ParentDishhttp://www.parentdish.comParentDishhttp://www.parentdish.com/media/feedlogo.gifParentDishhttp://www.parentdish.comen-usCopyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only.Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Parenting an ADHD Child, Age by Agehttp://www.parentdish.com/2011/04/21/adhd-child/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/04/21/adhd-child/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/04/21/adhd-child/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Watch a video on treating ADHD.

The benefits of following some tried-and-true parenting techniques can provide you with even greater rewards. Credit: Getty Images

Establishing good parenting skills, educating yourself and advocating for your child are the most important tools for successfully raising your ADHD child.

While the challenges you face may be more intense than those of most parents, the benefits of following some tried-and-true parenting techniques can provide you with even greater rewards. Your ADHD child will learn appropriate behaviors when you create clear routines and expectations, as well as set and enforce limits. Don't make things too complicated. Just establish some straight-forward rules and time lines, and your child will be better able to navigate at every stage.

Preschoolers
Because the brain is still developing and few medications are approved for children at this age, this is the period in which parents are most "on their own." Most helpful at this stage is behavior modification and environmental adjustments. In our world of super stimulation, it may be best to minimize your child's surroundings -- a smaller classroom, with less activity, and a definite routine can help improve preschoolers' ADHD symptoms.

The National Institute of Mental Health conducted a Preschool ADHD Treatment Study and found that when parents consistently used techniques such as offering consistent praise, ignoring negative behavior and using time-outs, they were successful in helping their ADHD children adjust to the preschool setting.

School-age
Most children are diagnosed with ADHD once they start grade school because their difficulties with focus and lack of control become more apparent (and problematic) when faced with more formal learning and social situations. For parents, this can actually be helpful because while your child may face greater challenges, it's also possible you'll receive more support. Be sure to talk to teachers, administrators and counselors to see what resources are available to you and your child within the school community.

Children at this stage need to know exactly what others expect of them. Since they can't "read between the lines," they don't do well in ambiguous situations. Behavioral parent training programs can be very effective here. They will help you narrow your focus to a few specific behaviors and help you to set limits, and follow through in a consistent manner.

Tweens
In middle school, a more challenging curriculum and the onset of adolescence can certainly intensify the lives of ADHD kids and their parents. Parents may need to try new approaches, from adjusting medications to developing new strategies to help cope with more complex schedules.

Parents should steer their middle schoolers to take more responsibility for their overall well being. Behavioral therapy should also focus on strategies that kids, rather than parents, can use to get their work done.

At this stage it's also important to reassure your tween that having ADHD is not a fault or a punishment. Remind your child that ADHD is a medical condition, like asthma or nearsightedness, and that, with treatment, she can prevent it from limiting her success.

Teens
Although symptoms may seem less severe in the teen years, it's important for parents to continue to advocate for their children. ADHD students may qualify for accommodations such as being issued extra time on standardized tests in school.

Issues that prove challenging for all teens -- identity, independence, drugs and alcohol, sexuality -- can be magnified for teens with ADHD. If you've been dealing with the disorder since childhood, you may have an advantage over non-ADHD parents in that your child is comfortable with all-important limits and boundaries.

Probably the best thing you can do for your ADHD teen is to help him find his strengths and give him opportunities to experience success. Reinforce some of the positive or "surplus" aspects of ADHD symptoms. Remind your child that impulsiveness can lead to creativity; intrusiveness can be interpreted as eagerness, while sincerity is just plan heartwarming, and sincere.

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]]>adhdtreating adhdtreatment for adhdCarolyn RogalskyThu, 21 Apr 2011 16:30:00 ESTPolice Use Pepper Spray to Subdue 8-Year-Old at Schoolhttp://www.parentdish.com/2011/04/06/boy-pepper-spray/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/04/06/boy-pepper-spray/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/04/06/boy-pepper-spray/#commentsFiled under: ,



A second grader's violent outburst led to the 8-year-old boy being pepper sprayed by police -- twice -- at his school.

"Today" reports Aidan Elliot threatened two teachers, throwing chairs and yelling, "If you come out, you're gonna die." The teachers locked themselves in an office and called police.

"He was violent, he was verbal, he was abusive," Peg Kastberg, superintendent of Jefferson County Schools, tells "Today."

The boy reportedly threw a TV cart and pulled wood trim from the walls, the news show reports.

"I wanted to make something sharp, for, like, if they came out -- 'cause I was so mad at them," Aiden tells "Today." "I was gonna try to whack them with it."

Aidan's mom, Mandy Elliot, tells "Today" no other students were in the classroom at the time of the incident, and calls the use of pepper spray "excessive."

"The school he was at was for children who have social and emotional behavioral issues ... They know what the kids are capable of before they took him on. They could have also called and asked for a special unit who deals with children from the police department in these crisis situations," Elliot tells "Today."

This was his third incident involving police at school, "Today" reports. No charges were filed.

"I kind of deserved it," Aidan tells "Today."

Eliott tells the news show her son's violent behavior occurs only at school, but that Aidan has not been diagnosed with any disorder. She says she would like to see police training, for officers dealing with similar situations.

"I don't think it's right for an 8-year-old to get pepper-sprayed," she tells "Today."

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]]>aidan elliotboy pepper sprayboy pepper sprayedpepper sprayMary Kate BaumannWed, 06 Apr 2011 11:00:00 ESTThe Hero Next Door: Kim Tschirrethttp://www.parentdish.com/2011/03/25/the-hero-next-door-kim-tschirret/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/03/25/the-hero-next-door-kim-tschirret/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/03/25/the-hero-next-door-kim-tschirret/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Kim Tschirret, a mother in Raleigh, N.C., started Hope Reins, a program that puts together troubled children and rescued horses.

