GoodFitFam

PRs, PB and the fun pursuit

Teaching Vocabulary With Chapter Books

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We are always looking for chapter books that appeal to our 6-year-old twin boys for shared book reading.

Whether it’s on the couch, in the hammock or a bedtime story. We can’t get enough of a good series that keeps us looking forward to what’s going to happen next.

We’re super excited for the upcoming 4th book of Upside Down Magic, Dragon Overnight by Sarah Mlynowski,‎ Lauren Myracle, and‎ Emily Jenkins

The fourth book came out January 30th.  If you haven’t read the first 3, we highly recommend it. The Upside Down Magic series is about a group of misfits that learns to foster, embrace, and celebrate their differences.
Nory can’t control her wonky magic and turns herself into a dritten (yes a dragon/kitten hybrid) instead of a perfectly formed cat.
After many misadventures, she learns being out of the ordinary is extraordinary. It’s a great read to support kids who are just starting school and provides teachable moments for embracing differences in learning styles and abilities.

Looking to amplify learning from shared book reading? Here is a research-based strategy to explicitly teach vocabulary, it’s called Text Talk. I use this with my kids, preschoolers, and Kindergarteners. It’s easy and fun, the kids eat it up!

Find a Tier 2 word to teach your children.

Once you find a Tier 2 word:

  1. Contextualize the word.
  2. Provide a simple definition of the word.
  3. Have the child(ren) repeat the word.
  4. Take turns using the word in different context with your child(ren).

This is just one of the many fun teaching activities you can use with children to increase their success and enjoyment with literacy. You can learn more by registering to take the Building Blocks of Literacy workshop at http://www.buildingblocksforliteracy.org/

 

 

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Teaching Social Thinking With Graphic Novels

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Graphic novels are a great way to teach adolescents and adults social communication. Lorena Alvarez’s brilliant graphic novel, NightLights, demonstrates subtle but complex nonverbal language. The novel’s captivating visuals paint a landscape rich with social interactions. Did you know 84% of our communication is non-verbal language? It’s the downfall of using text messages when trying to start a romantic relationship.

From NightLights by Lorena Alvarez

 

Scenes such as the one above demonstrated the hidden rules of social communication. These are the rules we don’t talk about but are supposed to know. There are a number of distinct social interactions we can pull from this single scene.  They range from positive to negative, and some ambiguous ones up for interpretation.
For example, Who is already in trouble? Who is about to get into trouble?
Who has exciting news and how do we know?
Which girl is interested in hearing this exciting news?
This artwork pairs emotion with explicit tone via text.
Nightlights follows a young girl struggling to find confidence and fighting off negativity. There is a distinct similarity yet opposition in the metaphoric character, Morfie. A subtle distinction that introduces internal perspectives. The possibilities for teaching social communication and thinking are endless.

The story is a gripping metaphor. Vague enough for many readers to layer their own personal experiences. There are many graphic novels to choose from for all ages but Nightlights deserves to be highlighted. I have used this one with a wide range of clients. It has captured their attention as well as mine time and time again; allowing for repeated exposure which provides scaffolding opportunities and application of learned skills.

A masterpiece in graphic novel literature and therapeutic materials!
Enjoy!!!!
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Dinner Time Dichotomy

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Dinner time is no easy feat for families with children. It starts the day they’re born when they sleep all day and then become colicky when it’s time for the parents to eat dinner. Then comes toddlerhood when they do everything with the food but eat it. Food is on the floor, the ceiling, in their hair and every crevice that’s impossible to clean but not in their mouths. Preschoolers aren’t much better; this is when they decide to assert their independence by saying, “I don’t like it.”

It’s no wonder parents wave the white flag and become short order cooks by making separate meals each night. One meal that ensures Child #1 will eat and another meal that Child #2 will eat, plus one for the parents.  It feels like it takes three meals in one night for it to feel like a successful dinner.

