On April 17, our AAU teams travelled to Hartland for the state championship meet. Our girls came home with 24 gold, 13 silver and 8 bronze medals–and we only sent 21 atheletes! Is that unbelievable, or what?

During the first week of June, all of our students will be showing off what they have learned this year at our annual recitals. Coaches choose a different piece of music for each of their classes and choreograph a routine to highlight each student’s skills. They work on these routines for about 8 weeks–so it’s quite a show!

There will be three show dates: June 1, 3 and 7. Each evening will showcase a variety of classes, from our 2-year-old parent/tots to our level 10 AAU teams. Come on in and see the show!

http://www.powerfulwordsonline.com/articles/DrRobynPatriotLedgerArticle_jan192010.zip

Check out this great video from Dr. Robyn on our January Powerful Word: Empathy! What a wonderful lesson to teach our children!

As parents, I’m sure we’ve all had that thought. So, why do we send our children to gymnastics? Does Horizon have the next Mary Lou Retton or Shawn Johnson? Maybe. But classes at Horizon are so very much more than gymnastics. Think about this:

*One study found that children who take gymnastics classes raised their reading and math scores by up to 10%. This could be attributed to either the self assurance that comes from learning gymnastics skills or to the fact that gymnastics requires the use of both sides of the brain at once. This process develops neurological pathways which promotes reading readiness.

*Your child’s school district may not have a gymnastics team; however, gymnastics can be a great springboard (pardon the pun) to other sports. The high school state diving meet which will take place this weekend will include 4 girls that have trained at Horizon. There are 13 girls on Hudsonville and Jenison’s competitive cheer teams that have trained at Horizon. One of our former students is on a full-ride cheer scholarrship at Hawaii Pacific University and another performs professionally with Cirque Du Soleil!

*With 30% of children and adolescents in the United States overweight, getting children away from the television or computer games and into the gym is a terrific first step toward a healthy lifestyle. The researchers at the Centers for Disease Control report that youth who undertake lifestyle exercise programs that increase physical activity, reduce the intake of high-caloric foods and involve parents have the best chance of preventing and reducing obesity over the long-term. Gymnastics is perhaps one of the most comprehensive “lifestyle exercise programs” available to children, incorporating strength, flexibility, speed, balance, coordination, power and discipline (Michael Taylor, 2003).

*Physical activity is instrumental in preventing certain cancers; from colon cancer and breast cancer to prostate cancer (Merrett, Theis & Ashbury, 2000). Increased exercise helped reduce the risk of developing diabetes by 58% (Yale University School of Medicine, 2001). Beginning a physical activity such as gymnastics at an early age is no guarantee but active children are more likely to grow up to be active and healthy adults.

*A study of school-aged children found that the risk of substance abuse by adolescents is decreased by physical training programs that incorporate life skills. Better school attendance, lower anxiety and depression, and decreased use of tobacco and alcohol were all reported after a twelve-week physical training program (Collingwood, Sunderlin, Reynolds & Kohl, 2000) Horizon’s comprehensive program incorporates physical activity with important life skills with our “Powerful Words” program.

After all this compelling evidence, Izzy’s parents have decided that they can’t afford NOT to send Izzy to his classes! Izzy doesn’t know that he’s learning to read better, be healthier, reduce his risk of cancer or be a better citizen. He just knows he’s having fun. That’s a win-win for everyone!

The mechanics of a proper fall are pretty simple—tuck and roll. Keeping knees bent and chin tucked can prevent many injuries to arms, legs and that oh, so important noggin!

So, be watching your child’s class for Horizon’s Falling Clinic. We’ll be playing some fun games to teach your little Humpty Dumpty not to crack up!

Falling

Falling back, tuck your knees to your chest,
Keep your arms in close and you’ll be the best!

You may have seen your child play a similar game in his or her class. And while it may appear to just be a time-filler, the game has a very important purpose. A recent study in Developmental Psychology revealed that a child who learns to excel at the game will have surpassed his classmates by 3.4 months in math and 2 months in vocabulary over a nine-month school year. The key to the game is self-regulation, the ability to control one’s impulses in order to see the big picture.

