Sticky Situation – Going to the Mall

By Scholastic News
Jan. 4, 2010

Michelle’s mom is taking Michelle and her friend Kendra to the mall. Michelle is going to buy a pair of roller shoes.

Kendra really wants to get a pair too, but her mom doesn’t think they’re safe and says Kendra is not allowed to have them.

Kendra wants to purchase a pair while she’s at the mall with Michelle.

What should Kendra do?

 

Write a paragraph explaining what you think Kendra should do in the “Post a comment” section below.

Other Scholastic News readers will be posting their thoughts about this week’s ethical dilemma, too. So come back to the Sticky Situation blog to discuss their solutions!

 

Cick on comments

 

Source: Scholastic News Online

 

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com

Do More than Nothing

By Dan Samaria
Publisher/GCC
Jan. 4, 2010

Do you know what “Joylogy” means? It is the study of caring, sharing, and listening and Sacrifice.

This was written by Mr. Jeineke in 1975

We would like to know what you think: dan@youngchronicle.com

What is a Joyologist? A joyologist then would be one who studies joy logy. Frankly our world could use a great many joyologists whose mission in life is to actively research the effects of discussing and sharing joy.

The research could branch out into how joy affects our careers, family lives, and friendships. The very act of doing the active research should spread jubilation throughout the world and bring about positive results. What a fun job!

All one needs to start with is to share the words joyism, joy logy, and joyologis with others. Use the words daily and make them a part of the world’s vocabulary.

The upcoming year is going to challenge us all. Here is something we need to think, this is from an unknown reader. It is called: Do More than Nothing

 

By Mother Theresa

 Do more than exist–love.
Do more than hear–listen.
Do more than agree–cooperate.
Do more than talk–communicate.
Do more than spend–invest.
Do more than think–create.
Do more than work–excel.
Do more than share–give.
Do more than decide–discern.
Do more than consider–commit.
Do more than help–serve.
Do more than coexist–reconcile.
Do more than see–perceive.
Do more than read–apply.
Do more than receive–reciprocate.
Do more than advise–help.
Do more than encourage–inspire.
Do more than add–multiply.
Do more than change–improve.
Do more than reach–stretch.
Do more than ponder–pray.
Do more than forgive–forget.
Do more than wish–believe.
Do more than grow–bloom.
Do more than dream–DO!

Source: Joyology

Protecting Your Baby

By Safe Kids
Jan. 3, 2009

Fragile, helpless and innocent, your infant enters the world completely dependent on you.  From the moment you leave the hospital, you take steps to keep her safe. 

You buckle her tenderly into a rear-facing child safety seat for the ride home.  You check the bath temperature carefully before placing her in the water. 

At night, you tuck her in to a new crib, with a label that assures you it meets national safety standards.  But could you be doing more? 

Although your home should be a safe haven for your baby, it can be dangerous.  Babies face a list of potential injuries – including choking, drowning, falls, poisons and burns – that can overwhelm any parent. 

Yet each of these risks can be reduced or eliminated by taking simple, time-tested steps.  

The greatest gift you can give your baby is a safe environment.  Explore the links below to learn more.

To learn more about airway obstruction injury, falls and childhood unintentional poisioning read A Report to the Nation: Trends in Unintentional Childhood Injury Mortality, 1987-2000 (May 2003).

To purchase educational materials about specific risk areas, check out our Resource Catalog  (off-site link). 

Source: Safe Kids USA

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com

Sticky Situation – Video Game

By Scholastic News
Dec. 28, 2009

Jordy and Arjun were playing a video game at Jordy’s house. Arjun accidentally knocked over a glass of juice onto Jordy’s computer. Jordy needs to get his computer repaired and thinks Arjun should pay for that. Arjun disagrees.

He thinks it’s Jordy’s fault for keeping his drink too close to his computer. What should Arjun do?

Write a paragraph explaining what you think Arjun should do in the “Post a comment” section below.

Other Scholastic News readers will be posting their thoughts about this week’s ethical dilemma, too. So come back to the Sticky Situation blog to discuss their solutions!

 

Cick on comments

 

Source: Scholastic News Online

 

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com

Deadly Choking Game

By Healthy Kids
Jan. 3, 2010

Media reports have brought increased attention to a deadly game children are playing, often resulting in death or near-death.

In the choking game, participants attempt to get “high” or experience a euphoric feeling by temporarily depriving the brain of oxygen by applying pressure to the neck until they pass out.

