Family Resources
The Magic
I have often been asked over my 34 years in education, what is the secret magic to students doing well in reading? You are not going to believe it, but I really do have an answer! The secret magic is kids will develop a love of reading through the adults and loved ones around them. Reading alongside your child and encouraging exploration with many forms of literacy is the ticket to success. These experiences can be found in newspapers, comics, magazines, games, books, poetry, songs, libraries, museums and more. Children love spending time with you and doing what you do. Show them how magical drifting in a book can be. Ask lots of questions about the stories they are reading, get them thinking about what they would do if they were the character or if they wanted to create their own game or why the sky is blue. The more they talk, the more they build their vocabulary. Empower them to explore their ideas and be creative. You can motivate your child by talking to them about your goals for their future. The importance you place on reading and learning will determine your child’s positive attitude about school. The secret magic is you; the amazing and wonderful parents of Pioneer students!
Written by Bobbie Thompson
Pioneer Elementary Instructional Coach
Inspirational Ideas for Really Busy Parents
Parents of today are busy, stressed, over-worked, and sometimes distracted but like parents of the past who may have parented in simpler times, we still want the best for their children. Being deliberate about thoughtful parenting practices is imperative for our children to grow, thrive, and succeed.
One of the areas we as parents can focus on to help our children succeed is QUALITY TIME.
TIME is precious. In this world full of multi-tasking and over stimulation it can be extremely easy to lose sight of how quickly time passes. William Penn said, “Time is what we want the most, but what we use the worst.”
MAKING DELIBERATE CHOICES We always hear “use your time wisely.” But it’s so, so true. This world offers with it so many choices! for entertainment, for amusement, for connection. To be deliberate about our choices regarding our time we must first prioritize what we need/want to do. Whether it is working or spending time with our children, family, or friends, it’s not always WHAT we are doing but HOW we are doing it. People deserve our full attention. Our work deserves our full attention. Being present in the moments of our lives means being deliberate about it. If we are with our children, family, friends, but we are thinking about looking at our phone, WE ARE NOT PRESENT. If we are doing work, but we are thinking about looking at our phone, WE ARE NOT PRESENT.
MULTI-TASKING such as this is the enemy of quality time. Whether it be time with family or doing our best at work. It can also be a thief of our time. DECIDE what your priority is and make it your PRACTICE to be “in the moment” with whatever it is you are doing. The result of being fully Present? Relationships= are deeper. Work= is better. You= are happier. You already know it to be true. JUST DO IT!!! You really will be HAPPIER for it!
DIFFERENTIATE how you use your time. Down time, after the kids are in bed, can be your time to relax and enjoy your devices. You will enjoy this time more when you are not connected to it continuously, and you are not feeling guilty for compromising family and work.
PARENTS (as I said earlier) of today are busy, stressed, over-worked, and distracted, but like parents of the past we still want the best for our children. Raising children in this technology filled – too easy to be distracted life is one of the great challenges of our day. Being deliberate and thoughtful about our parenting practices and intentional about how we spend our time will impact our families, country, and our world for generations to come.