Northwood Parents

Are you feeling sick today?  It seems like everybody’s been sick with something this year:  flu, stomach virus, cold!  Since there is so much sickness going around, we as a church have to make sure that we maintain a clean environment by asking parents not to bring their child to church if they are sick.

We want to keep your child healthy during his or her time with us and we need you to help us out.  Please do not bring your child to church if he or she has any of these symptoms:

~fever

~sore throat

~runny nose with a yellow or green discharge

~vomiting or diarrhea

~symptoms of the flu

~unexplained rash

~croup

~unordinary behavior

Here is our policy about sickness…if a member of the preschool or children’s staff notices that your child has any of these symptoms, you will be asked to pick up your child immediately.  Unfortunately, we cannot seclude them from the other children so that you can stay at church.  We really need you to take them home immediately.  We ask that you do not bring your child back until he or she is free of these symptoms.

We really do want to provide a safe, clean, germ-free environment for all of our kids!  With your help, we can accomplish that goal.  Thanks so much for helping us out!  Let me know if you have any questions by clicking here.

Hey everybody!  Hope your week’s going good for you!  Let’s talk about our plans here at Northwood for your kids on Sunday…

Preschoolers are in John 4:1 - 26 as they begin to learn that Jesus loves everyone.  Repeat that phrase to your child all month:  Jesus loves everyone!  That phrase is our Bottom Line for this month and we’ll be repeating it to your preschooler over and over this month.  Sunday, we’ll talk about a woman who came to a well to get water.  People treated her her badly, but not Jesus.  He spoke kindly to her.  Talk to your preschooler about ways he can show Jesus’ love to others, like helping them and praying for them.  Let your child name some people he can show love to.  Remind him that God wants us to show Jesus’ love to everyone, not just our friends, because He loves everyone.

Elementary kids are beginning a new virtue of courage ~ being brave enough to do what you should do even when you’re afraid.  We are in Esther 2:5 - 7:10 and talking about speaking out for what’s right no matter what.  We can always know that God is the One who helps us speak out for what’s right, even when it’s difficult!  Ask your child about a time when she needed to speak out for what’s right, even though she was afraid.  Talk about a time in your life when you’ve had to do the same.  Talk about someone you have seen speak out for what was right, even though they may have been afraid.  God wants and expects us to speak out for what’s right, no matter what!

Help us help your child!  Talk about what we’re talking about here at church when you’re riding to school, around the dinner table, or during commercials on TV.  I promise it will make a difference in your child and in your family!  Just try it!

Tonight’s the last night of Space CAMP.  UpStuf begins a brand new season next week!  Here’s what we’re talking about tonight…

Tonight we’re looking at Hebrews 13:2.  The writer of Hebrews gives us a glimpse into the spiritual world.  Apparently, angels moved among us incognito.  Abraham (Genesis 18), Gideon (Judges 6), and Manoah (Judges 13) showed hospitality to strangers who were actually angels.  The writer of Hebrews says that we may have the same experience.  In verse 1, the writer tells us to love each other as brothers.  This love includes welcoming strangers and treating them as family.

Talking to strangers is difficult for kids to do and isn’t usually safe for them to do.  This doesn’t mean that they should be mean to people they don’t know.  We are encouraging your child to be kind and helpful when they meet new people at church or at school.  They need to be an example of God’s love by being nice to everyone they meet.

On the ride home tonight, talk to your child about being kind to everyone.  Help him think of someone new he has met at school or at church.  What are some ways he can be kind and helpful to him, even though he doesn’t know him?  Why is it important to be nice to everyone?  Does God care if we’re nice to the people we don’t know?

Help your child understand that God desires that we care for everyone … whether we know them or not!

I’ll see you tonight as we finish up Space CAMP 2008!

It’s as old as Cain and Abel and you could tell me your own stories about it … sibling rivalry.  I’ve got good news for you today — it is inevitable.  (Is that good news?)  You cannot have two children and not expect some fighting between brothers and sisters!  It exists and will continue to exist, but there is some helpful advice that may help dissolve some of the problems.