In the study, “The Choking Game: Physician Perspectives,” published in the January issue of Pediatrics (appearing online December 14), 163 pediatricians and family practitioners were asked about their awareness of the choking game and its warning signs.

Survey results indicate that close to one-third of physicians were unaware of the choking game or the warning signs, which can include bruising around the neck, headaches, bloodshot eyes, ties, belts or cords found in unusual places or tied in strange knots, or wear marks on furniture.

The study authors and majority of all respondents agreed that reliable and accurate information should be provided so physicians can discuss the risks associated with the choking game with patients and their parents to help prevent children from playing the game.

Source: Healthy Children

 

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com

The Important Call

By Elizabeth Cole
Jan. 3, 2009

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? 

And how can they believe in the one whom they have not heard?  And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? –Romans 10:13-14

 

My 17-year-old was on her way to go sledding with friends on a Sunday afternoon. Before she left, I heard her in the garage rummaging around. Silence. Then a call, “Mom, I need help!”

There she was on the stepladder, reaching as high as she could into the rafters trying to get her flexible flyer down…but to no avail.

“I’m trying to get the sled down, but I can’t reach it. Will you help me?” Hallelujah… It’s was not often that I got that kind of request from my daughter!

“Here, hop off; I’ll do it for you.” I grinned as I easily did for her what she couldn’t do for herself, sending her on her way with sled in tow!

What a precious picture God gave me that day of the last part of His salvation process:  Someone obeys Him and tells the Good News of salvation to another; that person hears the very words of God through the speaker and believes…and then, that person CALLS on the name of the Lord.

Scripture makes it clear that just intellectually agreeing Jesus is the Savior isn’t enough — “even the demons believe…” Certainly, my daughter could have stood all day on that stepladder believing that I was tall enough to help her.

But it was only when she ACTED on what she knew to be true, calling out for my help that she received what she needed, what she couldn’t do on her own.

Real life begins with a personal dependence on Jesus, with calling out to Him to give us what we can never attain ourselves: a right relationship with the God of the Universe through faith in what He did for us on the Cross.

Source: Home Word      Azusa Pacific University

 

Editor’s Note: You can comment on today’s devotional contactus@homeword.com or dan@youngchronicle.com

Kids that Love the Earth

By Toni Klym McLellan
Jan. 3, 2010

My children — like many of their peers — spend far less time in the fresh air than kids did in the past. That’s unfortunate, experts say, since communing with nature offers so many benefits.

Outdoor time helps kids get exercise, stimulates their senses, and promotes cognitive development. And it can also make children more relaxed. “Kids experience tremendous stress reduction from even a little contact with nature,” says Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods.

A University of Illinois study found that just a 20-minute walk in the park reduced symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Teaching kids to appreciate nature is as easy as it is fun. Our outdoor action plan will help you trade screen time for time beyond the screen door.

 

 

Play in the Yard

While kids often venture outside for organized sports or recess on paved playgrounds, unstructured playtime in nature is scarce. “Put away the Purell and let your kids learn to touch dirt again,” suggests Les Stroud, host of the TV show Survivorman, who credits his adventurous adulthood to summer days he spent at a family cottage in the woods.

You don’t need to head to the hills to find the pleasures of the wild — you can do it in your own backyard. “My boys once spent hours watching a wasp repeatedly carry mud from a puddle to build a nest,” says Jennifer Joyce, a Westminster, Maryland, mother of four boys, ages 4 to 9.

 “Afterward, they wanted to learn more, so we spent some time researching the insects together.”

Give your kids a magnifying glass so they can take a bug’s-eye view and explore. (Check out the book In the Tall, Tall Grass, by Denise Fleming, which looks at the yard from a caterpillar’s perspective.) Some other ways to help children incorporate nature into their games:

For young kids, make bingo cards with pictures of things — a round rock, a small twig, a big tree — they can hunt for in the backyard.

Send older kids on a scavenger hunt around the neighborhood to help them develop teamwork and strategizing skills. For a more advanced version of the game, use a regional field guide to trees, wildflowers, and critters.

 

 

Frolic in the Rain

Anyone who’s tried keeping children from stomping through every puddle in a parking lot knows that kids love water. Ditch the myth that rainy days cause colds (viruses, which are actually more readily spread in dry air, are the real culprit).

If there’s no thunder or lightning in the forecast, send your children out in rain boots for some serious splashtivity. Have towels and dry clothes ready when they return, wet and happy from their visit to nature’s water park.

The world smells and looks different when it rains. Ask your kids what they notice: Are the birds quiet? Do the clouds look different?

