<![CDATA[GOD'S KIDS all News Posts]]> http://www.godskids.spruz.com en Sun, 13 May 2012 00:58:13 GMTGOD'S KIDS all News Postshttp://www.godskids.spruz.com<![CDATA[Child Abuse Statistics]]>  

 

Child Abuse Statistics

Child Abuse Statistics

A Canadian child abuse statistics survey done by Bibby in 2000 (20011)revealed that 56% of adolescents rated child abuse as their top societal concern.

It would be very easy to brush this statistic off by saying 'what do they know, they're just kids'.

But before you set this adolescent concern aside, consider that in a decade or two or three these same 'kids' will be our lawyers and judges and lawmakers. These same 'kids' are our future. We owe it to ourselves to take the statistic seriously.


DID YOU KNOW: Adolescents experience maltreatment at rates equal to or exceeding those of younger children (Council on Scientific Affairs, 1993, p. 18502).


DID YOU KNOW: Identification of adolescent maltreatment victims is medically important because youth with a history of victimization are more likely to engage in a variety of health risk behaviours and are more likely to be future victims or perpetrators of domestic violence (Council on Scientific Affairs, 1993, p. 18503).

 

Some Worldwide Child Abuse Statistics

 


  Worldwide, approximately 40 million children are subjected to child abuse each year (WHO, 20014).


  Suicide is the third leading cause of death in adolescents around the world (WHO, 20025).


  One study revealed that about 30% of all severely disabled children relegated to special homes in the Ukraine died before they reached 18 years of age (Human Rights Watch, 20016).


  UNICEF estimates that two million children died as a result of armed conflict during a recent 10-year period, and that another six million were injured or disabled (Human Right Watch, 20017).


  In Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, over 6.5 million children annually are exposed to unwanted sexual materials over the Internet; over 1.7 million of these report distress over exposure to these materials (Estes & Weiner, 20018).


  Each year, approximately one million more children around the world are introduced into commercial sexual exploitation (Casa Alianza, 20019).


  Sexual abuse statistics vary between countries and reports, but are consistently alarming: One country's research indicates that up to 36% of girls and 29% of boys have suffered child sexual abuse; another study reveals up to 46% of girls and 20% of boys have experienced sexual coercion (The 57th session of the UN Commission on Human Rights10).

 

 


  Canadian Child Abuse Statistics #1:

In a study of runaways presenting at an emergency ward who reported a history of maltreatment, 83% had disabilities as compared to 47% of the non-maltreatment runaways. Using information collected from schools, 34% of the maltreated had disabilities as opposed to 17% of the non-maltreated runaways (Sullivan, et al., 200011).



  Canadian Child Abuse Statistics #2:

A major reason that young people leave home is in order to escape from sexual and/or physical abuse in their family--the average age they leave is 15 (Beauvais et al., 200112).

PERSONAL NOTE: I was 16 when I left home for good because of physical and emotional abuse, but not before running away many times. Check outmy story.



  Canadian Child Abuse Statistics #3:

The average age of entry into the sex trade in Canada is between 14 years of age in British Columbia and 17 in Ontario (Estes, 200113).



  Canadian Child Abuse Statistics #4:

Close to one-third of teens between ages 14 and 19 who participated in a Canadian study had experienced some kind of childhood abuse or neglect (Wolfe, 200114).



  Canadian Child Abuse Statistics #5:

In the same Canadian study mentioned in #4, girl victims reported emotional distress, post-traumatic-stress related symptoms and acts of both violent and non-violent delinquency. Boy victims of child maltreatment reported far less emotional distress and delinquent behaviours; however, they were far more likely to assault their dating partners (Wolfe, 200115).



  Canadian Child Abuse Statistics #6:

A telephone survey undertaken across Canada in 2002 found that 62% of Canadians felt that the problem of domestic violence in Canadian society has increased in the past 10 years. And of the 55 homicides of children and youth in 2000, family members killed 31 of the victims (Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics, 200216).



