So if you are facing similar discussions at your home, join me and my family by making a Presidential Issue Board.  Here is how to make yours:

Things You Need

Cardboard Foldout Display Board

Access to the internet or newspaper clippings

Markers or computer program such as Microsoft Word to make titles

How to Get Started

To get started, design the layout of your issue board.  On our board we chose to have the center piece highlight the issue we are currently discussing and the wing pieces are a summary of each candidate’s stand on the issues so we can refer back to them in the future, general facts about each candidate, and any other information we found useful or interesting. 

Using a marker or a computer program such as Microsoft Word, go ahead and make titles for each segment of your board.   Be sure to make them colorful and let the kids add their own flare and style.

Once you have the layout of the board designed and set up, head on over to the internet and start tracking down where the candidates stand on the issues.  Here are some great websites to help get you started:  John McCain, Barack Obama, Wikipedia Guide to the 2008 Presidential Election, New York Times Election Guide, Washington Post Presidential Guide, and FactCheck.org (if you know of any other great online resources to use, please include them in the comments). 

Don’t overload yourself or kids with trying to take on too many issues at once.  Pick one that is particularly important to your family or easier to understand and start with that one first.  Print off a definition of the issue and where each candidate stands on the issue and their proposed policy for addressing the issue.  Tape your findings under each respective candidate’s name. 

Once you have your issue board set up it is just a matter of finding a time to talk about it as a family and updating it a couple times a week with a new issue for discussion.

Some Things to Keep in Mind

Don’t try and rush through all the issues.  Pick the ones that are most important to your family and focus on those ones first.  It is more important to give yourself and your kids’ time to think the issues over and fully understand them rather than rushing through them. 

Pick issues that your kids are ready to learn about and can emotionally handle.  Issues such as war, abortion, and treatment of prisoners are heavy issues that not all children are ready to discuss or understand.  Don’t scare them by trying to take on anything they aren’t ready to emotionally handle.

Get the kids involved by letting them do the research on the issues and updating of the issue board. 

Work to ensure its success by picking a time such as during a family meal, family night, or family meeting that works well for your family.  You will have much more success with this by incorporating it into your regular routines rather than trying to create something new. 

Good luck!

Watch Your Child Play - Do they consistently go back to the same activities?  Do they continually do these activities without prompting or suggestions from you?  Then this is a sign that they may have a real interest and you may want to explore it a bit further by signing them up for a class or lesson.

Look for Natural Talents - Some kids are just natural athletes, artists, or musicians and parents can usually spot these talents early on through the child’s play and interests.  Encourage them to try something that will focus on their natural talent.

Give it Some Time - If you child requests to take lessons or try a certain sport, give it a little time before rushing out and signing them up to be sure their interest is for real and not a passing fancy from something they picked up on TV or from friends.  If after a couple of weeks, they have made multiple requests or have continued to talk about it, then you probably have a child with genuine interest and would be worth exploring further. 

Minimize Your Investment - Extra-curricular activities can be expensive so minimize your initial investment by using rental or used equipment, asking for trial classes, and letting them watch classes.

Ask Why - Push back a little with questions like “what seems fun about soccer?”, or “what about dance classes do you like?”  By taking the time to explore their interests and reasons helps both the parent and child make better decisions and choices.

Good luck!

Begin this exercise by printing off the life bucket printable and begin sorting all the tasks and activities from your family life inventory into one of the appropriate buckets:  School, Extra-Curricular, Household Cleaning, Laundry, Household Maintenance & Repairs, Lawn Work, Volunteer Commitments, Faith Commitments, Administrative, Meal Planning, Household Finances, Fun Stuff, Personal, Auto/Transportation, Family Commitments, and Other.

For example, let’s say you look at your family life inventory for Sunday and found you did the following things (click picture to enlarge):

You would then go through this list and sort each of these items into the appropriate bucket making sure to include the time as well so that your bucket list looks something like this (click picture to enlarge):

Go through your family life inventory day by day and add each activity to the bucket list.  For tasks you do every day, for example making dinner, enter it once in the Meal Planning and Prep bucket with an average time from the week it took you to plan and make dinner. 

