Tag Archives: Activities for children

Give Your Children the Best Gift

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and www.patlambchristianauthor.com

Train up a child…

Give your Children the Best Gift

         What is the best gift you can give your children?  Many experts agree that the best thing that parents and grandparents can give children is their time.  Yet, as the holiday season approaches, we find ourselves wanting more time, and we find it more difficult to give the time to children that they need.  

         How can we give more time to children, and what are the benefits of doing so?

         One of the easiest ways to give more time to children is to include them in the activities we do.  The benefits of giving more time are many.  Three of those benefits are bonding, learning more about our children, and giving the children a feeling of worth.

         As we include children in activities, they relax and open up in more ways than they normally would.  Children most often say and do the things that they know their parents expect of them.  This prevents adults from knowing what they are really thinking and feeling.  When they relax in activities, they drop their guard and we find out more about them.  We are often surprised to find that our children may be thinking and feeling something entirely different from what we had thought.  This gives us clues as to their needs in guidance as they grow.

         As children assist in activities such as decorating, baking, making gifts, shopping, or other holiday happenings, they bond with adults in achieving the common goal of making others happy. While doing so, they can discuss how they think the recipient will respond, and they feel happy about achieving something good with their parents.  Little faces light up in anticipation of the happiness they are creating, and a special closeness is achieved as feelings of accomplishment are shared.

         When parents take time to include children in activities, the children feel that their parents think their ideas are valuable.  They develop a feeling of worth because mom or dad wanted them to help. The opposite is true when they are pushed aside.  Children then feel that their ideas and help are not wanted or needed.  They look to find their own activities aside from parents.  Children have an inner desire to feel that they are valuable to someone.  No toy or game purchased for a child can make up for that feeling.

         It is not difficult to include children in activities.  The key is to find something within the child’s ability.  There is always something they can do if it is no more than holding a finger on the ribbon while a bow is being tied.  For Thanksgiving Dinner, children can help set the table and participate in ways to help in preparation of food.  The quality of the dish is not as important as the quality of child we are raising.  

         There is nothing we can buy or do for our children that is any more important than spending time with them. 

Learning Science can be Fun

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and www.patlambchristianauthor.com

Train up a child…

Learning Science can be Fun

         Parents are often hesitant to help children with homework for fear they will look dumb to their children or teach them something that is inconsistent with what the school is teaching. There is much that families can do to provide learning foundations for children at home as well as actually helping with assigned projects.  Helping children use the scientific method for problem solving helps develop logical thinking that carries over to produce success at school in science classes.

         One of the best things parents can do is to help children develop a curiosity for learning.  Taking children for walks and observing plants, rocks, animal tracks, and animals is interesting for both the children and the parents.  It is quality time spent to nurture curiosity for learning.  There are simple projects that are fun for children.  An acorn man can be made by using toothpicks and running them through the acorns making a body, legs, arms, and head.  It is fun to use an acorn that still has a “hat” on for the head.  A pen can be used to make facial features.  Laying paper over leaves and scribbling on it brings out the features of the leaves.  If a magnifying glass is available, children learn even more about the construction of things in nature and develop an eye for details.  It seems that many children love to collect rocks.  Using the Internet to look up information about different rocks is certainly a great learning project.

         As children ask questions, parents can ask questions in return.  As parents ask questions, children are forming a hypothesis about the subject.  Whenever possible, follow-up experiments can be conducted to see if the reason is true.  This is the scientific method of thinking.  In this simple way, children are learning a foundation for experimentation in science classes in high school and college.  It is good at this point to tell children the difference between a theory and a fact.  Until something is proven, it is simply a theory.  It is so very important that children understand this difference.  If children tend to believe theories, they can simply be asked, “Has that actually been proven?”  A child who has been taught that facts must be obtained to back up theories does not readily accept any idea that comes along.

