Talking About Kids

Send us a textI am devoting the mini Holiday Break episodes of Talking About Kids to poetry about the holiday season and issues related to kids. In this fourth mini episode, I read a classic: “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” by Robert Frost. I am sure it is familiar to you, but, as you listen, please consider whether the narrator is finding emotional regulation in the moment being described. A link to the poem is at talkingaboutkids.com.

Send us a textI am devoting the mini Holiday Break episodes of Talking About Kids to poetry about the holiday season and issues related to kids. In this third mini episode, I will read “Perhaps the World Ends Here” by Joy Harjo. It is a poem about the table around which a family gathers. A link to the poem is at talkingaboutkids.com.

Send us a textI am devoting these mini Holiday Break episodes of Talking About Kids to poetry about the holiday season and issues related to kids. In this second mini episode, I will read “Christmas Bells” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. In it, Longfellow struggles to reconcile the feelings of peace and goodwill associated with the Holiday season with the American Civil War, which was waging at that time. That struggle seems relevant today. A link to the poem is at talkingaboutkids.com.

Send us a textIn her 1985 essay, "Poetry Is Not a Luxury," Audre Lorde argues that poetry gives form to ideas that are "formless" but none-the-less "felt," ideas that precede "understanding." I have always believed that Lorde is describing, among other things, historic and childhood trauma. In honor of this, I am devoting these mini Holiday Break episodes of Talking About Kids to poetry about the holiday season and issues related to kids. In this first episode, I will read Edgar Guest's poem, "A Friend's Greeting," which, as the name implies, is about a friendship. A link to the poem is at talkingaboutkids.com.

Send us a textMatt Sandoval is in the business of transforming kids’ trauma. To accomplish this, he and Free Arts, the organization he leads, employ a simple formula: art + mentors = resilience. Matt and I discuss how this equation works, as well as his tips for using art to build resilience in your home, in your classroom, or in your program. More information about Matt and Free Arts is at talkingaboutkids.com.