Does a downpour sound like sizzling bacon? Check out the book Rain Play, by Cynthia Cotten, which evokes the sounds and sights of rainy days for prereaders.

Stimulate your child’s sense of touch by letting her squish her toes in the mud. Grab an umbrella and walk toddlers around the block, counting the earthworms gathered on the sidewalk.

(Don’t worry, they’re not drowning; scientists believe they surface on wet days to quickly migrate above ground without drying out.)

Let older kids compete to see who can make the biggest splashes out of even the tiniest of puddles.

 

 

Take a Hike

Trekking through the woods may seem daunting, but most kid-friendly day hikes require no special gear aside from sturdy shoes and a backpack to carry water, nourishing snacks, sunscreen, and insect repellent.

Get your kids in the hiking spirit by reading Follow the Trail: A Young Person’s Guide to the Great Outdoors, by Jessica Loy.

Setting off on a family trek is a great way to build strong bonds. “You don’t usually have the kind of interruptions outdoors that you have at home,” says Parents advisor Michael Thompson, PhD, a psychologist and author specializing in children and families.

“It’s a different quality of experience for kids when their parents’ heads are clear of distractions.

Jennifer Bebensee, a single mom from Corvallis, Oregon, started hiking when her daughter, Sami, was 2.

“With no video games, TV shows, or ringing phones to disturb us, long walks in the wild allowed us to focus on ourselves,” says Bebensee.

“Now 16, Sami sees nature as a sanctuary from school or other teenage concerns. It centers her and gives her comfort.”

Find an easy, kid-friendly trail through a local park or preserve. If you have a very young child, use a jogging stroller, if permitted, or carry him in an infant carrier or a baby backpack.

Take along a digital camera and snap photos to help older kids focus on details they otherwise might not notice, Bebensee suggests. And make a game of counting trail markers, butterflies, or wildflowers.

Families with school-age kids can try geocaching, a high-tech outdoor treasure hunt using a GPS to find “caches,” small containers that have been filled with logbooks and trinkets by other hikers.

Check out geocaching.com

 

 

Visit a Nature Center

Joann Philpott, of Houston, started going to the Hana & Arthur Ginzbarg Nature Discovery Center — a slice of the wild tucked away in nearby Bellaire, Texas — when her kids were toddlers.

“The exhibits encouraged them to touch, feel, and participate,” she says. Now on the center’s board, Philpott still visits regularly with her kids, ages 7 to 11.

She credits the exhibits with turning them into nature lovers who prefer spending time at the family’s small farm to, say, going to an amusement park.

To find a center near you, Google “nature center” and the name of your hometown. Most offer kid-friendly activities and easy-to-understand displays on endangered species, rescued animals, and the local flora and fauna.

If you can’t find a nature center nearby, pick up a copy of Take a City Nature Walk, by Jane Kirkland, an urban field guide for children. It can help your kids pay attention to the often unnoticed wildlife that’s around them all the time.

 

 

Plant Something

A love of gardening runs up and down Stephanie Hein’s family tree; she grew up on the rural Colorado vegetable farm her great-grandfather worked in the late 1800s.

Today, Hein grows veggies with her children, Justin, 6, and Ellie, 3, in Boulder, Colorado. “All kids can participate on some level,” she says. Younger children can dig holes or water plants, and older children can label plant markers.

“My son is particularly proud when he sees vegetables from our garden on the dinner table. ”

Don’t fret if you don’t have a back 40 to plow: “Start small and work up to a larger garden,” says Hein.

Try growing cherry tomatoes in a planter on a porch if you’re a beginner or have limited space. Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots: Gardening Together with Children, by Sharon Lovejoy, will get the whole family excited about gardening.

 

 

Climb a Tree

Finding a great jungle gym doesn’t require making a trip to a playground. Instead, encourage your child to climb the limbs of a sturdy tree.

It’s a great way to give kids a dose of adventure while they work on building their strength and dexterity.

Make sure your child stays safe; don’t let him climb beyond your reach! But keep things in perspective: Louv points out that kids today are at higher risk for repetitive stress injuries — and those take longer to heal than most broken bones do.

If your kid loves climbing and is ready to branch out, tree-climbing is growing into a hobby sport with specialized gear that lets kids as young as 5 reach greater heights. Check out treeclimbing.com for more info.