In the 1960’s Dr. Walter Mischel did a study with marshmallows. How fun is that? In his study, he set a marshmallow in front of hungry four-year-olds and told the child he could either eat the marshmallow right away, or he could have two marshmallows if he waited for until the facilitator returned to the room. About one in three of the children was able to distract himself and wait for the second marshmallow. These children who exhibited outstanding self-control, went on to score an average of 200 points higher on the SAT than the students who chose to chow down on their marshmallow right away. It’s amazing what you can learn from snacks, isn’t it?

For years, educators and parents alike have been plagued by the question of why some children are naturally good students and some aren’t. While obvious factors like IQ and demographics play a part, there are pieces to the puzzle still missing. Self control is one of those pieces.

How can we teach self-regulation? Games like “Head, Toes, Knees and Shoulders” are a start. Children can also learn by playing made-up games with elaborate rules and self-imposed consequences and minimal adult interference. For older children, it’s important to know when to say when. If Izzy forgets his homework, or doesn’t study for his spelling test, his mom may not be too quick to bail him out, but instead use it as an opportunity to teach about responsibility and discipline (remember those from out Powerful Words series?).

Learning self-regulation is going to make Izzy a better giraffe going forward. It will help him do his homework before watching television, to think before he sticks his long neck out, and stop him from grabbing that Giraffes Today magazine at the supermarket checkout. Perhaps we adults could use a little “Head, Toes, Knees and Shoulders”.

(summarized from a 09/09/09 article in USA Today by Laura Vanderkam

Why Does My Child Keep Quitting?
Dr. Robyn Silverman introduces the Powerful Word of the Month: Commitment
Getting children to redefine what their best is…everyday
Why Does My Child Keep Quitting?
Posted on July 13, 2009 by Dr. Robyn
Is your child quitting everything they start? Need a Commitment Overhaul?

Here is a letter from a parent to Dr. Robyn Silverman asking about why her child keeps quitting his activities. What’s interfering with her child’s commitment level?

Dear Dr. Robyn,

I hate to admit it, but my child is a quitter. Knowing the Powerful Word of the Month at our school this month is commitment, it seemed that now was the perfect time to ask what’s going on here. I don’t want to raise a quitter. Have any ideas on why a child quits everything they start?

–Jan K, Baltimore, MD

The question of commitment and quitting comes up every time our Powerful Words schools present Powerful Words like commitment, determination, attitude, or goal-setting. As Powerful Parents, we want our children to show commitment and determination. So what’s making them quit?

Children quit for all different reasons. Some children feel bored while others feel overwhelmed. Some children have unrealistic expectations that they are going to be performing the kind of martial arts, gymnastics, swimming, or other sport that they see “in the movies” or in the Olympics on the first day that they attend. Other children see “today’s activity” simply as another activity that they do—easily interchanged with football, basketball or dance lessons– so why stick with one thing? Still other children feel invisible to the instructor, picked on, misunderstood or scared when they take class.

The first major reason for quitting is the instance of a curriculum-based clash. Simply put, when children feel overwhelmed or under-challenged, they will want to quit. After all, when something is too difficult or too easy, it isn’t fun anymore! The over-challenged child may feel as though he cannot keep up, catch up, or otherwise progress at the pace that the other children in class are progressing. The under-challenged child may feel uninterested, disinterested, or just plain bored. You can determine this if your child would rather play with friends than go to class or fights you on practicing when they used to find it exciting to do so. Whatever it is, there is clearly a clash between the child’s learning level and the curriculum they’re learning at this time. These children will surely start looking for other ways, whether it is in football, hockey, dance or marching band, to fill their time and hold their interest– sometimes, they just keep moving from activity to activity looking for something to hold their interest. It’s important that we delve into this issue with our child because it’s easy enough to move our children to a different class, get them extra help, or have them take some extra classes to address this issue.

