Bugs
crawling through a child’s hair—the thought alone is enough to make any parent
wince. While exposure is inevitable for young kids, especially as school swings
back in session and campers return from destinations both near and far, lice
evoke more fear than necessary. According to experts, there are plenty of
convenient and effective measures for prevention and, if need be, a foolproof
treatment plan.

Many
of the common nit-driven misconceptions encompass the who and the how. To set
the record straight: kids can’t get lice from playing with animals, nor can
the tiny bugs fly (phew!) or even live for very long on furniture—they can only be
transmitted by close contact with other people. Dalya Harel, the CEO of LiceBustersNYC, a lice
removal service, can certainly attest to this as she’s seen heightened demand
after sleepover parties–“the more, the merrier,” she jokes.

Contrary
to popular opinion, lice don’t like dirty hair—they prefer clean coifs where
they can easily hold onto hair follicles, and their eggs will stick to the scalp. “Lice are very hygienic, they only come
to clean people,” Harel says. So letting
children’s hair stay a bit oily will help prevent lice from setting up
residence, but there are also shampoos, conditioners and sprays that contain repellent to keep the bugs at bay. Harel even recommends using a drop of garlic
extract on the hair.

Risa
Barash, the Founder of Fairy Tales Hair Care, emphasizes that “it’s really head-to-head contact” that causes lice. She
suggests keeping kids’ coats, hats and scarves away from others to prevent the
bugs from crawling over, as well as conducting bi-weekly head checks. “Just give a look, check behind the ears, check the back of
the neck, look at the part lines.”

For a
more comprehensive description of what to look for, the “Is it Lice?” App, now
available in the iTunes App Store from Hair Whisperers and the Kazu Agency,
provides step-by-step instructions and video demonstrations. It also shows what
to do if lice are found and provides links to local services that will assist
with treatment.

Got lice at home? Don’t panic. The standard remedy remains washing with a special shampoo
to kill the bugs and then thoroughly combing the hair with an extremely
fine-toothed comb to ensure the removal of every egg.

To help loosen eggs and
get them to stick to the comb, Adie Horowitz, the owner of Licenders, a NYC-based
head lice treatment studio, recommends using a thick hair conditioner mixed
with baking soda and combing small sections at a time. There are also products
which contain enzymes to break down the glue that attaches the eggs to
hair. If it all seems a little
overwhelming, her company is there to help. “Our goal is to take the horror
away from parents and give them their lives back quickly.”

September is National
Head Lice Prevention Month. For more information, visit headlice.org.

LICE FIGHTERS

Babo Botanicals Rosemary Tea Tree Lice
Repel Conditioning Spray

Clinically proven to be
95% effective at repelling lice, especially when used in combination with the
companion shampoo, this conditioner is certifiably organic. Rosemary, mint and tea tree oils combine to
keep lice at bay. 8 oz. bottle, $18, babobotanicals.com

Fairy Tales Rosemary Repel Leave-In
Conditioning Spray

The so-good-smelling blend
of rosemary, citronella, tea tree, lemongrass, peppermint and sage in this
repellent conditioner has proven to be 92% effective at preventing lice.
8 oz. bottle, $10.95, fairytaleshaircare.com

Licenders Lice Shampoo

An all-natural shampoo (containing
zero pesticides) that relies on enzymes to kill lice by dissolving their
shells. And unlike pesticides, insects
won’t develop a resistance because they use the same enzymes.
8 oz. bottle, $34, licenders.com

So Cozy Boo! Shampoo and Conditioner

These all-natural hair care
products will not only clean, strengthen and detangle your kiddo’s strands, but
also contain tea tree, rosemary and lavender oils to spook the nits away—for
good.
8 oz. bottle, $14.50, socozy.com

