Dec. 13-17 Weekly Writing

If I was in this situation, I would not tell my kid that Santa is not real. When i found out, my parents weren't the ones who told me, I just kind of figured it out. When I did figure it out and asked my mom, then she told me, and I wasn't upset. I just hope that my kid would be the same way.

Describing Dillon-Activities

1. He is very energetic and athletic. He likes to wrestle with his dad.

2. He is coordinated and likes to play catch with a football.

3. He enjoys playing with his little brother. Doing anything and everything.

4. He is very sociable, enjoys interacting with friends and relatives.

5. He likes to play with little toy cars.

6. Dillon and his sister get along pretty well. Sometimes he plays house with her.

7. He likes to play the board game candy land.

8. Beings he likes cars, he likes to ride in the car.

9. He likes to go to school to hang out with friends.

10. He loves to see family and be with them at gatherings.

Middle Childhood-School Age Kidlets

I. Physical Development
A. Height
1. Boys are usually slightly taller than girls at the beginning of this stage.
2. Typical six year old is almost four feet tall.
B. Weight
1. At age six an average child weighs about 47 pounds.
2. By age 12 this wight may double
C. Gross-Motor Skills
1. Changes in height and weight help with coordination.
2. As they grow older their gross-motor skills improve greatly.
D. Fine-Motor Skills
1. Have better control of the small muscles including fingers and hands
2. Visual perception and handwriting improves.
II. Health Concerns
A. Hearing
1. Usually very well developed by middle childhood.
2. Ear infections could be a health problem, but for most children ear infections decrease.
B. Vision
1. By age six, most children are able to read
2. Nearsightedness is the most common in middle childhood
C. Teeth
1. Begin losing their primary "baby" teeth
2. May have a psychological affect on some children-they may become self-conscience
D. Obesity
1. Obese children are often teased and ridiculed by their peers.
2. May have fewer friends and be picked last in social groups or athletic events.
3. Research shows that obese children are often obese adults.
III. Cognitive Development
1. Begin to use logical thinking, instead of perception
A. Attention and Memory
1. Memory becomes more controlled than during early childhood.
2. To remember information they will often use rehearsal.
B. Mental Operations
1. Use logic that is based on what they have experienced or seen.
2. Includes conservation and classification
C. Language
1. Ability to communicate increases
2. Use humor and jokes for language play
IV. Social-Emotional Development
1. Social relationships become more complex
A. Self-Concept
1. Begin to make social comparisons
2. Also use a lot of self-description
B. Understanding Others
1. They develop empathy and compassion
2. Can describe another person's feelings/emotions
C. Friendships
1. Choosing friends becomes more of a selective process
2. Without friendships the child does not receive important benefits
C. Peer Group Activities
1. Group activities play and important role in the social development of the children
2. Informal groups are often single-sex groups
D. Games With Rules
1. Games are important for children development
2. Without the children will not be as physically fit.
E. Team Sports
1. Both girls and boys enjoy participating in team sports
2. Learn teamwork skills
V. Moral Development
1. Moral Development is the process acquiring the standards of behavior that is acceptable by society
2. Learn moral behavior by interacting with others
3. Some behaviors will bring rewards such as attention

Dec. 6-10, 2010

The things i enjoyed most in my elementary days were probably P.E. for war ball and both recesses. I enjoyed the first because we could do whatever we wanted to, and the second because of soccer baseball. We created a lot of games as kids, but many of them were banned because of violence or kids getting hurt.

The least enjoyable things for me were probably just doing the work that we had to do and that is about it.

I think elementary kids should have homework, but not very much. I think they should have some homework in order to get used to having it in later years, but not an overwhelming amount.

Weekly Writing Nov. 29-Dec. 3

What i would do if a child faked a stomach ache for a period of time would be to send them to school and tell them that if their are any problems have the school call me. The only way for the child to come home would be if they were throwing up or actually going crazy. 

