Tag Archives: Activities for children

Teach Children to Do Tasks Well

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Train up a child…

 

Teach Children to do Tasks Well

 

During the age span of nine to fourteen years of age, children can and should learn to do chores around the house well.  Younger children cannot be expected to do a great job with chores, but they can learn to do the best they can for their ability.  By the time a child reaches the age of nine, that child needs to start refining performance and being more accurate and precise with his/her chores.

The age of nine to fourteen is possibly the last opportunity parents have to really teach a good amount of skill in homemaking. Most children start thinking about working outside the home at age fourteen.  By this time, they are dreaming of getting a driver’s license and that first car. They start looking for a job to help pay for their dream.  It is for this reason that parents should take advantage of the short time they have left with children at home to teach as much as they possibly can.

We often underestimate children.  We watch them learn how to do many things on the computer or cell phone, but seem to think they are not able to use the washer and dryer, microwave, kitchen stove, or other home appliances.  They need to learn the proper use of each and every one of common home appliances. They can prepare meals, clean, and do yard work.

Children begin learning fractions in school at around fourth grade.  One of the best ways to use these fractions is to prepare recipes.  Reading skills are also enhanced as children read and follow directions in recipes.  Checking nutrition facts on labels of foods and figuring calories contributes greatly to a child’s math skills.  Measuring accurately at this age helps a child understand quantities to be able to estimate in some recipes later as the child grows older.  When the family sits down at the table to a meal prepared by a child, the whole family feels a sense of pride and the child, especially, feels a boost in self-esteem.

Most cleaning chores can be done by the age of nine.  Bathrooms can be cleaned properly.  Kitchen cabinets can be cleaned and organized, floors swept and mopped, and furniture dusted. There is always the temptation to use spray bottles as water guns, but this temptation can be easily squelched if the child has to pay for the wasted agent from his own money.  Children at this age can clean the refrigerator and freezer. They can make shopping lists and assist with finding the best bargains when buying groceries.

Doing yard work offers valuable lessons in science.  Children learn about plants.  They can also learn about machines and how they work.  Another benefit of yard work is the conditioning of the body to heat and cold.  Many would say that our children are getting soft and do not like to do things in the heat. There is a limit, of course, to a child being in the heat or cold, but sometimes we forget that for centuries and centuries there was no air conditioning and somehow people managed to survive.

Common sense should prevail in our expectations of children in doing chores, but the value of such training cannot be disputed.  We must never forget that childhood is a foundation for adulthood, and we need to lay that foundation well.

Children Need Chores

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Children Need Chores

 

It is hard to overemphasize the importance of children having chores around the house.  By participating in fulfilling the needs of the family, children form a bond with the family unit and gain a feeling of worth. We often sell children short and lower our expectations when we really need to tap into their large supply of energy and help them know they are contributing in a positive way to meet needs around them.

One reason parents may not require children to do chores is that they may feel uncertain as to what the children are able to do.  Following are some general ideas of chores that children ages 6-8 may be able to do.

  • Assist in meal preparation (mash potatoes, simple cutting with supervision, mixing salad, find ingredients, wash produce, read recipes)
  • Wipe bathroom sinks, counters, toilets (this is a good time to teach the proper use of cleaning agents and emphasize the harm that can be caused by improper use)
  • Sweep
  • Vacuum
  • Fold, hang up and put away laundry
  • Collect garbage
  • Clean the microwave
  • Wipe out self-cleaning ovens after they have been cleaned
  • Run errands
  • Rake leaves
  • Set the table
  • Clear the table and wash items too large for dishwasher
  • Wash, dry dishes and put away
  • Get the mail
  • Water plants indoors and outdoors
  • Pick up and put away things

It is a good idea to have a daily schedule for children.  One idea that worked at our house was to require our children to do their chores in the morning, have lunch, have a quiet time, and then allow the children free time in the afternoon to play with friends or do other activities.  Children who have no schedule feel insecure and “at loose ends”, uncertain as to how to spend their time.

 

Children who are not kept busy will find ways to busy themselves.  Children are not capable of always making the right decisions for themselves, and they will often get in trouble when left to do so. It is best to keep children busy with positive activities; then, they won’t have time to get in trouble.

