Learning how to develop good character is vitally important to an individual’s overall success in life. Above all, possessing these skills early in life will help build stronger relationships, boost self-esteem, and improve school performance. One of the best ways to develop these skills at a young age is to join a youth mentoring program. For years, mentoring programs have helped youth and adolescence strengthen their interpersonal relationships, improve their behavior, and increase their enrollment into college. They have also played a role in decreasing the likelihood of youth substance abuse and gang activity.
One such program, Horizons for Youth, in Chicago, IL, is helping to lead the charge in building character through youth mentoring. They serve youth from kindergarten through college through mentoring, as well as other programs and support services. Through their program, they have assisted a high percentage of disadvantaged youth in enrolling in college. In addition to this, they are using real-life experiences to enrich the lives of the youth they serve. Periodically, they take them on enrichment outings involving art, science, theatre, and civic engagement. These types of programs expand the experiences of youth in their community by providing them with a vision of what the world has to offer and who they can become.
Mentors Have Just as Much to Gain
The positive effects of youth mentoring programs go both ways. Mentors have just as much to gain as the youth who participate in these programs. Along with youth, mentors also experience enhanced self-esteem and stronger interpersonal relationships. Many report feelings of personal fulfillment and a better understanding of children, especially those that are disadvantaged.
Students across the country spent the last year learning virtually due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Now, school systems are preparing for students to return to in-person learning. But are they ready for the classroom after spending months learning from home? What challenges or obstacles could they be facing this upcoming school year? And how can parents and teachers support their academic success?
One concerning factor for a smooth transition will be getting students reacquainted with the classroom environment. Some students may have lost sight of what it feels like to sit at a desk for hours engaging in learning with their teacher. In addition to that, students may be experiencing anxiety about returning to school.
Parents and teachers will have a role in ensuring students are engaged in learning as they make the transition back into the classroom. Working as a team, they can encourage students to become enthusiastic about learning, support their mental health as they return to school, and close any learning gaps caused by virtual learning.
Collaborating with Your Child’s School and Teachers
Parents should plan to attend their child’s back-to-school open house. It’s an opportunity to reintroduce your child to the school environment and begin your collaboration efforts with your child’s teacher. Many schools use this event as the first source of providing parents information to ensure student’s success during the academic year. Let your child’s teacher know that you plan to be involved in your child’s learning by being present during the open house.
Talk to your child’s teacher about the school’s plan for closing learning gaps and supporting students as they transition back. Ask how you can help your child at home. If possible, meet with the school counselor to discuss a plan for coping with any anxiety your child may experience when returning to school. Provide your best contact information and availability so your child’s teacher can contact you, if needed, during the school year. Lastly, set aside time to meet with teachers periodically to discuss your child’s academic performance and needs.
Tips for Keeping Your Child Engaged at Home
Learning goes far beyond the classroom. Everyday life offers several opportunities for learning as well. Keeping this in mind, expose your child to as many real-world learning experiences as possible. Let your child’s interests lead the way here. If your child enjoys singing and dancing,
enroll them in a performing arts program or take them to see a live performance. Talk to them about the experience to gain more knowledge on their interests and connect it to anything they may be learning at school. Likewise, if your child loves a particular character, like Sonic the Hedgehog, find them books to read about this character. Depending on your child’s age, you can also teach them how to write and say the letter sounds of the character’s name.
As often as possible, take them out into the community for learning experiences. Visit local parks, museums, the zoo, or anything your child may be interested in that excites and encourages their learning.
Share your enthusiasm for learning with them. Talk about things you are interested in and create opportunities for your child to observe your learning. If you like to read, keep plenty of books at home and read them often to foster a love of reading in the home environment.
Given these points, a smooth return to the classroom for students will heavily rely on the collaboration efforts of teachers and parents. Students will need the support of both parties to reach academic success this upcoming school year.
What have the challenges been and how do we keep students engaged in a difficult remote learning climate?