Children too young to climb can learn to love trees, too, when they sit in the shade or collect leaves. Tot-friendly field guides like Diane Burns’ Trees, Leaves, and Bark show the many ways that trees benefit other living things.

treeclimbing.com

 

Go Camping

For a complete nature-immersion experience and a vacation that doesn’t break the bank, try pitching a tent. Roy Scribner and his wife, Lisa, take monthly camping trips with their three children, ages 4 to 8.

“The kids always come home excited and worn out, and they talk about the trip for weeks afterward,” says the dad from Morgan Hill, California.

“They’re picking up on the fact that there’s this bigger world out there, and they’re curious about it.”

If you aren’t quite ready to sleep in the woods, try a backyard campout using borrowed or rented gear, or seek out ranger-led clinics at local parks or conservation areas.

“Know your comfort zone and look for places where you’ll feel confident taking the kids,” says Stroud. It’s important to have the right supplies, but you don’t need much beyond a tent, sleeping bags, and a lantern or flashlight.

Prepare your kids for their stay in the wild by reading S Is for S’Mores: A Camping Alphabet, by Helen Foster James. Then light a fire, pull up a log, and make some s’mores of your own.

Originally published in the March 2009 issue of Parents magazine.

 

Source: Parents

 

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com

How to Choose a Pediatrician

By: Peter A. Gorski, M.D., M.P.A.
Jan. 1, 2009

The advice of other parents. The atmosphere of the doctor’s office. Office hours convenient to your work schedule. Gut instinct.

All are important things to take into account when you choose a pediatrician.

Your child’s pediatrician is your partner in promoting your child’s health and development.

That means you should feel comfortable with your choice. Interviewing several pediatricians at their offices is the best way to pick your partner.

When to start? When you’re still pregnant. With all of the excitement and physical changes during pregnancy, it’s easy to overlook the fact that you’re about to become a parent!

In the last trimester of your pregnancy, your baby is growing rapidly and you have lots to think about. But feeling comfortable with the person you choose to be your baby’s doctor is as important as finding a safe crib.

 

Beginning Your Search

Sometime after the 30th week of pregnancy, make an appointment for you and your partner to meet with a pediatrician or a few pediatricians in their offices.

Be sure that the individual is board-certified in pediatrics or family medicine and has had at least three years of training in pediatrics or family medicine.

The state medical society or the staff at the physician’s office could give you this basic information.

To get a list of prospects, ask your own health care provider, your parents, or friends you respect.

Ask them why they like or dislike a certain doctor — their reasons may not be the same as yours.

You could also call your local medical society, board of health, or hospital for some references.

 

The Interview

You can find out a lot about a doctor during this prenatal pediatric visit. He or she should be a person with whom you would feel comfortable discussing any issue concerning your child and your family.

Each appointment should last 15 or 20 minutes. It’s not a good sign if a doctor won’t meet with you — scratch him or her off your list!

Some of what goes into your decision may simply be based on impressions, personality, and instinct. You may want to:

 

Pay attention to the office setting. Is the waiting room clean, bright, and playful? Is it calm and safe?

Get a sense of how much the members of the staff enjoy working with children.

Notice how interested the pediatrician is in you and your expectations about your child.

See how the doctor’s style and personality blend with yours.

 

Here are a few general things to talk over with the pediatricians you meet:

The doctor’s or the medical group’s availability in an emergency.

How their office hours work with your schedule.

How they would support your choices about feeding your baby.

 

What they think about your plans for child care.

Their special medical interests or expertise in children’s health and development.

 

Here are some specific questions to ask:

When are your office hours?

How can we see someone after hours?

When can I reach you and your staff by phone?

What do we do in an emergency when the doctor isn’t available?

Can we call with questions that wouldn’t require an office visit? Do you charge for such “telephone time”?

How much time do you allow for office visits? (A good answer would be 15 minutes or more.)

What hospitals do you use and what HMOs do you work with?

How do you support breastfeeding?

 

When will I bring my baby for the first office visit? (A good answer would be within the first week, especially if you’ve had a short maternity stay in the hospital.)

How can you help me understand my child’s development?

If our child has behavior problems that we can’t control, how comfortable will you be in helping us with them?

What’s your advice about working and parenting?

How well do you know the infant and toddler programs in the community?

 

A Switch in Time

If your HMO or birth center has already assigned you a pediatrician, it’s not too late to make sure he or she is the right choice for you.

Interview him or her. You can ask your health care plan for its list of pediatricians and interview one or two others, too.

If you have already brought your baby to a pediatrician you don’t feel comfortable with, it’s not too late to switch.

Even if your health care plan has a list of doctors you must choose from, that list is probably quite long.

