A busy mom's take

by Megan Gladwell:

For me, it seems that my time revolves around sweeping the floors, doing laundry, filling the refrigerator and feeding my starving teenagers. I relish the moments that I can escape into the pages of a good book.

Since my free time is somewhat limited, I have to be choosy about how to spend it. I don't want to waste my time on reality TV or silly novels, but sometimes I do. Those things can be a fun diversion. However, I have to remind myself that time is precious and there are always better options.

How can busy parents continue to learn and stretch their intellect?

• Cozy up to a great book. Nonfiction options such as biographies or historical fiction provide intriguing and educational reads.

• Study the history of a vacation spot. Learn about the landmarks, rulers or architecture of places you visit.

• If you're really motivated, take a college course on an interesting topic, learn to play a musical instrument or pick up a foreign language.

How can we teach our children to be lifelong learners? Our kids notice what we do, and they usually follow our examples. When we get excited about learning new things and make it fun, our kids are likely to join in.

• Pull out a word or trivia board game such as Scrabble or Trivial Pursuit.

• Share with your kids interesting current events, both local and across the globe.

• Watch a cool news video together - about the new species of tarantulas recently discovered in Sri Lanka, for example.

I have a friend whose dinnertime discussions revolve around politics. Her tiny preschoolers know the names of the top U.S. government officials. Both she and her husband follow politics incessantly, and they have ensured that their kids are knowledgeable about our government and political process.

We can help our kids become learners. Likewise, as adults there are countless topics to brush up on.

A teacher's take

by Cheryl Fugal:

As a schoolteacher for 24 years, I came across all kinds of learners and non-learners. Every so often I would hear, "This is boring."¯ I was fortunate to teach earth science classes where most of the time I could draw my students in with volcanoes, earthquakes or space travel. I didn't often hear, "This is boring,"¯ but when I did I always pointed to a poster I had on the wall of my classroom. The poster said, "The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity."¯ (Dorothy Parker)

In this day of the Internet, Google and Wikipedia, we have the world and the answers to all our questions as near as our computers. Small children are naturally curious, but this is something that needs to be cultivated as a child grows. Parents, teachers and grandparents can all have a hand in stimulating this natural inborn curiosity. For example:

• Show interest when a child shows you a rock or a lizard or anything that you can learn more about together. One of our daughters growing up had a natural curiosity about rocks. We bought her a rock polisher and encouraged her to learn more about the rocks she collected. Teach children that learning new things is fun.

This applies to adults, as well. As adults we can cultivate our minds to be curious about what we read and see and experience.

• Read books, do crosswords, learn new skills, keep abreast of what's going on in the world. You are never too old to learn. While doing church service in England, my husband and I worked with people at the British National Archives, helping them do family history. We had people well into their 80s learning how to use a computer so they could learn about their family.

As my classroom poster said, "The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity."¯

A lifelong learner's take

by Ken Fugal:

Having an ongoing interest and curiosity in things is an important aspect to lifelong learning. We have wonderful access to information that we only dreamed of a few years ago. We can now look up most any topic of information on the Internet. For example, I recently was reminded of Jedediah Smith's travels and discoveries in the American West in the early 1800s, so I got online and found a highly recommended book about him, ordered it and read it. It was fascinating to read about his explorations, the areas he traveled and the adventures he had.

Here are some thoughts for both and adults and children:

• Be careful and don't let easy information or TV shows substitute for in-depth reading and learning.

• We all want to be good conversationalists. When we hear others talk about a subject, we should be stimulated by their knowledge (or lack of) to learn more about that topic or an associated one. So, I suppose being a good listener comes into the picture, as well.

• Reading a lot helps us gain knowledge. It can stimulate us to read more about another topic brought up in the article or book we've read. For example, if the article refers to a country or culture, we should be interested enough to learn more about that subject.

• We should never let things such as old age or being scorned keep us from our desire to learn.

The post How to be a lifelong learner appeared first on FamilyToday.

I am a lucky mom. With four kids, it's nice to have two sets of grandparents willing to take the reins and babysit once in a while. Fortunately, after many weekends and even weeks-long babysitting gigs, the grandparents still speak to the kiddos, shower them with Christmas gifts and send the obligatory birthday cards. So everyone still seems to like each other ... even love each other.

As a parent, I gladly relinquish my duties when my kids are under their grandparents' care. Of course it helps that I trust them, but I don't mind at all when my parents or in-laws appropriately discipline my kids. I would never want them to feel hesitant to reprimand my kids; after all, they are doing me a favor. As soon as my husband and I are out the door, they are in loco parentis.

After our occasional weekends away, however, my husband and I sometimes get the feeling that the grandparents are reticent to share any issues or problems that arose from our kids. It can be a little difficult to believe that all went picture perfect, or my mom is just extremely nice and forgiving.

With little prodding, I have convinced my parents to spill the beans. They describe how they really feel about disciplining their grandchildren. I believe they offer some wise and practical counsel for both grandparents and parents everywhere.

Grandpa's turn

Grandparents always like the grandkids to have an enjoyable time while visiting. So if it is for a day or less, discipline may be mild because we won't have them again for a while and we wantĀ  the kids to leave feeling good.

If the stay will be longer than a day, grandparents need to have similar rules as the parents, and they should be explained so there are no surprises. Discipline should be enforced because as we know, most kids will test the waters. Kids will assume that discipline will be more lax because their parents are not around. Once the kids understand that there are indeed guidelines and rules with the grandparents, discipline shouldn't be as hard to administer, assuming the grandparents will be fair and consistent - and not give in.

If the stay with the grandparents is lengthy, the kids need to have chores, bedtimes, TV limits, good eating habits, etc. Also, the kids are probably dealing with a lot of changes. Hopefully the grandparents will look for ways to talk to and give comfort to the grandkids depending on what they are going through.

Grandma's turn

Every summer I look forward to our grandchildren's overnights. We have 18 grandchildren that we divide into three groups. This is a time we can indulge, pamper and spoil in a way parents wouldn't dare - eating fun stuff, staying up late, having "Christmas in July,"¯ and those kinds of activities. There is a special connection between grandparents and grandchildren that is different from that between parent and child.

Discipline does become a little slack but this is something every child needs in small doses. I remember as a young girl being treated like a very important guest by my Grandma Rose when I went to stay. When I think of Grandma Rose, I remember her special chocolate chip cookies and how she made me feel so important.

On the other hand, children need boundaries. If our grandchildren are staying with us longer than overnight, discipline needs to be consistent with what happens at home. Parents should communicate their expectations to Grandma and Grandpa and tell their children who will be in charge. Grandparents should use typical ways to discipline (timeouts, loss of privileges, etc.) but never shout or use physical force.

Several years ago at the end of an overnight, we were getting ready to take the children home. I asked everyone to use the bathroom before we left. One of our twin granddaughters, aboutĀ 5 years old at the time, got a funny look on her face and said, "Who do you think you are? You're not my mother!"¯ I responded something to the effect, "No, but your mom is not here and I'm in charge."¯ She said OK and went to the bathroom.

I think it's great that grandparents are there to reinforce the actions of the parents. It's especially good that children learn before they enter school that there may be other adults in their lives who will be setting rules and boundaries. It really helps if there is consistency between the adults who influence the lives of children.

The post When Mom’s away the kids will play: How to discipline a grandchild appeared first on FamilyToday.