Weekly Writing 22-24

Our traditions for Thanksgiving used to be to go to my great aunt Carin's house. Ever since my grandma and grandpa passed away however, we haven't had much of a tradition. Now on my mom's side, we just go to one of my uncles' or aunts' houses. For my dad's side, we still go out to my grandmas most years. This year, my mom and I are going to my uncle's in North Platte.

Weekly Writing 15-19

Things a person could do to prepare their children are read to them and teach them how to read, teach them numbers, and how to write. These things are important because they will use them all in preschool and for the rest of their lives. I remember in preschool we had to memorize or home phone number. Knowing the numbers and what they looked like really helped in that situation. As for reading and writing, being able to read is really important so you can understand what the teacher wants. And for writing, you need to be able to do this in order to write your name, numbers, and letters.

My Top Ten Books of All-TIme for Preschoolers

1. Are you my Mother? by P.D. Eastman
2. The Berenstain Bears Go To School by Stan and Jan Berenstain
3. The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss
4. One fish two fish red fish blue fish by Dr. Seuss
5. Bear Shadow by Frank Asch
6. Across the Stream by Mirra Ginsburg
7. The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
8. Cars and Trucks and Things that Go by Richard Scarry
9. In a Pickle by Natalie Shaw
10. The Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

Weekly Writing November 8-12

In a scenario such as a child hearing me say a bad word and start saying it i would probably think of many things to do, and decide which is the best one. One thing i would do is tell the child to not say that word and tell them that it is a bad word. I would tell them that their are better words to say that mean the same thing that are more appropriate. If they continue to say it i would punish them in some way that would make them not want to say it again. However, I would blame it on myself and not on them.

Discipline Techniques

In my opinion, I think that discipline needs to have a variety. I think parents need to be somewhat strict, so they don't lose respect, but also lenient in some ways. For example, with a curfew, i think parents need to set a certain curfew but if their kids are late one night, give them another chance. With younger kids, I think parents should also be lenient with little mistakes, so kids can learn on their own. With more serious ones though, parents need to be strict so the kids don't end up getting hurt. Over all, I think parents should be strict in some cases, but more lenient in others.

To Spank or not to Spank

In my opinion, I think spanking can be appropriate in some cases. According to http://www.toddlerstoday.com/articles/toddlers/to-spank-or-not-to-spank-3101/ some people have the same opinions as i do. I believe that in cases like a child trying to touch a hot stove or running out on the road then a spanking is better than the child being burned or being hit. At the age of a toddler, you cannot reason with children very easily. Until the age that you can, I think spanking is okay, as long as it is not done out of anger. In other, less serious cases, i believe other forms of punishment should be used.

November 1-5 Weekly Writing

If i was put into one of these situations where i had to correct a toddler for throwing a temper tantrum in a store or public place, I would take he/she outside of the store before they caused any more problems. This way i would not be embarrassed of somebody seeing me scold the child. I think this would be the best solution in the case of a public place.

Three year olds

Physical Development of Three Year Olds
- Gross Motor Development
   * Obtain better coordination and better skills such as throwing, jumping, hopping, and balance
- Fine Motor Development
   * Cutting and drawing skills become more developed
- Self Help Skills
   * Daily tasks become easier, adult assistance becomes less
Cognitive Development of Three-Year-Olds
- Language Comprehension Skills
   * Language understanding continues to grow and they understand such words as who, whose, why, and how
- Expressive Language Skills
   * Ability to produce language continues to increase and they start to understand possessive nouns
- Math Readiness Skills
   * Start to understand concepts such as one, many, less, and smaller
Social-Emotional-Development of Three-Year-Olds
- Social Development
   * Are eager to help others and begin to play with children more
- Emotional Development
   * Have strong visible emotions such as being angry or getting excited
Teaching Three-Year-Olds
   * They are typically happy, enjoy playing, and may need encouragement to become more independent