AWARD-WINNING BOOKS
CHILD DEVELOPMENT EXPERTISE
JOYFUL LEARNING!
Dr. Joanne Foster
DISCOVER insights, RESOuRCES, AnD A HEARTWARMING CHILDREN’s STORY, TOO!
Welcome to my website! I write about learning, creativity, motivation, and children’s well-being, and I offer guidance and inspiration for parents, educators, and young minds. For decades, I’ve been sharing exciting ideas and educational strategies to support families, and foster children’s and teens’ optimal growth. You’ll find informed perspectives—with a creative flair. Enoy!
BOOK UPDATES – TIMELY RESOURCES – NEWS – BONUS FEATURES
EMPOWER LEARNING, CREATIVITY, AND OPTIMAL CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Books
My 9th book is a children’s picture book! It will be released in the fall of 2026, so I’ll be sharing lots of news about that! This rhyming story, for kids 3 to 7, is illustrated by the INCREDIBLY talented Brandon Dorman! The pages are filled with compelling verses and vivid images that will empower creative thinking, emotional strength, problem-solving, family connectivity, and bedtime snuggles.
Here’s a collection of publications, written to inform and delight families, teachers, caregivers, and health professionals. Please scroll through all these titles, click on each one, and see what resonates for you!
Ignite Your Ideas, Creativity for Kids
A 2025 double medalist! This book is bursting with ideas designed to fuel possibilities!
Ignite Your Ideas: Creativity for Kids is the 8th book written by multiple award-winning author and gifted education specialist, Dr. Joanne Foster. This book is for readers aged ten and up. However, parents, teachers, and others will also discover important information and abundant strategies to fortify their own creativity, and to inspire the young people in their lives! Set creativity aglow and feel the burn, because these pages positively sizzle with ideas that will ignite the imagination!
Being Smart About Gifted Learning
Empowering Parents and Kids Through Challenge and Change
Being Smart about Gifted Learning: Empowering Parents and Kids Through Challenge and Change is the third edition of the multi-award-winning Being Smart, and it is totally updated and revised! Dona Matthews, Ph.D., and Joanne Foster, Ed.D., provide information and strategies to encourage children’s and adolescents’ optimal development.
ABCs of Raising Smarter Kids
Hundreds of Ways to Inspire Your Child
In ABCs of Raising Smarter Kids, each letter of the alphabet has a clear thematic focus (such as Development, Independence, Learning, Motivation, and Productivity). The ABC design differentiates this book from other parenting, gifted-related, and educational publications; the alliterative style makes the book unique; and the illustrations by artist Christine Thammavongsa are creative and thought-provoking. ABCs is a distinctive, engaging, and comprehensive book.
Bust Your Buts
Tips For Teens Who Procrastinate
Bust Your Buts is an award-winning book for older children and teens—and it’s filled with tips to help them understand, prevent, manage, and eliminate procrastination. There are 28 BUTS (or reasons why kids procrastinate), including having too much to do, being distracted, laziness, not wanting to take risks, being disorganized, confusion, lacking confidence, and more… Kids will find out how to bust their BUTS! They will learn how to tap their strengths, confront challenges, and become more successful.
Not Now, Maybe Later
Helping Children Overcome Procrastination
Not Now, Maybe Later helps parents and teachers understand why children procrastinate and what to do about it. Chapters are organized around specific areas of focus such as expectations; different age levels; goal-setting; power struggles about messiness, chores, and homework, motivation, and more. There are hundreds of practical ideas to help children and teens overcome tendencies to procrastinate. And these strategies apply to adults, too!
Beyond Intelligence
Secrets For Raising Happily Productive Kids
Beyond Intelligence is an informative resource for busy parents. Dona Matthews and Joanne Foster discuss how intelligence develops and describe how parents can offer children and teens a healthy balance of challenge and support. Using quizzes, checklists, and examples from decades of work with families and teachers, the authors reveal how to nurture creativity, curiosity, resilience, and good work habits so kids can be happily productive.
Beyond Intelligence is now available in a Chinese edition!
Dr. Joanne Foster’s
Presentations
I’m pleased to offer presentations that can be tailored to groups of all sizes and audiences of all ages—and I can provide these presentations in various formats, including book readings, webinars, school visits, library programs, community gatherings, panel discussions, interactive sessions, interviews, workshops, and more. For further information, please visit my Presentation Page.
Back to School – 2025
This resource material has a targeted focus on matters that pertain to schooling. Additional school-related material is accessible on my Blog page, on my Resources page, and in the Fostering Kids’ Success Newsletter.
School-Related Imperatives: A Quick and Timely Q and A for Parents
How to facilitate successful learning experiences for your child? What if school programs don’t work well? How can children’s interests become meaningful pursuits? These pressing questions give rise to several action-oriented suggestions parents can consider and implement.
Finding the Right Educational Fit for Your Child
“Each child has their own unique learning needs and preferences….” In this blog, Dr. Joanne Foster shares a “call to action,” offering 10 “fitting” suggestions to help kids overcome challenges, and engage in meaningful learning.
Home-School-Community Partnerships
Dr. Joanne Foster emphasizes the importance of collaborative home-school-community partnerships for effective learning. She discusses the roles of students, parents, teachers, and administrators in creating a cohesive educational environment that nurtures students’ growth and development.
