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THE POWER OF PARENTING

How to Make the Most of Quarantine for Your Family

4/14/2020

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In the uncertainty of covid-19, there’s one thing we can all be certain of: this is not normal. A grocery store with totally empty aisles is not normal. Staying 6 feet away from the closest person is not normal. Wearing a mask in public is not our normal, and schooling at home during a pandemic is not normal. Even parents who homeschool their children are normally able to attend parks & museums, make use of play-dates and co-ops, and include their children in a normal out of the house routine. 

​As we struggle to adapt to the changes involved with school and being isolated at home we should keep the emphasis on doing what is best and what works best for our families. Daily learning in traditional public school is regimented, scripted, measured, and scored. This regimented system cannot possibly be replicated in our homes and challenges associated with working from home, working out of the home and working with several children at different levels is a lot of pressure to put on a parent in a “not normal” situation. Attempting to replicate a traditional classroom, would only add stress to an overly stressful time.


So, how can we teach our kids now that school has been canceled? The answer is, there is no “one right answer” and only you can decide what works best for you and your family. If you have the mental moxy to take on a daily schedule of learning, find a curriculum that suits you. You don’t need to use the same textbooks or methods used in your child’s classroom. There are lots of different ways to learn the same information. There are a lot of different online curriculums that teach standard requirements in different ways with different learning methods. Find what works for you and your family.

If traditional curricula doesn’t work for you and your schedule, find ways to teach your kids life skills as you go throughout your day.

Involve your kids in making your budget. Have them help you plan and prepare your meals. Show them how to reconcile your bank statements. Teach them to take out the trash, wash the windows, clean the bathroom, wash the dishes, and sweep the floor. Anything and everything you do can be turned into a learning opportunity.

Learning can be a game of Monopoly for math or Bananagrams for spelling. It can be baking cookies and doubling the recipe to learn measurements.  It never hurts to have more than one great cook in the house! Learning can be reading a good book together instead of watching TV. Take turns reading a page and look up new words to increase vocabulary. Learning can be the physics of flying a kite on a windy day. 

Hilary Hughes and Stephanie Jones, Professors at the University of Georgia explain that “what is happening is not homeschooling. It is not distance learning.  It is not online schooling,” and “we have a collective opportunity to answer the call of our unprecedented time and make today’s education as humane, generous, caring, and yes, even as joyful as we possibly can.”  

Not only will you be teaching academics in a fun way, you’ll be teaching life skills your children will need when they are out on their own, which is equally as important as the book skills they learn in school.
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We at Power2Parent believe that parents are their children’s best educators and that education does not have to be measured by academic achievement.  We have so many lessons we can impart to our children while we are home together. The possibilities are endless and the benefits are too. Discovering how to be together, how to be kinder, how to strengthen our relationships, play, learn and create are life skills that will have lasting benefits that will effectively compensate for the lost days of the school year.  


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Protecting Your Children Online Parent Event

8/23/2019

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"We are trying to protect people who don't understand they are in danger and who know more about technology than we do."

-Detective Sean Taylor
LVMPD Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force
The Power2Parent Internet Safety Night at the Vistas Community Center was a success! Detective Sean Taylor of the Las Vegas Metro Police Department's Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and Chelsea Brown of Digital Mom Talk gave outstanding presentations on how predators are targeting your kids in the digital age and what you as a parent can do about it. Apps and filters are a common first response, but both Detective Taylor and Chelsea Brown made it clear that there is no substitute for good parenting.
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Did you miss the class? Here are some highlights:
Who is most at risk for being preyed upon?
-Ages 8-14
-Prolonged/Frequent use of technology
-No standards or expectations set by the parents
-No limitations set by the parents
 

What are the hazardous characteristics of apps that prey on children:
-Chat and/or Video Chat Feature
-No Verification
-Vanishing Content
-Foreign
-Interactive with Other Apps
-Location Software
-Encryption
What can you do to help keep your children safe?-Keep the communication lines open
-Set Expectations and enforce consequences
-Set limitation - access, location, time & frequency
-Charge devices at night in the parent's room
-Empathize
-Hover, but don't stalk - otherwise they will get a new profile that you don't know about 
-Install filters - ***But there is no substitute for a good parent monitoring that device****
-Discuss proper relationships - "mutual friends" does not establish credibility
-Don't post vacation pictures when you're on vacation
-No devices in the bathroom or bedroom
-No one should have access to your network/internet if you don't own the device
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Chelsea Brown, of Digital Mom Talk, is a Certified Security Professional whose mission is to provide families with the complete tools to teach their kids how to survive and thrive in a digital world. Check out her Free Family Tech Plan here. 