Once you have gone through your family life inventory and added everything to your bucket list, then go through and add anything you didn’t do the week you took your family life inventory but know you need to do.  For example, you may have done a family life inventory during a week in which you didn’t need to mow the lawn, but you know it is something that is typically done, so go ahead and add it to your bucket list along with a time estimate.  You want to have as complete a list as possible.

Understanding What It All Means

Now that you have your life divided into buckets, it is time to understand and analyze what it all means.  To do this, go through your bucket list and ask yourself these questions:

What buckets or activities are taking the most time?

On what buckets or activities should we be spending more of our time?

What buckets or activities are causing the most stress?

What buckets or activities are the most enjoyable?

What buckets or activities are the least enjoyable?

Starting With the End in Mind

Now that you have a good picture of what your current family life looks like, it is time to spend some time on what you WANT your family life to look.  This is a mental image or written expression of what you want your family life to look like most of the time.  The point of this exercise is to articulate how you want your family life to be by asking yourself these questions:

What things do I want to spend less time doing?

What things do I want to spend more time doing?

I want our family life to be less………?

I want our family life to be more…….?

I personally want to be more…..?

Here is an example to help better understand:

I want to stop rushing and having to yell at my kids to hurry up.  I want to have time to exercise a few days a week and to sit down in the evening and spend time reading to my kids, playing games with my kids, and enjoying my family rather than running around getting things done.

I want a clean house, but minimize the amount of time I spend cleaning.  I want to have all the clutter, toys, and stuff picked up every night before bed so that I don’t have to look at it in the morning.

I want to know in advance what I am making for dinner and I want the dinner to be healthy.  I want to spend a maximum of 90 minutes each day making and cleaning up after dinner.

I want to find more time on the weekends just spending time with my family rather than running to soccer games and sports events.  I want to find time to do the things we say we want to do, but never seem to find the time.

I want to stop paying bills late and want to spend a maximum of 60 minutes each week doing bills and financial work.

I want the kids to be in bed by 9 PM every night.

I want to be in bed by 10 PM every night and get up an hour before the kids every morning

I want to find more time for date nights with my husband and nights out with friends

I personally want to be less stressed, less worried, and more fulfilled.

Remember no family or family life is perfect.  We all have good days, bad days, and points in our lives where no amount of planning analyzing, or preparation can make better.  The point of this exercise is to articulate a vision and goal not make yourself perfect.  Sometimes things are out of our control but that shouldn’t be a reason to not try at all.

Once you get through this exercise save all your notes along with the notes from Conquering the Chaos - Part I for next month’s segment - Conquering the Chaos Part III - Creating a Family Schedule that Works. 

Good luck!

Our Free Shipping offer ended today, but will probably be coming back in time for the the Christmas holiday.  Join our monthly newsletter or subscribe to our blog feed to be updated when the free shipping offer comes back.

We have added a new product variation of the Advent Wreath Kits.  Now you can purchase the Advent Wreath Kit along with the choice of one family activity book or calendar, In the Presence of the Lord, What Color is Christmas, or the hide and seek Advent Calendar.  The Advent Wreath Kits are perfect for church groups looking for fun ways to celebrate the Advent season.

Determine What Kind of System You Need

Any organizing system you design should be created so that it meets your needs and isn’t complicated to use or keep updated.  So when creating a system to organize your family activity ideas it is important to start first with understanding how and how often you collect information.

If you tend to be a big collector of paper such as magazine articles, event brochures, newspaper clippings, etc then you will most likely need a multi folder system for storing your information.  If you tend to only collect and save only a few pieces of information and keep a small amount of notes, then you are probably best trying to incorporate your family activity file into your current system for organizing papers or just starting with a single file folder.

Also, if you tend to bookmark a lot of family activity idea websites on your computer then your online organizing system should also be a little more in depth with multiple folders for different topics.  If you tend to bookmark or save very little information on line, a single bookmark folder will do or simply a printout or written note will be enough.

Creating a Paper Based Multi Folder System

Things You Will Need

3 Ring Binder

Tab Dividers

3 Hole Punched File Folders

If you decide to go with a multi folder system, then begin by deciding how best to sort the information you save.  Here are a couple of options to get you started.  You can use these topics or create your own.  Just make sure you use topics that make sense to you and that will make it easy to find things when you need them.

