We teach our children not to talk to strangers, and then, all of a sudden, because of something called “the Family Reunion”, that is exactly what we want our kids to do! The young child is often timid around strangers, even when those strangers are actually relatives that you just don’t get to see very often. So how can you help your child feel comfortable around his relatives, without forcing him to give hugs and kisses to such strange people?

There are several steps you can take, to make sure that everyone enjoys the reunion, create some wonderful memories, and forge some new friendships for your child that may last a lifetime.

The first step is to introduce your relatives using a photo album. Take large, clear pictures of each relative, alone. Using a magnetic photo album, insert copies of the pictures into the pages, along with large, clear labels of each name. Magnetic albums are not good for your photographs. Over time, the colors will fade. For albums that you want to keep, you’ll need to look for “archival quality” paper, that is acid-free and lignen-free. But for a toddler’s picture book, nothing quite holds up like a sturdy magnetic album. That’s why you’ll make duplicate copies of your photos. One to put in your child’s magnetic picture book, and another to save.

This magnetic album is your child’s. Let him look through the pictures often. Read the names aloud to him. Ask him to tell the names back to you. When that relative calls on the phone, get the album out, and point to the right picture. Let the relative say “hi” to your young child on the phone, and encourage him to say something back. When you go through the book again, tell him short stories about each relative. Some little thing that may help him put names to faces. Like, “this is Great-Grandma Biggers. She likes to paint, and has a swimming pool at her house. This is your Great Aunt Liesa, she lives on a farm with lots of cows.” The stories can get longer as your child’s attention increases. The idea is to make that person seem real, so when your child meets them in person, they won’t be total strangers.

Bring the album with you to the reunion. Let your child make a game of finding each relative in his book among the group that has gathered.

Finally, plan some activities in advance. You can ask every person attending the reunion to come up with one child-activity and one adult-activity. Getting together and talking may be exciting for the old folks, but the young ones will be bored to tears. Make sure they have fun, and they will want to come again!

At one of our family reunions, one aunt brought a gallon of bubbles solution and a variety of wands and blowers. There were twelve young children there, who absolutely loved this simple activity. They took turns blowing bubbles and catching them, chasing the bubbles, and trying to catch them on their tongues. Another organized activity was a simple scavenger hunt. Later, someone brought out paper and paint, and yet another got them all in a circle for a game of duck-duck-goose. Nothing was difficult, but without pre-planning, it might have been challenging to come up with materials and games on the spur of the moment.

Don’t forget to keep your child somewhat on his schedule, even when on vacation. If he normally takes a two hour nap, and you don’t have him take a nap at all, you may be setting him up for a major tantrum when he gets over-tired. Nothing spoils the fun quite like a two-year-old acting like a two-year-old, and a bunch of older relatives giving you unwanted advice on how they never let their kids get away with that kind of behavior.

Finally, if there are some touchy subjects that you really don’t want to talk about at the reunion, you might list them in the invitations in advance. Otherwise, try to think of all the annoying questions that really push your buttons, and think how you might answer them without causing conflict. Is there one relative that always brings up spanking? How do you usually respond to them? Is there a better way to handle that then what you’ve tried in the past?

When my children were young, my husband and I decided to homeschool them. Unfortunately, many of our relatives were public school teachers! As you can imagine, there might have been a lot of conflict at our get-togethers, but there wasn’t. My husband and I informed everyone in advance of our decision, and why. Then we went ahead and did it. We’d already earned the reputation for being a little “odd” because we didn’t let our children watch cartoons. I felt that most cartoons (except Tom and Jerry) were violent, crude, scary, or perpetuating bratty behavior that we did not allow. So I had been censoring their television viewing habits for years before the homeschooling issue came up. At first, I remember hearing some relatives remark that cartoons were harmless, but a couple of years later they noticed how well-behaved and creative and intelligent our children were. Then when they heard someone else disparage children’s television programming, I heard those same relatives inform them proudly how we never let our children watch that stuff!

