Maynard-related stories

The Washington, D.C. school district, already rocked by infighting with its teachers, is getting another black eye from reports of more than 200 cases of staff going overboard disciplining students in the last school year.

A company that used to handle security for the D.C. school district tallied 220 incidents where teachers and school staff were accused of hitting or verbally abusing students during the 2008-2009 school year. The security company submitted the complaints to the District of Columbia Police Department, according to The Washington Post, but the cops could not establish how many of the allegations led to criminal charges.

The majority of the 220 accusations involved younger children; 128 of the children involved were elementary school students and 34 were middle schoolers, according to the tally. The reports range from slapping and choking to insults and verbal abuse.

Corporal punishment in schools is banned in 30 states and in the District of Columbia, according to the Center for Effective Discipline. Among the other states, most give school districts and administrators leeway to set rules, while only Indiana and Arkansas give the authority to teachers, according to the Center's review of state laws.

When Scott Lee Cohen dropped out of the Illinois lieutenant governor race on Super Bowl Sunday, he cried at his press conference. So did his 11-year-old son. On camera.

Cohen, the Democratic candidate who owns a pawnshop in Chicago, withdrew amid allegations of domestic abuse by a girlfriend (who is a former prostitute), steroid abuse and "forcing himself on his ex-wife," according to the Chicago Sun-Times. Allegedly.

Here is a video of the emotional press conference at Chicago's Hop Haus tavern. The boy on the left is his 11-year-old son, Jacob, one of Cohen's four children.

Source

Vita Coco is more flavorful than water, but has a fraction of the calories in apple juice. Plus it offers great nutritional benefits, inlcuding electrolytes and lots of potassium. Oh, and Madonna loves it, so there's that.

Pack of 12 available for $21 at amazon.com

Related: Sweetened Juice Linked to Diabetes

Carrie Underwood will appear on "Sesame Street" -- as a worm.

But that's not a bad thing. See, the "American Idol" winner and country music superstar has a muppet of her very own: Carrie Underworm. Underwood performed "Worm Anthem," an original song for the kids show, in which she sings about being "proud to be a worm."

Here is a video preview, in which Carrie Underworm is introduced by none other than NASCAR superstar Jeff Gordon.

Source

As parents and researchers struggle and debate about the cause of the autism epidemic -- or if there's even an epidemic at all -- a new study suggests a link between the disorder and parents' ages.

A study published Feb. 8 in the journal Autism Research concludes that older mothers are more likely than younger ones to have a child with autism. In addition, older fathers significantly contribute to the risk of autism when their partners are under 30.

The New York Times reports researchers analyzed almost five million births in California during the 1990s. Some 12,159 of those children were diagnosed with autism.

According to the Times, previous research concluded that autism diagnoses grew with the age of the father. In this latest study, researchers found when the father was older than 40 and the mother was younger than 30, the autism rate was 59 percent higher than it was for younger men. When the mothers were over 30, that number was about 12 percent.

Source

Here's my husband's brilliant book idea: "The Lazy Dad's Guide to Fun with Kids." It would contain all sorts of games exhausted parents could play without ever getting off the couch. Think: Shoe store. ("Hey kids, I'd like to buy some slippers!") And bus driver. ("Everyone onto the bus!")

Of course, he never got around to writing it -- too tired -- and now our kids are 11 and 13. But it popped into my mind when I talking with a very wise pre-school teacher yesterday who she shared her secret for raising happier, spunkier kids:

"Don't. Entertain. Them."

It was like the Tiddly Winks falling from my eyes. That's it! We have taken on the job of entertaining our kids when it is THEIR job to entertain themselves!

Ads that proclaim "Black Children Are An Endangered Species" are raising eyebrows in Atlanta.

The 65 billboards, one of which is pictured above, are simple -- just that phrase, a large photo of a child's face, and the Web site, TooManyAborted.com.

Source

A hospital in Canada offers some obese children surgery designed to help them lose weight and reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and other potential killers.

The surgery is performed at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. The hospital -- nicknamed SickKids -- is Canada's largest research hospital and one of the largest pediatric academic health science centers in the world.

The Canadian newspaper the Globe and Mail reports physicians at the hospital are the first in Canada to routinely provide obesity surgery to children. The program officially launches this week.

According to the Globe and Mail, it is designed for children ages 12 to 17 with "complex obesity." That means they are overweight because of a medical condition such as a brain tumor.

Source

Super style: Forget the Saints. Or the Colts. Or whoever it was playing in that football game that kept interrupting the million dollar commercials Feb. 7. Fashion watchers and celeb stalkers had their eyes planted firmly on Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt and their son, Maddox Jolie-Pitt, as they took in Super Bowl XLIV in Miami.

The always stylish trio attended the big game dressed in black -- their go-to color when it comes to everything from the red carpet to the football field. Mom Angelina looked sleek -- and chic -- in black slacks and a black belted trench. Dad Brad was in a black suit -- if only he'd lose that scruffy goatee and beanie he's been wearing everywhere.

And Maddox, 8, showed some New Orleans love by wearing a Saints jersey. Appropriate, since the family has had a home in the Louisiana city for the past few years.

Now, that's winning style.

Related: Celebrity Football Fans

Get more at ManBabies.com!

After a slew of Super Bowl commercials with high price tags and low IQs, many of which portrayed men as doofy, pants-less dolts, we can't help but wonder if ManBabies.com has something to do with sparking the trend.

The site is a collection of reader-submitted, mildly creepy and strangely addictive images, which you can create with Photoshop by swapping the heads of a baby and an adult. Or, for $15, you can get someone to do the work for you by putting in a "Personal Manbaby Request."

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the leading cause of death for babies ages 1 month to 1 year old. The causes of SIDS are still not fully understood, and while the Back to Sleep campaign has eliminated many deaths, SIDS is still a worry for new parents.

Now, researchers from Children's Hospital Boston say the brain chemical serotonin may be to blame. Serotonin is partly responsible for regulating breathing, blood pressure, heart rate and other involuntary actions as we sleep. According to the researchers, low levels of serotonin may put a baby at risk of SIDS. Normally, serotonin helps babies wake up when they have breathing problems in their sleep, so they can turn their heads and breathe in fresh air. But babies with low serotonin levels may never wake.