Family Night Ideas

Family Outing Ideas

Holiday Traditions

Craft Ideas

Science Ideas

Boredom Busters

Online Resources and Notes

Another option is to sort your information and ideas by holiday if you tend to do most of your family outings and activities during specific holidays.  Here is a list to get you started: New Year’s, Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, Passover, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, July 4^th/Memorial Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah

Once you decide how to sort the ideas you save, then you will know how many file folders to buy and how big a 3 ring binder to use.  Keep in mind that you may find topics you want to add in the future, so be sure to buy a few extra file folders so that you have a place to store the new information.

Also, be sure to have an extra file folder or notepad in your binder to keep hand written notes on any ideas, suggestions, or websites you want to remember. 

Creating an Online Multi Folder System

If you tend to spend a lot of time on the internet bookmarking favorite ideas for family outings then you also may want to set up an online version of the paper based system.  To do this, create a folder in your favorites file and name it Family Activity Ideas.  Once you have the main folder set up you can go ahead and create sub-folders within the Family Activity Idea folder using the same labeling system you designed for your paper based system.  After you have all your folders set up, go through your exisiting bookmarks and move them to the appropriate sub-folder. 

If you tend to bookmark only a few sites in your favorites then the multi folder approach may be a little more than what you need.  In this case, here are some other options for you to try:

Create just one Family Activity Idea folder in your Favorites folder and just store everything in that one main folder. You can always subdivide the folder at a later time if the contents begin to grow and you are having a hard time finding anything.

Write down the web address and website name of an online idea you have found in the notes/online section of your paper based system. 

Print off a copy of the idea or website and store it in the online resource section of your paper based system. Just be sure to read through the websites copyright rules to be sure that printing off copies is allowed.

 How to Use a Family Activity File

Once you have your family activity file set up it is just a matter of remembering to use it and maintain it.  Here are some tips to help do this:

Have your file handy during family meetings or while discussing weekend plans.

Keep notes of your activities stored in your file to make planning the following year simpler. In regards to day outings, things you may want to take note of are, when you went, the weather, the crowd level, things you should do differently, and any coupons or discounts you used. In regards to any crafts or home family activities, be sure to keep notes on problems you had, how fun or engaged the kids were in the activity, where you bought the supplies, changes you would make, and the things that worked well.

Go through both your paper and online file every year to toss out things you no longer need.

Good luck!

Apple Orchards and Cider Mills - All About Apples has a great listing of apple orchards and cider mills in each state as well as apple guides and recipes.

Corn Mazes - If you are up to trying a corn maze this year, visit The Maize to find one in your local community as well as tips and suggestions.

Haunted Houses - If scary things are more your style then visit HauntedHouses.com to find something spooky near you.

Some common things you may need for your trip are a camera, video camera, sunscreen, maps, cell phones, discount coupons, snacks and/or lunches, car activities, and first aid kit

Save yourself some money by visiting the website of the place you are visiting to see if they have any discount coupons to print off and bring.   Also, to save money and avoid standing in long lines, try packing rather than buying your lunch.

Try and get as much of the prep work and packing done the day or night before to make the transition smoother the next day.  Things you can do the day before are fill the car with gas, check or replace the camera batteries, charge your cell phones, print off maps, pack your family backpack with supplies, go to the bank, set out clothes, check the weather, make lunches or snacks, and check your first aid kit. 

Print off a few copies of the family activity planner and keep them in your family activity file so they are easy to find when you need them.

Save your completed family activity planner sheet along with the map and any other documentation or information about your day trip in a family activity file so that you can reference it next year and save yourself time reinventing the wheel so to speak.

Good luck!

So to help every parent who is ready to stand up to the competitive parenting pressure here are some tips to help you survive the new school year.

Stop Measuring Your Success as a Parent by the Achievements of Your Child 

Believe it or not, but your success as a parent has NOTHING to do with the achievements of your children and has EVERYTHING to do with how emotionally strong and prepared your children are to lead their own lives.    Your job as a parent isn’t to make sure they get into Harvard or become the next Bill Gates, but rather your job as a parent is to nurture, inspire, and teach your children to define their own success and happiness while giving them the skills and tools necessary to make it happen.