Let me give you some ideas that may help encourage kids to behave kindly towards each other in your home…

1.  Teach mutual respect.

Words are very powerful tools that we can use to build up or tear down.  NEVER allow your children to insult one another.  According to the experts, it takes five positive remarks to even out one negative remark.  Your child should never be allowed to insult another member of your family (or anyone else for that matter)!  Definitely make sure the insults never come from you!

2.  Do not play favorites.

All children are created equal, but not all children are the same.  Recognize each of your children’s individual skills and accomplishments.  Do not ever imply in any way that one child’s skills and abilities are somehow better.  Check yourself right now before reading the remainder of this blog!  Think about this past week!  Was there any time when you intentionally or unintentionally played favorites?  If there is, you have to stop — NOW!

3.  Do not ignore good behavior.

This is probably the most difficult for me, personally.  When children are well behaved, they tend to get ignored.  Don’t let this happen!  I can always tell kids who get no attention at home.  How?  They perceive negative attention  as simply attention and they love it!  Don’t let this happen in your family.  Notice when your kids are playing well together and doing the “right” thing.  Praise them when this happen, again making sure each child receives your interest and quality time.

4.  Show appreciation for who your child is and what he does.

I can’t say it enough:  when a child feels valuable only for what he does, he will need to prove his worth somehow!  Draw attention to your child’s attitudes, behaviors, and heart — not accomplishments!  Each of your children need to feel respected for who they are!  It’s your job to make sure they feel loved and accepted for who they are, not what they do.

Check your actions right now!  Ask God to reveal anything you are doing to contribute or encourage sibling rivalry in your home.  Think about the way you react to your children when they are fighting with each other.  Do you contribute by doing nothing?  By participating?  Could it also be your fault?  Take what I’ve shared and use it today!  See if it can make a difference in your home this week!

Let’s look at a few more rules for surviving your child’s adolescence from Dr. Kevin Leman…

11.  Give Them Choices.

Don’t let this one scare you!  Life is full of choices.  There are real responsibilities in the world and teenagers are inching closer and closer to those responsibilities.  Along with responsibilities, come choices.  Your preteen needs to be able to choose to do his chores or not.  He needs to choose to obey or not.  Are there consequences?  Yes!  Should you allow them to freely make the choice?  Yes!  Home is the safest place your preteen will ever be.  Allow them to make choices and fail in their choice-making skills.  If you don’t allow them to make choices at home, they will make choices elsewhere!  Choices you and they may forever regret!

12.  Don’t Snowplow Their School Road

When parents get involved in kids’ schoolwork and activities, 90% of the time, it is negative involvement according to statistics.  Your child’s education is his responsibility and no one else’s.  I’m not suggesting that parents shouldn’t give their preteens encouragement or shouldn’t see that homework is completed, but never do it for them or try to make it easier for them.  It will hurt them in the long run — I promise!  You can teach your children, even as preteens, accountability and responsibility by allowing them to fail!  If they make a D in Science, it is their fault.  If they make an A, it is their fault.  You should do everything you can to make sure they succeed, but realize they have to do it!  You’re not going to go to college with her!

13.  Don’t Embarrass Your Preteen By Showing Him Off.

So, your preteen is great at sports!  That’s awesome!  Don’t show them off to your friends!  Your preteen knows the truth — you’re taking the credit, not them!  You should be proud of your children’s accomplishments but express it appropriately.  The other side of this — don’t embarrass them.  I’ve seen it from time to time — parents who discipline their children in front of their peers.  You, as an adult, wouldn’t want to be ridiculed or laughed at in front of your peers by someone you love, so have the courtesy to wait until your alone with your preteen.  Discipline only in the proper place at the proper time.

There you go.  Three more rules to chew on this week!  I really hope you’re taking to heart what I’m talking about on Mondays.  You can make this transition as your child becomes a teenager easier or more difficult.  The choice is yours!  I’m here to help.  Let me know what I can do for you!  Click here!

Sunday is on its way!  Here’s what we’re talking about with your children this week…

Preschoolers are looking at Matthew 8:23-27 and talking about Jesus calming the storm.  Without warning, the storm comes up and Jesus is sleeping.  The disciples are afraid.  They don’t know what to do.  Jesus asks them why they are afraid and commands the storm to stop!  Do you know what happened?  It stopped!  How is that even possible?  Jesus can do anything!  All month, your preschooler has talked about the miracles of Jesus.  Emphasize to your child that Jesus is powerful!  He can do anything!  If He can do the miracles we’ve talked about this month, He can definitely do anything we need Him to do!

