-BAM! Body, Mind and Child - Preparing Your Child's Body and Mind for Life!

Not all stress is to be avoided. According to our guests there are three different types of stress. Positive stress, tolerable stress, and toxic stress. Teachers need to be able to distinguish the different types and the symptoms of stress in children to help them manage stress effectively. Learn more...

Dr. Megan R. Gunnar is a Regents Professor and Distinguished McKnight University Professor of Child Development at the Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota. She received her Ph.D in psychology at Stanford University and completed a post-doctoral fellowship in developmental psychoneuroendocrinology at Stanford Medical School. Ellen Galinsky, President and Co-Founder of Families and Work Institute (FWI), helped establish the field of work and family life at Bank Street College of Education, where she was on the faculty for twenty-five years. Her more than forty books and reports include the best-selling Mind in the Making: The Seven Essential Life Skills Every Child Needs, Ask The Children and the now classic The Six Stages of Parenthood. Deborah J. Stewart, M.Ed. has over 20 years experience in the field of early childhood education as a teacher, director, curriculum writer, music director, and consultant for staff training and professional development.

Currently, Deborah is the Executive Educational Director over three childcare campuses.

In an era of high-stakes accountability and standardized testing, is there room for teaching beyond the test? You bet, say our guests, and here's how to do it without losing your job.

Kate Beaudet is Co-founder and organizer of Coalition for Educational Justice (CEJ), a community organization comprising parents, teachers, and students fighting for equity in public schools. Elena Silva, PhD., is a senior policy analyst at Education Sector, where she oversees the organization's teacher quality work. Reporter Sarah D. Sparks writes a blog called "Inside School Research" for Education Week.

Many teachers returning to school this year report a growing sense of powerlessness to effect change and do their jobs. An increasing number of teachers are expressing their disagreement with education policy in a climate that often ignores them. In this segment we talk about how you can find your voice, and impact the system without losing your job.

Despite all of the attention to the problem of bullying, much of it continues under the radar of many teachers and parents. In this segment we shine a light on the hidden side of bullying, explain why it often goes undetected and discuss strategies to deal with it.

Some educators have reported an increase in the number of twins in their classrooms. According to our guests, there are a few myths and some misguided ideas about teaching twins that need to be corrected. In this segment we discuss what every educator and parent needs to know about teaching twins.

Some of us are victims; others of us are unwitting conspirators in a process that teaches girls that how they look is who they are. The impact is far-reaching. Our guests today discuss the impact of the early practices that lead to this belief and point the way to giving girls a healthy self-identity.

There's a lot of attention on evaluating teachers these days. The relentless pursuit to improve student achievement has put teacher performance under the microscope. But are we clear about what really makes a good teacher, how to measure good teaching and how to replicate it?

In many ways "time out" has become the new spanking. First, it has become the default approach for dealing with child misbehavior. But, like spanking, conventional application of time out is now being challenged as harmful and inappropriate. Our guests say it's time to rethink how and when time out is used.

Some say the concerns about Pre-K testing in the new Race to Top - Early Learning Challenge program are a premature tempest in a teapot. Others see it as a new road to education hell, being paved with good intentions. We invited a diverse group of educators and advocates to come and help us make sense of it all.

We could call this segment, "how to pick your battles." What is clear is that all undesirable behavior should not be addressed, every time, on the spot. Our guests offer insights and guidelines for determining when to intervene and when to ignore the behavior and allow it to take its course.