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]]>the editors at MarloThomas.comFri, 25 Mar 2011 17:00:00 ESTTry This: How Do You Encourage Personal Hygiene in Your Kids?http://www.parentdish.com/2011/03/07/personal-hygiene-kids/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/03/07/personal-hygiene-kids/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/03/07/personal-hygiene-kids/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,



Many kids put up a fight when it comes to the daunting task of brushing their teeth or taking a bath. It can be a challenge to explain to younger kids why hygiene is so important.

We asked some moms how they encourage hygiene in their kids and they agreed that persistence is key. It's important to monitor hygiene habits until kids are old enough to do it on their own, one mom added.

AdviceMama offers a few helpful tips:

  • Instead of making brushing a part of your child's bedtime ritual, consider having him brush right after dinner, or before a favorite evening TV show. Some children dawdle about brushing before bed to delay the dreaded time when lights get switched off. Unless he's eating after dinner, there's no reason he can't get the same benefit from brushing an hour or two earlier.
  • Buy your child an electric toothbrush. Many children enjoy using a "machine," especially if you also let him pick a toothpaste that he likes. Try adding music to his brushing ritual; most songs run 2-3 minutes, which is an ideal amount of time to spend on dental hygiene.

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]]>AdvertiserMon, 07 Mar 2011 00:01:00 ESTBoy, 8, Arrested for 5th Time in 4 Monthshttp://www.parentdish.com/2011/03/03/boy-arrested-for-fifth-time/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/03/03/boy-arrested-for-fifth-time/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/03/03/boy-arrested-for-fifth-time/#commentsFiled under: ,

Police have repeatedly been called to arrest an 8-year-old boy. Credit: Getty

He grabbed, bit, kicked and pushed teachers. He spit on an adult. He punched out a window with his hands. He threw chairs, sticks and other objects at teachers and students. And, now, he faces his fifth arrest.

It's been a busy four months.

No, this is not another Charlie Sheen story. This is all the work of an 8-year-old boy.

The Orlando Sentinel reports the child, who attends Riverside Elementary School in Orlando, Fla., spends most of his time at the school in a unit designed to help students with significant emotional or behavioral problems.

He spends the rest of the time, it seems, with police.

Arrested on March 1 for the fifth time since November, the newspaper reports, the boy spent the next three days in juvenile detention.

His rap sheet would make young Al Capone jealous with charges as aggravated battery, criminal mischief and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

Are these repeated field trips to the hoosegow helping?

Maybe not, school officials tell the Sentinel, but they're necessary to protect others.

The problems allegedly began Nov. 10 when, according to the newspaper, police responded to reports of the boy assaulting a teacher and spitting on a another adult.

"Take me to jail!" he allegedly demanded. Police obliged.

Calls to police are a last resort and are made only when "the student gets so unruly and out of control," Ron Pinnell, a senior school administrator in Orlando, tells the Sentinel. "It's not something they take lightly. You have to think through it."

This might be the end of the line for the boy -- at least at Riverside. His mother, through the Orange County Public Defender's Office, tells the Sentinel her son will not be returning to school.

Some people fault school officials for the way they have handled the situation, the newspaper reports.

Robert Wesley, an Orange County public defender, tells the Sentinel he has taken the case personally because his younger brother has a disability and sometimes lashes out.

"Why aren't we dealing with this more holistically? Why are we dealing with it the way we deal with an adult who has hit somebody or damaged some property?" he asks the newspaper.

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]]>boy arrestedBoyArrestedchild violenceChildViolencepolice arrest boyPoliceArrestBoyviolent behaviorViolentBehaviorTom HendersonThu, 03 Mar 2011 12:00:00 ESTTry This: How Do You Keep Your Kids Away From the Wrong Crowd?http://www.parentdish.com/2011/02/07/try-this-how-do-you-keep-your-kids-away-from-the-wrong-crowd/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/02/07/try-this-how-do-you-keep-your-kids-away-from-the-wrong-crowd/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/02/07/try-this-how-do-you-keep-your-kids-away-from-the-wrong-crowd/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,



You can only make your child's play dates for so long until the time comes when they become their own social coordinators. It's out of your hands and you hope that they choose to play with the nice kids on the playground.

But, if you do find that you don't exactly approve of your kid's friends, our resident AdviceMama lends a hand:

"Stop criticizing her friendships, which she could easily take as an unfavorable judgment about her, since she's chosen them," she advises.

Instead, look for ways to connect with her friends because if they feel comfortable with you, you can positively influence them as well. After all, your teen does value your guidance but will not respond well to being told how to think or what to feel.

How do you get your kids to hang with the right crowd?

Looking for family meal ideas? Get tips from other parents at KitchenDaily.

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]]>AdvertiserMon, 07 Feb 2011 00:01:00 ESTWhat Are the Signs My Child May Have ADHD?http://www.parentdish.com/2011/01/26/what-are-the-signs-my-child-may-have-adhd/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/01/26/what-are-the-signs-my-child-may-have-adhd/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/01/26/what-are-the-signs-my-child-may-have-adhd/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,




Q. What Are the Signs My Child May Have ADHD?

Dr. Jim Sears, Pediatrician, host of "The Doctors," answers:

A lot of younger kids tend to struggle in school, whether it's paying attention or just being too hyperactive and disruptive to the class. That can be a problem with the teacher and the parents.

I have a lot of parents coming into my office saying the teacher is asking me to do something, but maybe I don't want to do a prescription. I always sit down and talk to those parents and say to them, if you think your child is having a hard time in school, whether its attention or activity, look at the child's lifestyle, look at what they're eating and how much they're exercising; because a lot of those problems can be improved by improved nutrition.

Whether it's eating more fruits and vegetables or eating more fish, especially fish oils; we've really found that fish oil supplements in the diet can help a child pay attention. Also, it's very important to eat a good breakfast. Kids that eat a good, hearty breakfast with a good source of protein, some good complex carbs, whole grains, yogurt, and things like that, tend to pay better attention in school.

So whether your child gets a label put on them or if there is a diagnosis of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or not, if you think your child isn't doing as well as you think they should be, get the help, talk to your doctor. Improve their nutrition, make sure they get some exercise, especially before school, and you will see an improvement, I guarantee it.

