What Should Children Know About The Fourth of July?
Dr. Wendy Ghiora - Posting #110 - June 28, 2012
I admit it; I’m just a wide-eyed kid again each Fourth of July.  Listening to the oohs and aahs as we watch magnificent fireworks displays brings us all together for a very special day.  Millions of Americans across this great nation, in little towns, farm towns and big cities, all celebrate Independence Day.  Many towns will hold a parade, replete with boyscout troops holding up their hand-made banners and the town’s dancers doing cartwheels, as I proudly wave my American flag from the sidewalk. Celebration is a given. After all, it is the birthday of our freedom.

So what should our children know about this day?

1. The Founders Got It Right!Children should know that one of the most important sentences in our American history comes from the Declaration of Independence, and that it was ratified on July 4th, 1776. I would hope that they learn about it in school, but since they are not in school during the summer, it’s worth a reminder at home. That sentence being: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” As a kid and even as an adult, I am always amazed that the Founders were able to get it so right, so long ago. That’s an important thing for a kid to consider.

2. These Are The Best DaysChildren should know that being a kid, in the summer, on July 4th and watching fireworks is about the best it will ever get. The freedoms they enjoy like being able to give their opinions in public without fear, and on a lighter note,  of having no school on these long, warm summer days, the picnics we enjoy outside on a patch of green grass beneath deep blue skies, the amazing colorful light-show overhead when it finally, finally gets dark… these are the best of days.

3. They Are BlessedChildren should know they live in the greatest country in the world, in the history of the planet, and that they should feel very, very thankful for that. It’s like winning the birth lottery. It would be very different for them had they been born elsewhere. It is their good fortune that some of their ancestors chose to come here and make this their home. They need to know how lucky they are and to be truly thankful that they are American.

My God!  How little do my countrymen know what precious blessings they are in possession of, and which no other people on earth enjoy! 
~Thomas Jefferson

OPENING THE DOOR TO LET YOUR CHILD’S CREATIVITY COME OUT TO PLAY

Dr. Wendy Ghiora-Posting #109-June 17, 2012

Creativity is one of the most desirable characteristics in any human being. It is the creative thinkers; (artists, scientists, peace-makers) that truly change our world. People like Thomas Edison and Steve Jobbs are “world changers.”  It also brings great pleasure to those who do the creating.  Here are a few successful actions used by parents to let their children’s’ creativity come out to play:

1.       Express and share your own creativity 

If a child grows up in a household where the adults around him are too stiff-minded to applaud the unusual, then he will likely not endeavor to repeat many creative adventures. Share with your child your own creations--poems, drawings, stories, even ones from your own childhood, if you still have them.  Every day, vow to be a little bit whimsical and spontaneous: Create a funny voice, make up a silly dance, point out something around the house or in the neighborhood that you hadn't noticed before.  Encourage new ways of seeing the world and novel ways of doing conventional things.

2.       Avoid criticizing, comparing and judging  

Evaluation kills creativity.  If a child feels that his creations will BE JUDGED, inevitably be subject to judgments ("You forgot to put a chimney on that house") or comparisons ("Use more different colors in your drawings, like your brother does"), he will either stop producing altogether or will simply make what other people want him to make.   Uniqueness will be replaced by clichés.

3.       Validate your child's uniqueness. 

Accept her creations as they are, even if they seem flawed or incomplete.  Remember that the creative process consists of dead ends, misconceptions, errors and the often unexpected brilliant flash of insight.  By allowing the entire process to occur uninterrupted and unimpeded by your prejudices, you will honor your child's creativity and make it that much easier for her to find the right way to express herself.

4.       Don't force her to do something. 

Creativity can't be pushed or mandated.  In fact, pressure can cause creativity to go into a permanent state of decline.  The creativity will happen on your child’s timeline, not yours.  Your child may go through long periods of seeming stagnation only to burst through with renewed vitality.  Be patient! IT WILL HAPPEN.

5.       Expose your children to creative, artsy stimulation.

It is difficult, if not impossible to create in a vacuum.  Children must be exposed to materials and experiences that trigger ideas and feelings. Listening to a variety of music and seeing numerous works of art provide great artistic and aesthetic stimulation. But remember, it doesn't take much to spark a child's creativity--building blocks, a cardboard box, a puppet, paper and crayons, colored pipe-cleaners, a paper bag,  empty toilet paper rolls, are often much better than the latest superhero action figure or electronic doll in encouraging creativity.   It is always easier to create when you are the one evolving an idea, and working it out with the simple materials in front of you, instead of being bombarded with a constant stream of electronic noise and visual media.

To have brilliant children, tell them fairy tales. To have even more brilliant children, tell them even more fairy tales.

Albert Einstein