The Kids Speak Out

Tips on Hiking With Children

Kids love being outside at all times, but particuarly in the summer when they are out of school.  Why not take advantage of this attitude and take your kids for a hike?  I asked one kid how much he would enjoy hiking and his answer was "but, there are not bathrooms and you have to relieve yourself outdoors in the open and I don't like that".  That's a beginning point in answering questions you may have before you take your kids for a hike.  I found an article that I thought answered a lot of questions and got permission to reprint it.

"When I want to do some serious hiking; I mean pushing myself to go at a faster pace, scrambling up mountainsides, down & back up over rolling hills, climbing over & navigating around fallen trees, taking another step every time my leg muscles scream for me to stop; I make sure I'm not taking young children along with me. There's hiking and then there's hiking. Most of you who enjoy a rigorous pace of hiking & backpacking know what I mean. But there's another side to hiking, a side which though is a little bit more laid back, can be fun & fulfilling just the same. It's hiking with children. This article is meant to give just some pointers on hiking with children, and doesn't cover every important aspect of this enjoyable activity. These are just some suggestions when bringing children out for a day hike.

Kids and Pedometers

Last year the YMCA decided to give the kids in their local "after school" program a pedometer to wear for a few days to evaluate how active kids are in their lives.  My grandson was in the program and he turned in his pedometer only to discover that on an average day he walked 4,000 steps.  That surprised me because it seemed he went to school, sat in classes, ate in cafeteria, came home, ate dinner with family; homework and then to bed (with a little computer time built into his schedule).

I learned that a study had conducted to determine if pedometers are a successful way of encouraging young people to get active.

Kids & Their Observation of Being Poor

A friend sent this to me and I am pleased to share it with you!  Don't ever under-estimate the way kids see things because they see things quite differently than the way their parents see things!  Listen to your kids - they see the world in ways that we adults use to see the world.

 

"One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family.

On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the trip?"

"It was great, Dad."

"Did you see how poor people live?" the father asked.

"Oh yeah," said the son

"So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?" asked the father.

The son answered: "I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon. We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us; they have friends to protect them."

The boy's father was speechless.

Then his son added, "Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are."

Kids and Independence

How much independence do you, as parents, give your kids daily?  Because of our fear that something or someone may hurt our kids we have restricted our kids from finding some independence.

We are talking about kids when they reach the age of 10 years old or so.  Do your kids ever walk to school (within reason distance); ride their bicycle around the neighborhood or how about walking to a friend’s house to play without adult supervision? 

Parents are scared and reluctant to let their kids outside on their own because of traffic dangers, kidnapping and/or being molested.  At times the parents just want to spend extra time with their kids and not let them out on their own.

Kids who have experienced independent mobility interact more with other children and their environments.  Kids who are dependent upon adult supervision/protection could "negatively influence children's emotional, social and cognitive development," and may lead to more sedentary behaviors, putting them at risk of obesity and diabetes.

Parents are more likely to drive their kids to where they have to go.  It is faster and it is safer.  Many kids are scared to go outside of their house without an adult being with them. The kids are uncomfortable with outside forces that “could” happen to them if they are alone.

If parents do not feel as if they can turn their kid loose outside by themselves, then do something together as a family.  However, let the kids run ahead of you to develop their independence or stay behind you as you walk or play outside.  Teach your kids about traffic; approaching strangers and what to do and not do; loan your kids your cell phone when they are outside so they can call you if an emergency comes up and give them a watch and deadline on when to come back home.  Try some drills in 15 minute intervals and then you can extend the minutes outside when the kids understand the rules.  If they disobey the rules, then take minutes away from them until they obey the rules. 

Our kids have to have fresh air, develop mobile independency; rules to follow and an affirmation that you are here at home waiting for them to come home or if they need help in anyway they can call you.  I encourage all parents to do the responsible thing when your kid reaches the appropriate age to trust.  I want to make it perfectly clear I am NOT talking about small children who are incapable of following rules nor do they have the knowledge of keeping themselves safe.  Be smart parents – know your kid – and when appropriate – let them spread their wings safely.

