One of Canada’s best-known authors on how to raise boys will be the special guest at a Richmond school’s speaker series next week.
Barry MacDonald, whose books Boy Smarts and Boys on Target, will be front and centre next Wednesday at the Choice School for the Gifted.
MacDonald, also a teacher and counsellor, has revolutionized the way many parents of boys think and he will allow the audience to tap into his mind at the private school on Westminster Highway on Jan. 27.
Over the years, MacDonald has questioned the over diagnosing of ADHD among boys, asked why 80 per cent of video game players are boys, and studied the varied needs of boys in a bid to enable parents to respond in the most productive way.
Carmen Forsberg, mother of Choice School student Ethan Mars, 7, said the school and the MacDonald event is tailor-made for her and her son.
“Ethan has ADHD and he needs his energy channelled in a creative way,” said Forsberg, who is helping the school PAC promote the event.
“This is a great school for him; if he needs to run for three minutes, he can. Before, I was finding it hard for my son to have a successful day.”
Forsberg said she’s working her way through MacDonald’s books right now and “a lot of what he says resonates with me; boys are very different in the way they behave and learn. And Ethan is one of those little boys who’s big and explosive sometimes and he needs an outlet.”
MacDonald’s books will be available to buy on the night (payment by cheque), which runs from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
The event is open to the public and tickets, costing $12 (plus a service fee of $1.26), can be bought online at eventbrite.ca.
For more information, email [email protected].
