Michele Borba

Educ Psychologist; Intl Speaker; TEDx: EmpathyIsAVerb TODAYContr UnSelfie & Mar 2 2021: THRIVERS: The Surprising Reasons Why Some Kids Struggle & Others Shine

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Book Recommendations:

MB

Recommended by Michele Borba

👏This book is fabulous! @lldsteinberg has written a must read! Honored to endorse it. 👏👏👏👏👏 https://t.co/T6csHQx20A (from X)

A much-needed guide for parents of people in their twenties and thirties from one of the world’s leading developmental psychologists. Your child is now an adult, but your job as a parent is far from over. Instead, your role must evolve to meet their ongoing, changing needs. But what exactly are these new needs? And why are they so different now than they were when you were a young adult? This is the first comprehensive guide written for parents whose children are in two of the most crucial decades of life. Steinberg discusses topics as varied as whether and how you should be involved in your child’s college education, how to behave when they unexpectedly must move back home, how to state your opinion on their romantic partners, what to do when you disagree with the way they are raising their own child, and what parameters to apply if you want to give them money for a home or startup. He answers such challenging questions as: When do I express my opinion and when should I bite my tongue? How do I know if my son is floundering? Is it okay to help my daughter with her grad school application? What should I do if my kid is getting seriously involved with someone I think is dangerous? We have been helping our twenty-five-year-old financially for the last few years, but how long is too long? How can I help my adult child through a difficult psychological time? Leading psychologist Laurence Steinberg has devoted his forty-five-year career to researching parent-child relationships. Here, he provides some basic principles to help parents with adult children think more intelligently about common issues, avoid minefields, weather the inevitable ups and downs, and create a stronger, happier, more effective bond with their child.

MB

Recommended by Michele Borba

I'm reading Anthony Doerr's fabulous Cloud Cuckoo Land. Love it, but Doerr's acknowledgment touched my heart: "For the #librarians then, now, and in the years to come." Couldn't agree more. Thank you, librarians & book lovers. The world needs you! https://t.co/7wMYY4x9ba (from X)

On the New York Times bestseller list for over 20 weeks * A New York Times Notable Book * A National Book Award Finalist * Named a Best Book of the Year by Fresh Air, Time, Entertainment Weekly, Associated Press, and many more “If you’re looking for a superb novel, look no further.” —The Washington Post From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of All the Light We Cannot See, comes the instant New York Times bestseller that is a “wildly inventive, a humane and uplifting book for adults that’s infused with the magic of childhood reading experiences” (The New York Times Book Review). Among the most celebrated and beloved novels of recent times, Cloud Cuckoo Land is a triumph of imagination and compassion, a soaring story about children on the cusp of adulthood in worlds in peril, who find resilience, hope, and a book. In the 15th century, an orphan named Anna lives inside the formidable walls of Constantinople. She learns to read, and in this ancient city, famous for its libraries, she finds what might be the last copy of a centuries-old book, the story of Aethon, who longs to be turned into a bird so that he can fly to a utopian paradise in the sky. Outside the walls is Omeir, a village boy, conscripted with his beloved oxen into the army that will lay siege to the city. His path and Anna’s will cross. In the present day, in a library in Idaho, octogenarian Zeno rehearses children in a play adaptation of Aethon’s story, preserved against all odds through centuries. Tucked among the library shelves is a bomb, planted by a troubled, idealistic teenager, Seymour. This is another siege. And in a not-so-distant future, on the interstellar ship Argos, Konstance is alone in a vault, copying on scraps of sacking the story of Aethon, told to her by her father. Anna, Omeir, Seymour, Zeno, and Konstance are dreamers and outsiders whose lives are gloriously intertwined. Doerr’s dazzling imagination transports us to worlds so dramatic and immersive that we forget, for a time, our own.

