Recently in Parenting Category

Children react to disaster differently according to their age.  They may respond to disaster by demonstrating increased anxiety or emotional and behavioral problems.

According to the American Red Cross, children from birth to 2 years of age may display some of the following common physical and emotional reactions after a disaster or traumatic event.

Birth to 2 years--When children are pre-verbal and experience a trauma, they do not have the words to describe the event or their feelings.  However, they can retain memories of particular sights, sounds, or smells.  Infants may react to trauma by being irritable, crying more than usual, or wanting to be held and cuddled.  As children get older, their play may involve acting  our elements of the traumatic event that occurred several years in the past and was seemingly forgotten.

Stay tuned to "Lifeline" for more information on other age groups and how they cope with disaster and traumatic events.

For more information on helping children cope with disaster or traumatic events, please contact us or visit our websites at:
pvcep.pvamu.edu; or
dallas-tx.tamu.edu; or contact Marvin R. Young at 214-904-3050 or mryoung@tamu.edu

You've learned useful tips and food safety precautions when packing school lunch for the little ones the past few weeks. What can parents do when the child is a picky eater or refuses to try new foods? Here are some helpful tips that parents can try to solve the meal time dilemma:

• Be a good example -- It is no secret that kids will imitate their parents and other adults. When kids see their parents eating healthy foods, they will be more likely to develop a liking for those foods, too.
• Don't give up! -- It could take introducing a new food to your children 10 or 11 times before they decide to eat and like that food.
• Create a positive environment -- Your kids will be more willing to try new foods and develop healthy eating habits when you create a positive atmosphere during meals. Kids will eat less and tend to dislike foods when meal times are emotionally upsetting. Avoid complaining about food not eaten, making negative statements about the child, discussing difficult topics, and disciplining a child during a meal.
• Involve kids in food preparation -- Depending on the age of your kids and the stage of their development, allow them to help you with grocery shopping, washing fruits and vegetables, cutting, mixing, setting up the table, etc.
• Provide a selection of healthy foods -- Let kids pick which foods they want to eat from the selection. You can also make it fun by picking a color for the day and offer kids all fruits or vegetables of the color or picking a letter of the alphabet and offer fruits and vegetables that start with that letter.

Make meal time an enjoyable family time. Happy Eating! 

 

Caregivers, teachers, peers, extended family, media, heredity, and the environment all contribute to a child's development; however, parents (if present) are the most powerful influence in the lives of their children. Parental involvement not only shapes development during the initial years of life, but also during the adolescent and adult years.

Given this important role, to what extent should parents be involved in their children's development? According to the National PTA, "Parental involvement is the participation of parents in every facet of the education and development of children from birth to adulthood, recognizing that parents are the primary influence in their children's lives." Parents have a tremendous responsibility to be involved with their children both inside and outside the home.

Decades of research have demonstrated that the more involved parents are in their children's development, the greater chance children have to succeed, particularly in their academic performance. Consistently, researchers have discovered that greater parental involvement in a child's education is associated with:

• higher student grades and test scores,
• better attendance,
• higher rates of homework completion,
• more positive student attitudes and behavior,
• higher graduation rates, and
• greater enrollment rates in post-secondary education.

When parents are involved, children achieve more regardless of their socioeconomic level, ethnic/racial background, or the parents' educational level.

As recent research on early brain development has shown, positive parental involvement needs to begin long before children enter info formal schooling arrangements. The early years of a child's life are critically important for healthy brain development, attachment formation, and language acquisition. When parents become actively involved with ther children at an early age, they lay a foundation for learning that will benefit children for the rest of their lives.

Source: Dr. Stephen Green, Child Development Specialist, Texas AgriLife Extension Service

For information about parenting classes contact Wenhsing Cheng at wcheng@ag.tamu.edu or 214-904-3050.

Learning about what is the best core for the development of infants and toddlers is important.

We know that having warm and loving relationships between young children and the adults in their lives has a lasting influence. Warm, sensitive care in the first year of life can help children handle minor stress in preschool better. Elementary children will show fewer behavior problems when faced with stressful situations. Children may show more adaptability later on.

A stimulating, learning environment for infants and toddlers can even increase their brain development. Loving care, nutrition, good health care, and daily learning about his or her world add to the child's natural abilities and help the brain to develop.

