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Montgomery County Cooperative Extension
1015 Bridge Road, Suite H
Collegeville, PA 19426
Welcome to Toddler Topics Plus!
Our goal is to provide easy access to information that will help enhance parenting via tips, strategies and alternative actions that can brighten your child’s world. Whether you are reading this issue on-line or in print, we intend to bolster you when you’re tired, answer your questions when you’re confused and direct you to more details when needed.
Yours in caring for children,
Ellen Meanix Helfrick, Editor
UPDATE ON CHILDHOOD OBESITY
Jill N. Cox, MS, RD
Penn State Cooperative Extension Associate Specialist, Physical Activity & Nutrition,
Centre County
What are the concerns?
Childhood obesity rates have tripled since the 1970’s. The most recent statistics estimate that 19% of children ages 6-11 are overweight, as are 17% of adolescents. Children ages 2-5 years have also seen a significant increase and 15% are estimated to be overweight. Research shows that overweight children and adolescents are more likely to be overweight or obese as adults and that they are more likely to suffer from early heart disease, asthma, sleep apnea and social issues. Type II Diabetes, once unheard of in children, is now being seen with increasing regularity.
There are many factors affecting this alarming rise. The extent to which each variable may affect an individual child differs. Some of the more obvious are:
As multi-faceted as the contributing factors are, the solution to the overweight epidemic will not be simple either. Solutions are going to require efforts from caretakers, communities, schools and the home front.
What is a healthy weight for my child?
How do you determine if your child is overweight? And, if so, what then? Food issues can be tricky, especially with young children. Proceed cautiously so there’s not more harm than good accomplished.
A child’s weight is only one indicator of their health because children come in all shapes and sizes. Your pediatrician may determine the body mass index (BMI) and plot it on a gender specific growth chart developed by the Center for Disease Control. BMI is used differently for children than it is for adults. Results can be interpreted as follows:
Keep in mind that the body mass index is a screening tool for initial assessment of a child’s body fatness, but it is not a diagnostic measure since it is not a direct measure of body fat. Once the BMI has been determined, it is important to consult with your child’s pediatrician or a registered dietitian before making any changes.
How do I prevent my child from becoming overweight?
Parents must be a good role model. Making healthy choices as a family goes a long way in setting the stage for future habits for your children. There are several things to consider:
What if my child is already overweight?
First and foremost, consult with your child’s physician or a registered dietitian before any changes are made. Because children and adolescents are going through a significant growth time in their lives, weight loss is usually not a goal. In many cases, weight maintenance may be optimal to allow the child to grow into his or her body.
An important step is for the family to decide to work together to make healthier choices. Nutrition education programs which also incorporate physical activity are an excellent option for promoting these changes. One such program offered through Penn State Cooperative Extension is The Family Fitness Program. This intervention offers intensive hands on experience for youth in grades three through five and their families. For more information, contact your local Cooperative Extension Office.
Fortunately, caretakers, schools, communities and parents have taken notice of this issue and efforts have begun to reverse the trends in childhood obesity. In a future issue, we will explore the tremendous opportunity for parents as role models.
Other Resources
www.mypyramid.gov
www.cdc.gov
www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2005/document/pdf/DGA2005.pdf
www.healthinschools.org
www.shapeup.org
MONEY AND KIDS
Jane A. Landis, CED and Family Strengths Educator,
Dauphin Co
For most parents, money and young kids, like oil and water, don't mix! Some parents feel uncomfortable teaching their children how to manage money because they themselves are not comfortable managing their own family finances.
When children are small, parents can lay the groundwork for money management. Provide spending experiences for a pre-schooler: let them give the money to pay for purchases or deposits.* They’ll learn what coins are what denominations of money and learn what is needed to make their own small purchases. This is a great opportunity for number recognition as well.
As children get older, they can take on more responsibility through allowances. Your family can decide on allowances for doing jobs around the house, keeping rooms clean, getting good grades, or just for spending purposes. How you handle allowances will be unique to your family.
Pre-teen and teenage children have a very good idea as to how money is spent. But they need assistance in making decisions; explain how to make choices and how to save for an item.
Managing money involves decision making, feelings and values. The purpose of managing money is to accomplish goals. Money should not be used as an opportunity to reward or punish a child's behavior.
*Caution, children younger than 4 should avoid handling coins due to the potential of putting the coins in their mouths.
MATH AND MEALS?
Sue Giachero, Extension Educator
Berks County
There are many opportunities for your child to experience math around mealtimes.
Measuring, counting, adding, timing and following a recipe all build math concepts. Serving, portioning and dividing food among family and friends is another way to include some “math talk.” You can cut sandwiches and other foods into shapes that your child can identify and count.
Create place mats showing place settings so your child can match and set the table. Include your child in meal planning and shopping. You can create a shopping list just for them by cutting pictures from coupons and circulars. They can then look for these items in the store, match them to the picture and add them to the cart.
Allow your child to pick out a certain number of items, such as 6 carrot sticks, 2 cookies, 10 blueberries, during meals or snacks.
