Parents Are Their Children’s First Teachers

Parents are silhouette-1082129__340 their children’s first and primary teacher. As the primary teacher of their children, they are responsible for nurturing their children’s healthy development.

Parents As First Teachers

The following strategies can assist parents in providing their children with loving guidance and support:

Communicate through your actions, words, readings, and by writing. Preschool children love to sing, talk, and act. All children love to read with their parents and talk about the story, predict, ask clarification questions, and create new adventures with the book’s characters. Children can enjoy telling stories that are captured through writing and pictures.
Listen with respect and ask questions for understanding. When listening to children, parents can ask clarification questions for added information. Thoughtful questions help children clarify solutions to their problems.
Give your complete attention each day and engage in playful learning. Children need and relish their parents’ time and attention. Parents can create a playful environment with their children and talk with them during your special times together. When engaging them in thoughtful conversations, parents can ask them questions that help them think and problem-solve solutions for everyday situations.
Advocate for your children’s needs. When children are struggling, parents can ask for help and acquire the necessary resources to help their children succeed. Parents do not need to have all the answers. They should not be embarrassed or ashamed to ask for help when their children are struggling with life or school.
Set appropriate and consistent boundaries when disciplining your children. Children feel loved and supported when parents work with them in setting limits for misbehavior. Once boundaries are established and defined, it is important to consistently reinforce them with respectful guidance.

Next Steps

Finally, you can reflect and comment on examples of how you successfully help your children as their primary teacher. Best practices can be shared in future blogs.

Treasure the journey!

Mary Ann

Adjusting to the First Weeks of School

In California, school now begins in mid-August through the beginning of September catching many of us by surprise. All of a sudden, it is necessary to mobilize our children and get them out the door early with their lunches, homework, backpacks and freshly brushed hair. How can we best smooth this transition?

The prospect of a fresh start to the school year is marketed through back to school shopping for new outfits, school supplies and backpacks. The prospect of reconnecting with friends, sharing summer experiences and finding the new classroom are also helpful. How can we best sustain this energy and enthusiasm beyond the first day?

Learn the Classroom Rules

One of my sons had a sixth grade teacher whose mission that first week was to hit the ground running in terms of organization and parental involvement. Each day my son brought home a checklist for us to review, initial and then sign for him to bring to school the next morning. My son earned points for having all of his homework completed, his notebook organized etc. He lost points for loose papers, and notably the absence of a make or break parental signature page. At the end of the week, if he was successful in attaining the required number of points, my son would participate in the class party. The substance of the party varied and could include free time, a class outing or watching an educational video.

On the other hand, those students who did not meet the required point minimum, would have to stay after school, miss lunch and most importantly go to another room during the reward time. This regime was harsh. Typically, the same students continuously missed out. From my educator’s perspective, they often had learning disabilities such as attention deficit or executive functioning challenges. Yet in our own household this regime shaped a renewed commitment to organization.

Get Organized the Night Before

Before going to sleep, under my watchful eye, my son packed his backpack according to his check sheet specifications. He placed it next to the exit door, which we could not possibly avoid without tripping over it. The required parental signature document was taped on the front door next to the doorknob, for reference early the next morning. The ensuing day’s outfit including shoes and socks were selected and laid out the night before. His lunch was prepared and labeled with his name and placed at the front of the shelf eye level in the refrigerator. We didn’t dare forget the lunch, as we were strongly discouraged from bringing it up to school if it were left behind.

Support the Teacher

This entire regime was an anathema to our somewhat chaotic style of parenting. It seemed both harsh and inflexible. Each morning, I found that my son was positioning at the starting line and sprinting to the car. Yet he learned the following valuable lessons:

Figure out the new teacher’s system.

Like it or not, follow these instructions as the teacher is in charge.

As much as possible, plan ahead and assemble the necessary items in advance.

No matter what, bring the freshly minted parental signature sheet every day.

With my heartfelt wishes for a smooth start to the school year,

Karen

Yikes! Brandon’s Twin Sisters Turn Four

The twins are turning four and their passion for life’s many adventures continue to inspire me and challenge my energy. We just had our twin granddaughters stay with us for four days. I have always dreamed what it would be like to have twins party all night. I finally had the opportunity to watch this lively celebration. Our first night together was spent at a beach motel with the twins sharing a double bed. They loved the adventure so much that they would not relax and just kept playing. After 30 minutes of fun, I finally informed them that I would lay down between them to help them focus on sleep. Thankfully, Anna fell asleep immediately. Maria continued to wiggle another 30 minutes and then dozed off. All was well until 1:30 a.m. when both requested a cup of water. One cup of water was dropped on one side of the bed. I quickly plopped down a towel and reassured the twins the bed would be fine for sleeping. Thankfully, all was dry in the morning

Love Adventures

The next day, we took the girls to the amusement rides at the beach boardwalk. They were ready to take on any ride that they were tall enough to ride. They screamed and giggled on their first racing car ride, roller coaster ride, and log ride where they became drenched with water. Thankfully, we waited until it was hot before becoming drenched as changing two kids in the middle of an amusement park is challenging. We used their very worn twin umbrella stroller to walk almost three miles from our car through the park.

