Sunday, June 24, 2012
Will your child design her own brand someday?
Tapping into your child’s creative potential is more important than you may think.
Years ago I went to my first Licensing Show. All the big named brands were there, Disney, Nick, Mattel, Discovery. What I realized is they weren’t there selling merchandise, but rather they were licensing their brand. A few days ago, my daughter, Laura, and I went to the 2012 International Licensing Show in Vegas. Instead of just walking around as an observer, we finally went as participants – we had scheduled meetings throughout the days for our brand, Discovery Kids Puterbugs.
As an educator turned entrepreneur, I keep on thinking of today’s kids: Laura and I wondered -- what are we doing to inspire them to reach their creative potential?
Then as I was sitting on Laura’s patio overlooking the Rocky Mountains, her neighbor drove up on her 4 wheeler and without realizing it, presented us with a perfect example. She asked me if I wanted to see her daughter’s song. I just assumed she was going to pull out a piece of paper with the song. Instead, she whipped out her phone and showed me the video of her ten year old daughter, Isabella, singing “Mountain Girl”. She created it when her mom turned off the TV and told her to go doodle.
I thought to myself - this mom gets it. A simple directive to go do something instead of sitting and being passive can have such a positive impact on your child. The mom was equally as pleased, saying, “If I never told my daughter to get up and do something, she would have sat in front of the TV for hours. Now I have a beautiful song.”
By encouraging our kids to be creative is crucial for developing their creative genius. As a parent, prompt them and then praise their creativity. Their own creative work is an extension of their being. Some children are embarrassed to display their creative side because it is a risk. When they put their thoughts and creative side out there, someone may criticize it, and that’s a direct reflection of them. Whether it’s artwork, a song, a book -- it is so important that they should hear you telling others about their creation. Wait until Isabella hears from me how great it was to have her mom show us the video. That will make her shine with confidence. On the flipside, one negative comment will crush them and will take a lot for them to ever share something creative.
It is the kids who think creatively who will one day have their OWN brand at the Licensing Show. What will you be doing today to prompt your child’s creative side?
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Is Your Child At Risk?
No not my child...
We live in a nice house in a great neighborhood. My kids go to "good" schools and get good grades. They have all the latest gadgets. They know how to use my laptop, smart phone to access the latest apps, play video games and they have figured it out all by themselves.
Exactly! No one, probably not you, not their teachers, ever explained to them the risks of using this technology. Do you know according to a study by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that 1 in 5 youths online face invitations to engage in cybersex or receive other risque solicitations?
Sen. Judd Gregg, chairman of a Senate Appropriations subcommittee that funded the study said that, "If your child is using the Internet, it is very likely that your child has been solicited for activity of a sexual manner."
Wow! scary.
The report also went on to say that few of the children ever reported the incidents to authorities or even to their parents. The biggest surprise to me was that the profile of the typical sexual solicitor was a teen. Yikes, and you know how much kids are influenced with peer pressure.
WHAT'S A PARENT TO DO?
START YOUNG!!! and follow this motto: Expect + Respect = Success
Expectation
Before you hand your kids that cool technology make sure you set expectations of how and when it should be used. Think about it. Would you send your young child to play in a park without any rules or adult supervision? Would you give your older child keys to the car just because he figured out how to drive? Of course not, and it must be the same with technology.
It is fun for young kids to IM and add smiley faces to grandma but this is a great time to start setting expectations. Let your child know you expect that he will only IM with some one he knows. As your child gets older, he/she will text and most likely will have a facebook page. Your child from a very young age must be told over and over again your expectations for posting and texting.
Respect
Make sure your kids are taught at an early age to respect technology from the first time they grab your smart phone or tap the keyboard. Respect for technology isn't natural to kids. It must be taught even though they are clicking and swiping faster than most adults.
Success
Setting high expectations and respect when using technology, kids will less likely be the victims of predators and more likely be the ones who will use it as a powerful tool for learning, self-expression and communication.
Technology is here to stay. Don't put your head in the sand and think by not letting your child use it, that's the solution,. Believe me..It's way to cool and they are going to get their hands on it.
So ...What are you doing to prevent your child from being one of those kids who are at risk?
We live in a nice house in a great neighborhood. My kids go to "good" schools and get good grades. They have all the latest gadgets. They know how to use my laptop, smart phone to access the latest apps, play video games and they have figured it out all by themselves.
Exactly! No one, probably not you, not their teachers, ever explained to them the risks of using this technology. Do you know according to a study by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that 1 in 5 youths online face invitations to engage in cybersex or receive other risque solicitations?
Sen. Judd Gregg, chairman of a Senate Appropriations subcommittee that funded the study said that, "If your child is using the Internet, it is very likely that your child has been solicited for activity of a sexual manner."
