On Books
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Only Five Religious Books Have Won the Caldecott — Most Before 1963
By Wendy Thomas Russell | April 1, 2013
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If you’ve ever perused the religion books within the children’s section of your local library, you’re probably aware that it can be a bit underwhelming. Whether you’re going for a book about the life of Buddha, the history of Confucianism, or the holiday of Easter, so many of the books are old and outdated, clearly written for religious children, or without much literary merit. It sticks out particularly because there are so many great secular children’s books — brilliant, award-winning books that will stick with our kids for the rest of our lives. Sometimes it’s [...] Read more – ‘Only Five Religious Books Have Won the Caldecott — Most Before 1963’.
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10 Simple Ways to Mark Darwin’s Birthday
By Wendy Thomas Russell | February 11, 2013
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Evolution, or the process by which living organisms change over time, was not discovered by Charles Darwin. But he certainly gave the theory its street cred. By introducing natural selection — the idea that organisms best suited to survive in their particular circumstances have a greater chance of passing their traits on to the next generation — Darwin gave us a plausible mechanism by which evolution could take place. And that made all the difference. Darwin’s 1859 book On The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection was the most groundbreaking biological theory the world had ever seen. And it remains [...] Read more – ‘10 Simple Ways to Mark Darwin’s Birthday’.
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Discussing Death with Little Ones (Whose Deaths We Fear So Much)
By Wendy Thomas Russell | December 17, 2012
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Not since 9/11 has a tragedy so deeply affected our nation as the massacre of 20 first-graders and six school administrators in Connecticut on Friday. It seems to me, words were not meant to communicate this level of horror. Our capacity for emotional pain is so much deeper than our capacity to verbalize what has happened. Sometimes silence and tears are our only option. But when it comes to children, we have a duty to discuss death and dying. It is an important part of parenting, and we mustn’t shy away from it. Yes, it’s [...] Read more – ‘Discussing Death with Little Ones (Whose Deaths We Fear So Much)’.
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A Shopping Guide for Nonreligious Parents (Part II)
By Wendy Thomas Russell | December 10, 2012
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Are you looking to introduce religion to your child in a neutral and decidedly non-devotional way, but don’t know where to start? Do you lack the knowledge you think you should have? Do your eyes sort of glaze over when you hear the words “religious literacy?” Then this shopping guide is for you! In honor of the Judeo-Christian month of giving, I’ve amassed some of my favorite resources in hopes that you’ll encourage your child to learn a bit more about the religious world around them — and have some fun while they’re at it. [...] Read more – ‘A Shopping Guide for Nonreligious Parents (Part II)’.
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A Shopping Guide for Nonreligious Parents (Part I)
By Wendy Thomas Russell | November 29, 2012
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In honor of the Judeo-Christian month of giving, I’m offering a few recommendations to add to your shopping lists. These are items I have bought myself, or will buy, or might buy, or probably won’t buy but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. Seriously, if you want some assistance in “introducing” world religion and religious concepts to your kids, these are excellent tools. I’ll be publishing this in two parts: The first today, the second on Monday. Don’t look for this list to be repeated next year, by the way. In 2013, I’ll be recommending you buy [...] Read more – ‘A Shopping Guide for Nonreligious Parents (Part I)’.
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75 Reasons to Share the Bible with Kids (Even if You Don’t Believe Any of It)
By Wendy Thomas Russell | November 19, 2012
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If we want our children to be religiously literate — and who among us doesn’t, honestly? — then it behooves us to talk about the Bible in respectful terms, even if we don’t think much of it is true. When parents call the Bible “a book of fairy tales” (direct quote from my survey for nonreligious parents), it makes the whole thing seem silly and unimportant. And not just unimportant in a religious way, but unimportant in a universal way. I grew up with parents who talked about William Shakespeare like he was THE MAN (with [...] Read more – ‘75 Reasons to Share the Bible with Kids (Even if You Don’t Believe Any of It)’.
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What Does Your Kid Really Know about Religion?
By Wendy Thomas Russell | October 8, 2012
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Most parents, I’ve found, want their kids to know about religion. Maybe the reasons are strictly educational, or maybe they’re cultural, practical, even political. Regardless, most of us — whether religious or nonreligious — live in a diverse and complicated society whose collective beating heart is powered by the Internet; our children, we know, will be more successful at living if they understand the nature of faith and its role in people’s lives. And, yet, so few of us are willing or able to teach our kids about religion. Why is this? We’re busy, of course. [...] Read more – ‘What Does Your Kid Really Know about Religion?’.
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‘The God Talk’ Makes Prime Time
By Wendy Thomas Russell | October 4, 2012
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Any Parenthood watchers out there? A couple of weeks ago, the NBC series aired an episode involving a nonreligious couple who discovers their young son praying at his bedside, which leads them to confront the issue for the first time — not only with their son, but also with Grandma (who has, of course, inspired the prayer) and with each other. The story arc rings very true, and I was thrilled to see the discussion come up on Prime Time. If you’re interested, you can stream the episode on Netflix. The story line starts in [...] Read more – ‘‘The God Talk’ Makes Prime Time’.
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4 Reasons Not To Indoctrinate Kids Against Religion
By Wendy Thomas Russell | September 20, 2012
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Indoctrination, whether it be religious or nonreligious, requires that parents send a clear and convincing message that there is only one way to think about God and, in doing so, imply that other ways are wrong, silly, short-sighted or dangerous. There is a pretty major difference between revealing our beliefs to our children and insisting our children — and the world around us — believe the same things we do. Severe indoctrination leads to the opposite of critical thinking — that is, reflective thinking aimed at deciding what to believe. Part of what makes severe indoctrination [...] Read more – ‘4 Reasons Not To Indoctrinate Kids Against Religion’.
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Brief Tribute to Obscure Children’s Book (P.S. #Giveaway)
By Wendy Thomas Russell | September 10, 2012
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I’ve got a book recommendation for you. It’s not religious in nature, but it’s funny and quirky and carries a really great moral that certainly dovetails with some of my blogs about children and belief. The book is called “No! That’s Wrong!” and was written in 2008 by Japanese author Zhaohua Ji and illustrated by Cui Xu. It tells the tale of a bunny who finds a pair of underpants blowing in the wind. (See now, that’s what you call a solid premise.) Anyway, this particular bunny has never seen a pair of underpants before, [...] Read more – ‘Brief Tribute to Obscure Children’s Book (P.S. #Giveaway)’.
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