Freedom to live and to think about life for its own sake is important and even essential to a child. -John Holt, from How Children Fail

If David Farrugut could take command of a captured British warship as a preteen, if Ben Franklin could apprentice himself to a printer at the same age (then put himself through a course of study that would choke a Yale senior today), there’s no telling what your own kids could do. -John Taylor Gatto, from […]

We judge and evaluate [a child] in a place where he has not been comfortable enough to engage in good conversations. In school, he has felt in need of repairs. I must always assume, with any child, that school is the source of whatever problems exist in school before looking elsewhere. -Vivian Gussin Paley, from […]

Parenting – despite our fears – is not usually an emergency. Usually, in parenting and in life, the best response to upsetting emotions is to reflect, not react. In other words, don’t take action while you’re triggered. -Dr. Laura Markham, from Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids: How to Stop Yelling and Start Connecting