The second major reason for quitting is the case of the value-based clash. If you, as a parent, don’t value what the child is learning at their current activity, the child will often sense it and want to quit. For example, if you regard their current activity, like martial arts or gymnastics, as “just another stop on the way between football and piano,” the child will too. After all, a child will want to quit something if it has little or no perceived value to the parent. Children tend to take their cues from their parents—so when Mom and Dad don’t care, neither will they. As parents, we need to make sure to check our own attitude when determining why our children might be quitting. If we can adjust our own behavior and attitude, our children will too.

The third major reason for quitting is the often elusive personal-based clash. When children or parents feel uncomfortable at an activity, uncomfortable around a coach or teacher, uncomfortable around another child or another parent who is there at the same time, or undervalued by staff, they will likely want to quit. Perhaps there has been a misunderstanding or a miscommunication. Boundaries may have been breached or buttons may have been pushed in some way. Perhaps the most common personal clash is when the child perceives that the teacher or coach doesn’t “like him” or “care about him”. It’s vital to find out if something happened between your child and another person in the class so that the issue can be addressed and any misunderstandings can be cleared up.

The fourth major reason for quitting is the instance of the situational-based clash. While the above reasons have a negative undertone causing a “falling away” or a “falling out,” situational clashes are due to an actual lack of money, resources, or ability to continue. When families do not have the money to pay for lessons, the car to get their children to your class, or the person to bring the child to your school, they will likely need to quit. There may have been a divorce or a death, a new job opportunity, and illness or a lay-off that caused this situation to arise. Schools and sports facilities are often very sorry to see these students leave, given that they would stay if they could.

Finally, the fifth major reason children might quit is…because they can! We want to make sure that children aren’t creating a pattern of quitting that is being supported by their parents. Sometimes, we are just too overprotective or too easily swayed by our children’s attempts to get out of fulfilling their promises. While it is easier to have children quit something that making them stick it out til the end, children learn their patterns early. If they see that they can quit without consequence, they will learn this as a fact and quit whatever feels uncomfortable, challenging, frustrating or boring to them as they develop and become teens and adults. It may not seem like a big deal when they are 8 years old but it certainly becomes so when they become 18 or 28 years old! Set positive patterns now so that they learn commitment and the benefits of seeing goals and promises through to the end.

Make sure to ask questions rather than lecture. Why do they want to quit? Did anything happen in class? Are they bored? Overwhelmed? How do they feel about their friends in class? Their teachers? Is the curriculum too hard? Too easy? And also, remember, to watch what you say and you do. If you are quitting your activities, or someone else of influence in your home or family is doing so, children will learn volumes about the loop holes in commitment. Take your cues from your child’s Powerful Words instructors this month and expand on what they are talking about in class with your children. Discuss it at the dinner table and in the car. Tell stories about your own triumphs and how you stuck with something even when it was difficult. Talk about the importance of seeing the end and setting goals. And of course, set the precedent that your family always finishes what they start– everyone should have that “no quit, go-for-it attitude!” that helps each member to lead with commitment– and your children will surely learn to follow suit.

* learn how to stop properly (bend your knees)

* stay in the center of the trampoline

* make sure the trampoline is on a flat surface and do not put sprinklers under it as it could become slippery

* do not flip without proper training

Safety nets do not necessarily keep you safe!  Only 1/3 of injuries come from falling off the trampoline.  The majority come from landing the wrong way, colliding with another jumper, or hitting the frame.

Here are some stats from Spectrum Hospital in Grand Rapids, Mi:

1997 – 150 Injuries

1999 – 375 Injuries

2001 – 543 Injuries

The American Acadamy of Pediatrics recommends that trampolines never be used in the home environment or on outdoor playgrounds.  Trampolines should only be used in supervised training programs for gymnastics, diving and other competitive sports.  The latest available data shows that 83,400 trampoline related injures occurred in 1999.  It’s 140% higher than in 1990.

Be Safe!