Surround Yourself with Supportive Likeminded Friends

Nothing will make a parent more insecure and nervous than having a friend who lives in the competitive parenting trap.  So to make sure you don’t fall prey to the trap and all the drama that comes with it, distance yourself from others who are living in it.  Instead, surround yourself with parents and friends with similar goals and parenting techniques so that you are uplifted and supported. 

Believe in Your Child

Children are born with an innate realization of who they are as individuals.  It isn’t until parents start getting involved that their natural instincts get over shadowed and this understanding loses focus.  So to protect them from forgetting who they are, teach them from an early age to trust their instincts and pursue their passions.  Children can and will do amazing things with their lives if we give them the space and tools to help them.

Do yourself and your children a favor this new school year and stop competing.  Believe in yourself as a parent, stop measuring your success through your children, surround yourself with supportive friends, and most importantly let your children dream their own dreams.

Good luck!

Like Susan, who sent her 13-year-old to me, Grace was doing OK at school however her parents wanted to get her into a better school and to do that her grades needed to improve. Grace was enrolled in one of my coaching programmes and by the end of the programme her predicted C grades had become A and B, with a 100% pass rate in science a previously disliked subject.

How did we do it? The answer is to know your child’s learning style. When you do, you can help them to help themselves. Coupled with understanding what motivates them, what drives them and their perspective of the world you can motivate any teenager to improve their schoolwork.

So this week I thought I would share with you my guide to learning styles:

Learning style is the way in which you learn most easily, knowing this can make studying much easier. People learn in four ways, through reading, listening, doing or graphics and we will discuss each one.

Reading — these people learn mostly by reading and writing; this is predominately the style taught at school. When studying, they read and make lots of notes. This style is known as verbal memory.

Listening — These people learn most by hearing something spoken to them. In class they are likely to enjoy discussion where people are talking and get bored when there is writing to be done. When studying they may read and talk out loud or tape themselves and listen at a later date. They will also ask others to question them so they can speak their answers. This style is knows as tonal memory.

Doing — these people learn by movement in some way. These will be the students constantly fidgeting at school, they cannot sit still. In studying they are likely to walk around and make up rhythmic songs and poems. These students may benefit from studying with either the TV or radio on and also may hum or sing while they are studying. This style is known as rhythm memory.

Graphics — these people learn by seeing pictures, tables or graphs. When studying, they are likely to draw pictures and put information into tables and boxes, they also will enjoy using mind maps. This style is known as design memory.

Action

Think of a time that your child was studying recently and the methods they used. Which one of these four do you think they are and why? Ask your teen and see if you are right.

Write a list of 5 ways you can support your teenager’s learning style now you have discovered what it is. For example, telling your child to switch off the TV while studying may not be the right thing to do, depending on their learning style.

So, if we go back to Grace, she was typical in that her Mum made her do her homework in a room all by herself with no noise. Grace found this very hard and as we worked together we found that she was very high in rhythm memory. So we began to do things like introduce a radio into the room where she was studying, studying while walking around the room and making up songs and poems. The results were incredible. As for the science exam, she made up a song about the valence table while playing the guitar at the same time — it worked a treat and is just what someone with high rhythm memory needs. I should know, as this is my greatest learning style. When I was in the police force, I learned every piece of legislation to a song and I can tell you, it took me all my might not to sing the charges to someone as I was arresting them! In fact if you asked me now, I could still sing the Theft Act to you. You play it, I’ll sing it!

Sarah Newton is one of the world’s leading teen coaches. She enjoys a high profile and is one of the only Teen Coaches to have hosted her own eight part TV series ‘My Teen’s a nightmare - I’m Moving Out’. Her first book ” Help! My Teenager is an Alien - the everyday situation guide for parents” was launched in March 2007 by Penguin and rarely drops out of the top ten parenting teenager books. Sarah believes that parents can have great relationships with their teenagers and still get all the boring things done and to this end she offers everyday practical advice. To get Free access to Sarah’s “3 easy proven techniques to instantly reduce stress in your home and dramatically improve the relationship with your teen” go to http://www.sarahnewton.com

With this in mind we are beginning a three part series on Conquering the Chaos.  Over the next three monthly newsletters we will tackle three aspects of creating a sound family schedule - Taking an Inventory of Your Current Family Life, Organizing Your Family Life into Buckets, and Creating a Family Schedule that Works.  By dividing the topic up into three segments we hope families will have a chance to take some time working on each aspect and be ready to move on to the next topic the following month.  So let’s get started!