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]]>adhdthe editors at AOLHealthWed, 26 Jan 2011 12:00:00 ESTHow to Address Violent Behavior in Childrenhttp://www.parentdish.com/2011/01/20/how-to-address-violent-behavior-in-children/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/01/20/how-to-address-violent-behavior-in-children/http://www.parentdish.com/2011/01/20/how-to-address-violent-behavior-in-children/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

violent children

If a child tries to find a solution to his or her violent behavior, it's more likely to stick. Credit: Getty Images

When parents catch their children acting violent, they need to address it.

Allowing a child to kick, hit, bite or hurt another person without consequences can cause a child to become violent in a worrisome way, child behavior experts say.

"You have to make it very clear that it's not acceptable," says William M. Buzogany, a child and adolescent psychiatrist based in Dousman, Wis. "You have to break the cycle. If he can get away with it, he's going to do it again."

But in addition to disciplining a child, it's also important to have a discussion about what violence is and why your family doesn't tolerate it, adds David Lowenstein, a psychologist in Columbus, Ohio.

After an incident, ask the child to come up with a better way to address his or her feelings, Lowenstein suggests. Spend some talking about what happened, why it was wrong and how to do better the next time, he says.

If a child tries to find a solution to his or her behavior, it's more likely to stick, Lowenstein says.

It's also important for parents to follow through with threats and punishments, he says, adding that if you tell a child you're taking his or her cell phone away for a month, you've got to do it.

Parents should worry if a child shows no remorse for violent behavior, Lowenstein says, and that parents need to help their children develop a conscience.

"We can breed (violence) by not giving (children) a sense of responsibility," he says.

Violent behavior that becomes repetitive, chronic or harmful also is cause for worry, Buzogany says. When you notice a problem, talk with the child's teachers to see if he or she is having issues at school, he says.

It's a good idea to discuss concerns with a pediatrician or family doctor before consulting with a psychiatrist.

Parents have to walk a fine line between seeking help "way too quickly" and waiting "until there's some serious trouble," Buzogany notes. "You don't have to go to a psychiatrist right away," he says. You want kids to "take some responsibility for their behavior."

He also recommends counseling before trying to use medication to change behavior.

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]]>disciplineevergreenhittingkickingviolent behaviorviolent childrenMelissa Kossler DuttonThu, 20 Jan 2011 12:00:00 ESTThe Brat Pack: Kids Are Simply Angels in Disguise, Parents Thinkhttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/12/14/the-brat-pack-kids-are-simply-angels-in-disguise-parents-think/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/12/14/the-brat-pack-kids-are-simply-angels-in-disguise-parents-think/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/12/14/the-brat-pack-kids-are-simply-angels-in-disguise-parents-think/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

brat pack

Your perfect baby isn't so flawless. Credit: Jerome Tisne, Getty Images

Hey parents, next time you're at the mall shopping for "Santa's" gifts (like tomorrow) and your find your patience flaring up at a bunch of unruly kids (not yours of course), just roll your eyes and chalk it up to their clueless parents.

Temper tantrums, mall meltdowns and badly behaved kids aren't necessarily the result of purposefully careless parenting; they're the result of the more than 95 percent of parents who think their little brats are angels, according to a study in Today Moms.

So, basically the study finds that there's a nation of parents in denial.

Certainly, there are plenty of exceptions to the rule, but these days other people's children (never our own), that act up, whine or say "I want," or "gimme," instead of "please" and "thank you," do so because only four percent of the nation's parents admit their kids aren't well-behaved, according to a government study on family health reported Today Moms. Instead, they think they're all little angles, the online news says.

Officials at the National Center for Health Statistics officials interviewed the parents of nearly 84,000 children between 2001 and 2007 about everything from stepparents to hay fever about their health. The main finding was that families are more diverse, and that kids in more stable homes are healthier, the site reports.

But a surprising nugget that emerged in one line of questioning of families with kids ages 4 to 17 found that 96 percent of parents felt their kids were well-behaved and did exactly what they were told to do, the report says.

Turns out boys parents fessed up to misbehavior a tad more -- 4.2 percent of parents of boys said their sons were not well-behaved. Only three percent of the girls' parents felt that way, according to Today Moms.

Are these parents clueless?

Experts at the National Center for Health Statistics tell Today Moms they don't think that parents are lying, that face-to-face interviews usually lead to pretty accurate answers.

But study author Debra Blackwell reviewed a single year, 2007, and says that about 20 percent of parents actually said their kids were "somewhat" well-behaved, a category not included in the published study.

Still, that leaves more than three-quarters of parents who said their kids "certainly" were little angels.

Blackwell kindly suggests in the online magazine that perhaps parents simply don't remember the details of kids' bad behavior over six months.

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]]>behaviorChildrens disciplineChildrensDisciplineMary Beth SammonsTue, 14 Dec 2010 17:10:00 ESTConfessions of a Childhood Bullyhttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/26/confessions-of-a-childhood-bully/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/26/confessions-of-a-childhood-bully/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/26/confessions-of-a-childhood-bully/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

childhood bully picture

Do bullying wounds ever heal? Illustration by Christopher Healy

My sister was three years younger than me and small for her age. She had a pixie haircut and a dark complexion that set her apart from the rest of our fair-skinned family. Strangers often mistook her for a boy or a foreign-born adoptee.

I rarely dared to hurt her physically, not because she was younger and painfully thin, but because what she lacked in strength she made up for in ferociousness. When she was a toddler, I'd impulsively slap or pinch her and keep walking -- until the time I felt her teeth sink into my back. From then on, I kept my distance.

Instead, I assaulted her with words, calling her a mistake, mutant, slob, loser. I glared at her across the dinner table, or pretended she wasn't there as I talked to my parents and brothers, everyone but her. I snorted in contempt when she brought up her achievements in kindergarten, and laughed when she shared a bad day. She stayed silent as our mother gave her meaningful looks, as if to say, "Remember what we talked about." Mom repeatedly ordered me to stop being nasty and leave her alone, to no avail. I was bursting with irrational hatred.

