When Failure Leads to Growth
Failure can bring up a mix of disappointing emotions. If we didn’t get first place or when we aren’t “the best,” we might struggle to come to terms with our…
Managing Polarized Positions with Children and Youth
Have you ever been in conflict with someone where it seems like there is no solution because your views on a topic are so opposite? Have you ever felt like…
Gottman’s 4 Horsemen, and What We Can Try Instead
When having conflict conversations, it can be easy to engage in behaviours that aren’t actually helpful to the situation. I know it happens to me sometimes, and it can happen…
Celebrating Pride: Book List for Children and Youth
June is Pride Month! While we at TREE affirm and celebrate the 2SLGBTQIA+ community all year round, this is a special opportunity for us to celebrate and affirm the importance…
Engaging Mindfully Outdoors: Activities and Strategies for Kids
With greater amounts of screen time and indoor time these days, it’s more important than ever to cultivate healthy habits that get us outside to connect with our natural environment.…
Four Steps to Interrupting Conflict Patterns with Youth
Can you recall an experience when you gave your child a request, like starting chores or meeting curfew, and you were met with the same predictable reaction? It may have…
Community-building Activities for Spring Break
With spring break just around the corner, students from K-12 are eager to get some well-deserved rest. With nicer weather on the way, but pandemic restrictions still in place, many…
Young people designing.
Beyond Bake Sales: Youth activism is more than raising money
I was leading a group of high school students in a community design simulation. Each student played a different role to represent different groups within a larger community. We had…
Reframing: How to Shift Your Perspective in Conflict
Anyone who has raised or worked with children likely has some key phrases or workarounds in their repertoire to make undesirable things more appealing. Instead of, “Can you finish your…
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How to Have a Courageous Conversation
On January 6 of this year, many were shaken by the violent attack on the Capitol in the United States attempting to halt the vote count from the recent presidential…