Wow! scary.
The report also went on to say that few of the children ever reported the incidents to authorities or even to their parents. The biggest surprise to me was that the profile of the typical sexual solicitor was a teen. Yikes, and you know how much kids are influenced with peer pressure.
WHAT'S A PARENT TO DO?
START YOUNG!!! and follow this motto: Expect + Respect = Success
Expectation
Before you hand your kids that cool technology make sure you set expectations of how and when it should be used. Think about it. Would you send your young child to play in a park without any rules or adult supervision? Would you give your older child keys to the car just because he figured out how to drive? Of course not, and it must be the same with technology.
It is fun for young kids to IM and add smiley faces to grandma but this is a great time to start setting expectations. Let your child know you expect that he will only IM with some one he knows. As your child gets older, he/she will text and most likely will have a facebook page. Your child from a very young age must be told over and over again your expectations for posting and texting.
Respect
Make sure your kids are taught at an early age to respect technology from the first time they grab your smart phone or tap the keyboard. Respect for technology isn't natural to kids. It must be taught even though they are clicking and swiping faster than most adults.
Success
Setting high expectations and respect when using technology, kids will less likely be the victims of predators and more likely be the ones who will use it as a powerful tool for learning, self-expression and communication.
Technology is here to stay. Don't put your head in the sand and think by not letting your child use it, that's the solution,. Believe me..It's way to cool and they are going to get their hands on it.
So ...What are you doing to prevent your child from being one of those kids who are at risk?
Friday, April 20, 2012
Tear Down the Walls
Imagine a School without Walls
It was 1968, I had just graduated from college, and I was ready to shake up the world. I heard about this new approach to teaching being used in Britain called “Open Classroom.” The more I read about it, the more natural it seemed to me. It was kid centric--children actively involved in the learning process. Schools would take down walls between the classrooms and kids would be learning in hands-on small group instruction, instead of a teacher standing in front of room teaching all the kids the same thing at the same time. I embraced the Open Classroom approach and even had the opportunity to teach in the environment. The problem – teachers in my district were not properly trained and many resisted the change. It was considered another teaching “fad” and within a few years the walls went back up.
Today I hear the same thing that was said when we returned to our isolated classrooms in the early 70’s. We need to get back to basics. Our schools are failing. Kids aren’t learning. But today it is so different. Huge changes to education are possible--without physically taking down walls--so kids can learn at their own pace.
How? Technology!
Technology is not going away, and it isn’t a fad! We do face challenges when trying to change a mindset of educators who see themselves as the deliverers of all information and expect students to give back same information on a test and parents who think their kids are computer savvy just because they can play video games.
Let’s not lose a generation of kids! For years, I have seen the positive results of using technology with young children, and I keep imagining a tomorrow in which all children will have access to technology, the best learning tool we have.
It was 1968, I had just graduated from college, and I was ready to shake up the world. I heard about this new approach to teaching being used in Britain called “Open Classroom.” The more I read about it, the more natural it seemed to me. It was kid centric--children actively involved in the learning process. Schools would take down walls between the classrooms and kids would be learning in hands-on small group instruction, instead of a teacher standing in front of room teaching all the kids the same thing at the same time. I embraced the Open Classroom approach and even had the opportunity to teach in the environment. The problem – teachers in my district were not properly trained and many resisted the change. It was considered another teaching “fad” and within a few years the walls went back up.
Today I hear the same thing that was said when we returned to our isolated classrooms in the early 70’s. We need to get back to basics. Our schools are failing. Kids aren’t learning. But today it is so different. Huge changes to education are possible--without physically taking down walls--so kids can learn at their own pace.
How? Technology!
Technology is not going away, and it isn’t a fad! We do face challenges when trying to change a mindset of educators who see themselves as the deliverers of all information and expect students to give back same information on a test and parents who think their kids are computer savvy just because they can play video games.
Let’s not lose a generation of kids! For years, I have seen the positive results of using technology with young children, and I keep imagining a tomorrow in which all children will have access to technology, the best learning tool we have.
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Should a Test Detemine a Child's Future?
Our Kids Deserve Better!
I recently went to a local Education and Technology Conference in the NY area, hoping to hear about exciting new things going on in the field. But I was disappointed to find the latest things being discussed there were smart boards, and a program to track students' grades and their interests... Really!?
I recently went to a local Education and Technology Conference in the NY area, hoping to hear about exciting new things going on in the field. But I was disappointed to find the latest things being discussed there were smart boards, and a program to track students' grades and their interests... Really!?
