Playing with toy weapons helps the development of young boys, according to new Government advice to nurseries and playgroups.
Staff have been told they must resist their "natural instinct" to stop boys using pretend weapons such as guns or light sabres in games with other toddlers. Fantasy play involving weapons and superheroes allows healthy and safe risk-taking and can also make learning more appealing, says the guidance.
It conflicts with years of "political correctness" in nurseries and playgroups which has led to the banning of toy guns, action hero games and children pretending to fire "guns" using their fingers or Lego bricks.
But teachers' leaders insisted last night that guns "symbolise aggression" and said many nurseries and playgroups would ignore the change.
The Brit's advice sounds similar to what Gerard Jones, the author of Killing Monsters: Why Children Need Fantasy, Super Heroes, and Make-Believe Violence
has also argued--that young people love fantasy violence because it gives them the coping skills they so desperately need. He states that instead of banning games like Doom, we should harness the tremendous power of fantasy to help our kids better navigate the world around them. He interviewed me for his book and this is what I had to say: ...Kids don't grow up understanding their own aggression. Teachers and parents say, sit still, be nice, cooperate, and they don't give kids the opportunity to play with the aggressive feelings that come up for them. Dads are often afraid to wrestle their sons to the ground, kids aren't allowed to pretend to kill each other, and they're certainly not taught to fight in any sort of controlled way, or even to stand up to someone who's giving them trouble. With all of the emphasis in our schools now on getting kids in touch with their feelings, the scary feelings like anger are just kind of wished away. A kid says, 'I feel like I love you' and we say 'Awwww.' He says, 'I feel like I want to kill you' and we say, 'No, you don't.' So a kid runs into some real conflict in life and he feels the rage coming up in him and he doesn't know what to do with it.
We never taught him what to do. Games can teach boys (and girls) how to deal with aggression. Brits, listen to the government advice and incorporate fantasy and make-believe violence into play--along with critical thinking skills. Rather than make kids more aggressive, it might just teach them to modulate aggressive feelings in a more constructive way.
). Everyone at the meet-up was knowledgeable and respectful of weapons and really knew their stuff. I was amazed at the variety of weaponry and got to try out an AR-15 which I have never shot before. See the pic.
He talks about how people throw the word fascism around without really understanding its meaning, why so many liberals want to turn America into a college campus with free food, shelter and recreation, and why the upcoming election is about collective vs. individual rights.
by Allen Bloom in an entertaining and engaging fashion. Sayet's speech is definitely worth listening to.
"The man is in a lot poorer condition than the popular media portray," he says. "This idea of the swinging, happy-go-lucky, no-worries single guy in a bar... that's just not it at all." The misconception was fueled by Harvard professor Lenore Weitzman's widely cited book, The Divorce Revolution: The Unexpected Social and Economic Consequences for Women and Children in America.
"bashes the Left on grounds that the Spin Sisters (her name for the female media elite) need women to think of themselves as victims if they are going to look for help from a liberal government." Naturally, these magazines emphasize how women are supposed to vote for Democrats (preferably women!) to save the day with "free" government programs that nurture, build self-esteem and promote dependency. No way are they going to give positive press to women like Jeri and other outsiders who don't march in line with the rest of the "good girls." Perhaps the 
had to say to those of you too tongue-tied to ask a woman out:
We caught up with presidential candidate 
The book is the first in a series entitled Comeback Kids and is quite engaging. It is about 10-year-old Billy who is dealing with the divorce of his high-powered lawyer mother and basketball coach father. I like that in-between sports talk--there is a great narrative dealing with the psychological dynamics of divorce, family and how to cope with the pain of a family break-up. However, the author stays up to the task of keeping boys interested in the story without alienating them with too much focus on relationship issues and feelings. 
written by John Flanagan. The other is the 
by Anthony Horowitz, which is a young adult thriller series that looks fun if you know a 5th to 10th grade guy who likes mysteries.
although this would have to go under the tree as it is too big to fit in a stocking. If you have a book suggestion for gifts for boys of older elementary, middle school or early high school age, drop it in the comments.
about a new DNA test that can tell you how you'll live--and die. The cost? Only $1000. The writer of the article at Wired took the DNA test which involves sending a saliva sample in a Fedex package to a company called 
"Yawn," I thought. The story didn't really sound that intriguing to me--a man who is upset by his dog being sick and writes an entire book on his family's relationship with the animal. I wrote a while back on the nonsense of people who call their pets 
has an interesting article on the amoral among us 
from Amazon.com and am now being treated to all kinds of items for and about dogs in my inbox. The most recent book was by radio host Mark Levin who wrote 
with the following description:
has 
Steele's book offers an in-depth analysis of race relations in this country and he uses Obama's iconic success as a jumping off point to discuss the conundrum of how blacks are 
Apparently, the author, who is a member of the Yale class of 63, got a plum job with J. Walter Thompson ad agency only to lose it at the age of 53. Then he goes on to have a number of misfortunes including impregnating a mistress, getting kicked out by his wife, a brain tumor etc. He loses his job and ends up working at a Starbucks in Manhattan and loves it. Naturally, the book review makes fun of this fact, describing the author as a "Starbucks sycophant" but whatever. 
The show is supposed to be about moms who stay home and connect on the internet. Yep, that's yours truly, a sweet mom who just blogs her heart out to connect with others. You can view the video 
I have the book here in the house and have yet to read it--but I look forward to doing so and seeing what she has to say.
was going to be on talking about diet, exercise and other ways to stay young. I had told myself repeatedly to stay away from these silly daytime TV shows but I figured I might learn something more about how to stay in decent health. And I did. The show gave basic advice for people on how to eat right, exercise and take various vitamins such as fish oil. It did seem like a repeat of most of the stuff one should know, however, a refresher course every once in a while is good and I even went as far as to order the book from Amazon.com (but still chastising myself for letting it get that far). The book was kind of interesting although not what I thought it would be. 
and was very pleased with the book. The book had easy breakfast, lunch and dinner plans along with snacks and included dinner recipes for gazpacho, various soups, salads, fish dishes and even whole wheat pizza. There was even a section on exactly what to purchase from the fast food places to meet the requirements of their diet. For example, at Wendy's, the authors recommend the Mandarin Chicken Salad, at McDonald's, the Fruit and walnut salad or Caesar salad with grilled chicken or at Taco Bell, the Spicy Chicken Soft Taco. Good to know if you travel a lot or are an over-the-road trucker. 