How to Learn and Grow with Your Infant or Toddler:

• Learn about the child's natural routines and moods. From the first days of life on, answer his cries for help and his feelings of happiness. Hold, touch, comfort, and play when he wants to. When he needs to rest, let him rest.
• Develop warm, loving relationships which show how much you care, value who he is, and make the child feel safe and secure.
• Understand that each child is different and special.
• From infancy on, talk to, sing to, and read to the child. Early language development is the key to school success. Limit television and play music.
• Encourage play and have a safe play space, use stimulating toys, and listen to the child.
• Keep routines and rituals to help the child know what to expect.
• Discipline is teaching. Help the child to understand the results of their behaviors.
• Choose good child care and stay involved in the care.
• Remember good nutrition, health care, and to take care of yourself, too.

For information about parenting classes contact Wenhsing Cheng at wcheng@ag.tamu.edu or 214-904-3050.

Americans celebrate Father's Day on the third Sunday of June, which is June 21 this year. This day has been observed for a century to recognize the importance of fathers. Research on fathering shows that:

• Fathers are essential to the healthy growth and development of their children.
• Dads bring a unique perspective to the family and lives of their children.
• Mothers and fathers can love their children by supporting each other as parents.  

Children need fathers who love and care for them on a consistent basis. Listed below are 20 reasons why your child needs you to be an active father. Being an active father:

1. Lets your child know that you love him/her.
2. Provides your child with greater financial resources.
3. Provides your child with a positive male role model.
4. Provides your child with emotional support.
5. Enhances your child's self-esteem.
6. Enhances your child's intellectual development.
7. Provides your child with guidance and discipline.
8. Gives your child someone to play with.
9. Provides your child with someone to talk to when she has questions.
10. Increases your child's chances for academic success.
11. Provides your child with an alternative perspective on life.
12. Lowers your child's chances for early sexual activity.
13. Lowers your child's chances for school failure.
14. Lowers your child's chances for youth suicide.
15. Lowers your child's chances for juvenile delinquency.
16. Lowers your child's chances for adult criminality.
17. Provides your child with a sense of physical and emotional security.
18. Facilitates your child's moral development.
19. Promotes a healthy gender identity in your child.
20. Helps your child learn important life skills.

Fathers, your children need you! Make a commitment to be an active father. Your children will greatly benefit from your involvement in their lives.

For more information about fathering education contact Wenhsing Cheng at 214-904-3050 or wcheng@ag.tamu.edu.

Source:

T. Berry Brazelton, M.D. (1992). Touchpoints: The Essential References. MA: Perseus Books.

Wade F. Horn, David Blankenhorn, and Mitchell B. Pearlstein (Eds.), The Fatherhood Movement: A Call to Action. New York: Lexington Books.

It takes a village to raise a child and it takes a campus to raise a baby squirrel! Enjoy this amazing video clip about parenting of squirrels.

Link to the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jByfWOLmjo&feature=player_embedded

Parents who read to their children on a regular basis tend to raise children who are superior readers and who perform better in school. Reading stimulates chidren's imaginations, enhances their vocabularies, introduces them to components of stories, provides them with information about the world around them, and promotes positive parent-child interaction.

Fathers play a criticle role in their children's development. Research indicates that when fathers are actively involved in their children's education, children are more likely to receive A's, more likely to participate in extracurricular activities, more likely to enjoy school, and less likely to repeat a grade.

Reading also provides fathers with a great oppotunity to interact with their children in a positive way, while contributing to their cognitive and social development.

FRED (Fathers Reading Every Day) is a four-week program designed to encourage fathers, grandfathers, and other positive male role models to increase father involvement in children's literacy development and to improve the quality of father-child relationships.

For more information about the FRED program, contact Wenhsing at wcheng@ag.tamu.edu.

Parents are the primary influence in a child's life. Extension programming in parent education enables prospective parents, parents, and grandparents to improve their knowledge, parenting practices, and caregiving skills.

Child care providers play a vital role in caring for America's children. Extension provides research-based information on child care related issues and on-line courses for child care providers to satisfy state mandated training requirements.

The Aging/Gerontology program focuses on improving health, well-being and independence through educational programs for older adults, their family members, children and youth, and professionals serving older adults and their families.

For more information about family life education, visit our website at http://fcs.tamu.edu/families/index.php or e-mail Wenhsing at wcheng@ag.tamu.edu.

Being physically active is key to good health. It is also a great way to reduce stress. The family is happier when family member's stress level is lower. That goes for both adults and children. Here are a few things parents can do to keep their children active:

 

First, limit screen time to one to two hours a day; including television, computer, video games, and cell phone.

 

Second, involve children in the decision making process. Let each child pick an activity of the day. Another way is to have each family member list their favorite activities and draw one out each time.

 

Last but not least, be a good role model and stay active. Do activities as a family. The activity can range from as small as playing in the backyard or walking the dog to as big as going on a camping or ski trip.

 

For more information, check out our website at fcs.tamu.edu or contact Wenhsing at wcheng@ag.tamu.edu.