I am OK with them discussing the pros of using smart boards, but this is not new or very exciting to me. The presenter then went on to describe this tracking system being used throughout this large district in the city. I couldn't believe what I was watching and hearing. She pulled up on the screen a profile of a 6th grade girl. She explained how the testing can identify the child's interest and how they would encourage the child to follow a particular path based on this test. Since this girl showed an interest in drawing, they would encourage her to take art classes and that she should follow a career path that had an art focus. Perhaps work at an Art Museum was one option.
First of all she is in 6th grade. Do you know how many 6th grade girls like to draw and doodle? Second, why wouldn’t they suggest a math or science career? We sure do need creative people in those fields. It is the people who can think outside the box who will come up with the new cure for diseases or new energy sources. Sadly, they are relying on testing to determine a child’s future without giving the child the proper guidance.
First of all she is in 6th grade. Do you know how many 6th grade girls like to draw and doodle? Second, why wouldn’t they suggest a math or science career? We sure do need creative people in those fields. It is the people who can think outside the box who will come up with the new cure for diseases or new energy sources. Sadly, they are relying on testing to determine a child’s future without giving the child the proper guidance.
This really hit home for me. Many, many years ago when I started high school, I was placed in a vocation track instead of the academic track, which would enable me to go to college. It was probably based on the entrance exam without ever looking to find that I had graduated at the top of the class. I was told that the classes I needed to be a teacher were too difficult for me. I didn’t believe them, and I made sure I took those “difficult” classes. I went on to college, finished in 3 years, but I often think about other kids who did believe what they were told, and as a result never achieved their full potential.
It is so crucial to have high expectations for every child and not to set limitations--based on a test, a label, or other judgement. They are our future-- Our kids deserve better!
It is so crucial to have high expectations for every child and not to set limitations--based on a test, a label, or other judgement. They are our future-- Our kids deserve better!
Monday, April 9, 2012
Standardized Testing
It's that time of year again...
Kids are spending precious school hours prepping for those dreadful standardized tests. Parents are anxiously waiting for the results. When I was a mom with school age children, I know centuries ago, we didn't have facebook, twitter... but we did have phones. As soon as we would receive the results, our phone would start ringing. Anxious moms would ask me how my daughters did. Their child either did horribly or was a genius--all based on that one test. My response was always the same, year after year. "My girls did exactly how I expected." Period.
My girls never even knew their test scores. I would take the results of the test, glance at them, and put them in a drawer. Really! One test and your child is a genius, the smartest kid in the school? Or the dumbest? It's only ONE TEST! I can tell you now, one of my girls did horribly on the math section of a standardized test. Had I told her or even mentioned it to anyone, or had she overheard me, she may have believed she wasn't good in math. She was so quick in math! There was no way that test was a reflection of what she knew. Kids believe what others say about them. Think about it: A standardized test is only one small snapshot of your child. Your child may have had a bad day, or skipped one of those silly little boxes which then screwed up all the answers.
My advice: Don't make a big deal when your child takes standardized tests, and especially do NOT post or discuss your child's scores on social media sites. If your child is doing well all year, then expect he/she will have good results on the tests. If your child has been struggling, then the teacher and you should have had a plan of action way before the standardized testing. Tell your child like I did when you get the results. "You did exactly how I expected and I'm proud of you for trying so hard!" Then, move on... There's so much more to really learn!
Kids are spending precious school hours prepping for those dreadful standardized tests. Parents are anxiously waiting for the results. When I was a mom with school age children, I know centuries ago, we didn't have facebook, twitter... but we did have phones. As soon as we would receive the results, our phone would start ringing. Anxious moms would ask me how my daughters did. Their child either did horribly or was a genius--all based on that one test. My response was always the same, year after year. "My girls did exactly how I expected." Period.
My girls never even knew their test scores. I would take the results of the test, glance at them, and put them in a drawer. Really! One test and your child is a genius, the smartest kid in the school? Or the dumbest? It's only ONE TEST! I can tell you now, one of my girls did horribly on the math section of a standardized test. Had I told her or even mentioned it to anyone, or had she overheard me, she may have believed she wasn't good in math. She was so quick in math! There was no way that test was a reflection of what she knew. Kids believe what others say about them. Think about it: A standardized test is only one small snapshot of your child. Your child may have had a bad day, or skipped one of those silly little boxes which then screwed up all the answers.
My advice: Don't make a big deal when your child takes standardized tests, and especially do NOT post or discuss your child's scores on social media sites. If your child is doing well all year, then expect he/she will have good results on the tests. If your child has been struggling, then the teacher and you should have had a plan of action way before the standardized testing. Tell your child like I did when you get the results. "You did exactly how I expected and I'm proud of you for trying so hard!" Then, move on... There's so much more to really learn!
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Are Kids Today Learning Differently?
Nobody can deny that the tech revolution is more underway now than ever before. The world is changing so rapidly. Is it changing how children learn? Short answer – YES!
