They Take Their Lead From You. Make Healthy Choices and Your Kids Will Too.
Help Them Try New Foods.
Picky Eating is Temporary.
Play Actively Every day.
Article courtesy of http://www.choosemyplate.gov/food-groups/downloads/Pointers4Preschoolers.pdf. For more tips, information and resources on helping children learn good health habits, visit http://www.choosemyplate.gov/print-materials-ordering.html
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Treasure Attic is an exciting video series for children from 2 to 8 years of age. Full of fun and adventure, this series teaches children universal moral principles and values through story and song. Each half hour episode of Treasure Attic features its fun and personable host, Uncle Jim, his loveable sheepdog, Peepers, the energetic, word-defining Bunny Big Bigword and many other friendly animal puppets! Treasure Attic focuses on skills children need most:
Another plus is that each DVD includes three languages (English, Spanish and Portuguese), making these videos a good teaching tools for children who are learning a second language. Treasure Attic is recommended by the DOVE foundation as being a family friendly video series. These videos have been seen on stations around the world, have sold over 500,000 copies to date and have a dedicated following of happy viewers. You can view portions of these videos here or buy the DVDs online by clicking here. This free Treasure Attic guide and songbook is designed to help parents and teachers use these videos to their fullest potential. The guide can be read online or downloaded by clicking the download PDF icon. (Right click the file icon and then selecting “save as…” or “save file as”…
Links to fun Christmas coloring pages and activities for children of all ages!
0–5 Year Olds
6 - 8 Year Olds
9 - 12 Year Olds
By Jane Lampman, The Christian Science Monitor, Januray 28, 1999 Little Earl and his mom and dad were having a terrible time. Diagnosed as hyperactive and defiant at school and at home, the redheaded seven-year-old with a sprinkle of freckles couldn’t seem to control his anger. One tumultuous week it got so bad he was hospitalized for the weekend. Six months later, Earl was much happier: He had found a new way to deal with his feelings, his parents’ relationship with each other had improved, and he no longer needed the Ritalin or Prozac he was being given for hyperactivity. He began to do well in school. Both he and his parents had found a third way to deal with their anger. Rather than denying or venting it, they had learned how to forgive. And their answer is one that is being explored much more widely today. Forgiveness has remarkable healing power in the lives of those who utilize it, says Richard Fitzgibbons, the Philadelphia psychiatrist who worked with Earl and is one of the pioneers in introducing forgiveness into the mental health field. Forgiveness is a hot topic now in many areas, from academic research to marital and family counseling to politics and community life. “Forgiveness is now being rediscovered as a creative human faculty for overcoming estrangement, says Lewis Smedes, professor emeritus of theology and ethics at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif., in Dimensions of Forgiveness(Templeton Foundation Press, 1998). Forgiveness is more than a moral imperative, more than a theological dictum. It is the only means, given our humanness and imperfections, to overcome hate and condemnation and proceed with the business of growing and loving, says Paul Coleman, a psychologist in Wappinger Falls, N.Y. Forgiveness has a spiritual component, Dr. Coleman says, a grace from God, if you will, and spirituality has only become a little more accepted in the mental health field in the last decade. Dr. Worthington, author of To Forgive Is Human, says the key ingredient is empathy. The degree to which a person can empathize is related strongly to the degree they can forgive. Given what is happening in the world, he adds, forgiveness has the potential to be enormously influential in the 21st century. Research will also soon show, he says, that it will be very healthy not just to forgive an event or a person but to have a forgiving character. Forgiveness: Free Stories and Videos for Children Stories:
Videos: Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
![]() In addition to reading Bible stories and passages with your children, another aspect of teaching them God’s Word is helping them commit important Bible verses to memory. Knowing God’s Word gives us a better understanding of the Lord and His ways, and memorizing His promises helps us grow in faith and know where to find comfort and answers in difficult times. You might be surprised at the differences in behavior that will soon become apparent once you start teaching your children about the Bible and showing them how to apply the principles in God’s Word to their little lives. Help your children realize that they make Jesus happy when they read His Words and obey them. If they do something unloving, for example, you can remind them, “Jesus wants us to be loving. Remember what He said? ‘Love one another.’” Then, “What can you do now to be more loving to so-and-so and make things right?” Or if they are worried or afraid, you can remind them: “God is taking care of you, and we’re praying, so you don’t have to be afraid. Remember, God said, ‘Fear not, for I am with you.’” You will no doubt find many opportunities to bring these basic verses to life. It’s easy