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4 Hudson Valley Parent n October 2016 ON OUR COVER In this issue COLUMNS FEATURES 6 Editor's Journal: Surrender the pink BY FELICIA HODGES 30 Calendar: Great places to go and things to do 38 Marketplace: Hudson Valley products and services HV PARENT READER FEEDBACK What do you expect from parent/teacher conferences? Both the positive and negative. My son has a 504 [and] I make it a point to intro myself personally at open house so teachers know up - front that I'm pro-active. I also hope if anything negative happens that there's contact prior to conference time so it can be worked on. Kids ar- en't always the greatest at telling us what's going on at school, so I rely on teachers for feedback. — Erica Nemeth I would want to [not only] know the social part, but how the school plans to deal with conflict and what practices they want us to carry over in the home. — Maureen Katherine In order to prep for conferences it is important for the teacher to have examples of the strengths and needs, to be short and to the point, and convey that our child's heart and overall well-being are more import- ant than grades. The parents should be prepared with questions and examples of any concerns and what they are already doing at home. — Kristen Fortuna I like to hear what my children are like, socially, in school. Gener- ally, communication is great and I know how/what they're doing academically, but I like to know if they're cooperative in groups, if they're leaders, if they interact with all of the other kids, etc. — Heidi Leonard 8 I am a Hudson Valley Parent Cathy Varnok: Offering breast cancer survivors Miles of Hope BY BRIAN PJ CRONIN 10 Double Duty: Saving for your child's college education and your retirement Practical advice for putting money away for two major life events BY FELICIA HODGES 12 Bullying: What parents should know What to do – and how – when your child is being bullied by peers BY STACEY LUTZ 16 Making the most of conferences with teachers How to best prepare for parent-teacher meetings BY KAREN KAUFMAN ORLOFF 18 Vaccines for children with special needs Part four of our series on childhood immunizations BY KAREN MASERJIAN SHAN 22 When romance rages: Recognizing and preventing teen battering Helping parents understand adolescent dating violence BY LINDA FREEMAN 26 Bowling teaches more than just how to bowl Find out about the skills your child can pick up in the alley 28 Falling for fall Our round-up of fall fun featuring photos sent in by our readers This month's cover kid is Lukas, 3, from Middletown. He likes to ride his bike, read, color, and play as much as he loves science, puzzles and singing. Photo by Michael Bloom