Teens Take Bullying Into Their Own Hands

Apr 122010
 

Wednesday is Pink Shirt Day.

If you’re asking “what’s that?” you’re not alone. The grassroots anti-bullying event began when two high schoolers saw a fellow student being bullied and took matters into their own hands. Non-violently.

Their compassionate intervention worked… and caught the attention and imagination of lots of people, especially Canadian broadcaster Christy Clark, shown here in a short interview about last year’s event.

I posted about these students at the beginning of the school year….. and just found this great ‘re-enactment’ on YouTube.

I am, by no means, a bullying ‘specialist.’ But I am a Mom and I am concerned about all of the risks facing our kids.

Big changes begin with increasing awareness. And one of the things I like about the approaches that I’m finding is that they speak to the importance of increasing awareness and taking small steps.

I will be adding posts on this topic throughout the week. Please add your resources to the mix by including them in comments…. and I’ll update our resources page as well.

And, of course, please pass all of these along to parents and teachers you know and love. Thanks!

Family Music Month

Apr 042010
 

 By Esther Jantzen, guest poster

Singing songs with kids is magical! Making music in any way stimulates the brain, brings happiness, and creates a sense of belonging. How about making your house a singing house regardless of how well any of you stay on pitch. Babies, toddlers, preschool children, elementary students, middle-school kids, high-schoolers all love to sing together. When you have time with your kids and want to do something fun, make music in your home. Whenever you get a chance, sing! Here ís what you can do:

1) Almost everyone in our culture knows certain songs like Old MacDonald,Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, Row, Row, Row Your Boat, and I’m a Little Teapot. Sing these and other common tunes to your kids. If you don’t know them, get a recording and play it for your children.

2) Make up your own songs to familiar tunes. Choose words that fit your family’s interests like, Dribble, dribble, dribble your ball… or Mom and Dad, they had a house, e-i-e-i-o….

3) Sing when you’re driving somewhere. Sing when you’re out on a walk. Sing every day. Singing conveys love. It touches us deeply.

 4) Do you remember songs you learned as a child? Songs you learned at school, in your place of worship, or from radio or TV ads. Do you know lullabies? Have you passed them on to your children? It makes a great family tradition to pass songs on. Do you love opera or gospel or blues? Sing with your kids.

5) Moving with music activates parts of the brain that might not get exercise another way. Play a lively song and dance free-form . March to your own music. Strut to your own songs.

6) Have your kids teach you songs they’ve learned. If they have a favorite song and don’t know the words, look them up on the internet or in a song book.

Write the words down and carry them with you until the kids know them.   * Family Music Month supports the English-Language Arts Content Standards related to listening and speaking strategies.

Esther Jantzen, Ed.D, is a mother, an educator and the author of Plus It! How to Easily Turn Everyday Activities into Learning Adventures for Kids available at www.plusitbook.com and the Way to Go! Family Learning Journal available through www.jantzenbooks.com

Free Food Farm

Mar 242010
 

 

Sometimes when I facilitate parenting classes we talk about gardening.  Not the gardening metaphors about patience like planting seeds for future growth, or not ripping out our plants to check on their progress but real ‘get-your-hands-and-pants-and-everything-else-dirty’ kind of gardening.

In these groups we often talk about using all kinds of different activities to teach our children and develop their skills.  Parents have told me that they can easily fit the Four Foundations to their gardens:  there’s the hard work of preparing the area, the discipline associated with ‘waiting and weeding’, the adversity that comes with hungry deer or unusual weather patterns… and of course the joy of giving when we have a harvest to prepare and share! (Plus, it’s a great way to save money.)

I’m not an accomplished gardner by any stretch of the imagination….  but I love growing dinner ingredients and sharing them with my friends, so this story caught my eye.  I love the idea…. and particularly Tree’s approach to giving without expecting anything in return.

I hope you enjoy it.

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