to their new home and life is key to keeping kids on the right track. Taking the time to help them work through the emotions associated with such a large change can also help everyone in the family begin to adapt to a new home.

Preparing for a Big Move

• Perhaps one of the most important things you can do as a parent to help your child adjust to a big move and a new school is to start the conversation early. Just like adults, children need time to process the idea of a big change in their lives. Surprising them with something like that and not allowing time for the news to really sink in is asking for trouble and anxiety in your kid.
• Moving is stressful — there’s no doubt about that — but kids are extremely perceptive when it comes to your emotional well-being. If you want them to have a positive attitude about the move, you must do as well. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you avoid talking about the things that make them nervous or that will be hard, but it does mean trying to focus on the things that won’t change such as still having recess or a packed lunch and the benefits of moving like choosing their own bedroom.
• As with most adults, the core of a child’s fear about moving tends to be related to a lack of control in the situation. Do your best to give them whatever control you can and help them feel involved in the decision-making process. This can be as simple as letting them choose how they decorate their new bedroom or picking out their backpack and extracurricular activities. It can also mean getting them involved with packing their things and deciding if there are toys or clothing they don’t want to take with them to the new place.

Making the Time to Make it Home

• If you can choose where you are moving, it will be worth taking the opportunity to look into the quality of the schools in the area. It may come as a surprise, but children are frequently more successful in school districts that have a smaller number of students. Smaller towns rather than big metro areas can provide more one-on-one interaction opportunities between students and teachers because the classroom sizes are typically smaller.
• To help relieve some of the anxiety associated with going to a new school, try to take some of the mystery out of it before the first day. Take your children to explore the school, the playground, and what their walk home from school will be like if you’re close enough for that. Likewise, set up a meeting with teachers and school administration staff. Anything that helps the new location feel more familiar to your child and gives them an idea of what to expect will be a benefit on the first day.
• As your child starts their new school, it is valuable to stay involved and assess how things are going. Set aside time after school every day to see how their day went and listen closely to the things they have to say. Ask questions to keep them talking. If there are opportunities, see if they are interested in inviting some of the new kids they’ve met for a playdate which can help facilitate them making new friends.

Other Moving Opportunities

• Depending upon the age of your child, there may be an abundance of other ways to help them get involved. For instance, maybe you are moving to a new area where there are more types of extracurricular activities outside of school than there were previously. For instance, maybe the nearby city pool has a swim team they can get involved in or the library has a children’s book club. Although some of these activities aren’t directly tied to the school, they can help your children settle into the new place and make friends more quickly.
• Some older students may want to opt out of doing the new school thing altogether. If you feel that it would be a good fit for your child, you could look into e-learning. Doing school online can open up several opportunities to take different or more challenging courses than what is offered at the new school. Of course, going online isn’t for every student — it is important to evaluate whether or not your high school-aged child would be successful or flounder in this environment before making that decision.
• Moving to a new area and starting your child in a new school can be hard on everyone. Helping your children adjust is an important step in successfully adapting to a new school. Doing things such as giving them time to prepare, showing them around the school before the first day, and helping them get involved in activities can make a huge difference.

Amanda Winstead

• Amanda is a freelance writer out of Portland focusing on many topics including educational technology. Along with writing she enjoys traveling, reading, working out, and going to concerts. If you want to follow her writing journey, or even just say hi you can find her on Twitter.

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Reset: How to Change What’s Not Working by Dan Heath shows how you identify leverage points that can improve any organization. He encourages you to look for bright spots, reallocate your resources, start with a burst, recycle waste, tap motivation, and let people be more autonomous. These principles apply to any organization so school leaders should take note and get a copy.

Introduction

• Dan starts with a story about a hospital mail room that went from taking three days to deliver packages to delivering all packages the day they arrived. They went from dysfunction as the natural state of affairs to resetting and getting unstuck. Sometimes it takes more resources to sustain a bad system. The key thing is to look for and find a leverage point to transform the way you work. Part one will help with this. Learn how to shake off bad habits so you can go from spinning your wheels to rolling forward.

Section I – Find Leverage Points: 1. Go and See the Work.

• If you are a manager of others, or a school administrator, you need to go see what people and students are doing in person. Sitting around a table and talking about something is not the same as seeing it up close. (Doug: As a principal, I prided myself on managing by walking around, which allowed me to see what students and teachers were doing.
• In some cases, the work people are doing may not be visible. This is when you have to get creative and make it visible. Be sure to check out the links in this book at Reset-Links.

2. Consider the Goal of the Goal

• Before you sink effort into a difficult task, make sure it’s the right task. If you lock into a goal too quickly, you may be blind to the bigger picture and alternate routes. Dan introduces the concept of the miracle question, which helps you identify the first productive steps to take. Be skeptical about the goals you select. Asking what’s the goal of the goal helps identify your destination and why it is important.