Use code ParentPower to get 10% off any product on her site!
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​Thank you Richards Cosmetic Surgery and Digital Mom Talk for sponsoring this message and event!
For more information on keeping your kids safe online visit: 
POWER2PARENT PARENTING TOOLS
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The Power of Play!

8/1/2019

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"Play is often talked about as if were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning." 
-Mr. Rogers

What can we do to improve our children’s academic success? Play with them!

Sergio Pellis, a researcher at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada says  "The experience of play changes the connections of the neurons at the front end of your brain, and without play experience, those neurons aren't changed," Those changes in the prefrontal cortex help wire the brain regulate emotions, problem solve and making plans. So, according to Pellis, “Play is what prepares a young brain for life, love, and even schoolwork...the skills associated with play ultimately lead to better grades.”

​Playing with our children can also strengthen family bonds. “Spending quality family time together strengthens family bonds and provides each family member with a sense of belonging,” says Shannon Cromwell, M.A. Extension Assistant Professor, Family & Consumer Sciences at Utah State University. “When it comes to children, one of the most important things you can do to positively influence their development is spend time with them," says allforkids.org.

With all the research being done on the importance of playing with our children, let’s make it a point to have just a little more fun with them.
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Thank you to SeaQuest for sponsoring this message!
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"The simplest positive action is a smile." -Maxime Lagacé

8/1/2019

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Have you ever tried to keep a straight face, or even frown, when someone smiled at you? Chances are you cracked a smile because that’s what we’re biologically programmed to do. Researchers Ulf Dimberg and Sven Söderkvist in the Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, March 2011 found that we are programmed to imitate the behavior we see. So, when we see another person smile, our biological response is to smile.
Even more importantly, these same researchers found that facial muscles have the ability to initiate emotion. So, when we smile, even a forced smile, we stimulate endorphins in our system that tell us we are happy. This is significant because it produces a positive feedback loop of happiness. When we smile we feel good, so we smile some more, which makes us feel happy, we smile more, and so on. 

How significant can a smile be? According to Ron Gutman in his book, Smile: The Astonishing Powers of a Simple Act, “[British] researchers found that one smile can be as pleasurable and stimulating as up to 2,000 bars of chocolate.” These same researchers measured brain activity to see what amount of money it would take to generate the same level of brain stimulation as one smile. They found that it took a person receiving $25,000 to match the same level of pleasure from one rewarding smile! Smiling can also help us reduce stress, lower blood pressure and makes us appear more likable and courteous.

So, it turns out, one of the best, easiest, fastest ways to improve our homes and families is to smile more. It’s calorie-free, cost-free, takes up no space and is with us all the time. We have the power to create feelings of joy in ourselves and others by the simple act of smiling.  If we want to feel better ourselves we should smile. If we want our children to feel better and be happier, we should smile at them. Since they're biologically conditioned to mimic what they see, we'll trigger a positive feedback loop in them that can truly help us to raise happy children.
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Thank you Peccole Family Dental for sponsoring this message!Dr. Shih, Dr. Funamoto and Dr. Moore specialize in General, Cosmetic, Implant, and Orthodontic Dentistry. ​
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Grandparents Rock!

8/1/2019

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“Sometimes our grandmas and grandpas are like grand-angels.” -Lexie Saige

We've long known that a parent is the most influential person in a child's life and that the relationship between parent and child is the most important relationship a child can have. So it's not surprising, according to Dr. Karl Pillemer of Cornell University, that the emotional relationship between grandparents and their grandchildren is the second most important relationship a child can have.

