Category: Education

  • Average Child

    Dear Dr. Linda, My husband and I had a conference with our daughter’s third grade teacher and I’ve been upset ever since. She told us that Julie’s a lovely little girl and does well in school. She also added that all her scores are average. I asked what I could do to get her scores…

  • Cursive Handwriting

    Dear Dr. Linda, Our fifth-grade son’s handwriting is horrible. We can’t read a word he writes, not even on homework assignments. He can’t read them either once he’s home. He only prints, and when he does, it looks like a chicken walked across the page. The school psychologist told us that he has dysgraphia, a…

  • Mother’s Day

    Dear Dr. Linda, I love my mother and my children love me, but I don’t love Mother’s Day on many fronts. To begin with, it’s a made up holiday created by Hallmark to make a lot of money. Secondly, it forces mothers and children of all ages to be part of a holiday which has…

  • Family Traditions

    Dear Dr. Linda, Over the years you wrote about Groundhog Day which occurs every year on Feb.2. I love those traditions. I know they’re silly, but I still wait for them because it makes think about spring. This year my children are finally old enough to understand why Groundhog Day exists. Is it possible to…

  • Grandma

    Dear Dr. Linda, I’m a grandma with four beautiful children. My husband died a few years ago so I’m thankful that I have my daughter living near me with her family. I feel very close to them and see them often. I get them off the bus, do their homework with them and seem to…

  • Help for struggling students

    Dear Dr. Linda, My daughter Zoe is in 6th grade and is really struggling. She has had a hard time since kindergarten, but this year things are worse. The school has been very helpful—she has been classified and is receiving help in the classroom, but she’s still struggling in every subject and homework takes hours.…

  • Holiday Homework

    Dear Dr. Linda, Last year my kids had so much homework over the holiday break, it basically ruined the holidays for us. We go to my mom’s in Vermont, and all I can remember is my daughter being stressed out because she wanted to be with her cousins. Instead she shut herself up in a…

  • Going to college

    Dear Dr. Linda, My husband and I never went to college. We have three little kids, Ryan, the oldest is in kindergarten. Emma, six months old, is the youngest, and Jordan, our three-year-old is the middle child. We both feel that we missed out on becoming who we could be by not going to college.…

  • Careers

    Dear Dr. Linda, I’ve been a high school math teacher for over 35 years and I’m happy to say, I still love my job.  Are things different from when I began? Of course. Are there days that I’m so stressed out that I want to throw the towel in? Yes, but the bottom line is…

  • Q&A Studyskills

    Dear Dr. Linda, I know you’ve written about this numerous times, but please do one more column on study skills! My kids are in 8th and 11th grade. Once again they’re bringing home not such great grades. I know they’re not rocket scientists but they do try and the grades don’t reflect the time they’re…