Category: Parenting

Creating your Future

This week is preparation week as many parents and children get ready to head back out to school. For most, it means a new class, and for quite a few, an entirely new environment. Some children, and parents, are anxious about the new academic year. Having anxiety is natural, after all, none of us know what’s going to happen in the future. We can only do our best and live with hope. So don’t be anxious about the future, create it.

A number of people are credited for saying, “The best way to predict the future is to create it.” Great minds like Abraham Lincoln and Peter Drucker. Wherever the quote came from, there is wisdom in those words. Here are three things you can do to reduce anxiety, and guarantee success.

1. Set goals.

It’s difficult to get somewhere if you don’t know where you’re going. So, decide what you want to accomplish, and write it down. For children, goals might be to get 90% in my next report card, or increase my overall score by 20%, or even something simple like learn to spell 5 new words every week. The main thing to remember about setting goals is that you want to be specific. If you’re not specific, then you won’t be able to determine if you’ve achieved it or not.

2. Make a plan.

Now you know where you’re going, how do you plan to get there? Increasing performance on a test requires studying. Learning new words requires a routine. Assuming that you’ll get things done isn’t enough. There are far too many distractions and other things competing for attention. If you don’t have a plan, then you’re reducing your chances of success. Have your child sit with you to develop the plan. that way, they’ll be more invested in it.

3. Act on the plan.

Plans are useful only when we implement them. The best-laid plan will not help you if you don’t put the plan into action. So, if you plan one hour every day for studying, do that. It won’t always be easy, but stick with it until good habits are developed. Then stick with it some more. Success only comes from putting in the work.

Don’t be afraid to reach out for help. When it comes to academic support, there are many options out there, some free, some paid. You’re not alone and you can get help. Check out our Journey to SEA 2024 live streams or contact us for more information.

Encouraging Critical Thinking

Over the past week I’ve been in several conversations about how important it is to allow children to think and respond on their own. Far too often parents and teachers feel the need to correct children’s thinking, rather than guiding them to learn better habits.

Usually when we ask children to respond to a question and we don’t get the response we’re looking for, it’s easier to tell them they’re wrong than it is to analyze how they came to their conclusion in the first place. This happens a lot when going through comprehension with children, and the end result is that we give them the answers rather than guiding their thinking in the right direction.

Critical thinking is a skill that develops over time, and children must be allowed to think for themselves. Prescribing formulas for writing, particularly creative writing, does not give them an edge. What it does is create a box for them to function in, when by its very nature creative writing should allow them to express themselves freely.

There are ways to guide children through thought processes without giving them the answers we’re looking for.

Here are three strategies you can use:

1. Focus on ways to find information, rather than on a specific formula for a response. Show children how to ask questions about what they’re reading by listing and modeling. What is the idea given here? What in the passage supports your conclusion?

2. Discuss the reading/writing connection and have children think about the author’s intention and reader’s understanding. Why were certain words used? How do you think readers would react to this?

3. Show children that there are different types of comprehension questions. There are those which require details from the passage, and ask for specific information that can be easily found through scanning. There are those which ask about meaning, and require some thinking about how ideas are connected. And there are those which require readers to go beyond what’s stated or indicated in the passage to come to their own conclusion.

The most important thing, however, is to have patience with your child when they’re giving responses, and resist the urge to tell them what to think.

Embracing Technology

With everything online these days, interfacing with technology can be overwhelming. However, there are some great tools out there to help you and your young writer make the most of life’s changes. A few weeks ago, we came across two apps that preteens and parents would love. Check them out and tell us what you think.

Study Bunny

There are tons of study apps out there, but this one has a special appeal that makes it great for the digital babies. The app features a lovable bunny who sits with you, studying along while you get your work done. Users can track how much time they spend on studying, monitor their productivity using the built-in To Do List, and color code subjects so they know how much time is spent studying what.

But that’s not the most awesome part. Not only does your bunny friend study with you, it encourages you by giving you coins for study time. Yup, that’s right, there’s a built-in reward system that lets users earn coins for every hour they spend studying. Coins are used to purchase items for the bunny and his little room. This kind of incentive is great because it fits in with the preteen obsession with online games. Of course, adult supervision would assist your young writer in managing time effectively, but having and using this app is definitely something that would make study time less stressful.

Luna Diary

If you’re looking for something to support your young writer in writing regularly, this is a great app to check out. When you write a journal entry, the scenery of the app grows by adding flowers and stars in the sky. Writers also fill the moon when they write. This is a quick reward system that makes writing interesting and provides an incentive for continuing. There are several themes to choose from, so it’s not all about flowers and stars. Consider using one or both of these apps and let us know how it works out for you.

Also, comment below if there are other apps you know of that would be helpful to parents and young writers.

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Supporting at Home

#CreativeWritingforPrimary#WritingSupport#BetterWriters

For many students, today is the last day of school for this term. While many of them are looking for a break, there are a few things parents can do to keep them practicing writing skills without it feeling like homework.

Here are my top five suggestions.

These can also be implemented during the term for maximum benefit.

1. Have conversations with your child.

One of the challenges young writers have, is that they’re not sure how to express themselves effectively. Conversations about a variety of topics is a great way to start working on that. Ask lots of questions and give your child time to respond. Ask them what they think and listen to their ideas. Then help them with vocabulary and expressions from time to time in order to expand what they know.

2. Watch Movies and Shows.

Stories are stories, whether they’re in books or on the screen. So, watching movies with your child is a great way for them to observe storytelling and learn a few things. At the very least, they will have ideas they can draw from to supplement their writing.

3. Explore Your Senses.

Descriptive language is at its most beautiful when it includes imagery. Similes and metaphors are cool, but imagery is king when it comes to vivid descriptions. However, many people aren’t as observant as they could be when it comes to describing how they experience the world around them. So, encourage your child to describe their experiences, in detail. What do they See? Smell? Taste? Touch, Hear? How do they feel? How do things move? Provide them with vocabulary and expressions to help them along the way.

4. Read. Read. Read.

It would be terrible if I didn’t mention reading. If your child loves to read, discuss what they’ve read. If your child doesn’t like to read, try introducing them to comic books, manga, and even picture books. These are available for every age and are great transitions into the written word. The key is to engage your child with what they’re reading. Don’t just leave them on their own. Ask their opinions about the stories, characters, setting, everything in the book. Have them tell you bits of the story and compare it with their own experiences. What would they do if in the character’s place?

5. Journal often.

This is often overlooked, but great writers didn’t start out that way. All of them wrote and wrote and wrote. Whether they wrote several sentences and paragraphs or just words and phrases here and there, writers write all the time. Encourage your child to keep a journal. A guided journal is best so that they don’t have to wonder what to write every day. This type of writing should be free. As long as they write a few words, that’s fine. Just encourage them along the way. Sit with them and journal too, that’s the best way.These points were abbreviated, so if you want any more details about either of these five tips, drop me a message and I’ll be happy to explain further.