Grandparents serve many important roles in the lives of children and since roughly three-quarters of parents will become grandparents, it's important to examine the role grandparents play in the family.
 Grandparents are invaluable in raising their grandchildren. Increasingly, grandparents find themselves providing part-time care for their grandchildren and even full legal custody. As a result, they help teach life skills such as cooking, cleaning, gardening and repairs that help build the character of their grandchildren. Knowing family history, which is often passed down by grandparents, is also important to the emotional development of grandchildren. In a study from Emory University, researchers measured children’s knowledge about their family history and found that the more that children knew about their families, the higher their self-esteem and sense of control over their lives. Sara Duke is a psychologist who specializes in children with learning disabilities and further explains that, “The ones who know a lot about their families tend to do better when they face challenges.” Her husband, Dr. Marshall Duke - a prominent psychologist at Emory University in Atlanta said, “Children who have the most self-confidence have a strong ‘intergenerational self.’ They know they belong to something bigger than themselves.” Even if one or more of the grandparents of a family may have passed, we can still honor their legacy by telling family stories.  it's important to remember them and their rich history.

It's important that we foster the grandparent-grandchild relationship even into adulthood. Sara M. Moorman, an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology and the Institute on Aging at Boston College explains, "We found that an emotionally close grandparent-adult grandchild relationship was associated with fewer symptoms of depression for both generations. The greater emotional support grandparents and adult grandchildren received from one another, the better their psychological health."

When distance is a factor, letters, phone calls, and video chats can help build the grandparent-grandchild relationship. Building the love and friendship between the generations has significant benefits to both generations.

“A grandparent is a little bit parent, a little bit teacher, and a little bit best friend.” -- Unknown
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Thank you to BrightStar and to J&J Air Duct Cleaning for sponsoring this message!
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BrightStar provides expert, compassionate, and personal in-home care services. 
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The way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice.-Peggy O'Mara

8/1/2019

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What's the first thing our children hear from us in the morning? Do they feel greeted with cheer and optimism, or do they feel hurried along to get to school on time? When our children get home from school do we tell them we missed them, or do we chastise them for getting dirty at recess?  What's the last thing our children hear from us at the end of the day?

If we forget to praise our children for the good we see them do, we may find that the only feedback they get from us is when something needs to be fixed. Children and adolescents interpret this kind of feedback as something is wrong with them. They then internalize these negative labels and begin to see themselves as "not good enough."  

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None of us is a perfect parent. Sometimes we might get upset or yell. Sometimes we are going to be rushed, and sometimes we are going to let our frustration show. But, according to Affective Neuroscientist, Jaak Panksepp, there is a way to make up for the times when we're not on our best parenting behavior. Panksepp says there are 3 key times during the day that have the biggest impact on children and if we can have positive interactions during these times, it will have a substantial impact on their emotional well-being.
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The 9 most important minutes of a child's day are:
  • the first 3 minutes of their day-right after they wake up
  • the 3 minutes after they come home from daycare or school
  • the last 3 minutes of the day–right before they go to bed.
Having meaningful conversations with our children during these times and giving specific praise not only helps our children feel loved, but it also lays the foundation for what they think about themselves.

"Speak to your children as if they are the wisest, kindest, most beautiful and magical humans on earth, for what they believe is what they will become."- Brooke Hampton

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Thank you Earl Plastic Surgery for sponsoring this message.
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You Are Your Child's Most Important App

8/1/2019

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"Showing your kids you love them is 2% effort and 98% putting down your phone."

-Collin Kartchner
Internet Crusader, Collin Kartchner, visited Las Vegas last week to discuss the effects of Social Media on our kids' mental health.  At the end of a life-changing Parent Education Night at American Preparatory Academy, which included a panel discussion from local experts, the attention turned to what parents could do in the face of a startling reality. When a few "oversight" apps were mentioned, like Bark and OurPact, which will help you monitor what is on your child's phone, Collin got up and very frankly said, "You are your kids best monitoring app." In the face of current political trends and proposed legislation his message could not have been more urgent for us to hear. No app, no piece of legislation, no school and no teacher can take the place of a parent.

