How can you encourage your kids to crack a book? Scholastic’s recently released 2010 Kids & Family Reading Report may help. They interviewed 1,045 kids and their parents to ask some key questions about the state of reading in today’s families. Not surprisingly, 41 percent of parents believe electronics have led to a decrease in the time kids spend reading for fun. But rather than dismissing electronics as the downfall of reading, perhaps parents should use them as a tool: One-third of kids aged 9 to 17 said they would read more books for fun if those books were e-books. Another tip from the study? Allow children to pick out which books they want to read. Ninety percent of children surveyed said they were more likely to finish a book that they had chosen themselves.

Read more about the report or download the full document here. And for some suggestions about some great books for boys, read this article.

What parents believe their young child can feel and do differs dramatically from reality, according to a recent survey released by the non-profit group Zero to Three. I recently talked about the survey with Ross Thompson, Ph.D.—a psychologist and fellow board member of Zero to Three. (I serve as Vice President of the board.)

“When it comes to understanding a young child’s emotional life,” Thompson says, “many parents underestimated the vitality of a baby’s emotional experience.” For example, only 30 percent of parents thought a baby can experience strong emotions, but research shows that by the age of 6 months, and even earlier, babies are capable of experiencing and expressing a host of emotions, including anger, sadness, surprise and joy.

On the flip side, “parents really thought there was more that kids were capable of in the early years than we know to be true,” says Thompson. Over 40 percent of parents thought a child aged 3 could control their emotions and manage tantrums. Research shows that this is an unrealistic expectation.

Watch the video of my interview with Ross Thompson below. And for more information, visit Zero to Three’s website.

We all want our kids to be popular—or do we? The perks of a membership to the In Crowd certainly exist, but there are definite pitfalls to popularity.

I recently had psychologist and MomLogic contributor Wendy Walsh, Ph. D. on my show to discuss the negative effects of being part of the “cool” clique.

“A recent study that followed a group of eighth graders for a year found that the most popular ones acted out the group norms more aggressively and led the way in to some forms of delinquency and some drug use,” Walsh says. The healthiest place for you child on the popularity scale? Probably somewhere in the middle, Walsh says.

See my complete interview with Dr. Walsh below for tips on how to help your teen handle peer problems.

If your elementary schooler or preteen’s calendar is littered with soccer practices, music lessons, or art classes (or option D, all of the above), consider now the time to start culling those appointments.

Trimming your child’s calendar can pay off down the road as he or she approaches the teen years, and chances are they’ll appreciate it immediately. Kidshealth.org polled almost 900 9- to 13-year-old boys and girls a few years ago. They found that 61 percent of those children wished they had more free time, and 39 percent were involved in three or more extracurricular activities.

Another telling stat? Four out of 10 of the children polled said they felt stressed most or all of the time because they had too much to do.

Recent research may make your family’s food woes a littler easier to digest.

One study, from University College London, that looked at identical and fraternal twins, suggested that some children are genetically predisposed to shun new foods. This fear — known as food neophobia — may be a remnant from the days when humans had to scavenge for food and it was wise to be wary because that weird green plant could be toxic. Your toddler’s reaction to those weird green beans could actually be a response hardwired into his brain. That said, there are several related studies which suggest that parents should not decide "Johnny hates spinach" based on first impressions.  Unless a child rejects something at least 8 times (not in one meal!), don’t assume he’ll never grow to like that food.

Be careful what you say about your party days

It’s no secret that your teenager’s peers can affect his or her decision to drink underage. But what if the influential teen is you-at age 16?  As part of a science talent search, 17-year-old Chelsea Jurman, of Roslyn Heights, New York, surveyed 123 of her classmates. Her results suggest that teen attitudes toward drinking and their drinking behavior correlate with their perception of their parents’ teenage alcohol use. In other words, if your teen believes you threw back a few choice beverages in your younger days, he or she is more likely to imbibe than is a pal whose parents were teatotallers. As Jurman aptly put it, ""When you’re a teenager, perception is reality and what they take away from the conversation is, ‘If my parents drank as teens and they turned out all right, then this must mean it’s O.K. for me to drink, too.’ "Jurman’s study garnered her a winning place in the Intel Science Talent Search and a trip to D.C. to meet the President. Given her success, one can only assume that her parents were social science wunderkinds!