         Science project assignments for children at home provide an opportunity for quality time spent with children.  However, some children are simply not able to do some of the things often required in home projects.  Teachers need to use care in making assignments.  When children are asked to do artistic type projects, it is a real temptation for parents to do it for the children if their child is not “picture smart”. Teachers would be wise to offer a choice of projects for children that include a variety of methods.  When the child chooses a preferred project, it is usually because he/she feels more capable of doing it.  The parents can then ask questions, provide information, and make suggestions, rather than doing the project.  

         It is so easy to help children with learning science.  It is fun to learn together and explore the wonderful world that God made.  Spending time with children in nature provides an excellent opportunity to point out the greatness of our heavenly Father. Those who don’t choose to do so, miss out on a wonderful and fun time with their children.

Helping Children with Writing

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and www.patlambchristianauthor.com

Train up a child…

Helping Children with Writing

         The three r’s, reading, ‘riting’, and ‘rithmetic’, are still the most important subjects in school because everything else is based on these three things.  There are innumerable complaints that children are not learning these things as they should. Help from parents is definitely needed to make sure that children learn these basics.

         Parents can help their children learn to be good writers in a number of ways.  “Practice makes perfect” certainly applies to writing.  Practice helps with both the mechanical aspects of learning to make the letters and the mental organizing and creating of subject matter.

         Very young children who have toys requiring the use of motor skills in the hands are more apt to learn to print well using sticks and circles to make the letters of the alphabet.  Making dots for children in the shapes of the letters provides a guide to follow.  Cursive writing is not given a great deal of emphasis in today’s educational process since it is not used as much as in the past.  After all, most job applications say, “Please print,” and computers are available for composing letters and stories.  Although it is nice to know cursive writing, limited time in school demands that teachers emphasize subjects that are very practical. At one time, cursive writing was necessary for taking notes in college classes, but now students can record a lecture or download necessary information on their computers.

         When older children are required to write essays, a good way to tell them to organize the essay is the “five finger rule”.  One finger is for the introduction where three points are named.  The next finger is for a new paragraph to talk about the first item named.  The next finger represents the next paragraph to talk about the second thing and the next finger represents another paragraph to talk about the third thing.  The last finger is to summarize the essay by restating what was said in the first paragraph.  This five paragraph essay is taught to GED students to write an essay for passing the GED test. The format works in most cases and can also be used as an outline for making a speech. It is helpful to have a child draw around his/her hand on a piece of paper and label the five fingers for the five paragraphs. 

         Many students have trouble in knowing what to say when they write.  Questions help a child to expand thinking.  Taking the time to discuss a topic with a child helps give ideas.  A background of various experiences is always a big help in providing material for writing.  The Internet is a gold mine of information. 

         Reading, writing, and speaking form what educators call the language triangle.  As a child improves in any one of the three, the other two are also enhanced.  Children need to do a lot of reading and a great deal of writing.  Unfortunately, many inventions are harmful as well as helpful. Since the copy machine was invented, children often just fill in blanks to answer a question. Good writing should be required at home and in all classes at school, not just the communications class.  If a child is allowed to get by with sloppy writing in math, science, social studies, and health classes, the one class in language is not likely to succeed in teaching good writing skills.  Consistency is important. Parents would be wise to see that their children are doing plenty of writing and doing it well.

Helping Children with Reading Homework

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.patlambchristianauthor.com

Train up a child…

Helping Children with Reading Homework

         Many parents shy away from helping their children with homework.  Often, this is because they are afraid they will not do it the way the teacher wants, or perhaps they feel inadequate.  There are six basic subject areas for which children may receive homework. They are reading, math, language, social studies, writing, and science.  In this column, I would like to make comments about helping children with reading.

         It is helpful to understand how reading is taught in schools today.  In the past there were arguments about whether sight reading or phonetic reading was best.  Actually, both are used.  There are certain words that children should simply memorize and learn by sight.  A good basis of phonics is absolutely necessary for a child to be able to decode words on his/her own.

