When your child shows up for that first martial arts class, you become a “sports parent”. Most of us relish our time as parents and strive to make the most of this wonderful adventure. However, there are those who give sports and parents a bad name. So what can you do to avoid becoming sidelined monster? Follow some basic common sense rules.
1. Start the day right. Yes, have a good healthy breakfast and carry healthy snacks and drinks, but more importantly, start the day in the proper frame of mind. Keep it light and positive on the drive to the event. When you arrive, you may quickly go over anything that needs to be gone over, but remembers the words, “I love you.” And remember, on the return trip, give your child time to absorb the win or defeat. Don’t criticize everything.
How to Make Health and Wellness part of your Family’s Lifestyle
Posted: May 17, 2019
By Master Christopher Rappold
As adults, we are responsible for our lifestyle choices and in many cases, our children’s lifestyles. Whether or not our children get enough exercise and eat healthy foods has a lot to do with the example we set for them and the choices we provide them with.
According to USA Today, the percentage of children who are overweight has doubled in the last 20 years! But don’t blame the kids. Keith Ayoob, an associate Professor of pediatrics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine says, “I never see a child who has better eating habits than his parents. ”Children eat the foods that are served to them or what is easily available at school or home. Family rules and routines can compromise exercise any time they like, but an eight-year-old more than likely requires supervision. Children have obstacles to overcome when it comes to lifestyle choices.
How To Acknowledge And Welcome All Your Experiences
Posted: May 17, 2019
Excerpt from the book “Be Your Personal Best: Confidence” written by Master Christopher Rappold
You is it! I know that’s bad grammar, but it is true. The mix of favorites and not so favorites, the good and the bad, the strengths and the weaknesses -- all add up to form who you are today. The exciting part about being human is that most things can be changed or improved.
Allow me to move to an analogy to illustrate the point I want to make. Let’s imagine you are carrying a piece of furniture down a narrow hallway. As you navigate the turn into a room you misjudge and catch your finger in between the furniture and the wall…Ouch. Has it ever happened to you? Well it’s happened to me and it hurts.
An important conversation to have with your child
Posted: May 17, 2019
By Master Christopher Rappold
I hope the school year is off to a great start for you and your children. No matter how good it is going, it is likely there will come a point when you are going to need to coach your child through a tough decision.
As many parents know, children and teens often times use the word “tattling” or “snitching to describe anyone telling an authority figure about any type of situation that occurred. Many times, instead of going to an adult, they simply keep what has happened a secret because they fear being made fun of or looked down on. The challenge is, without an interruption in the pattern of the bullying and the intervention from someone in a position of power, more than likely, it will continue.
What is your definition of bullying? It may not be the same we grew up with
Posted: May 17, 2019
By Master Christopher Rappold
An important realization for parents to make is that physical bullying accounts for less than 3 percent of the bullying that occurs in schools. The other 97 percent is psychological.
It’s vital that parents take the time to clearly define bullying to their children as being anything that is DONE REPETITIVELY and WITH INTENTION that makes children feel scared, pressured or down on themselves. What at times may seem innocent or “typical kid” behaviors that we as parents grew up with are actually the small seeds of where bullying and harassment occurs.