Kids and Behavior Problems in School

School teachers and school administrators are reporting they are seeing an increase in behavior problems being acted out in threatening ways.  They are beginning to believe it is because there is the absence of physical activities and free, creative time for the kids to express themselves.

 

It is interesting to note that other countries are looking into or have in place a ten

minute for every 40 to 50 minutes of students sitting all day at their desks.  This relates back to the article I wrote this week on Kids Needing Fresh Air:  Kids need recesses to be better students.

 

This is another call for parents to get involved in their kids school PTO and help to work with school administrators in providing a break during the day for your kids and incorporate fresh air for students.  It is vitally important that parents get involved in school systems to volunteer and help in making this happen.

 

 

7 Steps to Creating Good Relationships with Your Children.

I am honored to have Jill Rapley as our guest author today teaching us the 7 Steps to Creating Good Relationships with Your Children. "http://www.successfulrelationshipsblog.com.  Welcome Jill.  

     Do you think it is possible in this day of extreme rebellion, lack of respect, and self-centered “ideals” to still enjoy a loving yet respectful relationship with your children?

     Well that does greatly depend on you as a parent. No, I am not talking about being a perfect parent; none of us have quite reached that characteristic yet. And neither are there perfect children (except yours, of course :)

     We do live in a difficult age for children growing up and their parents trying to guide them. But there are certainly some things parents can do to help point children in the right direction and give them an opportunity to win this race called life.

Kids & Fresh Air

You know I am an advocate of kids getting enough fresh air.  During the school year they are mostly inside breathing stale air like we do working in an office or at home.  There is a new study released emphasizing that kids who have recess at school makes better students.

Classes start at 8:30 or so in the morning and lasting until lunchtime without a break in their schedule.  Even when we drive on trips the rule of the road is for every 50 minutes you drive you need to stop at a rest area, service station or eating break and stretch, stretch, stretch before you get back under the wheel of a car.  Kids learn as more on their breaks having a recess, as they do sitting at their desks and being quiet.  Many problems are solved on the playground with kids by other kids.

Check with your school system to see if they do have recess for the kids for at least once a day, for 20 or more minutes.  Physical activity needs to be a part of a recess.  Kids having recess in their daily schedule behave better in school.

When I pick up my grandson from school and I ask "what did you do today" one of his first responses is we went outside for recess.  It's important to the kids.

Kids and Anger

How do you effectively handle an out-of-control angry kid?  I thought R. Varahharajan wrote a grest article on this subject and is our guest author. 

What is anger? Anger is another form of emotion or feeling experienced by children and adults alike. It ranges from rage to the milder forms of resentment. It's needed with parents to know anger management techniques for children. The children use outbursts of anger for attracting attention to obtaining a desired goal. Interference with feelings or activities of the children may arouse a form of behavior as anger-usually aggressive in nature- expressed by screams, kicks, stamps, sulks, or cries. The temper tantrum represents a display of emotional behavior for the purpose of gaining favour. In an aggressive child, it takes the form of striking, tearing, kicking, and holding the breath.

Unless the child is helped with anger management skills to gain emotional control he is likely to continue the tantrum technique perhaps throughout the entire life. If a child "throws a tantrum" before learned to talk, the parents should understand that the child is actually suffering and needs their help. As a child learns to vocalize and to use language he begins to express anger in less aggressively physical ways, but he may continue his acts of disobedience and physical resistance.

When a little girl is very angry she is likely to say to her mother" I don't like you." To avoid such critical situation, a good knowledge of anger management techniques of children plays a main role for compromise. Causes of anger problems: It is usually caused by infusion of frustration or major depressive disorder. Infant: Physical restraint like tight clothing Child: Toilet training and food taking compulsion

Tips to dealing with anger management: There is no need for separate anger management program. To think of anger control by anger medication is foolish.

1.Needless commands or derogatory remarks that arouse anger should not be dangled before the child. Such words are felt by children as ill treating of their endevours to achieving the goal. It may lead to depression anxiety anger and delusion which are not good for health.