Now I read articles about bullying and cringe. Victims I have never met reopen decades-old memories of my little sister, my scapegoat. Together, their awful helplessness weighs me down like a load of bricks; it kicks me in the gut and knocks the air out of me. I fantasize about saving just one child from a bully, as if to wipe my own slate clean.

But my sympathy also extends, guiltily, to the perpetrators. I wonder if someone is insulting and domineering those kids, too, or if they have witnessed someone they love being tormented. Will anyone even think to investigate? I imagine staging an intervention and holding a mirror to a bully's seething insides. But after he faces the awful truth, then what? I've treated the symptom, not the disease. There's no happy ending to that scenario.

I know now that when I bullied my sister, I was fighting somebody else. She was an arbitrary enemy on whom I would practice my revenge. My real target was a babysitter, an adult relative who frequently abused me verbally. Although I stood up for myself and talked back, it had no effect.

My sister reacted to my tongue lashings the way I wished my harasser would've. Her silence was my reward. After I hurt her, I would feel energized and hopeful, like I could take on any threat. But in that moment of relief, a nagging voice whispered that my sister didn't deserve such treatment any more than I did. Unable to handle the guilt, I would quickly rationalize my behavior: "My sister made me feel like this. She did deserve it."

Today, we live on opposite coasts and see each other once a year or so. I shower her young daughter with gifts. I try to talk to my sister about the past and forge a closer relationship. Once or twice she's confided in me about weathering tough times as an adult, but it's been several years since we really connected. Her poker face reveals nothing to me of her feelings or opinions. Our mother says that's just the way she is.

I hope my mother is wrong. I want to believe my sister is guarded only around me. I can't bear to think she is aloof with strangers and close friends alike, and that I helped make her that way.

My sister enjoys watching her only child play tea party with her stuffed animals. At 5, my niece is happy and self-sufficient and fearless.

My sister turned out stronger than her bully. She treats others the way she should have been treated, not the way she was treated by me. I'm proud of her. And, I am truly sorry.

Jo Parente is the ParentDish nom de plume, a pen name, used by our editorial team when we want to spill our dirty little secrets but still keep our dignity, and families, intact.

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]]>Jo ParenteTue, 26 Oct 2010 14:00:00 ESTOrganizing Tip: 10 Minutes and Donehttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/25/organizing-tip-10-minutes-and-done/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/25/organizing-tip-10-minutes-and-done/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/25/organizing-tip-10-minutes-and-done/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Once again, organizing guru Erica Ecker, also known as The Spacialist, has a solid tip for getting on top of the disorganized mess we call home.

"When it's time to put your things back into place, it's time to race the clock," she says. "Pull out your kitchen timer and set it for 10 minutes. Then go, go, go!"

Ecker says when her clients only have 10 minutes a day to resynchronize their systems and get everything squared away, they accomplish much, much more, than had they tried to get it all done without a set time.

And for the procrastinators out there, it's so much easier to start the (dreaded) act of straightening up when you know there's a clear-cut time to stop. When she first started doing this, she says, she was amazed at how much she herself could accomplish in 10 minutes.

Until next time, may your home be organized and hassle-free. Or at least 10 minutes neater.

Click here for more tips from The Spacialist.

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]]>the editors at ParentDishMon, 25 Oct 2010 11:10:00 ESTWatch Your Language: Young Children Unprepared for 'Snark' Attackhttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/15/watch-your-language-young-children-unprepared-for-snark-attac/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/15/watch-your-language-young-children-unprepared-for-snark-attac/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/15/watch-your-language-young-children-unprepared-for-snark-attac/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , ,

funny baby picture

Little kids are just so ... literal. Credit: Getty Images

A Republican walks into a bar in Idaho with a frog on his head. Bartender says, "Where'd you get that?" The frog responds, "This is Idaho. They're everywhere."

Tap. Tap. Is this thing on?

Wow. Tough room. Note to self: Quit playing elementary schools.

Good idea. A new study suggests kids younger than 10 might just hurt their necks from trying to see the sarcastic and ironic comments flying over their heads. Not really. That was just the kind of metaphorical statement many young children wouldn't "get."

The New York Times reports Canadian researchers observed young children in a laboratory and concluded that kids have virtually no grasp of irony until they are 6. Even after that, their grasp is tenuous.

It's not until they're 10 or 11, researchers found, that they stop taking everything so dang literally.

Still, many children grow to old age being severely irony-impaired. Left untreated, they spend their final days telling people in the nursing home that, by cracky, that young Stephen Colbert fella makes a lot of sense.

(Psst, Colbert only pretends to be a conservative commentator. No one would be that over the top. It's all a joke. Like Glenn Beck.)

Researchers say their conclusions are important to keep in mind when talking to young children and clueless adults who are going to take things literally and will be probably end up confused or perturbed.

Even when the irony-impaired try to dabble in irony and sarcasm themselves, researchers found, they really don't understand what they're doing. Asked to explain irony, they might look like they just got clocked upside the head with a two-by-four.

"You really see that they respond appropriately to this language in conversation," Holly E. Recchia, the lead author of the report, tells The Times. "That's not the same as saying they can explain their understanding explicitly."

Recchia is an assistant professor of education at Concordia University in Montreal, and, The Times reports, she and her colleagues found mothers tended to use irony and sarcasm more negatively than fathers.

"It may be that mothers take on roles as teachers or managers," Recchia tells The Times. "If moms are more engaged in conflict management, then it could be that rhetorical questions are more effective than sarcasm."

As children start getting snarky, they are more like to use sarcasm ("Gee, thanks a lot") rather than understatement ("I'm just a bit angry with you right now").

Of course, you can be ironic without being mean.