Family reunions can be a wonderful way to build relationships. They can be a celebration of life, as we honor our elders and enjoy the newest generation. I have heard it said that the two most important things you can give your child are roots and wings. Roots, to know where he came from, and the freedom to fly from the nest when he’s ready. So enjoy your roots! And don’t forget to take some pictures!

Further Reading:
Family Secrets: The Path to Self-Acceptance and Reunion
Great Games: 175 Games and Activities for Families, Groups, and Children
The Berenstain Bears Family Reunion

Related Articles:
Building Family Through Tradition
Traveling with Tots
The Family Meal

Photo Credits:
Cousins:http://www.flickr.com/photos/philscoville/ / CC BY 2.0
Great Grandma with book:http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomeppy/ / CC BY 2.0
Bubbles:http://www.flickr.com/photos/slollo/ / CC BY 2.0
Kissing Cousins:http://www.flickr.com/photos/makelessnoise/ / CC BY 2.0

When the weather turns cold, rain changes to snow. Sometimes snow is wet and sloppy, sometimes it is dry and powdery. We like to play in snow, making snow angels or snow men. When snow melts, it turns back into water. We wear extra clothing to keep warm in winter. Polar bear and penguins are animals that live in cold areas. No two snowflakes are exactly alike. Water freezes to make ice. Ice melts to make water.

If you live where it snows in the winter, you have a wonderful opportunity to teach your child! Winter can mean being stuck inside for months on end, depressed by the lack of sunlight, chapped hands, cracked lips, miserable, cantankerous children, OR… it can mean hot chocolate, snowball fights, adorable snowmen, ruddy cheeks, rosy lips, sparkling eyes, and cozy fires. It’s your choice. Love where you are, and live life to it’s fullest.

Winter isn’t fun when you’re cold. Our parents and grandparents knew about long underwear. Now, no one wears them. We prefer to crank up the thermostat and complain about high heating bills. Dress warmly. Dress your child warmly. Wear long johns around the house, and slippers or shoes instead of going barefoot. Keep the thermostat between 65 and 68 – you’ll save money and do your bit for the environment, as well.

When you send your child outside, always dress him completely. It doesn’t matter if you’re just running to the store for a gallon of milk. You never know when you might be stuck in traffic, or experience car trouble. A small child can suffer hypothermia very quickly. The American Academy of Pediatrics advices to dress children in one more layer than you as an adult would wear. This may include:

• thermal long johns
• turtlenecks
• one or two shirts
• pants
• sweater
• coat
• warm socks
• boots
• gloves or mittens
• hat

This week, you and your child will make snowmen, stage a snowball fight, go sledding down a small hill, and roast marshmallows over a campfire at the park. Enjoy the season! It will all be over soon enough.

If you’re new to this blog, you may wish to read:
Using the lesson plans
Calendar Activities
Play Areas for Encouraging Creativity

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Snow and Ice Week Lesson Plans

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Top:http://www.flickr.com/photos/andreweick/ / CC BY 2.0
Middle: http://www.flickr.com/photos/edenpictures/ / CC BY 2.0

The young child can recognize words before he can physically write them. His eyesight isn’t quite 20/20 yet, though, so all words should be written fairly large. If you’re sitting really close to him, two inches is probably okay. Smaller than that, and you’re making it much harder for him than it needs to be, and may cause him eye-strain.

The small muscles in his hands and fingers are not fully developed, and his coordination is off. So anything you can do to give him lots of practice using those small muscles can only help. Let him play with playdough, string beads, lace shoestrings through a lacing card, play with legos, and cut with child safety scissors while supervised, to name a few.

Next, teach him to recognize his name. Print his name in large block letters – one capital letter, and the rest lower-case letters, the way he will see it written in school. Do not write it all in caps. Put his name on his bedroom door, at his place at the table, where he hangs his coat – any place you can think of putting it. You can start teaching him to read other words, too, if you like – any word that he finds interesting- print them in large letters on 4×6 index cards.

Next, have him roll playdough snakes and have him form the letters that make his name. You can print his name on cardboard and let him “trace” the name with playdough snakes. Later, let him make his name without the tracing card.