There is no substitute for good parenting. Children need love, affection, attention and, according to Collin and his team, they need 8 hugs, for 8 seconds each, every day. We can't turn that over to the school, the government, or an app, hoping our kids will turn out emotionally stable and socially adjusted. Parents are the people who know their kids the best and who know what is best for them. Schools and science both tell us that number one factor in whether or not our children succeed is us. If we consider we are raising the next generation of leaders who will shape society, there could be no better perspective than from Harold B. Lee who says, "
The most important work you will ever do will be within the walls of your own home."
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Thank you Ginger Oghigian for helping us sponsor this message. Ginger works with buyers and sellers and specializes in single family homes, townhomes and condos in the West, NW, and SW parts of Las Vegas.
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The Importance of Family Dinner

6/13/2019

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Children that have dinner with their families on average of 5 times per week are half as likely to commit suicide.*

*Utah Department of Health February 2015 Utah Health Status Update
Parents are the most crucial part of their children's lives and have a greater impact on their children's success in life than any other influence. Although you may hear people say there is no manual for parenting, there are some scientifically proven actions parents can take to raise happier and more successful children. One of the most overlooked is having dinner together as a family.
  • Children who eat dinner with their families are less likely to drink, smoke, do drugs, get pregnant, commit suicide, and develop eating disorders. 
  • Children who enjoy family meals have larger vocabularies, better manners, healthier diets, and higher self-esteem. 
  • The amount of time children spent eating meals at home is the single biggest predictor of better academic achievement and fewer behavioral problems. 
*The Secrets of Happy Families: Improve Your Mornings, Rethink Family Dinner, Fight Smarter, Go Out and Play, and Much More by Bruce Feiler
“When you start to look at the research you realize all the things you worry about as a parent can be improved just by sitting down to regular dinners.” Laurie David, author of The Family Dinner.
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Do Nevada Kids Belong to the State or to Their Parents?

3/16/2019

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by Jessi Bridges
Spend more than five minutes with a teenager and you’ll likely notice a fairly obvious observation: teenagers don’t always make the best decisions. There’s a reason God gave kids parents. We know, without a doubt, from study after study and personal experience that an adolescent’s brain is actively developing on the daily. According to a 2013 study, referring specifically to adolescence, the researcher notes, “Particularly significant changes occur in the limbic system, which may impact self-control, decision making, emotions, and risk-taking behaviors.” Yep. That sounds like a teenager to me.

Nevada Assemblywoman Ellen Spiegel seems to agree with these findings considering she recently introduced AB 187 into the current legislative session. The bill requires bicycle helmets for any child under the age of 18. When questioned why she chose 18 (many states that have similar helmet laws limit the age to 16 or 15 and under), her response essentially was that 18 is when a child becomes an adult. The implication is that minors are not capable of making good decisions about their safety.
But apparently, parents aren’t capable of making good decisions about the safety of their children either. Hence the $15 fine for parents who don’t abide by the government’s edict.

In a recent interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Spiegel said, “One of the things that differentiates children from adults is that children don’t have the ability to make these decisions for themselves. So, I want to make sure they’re safe.”

She reiterates this point saying, “We want to make sure that the kids are safe, and that they don’t have permanent damage from engaging in fun activity.”

So, while we may disagree on the government telling parents how to parent (I assure you, we disagree vehemently on that point), on its face we do agree with the documented science that demonstrates children, including teenagers, often make terrible, sometimes unsafe and life-threatening decisions.

Or, so I thought we agreed on that point.

But Assemblywoman Ellen Spiegel is not only the sponsor of AB 187, she’s also the co-sponsor of the recently introduced SB 179.

Among other things, SB 179 seeks to eliminate a Parental Notification law in Nevada for underage abortion.

Wait, what?

Yes, you read that right.

