God-parenting

When a friend or relative asks you to be a godparent, it’s quite an honor. It can be so flattering that too many people are quick to accept without truly considering the other side of being a godparent: the responsibilities.

Most of us know godparents as people who stand next to infants’ and toddlers’ beaming parents as priests/pastors prepare to baptize the children. Many godparents are mostly best friends with the child’s parents which may be a reason that some view god-parenting as more of an acknowledgement of parents’ good friend.

From the above statements, it comes across as though we have lost the real purpose and value of having godparents in our children's lives. The role of godparents has traditionally been more expansive than just supporting parents and children during the infant christening ceremony. Godparents are supposed to ensure the child's life is fulfilled religiously/spiritually and not just become more of a "second parent" to the child in the sense of being there for them, nurturing them, teaching them about life and so forth. Christian Essentials states that: when adults promise to be godparents, they are promising to do all in their power to support the child in his/her life in Christ.”

To fulfill their role as godparents, adults should regularly pray for children they have promised to godparent. They should also set a positive example for children and encourage children to continue in their faith, particularly during difficult times in the children’s live. They should view their role as public recognition of who can step in and help steer a child’s life, especially should parents struggle to raise their children in healthy, balanced ways.

If you truly want to take on that responsibility and be a great godparent, take time out to fully understand the role. Even people who are not christians still like to invite an adult mentor to be in a child’s life. The term godparent has become broader because of this, so it’s not necessarily always in reference to a specific religion. 

More than anything, your role is to be another person in that child’s life who the child can love and look up to for acceptance, support and guidance. You don’t have to be the smartest, richest or the most fun—in the long run, just be there for the kid. That’s going to make the most powerful difference in the child’s life. 

Be There....

Natural Parenting Through Touch

Small hands grasp your nose as you stare down at the little angel in your lap. You read exploration and amazement in your baby’s eyes as he/she scans your skin and features, tugging curiously at your ears and hair, even the occasional slaps they give which could hurt so bad. It may all seem like quiet, peaceful and sometimes painful fun, but the attachment your baby is making with you through touch is preparing his/her brain for a lifetime of learning.

As it is said that babies and kids who received regular massages from their parents reaped a number of benefits, such as better sleep, less anxiety and a stronger immune system, it also helps strengthen the bond between parent and child. Yup, that's what I said; massage!...Massage has been shown to help kids fall asleep faster and snooze more soundly. And that has a big payoff in the classroom...

Parents don't need to wait for children to come to them for touches, hugs, whole-body-scoops and kisses.  Being regularly physically affectionate with kids of all ages actually helps maintain the emotional connection they share with their parents.So as long as a child wants cuddles, parents should give them; you too daddy.

Parents should find ways to keep physical affection alive as kids get older. This keeps the parent-child bond strong. When that bond remains strong, challenging behavioural situations decrease and discipline becomes less intense overall. 

I remember suddenly falling ill one day while in secondary school, running a high temperature, I had to be taken home during school hrs (ofcourse I was happy I was missing school). Was in my room when my mum returned from her outing, sat right next to me on my bed and touched my face gently. With a reassuring smile on her face, I felt warmth and instantly well. As unbelievable as this sounds, it is fact. The Power Of Touch.

Some ways of being physically affectionate with kids on a regular basis include: Cuddles, Physical Play, Kisses and Hugs

Little ones need lots of picking up, holding and hugging.  As children grow and become more independent and social, opportunities for cuddling naturally diminish, and it becomes important for parents to take extra effort to find ways to physically connect with them. 

Reading to a child on the couch or in bed is a wonderful way to get close, as it invites leaning into, lying on, snuggling, touching, and arm-wrapping.  Even watching a TV show or movie (DVD 5 pands...hehehehe couldn't help myself) together is a great occasion to sit close and connect, even in daddies sacred den. 

So mummies and daddies, whether it’s a gentle squeeze or big hug, a cuddle or a kiss, your touch can be all that would make a difference in your little angels life.

Spread the mantra...

 

Means of Educating Children on the Fundamentals of Life (Sesame Street)

 

Soo, I was going through the Recent Updates on my bbm (blackberry messenger) and noticed a friend's update: "Sunny day sweeping the clouds away...on my way to where the air is sweet....can you tell me how to get, how to get to Sesame Street..."

Couldn't help but get a bit nostalgic...those were good ol' times when we were kids and had no worries. But thinking about it, what exactly made Sesame Street such a huge hit for us?

Sesame Street ran like this: it first introduced a situation story that would take the whole hour time slot to solve, and every now and then the story would cut to an animated alphabet or counting lesson, a humorous skit from Grover, Bert and Ernie, Cookie Monster, what-have-you. Who can forget "1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12" with the pinball machine? They used to count up to twenty. I even remember one segment where they went up to 40! I miss Mumford the Magician(aka peanut butter sandwiches!) and the honkers. These days they sometimes go past ten.... SMH
 
Sesame Street dealt with such issues as the death of a loved one. Goodbye, Mr. Hooper was one of the most amazing episodes of children's television ever broadcast because it made an effort to try and teach children about something so difficult that even live adults are often no help with it.