"Parents tend to view ironic language negatively, but it's not always negative or nasty," Recchia tells the newspaper. "Sometimes it's quite playful. It may be that humor and irony can help to defuse situations that might otherwise cause conflict. It may be an effective tool."

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]]>ironyirony researchIronyResearchsarcasmTom HendersonFri, 15 Oct 2010 16:30:00 ESTHalloween Crafts: Gruesome Gourd Creatureshttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/15/halloween-crafts/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/15/halloween-crafts/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/15/halloween-crafts/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

halloween crafts picture

Need some Halloween crafts? Scare Halloween revelers with wacky gourd creatures like this creeping critter. Credit: Gina Provenzano

Tired of the same old jack-o-lanterns and tombstone lawn ornaments that serve as standard Halloween decor? DIY creepy creatures will delight kids young and old this season.

Unleash your pint-sized peeps with overactive imaginations on a pile of pumpkins and gourds and see what comes of it all. OK, you might need to lend a hand or two. Here's how to scare up some family fun.

What You'll Need:

  • Gourds and pumpkins
  • Dowels or wooden skewers, 3 -4 inches in length
  • White glue
  • Permanent marker
  • Sharp tool to punch holes, an awl or metal skewer (to be used by adult only)
Directions:

Play with gourds and pumpkins to find the perfect combination and general location for placement. Indicate where gourds should be placed by making a dot with a marker. Adults should pierce both entry points on gourds at markings. Then, allow child to dip ends of dowel in glue and insert halfway into main body and extremity. Get crafty. Use mini gourds for eyes, curly squash as a nose or legs (our octopus could have easily been a spider by swinging his legs in the opposite direction). If necessary, use a knife to trim ends in order to fit one end to another.

Allow to dry. Then set out to scare and inspire.

halloween crafts picture

Get tangled up in an orange octopus. Credit: Gina Provenzano

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]]>craftsgourdshalloweenhalloween craftsHalloweenCraftskidsGina ProvenzanoFri, 15 Oct 2010 10:00:00 ESTYou Can Insure Just Your Child ... for a Pricehttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/14/you-can-insure-just-your-child-for-a-price/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/14/you-can-insure-just-your-child-for-a-price/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/14/you-can-insure-just-your-child-for-a-price/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Sorry, kid, no individual insurance policy for you. Credit: Getty Images

Slowly, the man in the pinstripe suit raised the corners of his mouth in a self-satisfied smile.

"Yeeees," he said as he rubbed his hands together. "You can have your precious child-only health insurance policy back. And all it will cost you is ... higher premiums!"

From out of nowhere, there was sudden, loud and ominous blast of organ music. The man seemed to erupt in flames, and before the young mother could gather her wits, the mysterious stranger vanished as quickly as he had appeared. All that remained was a cloud of smoke that smelled faintly of brimstone.

To be fair and balanced, insurance companies are not the devil. Or even his minions. That's just an incredibly popular (and probably only partially true) legend.

Another is that the Obama administration made a Faustian bargain with insurance companies. That legend, however, is based on actual events.

Earlier this year, health insurance companies dropped child-only insurance policies because the kids just didn't bring in enough money. Administration officials feared sick children may go uncovered and untreated, so they struck a deal.

If companies agreed to restore child-only policies, in return, the administration would allow companies to jack up their premiums so they can turn a profit. That is, assuming individual state laws permit it.

But not all the companies are playing ball.

"Unfortunately, some insurers have decided to stop writing new business in the child-only insurance market, reneging on a previous commitment made in a March letter to 'make pre-existing condition exclusions a thing of the past,' " Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius says in statement quoted by The New York Times.

Insurers argue they're not greedy devils, just economic realists. They won't have the resources to help anyone if they don't turn a profit. In other words, they can't help the sick unless the majority of the people paying premiums are healthy.

They told administration officials child-only policy are fiscal disasters waiting to happen because, under health care reforms, families can buy insurance for their children at the last minute. While that may make sense from a humanitarian standpoint, insurance executives argued it hampered their ability to do the greatest good for the greatest number of people.

All this may be moot in 2014.

Unless Republicans win enough seats in Congress next month to make good on their plans to scuttle health care reform, all Americans will be required to have health insurance by 2014. Insurance companies won't be able to turn either adults or children away because of pre-existing conditions.

The Times reports the Obama administration and insurance companies have been locking horns for months. Administration officials want companies to cover children with cancer, autism, heart defects and other conditions.

Yet, most parents are lucky if they can find insurance that covers braces.

In a letter quoted by The Times, Sebelius calls the continued reluctance of some insurance companies to offer child-only policies "extremely disappointing."

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]]>child only health careChildOnlyHealthCarehealth carehealth care reformhealth insuranceHealthCareHealthCareReformHealthInsuranceTom HendersonThu, 14 Oct 2010 13:30:00 ESTSchool Cafeterias to Try Psychology in Lunch Linehttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/13/school-cafeteria/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/13/school-cafeteria/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/13/school-cafeteria/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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The U.S. government is trying new approaches to get kids to choose healthier foods. Credit: Mark Humphrey/AP

Hide the chocolate milk behind the plain milk. Get those apples and oranges out of stainless steel bins and into pretty baskets. Cash only for desserts.

These subtle moves can entice kids to make healthier choices in school lunch lines, studies show. Food and restaurant marketers have long used similar tricks. Now the government wants in on the act.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced what it called a major new initiative Tuesday, giving $2 million to food behavior scientists to find ways to use psychology to improve kids' use of the federal school lunch program and fight childhood obesity.

A fresh approach is clearly needed, those behind the effort say.

About one-third of children and teens are obese or overweight. Bans on soda and junk food have backfired in some places. Some students have abandoned school meal programs that tried to force-feed healthy choices. When one school district put fruit on every lunch tray, most of it ended up in the garbage.

So instead of pursuing a carrot or a stick approach, schools want to entice kids to choose the carrot sticks, figuring children are more likely to eat something they select themselves.