Making Memories on Memorial Day

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Train up a child…

 

Make Memories on Memorial Day

 

Creating good memories for children is like investing in the future.  Family traditions experienced as children form the basis for the creation of their own family traditions when those children become adults.  Families form bonds that last throughout life as they learn of past family history. They learn to respect and appreciate the sacrifices made by ancestors and the many men and women who have fought for our freedom as they participate in the observance of Memorial Day.

Many families have a tradition of decorating the graves of family members and friends on Memorial Day. In fact, the day was once called “decoration day”.  When the routine is repeated each year, the children learn not to question the day’s activities.  They know ahead of time what will be done on that day.  Many families are scattered and no longer can get together, but the memory of that day remains in the minds of those who have participated in the day’s activities in the past.  When our children were young, we were away from all of our relative’s graves, but we took the children to the grave of a former neighbor who had befriended the children.  We mentioned those in the past from our own families.

Memorial Day is a time to remember the past history of the family.  We should not allow ourselves to be deterred by jokes about telling about the past.  Children need to know about the past and the lives of their ancestors.  They especially need to be told of the heroic accomplishments of family members in the past.  A little of the negative side serves to remind the children of what not to do or be.  Storytelling has great value for children.  It requires them to visualize for themselves rather than having a picture to go by.  It helps in developing their listening skills.  Most families have some members who have given their lives to protect our freedom.  These people should be pointed out and stories told of their bravery.

When children carefully walk through a cemetery, they sense that it is a special place and that respect should be given to those who are buried there.  As they hear stories about past loved ones, they cannot help but develop appreciation for the sacrifices that were made.  They will undoubtedly be motivated to make their own lives productive.

A good way to end the day is to have a barbeque or other type of picnic or family get-together. One of the things that children love most is to have parents and grandparents play games with them.  They enjoy watching the adults run or make mistakes of any kind as they play such games as workup softball, tag, hide-and-seek, etc.

An often overlooked holiday, Memorial Day can be a real opportunity to develop appreciation and respect. It is a time to bond as a family.  The traditions of a family on Memorial Day are traditions to cherish.

 

Winding Down the School Year

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Winding Down the School Year

 

Toward the end of the school year, various attitudes surface among children.  Some children begin to slack off—much like the “senioritis” that some seniors experience.  Some children work harder to make sure they pass the final exams.  Other children seem to develop a touch of “spring fever” and their minds seem to be on the summer instead of the present time.

Parents begin to look forward to the summer.  They, too, have various attitudes.  Some parents begin to dread having the children at home all summer. Other parents begin worrying about babysitters or places to send the children to take up part of the time.  Wise parents will plan ahead to make sure that the summer is well spent for the child’s growth socially, physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Here are some general ideas to help parents plan:

Social Growth Activities:

Arrange a family get-together with relatives at least once during the summer.

Arrange a get-together with another family or two during the summer.

Enroll children in activities in the community.

Teens should be encouraged to get a job appropriate to their ability.

Physical Growth Activities:

Allow the children to sign up for a ball team, swimming team, or another group that uses physical activity.

Play with the children.

Do lake activities such as water skiing or swimming.

Mental Activities:

Make sure the children visit the local library a few times.

Encourage the children to have a one-hour quiet time each day to read or write.

Help the children make out a budget to use any money they may earn doing chores or at a job.

Take a trip out of the area. Stop at historical markers along the way.  Have maps available, or let them use electronic devices, for children to track progress on the trip.

 

Spiritual Activities:

Enroll the children in a summer church camp

Be sure to take children to church each Sunday and allow them to participate in church activities.

Take advantage of Vacation Bible School conducted by many churches,

No child likes to think that every minute has been planned for him/her.  Now is the time to sit down with the children and let them help do the planning.  Any plans should include chores to help around the house and a certain amount of routine.

It has been said that some people plan what they want to happen, others watch what happens, and still others wonder what happened.  Good parents should plan what happens and not find themselves at the end of the summer wondering what happened.

 

Nature Holds Lessons for Children

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Nature Holds Lessons for Children

 

We find excellent object lessons for children all around us in nature. When children learn to observe the lessons in nature, they not only develop a love for science that helps them in school, they also learn the answers to some of life’s most perplexing questions.

Children are born with a natural curiosity that we should continue to cultivate. We can use this curiosity to teach important life lessons that will stay with them as long as they live.