FlexSchool

Our mission is to provide an engaging&nbsp;learning experience in a supportive environment where students are free to explore their&nbsp;passions, embrace their challenges and find a community of teachers and friends who&nbsp;understand and accept them as they are. Academics: To meet the unique needs of gifted and 2e learners &ndash; students who may have co-occurring&nbsp;learning challenges along with their gifts &ndash; we provide a gifted-level curriculum with built-in&nbsp;scaffolding, developed by credentialed experts in both gifted education and special education,&nbsp;as well as subject-area experts. Small, discussion-based classes ensure our students can&nbsp;engage in stimulating conversation with intellectual peers while receiving individualized attention&nbsp;and support. Talent Development and Experiential Learning: Central to our program is our strengths-based, interest-based approach to learning. All&nbsp;FlexSchool students pursue personal passion projects and choose from a diverse menu of&nbsp;enrichment activities and electives designed to support exploration and talent development. Our&nbsp;signature FlexFriday experiential learning program provides essential connections between&nbsp;classroom learning and the real world. Executive Functioning and Learning Support: All FlexSchool students have access to an extensive range of accommodations, including&nbsp;breaks as needed, daily executive functioning support, flexible seating, extended time, assistive&nbsp;technology and more. Learning Specialist support is available on every FlexSchool campus. Social-Emotional Learning and School Counseling: Our caring team of certified school counselors, under the guidance of a consulting psychologist,&nbsp;provide robust social-emotional learning and social pragmatics programming. Students are&nbsp;welcome to visit the school counselor at any time &ndash; no appointment necessary. FlexSchool&nbsp;counselors also maintain a collaborative relationship with parents and outside providers. Rolling admissions: We understand that student needs don&rsquo;t always neatly align with the academic calendar, so&nbsp;FlexSchool admits students on a rolling basis. To learn more, join FlexSchool founder Jacqui&nbsp;Byrne live via Zoom for a Virtual Open House. To receive a call from our admissions team,&nbsp;inquire online, email us at admissions@flexschool.net or call 908-279-0787.

Sylvan Learning Center

We know how hard you're working to help get your child's skills and grades up. If you aren't seeing a difference, turn to Sylvan. They can help you get beyond the symptoms and find out what's really going on. Sylvan offers support in reading, writing, math, and SAT Prep. Their assessments pinpoint exactly where to focus to make the biggest difference and their teachers are experts in today's teaching methods. They can guide your child through his or her own learning plan, so you see a change quickly. You aren't in this alone! Sylvan is here for you. Call them today. Your Child Is Unique. With Sylvan, You&rsquo;ll Get Personalized Tutoring to Match.&nbsp; If you&rsquo;re like most Sylvan families, you don&rsquo;t believe that education should be &ldquo;one size fits all.&rdquo; You want learning to be personalized to your child&rsquo;s talents and needs. At Sylvan, it is. You&rsquo;ll find the right program for exactly where your child is in the educational journey &mdash; whether you want help catching up, honing skills, taking on advanced classes or getting ready for big college dreams. At Sylvan Learning of Mineola, they&rsquo;re focused on building academic confidence, igniting intellectual curiosity, and inspiring a love for learning &ndash; all of which make a big impact in school and in life.&nbsp; This school year, you don&rsquo;t have to go it alone. Getting tutoring support from Sylvan&rsquo;s education experts can help immensely! Think: Less pressure on you, less frustration at home and more success in school! Their caring teachers are experts at encouraging and motivating kids to learn, grow and flourish. They&rsquo;ll help your child not only grasp tough concepts, but also improve self-esteem and spark a desire and eagerness to learn.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;

Yedidya Academy

Yedidya Academy is a brand new Hebrew School with the goal of empowering students with ritual cultural, and Hebrew literacy and a deep love of heritage and community connection. We do this though out unique model: - Inspire strong Jewish Identities: inspire a lasting love and pride in Judaism by connection the relevance of classic Jewish values to the modern era. - &lsquo;School-to-Shul&rsquo; integration incl. weekly intergenerational prayer service, ICCJ special events, weekly swim benefit through the ICCJ Sports Clinic, and more. - Individualized attention: self-paced Hebrew literacy, small group Torah study, and experiential exploration of Jewish culture and history through music, art, and celebration.