Teen

Kids and cell phones

Toby — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 06:31:34 -0700

This is a piece I found in the Boston Globe Magazine this morning and loved. Enjoy the read!

No Cell for You
She's 11. She can wait.

By Thomas O'Rourke | March 29, 2009

Our 11-year-old daughter enjoys researching her favorite cellphone styles and colors on the Internet. She actually believes (incorrectly) that she will soon be the proud owner of a pink Razr phone, which according to Overstock.com, is more than just a communications device. It's a statement about who you are.

Here's a statement about who she is.

She's a kid with no job and no ability to pay a phone bill. She's also a safe, hovered-over kid, with no emergencies to communicate. My reluctance to support this purchase is not just about the money, though I am cheap. Nor is it just about my annoyance at having my own phone. It has more to do with the trouble kids can get into with texting, surfing the Internet, taking and sharing photos, and generally walking through life with a phone permanently affixed to their ears.

It's not necessary and can only lead to requests for more. It's a slippery slope that follows the logic immortalized in Laura Joffe Numeroff's classic children's book If You Give a Moose a Muffin.

Here's my version. Give a girl a cellphone, she'll lose it and want an iPhone. Give her the iPhone, she'll want a matching iMac. Give her the iMac, she'll want a Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren ($495,000).

This also holds true for other requests, such as: If you tell your daughter she can pierce her ears when she's 12, she'll talk you down to 11. When the ears get pierced at 11, younger sis will bargain for 10. The 11-year-old will want to pierce other body parts, get a tattoo, wear Apple Bottom jeans and the boots with the fur, and have the whole bar looking at her. Soon, she'll be dancing around a pole at a gentleman's club. It's just a bad idea.

So no, my dear, you will not be getting a cellphone soon. But I'd be happy to read you If You Give a Pig a Pancake. And if you are ever in an emergency, just ask to borrow the cellphone of anyone around you. Everyone has one. As you frequently remind me, you are the only person on the planet who doesn't.

Wonderful Cookbooks to Share

Toby — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 02:31:43 -0800

Greetings dads,
I have found 2 cookbooks that are not only fun for the kids, but the eats are good for us too. Check out: "Betty Crocker, Kids CooK!" I know, seeing Betty's name on here threw me off at first, but it has been a winner in my house (Yah smoothies), and I my Goddaughter raves as well. The 2nd is "DK Children's Cook Book, Quick and tasty recipes for young chefs." The Noodle soup with shrimp is a favorite! Betty Crocker is better for the littler ones in your fam and Children's Cook Book works for 8 and up.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Toby

PS
Let me know if you would like some heads up on other cook books

Chef Dads

Ideas for Activities with Your Kids

tony — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 13:14:23 -0700

It's seems like there's at least a few times a week where I'm home with my toddler alone, we're both starting to get bored, and I think to myself: wouldn't it be great if there was a list of activity ideas out there I could just browse quickly and figure out what to do? I also kept hearing other dads talk about the same thing. So I've created a Savvy Daddy Group just dedicated to gathering and sharing these kinds of ideas. Please join and share the ideas that have worked for you as well!

Eventually, wouldn't it be great if we gathered enough ideas that we could create a quick/searchable database of these ideas?

Activity Ideas With Your Kids

tony — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 20:55:09 -0700

This group is all about sharing ideas for fun, educational, real activities that we can do with our kids. We've all probably been in that place. You know the place. Stuck with the kids on a rainy day. Already went to the museum, pool, park this week and looking for something else to do. Have 2 hours before an outing, and the kids (and you) are sorta bored. Hopefully, you'll find something useful here. And please share your ideas as well!

Helping with homework

sciguy75 — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 07:06:19 -0700

Though the school year has come to a close, I am curious as to how dads support their child's homework endeavors during the course of the school year. As a teacher, I am finding too often that parents just assume their kids are doing "what they need to do". When I talk to parents about homework support, they usually say they don't want to do the work for their child. I explain the difference between doing their work (actually doing the tasks that I have asked the students to do) and supporting their work (such as creating a quiet, resourceful work area and checking for completeness).

I must admit, though I have been teaching for five years, I've only been a dad for five weeks, so I may not understand the whole picture.

How do you support your child's homework endeavors?
How do you help them find answers and ideas without giving them answers and ideas?
Has it been hard finding the right balance between academic support and academic independence?
How does your child respond to your efforts (or lack thereof)?
What advice do you have for new parents and teachers?

Sports & Kids: Instilling a healthy love for the game

tony — Fri, 30 May 2008 10:29:44 -0700

Check out this post by Greg Burton, lifelong sports enthusiast and founder of Zoosse. Great points on how to keep your kids enthusiastic about sports (without embarrassing or smothering them). If I've seen "overparenting" anywhere, I've seen it in the stands of junior sports competitions. In this post, Greg provides 10 Do's and 10 Don'ts to instill a healthy love of sports in our kids.

Savvy Parent's Guide to Video Games

tony — Wed, 07 May 2008 19:38:43 -0700

Finally! A website that helps parents gauge the level of violence, sex, gore, difficulty, and boringness for hundreds of video games. From the founder: "Usually if you try to go on forums to ask questions like, "Is it too gory" or "Does it have the f-word?" or "Can you turn off the blood?" people will ignore you, or flame you to death. I don't do that. I give you the information you seek in detail."

What Parents/Students Really Think About Their College

tony — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 18:55:21 -0700

Ignore all the slick advertising and the US News and World Report Rankings, check out the dark underbelly of what these colleges are really all about. Hear it straight from actual parents and students.