Remote learning is a role that parents and caregivers were thrown into with little to no warning or ways of preparing. There have been some success and some failure with the process. A big determining factor of whether or not parents have had any success with their children through remote learning plays a lot into the ways their children learn best. Some kids are thriving in remote learning and others work better in a classroom setting where they can be more social. Regardless of whether children are doing well in remote learning is the fact that some of the problems that have come up have been ones that are completely out of their control. Many parents and students in low-income families worried about how they would keep up without any access to the internet or laptops, computers and tablets. Some schools, including CPS, sent out tablets and provided hard copies to students who were unable to get their hands on internet access. Comcast even offered up free Wi-Fi to students with no internet access. Despite all this though, there were still many problems with remote learning that would cause many people to say that it was unsuccessful.
Online Training
Many teachers are trained to teach in the classrooms so transferring their teaching methods to online zoom calls hasn’t necessarily been easy. Some teaching methods may not be as successful online as they would be in person. It’s also harder for teachers to get students to engage and participate. It also makes it harder on the teacher to come up with homework assignments and tests/quizzes and actually ensure that the students are retaining the information.
Solution: Authoring tools have been very helpful for teachers because they provide them with software to create their own e-learning programs. Click here for a list of helpful authoring tools.
Technical Issues
When dealing with the internet it’s inevitable that problems will arise such as no Wi-Fi, bad internet connections, problems with apps and software and simply people not knowing how to work certain things. These things can be a headache on all parties involved (parents, students and teachers) and interrupt important learning lessons.
Solution: The biggest way to prevent any technical problems is to login to class early to ensure that you have a stable internet connection and your logins/passwords are working. It might also be helpful for schools to have technical support people on standby to help anyone that may be experiencing technical difficulties.
No One-on-One Time For Students
Some students require extra attention and may need to have a one-on-one with teachers to ask questions and get additional help. That is not entirely easy to do through e-learning, which may leave some students falling behind in the classrooms.
Solution: For students who need help during the e-learning session let them know how they can ask questions during class, i.e. using the “hand up” function or using the chat feature. It might also be helpful to have another person on standby to help answer the questions of students that need additional help. Aside from that teachers can elect to hold individual calls with a student if they need more help.
Even with addressing the problems above, remote learning still had some problems that were hard to solve. For starters many students were disinterested and failed to show up to class; and with parents too busy to keep track of their kids’ work and teachers not able to get in contact with them many students fell behind. Some districts even stopped requiring students to do any work at all or told them that no one wouldn’t fail either way, which in turn causes students to stop caring. Many teachers also were putting in minimal effort with their teaching methods hopping on calls for only a few minutes leaving parents to deal with the fallout of how to teach their children in something they weren’t trained for.
In the future, in order for educators to keep children engaged during remote learning the following needs to happen:
Allow students to feel like they are actually learning something rather than just doing busy work
More strategy and planning
Equal opportunity across the board for low-income families and families of color
Better support for students without internet access
Better support for students with disabilities
Unique and creative ways for students to learn and socialize besides sitting in front of the screen all day
More enforcement on making sure students are actually attending classes, engaging, learning and getting the help they need
More communication and effort between teachers and parents
This year has been unlike any year before. As majority of schools have already started the fall semester, some have opened classrooms back up while others remain remote. Some parents refuse to send their children back to school in the middle of a pandemic, understandably so. We’ve just seen a alarming number of children test positive for coronavirus and frankly for some parents it’s hard to put your faith in the schools that they are doing everything necessary to keep your child safe. For very young children, who are prone to touch everything and are walking germs, it’s going to be harder to get them to follow the rules, social distance, wear a mask, etc. because they don’t understand the extent of the virus. For those reasons many parents are opting to home-school their children whether their child’s school is back open or not. For those embarking down that journey, we’ve got you covered with some helpful tips.
Schedule: First things first a schedule is very important for both you and your child. You can start by creating a schedule similar to one your child would have in school. This will help them keep that same sense of routine. A schedule will also help you as well because you can map out when you have time to tackle your tasks (perhaps when they’re taking a nap or eating lunch).
Get Creative: We know it’s not going to be easy, especially if you have no experience being a teacher, but your best bet will be to get creative. As parents you have the luxury of knowing your child better than any teacher could, try incorporating their likes/hobbies into the lesson as a way to get them excited to learn.
Patience: Patience is a virtue, so remember to be patient with both yourself and your child. It might take some time to get into a good rhythm.
Work Space: For parents of younger children, it could be helpful to create a small workplace with a desk, supplies, etc. to resemble the classroom. This can help them feel like they are at school and not home.