"It's not nutrition till it's eaten," said Joanne Guthrie, a USDA researcher who announced the new grants. The initiative will include creation of a child nutrition center at Cornell University, which has long led this type of research.

Some tricks already judged a success by Cornell researchers: Keep ice cream in freezers without glass display tops so the treats are out of sight. Move salad bars next to the checkout registers, where students linger to pay, giving them more time to ponder a salad. And start a quick line for make-your-own subs and wraps, as Corning East High School in upstate New York did.

"I eat that every day now," instead of the chicken patty sandwiches that used to be a staple, said Shea Beecher, a 17-year-old senior.

"It's like our own little Subway," said Sterling Smith, a 15-year-old sophomore. (Hint to the school: Freshen up the fruit bowl; the choices are pretty narrow by the time Smith gets to his third-shift lunch period.)

Last year, the USDA asked the Institute of Medicine for advice on its school lunch and breakfast programs, which provide free or subsidized meals to more than 31 million schoolchildren each day. The institute recommended more fruit, vegetables and whole grains with limits on fat, salt and calories. But it was clear this wouldn't help unless kids accepted healthier foods, Guthrie said.

"We can't just say we're going to change the menu and all of our problems will be solved," she said.

The agency requested proposals from researchers on how to get kids to actually eat the good stuff. Cornell scientists Brian Wansink and David Just will get $1 million to establish the child nutrition center. Fourteen research sites around the country will share the other $1 million.

"Findings from this emerging field of research - behavioral economics - could lead to significant improvements in the diets of millions of children across America," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a statement.

Cornell's focus will be developing "smart lunchrooms" that guide kids to make good choices even when more tempting ones are around.

"We're not taking things away from kids," Wansink said. "It's making the better choice the easier, more convenient choice."

Wansink is a prominent food science researcher, known for studies on the depiction of food in paintings of the Last Supper and how the placement of a candy jar can affect how much people eat from it.

Christine Wallace, food service director for Corning City School District near Cornell University, met him a few years ago and invited him to use her 14 schools as a lab.

"We tend to look at what we're offering and to make sure it's well prepared and in the correct portion size, and not the psychology of it. We're just not trained that way," Wallace said.

For example, some Corning schools had express lines for a la carte items - mostly chips, cookies and ice cream. The idea was to reduce bottlenecks caused by full tray lunches that took longer to ring up. But the result was a public health nightmare.

"We were making it very convenient for them to quickly go through the line and get a bunch of less nutritious items," Wallace said.

After studies by Wansink, they renamed some foods in the elementary schools - "X-ray vision carrots" and "lean, mean green beans" - and watched consumption rise. Cafeteria workers also got more involved, asking, "Would you rather have green beans or carrots today?" instead of waiting for a kid to request them.

And just asking, "Do you want a salad with that?" on pizza day at one high school raised salad consumption 30 percent, Wansink said.

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL. This article was written by MARILYNN MARCHIONE, Associated Press Writer.

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]]>school lunchSchoolLunchAssociated PressWed, 13 Oct 2010 10:50:00 ESTMad Scientists Launch Plot to Get Kids to Eat More Lima Beanshttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/07/mad-scientists-launch-plot-to-get-kids-to-eat-more-lima-beans/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/07/mad-scientists-launch-plot-to-get-kids-to-eat-more-lima-beans/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/07/mad-scientists-launch-plot-to-get-kids-to-eat-more-lima-beans/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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But lima beans taste just like candy! OK, they don't. Credit: Getty Images

Lima beans? Seriously?

Blecch!

Sorry kids, but a group of scientists say you need to eat more lima beans and other legumes. What's a legume, you ask? It comes from an acronym for Like Eating Gross, Ugly, Muskrat Entrails. Actually, it covers a family of beans from lima to kidney to soy to others really just too horrifying to get into right now.

But scientists say you need to eat more of them.

Stupid scientists. Why can't they ever come out with a report that American children suffer from a severe chocolate deficiency?

Oh, well. As you will be told many times in the coming years, life isn't fair.

The latest evidence of this cosmic unfairness comes from the American Academy of Pediatrics where, Bloomberg Business Week reports, those pesky researchers say infants and young children are not getting enough iron.

You get iron from (ugh!) legumes, shellfish, iron-rich fruits and vegetables and iron-fortified cereals that generally do not have chocolate coating or prizes in the box. In other words, nothing you actually like to eat.

No one said childhood was easy. However, it apparently gets a whole lot tougher if you don't get enough iron.

"Iron deficiency remains common in the United States," report co-author Frank Greer, a former chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics committee on nutrition, tells Business Week. "And now we know more about the long-term, irreversible effects it can have on children's cognitive and behavioral development. It's critical to children's health that we improve their iron status starting in infancy."

The report, published in the November issue of the journal Pediatrics, recommends nursing infants get one milligram a day of iron supplements starting at 4 months, until they can start eating iron-fortified cereals. Infants on formula don't need more iron, according to the the report, and whole milk should not be given in the first year.

Dr. Robert Baker, a co-author and a member of the executive committee of the AAP section on gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition, tells Business Week older kids should ideally get more iron from foods almost universally considered yucky.

He realizes that's not quite realistic.

"In some cases, children will still need liquid iron supplements or chewable vitamins to get the iron they need," he tells Business Week.

Woo hoo! Break out the Flintstones chewables! Dibs on Dino!

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]]>iron deficiencyIronDeficiencylegumesnutritionnutrition researchNutritionResearchTom HendersonThu, 07 Oct 2010 15:00:00 ESTKids Less Likely to Have 'Four Eyes,' Study Sayshttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/06/kids-less-likely-to-have-four-eyes-study-says/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/06/kids-less-likely-to-have-four-eyes-study-says/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/06/kids-less-likely-to-have-four-eyes-study-says/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Shades are cool. Prescription eyeglasses? Not so much. Credit: Getty Images


Yes, folks, children with glasses do still get teased and called "Four Eyes." But now, it seems, specs may not have to be the only option to help kids see better at an early age.