         One of the best ways to help a child with sight words is to use flash cards.  Teachers can give parents a list of words that children should know by sight.  Children can make their own flash cards or flash cards may be purchased.  The advantage for a child to make the cards is that the child learns about spelling and writing at the same time as the words are learned. The advantage of purchasing the cards is that the print is similar to what the child sees on the pages in books.  Either or both are helpful.

         If a parent feels inadequate to teach phonics, that parent can ask the child to teach the parent. The child learns the sounds at school and usually knows them but simply needs review and practice for reinforcement.  Sometimes a parent may need to put a finger over part of a word to help the child break the word down.  Much of reading depends on the vision of a child…both the physical vision and the way the child sees the word in his/her mind.  By covering part of a word, the child can see parts of the word in the mind rather than just seeing a bunch of letters of the alphabet.

         The best thing any parent can do to help with a child’s reading is simply have that child read, read, read.  Older children can read stories to younger children or to the parents.  The children need to be familiar with the local library and have enjoyable books on hand to read at all times.  Reading at home should generally be easy reading. If a child does not know five words to a page, that book is too difficult for the child.  Reading easy books develops a feeling of self-satisfaction.  The child becomes more fluent and develops speed.  Usually, it is best to leave the difficult books for the school to handle.  Encouraging a child to read enjoyable and easy books develops a good foundation for reading in years to come.  If reading is always difficult, the child will shy away from it.

         Parents should see that books are available for children all the time.  Books should be in the car, so that when a child has to wait for a parent somewhere, the child can be reading.  Children can help make and read grocery lists.  They can read directions on packages to mom or dad when meals are being prepared.  Parents can find many opportunities to help children with reading and need not hesitate to do so.

Children Learn in Different Ways

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or www.patlambchristianauthor.com

Train up a child…

Children Learn in Different Ways

         Studies show that we tend to raise our children the way we were raised in spite of any training in child-rearing classes we may have received along the way.  Without realizing it, we tend to think that our children will learn the same way we learned without taking into account the differences in inherited traits and personalities.  We can be much more effective in parenting (and grandparenting) if we can understand the differences in the way children learn.

         Some children tend to learn better by hearing information while others learn better by seeing or doing.  Educators classify children as auditory, visual, or kinesthetic learners.  Actually, all children learn in each of these ways, but most are dominant in one or two of the ways.

         Auditory learners learn best by having a story read to them rather than reading it for themselves.  They like to have music going most of the time and would rather have someone tell them what to do than read instructions for themselves.  They are often musically inclined and can learn better when things are set to music. Auditory learners might learn multiplication tables more easily if they are set to music.  In my opinion, many children have not developed listening skills and do not fall into this category.  

         Visual learners learn better with charts and graphs or demonstrations.  They need to see how a word looks to decide if it is spelled right, and they will probably learn their spelling words by writing them over and over rather than just saying them over and over. They will be the individuals who take a lot of notes when they are in high school or college.  They need to be shown how to do things rather than just being told.  Charts for daily chores work well for these children.  They probably won’t just take a person’s word for something.  They will probably want to see for themselves whether something is right.  

         Kinesthetic learners like to use their bodies and do active things.  They are usually the children involved in sports.  They learn best by doing projects. They like doing play-doh projects when they are young.  When they are older, they are the ones who like the social studies and science projects that involve making things.  An example of using a kinesthetic method to teach in school might be to have students stand and turn a certain number of degrees right or left to learn about degrees in a circle.  At home, boys will love to do fix-it projects with dad.  Girls will like cooking or other projects involving action.

         Observance of children will give clues as to how they best learn.  When children constantly doodle and draw pictures, you can know they are the visual learners.  The very active children are usually the kinesthetic learners and it is important to keep them busy with projects.  Quiet children may be the auditory learners as they are listening for sounds in nature or listening to others.  No two children are the same.  Good parents and teachers will learn to observe the differences and capitalize on the way that children learn best.