Set Goals: It can be helpful to set some beginning of the year goals for your child based off of their age (for example maybe you want your child to be able write their name by the end of the year). This will allow you to track your child’s progress throughout the year and keep them up to date with other children their age. Also make sure they are on target for their age group with math, writing and reading skills.
Keep in Contact with your child’s teacher: Older children are homeschooling, so their teacher is still available for contact. Use this to your full advantage for any questions or concerns you may have about your child’s learning.
Family Activities: Have multiple children or a big family? Try making everyday family activities into a learning experience. This kills two birds with one stone. It is helping the children learn, but can also be something fun for the family to do together as everyone struggles to stay entertained in a pandemic.
Allow Break Time: Everyone needs a break, including children. Allow them some break time much like the recess they would have in school. You can come up with different activities everyday. This will help keep them active as well.
Work with other parents: The best thing about this, is that you aren’t going through it alone. There are parents all over the country embarking on the same journey. You can try contacting a friend with children or even contact one of your child’s parents to share what works for you and get some advice or tips from them. If nothing else, it may help you feel better to just know that they’ve experienced the same challenges as you.
Got some more tips for homeschooling share? Share them below.
In the wake of everything that is going in on the country right now, white privilege is at the helm of it. Everything from the death of George Floyd,Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor to the calling of the police on members of the black community for simply bird watching, working out or going about their day-to-day business relate back to white privilege. Yes, we know all cops aren’t bad. Yes, we know all white people aren’t racist. But the thing we need white people to understand now more than ever is that whether they are racist or not, they have white privilege. Their skin tone does not warrant the level of fear for their lives that black people have had to deal with for far too long. Right now what we need is for white people to understand the white privilege, accept it, speak on it and use it to become allies to the black community so that change can be made. Now is not the time to be silent or mutual. Now is the time to take action and if you don’t know how to take action, learn, research, ask questions, etc. At this point it is not enough to simply not be racist, if you aren’t on the front line with the black community helping to make change and putting your white privilege to good use, you aren’t helping create change. If you question what white privilege has to do with all the recent events, look at Amy Cooper and how she deliberately lied on Christian Cooper when calling the cops and made sure to mention his race. Those actions could of led to the same thing that happened to George Floyd. In fact it did, back in the 50s with Emmett Till. This is the kind of harm white privilege does, especially if people like Amy Cooper are using it in the way they are and putting black people in even more danger than they are on the daily. Black people have been fighting for years, it’s time members of other communities join us. And for those that have, we see you and we thank you. But make sure to ask yourself how can I take it further than social media?
For those looking to learn more about white privilege and address the issue, check out girlupcampaign’s post on Instagram.
With January quickly coming to an end, that can only mean one thing: Black History Month is approaching. Of course we celebrate our culture and our people year round, but February gives us a chance to really reflect and bask in our accomplishments a little more than usual. It’s also a good time to celebrate with your kids and teach them about our history as well as why February is an important month. Here are a list of things you should talk to your child about to prepare them for Black History Month:
Jim Crow laws
Ancestry
Important black leaders
The history of black artists/musicians/actors/authors, etc.
Black scientists
Slavery
The history of racism
Civil Rights Movement
The Black Panthers
Africa
HBCU’s
Black Lives Matters
Black Veterans
African Americans and politics
Juneteenth
Thurgood Marshall/Supreme Court Cases that helped African Americans secure rights
Know of any more things that are important to teach children about Black History? Share them below.
Although parent-teacher conferences tend to be a short opportunity to speak with your child’s teacher and learn about their progress as a student, there is still an opportunity to make the most out of it. If you are looking to be hands on with your child’s education, learn about their progress and where there can be room for improvement; the objective should be to go in with an agenda. Don’t just wait to find out what the teacher has to say. Come in with your on set of questions based off of what you already know to be true about your child. This will give you insight into how your child behaves in the classroom versus at home. You can also give the teacher a little insight into how your child behaves at home. This allows both parties to gain an understanding of the best possible way to teach a child and allow them to reach their full potential. It’s also important that prior to the conference you have been keeping up with each day of your child’s life by asking them questions such as “How was school?” and “What happened at school today?” that way if there are any concerns or issues about something, you are prepared to bring them up and ask questions.