Successful family dinners are not meant to please everyone. The reality is to plan and cook one well-balanced meal, regardless of your families response (rejection). Here’s how:

  1. Be authoritative and set the menu, allowing input from family members.
  2. Family-style meals, keeping it simple.
  3. Stick to the meal time structure, if the kids choose to pass on dinner remind them it is their choice not to eat.
  4. If your child chooses something else, have them make it themselves. Remember, being authoritative means you provide the what (nutritious foods), they choose the how much and whether not.

The more you accommodate personal preferences, the more unsuccessful mealtime becomes. The variety of meals shrinks and parents quickly fall into a rut. Parents who cater to each family member inadvertently create a meal time dichotomy of we eat this, and the kids eat that.  If you’re finding yourself in this stressful situation then I highly recommend the following resource:

Fearless Feeding is a book about childhood nutrition that will calm and empower parents, provide step-by-step feeding guidance at every child development stage and teach parents the skills they need to get healthy meals on the table fast.

Bon appetite!

Go Strong Mamas!

 

BONUS:  We love Gordon Ramsey’s YouTube channel, he’s generous with tips and advice as well as incredible recipes.  Here’s a recent one where he shares some delicious lunch recipes for kids.

 

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Getting Kids to Try New Foods

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Getting kids to try new foods is no simple feat. From neophobia (fear of new foods) to erratic appetites and asserting their independence, kids will find a reason to say, NO. Trying to change the routine of hearing your child say, “No, I don’t like that” or “I’m scared of green beans” entails introducing an improved replacement routine.

The practice of food exploration, without the expectation of actually eating, provides your child the opportunity to create neural pathways required to accept new varieties of food. In other words playing with food is learning how to eat.

Afraid of wasting food? If you’re afraid of wasting food, then your demands are too high and you run the risk of overwhelming your child. Food exploration should involve a single food item or a minimal amount. Food exploration for younger babies and toddlers is known as developmental food play but as kids grow, food exploration needs to become more sophisticated. Here is an example of a food exploration routine we play on a weekly basis in our house. It keeps the neural pathways pruned for developing palates, as well as our own.

We call it the MYSTERY FOOD GAME. 

1. To play the Mystery Food Game, go to a market with an extensive produce section.

2. Have your kids pick a food they are unable to identify from the peripheral of the grocery store.

3. If your children are new to this game, establish that there is no expectation to eat it. 

4. Take it home and google the food. Watch an intriguing video (thanks to youtube), and learn about the food.

5. Have your kids interact with the food by cutting, peeling, or opening. Whatever interaction opportunity the food presents on its own.


Getting Kids to Try New FoodsThe boys exploring Jamaican Ugli Fruit

The “Mystery Food Game” plays many roles in fostering a positive relationship with food for your kids. First, it empowers them to make the choice and be in control. They love and need both of those things when it comes to trying new food.

Kids learn to shop the peripheral where all the nutrient dense foods live. In turn, kids receive more nutrition! Kids who don’t feel the pressure to eat are more relaxed, feel safer and are more willing to eat. Given time and repeated exposure kids learn how to eat through their senses.

Learning to eat becomes a positive experience. When the expectations are lifted the stress goes with it. When kids feel relaxed, appetite increases. When kids feel stressed, appetite decreases. Learning about new food prepares them. Kids who interact with their food learn how to accept the new food through their senses. Hence, developing their neural pathways to accept a variety of flavors!

If you’re reading this and thinking, my kid won’t get past step 2 of this game. You may want to check out TINY TASTES developed by Dr. Lucy Cook in the link below. TINY TASTES involves giving children a taste of a very small amount of a new or disliked food every day for up to 15 days in exchange for a sticker reward.

GO STRONG!

http://www.lucycooke.net/tiny-tastes
Dr. Lucy Cook is a Chartered Psychologist and Child Feeding Specialist, her research focus has been on children’s eating behavior. Her principal area of interest is the development and modification of children’s eating habits with a particular focus on developing interventions to help parents of children with eating and feeding difficulties.
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