Skip to content
  • Home
  • About
  • Screen Reset
  • BlogExpand
    • Play
    • Learn
    • Thrive
  • Shop
Instagram Pinterest YouTube Facebook Twitter TikTok RSS Facebook Group
logo

Raising Confident Kids

Helpful Tips on raising independent children while keeping our sanity intact.

Chores for Kids by Age: A Guide to Teaching Responsibility
Fostering Life Skills | Parenting | Raising Confident Kids | Raising Confident Kids | Thrive

Chores for Kids by Age: A Guide to Teaching Responsibility

How to Raise an Independent Child
Child Development | Fostering Life Skills | Learn | Parenting | Raising Confident Kids | Raising Confident Kids | Thrive

How to Raise an Independent Child

Worldschooling 101: How to Give Your Child a Global Education
Alternative Education | Learn | Raising Confident Kids | Social & Emotional Development | Thrive

Worldschooling 101: How to Give Your Child a Global Education

Raising Emotionally Intelligent Kids: Why Social and Emotional Intelligence Matter More Than Ever
Fostering Life Skills | Raising Confident Kids | Thrive

Raising Emotionally Intelligent Kids: Why Social and Emotional Intelligence Matter More Than Ever

Young boy relaxing on a sofa, using a smartphone, indoors.
Learn | Raising Confident Kids

When to introduce your child to a smartphone or tablet?

Looking for tips on teaching reading at home? This blog post offers a gentle phonics-based approach that makes learning to read enjoyable for young children while building strong foundational skills.
Learn | Raising Confident Kids

How to Teach Reading for Kindergarten at Home: A Gentle, Phonics-Based Approach

Screen Conscious Parenting: How Mindful Tech Use Shapes Our Family Life
Child Development | Raising Confident Kids

Screen Conscious Parenting: How Mindful Tech Use Shapes Our Family Life

Girl Drawing On Brown Wooden Table
Raising Confident Kids

Is Homework Bad for Kids in Elementary School?

Play time with 3 month old
Infants (0-12 Months) | Play | Raising Confident Kids

How to Play with Your 3 Month Old

Playroom shelving
Play | Raising Confident Kids

6 Playroom Shelving Ideas to Maximize Your Storage Space

Page navigation

1 2 3 4 Next PageNext

Together we’ll slow down, stop rushing our kids through life and raise lifelong learners who will become confident and independent adults. 

Instagram Pinterest YouTube Facebook Twitter

thealannagallo

đź“– Former teacher (M.Ed.)
🌍 Secular homeschool + worldschool
🧠 Raising uninfluenceable global citizens
đźš« Rethinking screens & school
⬇️ Uninfluenceable

I said what I said. And I wrote a longer essay ove I said what I said. And I wrote a longer essay over on Substack about this.Comment AGSUB for the link to read the essay.Comment GET IT for the link to my book Uninfluenceable that will help you raise kids who can’t be influenced by the algorithm.
Comment AGSUB if you want to read more essays like Comment AGSUB if you want to read more essays like this and learn how to raise kids who can think critically in a world full of influence.We often talk about media literacy like it’s a lesson kids get later, in school, when they’re older.But it actually starts much earlier.It starts with a child who can pause instead of reacting. Who can tolerate boredom without needing constant stimulation. Who is comfortable questioning what they see instead of immediately absorbing it.Because the reality is this: media doesn’t just entertain kids. It trains them.It trains their attention. It trains their emotions. It trains what they believe is normal.And if we want children who won’t fall for every trend, every message, every algorithmic push, we have to give them the off-screen skills first.The ability to focus. To reflect. To question. To think independently.Comment AGSUB if you want to keep exploring how to raise kids who can navigate media without being shaped by it.
Comment AGSUB if you want to read more essays like Comment AGSUB if you want to read more essays like this and learn how to raise children who truly think for themselves.If we want kids to think independently, we have to start by changing what we reward at home.It looks like slowing down when they ask “why” instead of rushing to give the “right” answer. It looks like tolerating disagreement without taking it as disrespect. It looks like valuing curiosity more than quick compliance.Critical thinking isn’t built through lectures. It’s built through everyday moments where children feel safe to question, explore, and think out loud.Because kids don’t learn to think freely in environments where they’re only praised for getting things “right.” They learn it where wondering, doubting, and even pushing back are treated as part of growing.Comment AGSUB if you want to keep exploring how to create that kind of space at home.
Instagram post 18100066873916538 Instagram post 18100066873916538
We talk about media literacy like it starts in mid We talk about media literacy like it starts in middle school with lessons about ads and fake news.But it starts way earlier than that.It starts with a child who can sit in boredom long enough to think. Who can focus on one thing without needing constant stimulation. Who can feel an emotion without immediately escaping it.Because the internet doesn’t reward critical thinking. It rewards speed, reaction, and impulse.If kids grow up only practicing scrolling, consuming, and reacting, they don’t magically become thoughtful, discerning teens online.They become easier to persuade. Easier to sell to. Easier to influence.This isn’t about fear. It’s about preparation.
Reading builds more than vocabulary. It builds imm Reading builds more than vocabulary. It builds immunity to nonsense.We’ve been taught to think literacy is academic. Grades. Benchmarks. Lexile levels. Test scores.But real reading... the slow, focused, deep kind... does something much bigger.It teaches kids to sit with ideas. To notice when something doesn’t add up. To ask questions instead of just absorbing whatever they’re handed.And in a world run by headlines, algorithms, influencers, and outrage cycles… that skill is protective.Because kids who can think critically are harder to manipulate. Harder to scare. Harder to sell lies to.That’s not just “doing well in school.” That’s raising a child with an internal compass.
Follow on Instagram

Explore

  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact
  • Podcast

Copyright © 2026 · Play. Learn. Thrive. · Hearten Made

Scroll to top
  • Home
  • About
  • Screen Reset
  • Blog
    • Play
    • Learn
    • Thrive
  • Shop
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.