Taking an Inventory of Your Current Family Life

The secret to any good family schedule is to understand in detail the current situation and being honest about what your family needs and wants to change.  This is the hardest part for many families because it takes the most time and often forces parents and kids to face some of the reasons behind the current craziness of their lives.  Without this step though, you run the risk of not addressing the root causes of your chaotic lives and eventually “fixing” the wrong things. 

Understanding Where You Spend Your Time

Have you ever gotten to the end of a long day and asked yourself, “What did I do all day?”  This happens to many families who have become overwhelmed with the general craziness of life.  Parents know they did something, but their accomplishments and efforts have become overshadowed by the chaos of the day and for the life of them, they can’t remember anything they did throughout the day.  To get a true handle on your schedule and the current state of your family life, you first need to take an inventory of where you spend your time and how long everything takes.  In essence you are doing a mini time study of your family’s habits, schedules, and time so you can better understand where your time goes, the bottlenecks, poor habits, and patterns of your family life. 

To get this step started you will need a copy of the Family Life Time Inventory for both parents, one week of your time, and a little dedication and persistence.  Begin by printing off the family life time inventory for yourself and spouse.  You also may want to print off additional copies to post on your refrigerator or keep in your briefcase or desk at work. 

The time inventory has sections for each day of the week and is further divided by morning, afternoon, and evening sections.   Begin by choosing a week that is fairly typical of your everyday life and then begin making notes each day about the things you do during the morning, afternoon, and evening.  Be sure to keep enough detail so you can actually pinpoint the specific tasks you did as well as how long they took, but not so much detail that it becomes burdensome to keep up.  Also be sure to keep any notes regarding bottlenecks, habits, or patterns you have noticed.  Feel free to expand any notes or thoughts you have on the back of the paper. 

If you work outside the home, it will be your choice as to whether or not to include details on your work activities.  If you just want to keep notes on your family life activities during the day while at work, be sure to have one handy at work.  Some examples of things you may do while at the office are, making doctor’s appointments, picking up birthday presents on your lunch hour, or updating your work calendar with the kids’ activity schedule. 

Understanding the Bottlenecks, Habits, and Patterns

After a week of doing the time inventory you should begin to notice bottlenecks, habits, and patterns to your family life.  For example, are the mornings crazy because too many people are using the bathroom at once?  Is the TV distracting you and the kids in the evening?  Is your toddler having meltdowns every time you try and leave the house?  It is important to understand these because these things are often the culprit of a disruptive family routine and sometimes can easily be changed or fixed with minor tweaks.  So take some time to make notes on these things and experimenting with making some changes.  We will discuss them further in Step III - Creating a Schedule that Works.

Evaluating What You Want to Change and What Works Well

Your last assignment is to sit down as a family and discuss the things you want to change and the things that are working well.  For example, some parents may want to make it possible to get more sleep for themselves and their children.  Another example may be to sit down more often as a family for dinner.  Just as important as noting the things you want to change is making note of the things that are working well.  For example, Friday night family nights may be something that are currently working well and shouldn’t be changed.  Another example may be parents taking time every evening to read to their children.  If it is something you enjoy and something that isn’t causing any current stress to the family then it is probably something you are doing well and shouldn’t be changed.  Use our printable, a notepad, or better yet a table top flip chart (kids LOVE these) to make your notes and document your conversation.  Save everything for use in Parts II and III.

If your kids are old enough it is important to do this step as a family.  Put one of your kids in charge of making the notes and be sure to give everyone a chance to voice their opinions and concerns. 

Good luck!

And as I stand back watching these other kids grow and their parents dedicate endless hours and dollars to their children’s lives, I often wonder whose dream are they chasing?  Do these kids actually dream of becoming the doctors, scientists, and lawyers they are being groomed to be or do they dream of something different?  Or worse yet, do they dream at all?