More than half of optometrists say it's appropriate for children to start wearing soft contact lenses between the ages of 10 and 12, with daily disposable lenses being the most frequently prescribed for this age group, according to a new study from the American Optometric Association (AOA).

Doctors usually fit children ages 8 to 12 with glasses, and they prescribe contact lenses secondarily. But new data from this survey of 576 optometrists shows a gradual shift in approach as children get older, with 21 percent of optometrists noting they're now more likely to fit 10- to 12-year-olds in contact lenses than they were a year ago.

Overall, one in five optometrists say they begin prescribing contact lenses first for 10- to 12-year-olds; nearly half prescribe contact lenses first for 13- to 14-year-olds; and two-thirds recommend lenses first for 15- to 17-year-olds.

In explaining this shift in their approach, over half of the doctors who say they're now more likely to fit children in lenses attribute it either to the availability of daily disposable lenses or "improved contact lens materials"; nearly 20 percent say the shift results from requests made by the child and/or parent; and 10 percent say that recent research on the subject and kids' participation in sports/activities have influenced their decision.

Nearly all (96 percent) of the doctors surveyed say the most important factor to consider when fitting a kid with contact lenses is the child's interest and motivation to wear them. Further, the child's maturity level (93 percent), ability to take care of lenses by themselves (89 percent) and personal hygiene habits (89 percent) are also vitally important.

Though only a very small percentage of optometrists say they are less likely to fit kids in contact lenses, poor hygiene and maturity levels seen in younger kids were the reasons cited most often.

The study, conducted by the AOA with support from VISTAKON(R) -- a Division of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc. -- was designed to gauge current trends in prescribing contact lenses to children ages 8-17 and to understand factors that influence optometrists' decisions to fit a child in contacts.

Other key study findings include:

  • The majority of doctors surveyed say gender was not a factor in the decision to fit a kid in contact lenses, though one in four say they are more likely to fit younger children when they're girls.
  • Daily disposables are the most frequently prescribed lenses for children 12 and under, while reusable contact lenses (two-week and monthly replacement) are prescribed more often for kids ages 13 to 17.
  • Two out of five optometrists say parents request contact lenses because their kid refuses to wear his or her glasses.
  • Seventy-one percent of doctors said overnight wear of contact lenses is not appropriate for kids under 18.
"This study shows us that parents should feel that it's OK to ask their child's eye doctor about contact lenses," Dr. Sindt, Chair of the Contact Lens and Cornea Section of the AOA, tells ParentDish in an email. "We shouldn't put up barriers based on a child's age or preconceived notion that a child can't wear contact lenses. Contact lenses are safe and effective for children -- even young children -- and they have a positive impact on their emotional, social and educational development."

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]]>contact lensescontactlenseseyeglassesglasseslensesresearchvisionHoney BerkWed, 06 Oct 2010 17:53:00 ESTParent-Teacher Conferences Really a Game of Cat and Mousehttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/06/parent-teacher-conferences-really-a-game-of-cat-and-mouse/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/06/parent-teacher-conferences-really-a-game-of-cat-and-mouse/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/06/parent-teacher-conferences-really-a-game-of-cat-and-mouse/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , ,


"This world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own ... as men busied themselves about their various concerns, they were scrutinized and studied, perhaps almost as narrowly as a man with a microscope might scrutinize the transient creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water."

Wow. Sound like a parent-teacher conference?

Those actually are the opening lines of H.G. Wells' "The War of the Worlds." Never read it? Your child's English teacher will make a mental note of that.

She will spend the entire conference evaluating and judging you, reaching harsh but silent conclusions about your fitness as a parent. You will likewise evaluate her, being all warm and friendly on the outside, while secretly wondering why your tax dollars pay this doofus' salary.

Why are you squirming?

Danielle Pillet-Shore, an assistant professor of communication at the University of New Hampshire, has been studying parent-teacher interactions for a decade. She tells the Chicago Tribune that conferences are rarely about the child.

Parents and teachers are really evaluating each other.

Sure, they talk about the kid and how well she or he is doing in class. Meanwhile, Pillet-Shore tells the Tribune, a subtle game of psychological chess is going on right below the surface.

"Parents and teachers behave in a way suggesting that they are each treating the conference as an occasion for their own performance review -- using the student's progress, or lack thereof, as a gauge of how the teacher is doing at his or her job of 'being a teacher' and how the parent is doing at his or her job of 'being a parent,' " she tells the newspaper.

Maybe the game is less chess than charades.

Say your kid is an absolute moron. He adds two plus two and comes up with a blank expression. He thinks a fjord is a Swedish automobile. How can a teacher tell you all this while still looking like a competent educator? Likewise, how can you, as a parent, cop to raising a nincompoop?

Pillet-Shore tells the Tribune many parents start badmouthing their child, letting the teacher know they are aware of his or her problems. Then they come up with reasons why the problems are beyond their control. The kid is just a born nincompoop. Gets it from his father.

Parents -- consciously or subconsciously -- feel judged by teachers and want to show they are at least alert, attentive, observant and responsive to the fact that their child has the mentality agility of a house plant.

"In short, during parent-teacher conferences, parents manifest a pervasive concern to show teachers, 'I'm a good parent,' " Pillet-Shore tells the Tribune.

Teachers play the game, too. They ask parents for their input and observations about the child's progress. Pillet-Shore tells the newspaper teachers do this, again, perhaps subconsciously, to shift the focus and responsibility onto the parents.

This also helps keeps the conference from taking a negative turn and spotlighting the teachers' shortcomings, Pillet-Shore adds.

"It is the teacher who consistently works to end the parent-teacher conference interaction on a positive note, delivering future-oriented, favorable or optimistic comments about the student," she says.

The goal of the parent-teacher conference is, then, not to evaluate and help the child. Pillet-Shore tells the Tribune it's really about parents and teachers wanting to leave feeling good about themselves and that any problems are the other person's fault.