Elementary kids are completing the virtue of kindness this week.  All month, your child has been making a blanket or scarf to donate to the Connie Maxwell Children’s Home.  They have been practicing the virtue of kindness by doing something kind for someone else.  Talk to your child about the blanket or scarf his class made this month.  Talk about how cool it is when we can treat others with kindness, especially because we have been treated so kindly by God.  Sunday, we are focusing on the story of Barnabas and Saul from Acts 11:19-26.  Ask your child this question:  What can happen if you keep treating someone with kindness, even if they don’t deserve it?  You may take it one more step:  Who is someone you know who doesn’t deserve kindness?  How can you be kind to them this week, even though you know they don’t deserve it?  Explain to your child that, although we don’t deserve it, God is kind to us.  When we choose to treat others with kindness even when they don’t deserve it, God can do incredible things!

Remember…discuss what I’ve just talked about with your child after Sunday.  Utilize the GodTime Cards your first through sixth graders receive Sunday by doing each night’s activity together as a family.  If you choose to discuss what we teach and utilize the tools we offer you, it will make a difference in your child’s life…but, it’s up to you!

It’s Wednesday!  We have two more weeks of Space CAMP before UpStuf returns on March 5 and here’s what’s up for tonight…

Tonight, we’re talking about the power of God.  We’re specifically looking at Psalm 33:6.  God’s spoken word is powerful in a way that we cannot completely understand.  John 1:1 refers to Jesus as the word who was with God during creation.  Hebrews 1 tells us that Jesus somehow sustains everything in our universe by His powerful word.  Genesis 1 speaks of God’s creation.  Each day, God spoke the word into nothing and it was.  God creates something from nothing with just one word.  He is incredible!  God can do anything!  He can heal us, protect us, hear us, and help us.  God is someone we can trust because He holds ALL power!

We’re going to help kids understand that God can do anything!  God is never too busy to listen to us.  He wants to help us!  He can be trusted.

We’re going to play the Tin Man Game tonight!  We’re doing a race by wrapping tin foil around each other to create mini-tin-men.  Hopefully, I’ll have some pictures to share with you tomorrow.  We’re also doing a baby food feeding contest.  Kids are going to lay on the floor and be spoon fed a nice, big jar of baby food (carrots and apples with rice).  Kids are going to be back to back attempting to feed each other.  It’s going to be a mess!

Tonight, on your way home, talk to your child about God’s power.  Talk about something specific in your life that God has done to demonstrate His power.  Talk about something your child is facing that he needs God to work out.  Take some time tonight before you go to bed to pray with your child and ask God to demonstrate His power by helping your child through anything he is facing. 

I’ll see you tonight!  Have a great day!

From time to time, parents tell me that they are frustrated with their day to day struggles of their child not wanting to go to school or church.  Is my child really sick or does he just not want to go to school?  My child clings to me and hates for me to drop him off at school or church — Why?  My child hates school — Why?  My child doesn’t have any friends — Why?  The answer — a lack of confidence!  Elementary age children are leaving the world of being primarily with parents to being primarily with adults who are not their parents and other kids.  Today, I want to give you some ideas from my observations and what I have read on the subject…

~ Create opportunities for your child to interact with trusted adults.

Allow your child to interact with parents, teachers, church leaders, and other trusted adults on a regular basis.  Go out of your way to give your child opportunities to interact with these trusted adults.  They will begin to develop the ability of interacting with adults other than mom and dad when they exposed to adults they know they can trust. 

~ Give children time and “listening ears” to work through their fears.

Most kids I talk to are typically afraid of things like being with friends, not having friends, being picked on at school, being afraid of animals, or natural disasters.  Here’s what I do when I talk to kids about their fears … I put myself in their shoes.  I try to hear their fears with their background, at their age, in their situation, from their perspective.  While their fears may seem insignificant to you, they are HUGE for your child.  You don’t have to offer answers, just be there to listen.  Give them time to discuss their fears on their own, without your pressure.  It really will make a difference when you allow them to initiate the conversation.