Spritz shaving cream on a cookie sheet, and let him draw his name in the cream. Supervise him, if you don’t want shaving cream everywhere, but this activity may amuse him for 15 to 20 minutes, and it’s educational, too. I let my granddaughter do similar supervised educational activities at the kitchen table while I do dishes or fix a meal. She’s having fun, she’s close by, and I know what she’s up to.

Let him fingerpaint his name, using a large sheet of paper and his favorite color of paint.

Let him draw his name in wet sand or mud.

Let him try to write his name with sidewalk chalk.

Finally, you can print off his name at a website like Kid Zone, and let him trace his name over and over. If you slip the paper in a page protector or laminate it, and get a dry erase marker, he can practice it and wipe it clean to reuse.

He’ll eventually graduate from dry-erase markers, to thick crayons, to pencils. But don’t rush him to writing with a pencil too soon. Let him develop the coordination first, and experience success at every step along the way.

Lorelei

For further reading, you may wish to read:
How to Teach Your Baby to Read
Reading Readiness
Play Areas for Encouraging Creativity

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Middle:http://www.flickr.com/photos/whgrad/ / CC BY 2.0
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Some children develop the habit of chewing on their fingernails. Maybe they do it because they have frequent hangnails or split nails that are annoying them. Maybe they observe a parent or caregiver do it, and they are simply imitating a learned behavior. But for many children, it is believed that biting nails is a form of stress relief.

Why should we care? Is it really something we should concern ourselves over? That is a question only you can answer. If it doesn’t bug you, then go ahead and ignore it. Generally, most kids outgrow this habit about the time that it starts to bother them.

However, there are a number of reasons why you should care, why it should bother you, why you should try to help your child break himself from his chewing habit.

1. children’s hands touch a lot of things! They are dirty! Think of all the bacteria they are ingesting every time they bite their nails!
2. Chewed fingernails can become stuck between teeth or under the gums, spreading bacteria and leading to cavities and gum disease.
3. torn nails and damaged skin are breeding grounds for bacteria. The nail bed can become infected. The the whole finger can become inflamed.
4. compulsive nail biting in young children can lead to deformed teeth
5. Lead is found in higher concentrations among nailbiters than the general public. Lead poisoning can significantly lower I.Q. levels.
6. Adults who continue to chew their nails are less productive than their non-gnawing counterparts.

So, if you have a chewer in the family, there are several things you can try to help them stop.

First, keep a record of every time you see your child bite his nails. What is he doing? Does he bite his nails every time he watches TV? Or only when Aunt Lulu comes to visit? Does he chew when he’s in church, or trying to fall asleep? Knowing when he bites may help you understand WHY he bites.

If he’s chewing away while watching T.V., then it’s just a mindless habit. Getting him to stop may be no harder than helping him find something else to occupy his hands. You can keep drawing paper, pencils and crayons near the T.V. and encourage him to draw instead. With an older child, you could try teaching them to knit or crochet. A child who mindlessly chews his nails is also a child who may start to mindlessly eat – so finding a better thing to do with his hands could save him from a weight problem in the future.

Does your child bite when when she is scared, worried, frightened, intimidated, or otherwise experiencing stress? This is believed to be the main reason why people – child and adult alike – chew their nails. Help your child understand why she’s biting her nails. Help her verbalize what’s upsetting her. Help her discuss it. Sometimes just acknowledging that a child is under stress is enough to help them overcome it. Children experience a lot of emotions, but they lack any understanding of those emotions. They may not know that it is actually okay to be mad!

Teach your child what emotions are. Help him verbalize them all. If you see him throwing toys and screaming, tell him, “I see that you are angry. It is okay to be angry. It is not okay to throw toys and scream in the house, but it is okay to be angry. Can you think of something better to do when you get like this? What if you went outside and pounded nails into a log?” (Or whatever activity you feel would be a good way to release stress).

If your child only seems to gnaw away when his nails are rough and annoying him, then make a manicure part of the nightly bath routine. Trim his nails, file them smooth. Teach him how to wash beneath the nails with a nail brush. Help him learn to use an emory board to sooth away ragged edges. Rub a bit of moisturizer into the nail and cuticle every night. If your yougster would like it, try painting on some nail polish. Help her to see her nails as something pretty, rather than something delicious.

