Elementary Schooled

Take in the wisdom of these 4th graders in this Social Emotional Learning Lesson.  Students courageously share their true feelings of how they work through negative emotions. What a pleasure it was to be in this classroom! RESOURCES: https://www.cdc.gov/childrensmentalhealth/depression.html https://childmind.org/article/what-is-social-and-emotional-learning/      

 Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) has been classified by the World Health Organization as one of the Top 5 Most Debilitating Disorders plaguing our children, and people in general. There is HELP!  Amazing help, in the form of what is called EXPOSURE AND RESPONSE PREVENTION THERAPY.  If your child shows signs of any OCD behaviors, take in this thought-provoking and informative interview with Paul Peterson, CEO and Founder of several OCD and Anxiety Treatment Centers in the United States. RESOURCES: https://platform.who.int/mortality/themes/theme-details/topics/indicator-groups/indicator-group-details/MDB/obsessive-compulsive-disorder https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/obsessive-compulsive-disorder/what-is-obsessive-compulsive-disorder https://www.theocdandanxietytreatmentcenter.com/ocd-treatment-lp-new/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAwP6sBhDAARIsAPfK_wY9Qrd780kFKdn0fedrMsPfe_EhU0FEkw5MVdmGafDisMXzc6ayKigaAsosEALw_wcB

Do you want to save your child from a lot of depression and anxiety? Dina Alexander, founder of Educate and Empower Kids, shares 3 tools for empowering our children who are growing up in a porn culture.   Research shows that pornography changes thought processes, inluding thoughts about other human beings.  It also affects decision making, conditions the brain that no means yes, and causes confusion about relationships, intimacy and sexuality. "Be Prepared, Not Scared" in talking about sex with our kids, delaying phones/social media, and teaching about dangers that exist online.   Educate and Empower Kids: https://educateempowerkids.org/ Raising Strong Kids in a Porn Culture: https://youtu.be/bc8GRxGXBFY?si=KJU15PMIxod6EJPm   30 Days of Sex Talks (ages 3-7) by Dina Alexander: https://www.amazon.com/Days-Sex-Talks-Ages-3-7/dp/1736721577 30 Days of Sex Talks (ages 8-11) by Dina Alexander: https://www.amazon.com/Days-Sex-Talks-Ages-8-11/dp/B0CGL24VM6/ref=pd_bxgy_img_d_sccl_1/133-6423440-7752357?pd_rd_w=64wu2&content-id=a 30 Days of Sex Talks (12 and up) by Dina Alexander: https://educateempowerkids.org/product/30-days-of-sex-talks-for-ages-12-empowering-your-child-with-knowledge-of-sexual-intimacy-volume-3/  

Justin Berube, award-winning domestic trial attoney of Farr, Cragun and Berube Law Firm, answers many commonly asked questions surrounding why litigating may or not be best to helping you protect your kids and family during the difficult process of divorce.  He describes how to choose an attorney that's best for you, how to avoid common mistakes parents make, the role of a guardian ad litem, the process of custody evaluations including how classroom teachers are involved.   RESOURCES: FARR, CRAGUN & BERUBE LAW FIRM https://www.utah-lawfirm.com/ PAY OFF A CHILD'S SCHOOL LUNCH MONEY DEBT: @elementaryschooled or contact your local school district to choose an elementary school of your choice.  For $10.50 you can pay for a child's school lunch for one week.  Thank you for your generosity!  

What if we told you there are 3 plans we choose from in trying to get a child (or anyone) to do something we want them to do?  In this interview, learn about "Plan B," the winner for improving behavior. Dr. Stuart Ablon, Founder and Director of Think: Kids in the Department of Psychiatry at Boston Massachusetts General Hospital, shares this Plan B "recipe" with simple ingredients that can be used in any classroom or home.  It works! "Kids Lack SKILL not WILL" "Kids Do Well if They Can" Resources: Think: Kids https://thinkkids.org/ Collaborative Problem Solving https://thinkkids.org/cps-overview/    

Are you a parent who feels burdened by your student's lunch debt?  Are you a teacher seeing kids who come to school hungry?  Are you a community member who wants to help keep our kids fed and doing well in school? Kathleen Britton, Director of Child Nutrition Programs for the Utah State Board of Education shares the resources and application process to help families feel less burdened with school lunch debt.  She also updates us on what is being done in Utah, similar to other states, who has over 1.7 million dollars in school lunch debt! PLEASE take a moment to contribute $10.50 to pay off a week's worth of lunch debt at two Utah elementary schools in Tooele School District, to help relieve the burden of these families. VENMO @elementaryschooled   https://www.schools.utah.gov/CNP https://www.schools.utah.gov/cnp/asp https://www.utfarmtofork.org/#:~:text=The%20Utah%20Farm%20to%20Fork,fork%20activities%20and%20shared%20projects. https://www.fns.usda.gov/sbp/school-breakfast-program https://www.fns.usda.gov/nslp https://www.schools.utah.gov/cnp/sso https://www.schools.utah.gov/cnp/smphttps://www.fns.usda.gov/tefap/emergency-food-assistance-program https://house.utleg.gov/rep/CLANCT/

How can we meet the needs of all elementary students when there is such a variety of learning styles and personalities in each classroom and home? Gloria Taylor, a seasoned teacher for over 40 years, shares refreshing practices that are working to meet the needs of high achieving, average, and strugglign students, including helping them dump their "nervous energy." Gloria's dynamic style and methods have fostered academic and emotional progress for her students in both the classroom and also in her learning center for tutoring and enrichment, which she has led for the past 20 years.    

Are we over the top sports parents, or keeping ourselves together on the sidelines? Are we pushing our kids too hard, or not enough? How do we find our child's niche? How does being part of a team benefit our kids? Coach Brad Thurber was nominated by YOU to walk us through the answers to these questions and more.