~ Provide good role models for your child to observe.

While your child may see Hannah Montana as her role model, the truth is kids’ role models are the adults they are with most often.  Expose your child to adults who will make a positive impact on her.  When she realizes that there are good adults who can be role models, her trust begins to develop.

~ Encourage your child to make realistic goals.

Children develop their self-image based on the goals they achieve.  Help your child set goals that they can achieve.  Celebrate when they achieve those goals.  Help them work through the times when they do not meet their goals.  When your child realizes he has a goal to reach and that means being with people other than his parents, he is likely to go for the goal — whatever it takes — even being in an unknown place with unfamiliar people.

Understand your child is entering the unknown when they are in elementary school.  They do not know what to expect from day to day!  Take some time to work through the suggestions I listed for you above and see if it makes a difference.  I think it will!

It’s Monday again - so let’s look at four more of Dr. Kevin Leman’s 20 rules for surviving your child’s adolescence…

Rule #7:  Respect Their Privacy

Understand that your preteen is building her independence while she is under the shelter of your love and concern.  Do they need you to be there?  Yes!  Do they want to do everything with you anymore?  No!  Give your preteen some space and understand that they may not want to do everything with the family that they have always done.  They may not want to be seen with you dropping them off at school.  Don’t take it to heart - they’re just trying to figure the independence thing out.  Give them time to do it!  You can help with this process by respecting their privacy.

Rule #8:  Communicate Clearly

Make sure your preteen understands you clearly.  He needs to understand your expectations clearly.  Remember, while you hate to admit it, there is just a little generational gap between you and your preteen.  Small disagreements or misunderstandings can quickly turn into major battles if you don’t learn to communicate in your preteen’s “language.”

Rule # 9:  Talk About Potential Problems

Don’t be afraid to talk to your preteen about issues and decisions that he will need to make long before he will actually need to make the decision.  Talking to your preteen ahead of time gives him time to think about the decisions that are ahead of him on his own time.  While you may think it is unnecessary to talk about issues not relevant to your child at this moment, it really is necessary.  Talk today about what’s coming up in five years.  I promise it will work!  Give it a chance!

Rule #10:  Don’t Act Like A Teenager

Your preteen does not need you to be his friend - sorry!  I see parents all the time who think they need to act like their child’s friend so they will feel comfortable and be able to identify with him.  Trust me - your preteen wants you to be a parent — not a friend!  You are the parent.  That is your role!  Don’t try to be anything else!  Your preteen needs to understand that you are the leader.  Their friends are not!  How can they understand the difference if you don’t show them?

If you need any help or have any questions about your child becoming a teenager, feel free to click here.  Have a great week!

Sunday is on its way… Here’s what we’re talking about with your children this week…

Preschoolers are continuing to look at the miracles of Jesus.  They are specifically talking about Jesus walking on water from Mark 6:45-51.  We want preschoolers to understand that Jesus can do anything!  Nothing is too hard for him — even walking on water.  Sometime after Sunday, fill a bowl with water.  Help your preschooler find items around the house that might sink or float in water.  Have your preschooler place the items, one at a time, in the bowl of water and try to guess if it will sink or float.  Remind your preschooler that Jesus walked on top of the water.  Nothing is too hard for Him!

Elementary kidswill continue focusing on the virtue of kindness.  Sunday, we’re looking at the story of David and Mephibosheth from 2 Samuel 9.  We’re looking at how David, when he was king, wanted to bless his friend Jonathan’s son after Jonathan’s death.  David sought someone to bless — he chose Mephibosheth!  After Sunday, ask your child to think about how God treats him kindly.  Talk about small acts of kindness that you have received that really made a difference.

If your child received a disposable camera in KidKraze this past Sunday, don’t forget to get the pictures he took of others showing kindness and send them with your child on Sunday!  We can’t wait to see their pictures!

Alright, here’s the bottom line … you have a role and we have a role in your child’s spiritual growth this week.  We will teach our hearts out Sunday — you discuss it with them using the suggestions above.  Together, we’ll make an impact!