Many people have found a cure in a bottle. They buy products that make the nail taste bad to discourage biting. Now there are natural products that you can use, that won’t poison your little one. One product uses pepper and citric acid. Another uses a blend of bitter-tasting vitamins and minerals. Some websites say NOT to use these products unless your child is eager and willing to stop this habit. I wonder why? Is it not “good parenting” to teach our children? We teach our children to brush their teeth and to hold our hand before crossing the street. We don’t ask them if they mind having their teeth clean or if they object to surviving to walk across the street another day! I say “hog wash”. If your child is a biter, and you want to stop this habit, then try every product on the market until something works!

If you found a way to break your child of this habit that is not mentioned here, please share it! We look forward to hearing from you.

If you are new here, you may want to read:
Ten steps to boost your child’s creativity
Vitamin Deficiencies in Children
Play areas for encouraging creativity in Children

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Middle:http://www.flickr.com/photos/imcountingufoz/ / CC BY 2.0
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• fall is the season after summer. Autumn is another word for fall.
• Daylight hours become shorter. Nighttime hours become longer.
• The weather becomes cooler. It may be time to put away shorts and sandals, and wear long pants, and sweaters.
• Frost may appear at night or early morning.
• Leaves begin to change colors.
• Leaves and nuts begin to fall to the ground.
• Grass turns brown and dies out.
• Some birds and butterflies fly south for the winter.
• Some animals get ready for winter, by gathering nuts or storing food in their homes.
• Some animals grow thicker coats to help them stay warm
• Farmers harvest many foods and sow winter crops

Repeated in this lesson are directions for making a simple lotto game. Lotto is very similar to bingo, but uses pictures in place of numbers. Children learn to match pictures, making a one-to-one correspondence. It is a great game for the young child, the rules are simple. You can keep the child interested by making multiple lotto games. Use fall stickers to make an autumn lotto. Make a Christmas lotto with Santa, reindeer, holly, and wreath stickers. Make a baby animals lotto, or favorite Disney characters lotto. If you can find it pictured in stickers, you can make a game from it. For the older child, you could use alphabet letters or musical notes for the lotto. There is a lovely animal lotto game for sale in the store.

The week activities will start with a nature walk. Stroll around your neighborhood or take a trip to a nearby park. Gather colored leaves, nuts, acorns, seeds, milkweed, or other signs of autumn. You’ll need the leaves, seeds, and twigs for some of the craft projects. Take a bag with you on the hike to carry home your child’s treasures. If you feed the ducks at the park, remember that white bread is NOT nutritious and can harm the ducks. You can buy whole corn or grain for them from a feed mill for probably less than a loaf of bread. Check with your local ordinances though. In some areas, it may be illegal to feed the ducks.

The week ends then with a return trip to the apple orchard. If you did “A is for Apple” earlier, then your child visited the apple orchard this summer. Now you can point out that the apples have turned red (or yellow), although a few green ones might remain. Some apples have fallen to the ground already. Some leaves fall, too. Don’t forget to return to the apple orchard in the winter, to see the bare branches.

Have a great time with your child. And don’t forget to take lots of pictures for your memory album.

F is for Fall lesson plans

All of the books recommended in this week’s lessons can be found at your local library, or in my store.

If you are new to this site, you may want to read:
Working with the Lesson Plans
Play Areas for Encouraging Creativity
Calendar Activities

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Bottom:http://www.flickr.com/photos/dawnzy/ / CC BY 2.0

Begin with:
2 cups raisins
2 cups peanuts

Add some or all of the following:
Cheerios
pretzels
M&Ms
dried cranberries
dried apples
dried peaches
dried pineapple
dates
almonds
cashews
sesame seeds (raw, unsalted)
banana chips
dried zucchini chips
chocolate chips (will be messy in the car)

Chop anything that is too big and poses a choking hazard. Mix, and store in an airtight container.

Enjoy! It beats stopping for French Fries and a shake. It’s lower in fat, higher in nutrients, and may save you money in the long run.