Sigh. Grown children. What can you do with them?

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]]>parent teacher conferencesParentTeacherConferencesTom HendersonWed, 06 Oct 2010 13:10:00 ESTHow to Prevent Sports Injurieshttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/01/how-to-prevent-sports-injuries/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/01/how-to-prevent-sports-injuries/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/01/how-to-prevent-sports-injuries/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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To avoid injury, have kids take some time off their primary sport throughout the year. Credit: Corbis

School is back in full swing, and for many kids that means sports are, too. While athletics are a great way for kids to get some fresh air, exercise and relieve stress, increasingly they are a source of injury, too.

While a spate of recent studies have shown an increase in the number of school athletes visiting emergency rooms with concussions, it's the more common injuries such as ankle sprains and knee injuries that sports doctors see the most, Dr. Teri McCambridge, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness, tells ParentDish.

Surprisingly, it's not elite athletes who are filling most of the chairs in her waiting room, but the youngest ones. "Those are the kids who are probably most at risk," she says, explaining that coaches at the high school level have to be trained and certified, as do school athletic directors. It's the recreational leagues, where volunteer coaches often have no knowledge of sports medicine and may not even know much about the sport they're coaching.

And just because they're small doesn't mean they can't do real damage. "Younger kids are a little bit more at risk because they're growing," McCambridge says. "You fracture a growth plate, your long-term risk is higher. "

Perhaps the biggest source of worry for McCambridge and other doctors is the early age at which children are now specializing in a sport and playing it year-round -- something the AAP has opposed in several policy statements. "We recommend not specializing in one sport until high school," McCambridge tells ParentDish. "Do one sport at a time, play for one team at a time." That means not playing in a recreational league and a travel league simultaneously, she says.

Because more young children are playing a single sport all year long, they are sustaining an increasing number of overuse injuries. "We're seeing stress fractures in 10- and 11-year-olds," McCambridge says.

The AAP's policy statement on the subject also recommends taking two to three months off from the child's main sport each year to avoid overuse, overtraining and burn out. That time off can be broken up throughout the year, McCambridge says.

"Give them a chance to rest," Dr. Mark Halstead, a member of AAP Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness tells ParentDish. "You don't see any professional athlete who does their sport year round."

Of course, many coaches push kids into early specialization and onto multiple teams. "That's when I think we as parents need to try to change the rules," McCambridge says. If you absolutely can't avoid it, make sure your child is mixing up the kinds of play he or she is doing. For example, if your son plays baseball and is a pitcher -- the position that is the worst for long-term use -- don't let him pitch for more than one team. "That's where, as parents, it's our job to make sure that we don't listen to the coaches and take charge of our kids," she says.

But let's face it: Even the child of the most careful parent in the world might still get injured. So how do you prevent injuries, and what do you do about them once they happen? "Learn what are the common injuries in your sport and learn prevention techniques," McCambridge advises. The website of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons has useful educational material on its website, she says. And Halstead advises making sure kids are getting enough iron and calcium in their diets.

And the "no pain, no gain" mantra? Throw it out -- for kids of any age. And don't give kids anti-inflammatory medicines so they can play through pain, McCambridge warns.

From middle school on up, the injuries become more adult-like, and doctors begin to see things like dislocated shoulders and torn ACLs. But while injuries may differ from age to age, the treatment is the same. First, rest, rest, rest, McCambridge advises. A little soreness the day after a workout is perfectly normal, but any pain lasts all day and persists for more than a week or two should be seen by a doctor. But wait until then. "I wouldn't make anyone come in until they tried resting," McCambridge tells ParentDish.

If an injury or pain is affecting performance, a child is limping or can't put weight on a leg or a foot, or can't use his arm should be seen more quickly, Halstead says.

That advice doesn't apply to concussions, which happen year round but are most prevalent in the fall when kids are playing football and soccer. Those need to be taken seriously; a concussion is a brain injury, and can have effects that parents and teachers may not recognize. "The brain is inside where no one can see," Halstead says. "Kids go back to school and may look fine but their brain is not functioning on all cylinders. These kids really do have troubles."

Common symptoms of concussion include headaches -- although not everyone gets one -- feeling dizzy or foggy, having trouble concentrating, sensitivity to loud noises or bright lights and having a hard time remembering things, Halstead says.

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]]>concussionsinjuriessportsteamsportsMonique El-FaizyFri, 01 Oct 2010 16:30:00 EST10 Questions to Ask - or Avoid - at Your Next Parent-Teacher Conferencehttp://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/01/10-questions-to-ask-or-avoid-at-your-next-parent-teacher-con/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/01/10-questions-to-ask-or-avoid-at-your-next-parent-teacher-con/http://www.parentdish.com/2010/10/01/10-questions-to-ask-or-avoid-at-your-next-parent-teacher-con/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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Asking questions is the first step to better parent-teacher communication. Credit: Getty Images


Sweaty palms, cotton mouth, the fear of raising your hand ... if teachers and classroom settings made you nervous as a kid, the thought of your next parent-teacher conference might still cause anxiety. Take a deep breath. Knowing what to ask -- and which questions to avoid -- can help calm your fears.

In one of her more memorable fourth grade parent-teacher conferences, Lily Eskelsen, an elementary school teacher from Utah and vice president of the National Education Association, says a mother gave information and then asked questions.

Eskelsen says the mother explained that her child was a struggling reader, but an excellent artist.

"The mother asked 'Is there a way to use his strength in art to help in reading?' " Eskelsen tells ParentDish in a phone interview. "She saw the whole child: He needs extra help here, but how are we going to use that strength over here?"

Continue reading 10 Questions to Ask - or Avoid - at Your Next Parent-Teacher Conference

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]]>attending parent-teacher conferencesparent-teacher conferencesparent-teacher relationshipElizabeth HumphreyFri, 01 Oct 2010 16:00:00 EST