I well remember an occasion with my dad when I was a child. He and I were walking down a dusty path in the field to get the cows for milking. My dad suddenly stopped, stooped down, picked a blade of grass and began looking at it intently. I watched as he drew me close to him and said, “Look there, Patsy, at this blade of grass. Look at all the little lines in it. Look at the little hairs on it.” As he continued to marvel at one blade of grass, he looked skyward at an airplane flying overhead. “You know,” he said, “man can make airplanes. Why, someday he may even be able to fly to the moon. One thing man will never be able to do is to make a blade of grass. Only God can do that!”

Each fall my husband and I marvel as we spy monarch butterflies fluttering past on their way south. How do they know to fly south? Even more remarkable is how they change from a funny caterpillar crawling along to a beautiful butterfly. The female butterfly lays an egg on a milkweed leaf, the egg hatches and the caterpillar eats its own shell and begins feeding on the leaves of the plant. Then it forms a chrysalis, stays inside a short time, and comes out a beautiful butterfly. Does this example not give us a hint of how God can give us life after death?

Children are curious about where they came from, why everyone dies, and what happens after death. When they first find out that all of us must die at some time, they become frightened. The story of the butterfly helps children understand how God has provided life after death for us. Although we can’t fully understand everything about the afterlife, the stories in nature guarantee that we serve a God who is capable of keeping His promise. After all, if God can change a worm to a beautiful butterfly, He can take care of us as well.

Another good lesson from nature can be gotten from a limb of a tree. Early in the spring, we can break a small limb from a tree and show the child how it seems so very lifeless. To look at, it seems dead. In a short time, another limb can be shown to the child showing buds coming out and getting ready to open. This too, is a miracle of God. Just as plants appear to be dead, yet come to life again, so we, too, will someday die but come to life again.

A walk in the woods, or even the front yard, can be an avenue for teaching very important lessons to children from nature. These lessons cost only a little time and effort. They are opportunities we don’t want to miss.

Children and Technology

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Children and Technology

 

Some time ago, our daughter-in-law e-mailed a video to us of our two-year- old grandson playing with an ipad and laughing and having fun with the things he was seeing on it. I was reminded again of how different it is for our children growing up in the age of technology from the times that we and our children grew up.

Since Adam and Eve, parents have needed to be flexible and make adjustments in expectations of children as inventions came about. I’m fairly sure that they never had to be quite as flexible as this generation demands. We can be thankful for so many of the new gadgets, but how do we handle all of the decisions that have to be made in using them? How can we know what to keep in education and what to change? How can we teach the proper use of those many new things we have available?

When the calculator came along, many thought that children no longer needed to be taught basic math. When spell check came on the computer, some thought we no longer needed to teach spelling. When the Internet came, many said that we no longer needed to teach history and dates of happenings in history because you could always look up whatever you needed when you needed it. Home economics was done away with in schools because no one needed to sew because it could be done in mass in factories, and cooking was so much easier with packaged foods, etc. Many things have been done away with because of new inventions. Were all of these decisions the right decisions?

When deciding to change old ways, we need to consider each thing in light of its benefits. When children learn math, for instance, they learn not only the math involved, but they learn mental discipline as well. They learn decision-making and cautiousness. When we read a math problem, we must be very careful, so we will not overlook a pertinent detail. Children do not learn this on the calculator. Unless these values can be taught another way, children should still be taught basic math. Spell check is wonderful on the computer, but it does not catch many errors. Children learn visual discrimination and phonics in spelling that affect their reading ability. Without good visual discrimination in reading, children cannot do punctuation correctly.

When the automobile was invented, I wonder how many people thought we should keep using the horse and buggy. It is natural and right that we should want to use whatever we can to accomplish the most that is possible. It would be foolish to not take advantage of the wonderful things we have available to us. It would be just as foolish to “throw the baby out with the bath water”. Change needs to be made cautiously. Children should be taught to use the new inventions for good, not just for ease of effort or entertainment.

Of one thing we can be certain. Our emotions and Spiritual needs do not change. Evil and good continue to exist in abundance. Right and wrong actions do not change; only the tools we use change. God grants wisdom to those who ask for it. Today’s technology and the change that is coming with it require lots and lots of wisdom!

 

Take Advantage of Teachable Moments

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Take Advantage of Teachable Moments

 

We can teach children so very much if we are simply alert and take advantage of moments when a child is open to learning. A child can be so much further ahead than otherwise if we can train ourselves to watch for opportune times to teach. These moments usually take little or no additional effort or time on the part of the adults in charge of the children. Often, it is simply a matter of redirecting conversation. Opportunities for learning afford themselves at mealtime, while traveling, and various other times during the day.

