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Tag: Child and Youth

Thinking About a Child’s Thinking

Posted on by Marci Metz

Adults are commonly faced with the task of meeting a child’s needs (feeding, clothing, bathing, and other basic duties of raising children). Often one becomes consumed by these tasks and it becomes easy to forget that children are developing their own minds, ways of thinking and understanding of the world. The next time you engage with a child, encourage their development by trying to experience the world from his or her point-of-view…

  • Bend down to their height
  • Follow their lead
  • Use all 5 senses
  • Encourage curiosity and imagination
  • Model patience by not rushing while new information is processed

By:  Nora Rhoades

Outdoor Experiences Are Valuable For Children

Posted on by Marci Metz

Children who engage in regular outdoor play are more likely to demonstrate creativity, cooperation, concentration, problem-solving, and effective communication. Incorporate outdoor experiences into your family’s daily routine. Need some ideas? Checkout the latest Building Strong Families Insert, “Outdoor Play and Learning”!

To access the resource visit: http://www.postrock.k-state.edu/home-family/monthly-column/building-strong-families/

By:  Nora Rhoades

Resources for Engaging the Young Child

Posted on by Marci Metz
Nora Rhoades
Family and Youth
Development Agent

The Week of the Young Child™, April 24-28, 2017, is an annual celebration hosted by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). It focuses on celebrating early learning, young children, their teachers and families. The week provides an opportunity to share with your community the importance of early learning. Take some time to explore some excellent resources for families and educators working with young children. There’s so much children learn as they sing, cook together, build together, create art, and celebrate their families.

To access the NAEYC resources visit: http://www.naeyc.org/woyc/activity-resources 

Resource categories include:

  • Music Resources
  • Cooking and Nutrition Resources
  • Building Together
  • Open Ended Art
  • Engaging and Celebrating Families

By:  Nora Rhoades

What Isn’t a Healthy Relationship?

Posted on by Marci Metz

Love is Respect.org offers an online Healthy Relationships Quiz designed to help youth explore whether or not their relationship is safe and healthy. Youth answer 26 yes-no questions about their partners’ attitudes and behaviors. The quiz score is instantly interpreted on a page that includes links to a free online chat tool, toll-free hotline, and text message-based support.

Relationships that are not healthy are based on power and control, not equality and respect. In the early stages of an abusive relationship, you may not think the unhealthy behaviors are a big deal. However, possessiveness, insults, jealous accusations, yelling, humiliation, pulling hair, pushing or other negative, abusive behaviors, are at their root — exertions of power and control. Remember that abuse is always a choice and you deserve to be respected. There is no excuse for abuse of any kind.

If you think your relationship is unhealthy, it’s important to think about your safety now. Consider these points as you move forward:

Nora Rhoades
Family and Youth
Development Agent
  • Understand that a person can only change if they want to. You can’t force your partner to alter their behavior if they don’t believe they’re wrong.
  • Focus on your own needs. Are you taking care of yourself? Your wellness is always important. Watch your stress levels, take time to be with friends, get enough sleep. If you find that your relationship is draining you, consider ending it.
  • Connect with your support systems. Often, abusers try to isolate their partners. Talk to your friends, family members, teachers and others to make sure you’re getting the emotional support you need.
  • Think about breaking up. Remember that you deserve to feel safe and accepted in your relationship.
  • Whether you decide to leave or stay, make sure to have a safety plan. Love is Respect provides safety planning tips and a variety of other resources and tools to keep you safe and promote healthy relationships.

By:  Nora Rhoades

Super Sitter Babysitting Clinics

Posted on by Marci Metz

This spring, the Post Rock District will be hosting two babysitting clinics to help youth (10 years and older) prepare for experiences in which they’ll provide short-term care for siblings and/or other children. For registration and details about the 2017 Super Sitter Babysitting Clinics visit http://www.postrock.k-state.edu/events/.

  • Saturday, March 11th — Sylvan Grove
  • Wednesday, March 15th — Kensington

By:  Nora Rhoades

Choosing Care for Your Child

Posted on by Marci Metz

Selection of child care is an important task for Kansas parents. K-State Research and Extension has quick to reference resources outlining things to consider as parents and caring adults work through the decision-making process of selecting child care.

 By:  Nora Rhoades

Brainy Babies Series in Osborne

Posted on by Marci Metz

brainy-babies

Parents and young children are invited to join the Post Rock District for a Brainy Babies learn and play story hour at the Osborne Public Library in January and February. Brainy Babies is an interactive program for children birth-age 3. Through playful learning activities, each child and adult will grow and learn together. The interactive series encourages and stimulates learning while enhancing the relationship between adult and child.

For program details and registration information:

Brainy Babies Flier.pdf

By:  Nora Rhoades