Foundation · ages 0-35 min · Sep 16
Teaching kids household tasks: show, don't just tell
Why walking through the steps beside your child works better than reminding them again
Read & try the practice 5 min
The compass for our work
The Launch Trajectory™
An evidence-based map for raising a launch-ready 18-year-old, and a guide for parents to grow with them through the journey.
Why work backwards
Most parenting advice reacts to the present moment. The Launch Trajectory starts at the other end: with the capabilities that will help your child successfully launch into adulthood. We work backwards from age 18, naming the skills, the supports, and the evolving role of the parent that support age-appropriate developmental outcomes. The Launch Trajectory is your parenting guide, all backed by expert research and translated into activities and programs that your family will enjoy.
BirthThe growth runway →Launch · age 18
age 0
age 3
age 7
age 12
age 18
Phase 01 · Ages 0-3
Foundation
The child
The child learns through senses and motion, and learns whether the world is reliable.
Parent as Anchor
You are the steady ground. Routines, repetition, warmth, and presence are the curriculum.
Skills built
Predictable ritualsCo-regulationServe-and-return
Phase 02 · Ages 4-7
Connection
The child
Imagination, language, and a sense of self come online. The child asserts ideas in the world.
Parent as Interpreter
Translate big feelings into language. Hold limits with empathy. Let initiative happen.
Skills built
Name it to tame itPretend playRepair after rupture
Phase 03 · Ages 8-12
Formation
The child
Logic and skill-building take hold. The child forms beliefs about what they can do.
Parent as Coach
Step back enough that mastery is theirs. Coach effort. Reflect with them, not for them.
Skills built
Mastery experiencesDecision ownershipStrengths-spotting
Phase 04 · Ages 13-18
Ignition
The child
Abstract thought and identity formation. They author the next chapter.
Parent as Guide
Transfer the controls. Hold the relationship. Become a trusted reference, not the director.
Skills built
Control transferAdult conversationsIdentity work
Age 18 · the goal
A launch-ready adult: confident, capable, resilient, and supported by a parent relationship that has grown with them along the journey.
The Sunday letter: one insight, one practice.
Curated research, with something to try while it's still the same week.
How the research lands
From a study you'd never read to something you try tonight.
Every piece we publish ends with something the family can run this week. When the research adds up to more than one practice, we weave it into a structured program.
We read the research so you don't have to.
We pull from authoritative, peer-reviewed work on family and child development, then pick what matters for real families.
Old wisdom meets new science.
The work that's stood the test of time alongside what's emerging now, without trend-chasing or canon-worship.
Matched to your child's age and phase.
Everything we publish is tagged to the Launch Trajectory, so you find what's relevant to where your family actually is.
Every insight ends with something to try.
One concrete thing: fifteen minutes tonight, a weekend ritual, or a multi-week experiment. Never homework for its own sake.
The latest insights
Read the latest research translated for your family.
Connection · ages 4-7
Family meeting for kids: design your school-year routine together
Why letting your child help build the morning routine makes it work better than any schedule you hand them…
Weekly experimentRead
Ignition · ages 13-18
College readiness skills teens build before they leave home
The habits that matter most in college have nothing to do with transcripts, and parents can help build them now, one han…
Multi-week practiceRead
Foundation · ages 0-3
Co-regulation: how your calm becomes your child's calm
What Harvard's research on stress balance means for the moments before the meltdown ends…
Multi-week practiceRead
Programs
Where weekly practices grow into lasting change.
When a body of research is too rich for a single insight, we weave multiple bodies of work into a structured, multi-week sequence, with named outcomes for both parent and child, and a companion book that goes deeper for those who want it.