SCHOOL READINESS - WHAT PARENTS NEED TO KNOW
Laurie Welch, Extension Educator
Clinton County
It is never too early to start preparing your child to succeed in school. School readiness refers to your child showing independence and academic, social, and communication skills that will promote success in school. Getting your child ready for school requires parents and caregivers spending time reading, talking and playing with your child.
To assist your child academically for school:
To assist your child socially:
To assist your child with a sense of independence:
To assist your child with communication skills:
If your child is enrolled in a childcare program, make sure they have well planned activities that encourage and promote learning. Preparing your child ahead of time will help make school a more rewarding experience for them.
CONNECTING WITH YOUR CHILD
M. Annette Kratzer, FCS, County Extension Director,
Union County
Many parents find it an economic necessity to work, yet they agonize about being separated from their preschool children. Experts and parents alike recognize the importance of spending time with your children. Some research advises that we should stop thinking in terms of quality vs. quantity. Make all time spent with children count. Look for the many hidden opportunities to spend quality time with your child.
As a single, working mother of four children, one of my biggest challenges was providing individual one on one time daily for each of my children. Missing a teacher’s conference for my youngest child convinced me that I needed a real system. I had to cope with all four children bombarding me with dates and stories at once as I was trying to start dinner when I arrived home from work. We held a family conference and the children helped create this plan.
We outlined a plan that would only take twenty minutes each day and our dinner could still be on time. Each child would have five minutes of alone time when I arrived home. The other children would each do an age appropriate task toward getting the meal completed. After four 5-minute meetings (during which each child got my undivided attention), the meal would be well on its way. If five minutes wasn’t long enough to address a child’s needs, we could schedule more time after dinner so important issues didn’t get neglected.
In order for this plan to work, I had to have the menus planned ahead and develop a task sheet for each meal. This process had an added benefit as the children soon were able to look at the menu and suggest a task they would like to do for this meal.
This process worked for our family. I was able to get important appointments on my calendar. The best part of this system was I had twenty minutes to relax after my day of teaching to enjoy each child personally. The children really liked the system because they didn’t need to compete for my attention and had the time to share personal information with me. There are many ways to arrange time to share with your children while you are doing other chores but remember to allow personal one on one time for each child. In the end, remember, all time counts.
TEACHING GOOD SPORTSMANSHIP
Nancy B. Stevens, Extension Educator
Montgomery County
Good sportsmanship is simply treating others, whether they are teammates, opponents or playmates, with respect. A “good sport” is someone who can win without gloating and lose without complaining. It is no surprise that this positive skill will spill over into all aspects of life.
These are not skills that come naturally, especially with some of the negative examples we see daily with professional athletes and other people in the news. Parents can begin to teach children good sportsmanship skills at an early age.
Some parents and grandparents make it a habit to let their little one always win when they play a simple game without considering what the child is learning when they never experience losing. If a child expects a positive outcome in every competitive situation, they never learn how to lose. If they have never been taught how to lose gracefully, they are likely to pout, cry or make excuses when they lose. It is healthier to focus on the fun you had playing the game and teach that winning isn’t everything. As children become old enough to participate in competitive sports, this will become even more important.
As with every aspect of parenting, the example we set is one of the strongest tools we have in teaching. Don’t let your child see you focusing too much on who won the game or yelling at coaches or officials. Keep your comments positive and don’t make a habit of bad-mouthing coaches, players or officials. If you treat others with respect, your child is more likely to do the same.
Applaud good plays no matter who makes them and teach your child to respect their opponent’s effort. Focus on the effort, not who wins or loses. Teach the gesture of shaking hands with opponents and accepting bad calls gracefully. Children who learn to bully or gloat when they win often carry this disrespectful behavior into their social situations and their classroom.
Point out examples of good sportsmanship with other children or with professional athletes on television to your children. Talk about the bad examples, as well, and why they are upsetting and hurtful to others. Finally, make sure you are a good sport too. Even if your child isn’t the star of the competition, keep in mind all of the benefits your child is gaining, such as new skills, confidence, exercise (mind or body) and new friends. Remember to keep competition fun for kids.
WHAT’S FOR DINNER?
Cathy Guffey, Nutrition/Food Safety Educator
Bradford County
75% of Americans don’t know at 4 p.m. what they’ll eat for dinner that night, but they want it to be healthy, tasty, and fast. If this describes you, try the following time saving strategies to make your mealtime easier.
READING IS FUN TIP
Ellen Helfrick, Youth Services Program Coordinator, Library Company of York
Read the title before you open the book and then either make a prediction or ask your child to make one. Be alert once you begin to read to see if you need to revise your guess. (It’s not about being right or wrong – it is building reasoning skills and learning to read for comprehension.) Start with basic predictions (Do you think there will be a train in Donald Crew’s book titled Trains?) and then get more detailed as they become comfortable. You can make silly predictions to encourage participation. (Do you think Goodnight Moon is about getting out of bed?) Most importantly: predicting = talking!
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