At mealtime, placemats can be used that have maps, math information, ABC’s, or the solar system printed on them. These are available at Wal-Mart or variety stores. Children cannot fail to notice them and parents can talk about them while the child is eating. Another idea is to keep a little container of Bible verses on the table and say a verse before prayer at each meal. Shapes of foods can be pointed out especially in things like crackers that come in shapes of triangles, squares, ovals, circles, rectangles, or trapezoids. Alphabet soups offer an opportunity to teach the alphabet. The nutritional content of foods can be mentioned letting the child know that yellow foods have vitamin A that is good for the eyes, or that dairy products contain calcium that is good for the teeth and bones, etc.

While traveling, children can look for the letters of the alphabet on signs beside the road. Older children can play games such as “Ghost”. This is a spelling game where one person starts spelling a word and the next person adds a letter until someone ends a word. The object is to avoid ending a word. If the word is ended, that person gets a letter toward the spelling of ghost. When a person becomes a ghost, that person drops out of the game. The game continues until only one person is left. Another fun thing while traveling is to tell stories with each person adding one line to the story. Also, stopping to read signs marking national monuments is a real learning experience.

As children and adults go about throughout the day, simply singing songs instills a great deal of learning. Who doesn’t remember the teaching in some of the good songs they heard when they were a child? Our children today will also profit by the background music they can hear. When going up steps with a toddler, count the steps together. When children ask questions, give them a little extra information. At nighttime, tell bedtime stories with learning value. When reading to a child, point out pictures and talk about the pictures. Let the discussion lead into information about certain animals or whatever is being discussed.

If we can be alert to opportunities to teach our children, they will learn so very much. We will find many teachable moments if we will train ourselves to be alert for those opportunities. Time passes so quickly! Let’s not miss the opportunities to help prepare our children for the time they are no longer in the household.

 

 

Children Need Purpose

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Children Need Purpose

 

Many comments made by children show that they seem to have no purpose in their actions. Such comments as “What’s the use?” or “What difference does it make?” or “Who cares?” are indications that a child sees no real meaning in actions that may be expected of him or her.

The lack of real meaning leads to a lack of hope for a child. This in turn leads to such drastic actions that teenagers take with guns, suicide, or deliberate car accidents. Many of our young people seem to be drifting with no real purpose in their lives.

Many efforts are made by adults to entertain children thinking that if a child gets what it wants, that child will in turn produce according to the parents’ wishes. Without realizing it, parents who do this are actually bribing a child and holding the child hostage to perform as the parent wishes. This is not good. No amount of gifts, material things, or wishes granted can give a child purpose in life.

What really does work for a child is the realization that God created each of us with an individual plan for our life. When a child realizes that there is a unique plan for him/her, the child automatically feels a sense of value and curiosity to identify that plan. The child can then begin to understand that preparation to carry out that plan involves education, health, and wisdom. Goals can then be set to gain basic education, take care of health, and use wisdom in applying the education obtained.

Sadly, many young people look for a sense of achievement in video games, fun times, or various other ways. The things they try give only short-lived satisfaction and leave the child with a hollow feeling inside. That lonely, hollow feeling leads the child to continue searching for more and more thrills or activities to find meaning or purpose to their efforts. Quite often, the young person will simply give up, thinking all is hopeless or useless. The negative actions chosen then lead to failure in the eyes of self and others which in turn lead to more hopelessness and lack of purpose. The young person then begins spiraling downhill getting into deeper and deeper trouble.

What is the remedy for the hopeless child who has lack of purpose? Of course, it is to help that child find a purpose in life. This can be done by taking children to church and teaching the Bible at home. There is no substitute for parental prayer with a child. The prayers should include a request for God to reveal His plan for the child’s life. Also, the child needs to be helped in realizing his/her talents and abilities by the reinforcement of positive achievements. Parents and teachers need to point out, whenever possible, the reasons for learning certain things and for acting certain ways.

None of us likes to be expected to blindly follow rules without knowing the reasons for those rules. Children are best motivated when they can understand the purpose in doing what is expected of them, as well as the purpose of existence itself.