Dr. Michele Borba, author of UnSelfie: Why Empathetic Kids Succeed in an All-About-Me World, explains that narcissism is up by 58% and empathy is down by 40% over the last two decades. How can we help our kids in a world that values "me" more than "we?"  The answers are surprisingly simple:  1- Teach empathy, 2- Practice empathy, and 3- Live empathy.  Dr. Borba shares small and simple ways we can do this in daily moments.  Her behavioral studies and examples in this book and in this interview give great hope that we can turn this around! Find Dr. Borba on Youtube in one of her interviews on the Today Show, Dr. Phil, Dateline, The View, NBC Nightly news, Dr. Oz, Anderson Cooper, MSNBC, Fox & Friends, The Early Show, The Doctors, and CNN. RESOURCES: https://micheleborba.com/ https://www.amazon.com/UnSelfie-Empathetic-Succeed-All-About-Me-World/dp/1501110071 https://us.rootsofempathy.org/ https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=michele+borba+today+show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWAPs9LZVFQ&t=163s

Utah parents and educators put "safety and security" as the number one concern, priority and focus as students head back to school for the 2023-24 schoolyear.  This interview sheds light on the updates, commitment and dedication of the Utah School Security Task Force as Randy Watt, CEO of SRW (security company) walks us through the behind the scenes efforts and actions being made to keep our kids protected at school. Randy Watt has combined his 36 years of experience in the police force and 33 years (and 10 months) of active duty in the military, together to help Utah, and other states, create SECURE and SAFE schools in 3 ways: 1- Physical Measures, 2- Technology, 3- Personnel Training/Activities. *Stay tuned for the end of this interview for some of the pre-interview chit chat where Randy gives great life advice with his enthusiasm, optimism, and tips for success. https://www.srwinc.us/who-we-are/ https://safeut.org/ https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0061.html

Have you wondered if your child has a learning difference (disability)?  What if you knew it might just be a matter of how ipad/device scrolling has changed your child's eye tracking movements?  Many teachers, like myself, see the difference in how students now struggle with regular left to right reading and tracking patterns.  The program highlighted in this interview can help with this, and any other neurological processes that could possibly be getting in the way of your child's learning abilities. If you are discouraged or looking for possible ways to help your child, the mix of physiological and neurological therapy is one path that has helped countless students over the last 30 plus years.   It can be frustrating to have your child on a waiting list to get help with a neurologist psychologist or other specialist, let alone the time and expense this may take. There are many paths to helping a child with learning differences! In this interview, Robbie and Fifi Clayton of "Learning Technics" (learningtechnics.com), share the personal journey of their own child and how the success of this program led to her improcements and achievements, and getting her skills up to grade level. **This is an online program.  If you wish to try it out, USE THE PROMOCODE "SCHOOLED10" to receive 10 percent off.  Go to Learningtechnics.com    

What are the best ways to support a military connected student and their families? Jenn Rupp, a military educational therapist, knows the life of deployments, moves, making and re-making new friends all too well as she grew up as a "military brat" as she says, and is also married to a marine who she supported as he served all around the world for 27 years.  In this interview, Jenn helps us understand how challenging it can be for children moving around, re-rooting themselves in different schools, and/or experiencing deployment of a parent(s).   Jenn shares 3 of her many strategies for helping children through the anxiety that many of these moves or parent deployments create in a child, and also shares great resources listed here: https://dmna.ny.gov/family/docs/education https://www.militarychild.org/

Is your child extra smart?  Does your child get bored at school?  How do you challenge a high level thinker at home or in the classroom?  What options are available for kids who may have become "turned off" because regular classroom work is too easy for them? Meet exceptional teacher, Lyn Manning, who teaches in a fourth grade high ability classrooom.  In this interview, she gives great advice to parents and teachers for challenging kids who come with high critical thinking skills.  Ms. Manning also talks about the pros and cons of having an advanced learner. https://www.lexialearning.com/?utm_campaign=21_LDG_C0_-_TOF_-_Remarketing_Aug_US_PPC&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=PPC&utm_content= https://k12.kendallhunt.com/program/project-m3-mentoring-mathematical-minds-grades-3-6 https://www.secondstep.org/ https://www.google.com/search?q=passion+projects+for+kids&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS1017US1021&oq=passion+projects+for+kids&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i512j0i22i30l2j0i390l4.11782j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Meet children's author, Shelly Brown!  Shelly is the enthusiastic and witty author behind Ghostsitter, and the co-author with her husband Chad Morris, of Mustaches for Maddie, Squint, Willa and the Whale, Virtually Me, and also The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry, coming out this summer. Shelly's books share strong messages of bravery, compassion, friendship, mourning loss, trust, and accepting yourself and others, which makes all who read these stories feel lighter on their feet. In this interview, Shelly shares her advice on how to get kids excited to read, read, read and write, write, write!   https://shadowmountain.com/author-book/shelly-brown/ http://www.mustachesformaddie.com/ http://www.shellybrownwriter.com/about-the-author.html

Did you know that 19% of our students are NOT showing up every day? (this is a Utah Statistic but it is similar to neighboring states).  Absenteeism is a growing problem throughout the nation's classrooms. This interview with (Utah) State Board of Education Prevention Specialist, Amy Steele-Smith, helps us understand the following: How to help our most missed students--Kindergartners!  Full day Kindergarten might be the solution. How to help an anxious child feel supported and needed at school, one step at at time. How to take that family vacation, but give the message to your kids that school is a high priority. RESOURCES: Prevention and Student Services - Utah State Board of Education https://www.schools.utah.gov/prevention/absenteeismdropout Attendance Works https://www.attendanceworks.org/