for little children to commit Bible verses to memory, especially if you teach them in a fun way. *** What Is Feed My Lambs? Feed My Lambs is a program that introduces young children to the Scriptures. It doubles as a complete memorization course. Feed My Lambs makes learning about the primary principles in the Bible and memorizing verses from the Bible easy and fun for young children. The course includes six books with 90 simplified Bible verses, each with a lively illustration that helps relate the verse to everyday life. The Bible verses in the Feed My Lambs course have been adapted for young children from the King James Version in consultation with several translations of the Bible, primarily the New King James Version and the New International Version. Much prayer and attention has been given to simplifying the vocabulary for young children while retaining the meaning, and several translations were carefully examined for each verse. Click here to read/download one of these books. To buy the entire set, click here. Excerpted from "Feed My Lambs: Guide for Parents and Teachers", © Aurora Productions
![]() Reading is perhaps the primary skill that is needed for a good education, as much of learning is based on the ability to read. As parents and teachers we should do our best to expand our children’s thinking processes and help them to communicate their feelings and ideas. Children who grow up in an environment where a variety of reading materials are made available are more likely to develop a greater interest in reading than if they do not have that input. They will also progress more quickly if they have been read to from an early age. Simple books that are of special interest to children can also help them to begin to learn to read, by encouraging them to point out any words they begin to recognize. A cardinal rule in teaching a child to read is for the parent (or teacher) to approach it as a fun, joyous, and happy time to be together. When teaching reading, a parent should never forget these things: * Learning is life’s most exciting game; it is not work. * Learning is a reward; it is not a punishment. * Learning is a pleasure; it is not a chore. * Learning is a privilege; it is not denial. Children differ in how they progress in reading, but one thing remains constant: Your personal interest and attention as the parent or teacher can make all the difference. Almost any approach you take to teaching reading will succeed if your child is happy, motivated, interested, and enjoys the experience. Many people believe that young children may not have the attention span required to learn to read. However, if your times of learning are active and not drawn out, you may find out that the opposite is true, and your children will associate learning to read with enjoyment, which will help keep their interest, and will increase their desire to learn. Young children are much less awed by reading than older children, and do not consider it a subject full of frightening abstracts; instead, they view it as another exciting thing to learn. One key to success is to make sure your children know they are making progress. When they are praised for their accomplishments, children are then motivated to continue learning. Beginning to read can be particularly fun for small children as they start to see all the new words they are able to recognize and read on their own. At the end of a reading session, a simple review of new words encountered, a liberal application of praise for progress made, a sneak peek at what they have to look forward to next time, and an affectionate commendation in a hug—all these are great motivators for most children. Our brain is like a computer; it receives extensive information on a daily basis, and the more it receives, the greater its capacity to receive becomes. Teaching reading during the one to five age bracket is very effective. Young children are linguistic geniuses, and by the age of five they have usually learned one language (or even two or three), sports, simple mathematics, basic writing skills, and much more. Their ability to learn is at its peak, and they have the potential to learn more quickly than they would at a later stage of their lives. Young children can learn almost anything at an early age if it is presented in a clear, informative, and factual manner. Realizing that makes us aware of the great potential in children, and also the great responsibility of teaching a child. Dos of reading: * Be joyous! Love teaching the children that you are with. * Reward a child for success by lavishing praise on the child. * Be enthusiastic. * Eliminate possible distractions. Be sure that you have the child’s full attention. * When teaching children to read, it’s important that they learn to read from left to right. Use your finger or a pencil, and move it under the words to guide their eyes from left to right. Don’ts of reading: * Don’t bore the child by going too slow. * Don’t test the child. * Don’t continue a session if the child loses interest. * Don’t pressure a child to learn. Click here for free readers for young children! By Derek and Michelle Brookes, compiled from Early Bird Readers—A Teacher and Parent’s Handbook How can we say something is bad if it teaches us lessons of faith or patience or perseverance or love—if the good effect is greater than the bad effect? Almost everything in life has its pros and cons. But if the positive outweighs the negative, then we can and should say that it is a good thing.