How to Talk to Your Teen about Their First Date

tony — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 07:54:09 -0700

As a dad, you're biased when it comes to your kids' first dates. When your boy goes out, he's undertaking a rite of passage, winning over his first girl and doing his old man proud -- just like you did. When your girl goes out, though, she's running off into the world with some grungy, shifty punk you can't trust, and what's she going to do when Dad's not there to protect her?

It's an emotional time for a dad, no matter which kid is going out for the first time. It's one of the first blatant signs that your kids are starting to grow up. They're still kids, though, and as such they still need your guidance and support. As they grow, your job is to teach them how to act in the social settings they come in contact with, how to be respectable people no matter where they are. This is their first time courting the opposite sex, and while they may not want specific advice from you, you've still got to show them the basics. When you talk to your preteen about his or her first date, here's everything you'll need to remember:

Don't get too personal - The last thing your kid wants is you giving him or her tips on how kiss. Although you need to teach them a few things, there are also some things that are best left up to experience. They'll figure the intimate stuff out on their own, and there's not really much you can do about that. Although you can't regulate it, you probably shouldn't bother trying to advise it, either.
Teach your son how to be a gentleman - Your boy is going to need a few pointers. There are some very specific things that he needs to do on his first date, and if you don't point them out he's bound to stumble all over himself and look like a fool. Teach him to open all doors for his date, regardless of where they are. Teach him, as well, to pull out her chair at dinner, to pay for all aspects of the date, to offer his coat in the event of cold weather, and to be as un-boylike as possible. To that end:
Make sure he avoids his friends - A sure way to ruin your boys first date? Have him arrange the date around an event that his friends are sure to attend. Boys can't help but be boys, but they are acutely at risk of being boys when their peers are around. If your son mentions that his first date is going to be around his friends, gently discourage him. Instead, have him plan a date where he and his girlfriend can be away from anyone they know. This goes for girls, as well.
Talk about responsibilities - Your kids are getting their first taste of freedom with this date, and with it comes a set of responsibilities. Make sure they know what you expect of them - that they are courteous and respectful, not only to their dates but also to the people they encounter; that they practice safety by buckling their seat belts, not talking to strangers, and going only to agreed-upon meeting places; and that they come home on time, every time. If they break these rules, they no longer have the privilege of going out.

You don't have to be a worrisome parent. Talk to your preteens about what is expected of them, and while you're at it give them a few pointers on how to handle a sticky situation. Hopefully the date will go over well, and when their key hits the lock you can pretend to be asleep - but with a smile on your face.

How to Wow Your Kids with Cool Magic Tricks

tony — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 07:52:06 -0700

Although you probably wouldn't want anyone to hear you say it, raising a child is a pretty fascinating experience. Their innocence and eagerness is refreshing, and seeing their reactions to the world is like looking at everything through brand new eyes. For a moment, you can play again, you can see the world for the first time again, and you can believe in the unbelievable.

One great way to bring out the youth in your kids (and the youth in yourself) is through magic. Pull a quarter from behind an unsuspecting ear, flip a chosen card out of a deck or make a six-foot scarf disappear, and your kids will think you're out of this world. Besides, any good father and prospective old man have to have a few magic tricks in his repertoire. Not only will they be good for countless generations of kids, they're also great for quieting down a loud group during events like birthday parties and family gatherings.

If you're going to be a magician, though, you've got to know the ground rules:

You must be able to palm a penny - You will never pull off any coin tricks if you don't learn this basic, ground-floor technique. Start by holding the penny between your thumb and forefinger of your left hand, with your fingers pointing up. Move your right hand in as if to grab it from your fingers, but instead drop the penny into your waiting left palm. Although it seems simple enough, you'll be amazed how many kids watch your right hand to make sure you don't do anything "tricky" with that penny. For more coin sleights, click here.
You must be able to force a card - Just like a coin palm, this is the foundation for most good card tricks. Unless you know how to read minds, you'll need this technique to "magically" guess someone's card. In all actuality, you'll be forcing a particular card on them. The easiest way to do this is to use whatever card is on top of the deck. Fan through all the cards, explaining that you want the spectator to know that the cards aren't stacked in any way. Take note of the very top card, and remember it. Then, use one of these card sleights to force the card into their hands. When you "guess" the correct answer, your kids will be amazed.
You have to practice your patter - Doing a successful magic trick isn't all about pulling the rabbit out of the hat. It's also about misdirection - making the audience look the other way, or simply distracting them with what seems to be idle chit-chat while you go to work. This chit-chat is called "patter"; it's the story you tell your audience while you're pulling the wool over their eyes. A card trick is just a card trick; what makes it really memorable is the performance. Practice your patter; many card trick descriptions will give you suggestions for how to deceive your audience.
You can never do the same trick twice - This is a huge no-no in the magic world. Remember, this is your show, and you don't have to do anything you don't want to. You'll get requests incessantly, but you must resist repeating a trick. When you perform a trick, no one knows what's coming, and so the end result is a surprise. If you repeat it, however, everyone knows what's coming and can now specifically watch to see how you accomplish the trick they know is coming. Keep the mystery alive; never repeat a trick.
You can never, ever reveal your secrets - Kids want to believe in the unbelievable, and you'll find they are generally the only audience that will truly believe that you are, indeed, channeling actual magic. Don't take this away from them. They're kids, and they're only going to believe in all this stuff for a few more years, so let them have their innocence. Besides, for now you're an amazing magician. If you tell them your secrets, though, you'll be come a shady trickster. Maintain the illusion at all costs.

This is the groundwork. From here you can learn any trick you want and pull it off like an accomplished prestidigitator. Your kids will be amazed, as if their father controlled the wind and rain, and for a minute maybe you'll believe in magic too.