Friday, June 24, 2011
Earning and Learning this Summer
Even though my big kick right now is internal motivation, I know that some kids really like to set goals, achieve them, and then have proof that they did. I’ll admit it: I love a prize. I’ve got a couple of resources to help them do just that.
All youth ages 6-18 can earn the United States Heritage Award from the Nations Trails organization. This award (really two separate awards, gold and silver, divided by age) recognizes kids for learning about our nation’s heritage. For more information, go to the Nations Trails website for more information. Although lots of Scouts do this, it is not part of Scouting or a requirement that one be a Scout to participate.
Speaking of Scouts, even if you’re not a Scout, many of the merit badges for scouting offer great guidelines for activity over the summer. There are so many to choose from, that it is hard to believe any child could not find one he/she was interested in. These can be fun for the sheer pleasure of learning something new. Of course, if you have a kid motivated by rewards, you can always print off a picture of the merit badge itself and “award” it to the child. This site has worksheets for and information on all of the merit badges.
Don’t forget the Mensa Foundations Excellence in Reading program. This is a long-term challenge for older readers especially, not just for summer. It is a great way to help children read a wide range of books that they might not otherwise encounter. For more information, see the mensaforkids site.
One great idea is to take a picture of your child with each book he or she reads. Just have the child stand with the cover facing out and snap a shot (Do digital cameras still snap???). This will create a form of a journal. Imagine if you had a visual record of all the books you’d read in your life! Amazing!
Teens may already be connected with www.dosomething.org, a Web site that promotes ways for teens to improve their communities. Starting July 11th, they will begin a “scavenger hunt” with challenges in different area. Teens, working alone or with a group of friends, try to complete the challenges. For more info on this, see this section of the website. I’d just like to give a general plug for this site. Any kid, even pre-teens, who is interested in community/world service will find ideas and inspiration here.
If you’re looking for something to do WITH your children, adults, too, can participate in the presidential fitness challenge (You can earn a Presidential Active Lifestyle Award!). Schools often participate in this, but it is open to individuals and home schools as well. See the President's Challenge site
for more information.
This site lets you print awards for kids, quickly, easily, and freely! It’s geared to teachers, but it works for home, too.
One of my fave resources for figuring out how to compliment people on a great job is Baudeville. They have cute, clever ideas that work for kids and adults alike. Although geared to a business environment, they have a free downloads section where you can find great ideas for recognizing the great job your kids did taking out the trash (Hey! It could happen!). Scroll to the bottom of the resource section for a great two-page document with snazzy sayings. From this section you can send free epraise cards.
At this site, you can print awards for your kids for healthy eating. Knowing how some of us eat, maybe our kids need to give us awards for trying new veggies!
Next resource post’s theme is FREE! To give you a taste, here’s a link to a place where you can get a free copy of the poster created by the Human Genome Project.
All youth ages 6-18 can earn the United States Heritage Award from the Nations Trails organization. This award (really two separate awards, gold and silver, divided by age) recognizes kids for learning about our nation’s heritage. For more information, go to the Nations Trails website for more information. Although lots of Scouts do this, it is not part of Scouting or a requirement that one be a Scout to participate.
Speaking of Scouts, even if you’re not a Scout, many of the merit badges for scouting offer great guidelines for activity over the summer. There are so many to choose from, that it is hard to believe any child could not find one he/she was interested in. These can be fun for the sheer pleasure of learning something new. Of course, if you have a kid motivated by rewards, you can always print off a picture of the merit badge itself and “award” it to the child. This site has worksheets for and information on all of the merit badges.
Don’t forget the Mensa Foundations Excellence in Reading program. This is a long-term challenge for older readers especially, not just for summer. It is a great way to help children read a wide range of books that they might not otherwise encounter. For more information, see the mensaforkids site.
One great idea is to take a picture of your child with each book he or she reads. Just have the child stand with the cover facing out and snap a shot (Do digital cameras still snap???). This will create a form of a journal. Imagine if you had a visual record of all the books you’d read in your life! Amazing!
Teens may already be connected with www.dosomething.org, a Web site that promotes ways for teens to improve their communities. Starting July 11th, they will begin a “scavenger hunt” with challenges in different area. Teens, working alone or with a group of friends, try to complete the challenges. For more info on this, see this section of the website. I’d just like to give a general plug for this site. Any kid, even pre-teens, who is interested in community/world service will find ideas and inspiration here.
If you’re looking for something to do WITH your children, adults, too, can participate in the presidential fitness challenge (You can earn a Presidential Active Lifestyle Award!). Schools often participate in this, but it is open to individuals and home schools as well. See the President's Challenge site
for more information.
This site lets you print awards for kids, quickly, easily, and freely! It’s geared to teachers, but it works for home, too.
One of my fave resources for figuring out how to compliment people on a great job is Baudeville. They have cute, clever ideas that work for kids and adults alike. Although geared to a business environment, they have a free downloads section where you can find great ideas for recognizing the great job your kids did taking out the trash (Hey! It could happen!). Scroll to the bottom of the resource section for a great two-page document with snazzy sayings. From this section you can send free epraise cards.
At this site, you can print awards for your kids for healthy eating. Knowing how some of us eat, maybe our kids need to give us awards for trying new veggies!
Next resource post’s theme is FREE! To give you a taste, here’s a link to a place where you can get a free copy of the poster created by the Human Genome Project.
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