Here are a list of starter questions you can think about asking at the next parent-teacher conference, but again the best way to make the most of this is to tailor the questions to fit your individual child:
How is my child doing socially/emotionally?
What are my child’s academic strengths and weaknesses?
Is my child performing at his or her’s grade level?
Are there any areas my child can use extra help in?
How can I help at home?
What’s the best way to communicate with you?
How can I stay on top of what is happening in the classroom?
Is my child giving his or her best effort?
It may also be a good idea to take notes of everything addressed in the conference so that it can be referenced at a later date. You can also schedule a follow-up if you would like more time with the teacher or would like to see if your child has made any improvements since the last conference.
If you are looking for more personalized questions that more closely fit the concerns you have for your child, click here.
If you keep up with news, then you’ve probably heard about the growing trafficking epidemic and the warning signs for women and young girls to be safe when going outside and take preventative measures to ensure it doesn’t happen to them. So what exactly can you do avoid trafficking especially if you must travel alone or in dangerous/secluded areas.
Here are some things you can consider to ensure your safety and avoid becoming a victim of trafficking:
1. Be Aware of Your Surroundings
This is probably one of the most obvious things you can tell someone, but the reality is that most people don’t pay attention to what is going on around them. A lot of times people are looking down when walking or are in their phone. This video gives an in depth look at how you can better be aware at all times.
2. Take a Self-Defense Class
It’s important that you know at least some basic fighting skills. So that if worst comes to worst, you have the ability to fight off an attacker.
3. Carry A Safety Kit
Carry a small kit with easily accessible items such as a flashlight, tactical knife, pepper spray, a taser, etc. But before you try to use any of these items make sure you understand how to properly use them.
4. Conceal to Carry
If you are looking to carry a firearm, take the necessary steps to understand what that means, how to get licensed, the laws in your state and lastly but most importantly train on how to use a firearm.
5. Avoid Going To Nightclubs, Deserted/Bad Areas and Parking Lots Alone Especially At Night
If you must attend any of these places, try to do so in groups when able.
6. Keep Control of Your Drinks
While on the subject of nightclubs/bars, make sure your are aware of your drink at all times. Never leave it unattended. If you do, it’s best to order another one rather than take your chances.
7. Stay Aware From Unknown Drugs, Especially From Unknown People
8. Don’t Get In The Car With Someone You Just Met
It’s best to call a cab, Uber, Lyft or get a ride from someone you know. If you call for a Uber or Lyft, make sure the driver and car matches the description in the app. Also make sure the child locks are off the car in case you need to make a quick escape and/or jump out of a moving vehicle.
9. Help Someone in Need
If you see other women or young girls in a potential dangerous situation offer to help in anyway you can or point them in the right direction to get the help they need.
10. Know What Countries Are Safe To Travel To
When traveling abroad it’s best to educate yourself on the countries you’re planning on visiting, especially if you’re traveling alone. Make sure to avoid ones that pose a high threat to crime, economic crisis, genocide, etc. Also note that women between the ages of 15 and 23 pose the highest threat of being trafficked, so they should never travel abroad alone.
For other informative tips on how to avoid being trafficked watch these videos:
Another important part of putting an end to trafficking is knowing the signs that someone is already being trafficked, if it’s to late to prevent them from being trafficked in the first place. Here are signs someone is being trafficked and may need your help:
Signs of physical abuse such as cuts, marks, bruises, etc.
Avoids eye contact/Social Interaction with law enforcement and figures of authority
Appearing malnourished/poor physical health
Lack of identification documents
Tattoos/Branding
Not allowed to go out alone or speak for themselves
Measures of keeping people trapped on houses, buildings, etc. such as barbed wire and bars around windows
Checking into hotel with males
Scripted or rehearsed responses
Working long hours
Trafficking is at an all time high so it is important that we all do what we can to prevent it from happening to ourselves, those around us and even strangers. Know of some more ways we can put an end to trafficking? List them below.
Transracial adoption isn’t something new. In fact, it’s something we see a lot, especially among celebrities. But, when we look at the climate of today’s world involving race related issues; it’s important that these adopted children understand their background and don’t grow up feeling a way because they look different than their parents. It is equally as important that those looking to adopt a child of a different race understand the challenges that come along with it and are open to taking whatever steps may be necessary to teach them about their culture.