Ideas for Children Home from School

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: “Let the Children Come”; “Children, Come to Me”; “When the Stars Fall Down”; “Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way”; “My Thinking Book”. Available on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, www.patlambchristianauthor.com.)

Train up a child…

Ideas for Children Home from School

When children are required to be at home instead of school, new challenges are present.  “What can I do to keep them busy?”  “I’m not a teacher, how can I teach them at home?”  Kids get bored.  Here are some ideas:

1)  If lessons are being sent home via Internet or otherwise, do those first.  When you get “stuck”, ask the child to explain it to you.  They learn more by telling you than you telling them.  When they don’t know, ask an older child or call someone who might know.

2) Having a child copy something important teaches writing, spelling, punctuation, and concentration in addition to the subject matter being copied.  “Engage pen; engage mind.”

3)  This is a good time to teach home care.  Teach sons and daughters how to repair things. Most homes have something broken that needs repair. Teach daughters and sons to cook.  Make sure they learn to measure ingredients.  Doing so helps children learn fractions.

4) Teach housekeeping skills.  Sweeping, dusting, organizing, and sorting through things to see what can be shared with others or tossed are good activities.

5)  Now there is time for family meetings!  Family devotional times including the memorization of Scripture and discussion of proper behavior help a family bond. Help children become familiar with the Bible.

6) Board games such as Monopoly, Dominos, and many others are good activities.

7)  Write thank you notes to teachers and others.

8)  Family contests such as who can learn the most Scripture, who can recite from memory the Preamble to the Constitution, etc.  (Memorizing is a good way to train the mind.)

9)  Have children help in making a chore chart.

10) Plan a garden for spring and summer.

11) Use the Internet to look up interests of the family.

12) Review rules of good manners.  The basis of all good manners is kindness and consideration of others.  Ask children to write ways to demonstrate this rule.

We may find that this time at home is a very good thing!

Some Children Prefer Physical Activity

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book. Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and patlambchristianauthor.com)

Train up a child…

Some Children Prefer Physical Activity

         Some children are “body smart”.  Experts tell us that we are all born with dominance in three or four of the seven intelligences.  The seven intelligences are:  verbal/linguistic, logical/mathematical, visual/spatial, body/kinesthetic, musical/rhythmic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal.  Other names for these intelligences are:  word smart, numbers smart, picture smart, body smart, people smart, and self smart.

         The dominance in “body smart” is displayed when children prefer physical activity over sedentary activity.  These children really go for sports or any physical activity such as dancing.  They often find it difficult to sit still for long lengths of time.  In adulthood, someone may say, “I couldn’t talk if my hands were tied behind my back!”  The movement of hands while talking is a clue to recognizing this intelligence.  This intelligence involves a sense of timing and the perfection of skills through mind and body union.  

         The teacher or parent would be wise to keep these children moving as much as possible.  They can act out stories, participate in drama, or be given opportunities to participate in sports or make display projects.  They like to work with their hands, and they should be given breaks often if they have to sit for very long.  Younger children could learn the alphabet by forming the letters in play-doh. “Body smart” children like water play and painting.  They like demonstrations to mimic rather than simply listening to instructions.  Physical games of all kinds appeal to these children.  Swimming is an excellent activity as it provides a real positive outlet for physical energy. 

         Other possible teaching activities for the bodily/kinesthetic child include acting out scenes from the past in charades to learn history, standing and turning 45, 180, or 360 degrees to learn the degrees in a circle, or making a healthy snack food and eating it to learn nutrition.  The possibilities are almost endless. 

         Children who are dominant in the “body smart” intelligence may grow up to be surgeons, physical education teachers, physical therapists, mechanics, actors, factory workers, nurses, house cleaners, or any career involving physical activity.

