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5 Minutes for Books — Can I Have a Cell Phone for Hanukkah?

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This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Can I Have a Cell Phone for Hanukkah? is one of the best parenting books I’ve read this year. As an evangelical Christian, I wouldn’t normally pick up “the essential scoop on raising modern Jewish kids,” but as a mom trying to navigate the ever-changing waters of my nine-year-old’s life in 2007, I have no doubt that parenting this generation requires a working knowledge of their modern culture. Author Sharon Duke Estroff dishes up the scoop with humor and a balanced perspective stemming from her expertise as a mother of four and twenty years of teaching experience.

Estroff thoroughly covers a range of topics of interest for those of us parenting school-aged kids including

  • kindergarten readiness and school enrollment (public or private)
  • teaching your children to properly handle money
  • friendship (including a funny chapter with a Q&A format answering all those questions about the post-preschool era playdate, another on “the schocan-i.jpgolyard social jungle,” and yet another on birthday parties, and yes, an exclusively Jewish concern–the Bar/Bat Mitzvah)
  • extra-curriculars: how much, how to pick them, and how to balance them with religious commitments
  • a very informative chapter on “parenting the net generation” with wonderful overviews and safety precautions about IM, social networking, cyber bullying and yes, cell phones.

You can download a discussion guide at the author’s site to enhance your study or make a perfect springboard for a book club meeting.

If you would like to win one of five copies, leave a comment here, and we’ll announce the winner in next week’s book column.

The winners of For Parents Only are #40, Jessica and #88 Amy R.

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45 Comments

  4. Sounds like a wonderful book! I would love to have it! At ten, my daughter is asking for things I wouldn’t have dreamed of asking for until I was atleast 13!

    Reply

  12. thanks for the info……..i probably would have never even looked at this book, but it looks like something that would be beneficial!

    Reply

  19. Greetings,

    What a wonderful contest…definitely helpful for making informed decisions leading to a wise vision.

    Have a beautiful day,
    Lesley

    Reply

  21. As a part-time nanny for my grandchildren, I’d like to check out how to raise “modern Jewish kids.” Thanks for the opportunity.

    Reply

  24. Our house is all about Christmakah! So if anyone could tell me how to raise a child in this modern day and age in a blended family, I am all over it!! Me please, me! 🙂

    Reply

  32. This sounds like a great book. In my house… one wants a cell phone and the other an iPod! What ever happened to the presents I got as a kid… socks, hair bands and clips, crayons and coloring books, BOOKS! Progress?

    Reply

  41. :::snort::: how did this author know what my 10 year old dd wanted for Hanukkah? It’s been part of her ‘wish list’ for the past year…

    Oh, and don’t be surprised if your children receive invitations to Bar and Bat Mitzvah celebrations as they get older.

    Reply