  Canadian Child Abuse Statistics #7:

Children and youth who received high levels of negative parenting practices (i.e. physical punishment, scolding and yelling) were more likely to be involved in aggressive behaviours (Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics, 200217).



  Canadian Child Abuse Statistics #8:

Sexually exploited youth (SEY) almost always have a history of abuse. Studies show that 90% of SEY females have been physically abused as opposed to 24% of females in school. 88% of SEY females report sexual abuse as opposed to 21% of females in school. Respondents reported that the abuse was perpetrated mostly by family and friends, followed by pimps or tricks (McCreary Centre Society, 199918).



  Canadian Child Abuse Statistics #9:

A British Columbia-wide study showed that gay and lesbian youth are much more likely to have experienced abuse than heterosexual youth. 61% have been physically abused and 40% have been sexually abused as opposed to 20% and 12% respectively (McCreary Centre Society, 199919).



  Canadian Child Abuse Statistics #10:

Among the population of Canada's children and youth:

     »  28.6% are vulnerable to physical and/or emotional injury
     »  12.8% have low cognitive skills
     »  19.1% have one or more behavioural problems
     »  3% have both cognitive and behavioural problems

Poor cognitive and behavioural outcomes can be considered the most significant risk factor (Willms, 2002, pp. 66-6920).

NOTE: Child abuse statistics do not accurately reflect child abuse, because child abuse is so under-reported.

]]>Thu, 5 Aug 2010 12:10:55 GMT<![CDATA[Uncover Out Details On What Individuals YOUR Teen Child Is Actually Talking To]]>  

Uncover Out Details On What Individuals YOUR Teen Child Is Actually Talking To

 June 23rd, 2010 |  Author: Child Molestation Attorneys

Have you been worried regarding exactly who your girl might be conversing with privately on the telephone? You ought to be! These days, at least one in 4 kids inside chat rooms on the web will probably be contacted by a child predator or molester.

In case your girl is actually chosen by one in forum, social networks (such as Facebook or Myspace or others), the next phase of a predator is usually to start what naive teenage girl is going to consider like “a connection”, generally on confidential messages or calls. This is where reverse phone lookup services prove useful, as it lets you track down the actual name & address of the person based on the actual provider’s reverse phone client base.

If you’re daughter happens to be suddenly shutting herself within her bed room, doing extended telephone calls, but not prepared to let you know with who, you ought to be concerned. You certainly will be able to trace down the number registered owner to whom she’s speaking with simply by utilizing reverse number lookup, if you keep reading.

You must be thinking “my own girl possesses over a hundred phone numbers in her cell phone memory, how could I pick which of these phone numbers to evaluate”? Well take a peek on the logs in the girl cellular phone who is the girl calling just about the most? Whom is actually phoning the girl the most? Names on this list you do not recognize are the numbers you are going to would like to perform reverse number lookup upon.

More often than not people, who want to conceal something, give totally different or even encrypted titles for people inside their cellular telephone memory. Thus for instance, Paul becomes Pat, Jonathan will become Jeremy, and so on. in case the names which appear in the records of activity don’t correlate with the listed phone number registered owner on the reverse phone look up“ that may be some thing to search even more into. Check with you child, or do criminal background examination about the number user, if you’re genuinely alarmed. Many of the reverse number lookup services will in addition provide court records check for only a small additional cost.

Now, there are numerous reverse lookup service providers. Some of them will offer you this information free of charge, others for a charge. The very first thing to recognize is actually how elaborate it is actually to handle such reverse numbers data source. These days it really is really easy to have a brand new number, change providers, get an IP telephone, and so on., so it has become very difficult to trace down all of the up-to-date and also accurate information concerning every single phone number. Doing this, usually requires utilizing great deal of sophisticated systems, that costs money.

That is why you can’t find free reverse phone lookup websites that actually have all current details or info. Therefore it’s far better to spend the required few bucks and obtain actual precise information about the telephone number registered owner which you feel negative with regards to.

Likewise, several of these web sites enable you to do a search for the phone number, and then only if they verify that this phone number registered owner details is out there on their particular database, they’ll charge funds. If info doesn’t exist, you will not pay a single penny!