There are in fact upsides to most negative situations. When children are discouraged or become negative over something that has happened, try to steer their thinking toward the positive aspects. Following are some stories and songs for children that can help them to learn how to have a positive outlook. Stories: This is Good - http://freekidstories.com/2011/02/23/esto-es-bueno_this-is-good/ God is Good - http://freekidstories.com/2011/06/02/dios-es-bueno-god-is-good/ Grumble Bumble Bee - http://freekidstories.com/2011/03/29/%C2%BFque-aqueja-a-la%C2%A0abeja_-grumble-bumble-bee/ The Oyster Story - http://freekidstories.com/2011/05/07/la-historia-de-la-ostra_-the-oyster-story/ Dunkin the Donkey - http://freekidstories.com/2011/05/26/dunkin/ The River and the Caterpillar - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmBZzuqvLwM&playnext=1&list=PL704EE8AA3B7C2383 Songs: Look on the bright side - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od9-VI5mj50 Try again - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB_yF0_M660 Have a good laugh - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uA8KmwTqqw Smile - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSrfNIj2RZc Two frogs - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-mtHepPKuU Stay Sweet - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bibY1r-vE-U Maria Fontaine, originally published in Activated Magazine
One thing that kids do all the time is argue amongst themselves. Often it is more a matter of contradicting what the other has said, almost for the sake of contradiction. Other times they do it to show that they're superior, to show that the other is wrong and to make themselves look better. Children do that all the time, almost constantly. They need to be shown that trying to put themselves up by putting down others is wrong. Maybe they are right sometimes, maybe their point of view is right—usually they think they are right, if they're arguing—but whether they're right or wrong, they need to learn it's wrong to argue. Children need to learn to put themselves in other people's shoes. Ask them, "How would you feel if you were to give the wrong answer to a question or make a statement that wasn't right and someone told you, 'That's wrong! How could you be so stupid?' Well, that's how your brother or sister or friends feel when you contradict them or point out their mistakes." Give your children an example to drive that point home, how it makes people feel, because they need to realize that. Most children, once they understand what effect their words have on others, will try to be more careful about what they say and how they say it. Explain, "If you do this to your friends—try to put yourself up by putting them down—it makes them feel like crawling under the rug. That's the quickest way to lose friends," or, "Think how terrible that makes your sister feel. She's going to feel like never saying anything. And worse than that, it tells her that you don't love her enough to care about her feelings." We adults need to make sure that we're not guilty of the same offense. We also need to help our children see that not doing this is a part of love—that this is one way in which they can and should show love to their peers and younger children. Love, instead of tearing people down, lifts them up and makes them feel good, not embarrassed or humiliated. That's what contradicting and arguing does—embarrasses or humiliates. Sometimes the children don't realize this. They realize what it does when they're on the receiving end, but it just doesn't seem to sink in that it makes other people feel just as bad when it happens to them. If adults have the tendency to immediately contradict or correct one another and to argue—and this is something we've all been guilty of—we can't blame the children when they do it. But we can be more careful to set a good example, and we can teach our children to be more loving and considerate in this way too. It's the difference between having arguing, fighting, bickering, contradicting children and children that really love one another and cooperate and work together in harmony. It makes all the difference in the world! There are a lot of other aspects of showing love and consideration, of course. It's a big subject! It's also one of the most important things we can teach our children, because children who fail to learn to be loving and considerate in their speech and actions grow up and continue to have the same habit of bickering and contradicting people. If we want our children to be successful in life, what could be more important than teaching them to love? Teaching Children Consideration – Resources Children’s Stories: Scott the Puppy Wobbly Wallace Guard your tongue Audio-Visual Aids: We Can Get Along Stay Sweet Arguments Goodbye The Blind Men and the Elephant |
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