         The physically active child may seem to be a challenge to tired parents or teachers. I wonder if some of the children who have been diagnosed with attention deficit disorder may simply be children who are “body smart”.  Whether or not this is the case, these children need constant physical activity. With understanding and planning, the “body smart” children can be real assets. When the parent or teacher is tired, the active child probably wants to keep going.  We can have the child run errands and do some of the things we may not have the energy to do.  We simply need to keep something going for this child because if we don’t, the child will find something on his/her own.  I remember reading someplace, “Confucius say, ‘A child with something to do, him busy.  A child with nothing to do, him busy, too!’”

Parents, Kids, and Public Places

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by Pat Lamb (www.patlambchristianauthor.com) Author of Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book (Books available on my website, Amazon, Barnes & Noble)

Train up a child…

Parents, Kids, and Public Places

         Have you noticed the many signs in public places reminding parents to watch their children?  I saw one place that actually had a sign listing rules for children while in the restaurant.  In addition to the signs, proprietors comment about the problems they have when parents bring children to their places of business.  In a consignment shop, the proprietor told of a child who was running around in the store and knocked over a valuable antique mirror and broke it.  The parent became upset with the business owner for not having the place “child friendly”!

         Parents need to understand that they are totally responsible for the behavior of their children. Store owners, doctors, dentists, schools, and churches are not responsible for a child’s behavior even though they may be helpful in providing guidance or activities for a child. Ultimately, it is the parent who is responsible for the child and what that child does.

         Laying ground rules before leaving the house, providing activities for the child, and careful selection of the places a child is taken can alleviate the problems connected with taking children to public places.

         It is understandable that parents get tired, and perhaps even close to exhaustion, when children constantly place demands on them.  This often leads to parents taking a backseat to the child and becoming reactive instead of proactive.  We simply cannot allow ourselves to do that. In the long run it causes more effort and frustration.  Parents need to think ahead and not wait until a child does something wrong and then try to deal with it.  Preventive action is much better.  

Children feel more secure when they know what is expected of them.  They need to be told that they are not to touch anything in a store without permission. They should not run around or leave a chair unless told that it is alright to do so.  Begging and whining for things should not be allowed. Children should not interrupt conversations of others unless it is an emergency and even then they should say “excuse me”. In restaurants, parents need to oversee what is ordered to eat.  If a child is old enough and able, that child should pick up whatever is dropped and clean up any messes made.  If the child is unable to do so, the parent should do it.  When the child understands ahead of time that he/she must clean up the messes they make, that child will be more careful with the eating process.

         There are many nice children’s toys or activity books that children can take to a public place where waiting is involved.  Parents would be wise to have an activity bag packed and kept in the car for such occasions. There are electronic toys that will keep children occupied for great lengths of time.  Many of these have good educational value.  Older children could have a good book handy to take along.  I know a family who always makes a trip to a bookstore before going on an extended trip.  Each person chooses a book to read on the plane or in the car. Cell phones or Ipads are permissible on a limited basis, but reading books should not be totally abolished. Some books can be downloaded on devices.     

         There are some places where children should simply not be taken.  If mom is having a day out to have her hair fixed, arrangements should be made for the children to be elsewhere. Also, children do not belong in antique shops with valuable antiques that can be broken easily. Good judgment needs to be used in the selection of places to take children.  They need to understand that in order to go to certain places, they must act properly.

         A little preparation ahead of time can make life more pleasant for all concerned when children are in public places.

Children Need Help with Gift Giving

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Train up a child…

 

Children Need Help with Gift Giving

 

There is so very much emphasis on the excitement of children at Christmastime and the need to make sure that children get the things they desire to make them happy.  In fact, some have even said that Christmas is for children.  Truth is, Christmas is a time to recognize the birth of our Savior and it is for everyone, but we can’t help but want to make sure that children enjoy this very special time.

It is more important for children to experience the joy of giving than it is for them to enjoy the experience of getting, and the giving can make them happier than the receiving.  Some may think that this is not possible, but if we look closely with our mind’s eye, we can see that we quite often remember the gifts we gave more than the gifts we received.  It is the same with children.  Children, however, need help in their planning and giving.  This requires time, patience, and resourcefulness.