Other brilliant aspects of the show included using monsters to portray certain feelings or behaviours that the audience might be conflicted about. They had  Cookie Monster to show what a negative (but highly funny the way they presented it) appearance gluttony can bring. They had a grouchy monster to show the effects of an anti-social mentality. More "cute" monsters such as Grover were used to show things like fear or sadness. There was a good reason for all of this. Negative feelings are difficult enough for a child to understand, so having puppets to thoroughly explain them was very educational.

During every episode I saw, even Goodbye, Mr. Hooper, the adults were never condescending or smug. They never acted as if they had every answer. Instead, they told the monster, other puppet, or child characters a few useful tidbits and let these characters work things out for themselves

Unfortunately when it comes to children's television, a certain adherence to marketing over education have crept in over recent years. The greatness of such characters as Oscar or Grover was that they could appeal to children without needing to be cutesy. Oscar was a grump who appeared to have worked too many night shifts, while Grover seemed to be just a fearful but friendly guy trying to make his way in the world. Perfectly normal, ordinary people wrapped up in some very bizarre-looking trimmings, in other words. Nowadays, characters like Elmo seem so awfully sugarcoated that it makes me wonder if his audience is going to encounter problems in later life when they learn they cannot get by simply on acting cute.

Now we have characters like Elmo and that other one who is a bear with the speech impediment who always says, "Baby Beaw, Baby Beaw". Elmo has kids trying to teach a fish how to ride a bicycle???!!!
It makes me long for the days of Big Bird and Bert and Ernie. They talked up to kids and really educated them and spoke perfectly. They actually TAUGHT kids how to act! The show is horribly taken over by Elmo and that Bear and it is just sad to see. Jim Henson would be horrified with what this show has become. Plus, the viewers who were 2-5 years, would outgrow them and there would always be a new audience. Back in the day, the parents would be entertained by this once great show. Not anymore. Elmo, that whiny lisp, hmmm.
Sad to say but it seems Sesame Street has become nothing but an infomercial for Elmo dolls.

In my opinion, there was no need to make drastic changes. IT WAS PERFECT! I don't know who pulls the strings on this show these days, but I would like to implore them for the sake of future generations.
I might not be part of the audience anymore, but I do have nieces, nephews and second cousins who are. 

So would you say that the old way of educating children about the fundamentals of life is a much better one? Should we go back to it?

So they can read already??

 

             Your Baby Can Read! 

 

 Genre: Children's/Baby educational
Age range: Ages 3 months - 5 years

 

Who would have thought that you could get your child to read from such a tender age...I never thought this possible till I came across this educational DVD .

Your Baby Can Read! is an early language development system for infants and toddlers. The DVDs employ whole reading and some phonics to help babies learn language patterns during an optimal time when their brains are developing rapidly and are intensely focused on picking up language patterns.
Babies can learn the patterns of written language just as naturally and easily as they learn the patterns of spoken language. Often though, babies are not exposed to enough written language for this learning to occur.

Your Baby Can Read! DVDs are multi-sensory, meaning viewing children will learn through hearing, seeing, speaking, and moving. Kids are encouraged to learn through action as they clap, touch their ears, or raise their arms along with the babies and children on the screen. Children will also enjoy singing along with familiar songs and playing the word games at the end of each DVD.
The starter DVD and volumes 1-3 introduce new words and review previously learned words, with the fifth DVD being a review of over 160 words from the DVD set. Cool right... ;)

 The DVDs included in the Your Baby Can Read! system are well put together and of high quality. Words shown on the TV screen are clear and easy to read with effective animation that encourages kids to look at the words and read from left to right.
The images that correspond to the words incorporate many infant/toddler favorites such as footage of animals, babies, and other children, providing a fun and interesting foundation for the multi-sensory learning experience. Kids are able to hear the words and see both the word and the object or action denoted by the word. Viewing children are also encouraged to interact with the program.

The DVDs in the Your Baby Can Read! series, however, are some of the most effective interactive programs I have come across. There is still no guarantee kids will interact, but the clear directives are usually demonstrated by babies or kids on the screen, and kids love to mimic other kids.

The Your Baby Can Read! system contains five DVDs which are focused on helping babies and kids up to five years old learn to read by giving them a multi-sensory experience with heavy exposure to print.
Co-viewing the DVD with children is a great way to help them maintain interest and learn to respond to the questions and games. It can also be used as a bonding tool...

If interested in getting one for your child/children or as a gift, Sabel Angels can source it for you. You can simply leave a comment or send us an email.

Happy Viewing!!!