I want you to close your eyes and picture a stranger that you saw today. Maybe it’s someone you saw on the commute to work. Or someone you saw walking outside. Or maybe even it’s someone you saw as you dropped your student off at Shipley. Try and get a super clear image of that person in your mind. 

Positive Education is based on science and research. It enhances resilience and positivity, core values, and creativity. It seeks to improve systems and processes, increase engagement and achievement, and enhance our interactions with others. Furthermore, at the heart of it, Positive Education is also about learning to become our best selves.

A few weeks ago, my eight-year-old son asked when he would get his own smartphone. Given that he is making his way through Lower School, I feel I have a few years to go before making a final decision. As the Head of Shipley’s Middle School, I see families and students having a hard time with not only determining the appropriate age to give their children smartphones but also how to manage their children’s time on their smart devices to maintain a developmentally-appropriate balance. What we are now seeing is that “later is better.” If your child needs a phone so that you can contact them or they can call you in an emergency, then a flip phone might be the best thing you can get them.

I walked into preschool to pick up my 4-year old who proudly exclaimed, “Mommy! I have HOMEWORK tonight!” Indeed, it was our turn to take home the “Class Book” and design a page that described our family, complete with pictures. My frazzled “Mom-Brain” automatically translated his statement to reflect the truth, which was, “No, Buddy, I have homework tonight.”