The 10 Rs for Your Child's Super Successful Summer

How can your children stay on a routine and retain what they learned in school AND be excited about it? Here are some simple ideas for a Super Successful Summer:

1.  RULES:  KISS (Keep It Simple Silly). Work with your children to decide on rules and have them sign the contract. For example - Every Day:

• 30 minutes of schoolwork
• Finish Chores 
• An hour of physical play
• Be Kind

2.  READ: Every day read - books, ipads, magazines, rules of games. Relevancy leads to reading. Play Scavenger Hunt Games. Take trips to the library. Let your child see your love and enjoyment of reading.

3.  wRITING - the fastest becoming lost "art." Help your child make To Do lists and cross off accomplishments. They can help with grocery lists to see writing has meaning. Help your child make a book - which can become a treasure, keepsake or gift. This helps with creativity and learning to read. You can keep it simple and just staple some pages together or poke holes and bind pages with yarn. They can illustrate it or you can paste their favorite photos. You may need to write their words. You could print the words large enough so that your child can trace over the words. Ownership leads to reading desire and enthusiasm.

4. aRITHIMETIC: Play Games. Make Math Fun and Relevant! Patterns and math concepts are everywhere leading to better reading and thinking skills.

5. RESPECT: Children who learn to respect others will be much happier and more successful in life.

6. RESPONSIBILITY Teach responsibility at an early age to help them (and you) through further years of development. Have a chore binder book or sticker chart. Use symbols beside words if your child isn't reading yet.

7. REWARDS: Children love a marble rewards jar - which teaches math as well as learning to earn something they want. Ask your child what they would like to earn. You may be humbled by their answer. When my daughter was in kindergarten, she told her teacher that her favorite thing to do with her mom was to play with the dollhouse.

8. RANDOM ACTS of KINDNESS: Teach the reward of giving. Helping neighbors, or taking them a plate of homemade cookies, can form lasting relationships and give a child a sense of community and belonging to a neighborhood. See RAK free ideas and printables.

Like Mama - Like Daughter

9. RELEASE STRESS - INCREASE STRENGTH: Children need to play outside. When I grew up, we did not have mobile phones, ipads, computers or even color television. My parents had five children and we were encouraged to play outside most of the time. Through outdoor play, I learned:

• How to communicate, share, socialize, follow game rules, and problem-solve
• Develop fine and large muscles
• Use my imagination to develop new games using whatever we had (rocks, marbles, balls, cans, sticks, chalk)
• Connect with my neighbors experiencing a sense of belonging

10. ROUTINE: Children crave routine and stability. Put PJs on, brush teeth, and then please snuggle and read a book every night possible with your children. Simple Comprehension Questions will help them retain information and will give you a glimpse into their imaginative thinking. Children will remember this special bonding time always - and you will to. They are little only a short time.



 

REMEMBER ~ 

Time is the most important

thing to spend on a child. 

Related Posts: 

ARK - Acts of Random Kindness

• Kindergarten Readiness: Enroll or Wait
• Caught Being Good!
• Top 10 Ways to Keep Kids Creative
• Why Craft? Why Art?
• Acts of Random Kindness - FREE Printables
• How to De-Stress Young Children while Traveling
• Discipline: Combat Duty or Common Sense Tactics
• Screen Time or Sensory Time
• The ABCs of Thrifty Teaching Tools

   
Would you like a glimpse into Kindergarten? See Kindergarten: Tattle-Tales, Tools, Tactics, Triumphs and Tasty Treats for Teachers and Parents. Moms of Preschoolers - let a mom and a teacher help save your sanity, one project at a time, including the child development explanations and age appropriate activities in The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble and Motivated to Learn. Both are bestsellers and also available on Barnes & Noble and Kobo. The ebooks are only $3.99.

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The Happy Mommy Handbook is Only $.99 for 2 days!

The Happy Mommy Handbook is on sale May 30th & 31st for only $.99! Currently, it is Number 1 in Parenting on Amazon. You can also purchase it from Barnes & Noble and Kobo. The ebook price will be $3.99 after that. Print copies are $9.95 and make wonderful gifts for parents and teachers of preschoolers.

Do you need answers to these questions?

• Why can't my kids just play by themselves occasionally?
• How can I help my children learn in fun ways?
• What can I do to help my child be ready for school?

How to De-Stress Young Children while Traveling

Cooper muttered the words that frustrates every mother, "I'm bored." 

Megan sighed. She and her husband had saved for months for this special trip to unwind and build family bonds. She had packed lots of things for the children to do in the car.

Cooper hit his brother and they both started the high-pitched screaming that made Megan's skin hurt. She rolled her eyes at her husband when he gave her an exasperated look.

