When I’m working with a child, I try to move sensitivity to the emotional place where the child might willingly accept being physically touched by me. I might touch children on the back, shoulders, or top of the head long before I allow myself to give them a spontaneous hug, even though I might feel like it. Children often have …

The debate about nature versus nurture in shaping specific traits of human personality, is an old and gripping one – which behavioural aspects are influenced by genes, which ones by upbringing? What one never hears in this debate is the possibility that there might be a third alternative: the role humans play in controlling their destiny. Recent studies by psychologists …

Deciding what’s for dinner (or breakfast, lunch, or snack) has never been more challenging. With childhood obesity, diabetes, and other food-related ailments in the news almost daily, you may wonder what you can feed your kids. The simple truth is, if you stock your pantry and fridge mostly with healthy options, you won’t have to think about it as much …

A long weekend, no birthdays coming up, bored children jumping with nervous energy. Does this sound familiar? No reason for you to be stuck in the rut, here’s how you can have a blast with your children at home. The best part about organising these activities is that it helps you realise your child’s varied interests and potential. Therefore, if …

Aditi is barely eight years old. But lately she’s put on more weight than many children her age. It’s a cause of worry to her parents, both of whom were overweight as children. They have cut down on her food intake though it’s rather difficult to get her to follow her new diet. For years of being fed large amounts …

One of my favourite family pictures is that of my father astride a black stallion with me as a young child, sitting with him. The picture was taken during a visit to a hill station. What is very evident from the photograph is my adoring face looking up at my father from layers of jackets and blankets packed around me. …

Your daughter scarfs down peanut butter sandwiches on weekends, but the ones she totes to school come home uneaten. Your son adores snacking on baby carrots but begs you to pack Pringles in his lunch box. What gives? To young students, school lunch is less about food than about socializing. “The cafeteria is one of the first places they experience …

Teenage years for any individual is a difficult and a delicate period. This arises because teenagers begin to develop their own individual identity, experience biological and physiological changes, face peer pressure, become aware about their sexuality etc. And this is often a major period of worry for parents to deal with their teenage children. During this time, effective communication with …

Growing up is not always fun, frolic and laughter. There comes a time where children may have to witness family fights and separation, serious illnesses, and at times, even death. Calamities that can disrupt the normal routine of their lives. Parents often shield their children from sad news for as long as possible, not realizing that this protective shield may …

A green hedge encrusted with white mountain roses – the smell I carry in my nostrils to this day. Pure and heady. I was three. It’s a snapshot of memory. I put a name to the memory much later. Lansdowne, a quiet and picturesque cantonment town set in the hills of Uttar Pradesh. My father had arranged the trip. He …