Welcome

Even when freshly washed and relieved of all obvious confections, children tend to be sticky.  …Fran Lebowitz

by Steven A. Melnick — Welcome to Pufferdust…for Parents.  The world through the eyes of a child is a place of wonder and excitement.  Children are naturally happy, inquisitive, playful, and loving little critters that melt your heart, brighten your day, and try your patience.  They see the world through the lens you provide them and the behaviors you model.  As parents, we are role models, heroes, and playmates.  Nurturing our children well is perhaps life’s greatest accomplishment and its most rewarding endeavor.

As a parent, grandparent, elementary teacher, university professor, and researcher, I have learned much about and from children and I have spent my professional career trying to improve their lives. The purpose of this blog is to share some of my thoughts, provide informative articles, exchange ideas, and engage in thought-provoking discussions about all aspects of parenting.  Whether you are expecting your first child or have a flock, I suspect you’ll find something useful and of interest here.

Primarily, I will be writing many of the posts, but friends, family, and colleagues will weigh in on a variety of topics that are of importance to parents and children.  And just as importantly, your stories, insights, and comments will create a dialogue useful to other parents.

We will discuss developmentally appropriate practices for children of all ages and will try to uncover and share the best, most authoritative information and resources useful to parents on a wide range of topics (e.g., learning to read, time together, behavior management, choosing a good school, etc.).

Most importantly, this is intended to be a forum for the exchange of ideas, a celebration of family, and the rewards of good parenting.  I invite you to join us as we go down that path. The destination is happy, loving, and well-adjusted children; I hope you will come along for the journey.