Spiegel introduced a bill that would require children to wear helmets because they are incapable of making safe decisions for themselves. And yet, she believes that children should not only be allowed to seek out an abortion (morality aside, abortion is a medical procedure) but that the parents shouldn’t even be legally allowed to know about said abortion if the child chooses not to inform them.

Also, in 2013 she voted to require parental consent for anyone under 18 to use a tanning bed.
Judging only by what she says, Ms. Spiegel seems to care for the health and safety of children, but her record does not support that. If so, how could she want to protect children from injury while riding a bicycle, but not desire a parent be notified if a child obtains an abortion? A parent doesn’t just have the right to know when their child goes in for surgery, a parent has the right to consent when their child goes in for surgery.

What’s obvious here is that Spiegel, like many liberal legislators and big-government proponents, believes she knows what’s best for children. Never mind that “what’s best” is, to many, completely unethical and also a surgical procedure. To statists, however, parents are simply surrogates for the state. There is zero regard for the fundamental, constitutional rights of parents to make medical, health, and all other decisions for their own children.

So, it makes perfect sense that Assemblywoman Spiegel can pick and choose when a child should be protected and when a child should not. She knows best, after all.

In the case of the bicycle helmet, the state has determined that they are the best authority, not the parent, to decide what is safe for a child. In the case of abortion, the state has determined that the parent doesn’t even have a need to know what their child is doing. In both cases, the state declares what is best.

Make no mistake: this is the underlying philosophy of the UN’s Convention on the Rights of the Child and similar legislation in states like California.

But the glaring issue with this liberal position is that, as a parent, I did not conceive, carry, and birth my child for the sake of the state. My child is mine, not theirs. And, as the child’s parent, I am the one who has the right to decide whether or not my child wears a bicycle helmet and whether or not my child should obtain an abortion. I am the one who has my child’s best interest in mind.

If only Assemblywomen Spiegel and other liberal Nevada legislators had the proper respect for parents, perhaps they would see the blatant inconsistency and downright hypocrisy of sponsoring bills such as these.

This article is reprinted with permission from Jessi Bridges and Ricochet. The original article can be found here.
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Defending Our Children by Protecting Parental Rights

2/17/2019

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by Erin Phillips
“The rights of parents to the care, custody and nurture of their children is of such character that it cannot be denied without violating those fundamental principles of liberty and justice which lie at the base of all our civil and political institutions, and such right is a fundamental right protected by this amendment (first) and Amendments 5, 9, and 14. Doe v. Irwin 441 F Supp 1247; U.S. D.C. of Michigan, (1985)”

The Constitution of the United States clearly supports the family unit as the foundation upon which a strong society is built. More than anytime in the history of this nation, parental rights are under attack by government.  Too many people are unaware of the encroaching policies aimed at usurping the rights of parents to be the primary unit designed to raise, teach, and nurture their children. Increasingly we see that if the family values run counter to institutional worldview and agenda, activists circumvent parents and indoctrinate the children in their care with their secular agenda. Most parents are not equipped to defend their children from these influences.  If we are to remain free and prosperous as a nation, we must educate parents about laws and policies that suppress the rights of mothers and fathers to be the primary influence in their children’s lives. Families need tools and resources to help them defend these cardinal rights.

Power2Parent is the foremost parental rights organization in the state of Nevada.  Our mission is to inform, organize, and mobilize parents and community members for the fundamental protection of parental rights. Power2Parent is an advocacy organization that seeks to influence policy and expose dangerous legislation to voters.  We effectively reach thousands of people throughout Nevada with the mission of educating and empowering parents to protect their families.

In 2017, former Governor Sandoval vetoed a Planned Parenthood sex education bill that would have taken away the need for parental permission to be given before sexual material was taught in school classrooms.  By incorporating social media alerts, email updates and cottage meetings, along with lobbying efforts with Legislators, Power2Parent successfully campaigned against this dangerous bill. Governor Sandoval agreed with us that schools have the obligation to inform parents about sex education curriculum and the timing of lessons.  

Now more than ever, we need to default to the visionary writers of the Constitution, and reignite hearts and minds to the truth that liberty and justice are imparted to our society as a whole when the rights of parents are protected foremost.

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