2.Denying for everything should be avoided by the parents. Instead, alternatives may be given. It's quite natural that the children may have anxiety of knowing about and owning new things for them to enjoy. In such occasions, the parents should not deny totally but satisfy them with substitutes

3.Preventing or minimizing the provocations is one of the best ways to deal with anger. Some behaviors may be annoying to the parents as destructive to their welfare. Such behaviors alone can't be accounted for preventing and irritating every activity of the children.

4.Talking with them about their feelings is another of the best of anger management tools to teach the children about how to control their feelings. It would be compromising and consoling to the children if the parents share with their feelings good or bad. The child should be given appropriate anger management help to express their anger in appropriate words as let out technique.

5.The parents should be a model of anger management for kids in controlling and keeping off unnecessary situations to arouse anger as a main concern. Molding the children positively onto their way of expectation is an art to execute by being an example to follow. It's safe to bring up your children as blossoming buds and with desirable habits and you as parents should know the anger management techniques of your children and related matters.

5 Ways to Teach Kids to Set 2009 Goals

One of the most valuable exercise we adults can do is to teach kids to set goals and work to achieve goals.  Kids see this as a game, so to speak, and enjoy creating their goals. 

1)    Start kids about the age of 7 and above.  Kids younger than 7 should not be bothered with setting goals - let them play and be creative.  When kids start to school and learn about meeting homework deadlines; discipline getting up in morning and getting themselves ready for school before the bus comes, etc is a good time to start teaching about goals and deadlines.  They understand better because they experience some "routine" scheduling.

2)    Make a list of things kids are involved with; such as:  playing the piano; getting on honor roll at school; keeping their room clean;  being involved in sport activities; attending to their healthy bodies, etc.  It is important to only set goals for a 12 month length of time.  Don't go into the 3-5-10 year goal setting.  I even find that hard for me to figure out and achieve.

3)  Make goals reasonable for their age group.  A friendly reminder:  this is NOT your goals for your kids - this is their goals for themselves.  Try not to infuence too much.  Let it be simple and achieveable.

4) Write the goals down and tape them to their bathroom mirror.  For the younger kids, decorate with pictures/scrapbook things to make the goal setting attractive to them.  When they achieve one of their goals, be sure to celebrate with them. 

5) Ask them how they are doing to achieve their goals during the year.  You are to be their personal coach and ask them throughout the year "how are you doing on your goals?"  If they need to adjust one of their goals, let them do so.  Try your best to keep them from being discouraged. 

It is a gift you can give to your kids and teaching them a valuable lesson for their future life. 

Happy Holidays

  The Kids Speak Out sends our love and our appreciate to you and your families.  Happy Holdays!  If you are traveling - be safe.  We are looking forward to 2009 and planning out the new year in serving you and the kids of the world.   All of us may not celebrate Christmas; however, we all celebrate the beginning of a new year - so Happy New Year.  

Teenage Entrepreneurship

Teenagers have the foresight to see into the future and understand that having their own businesses is the key to their higher education and a prosperous future.

The Millennials (today's young people) are increasingly turning to entrepreneurship as both a way to earn money and a lifestyle. In addition to making money, entrepreneurs in their teens and 20's are insisting that they make their mark on society as well. This movement is becoming known as "Social Entrepreneurship."

Teens with a drive to be successful are now laying the groundwork for becoming very successful later in life.

Our teenagers are our best hope for the future. It's time to empower them and give them the tools necessary to succeed in our tumultuous world.

And, if your grades aren't the best, having a successful business may give you an edge to make the cut. It's much more impressive to say that you ran a business than it is to say you worked at J.Crew.

So, why would colleges care if you've run a business?

It shows that you have the creativity, leadership skills and vision to be successful in many facets of your life.

You've balanced school and work before. You've had some "real world" experiences that will allow you to add to the classroom environment.

Also, having a successful business makes you interesting. More and more colleges are adding Entrepreneurship programs and colleges hope that students with entrepreneurial experience will enhance all students' experience.

Are you ready for your baby to be an entrepreneur? It's a big jump for many parents. As your child grows into an adult, he or she will require greater independence. You can help your teen start his or her business in a number of ways.

Find out how teenagers worldwide have become successful in business. http://www.teenpreneur.khuebook.com