 

 

A Memorable Christmas Eve

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A Memorable Christmas Eve

 

In many homes Christmas Eve finds family members frantically scampering around wrapping last minute gifts, cooking something scrumptious for Christmas dinner the next day, or even arguing about things that are not going according to the “picture-perfect” home. Some have the custom of opening one gift or all gifts on Christmas Eve. Where are the thoughts about the one whose birthday we are celebrating??

What good things will children remember about Christmas Eve? They will remember traditions, smells, lights, gentle words spoken, or things that happen out of the ordinary.

Wise parents will plan some time on Christmas Eve for traditions. Many older folks will remember going to the local church or school for a Christmas program on Christmas Eve and watching children sing songs or read poems about Jesus and then receiving gifts and a big bag of candy with an orange and apple in it. Now, many churches have a candlelight communion or midnight mass on Christmas Eve. It is a wonderful tradition to spend this time to remember the reason for the season.

Quite often parents are so exhausted with last minute details that they can’t wait to get to bed. The children usually do not feel this way and are wide awake in anticipation of Santa. As long as the children know that Santa is a game we play at Christmas, this is not a bad thing. We should never lie to our children, but simply pretend with them. When our children and grandchildren were still in the Santa stage, someone would sneak outside and ring some sleigh bells beneath their bedroom windows. At our house, Santa always liked raisin pie. On one occasion our grandson grabbed a whole raisin pie and went running outside to give it to Santa. We still laugh about that time. That was an “out of the ordinary” time to remember.

Lights are so nice at Christmas, the time when days are the shortest. Children will remember lots of lights. Some children like to bring sleeping bags and sleep around the Christmas tree, so they can enjoy going to sleep with the pretty lights. They will try to see who can stay awake the longest to see their dad or mom sneak in and fill the stockings. Milk and cookies (at our house it was milk and raisin pie) will be out for Santa. One “out of the ordinary” thing we remember was the year our children pretended to be asleep and waited for their stockings to be filled; then, they put up stockings for mom and dad and filled them! We were certainly surprised the next morning to find that we had stockings as well as the children. What a nice memory!

Each family creates its own traditions and memories on Christmas Eve. In keeping with the spirit of the season, the evening should always be pleasant and include a time for remembering the birth of Christ that made it all possible. Reading the Christmas story from the second chapter of the book of Luke in the Bible should be read on Christmas Eve or Christmas day. The overall goal is to leave pleasant memories with the children with the teaching of the true meaning of Christmas.

Children can Learn to Organize

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Train up a child…

 

Children can learn to Organize

 

The Christmas season is a good time to teach children a lesson about organizing. Even though they are more excited than usual at this time, they can still learn to take on some responsibilities to make Christmas a more pleasant time for themselves and others.

A good thing to keep in mind when parenting is to always have children take on the responsibilities for caring for themselves as they are able to do so. Adults often mistakenly think they are helping their children by doing everything for them. Children learn responsibility and become independent by caring for their own needs. School children have people to whom they want to give a gift at Christmas and can plan and organize their time and resources to take care of those gifts, to a great extent, themselves.

There is nothing better for organizing than lists. Children can make lists to examine their resources, remember the persons to whom they will give gifts, and dates for accomplishing tasks.

Most children have piggy banks and perhaps money from allowances. They can list the amount of money they have along with ways to earn more money. They may also have gifts they have received in the past that are unused that can be regifted to their friends. They can look through magazines such as “Family Fun” for ideas of gifts to make. Just thinking about resources brings an awareness to a child of the need to save their money for needed times.

Next, children should make lists of those persons to whom they want to give a gift. This list should include their teacher, Sunday School teacher, mom and dad, sisters and brothers. (Some schools request that gifts not be given to teachers, so this should be checked out before planning a gift.) After these “essential” gifts are taken care of, they can choose friends or other special people to whom they would like to give a gift.

If a gift is to be given to a teacher or church worker, dates should be written down as to programs, the last day of school before vacation, or the last event at church before Christmas. It is easy to let these times slip up and not be ready. If the family has a calendar on the refrigerator, as many families do, these dates could be posted there.

When the lists are done, the children can begin to purchase or make gifts and feel secure knowing they have all under control. Children will enjoy Christmas much more if they feel that they have been useful in planning and giving. This small lesson in organization will carry over into other areas of life and help the child to be more confident in years to come. Mom and dad will feel less pressure in knowing that the child is taking responsibility for some of the tasks to be done. When a child takes part in the planning and execution of the plans, that child builds self-esteem and learns the true meaning of giving at Christmas time.