Call me crazy, but I actually think it is a good idea to let my kids dream their own dreams and help them along the way by providing them the opportunities and resources to achieve their dreams.  Mimi Doe said it best in her book, 10 Principles for Spiritual Parenting: Nurturing Your Child’s Soul, “When we nourish our children’s dreams we help them strengthen their courage to stay true to who they really are - we allow them to weave their spirits into everything they do.”  I couldn’t agree more.

Don’t get me wrong, I know the parents who choose a more structured managed life for their kids, are doing so out of love and a desire to give their children a better life.  But in the end, the straight A’s and perfect ACT scores will mean little if their children’s spirits are sad and unfulfilled and they end up being something other than what they were meant to be.

Lunch Box Notes - Leaving lunch box notes for your kids has never gotten cooler than with these fun one of a kind lunch box notes.  Simply fill in th blank side with a special note to your child and slip it into their lunch box for lots of laughs.  Your kids will be the hit of the lunch room!

Mom’s Plan It Memo Pads and Reminder Notes - From the popular Mom’s Plan It product line comes even more ways of making life easier and organized.  There is now a complete line of magnetic memo pads including phone, grocery, babysitter, honey do, to do, and school pads as well as kitchen and kid reminder notes.

Pet.doc - This is the perfect insert to the popular Life.doc product for any family with pets and looking for ways of keeping the pet information organized.

Use our back to school guide to help you take control of the new school year and make a great fresh start for yourself and kids.  Our guide is a collection of all our back to school tips, articles, resources, printables, and products so you can easily find everything you need.

Make breakfast simpler and quicker by scheduling daily themes.  For example, make Monday’s egg day, Tuesday’s waffle day, Wednesday’s yogurt and fruit day, etc.  Breakfast schedules make grocery shopping easier, prep time quicker, and are a great way of teaching and introducing routines to kids. 

Set out all breakfast non-perishables and utensils the night before.  Things like cereal, vitamins, bowls, spoons, cups, etc can easily be set out on the counter and table the night before and make the morning breakfast prep calmer and easier.

For parents who can’t start their day without a cup of coffee, go ahead and make the coffee the night before and set the timer so it is ready when you wake up.  If your coffee pot doesn’t have a timer, go ahead and just add the water and coffee so that all you have to do is hit the brew button when you get up.

Teach kids to rinse their own dishes and place them in the dishwasher.  If they are too young to rinse their own dishes, try having them at least place them in the sink or have an older sibling help. 

Try and pack as much of the kids’ and your lunches the night before.  Sandwiches can be made the night before and placed in the refrigerator and all non-perishable snacks and fruits can easily be placed in the lunch bag the night before as well as napkins and milk money.

Last but not least, use a chore chart to get the kids involved as much as possible, and to seal the deal add all of these tips to your daily routines.

Stationary or Portable Planner?

The first choice parents need to make when considering a planning system for their family is whether they need a stationary or portable planner. 

Stationary planners are primarily family wall calendars or desk pad planners.  These types of planners are stationary in that they tend not to lend themselves to being carried in either a briefcase or purse.  Parents should choose this type of planner if they do most of their planning and scheduling from one central location such as their home or office.

Portable paper planners are typically the note book style planners and are often referred to as day planners or mom planners.  They are designed so they can easily be transported or carried.  Parents should choose this type of planner if they are frequently on the go and do most of their planning and scheduling at a variety of places such as the office, home, meetings, or school.

Note Taking or Not?

The second choice parents need to make when considering a planning system, is whether or not they need or like to take a lot of notes throughout their day. 

Parents who like to write and keep detailed notes of their plans, conversations, and tasks, are best suited for a paper note book planner style because they typically provide more open spaces for writing.

For parents who tend not to take a lot of notes, or like to use files or paperwork folders to keep track of their notes, then a family wall calendar is probably more of what they need.  Wall calendars keep track primarily of schedules and offer only limited space for note taking.

The Best of Both Worlds

For many families, combining the two styles can be helpful.  For example, some parents find having a family wall calendar hanging in a central location helpful for communicating events and schedules with the entire family while also using a portable style planner for keeping track of schedules, notes, and shopping lists while away from home.  The drawback though when combining systems, is that both will require updating to avoid confusion and missed appointments.