Create Humorous Situational Play

Once we returned to our house, the twins fully engaged themselves in elaborate play with their bunny family playhouses. Our home soon became an obstacle course as the twins created situational play centers throughout the house. Their enthusiastic storytelling was filled with silly situations about daily life.

Ask for Endless Book Reading

At night, they loved reading three to five books and debated for more if I only read two longer books. They also loved a book with scary Halloween stories. Water play activities dominated their four-day visit. We even took the twins to a town square fountain for water play.

Want to Know the Rules

We visited a local toy store to have the twins show us what they would like for their birthday gifts. Both girls were very disciplined in only playing with the display toys. They love to follow rules and ask what the rules are before engaging in a new play activity. The twins also try to eat with the correct utensil, even if they can only pick up one corn kernel at a time with a fork.

Are Full of Endless Energy

I am still recovering from their energetic visit as they definitely light up our home with their endless antics and glee.

Happy birthday to our twin granddaughters!

Mary Ann

Welcome to Another New School Year!

This week, thousands of California students will return to their classrooms. Parents are busily preparing for the final days of summer and getting ready for the new school year by:

Completing dental, doctor, and immunizations documentation for school registrations
Helping their children transition into a new classroom by organizing clothes, school supplies, and space for homework completion
Making final plans for before and after-school childcare and play activities
Helping their children prepare for the first day of school by getting an alarm clock, going to bed earlier, and understanding any school transportation and classroom assignments

10 Safety Strategies

As parents complete the many varied tasks for a new school year of transitions, many are also feeling more anxious about their children’s safety due to new security breaches and immigration challenges. Parents ask what they can do to ensure that their children feel safe and secure. Summarized below are 10 strategies to help families prepare for these challenging situations:

Make a safety plan for a generalized family emergency. Agree where the family will meet if there is a community emergency.
Assure children that they should follow all directions by school administrators. Review the school’s policies and procedures with your children that are listed in the student handbook.
Ensure each child has time to express their worries and concerns daily. When they are scared or upset about a situation at school, brainstorm solutions and assure them that you are there to be their advocate.
Continue to arrange play dates for your children after school so that they feel secure with their classmates.
Attend back to school nights and learn what the school will do in an emergency.
Meet your child’s teacher and assure the teacher that you are available for added support.
Participate in the school’s community service activities and help your children learn about the various services and resources available to families in their communities.
Participate in community fairs to ensure that your children learn about public services and agencies.
If you participate in a religious organization, have your children become active in the various church community activities.
Talk with older children about community issues and vote at local and national elections.

Engage in Your Community

Your children can become resilient and fully engaged in your communities when you participate with them in various school and community activities and vote at regional and national elections.

Much success as a fully engaged family in your community!

Mary Ann

Summer Job Opportunties for Your Middle Schooler

Summer Job Opportunities for Your Middle Schooler

Summer time is the perfect time for your middle schooler to unwind, relax, and catch up with some sleep! While it is developmentally appropriate for your young teen to take a mental break from academic studies, the summer also opens the doors for gaining new skills, exploring new interests, and giving back to the community. In this third part of the “Summer Opportunities for Your Middle Schooler” series, we’ll explore the benefits of getting a summer job.

Work for a Small Fee

Some might think that middle schoolers are not old enough to get a job. While it may be true, that they won’t be working at the local retailer or grocery store, there may be other opportunities. You may want your middle schooler to start with a volunteer position or if your child is highly motivated, see if they might work for family, friends, or neighbors for a small fee.

Here are some jobs that youth may be able to do over the summer:

Perform extra household chores
Be a pet caretaker while its owner is on vacation
Help maintain a garden or do yardwork
Babysit and entertain kids by reading books, doing crafts, playing games, etc.
Teach or tutor someone in a skill (like a playing a musical instrument)

Advertise Your Services

In order for your middle schooler to get a job like these, they will need to take the initiative and put together a flyer advertising their services. They may also want to be prepared and put together a short resume and a cover letter introducing themselves per our previous blogs on resume writing. Your child should also have a simple business plan and describe what their services will entail. For the safety and security of your child, their business plan should always state that services would be performed under supervision of an adult or parent.

Learn How to Manage Money and Get Referrals

One of the biggest benefits of your child getting a simple summer job is that they will soon learn economic concepts like supply and demand. Your middle schooler should set a fee for their services and not be shy about asking for money. They will soon find out if they are setting their fee too high (no interested parties) or if they are not being responsible and supplying a good service (no repeat customers). Conversely, if your child is doing a great job, they will get referrals for more jobs and get more customers.

Create a Savings Plan

Another benefit of a summer job is that your child will learn about budgets and finances. You and your child should discuss how much income they make after factoring any costs that might be spent on supplies for their job. You should also discuss a savings plan for a portion of their income and develop a habit of saving money. Of course, any middle schooler would be happy to spend their hard-earned money on an item of their choice as a token of their accomplishments with their summer job. And you should celebrate a job well done with them!

Happy job hunting!

Jaime