My daughter Nicole is a hardcore athlete. She is an All Star Cheerleader. All Star cheerleading is a competitive sport. It is different from “sideline” cheerleading, whose main purpose is to entertain the crowd and cheer for a team. All Star cheerleaders compete against other teams from around the state and country. They learn tumbling…. read more

June 14, 2011 by Cindy Sobania in Parenting

“Mommy, is the tooth fairy real?” I should have known this question was coming! My eight-year-old daughter, Ashleigh, has lost three of her front teeth in the past few months, and she is in third grade – where kids start questioning what their parents have told them about the tooth fairy and Santa. I paused,…. read more

April 19, 2011 by Cindy Sobania in Parenting

I was talking to another mom the other day who was in the midst of planning her son’s birthday party. She asked me if I knew where she could get party supplies with an elephant theme. “Elephant theme?” I asked. “Why elephants?” She explained that instead of the party guests bringing her son gifts, they…. read more

April 5, 2011 by Cindy Sobania in Parenting, Things to Check Out

I was recently at an inservice for a school district that was held by the Risk Management department. Among the items covered was the topic of hugging students. The district’s recommendation was that if you must give a student a hug, it should be the sideways, one-arm hug where the only contact is a pat…. read more

March 22, 2011 by Cindy Sobania in Education

Many people are surprised to discover what happens in today’s kindergarten classrooms. With today’s higher standards, the expectations for student learning in kindergarten have greatly increased. In California, the Education Code states that “Districts must admit children at the beginning of the school year … if they will be five years of age on or…. read more

March 8, 2011 by Cindy Sobania in Education

Is preparation for state testing a good practice, or is it just “teaching to the test”? Many teachers complain every year when it gets close to that dreaded state testing time. There are principals who tell them to spend that month before testing doing “test prep.” Is this a good teaching practice? Is it a…. read more

March 1, 2011 by Cindy Sobania in Education