Megan wondered what she could do so her children would relax and enjoy their family vacation.

Megan's dilemma is not unusual. Children crave consistency, stability and routine. How can you help your children cope with the hustle and bustle of traveling? Here are some tips:

Outdoor Play: Games & Benefits with 100+ Kid Bloggers' Hop

Groovy Soaker Water Balloons fit easily under a spout for filling.

Learning to play outdoor games uses creativity, imagination, cooperation, and brain power by making up new games and participating in sports and games that have been around for decades. Playing outside games can teach a child social skills while releasing stress and forming friendships. Young children learn by using their five senses and movement. So much more can be experienced through the senses when outdoors while expanding a child's imagination. Even short periods in the natural world improve a child's mood and appreciation for our earth.
 

Top 10 Ways to Keep Kids Creative

All of us have an innate desire to be creative. Children learn through play, discovery and exploration. They want to naturally extend learning activities, manipulate and create. But through time, discouragement, lack of opportunity and too much screen time, we lose our drive to be creative and lack the confidence and focus. How often do you think, or hear someone say, "Kids can't think for themselves anymore." Let's provide amble opportunities for children to think, explore, extend and create. Here's why and how:

The Facts about Recess and Academics

Recess is being scaled back or eliminated from many elementary schools. Among the reasons are increased pressure for higher academic scores. 

But at what cost? Are scores increasing as recess decreases? 

No. In fact, studies are concluding that physical activity can improve cognitive learning, increase neuron connections, and decrease inappropriate behavior in the classroom, as well as the obvious benefit of improving physical health.

Remember when we had three recesses a day - one in the morning, one after lunch and one in the afternoon? Esther Entin, M.D. states "Since the late 1970's children have lost 12 hours a week in free time, a 25% decrease in play and 50% decrease in unstructured outdoor activities." The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's physical activity guidelines recommend that children do an hour or more of moderate-intensity to vigorous activity a day. The Institute of Medicine advises that at least 30 minutes, or about half the daily physical activity, be done during the school day. Yet only about 11 percent of states and 57 percent of districts require elementary schools to provide students with regularly scheduled recess, according to CDC.
 
Research confirms that recess can play an important role in the learning, social development, and health of elementary school children.

Parents Make Halloween Happen on Google Hangouts

October 8th - 12th, 2012

Monday

• Join +Angelique Felix and guest +Cerys Parker at 2:15 PM CST for a Witches story and cupcakes

Tuesday 

• Join +Angelique Felix and guest +Cerys Parker at 2:15 PM CST for a Monster song and craft
• Join +Susan Case and +Rachelle Doorley at 5:30 PM CST for HOW TO MAKE SLIME - Now available below:

The Happy Mommy Handbook: Please Join us for a Google+ Livestream Video

  

Katie and I have a BIG SCARY announcement. We are going to do a live broadcast on Google+ this Wednesday to talk about our book which will then become a YouTube video! Katie, Mommy with Selective Memory, and I co-wrote The Happy Mommy Handbook, currently number 2 on Amazon in the Motherhood category. We would love for you to join us for this broadcast and stay afterwards to chat (and laugh) on a separate hangout. We made it through it! Here it is!

We wrote the book from a mom and teacher's perspective. Why did we write this book? We know from first-hand experience that moms sometimes struggle raising preschoolers and may have very little free time. Don't panic. You aren't the only mom who wonders:

• Why do my kids just want to watch TV all the time?
• Why does it make me so crazy some days to be home with my kids?
• Are there things I should be doing to prepare my child for school?

Katie and I searched and there wasn't book for moms who don't own a glue gun and know how to craft - but feel like their children should be doing more than watching television and using electronic gadgets. We explain the philosophy and benefits of playful learning, using inexpensive activities. How is this accomplished? With brain-stimulating developmentally-appropriate activities that will fascinate your child for hours. When children are challenged, they behave better, their confidence is boosted, and they use their imaginations to play more independently. Why is this good for you? You will actually find yourself with more free time while helping your child learn and become better prepared for school.

Please join us:

Wednesday, August 22nd

11:00 CDT (Texas Time)

Just click on Susan Case’s Google+ address

 We'd love to chat after the short broadcast
which will be from a new hangout.

You can click below to read the first part of our book for free.

If you miss this event, please comment
anytime on the Google+ post or here.

Back to Basics: Play Outside

Kid Clip Art

Are you tired of your kids watching too much television and wanting too many electronic techno gadgets? Do you feel queasy when an advertiser bombards your psyche demanding that you buy their product or you are not a good parent?