Ask your health plan what steps you can take to find a pediatrician within the plan that meets your needs, your schedule, and your style.

Once you begin a comfortable relationship with your pediatrician, you will feel more relaxed and confident about childbirth and the lifelong devotion of parenting.

 

Source: Pampers

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com

Autism: Father’s View

By Spiffy Moms
Jan. 2, 2009

It is a well recorded fact that being male and female, fathers and mothers react differently to the complex range of situations that come with family life.

This is especially true when confronted with the birth of a child who has autism. The actual diagnosis of autism could take a number of years before being fully recognized.
Certainly in the case of my own daughter there were a number of changes before she was finally diagnosed as having autism along with ADHD.

Being able to understand and cope with the situation is not helped, in this instance, by a variance of diagnosis.

Accepting that your child is not developing as expected can be one of the main areas of conflict between parents.

This is especially true in the case of the father, as the mother will naturally want to give that child all the love and attention they need, resulting in the father possibly feeling left out or inadequate.

As the father normally goes out to work there can be a tendency to leave most of the childcare to the mother instead of taking a share of the extra load.

Where this happens, there is a lack of strong bonding between the child and the father leading to the father distancing himself from the child.

All children need to feel wanted and loved by both parents. It is part of the responsibility of being a father to nurture and build a close relationship with your children.

If one of your children is autistic this is of particular importance as they might well not have the ability to communicate their feelings to others.

Our own upbringing, and the society that we live in, can have a dramatic effect on how we cope with having an autistic child. Their needs are more complex, and are often not immediately recognized by those outside of the child’s family environment.

The role of the father can be of major importance in ensuring that everything possible is put in place to help the family understand and cope with this stressful situation.

This could well involve some changes in our own attitudes and outlook.

As the father of a child that has autism, I would say to anyone in a similar situation that the rewards from building a loving and close relationship with your child far outweigh the extra time and effort needed.

There is no greater reward than hearing your own child say “ I love you” and to see the smile on their face as you spend quality time together. Do not be discouraged by the opinions of others who do not understand.

Start to show your love and develop a close relationship with your child straightaway. You will reap the benefits for years to come.

 

Source: Spiffy Moms

 

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com

America’s Everyday Heroes

By Katherine E. P
YC/Staff
Jan. 2, 2009

Editor’s Note: The following article was written by a 15-year old, while she was giving a speech at her school.

All Americans should read her words of wisdom as we face an upcoming year of possible New Depression being brought on by Obama’s financial policies.

What follows is the relevant excerpt from her speech.

We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com

 

“Our generation has had no great war, no Great Depression.  Our war is spiritual.  Our depression is our lives.  Author Chuck Palahniuk makes this grim observation of younger generations in his book Fight Club. 

We are sometimes referred to as “Generation Me” – those of us born in the 80’s and 90’s.  We have the best education, technology and conveniences available to us. 

“So what makes us different from our grandparents and great-grandparents?  All the books and movies portray that group of people born just before the Great Depression as heroes; strong men and women who never complained about almost unbelievable ordeals of the Great Depression and WWII. 

In his best selling book, Tom Brokaw names them ‘The Greatest Generation.’  These ordinary men and women, people like my grandparents, have amazing stories full of sacrifice and a sense of purpose.” 

“Grandad saved up enough money to start college with one pair of pants, two shirts and a jacket.  A year later he was drafted out of college.  Grandad never talked much about the war. 

He stepped on a landmine and was blown against a tree and filled full of shrapnel.  The next four months he spent in army hospital, lucky to have both arms and legs.  For this he was awarded the purple heart.”

“GranMary illustrated the quality of Depression era off-base housing: ‘Two walls of the so-called garage apartment were cement blocks.  The others were cardboard boxes stapled together. 

The place had a rusty iron bed, a cracked mirror, a little table, and a two burner gas stove.  A light bulb hung from a wire from the ceiling and the water came from a spigot outside. 

In those days people were used to their lives being temporary and uncertain and we didn’t know what else there was. 

We sure didn’t expect anyone to take care of us – we just did what we had to do to survive.’ ”

“This generation of veterans and survivors of the Depression and WWII is dying.  Every day we lose over 1000 of these great men and women; these everyday heroes. 

They have stories we could be learning from that are going unheard. 

President Ronald Reagan said ‘Each generation goes further than the generation preceding it because it stands on the shoulders of that generation.’ 

My generation needs to listen and learn quickly before these people are gone.  We could learn their humility, their loyalty, their responsibility, their frugality and their hard work.  All the things that make them the greatest generation.”

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