MB

Recommended by Michele Borba

@hossjob @NedJohnson And I’m betting that will love What Do You Say? Ned and Bill have a gift for combining science and practicality. Fabulous book! (from X)

A guide to effectively communicating with teenagers by the bestselling authors of The Self-Driven Child If you're a parent, you've had a moment--maybe many of them--when you've thought, "How did that conversation go so badly?" At some point after the sixth grade, the same kid who asked "why" non-stop at age four suddenly stops talking to you. And the conversations that you wish you could have--ones fueled by your desire to see your kid not just safe and healthy, but passionately engaged--suddenly feel nearly impossible to execute. The good news is that effective communication can be cultivated, learned, and taught. And as you get better at this, so will your kids. William Stixrud, Ph.D., and Ned Johnson have 60 years combined experience talking to kids one-on-one, and the most common question they get when out speaking to parents and educators is: What do you say? While many adults understand the importance and power of the philosophies behind the books that dominate the parenting bestseller list, parents are often left wondering how to put those concepts into action. In What Do You Say?, Johnson and Stixrud show how to engage in respectful and effective dialogue, beginning with defining and demonstrating the basic principles of listening and speaking. Then they show new ways to handle specific, thorny topics of the sort that usually end in parent/kid standoffs: delivering constructive feedback to kids; discussing boundaries around technology; explaining sleep and their brains; the anxiety of current events; and family problem-solving. What Do You Say? is a manual and map that will immediately transform parents' ability to navigate complex terrain and train their minds and hearts to communicate ever more successfully.

MB

Recommended by Michele Borba

LOVE this book & author, @DonnaTetreault. It’s about a young boy’s discovery that being #kind to himself is something he must practice every day. He writes his #feelings & learns that #emotions are natural & finds ways to manage them. #SEL 👏👏❤️👏 https://t.co/puY31XTzOC (from X)

Dear Me, Letters to Myself For All of My Emotions book cover

by Donna Tetreault, Elisena Bonadio·You?

Dear Me, Letters to Myself For All of My Emotions teaches young children how to recognize and manage the emotions they feel throughout the day. Through a series of letters that begin with, "Dear Me," a young child writes down his feelings. These letters allow him to recognize that he can manage how he feels while practicing self-kindness and compassion. Dear Me serves as a guide to help kids learn about expressing feelings, understanding those feelings, and then deciding what to do about them in ways that are healthy, helpful, and kind. The book models several approaches for parents, but, more directly, models how children can develop the social-emotional skill of managing emotions by naming emotions, journaling, and mindful breathing. Beautiful illustrations support this empowering message designed to help children understand and appreciate all of their emotions. Dear Me, Letters to Myself For All of My Emotions teaches children: - Self-love - Self-regulation - Self-advocacy - Managing emotions - Empathy - Journaling - Mindful breathing

MB

Recommended by Michele Borba

In today’s Internet-soaked culture, it has become not only important but imperative to be our children’s first source of information. In How to Talk to Kids About Anything, Dr. Robyn shows us how. (from Amazon)

THE NATIONAL BESTSELLER A step-by-step guide to answering your kids' toughest questions "When people die, where do they go?" "Why is her skin darker than mine?" "But how does the baby get in there?" Don't panic. While we know that the first step to connecting deeply with our kids is being able to communicate, empathize, and answer their biggest queries, what do you do when that tricky-to-answer question comes out of the blue? Sometimes we just don't know what to say, so we simply change the subject or give a quick, throwaway answer―and hope it doesn't come up again. Dr. Robyn Silverman, host of the How to Talk to Kids About Anything Parenting Podcast, gets it. A child development specialist and mom, she'll stick with you every step of the way. In this book, Dr. Robyn takes you through the whole spectrum of kids' curious questions, giving you the strategies and scripts to prepare you for life's most challenging conversations. That way your kids get age-appropriate information straight from you, their trusted source, rather than from peers, the media, or the internet. You'll learn how to develop calm, well-thought-out answers to tricky questions on subjects including: DeathSexFriendshipDivorceMoneyAnd more!Drawing on the expertise of dozens of well-known experts, Dr. Robyn's decades of working with children and teens, and her personal experience as a mom, How to Talk to Kids About Anything is a vital resource for parents who value having honest, meaningful conversations with their kids. When you just can't find the right words, this book will be your guide to talking to your kids about anything as they grow from toddlers to teens… and beyond. Makes for a thoughtful gift for new parents!