Question:
Dear Ms. Ally,
How can I support my child’s learning at home when I have a busy schedule?
Answer:
Goodness, gracious… there’s more? Why yes, friends— welcome to Part Four!
Recap of Part One:
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In general, but especially as parents, we must ensure that we are busy with the things God would have us be busy with.
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Supporting our children’s learning is more than helping them with homework. It’s also about making sure they are healthy. Two ways to ensure that your kids are healthy are (1) enforcing consistent bedtime routines and promoting good sleep hygiene and (2) Participating in routine health exams (physical, dental, visual, and emotional).
Recap of Part Two:
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Supporting your children’s learning also includes ensuring they attend school regularly, on time, and for the entire school day.
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Educators and researchers have observed a strong correlation between attendance and student success as early as 4 K.
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School attendance is a legal matter. Wisconsin state law requires children ages 6-18 to be in school. Poor school attendance puts you and your family at risk for interaction with the courts and the Department of Children and Families.
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If there are barriers to regular school attendance, please reach out!
Recap of Part Three:
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Supporting your children’s learning also means limiting screen time.
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When it comes frequent use of screens and social media, the bad outweighs the good, it changes our kids’ brains, wastes valuable time. creates unrealistic expectations, are sites of cyberbullying, and gives predators access to our children.
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Parents tend to use screen time as a crutch which dilutes our authority and allow social media, video games, and TV shows to parent our kids.
Oh, hello, part four!
Supporting your children’s learning also means ensuring they have access to nutritious foods, which includes making dietary choices for them. I know, I know— we’ve said this 1,000 times before. Welcome to time 1,001:
Nutrition
And
Diet
Impacts
Learning
And
School
Performance
!!!
According to the WI Department of Public Instruction: promoting “healthy eating behaviors and lifestyles are essential to students’ health, well-being, and educational success. Healthy, well-nourished students are better able to reach their full academic and physical potential, are absent less often, and have higher test scores.”
So here are a few links to parent resources we think might help you promote healthy eating in the home:
If you need support in accessing healthy food for your family, please consider applying for Wisconsin’s FoodShare Program and visiting our pantry (in partnership with Extended Hands); the hours are:
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Mondays from 2:00 - 6:00pm.
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Tuesdays from 2:00 - 6:00pm.
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Fridays from 10:00am - 1:00pm.
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last Saturday of the month from 10:00am - 12:00pm.
Anyone from Dane County is welcome to come for food, dairy, frozen meat, and more!
Next week, in the final part of this series, I’ll provide even more tips about how you can support your children’s learning. But in the meantime, pray this prayer with me:
Heavenly Father, Way Maker, and bread of life: reveal to me when I prioritize busyness over who You called me to be and help me be present for my child(ren). Show me how to overcome the barriers to my children’s success and give me the courage to ask for help when I need it. Please give my children an everlasting hunger and thirst for You and Your kingdom, as well as a desire to learn and be wise. Lord, remind us that You and You alone are our daily bread; that You and only You, are a wellspring. Please change our attitudes about eating; Lord, adjust our cravings. Put in all of us a desire to present ourselves to You as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable in Your sight, wanting to do Your will. Help me remember that Your plans for me, my children, and my family are good. And that You will be with us always, even until the end of the age. In the name of Jesus. Amen.
And Amen.
— Ms. Ally
Submit a letter to Ms. Ally!
Every week, Ms. Ally will answer questions from Lighthouse parents about their parenting concerns, big and small, in the “Ask Ms. Ally” section of the newsletter. You can submit a question or concern of your own for Ms. Ally to consider by emailing her at amiller@lcsmadison.net.