When I was young (decades ago) there were no bombardments at stores and on television that my mother must buy a certain program or I was doomed – or at least headed toward a slower ascent in school rather than being at an advantage – or a prestigious leader. Sure, I Love Lucy was advertising Vegameatavitamin Juice but she wasn’t pushing “educational” programs, even after she had Little Ricky. 

My parents grew up during the Depression and they followed their gut, and pocketbook. They used good old-fashion COMMON SENSE. We had many hand-me-downs, upcycled toys (never heard that word until recently) or repaired things to ride and play with – and we didn’t care. We were having fun - outdoors. My parents had five kids and we were prepared for any weather. I get it. Mom needed some alone time to wash, cook, clean and sew. She wanted us out of her hair, but it was the best possible excuse for us kids to explore and discover the great outdoors. Totally unsupervised tag-along-after-my-brothers’ excursions were my favorite.

We knew to be back around supper time and always back before dark. We shared an old canteen of water when we remembered to bring it, otherwise there were drinking fountains at the park which was 10 miles away. We rode our bicycles there often, up a very steep hill and almost never had any problems. If we encountered a problem, we solved it without cell phones. On rare occasions, if needed, we weren’t afraid to knock on a stranger’s door for help. Actually, we knew most of the people in our town or they knew someone in my large family.

Do We Live in a More Advantageous Time?

The older I become, the more I think, I had the advantage growing up in an era when outdoor play was the norm. Here’s why. Through outdoor play, I learned:

• How to communicate, share, socialize, follow game rules, and problem-solve
• Develop fine and large muscles
• Use my imagination to develop new games using whatever we had (rocks, balls, cans, sticks, chalk)
• Connect to my neighbors experiencing a sense of community and of belonging

Photo by

Like Mama~Like Daughter

What Did I Play?

• Jacks (I was the Queen of Jacks – spent many hours on the front porch playing with old rusty jacks and the same golf ball)
• Jump rope
• Skates (hand-me-down metal skates with a key to adjust size – not exactly speedy)
• Bicycles (old bikes my father kept repairing)
• Dolls were carted around in wagons and buggies
• Kick the can
• Basketball, softball, catch
• Hola Hoop
• Pogo Stick
• Marbles
• Badminton
•  Croquet (We didn’t have a set but our best friends did)
• Hide and seek
• Hopscotch, laid out on sidewalks with white chalk from school.
• Collections: I loved collecting locust shells in the daytime and fireflies at night. This was in Kansas where there are plenty.

Photo by

Like Mama~Like Daughter

  The Cost?

Practically nothing in terms of money – huge in terms of development. Free Range Kids: How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Children without Going Nuts with Worry by Lenore Skenazy is full of research - and humor. This is quoted from her book: "...70 percent of today's moms say they played outside as kids. But only 31 percent of their kids do." Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine reports that of a sample of preschoolers representing 4 million children, about half had parent-supervised outdoor play activity per day. At least sixty minutes a day is recommended.

Things I Did Not Do:

I didn’t watch much television or play organized sports. I was in school bands and orchestras. Television was in black and white when we finally got one and there were few children’s shows available. We did watch The Lone Ranger and I loved the Heidi movies when they were on. Shirley Temple was adorable. I still want curly hair.

photo by

Like Mama~Like Daughter

Things I Did:

• Went to library (Gasp! We had no ebooks, iPads, cell phones, iTunes, game stations).
• Rode my bike hundreds, probably thousands, of miles exploring everywhere I could.
• Swam most summer days in the town pool.
• Swung in an old tire swing - that was even in our front yard - and walked to the Catholic school playground which still has teeter-totters, swings and a Geo Dome.

Now I'm a “retired” teacher, author and blogger. Through blogging, I met my good friend Katie from Mommy with Selective Memory who is always looking for ways to educate her preschoolers – to make them as smart and happy as she can. She went on a search to find answers and even bought flashcards! I talked her into tossing them and doing playful activities with her preschoolers. She told me that she had no clue what to do with them even though she loves them dearly but that some days they were driving her crazy. What could she do when they took road trips or why wasn’t her daughter making neighborhood friends? How could she best help them develop physically, mentally, emotionally? We searched and there was no book for moms who don’t own a glue gun or know what to do with their toddlers or preschoolers. They just know they love them and want what is best for them. 

So we collaborated and wrote a book to help other moms in similar circumstances. It is filled with inexpensive activities and explains the child development benefits behind them: The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble and Motivated to Learn. Or you might like a glimpse into Kindergarten. Both are bestsellers and make helpful gifts for parents and teachers. Also available on Barnes & Noble and Kobo.

Let Children Experience Childhood.

What are your favorite outdoor memories?

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