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It is the most exciting time to be a learner. The most successful children of tomorrow will be the ones who can use technology to FIND information, think creatively, assimilate it, and then self-express/communicate it. That’s why Imagine Tomorrow's program focuses on using technology as a tool for learning.
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It’s an interesting fact that the children we’re teaching today will have jobs tomorrow that have not even been created yet.
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I find it to be such an exciting time because learning is at your fingertips. I strongly believe, just as I did in 1991 when I founded Imagine Tomorrow, that technology is one of the coolest and most engaging learning tools. It incorporates the three main leaning senses. Children see the applications on the screen, hear the accompanying audio, and touch the keyboard or touchscreen... The more senses involved in this interactive experience, the better the retention of information learned during the process.
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One other reason I love technology is… It doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t know the age of the child, the sex, or the color of the skin. It doesn't attach a label to its user as gifted or learning disabled. Technology levels the playing field for all learners.
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So is the way kids learn changing? ABSOLUTELY...and Imagine Tomorrow has the program that is preparing children to use technology to be life-long learners.
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It is the most exciting time to be a learner. The most successful children of tomorrow will be the ones who can use technology to FIND information, think creatively, assimilate it, and then self-express/communicate it. That’s why Imagine Tomorrow's program focuses on using technology as a tool for learning.
-
It’s an interesting fact that the children we’re teaching today will have jobs tomorrow that have not even been created yet.
-
I find it to be such an exciting time because learning is at your fingertips. I strongly believe, just as I did in 1991 when I founded Imagine Tomorrow, that technology is one of the coolest and most engaging learning tools. It incorporates the three main leaning senses. Children see the applications on the screen, hear the accompanying audio, and touch the keyboard or touchscreen... The more senses involved in this interactive experience, the better the retention of information learned during the process.
-
One other reason I love technology is… It doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t know the age of the child, the sex, or the color of the skin. It doesn't attach a label to its user as gifted or learning disabled. Technology levels the playing field for all learners.
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So is the way kids learn changing? ABSOLUTELY...and Imagine Tomorrow has the program that is preparing children to use technology to be life-long learners.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Kids & Technology: 3 MYTHS!
MYTH: Kids who use technology miss out on 'good old fashioned' play.TRUTH: Kids who use technology still have ample time for tea parties, hide and seek, and tag. Parents must be the ones who encourage balance. Just as you would want an avid reader to sometimes put the book down and go out and play, the same applies to the child on the computer. Children need balance between independent activities and social activities, and between quiet activities and physical activities. Parents must help them manage their time and achieve that balance.
MYTH: Technology prevents children from having the social interactions they need.TRUTH: Technology connects us! Children see that at an early age. They see they can communicate with others by emailing, texting, skyping... If the concern is too much texting or screen time, then limits need to be set by parents to achieve the proper balance. Children can learn at an early age how to use technology as a tool to communicate and collaborate with others--anywhere in the world! That is something they will need to know to be successful in their future.
MYTH: Technology and multi-tasking hurt children's ability to focus.TRUTH: Technology is not what affects focus. Content and method of delivery affect focus. When content is made fun and interesting, children focus better. A child in a classroom might focus better on a hands-on experiment versus a boring lecture on the same topic. Technology creates a multimedia experience that reaches children through multiple senses - sound, touch, and sight. Studies have shown that engaging multiple senses can help children learn and better retain what they have learned. Multi-tasking is a great skill when performed effectively. Knowing how and when to give something more focus and attention over another distraction is a useful skill. Children are developing these higher capabilities at a younger age. What is described as "lack of focus" can simply be a sign of boredom and the failure to challenge their growing minds.
MYTH: Technology prevents children from having the social interactions they need.TRUTH: Technology connects us! Children see that at an early age. They see they can communicate with others by emailing, texting, skyping... If the concern is too much texting or screen time, then limits need to be set by parents to achieve the proper balance. Children can learn at an early age how to use technology as a tool to communicate and collaborate with others--anywhere in the world! That is something they will need to know to be successful in their future.
MYTH: Technology and multi-tasking hurt children's ability to focus.TRUTH: Technology is not what affects focus. Content and method of delivery affect focus. When content is made fun and interesting, children focus better. A child in a classroom might focus better on a hands-on experiment versus a boring lecture on the same topic. Technology creates a multimedia experience that reaches children through multiple senses - sound, touch, and sight. Studies have shown that engaging multiple senses can help children learn and better retain what they have learned. Multi-tasking is a great skill when performed effectively. Knowing how and when to give something more focus and attention over another distraction is a useful skill. Children are developing these higher capabilities at a younger age. What is described as "lack of focus" can simply be a sign of boredom and the failure to challenge their growing minds.
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