Will The View and The Chew Be Replaced in 2012?

Posted on January 1, 2012 by viviankirkfield

Suicide rates in this country are alarming.

Domestic violence and child abuse stories are reported by the media every day.

People are angry and frustrated about foreign policy, the economy and lack of decent health care.

Tempers flare on roadways and in department stores and post offices.

A disconnect is taking place in every level of our society. Husbands and wives don’t communicate with each other. Parents don’t communicate with their children. Children don’t communicate with parents, siblings and classmates.

Perhaps we are descending into an electronic black hole where people will no longer know how to talk to each other face-to-face. Everywhere you look fingers are flying on computers and electronic devices.

Television shows like The View and The Chew attempt to enable viewers to simulate sitting down with friends or family members and chatting about what is happening or how they are feeling.

The simulation is not working and people need to rediscover how to communicate with one another.

Perhaps The View should be replaced by The Clue, a show with a panel of parenting experts who address the problem of communication between family members, friends and co-workers. Learning how to communicate includes knowing how to listen as well as knowing when to talk and what to say.

The Chew is a fairly new show that adds cooking activities to the celebrity chatter. How about replacing it with The Do, a show where the hosts and a small group of children read a picture book story, do a quick and easy craft project and prepare a healthful child-friendly recipe together. Children watching the show at home would enjoy hearing the story and observing the kids on TV interacting with each other. Parents at home would see how valuable such simple activities can be in building self-esteem, developing reading readiness skills and providing their children with a fun-filled day. These are the same activities parents and teachers will find in my award-winning book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking. To ring in the New Year, we are offering FREE SHIPPING on our website if you order a copy of the book in the next thirty days.

Do you want to start off the year building your child’s self-esteem and developing your child’s literacy skills? The book is endorsed by parents, educators, self-esteem experts and national organizations such as the JDRF and will give you great story suggestions and quick and easy activities. Grab a copy now and make 2012 a fun-filled self-esteem building year for your family.

Will The View be replaced by The Clue? Will TV sponsors opt for The Do instead of The Chew? That probably won’t happen. But parents can take some simple steps in 2012:

Sit down together as a family for dinner every night (or as often as possible).
Plan a family talk and listen time…some families have a talking stick…whoever is holding the stick is the one who has the floor.
Work on family projects together…everyone should be responsible for certain chores…even young children.
Arrange special events that the whole family can enjoy that don’t cost a lot of money…a nature hike to a local park where everyone helps pick up litter; a summer picnic of sandwiches and lemonade on a blanket in the living room in the middle of the winter.

How do you promote good communication in your family? I’d love to hear.

Building Your Child’s Self Esteem (shareitforward.ca)

A Christmas Memory

Posted on November 30, 2011 by viviankirkfield

Image via Wikipedia

One of the best things about blogging is reading the posts of others.

There are some really super cool writers out in the blogosphere.

I meet new friends and learn new things all the time.

The other day, I discovered Things I Want to Tell My Mother, heartfelt posts written by a woman whose mother has Alzheimer’s. Please take the time to visit her blog, especially if you are a mother or a daughter…you will be glad you did.

Marylin, the author of that wonderful blog, is having a contest and is asking for posts of one hundred words on Christmas memories with your mother or grandmother. Since I lived with my grandmother for many years, my Christmas memory will be about this special lady who was a role model for positive parental participation long before spending quality time with young children was considered crucial to building self-esteem.

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Baking for Christmas

As soon as I opened my eyes that morning, I knew it was going to be a special day. The delicious aroma of apples and cinnamon filled the little bedroom I shared with my older sister. This was the day before Christmas, and although my parents and sister were still sleeping, I knew that someone was already awake. I tiptoed down the stairs and entered the old-fashioned kitchen. My grandmother’s words were welcoming and her flour-dusted arms enfolded me in a loving hug. “There you are, Vivian. I’ve been waiting for you. Come and help me make these apple pies.”

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Memories like this one encouraged me to use cooking activities with my own children, the children in my daycare and as part of the self-esteem building activities in Show Me How! Allowing kids to help prepare food builds true self-esteem as they master tasks and skills in the kitchen. It also encourages fussy eaters to try new foods…if a child has helped prepare a meal; he or she is more likely to eat it. Or, at least try it. Here’s a cool tip: my niece who is a clinical psychologist, encourages her children to take a “no thank you” bite of every food that is being served. They know that if they really don’t like it, they can try it and say, “no thank you” and they won’t have to finish the portion. Experts say that it takes at least seven tries before we develop a taste for certain foods…so just because a child doesn’t like something the first time he tries it, doesn’t mean you should never serve it.

I’ve got several school and library programs coming up this week and next and I am really excited about sharing the picture book stories and craft projects from Show Me How! This is a back-to-basics program that builds self-esteem, develops better literacy skills and strengthens the parent-child connection.

Please pass the word and help others get on the back-to-basics bandwagon. This will definitely be the gift that keeps on giving, long after many of the toys you buy have been discarded.

NO BATTERIES REQUIRED…POWERED BY YOUR CHILD’S IMAGINATION

SHOW ME HOW! NOW ONLY $19.95

Show-Me-How Story-time with Miss Vivian Travels to New Hampshire

Posted on October 8, 2011 by viviankirkfield

What an awesome time to be traveling to New England.

I’ll be flying to New Hampshire tomorrow and I can’t wait to gaze out the window of the plane, down at the magnificient fall folliage…scarlets, magentas, golds…the tree-tops will look like a bejewled crown of a Russian tsarina.

My grandson will be celebrating his third birthday and I am looking forward to taking long walks with him down to the pond where we love to select the perfect pebbles and toss them in. Of course, there will be plenty of opportunity to use the Show-Me-How program…I know Jeremy will be thrilled to read lots of picture books, do simple craft projects and work together in the kitchen, preparing easy healthful recipes.

I’m also excited about this trip because I will be bringing the Show-Me-How Story-time with Miss Vivian program to the Tollhouse Preschool in Merrimack, NH. I’ll be reading Yes We Can by Sam McBratney to the three year old preschool group and doing a leaf tracing craft project with them. I’m coming prepared with a bag full of leaves…but I’m sure there will be plenty available on the school grounds.

Why is it so important to read to young children? Reading to young children:

Builds self-esteem
Develops pre-literacy skills
Stengthens the parent-child connection
Allows them to relate their experiences to those in the story
Provides wonderful opportunities for parent-child discussions

The craft and cooking activities included in my book help extend this learning experience. What a wonderful gift to give any parent or teacher of young children! Please visit my website for online specials.