ParentMap, November 2012 Issue

Published on: October 28, 2012

ParentMap, Novermber 2012

The trees are barely bare, but already we're thinking snow! There is something about the freshness of a new season that brings out the best of us and our majestic Northwest. We have everything you need to get prepped, from tips for putting the smallest kids on skis to secret spots for family snowshoe fun.

The turning of the season also brings space for reflection and looking forward. Our feature story, about raising kids to be leaders, invites you ponder the meaning of success and the incredible potential of all our children.

Families are already thinking about the holiday season, and our unique story about 13 gifts that give back will inform and inspire you.

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Read the entire issue online, or scroll down for links and cool online-only content.

 

Ages & Stages:
0-3 Meeting Developmental Milestones: Is Your Baby on Track?
4-7 Play Nice! Helping Your Child Include Others
8-12 Tween 'Tudes: Five Bad Habits We Could Live Without
13-18 Teaching Generation Text: Real Writing in a Virtual World

Someone You Should Know: Justin (Tim) Mills, superintendent of the Bellevue School District

Feature: Learning to Lead: Raising Leaders for a Global World

Out & About: Three snow-filled guides for Slip-Slidin' Seattle Area Winter Fun: Skiing & Snowboarding; Ice Skating; and Snowshoeing

Regulars:
Postings
Giving Together
Green Bites
Women's Wellness


Publisher's Note

Raising upstanders

“We need not just a new generation of leadership but a new gender of leadership” — Bill Clinton

We’re about to get a reprieve from the onslaught of millions of messages full of political puffery. Billions of dollars in political advertising have been spent to convince us of who the best leader is. Hopefully, the character traits of the “winners” are ones we want to model for our children. Our understanding of what makes great leaders continues to evolve, incorporating advances in our knowledge of social and emotional intelligence and brain science. Thankfully, compassion, communication, conflict management and honesty continue to lead the way. Not everyone can be a leader. Does that mean most of us will raise followers? 

When my daughter came home from school talking about being an “upstander,” I was sure she was confused.

“You mean ‘bystander’?”

“No,” I was told.

My then-second-grader (today entering the tween ’tude age) explained that when a classmate is being bullied and you do nothing, you’re a bystander. “Upstanders,” conversely, “step in,” taking positive action to help others and setting an example with their good character.

I love that her school’s leadership prioritizes character building as a critical component of every student’s education.

We should seize the frequent opportunities to reinforce upstander behavior. Focusing on character development as early as age 4 or 5 will help “build a pipeline for young leaders” just when they are learning about consequences. Note the five simple tactics of raising leaders with character, especially my favorite, “Create a sense of greater purpose.”

Greater purpose is why we present "13 ideas for gifts that give back." The approaching season of giving abounds with opportunities to engage kids in support of microlending, creating livelihoods for families and protecting animals. It’s a feel-good experience for all.

In our ongoing quest to provide you with essential information, we’ve added Family Health, where issues from daycare germs to sports injuries will consistently find a home. Our women-focused column, previously called Mind + Body, is now titled Women’s Wellness. “Beat the holiday bulge” urges us to be “diet wise and pound shrewdish” — so that while baking butter balls, we do not become one.

Fun is yours to embrace while fighting the holiday bulge with winter skiing, skating and more to fit your family’s sense of adventure.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours,

 —Alayne

 

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