June 14, 2012
Q: I live in a big city with my 3 year old son and 1 year old daughter, and I’ve noticed that children who live in such cities spend a lot of time playing on cement playgrounds and on the Web. I know that spending time in nature is good for children’s development, but how […]
June 8, 2012
Q: I’ve been begging my teen son not to text while driving, but I know he does it anyway. What can I do to get him to stop? –Texting and Driving in Beverly, MA A: Dear Texting and Driving, You’re right to be concerned–according to a recent study, 38% admitted to driving and texting at […]
June 1, 2012
Q: My 8-year-old son is a precocious reader, and I am having a hard time finding books that are both age-appropriate and challenging enough to keep him engaged. I worry that the books at his reading level are too violent or contain other content that he’s not ready for. Where can I find books (lots […]
May 22, 2012
Q: With the purchase of a couple of e-book tablets for our home, how can we know if the books our 10-year-old triplets will be reading on them are age appropriate? My daughter read a book she heard about in her 4th grade class during a book report, and it ended up having significant sexual […]
May 14, 2012
Q: My husband and I were having difficulties preparing dinner with our two-year-old daughter in the kitchen, so we began letting her watch Curious George to keep her occupied. Initially this worked well; the show seems to have primarily positive content, and the two 15-minute segments entertained her while we cooked. We’ve been trying not […]
May 8, 2012
Q: My 10-year-old son will be starting middle school in the fall. So far, he has had a pretty sheltered, drama-free experience at a great elementary school. I want him to be aware that bullying goes on and that he needs to tell someone if anything like that ever happens to him. I have thought […]
May 3, 2012
Q: My son is 15 and displays symptoms of video game addiction, including lying and sneaking to try to gain access. He has Asperger’s and ADHD, and regardless of what medication regimen we try, the gaming obsession remains. I recently asked the psychiatrist to hospitalize him and treat him as they would other addicts, but […]
April 18, 2012
Q: My 17-year-old son started playing Call of Duty a few months ago. Since that time, he has had more trouble than usual falling asleep and has been waking up in the middle of the night. Last night, he woke me saying he felt like he was having a panic attack—racing heart and hyperventilation. I […]
April 5, 2012
CMCH staff member Kristelle Lavallee contributed the following post to Thriving, Boston Children’s Hospital’s pediatric health blog. Are you looking to take the family to a movie but aren’t sure whether your child should see The Hunger Games (PG-13) or Bully (unrated)? If you base the decision on the Motion Picture Association of American (MPAA) ratings, the answer […]
April 3, 2012
Q: My 16-year-old goddaughter’s parents are not Facebook friends with her, so when someone stole her phone and posted some degrading things to her account, they didn’t know until I told them. Another friend asked me to look at all her 19-year-old daughter’s pictures and let her know if I saw anything inappropriate. How can […]
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