We need to take the time to help children make a gift list. This list should include parents, teachers, grandparents, and other special people in their lives.  It takes time, also, to help the children discover resources they have available such as money or materials for making gifts.  After this is done, we help the children make or purchase gifts.

It is not easy to be patient with children when we, ourselves, are so busy trying to prepare gifts for others. Time spent making a plaster of Paris handprint, a jar of brownie mix, or a jar of soup mix takes a little time that we may not feel we have available.  Making such gifts, however, provides a time of bonding and learning and is well worth the time involved. Many ideas are available on the Internet, and just looking up those ideas is a learning experience for children.

Children learn to be resourceful and at the same time are learning to manage their money as they work to provide gifts for the ones they love.  It is difficult for children to find anything to purchase with the limited funds they have. It is nice when adults help out with this problem.  Some have provided a “Holiday Store” for children.  The children go to the store with an adult and a list of names for whom they will purchase gifts.  The list also indicates the amount of money the child has to spend.  Items that have been provided by adults are available in the store, and they are priced very low so that the children can afford them. Some items are only twenty-five cents. Those on hand who volunteer to work in the store help the children count and figure how much money each thing costs and how much change they will get in return.

Who among us does not have some treasure from the past given to us by our children?  This year I hung, once again, a wreath made of plastic bags by our youngest son when he was in elementary school.  It provides another year of remembering his love for me.  I still have ornaments made of play-doh that go on the Christmas tree. They are still feeling the joy of giving as they see their mom still being happy at having received those gifts.   Christmas truly is a time to remember that it is better to give than to receive.

Check out my new book!

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Pat Lamb’s New Book ‘My Thinking Book’ is an Enriching Compendium of Hard Questions and Truthful Answers About Faith and Life for Kids.

PRESS RELEASE UPDATED: NOV 5, 2018

“My Thinking Book” from author Pat Lamb is an engaging book for young readers who enter life abuzz with the questions about life, people, and God, a question-and-answer manual where they are not only given wise, honest, scripture-based, and age-appropriate answers for a given question each day of the year, but are also encouraged to think for themselves and grow in wisdom throughout their lives.

REEDS SPRING, Mo., November 5, 2018 (Newswire.com) – Pat Lamb, a widowed grandmother and distinguished educator for over sixty years now living in Branson, Missouri, where she is a parenting columnist for local newspapers, has completed her new book “My Thinking Book”: a helpful, stimulating book for curious young thinkers.

Pat writes, “‘Why are there wars?’ ‘If I am really good, will I go to heaven?’ ‘Why are some people mean to others?’

Children have many questions! They deserve truthful answers to their questions. As they learn the truth, a foundation of understanding is being established that will last a lifetime.

This book gives truthful answers in a concise way to stimulate thinking and conversation about many topics bothering children. What a confusing world our children are facing! Often, our efforts to make everything fun and easy simply confuse children all the more. The earlier in life children can understand answers to their questions, based on the Scripture, the easier their future will be. Children are constantly required to make decisions. Without the correct knowledge, how can they make the right decisions?

“My Thinking Book” is designed for children to read for themselves or have it read to them. Unless otherwise noted, Scripture is taken from the New King James Version of the Bible. Although reading ability varies, generally, third-graders or above can read it. Parents may choose to read “My Thinking Book” to the children to provide a springboard for conversation.

A parent would do well to make “My Thinking Book” available for every child!

Pat Lamb’s new book is an instructive and much-needed guide that takes children’s prescient questions seriously and points them in the right direction for truth.

Without downplaying the complexity of life or being unnecessarily vague, Lamb speaks to children with respect, compassion, and understanding.

Readers can purchase “My Thinking Book” at bookstores everywhere, or online at the Apple iTunes store, Amazon, or Barnes and Noble, at www.patlambchristianauthor.com, or patlee@centurytel.net

Source: Covenant Books

Additional Links

www.patlambchristianauthor.com

e-mail: patlee@centurytel.net