Op-Ed: Is College Really the Best Path for Your Child?

“My child is going to (insert college of choice): Harvard, University of Illinois, Princeton, MIT, Wisconsin, Notre Dame.” Most parents, especially those fortunate enough to be able to pay for their son or daughter’s education, beam with pride to share that news. But is a path to college the best choice for your child? If […]

Children’s Home & Aid’s Woman’s Board Honors Its Past While Securing the Future of Illinois Children

For more than 100 years, the Children’s Home & Aid Woman’s Board has worked diligently to raise funds to help Illinois children and families thrive. This past year, Covid-19 disrupted everyone’s lives, including Children’s Home & Aid’s earliest learners.  Children’s Home & Aid is a leading child and family service agency in Illinois. They help […]

Meet These 2021 North Shore Valedictorians and Graduates

It was a senior year like no other and this year’s North Shore valedictorians and commencement speakers shared a few of their hopes, future plans and secrets for success with Better. Zara AnwarNew Trier High School Zara Anwar lives in Winnetka and will attend Lehigh University in Pennsylvania. She plans to study cognitive sciences with […]

6 Expert Education Tips to Help Your Child Thrive in their Learning Environment

If your child has ever been called a “visual,” “verbal,” or “mathematical” learner, you can attribute this realization to developmental psychologist and Harvard professor Howard Gardner.  In 1983, Gardner published his groundbreaking book called Frames of Mind, which outlines his theory of Multiple Intelligences. Rather than just one general intelligence—the kind measured by IQ tests—Gardner […]

The Importance of Play-Based Learning Amid the Pandemic

Play is essential for children. Unstructured, imaginative play is key to so many aspects of a child’s cognitive growth, including language development, the nuances of socialization and creative problem solving.  The research on the neurological effects of play is clear: “Play is not frivolous: it enhances brain structure and function and promotes executive function, which […]