Actress Kristen Davis recently went on the “Red Table Talk” to discuss her challenges with raising black children and recently in the news we’ve seen support groups for multiracial families such as teaching parents how to do their black child’s hair. No matter how big or small, every detail plays a part in a child’s confidence and sense of identity and the type of person they will grow to become.
Here are some of the side effects of transracial adoption and what you can do to help your child move past them:
Racial Identity Crisis
When a child is growing up around not many people that look like them, it is likely that they will question why and want to know where they came from. While you may not have all the answers (if you don’t know anything about their biological parents), you can still teach them about the history of their culture. This requires being as open and honest as possible about the differences in races and the treatment of other races so that if they encounter any type of racism they will understand why. This will also teach them self acceptance and loving the skin they’re in. For parents, it can be a good way to learn about other cultures through teaching their children and in turn allow them to empathize and see things through the eyes of other races.
2. Cultural Appropriation
Some adoption agencies provide future parents with programs to teach them about the culture of the child they are adopting. While this is a good start, it’s important to remember that it’s just that, a start. The real work starts when the children come home. Some parents may get so caught up in wanting to embrace their child’s culture, that they may not understand they are helping to perpetuate a negative stereotype. That’s why education is so important. A good way of doing this is making sure your child is around people that look like them as much as possible. So if it can’t be at home, make sure they make friends of the same race at school or take them to public hangouts where people of their race hangs out a lot. This allows a natural process of learning about themselves rather than forcing it on the child and getting it wrong. For parents, the same can be done by making friends with parents who are the same race as your child and asking questions and learning from them. It is okay to admit that you can never 100 percent step into your child’s shoes and know how they feel. This is where the phrase, “it takes a village to raise a child” comes in handy. Parents can also talk to other transracial parents and discuss how they get through certain challenges and what works for them.
3. Choosing Not to See Color
This can be detrimental to the child because while you don’t see color, others do. Once they get older and began to witness the racial inequality, they won’t be prepared for it and won’t know how to handle it. This involves a very tough conversation about racial bias and privilege, which is often a tough conversation for many to have or to accept that they have privilege at all, but it must be done. It’s understandable that some parents may want to protect their kids from these tough conversations, but in the end it will be much better that a kid, especially one from a multiracial family with people that may not have to deal with the same things they have to deal, with is educated on race. At the end of the day, if you are doing nothing to understand racism/privilege and/or sitting by and watching it happen, you are doing your child a disservice.
The bottom line when thinking about transracial adoption and/or raising children of different races is are you ready to educate yourself and have tough conversations? Because if you aren’t, you will be playing a part in the self-identity crisis and lack of confidence your child has as they grow up. Transracial adoption is something that is beautiful and something that both parties can benefit from, but only when everyone is willing to get out of their comfort zones and do the work.
Have any tips or advice for multiracial families? Leave them below.
Mentorship has been an important aspect for students for some time now because studies have shown that students that have been mentored are more likely to stay in school, go to college, volunteer and even want to make a difference themselves as they get older through mentorship. Mentors have also been a big help to parents because they are often able to get students to open up in ways that the parents may not be a successful with. This is due to the fact that mentors are often peers (older brothers/sisters) that the students can see themselves in because they were once in their shoes. The big thing to understand is that when it comes to mentors, they don’t necessarily have to just be tutors. Even if they aren’t tutoring your child, just the presence of a positive role model in their life can impact their achievements in school from a academic, social and social activities standpoint.
First let’s discuss the benefits of getting your child a mentor:
1. Enhances confidence
2. Challenges students to set higher goals/take risks
3. Psychosocial support
4. Students provided with useful advice on academics, professional responsibilities and day-to-day tasks
5. Stronger Interpersonal skills
6. Support system during difficult times
7. Exposure to diversity
8. Access to useful resources
9. Healthier relationships
10. Better lifestyle choices
11. Better attitude/improved behavior at school and home
Next let’s discuss the equally beneficial results for the mentor:
Now that we’ve discussed how influential both getting mentored and being a mentor can be, it’s important to discuss some mentor programs that are available because one out of every three young people who want mentors don’t get one.
Here are some resources you can look into if you are interested in getting your child a mentor:
A Work of Faith Ministries, Inc. 