AIRED: March 15, 2021
SPECIAL GUEST: Elizabeth Englander
This pandemic has ushered in a social and emotional crisis for many American children. Your children may be going to school online, at least partially; and you are probably juggling work, their schooling, and coping with the pandemic and the recession. On top of this, American kids are more socially isolated and more dependent on screens than they have ever been. All of this change is taking a toll.
This book is designed to address these problems by directly appealing to kids aged 8-11 years old, using uproariously funny and highly-engaging writing and hands-on activities to teach them how to pay attention to their screen use, their mental health, and their social relationships.
It’s the book kids and parents have been waiting for since this Pandemic began! Written by a leading researcher in child development and a literacy scholar with a penchant for zany children’s humor, this book has been meticulously illustrated by an amazingly talented 12-year-old. Your kids will find it relevant and informative, and they won’t be able to put it down.
Written using a humorous and engaging style, this book works by using a funny, INSANELY AWESOME way to help your kids and your family adapt to the new world we are all living in right now. It covers problems using screens; how to stay close to your friends; ways to talk with your family; how to choose fun and safe activities; and ways to minimize any signs of depression or anxiety. A perfect book for pre-teen readers, it encourages reading through humor and games while being educational, based on real research, and informing kids about staying mentally healthy during one of the most challenging times in recent memory.
ABOUT DR. ELIZABETH ENGLANDER
Dr. Elizabeth Kandel Englander is a Professor of Psychology and the Director of the Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center at Bridgewater State University in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Her research focuses on bullying and cyberbullying prevention and facts and the Center she directs (MARC) provides free training and programs for hundreds of schools every year in Massachusetts.
Dr. Englander’s research and publications are nationally recognized and she was named Most Valuable Educator of 2013 by the Boston Red Sox because of her work in technological aggression and how it interacts with peer abusiveness in general. She was the Special Editor for the Cyberbullying issue of the Journal of Social Sciences and has authored about a hundred articles in academic journals and books. She is the author of Understanding Violence, and of Bullying and Cyberbullying: A Guide for Educators, recently released by Harvard Press. She has written three research-based curricula and many educational handouts for communities and professionals.
Reflecting her interest in educating laypeople, Dr. Englander has answered questions in a column for the New York Times (online edition), and she writes the column Bullying Bulletin Board, which is syndicated by Gatehouse Media in hundreds of newspapers nationwide. Dr. Englander has been interviewed for the New York Times, the Boston Globe, USA Today, National Public Radio, and many other venues.