3. Study the Bright Spots

• Bright spots are your most engaged employees. You need to analyze them and do what you can to replicate them.

4. Target the Constraint

• Constraints are limiting factors or bottlenecks. They are standing in the way of greater success. As you deal with one constraint, the constraint will shift to somewhere else. Dan tells the story of Chick-fil-A and how their constraint shifted from ordering to food prep as they worked to maximize their drive through business. If you don’t direct investments at your constraint, they may be wasted. If you change your goal, your constraint may also change.

5. Map the System

• Sometimes you have to take a big picture view of a situation to improve things. One approach is to look at multiple silos at the same time to see if a change in one can help the other. There is a story here that shows how this can work. There is another story about how a methane monitoring satellite launched in 2024 is helping the industry find and plug leaks of this greenhouse gas. Be sure to ask questions like why do we do that and can we do it better?

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Safe Ways to Encourage Kids to Play and Explore Outdoors by Emily Graham offers excellent advice for parents and teachers about getting kids outdoors for fresh air and exercise. It’s easy to just let them sit around inside and play computer games or watch TV, but with a little effort and this advice, you can make them healthier and more vibrant. Thanks, Emily.

Introduction

• Research shows that more of today’s modern kids are spending their time inside, and parents get to see this firsthand. Today’s kids are busy with their video games, computers, and gadgets, and they’re not getting the fresh air, sunshine, and physical activity they need as a result. Dr. Doug Green shares some ways to encourage your kids to get outside and play safely, and get them out of the house.

Help Them Hunt for Treasure

• Turn outdoor exploration into a fun treasure hunt and make a game out of it. Try an idea from Momtastic and make a list of flowers, plants, trees, birds, and bugs that can be found in your own backyard or in close proximity. Have kids take a photo or draw a sketch of each of these items to add it to their list of found treasures. This is an observation-only event, so kids can use just their eyes to find treasures rather than poking their fingers into strange holes or trying to pluck plants. Kids will end up learning more about the natural world, and have fun doing it.

Stage a Backyard Camping Trip

• You don’t have to go on a road trip to enjoy camping. Set up a tent in your own backyard, lay out some sleeping bags and stage a fun camping adventure that will be much simpler than actually heading out on the road to find a campsite. You can easily keep an eye on the kids while they have their backyard adventure. Give them some fun snack items like trail mix, and stuff to play with like balls and jump ropes. This will keep kids outside instead of glued to their video games.

Just Add Bubbles

• Pretty much every kid loves to play with bubbles, and they can stay busy for hours outdoors having fun with this activity. Mix up your own bubble solution using ordinary dishwashing soap and glycerin, according to What to Expect. Make a bubble wand out of a bent coat hanger, and kids can make enormous bubbles for hours and hours. They’ll have fun blowing bubbles, chasing them around, and seeing how many bubbles they can make.

Build Some DIY Bird Feeders Together

• Make some bird feeders with the kids, and encourage them to watch the birds that come to enjoy your DYI project. You can even turn this into a learning project, and get your kids a book on different birds so they can look up the feathered friends who visit. You don’t need much to make a bird feeder. In fact, an old shoe will work. Take the shoe and nail it directly to a tree or a post. Fill it with birdseed, and watch your avian visitors enjoy their meals. If you’re more creative, you can make a bird feeder out of almost anything, from an old cup and saucer to a used wine bottle.

Outside Safety Tips

• Keep kids safe when they play outdoors by taking some simple safety measures. First, don’t get a trampoline. They cause horrible accidents frequently and should only be used under careful supervision for training and exercise — not recreation. Second, don’t let your kids wear drawstring clothing. Drawstrings are accidents begging to happen because they can come untied and get snagged, cause kids to trip, and get hung up on toys and playground equipment. Thirdly, make sure all your playground equipment is totally safe. It should only be on a soft surface, not hard decking or concrete, and safely away from tall buildings, trees and structures.
• Make sure your kids stay on your property by installing a fence to surround your yard. Fence companies charge an average of $4,500 to install a fence, but peace of mind is priceless. Before hiring a fence installer, it’s a good idea to review customer feedback and ratings. Always get three estimates and make sure the company is insured and licensed.
• Most importantly, keep an eye on your kids when they’re outside. Outdoor play is healthy and good for children, but it can be dangerous. Monitor your kids and take steps to make sure they’re staying safe. You can’t prevent every accident, but there is a lot you can do to make sure your kids avoid accidents and injuries when they’re outside. (Doug: Consider getting a camera or two so you can see your backyard from a TV or computer.)

Photo Credit Pexels.com

Emily Graham

• Emily is the creator of MightyMoms.Net. She believes being a mom is one of the hardest jobs around and wanted to create a support system for moms from all walks of life. On her site, she offers a wide range of info tailored for busy moms — from how to reduce stress to creative ways to spend time together as a family. You can email her at emilygraham@mightymoms.net. She lives in Arizona.

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