Next-Levelling: Going Beyond the Here-and-Now
Next-levelling—increasing abilities, knowledge, skillsets, and more—is enabling! It involves extending oneself and reaching for horizons, and it requires effort and determination. Find out how to support and encourage kids’ advancement.
Home-Based Learning
There’s an old adage: “Home is where the heart is.” Home is also where learning transpires, families bond, encouragement abounds, and endless possibilities ignite young minds. Find out more in this article on home-based learning.
Classroom Must-Haves
What contributes to an optimal classroom dynamic? Here are ten questions to consider, positioned in the context of an A-list of “must-haves.” These important elements apply to other learning environments, too!
Dynamic Assessment
Dynamic assessment bridges learning and teaching, tailoring education to a child’s unique journey. It’s a collaborative process, adapting to diverse learning styles through a cycle of assessment, tailored teaching, and reassessment.
Tips for Learners in a Digital World
Dr. Foster’s blog on digital learning emphasizes strategies for maximizing online productivity and focus, offering practical tips for both learners and parents to navigate and excel in the digital world.
Explorations and Discoveries
Joanne Foster’s article on ‘Explorations and Discoveries’ encourages diverse learning experiences for children, from nature exploration to real-life encounters, to foster curiosity, mindfulness, and a love of learning.
Selections from the Blog
These pieces represent a sampling of blogs written by Dr. Joanne Foster. To see more, click on the Blog Page – and subscribe to the Fostering Kids’ Success Newsletter.
Curiosity and Learning
“Curiosity is like a possibility potion—derived from wonder and anticipation, and peppered with question marks.” How can kids kick-start their curiosity? Why is it important? How can parents support it? Find out more here.
Happiness
We often say, “Happy Holidays,” or “Happy Birthday,” or wish for other “Happy” times. “Happiness is a state of being, and also a state of mind.” Here are practical strategies to nurture kids’ happiness, fortify shared laughter, and strengthen family ties.
Creativity For All
“Investing in creativity requires time, patience, and effort. However, those who appreciate a creative edge, and crack open doors to the imagination, reap joyful benefits—including increased learning possibilities and pleasure!” Read this blog and find out more!
Recent and Featured Blogs and Resources
These selected resources are topical, and address diverse areas of interest. To see many more relevant articles, as well as interviews and podcasts, check out my Blog page and Resources page on this website.
Curiosity and Learning
“Curiosity is like a possibility potion—derived from wonder and anticipation, and peppered with question marks.” How can kids kick-start their curiosity? Why is it important? How can parents support it? Find out more here.
Challenges? Positive Perspectives for 2026
A positive outlook can help children (and adults) overcome challenges! Whether rooted in and/or powered by optimism, creativity, reflection, calm, support, confidence, or something else, positivity is a game-changer! Discover more about positive perspectives in this article.
Happiness
We often say, “Happy Holidays,” or “Happy Birthday,” or wish for other “Happy” times. “Happiness is a state of being, and also a state of mind.” Here are practical strategies to nurture kids’ happiness, fortify shared laughter, and strengthen family ties.
Creativity For All
“Investing in creativity requires time, patience, and effort. However, those who appreciate a creative edge, and crack open doors to the imagination, reap joyful benefits—including increased learning possibilities and pleasure!” Read this blog and find out more!
In Appreciation of Creativity
Discover various aspects of creativity —including what it’s all about; how to think divergently, convergently, and critically; how creativity develops; and how families can use abilities, relationships, supports, and outlets to kickstart their creative energy at home and elsewhere.
Learning And Child Development: The Early Years
Here are some essentials ways parents can nurture children’s learning and development – alongside three supportive measures that focus on how to encourage children’s involvement in activities, help them experience joyful engagement, and foster their optimal growth.
Excerpted Segments from the Award-Winning Ignite Your Ideas
Please click on the images or the titles below to see excerpted material that offers a window into content within the pages of Dr. Joanne Foster's book Ignite Your Ideas: Creativity For Kids.
Curiosity and Creativity
Curiosity fuels creativity and intelligence. Dr. Joanne Foster emphasizes the importance of inquiry, purpose, and dialogue to build on knowledge, overcome challenges, and reach new heights, as she explains in Ignite Your Ideas: Creativity for Kids.
Wrestling with Creativity
Creativity may seem elusive or difficult. However, those who power through, and pursue creative avenues, can find joy and fulfillment. Dr. Foster reveals tips to help kids overcome self-doubt, resolve challenges, and become more creative.
Connections (and Why They Matter)
Connections are vital to learning and creativity. Dr. Foster likens them to a lifeline braided with family, friends, and community. Expanding our networks fosters collaboration, supports creativity, and leads to personal growth through new experiences.
Effort and Creativity
Effort fuels creativity and achievement. Dr. Foster emphasizes the importance of being “proactical”—proactive and practical—so aspirations become accomplishments. Through effort, we develop confidence, intellect, collaboration, and creativity while nurturing engagement and brainpower.
The Limitlessness of Creativity
Creativity offers a limitless perspective shift, like viewing the moon from space. It lets you embrace various points of view and make daily life more fulfilling by generating and developing ideas, turning glimmers into compelling realities.
Perceived Risk
Understanding perceived risk is crucial in creative pursuits. Learn how to distinguish between low and high risks and explore strategies to mitigate them, turning daunting challenges into achievable creative opportunities.