So to summarize, choose a wall calendar if you do most of your planning from one central location and you don’t typically take a lot of notes or have an alternative system for note taking.  Choose a planner, if you do a lot of scheduling away from home or the office and you like to take a lot of notes. 

This year, more than 3,500 area residents will come together on Saturday, October 27, 2008 at 3rd Street and Pennsylvania Ave, NW to raise funds for Step Out to Fight Diabetes.  Formerly known as America’s Walk for Diabetes, Step Out to Fight Diabetes is a whirlwind day packed with energy, fun, support for others and a perfect amount of selfless dedication.  Step Out is the fund-raising walk of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and all funds raised from Step Out to Fight Diabetes are used in support of the Association’s mission: to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. Be a part of the cure-Step Out to Fight Diabetes-and start raising money today!  To register, volunteer or find out more information, please visit diabetes.org/stepout or call 1-888-DIABETES.

This week’s boredom buster idea is a great way to get your kids using their imaginations and learning to work in teams. 

Dig through your basement or garage and even possibly visit your local appliance store for old cardboard boxes.  Give them to the kids along with some old blankets, markers, and paint and let them build and decorate a fort.  If you have enough boxes and enough kids, let the kids split into teams and have a contest to see who can build the biggest and best fort.  After their fort is built they can use it to play in or hold secret club meetings.  This oldie but goody boredom buster idea will keep them busy for hours. 

Take some time during the cool summer nights to star gaze with your kids.  It is a great way to wind down your day and you can keep the kids busy during the day researching and getting ready for the star gazing event.

How to Get Started

Check your family calendar or planner for a date that works best for everyone.  To make the most of your star gazing event, you will need to wait until after the sun sets and the sky is very dark, so be sure to pick a night when the kids and you don’t have to get up early the next day. 

Get your kids started on researching the constellations in the sky.  You can do this in a variety of ways and here are some ideas and resources to help get them started.

Create an Interactive Sky Chart - This online sky chart will show you where the stars and planets are in relation to your horizons and zenith.  It is a free application, but does require a parent registration.

Make a Star Finder - Kids can download this neat star finder project to help learn about the constellations.

Constellation Crosswords - Use these constellation word searches and crossword puzzles to help reinforce what your kids have learned.

Book It - Visit your local library to find some books on star gazing and constellations

Astronomy 101 - Use this online guide to help orient you and more easily find the stars and constellations.

Things You Will Need

Here is a quick list of things you will need to make the most of your star gazing adventure.

The star chart or finder

A big blanket or reclining lawn chairs

A red flashlight or a regular flashlight with red cellophane over the lens.  A red flashlight makes for easier night vision.

Snacks

Bug Spray

A dark location free of artificial light

Optional: Binoculars

Good Luck!

Keep kids from getting bored this summer with Kids Off the Couch.  A perfect blend of culture, family time, and film, Kids Off the Couch is a great way to help kids make connections, explore their local community, and learn through film.  Each week, the smart people at Kids Off the Couch, put together a Popcorn Adventure that includes a film and a related family activity designed to get kids and parents off the couch and exploring and enjoying their local communities.  Nestled in between the film and family activity are thoughtful conversation starters for each film to stimulate conversation and get kids and parents talking.  Families can choose to subscribe to this free service either via the Kids Off the Couch weekly newsletter or visit the multitude of Popcorn Adventures in the site’s archives. 

Some Things to Think About

Unless you have the movie in your DVD collection you will have to do some pre-work in terms of finding the movie either from places like your local library, your local DVD rental store, online swapping websites like SwapaDVD, or purchasing it directly from the Kids Off the Couch shop. 

Because the Popcorn Adventures get families off the couch and into their communities, you will need to make time on your family calendar or planner for the adventure.

Currently Kids Off the Couch offers detailed information and tips for adventures in New York, Houston, Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco, and Washington D.C., so if you don’t live in or near one of these cities you will have to do your own research to find the family activities nearby.  Kids Off the Couch will help you do this by showing you how to Google similar activities in your local town.  If you live in a small town or rural area, be prepared to travel a bit to find some of the activities in a nearby community.

Before you try your first adventure, be sure to read through the Kids Off the Couch tips to make the first adventure go smoothly.

Good Luck!