Let’s hope you can look at this and wish you’ll find practically nothing worrying. However if there is anything going on – you’ll want to find out about that, right? Very well, I looked at an extensive number of related web sites and then found one which is a little bit extra reputable and also dependable reverse phone lookup internet service. Use my hyperlink bellow for you to get there right now.

 

Click The Link And Get Right This Moment The best Reverse Lookup Website That’s Available On The Web. It Is The Most Complete And Simple To Use I Ever Found!

]]>Sat, 31 Jul 2010 10:55:49 GMT<![CDATA[ 'Child of perfection' died crossing highway]]>

And in his little room, a red rose and a small Gideon Bible lay on his bed, left there by his heartbroken house mother. Photo: Timothy Bernard, The Star 

 

'Child of perfection' died crossing highway
 
By Kristen van Schie


A booklet on the Gospel of John, still open, and a drawing of a woman that could be faintly made out on the page of a drawing book - these were his little pleasures. 

To the house mother at the Abraham Kriel Childcare home, the 16-year-old boy was a "child of perfection in drawing" who had tried over and over to draw the figure of a woman on Sunday, but just couldn't get it right. 

He never did complete that drawing. On Monday morning, the boy, whose name cannot be revealed, was killed crossing the M1 highway.


And in his little room, a red rose and a small Gideon Bible lay on his bed, left there by his heartbroken house mother. 


The teenager had been bunking school with two friends, aged 16 and 18. But when their house mother caught them, she sent them off to do chores. 

They had other plans.

"They must have leapt over the wall before they could be stopped, as the gate is constantly guarded," said Abraham Kriel Childcare spokeswoman Hilda du Toit. 

"The matter was reported immediately and followed up by campus management." 

It was 8am.

Two hours later, they received a phone call from Metro Police. The boy had been killed trying to cross the M1 highway, just off the Riviera Road off ramp.

"It is believed the boys climbed down an embankment to get to the highway," said Netcare 911 spokesperson Chris Botha. "One ran in front of an oncoming vehicle and was flung some distance." 

He died at the scene.

The boy's name could not be released as his family had not yet been informed of his death.

On Monday, staff at the children's home were still attempting to track down his parents. 

"The staff and children are still in shock and are devastated by the sad loss of a beloved child," said Du Toit. "The boy, a student at The Hamlet School, was known for his impulsive and unpredictable behaviour, but was much loved by friends and staff."

The boy had been living at the home for the past 10 years, by court order. 

His house mother, who did not want to be named, said he was a loving child and was always giving the staff hugs.

"He had the most beautiful eyes, the longest eyelashes," she said. 

"He would look at you and it seemed like he could see right through you, but looking into those eyes you could see the little boy inside. Yesterday (Sunday) he was trying to draw a woman and couldn't get it right. He was a child of perfection in drawing."

  • This article was originally published on page 3 of The Star on July 27, 2010
]]>Thu, 29 Jul 2010 15:55:32 GMT<![CDATA[An appalling lack of perspective, and more]]>  

An appalling lack of perspective, and more

Just when you think the Catholic Church might be trying to get it right—and recent reports that investigation of pedophiles in the clergy had been designated a higher priority with longer statute of limitations might be such an indication—the guys in robes and mitres go and screw it up again. 

Get this: The Vatican says that attempting to ordain women is a sin equivalent to the rape of children.

No kidding. 

You might just think this is another example of the appalling lack of perspective that the Roman Catholic Church seems to be positively reeling from, but I’m going to argue that it is, in addition, a true revelation. The fundamental problem in the Church (and in a number of other churches) is a deep-seated hatred of and fear of women—also known as misogyny—that leads them to reject and debase the feminine.

Uh, guess what, guys? Children, with their smooth skin and androgynous features also represent the feminine. 

Now, stick with me here for a minute. Take a look at denominations that regularly allow the full inclusion of women at all levels of the ministry,and ask yourself when the last time you’ve heard about systemic problems with sexual abuse in those churches. It’s been a long time—like never—since the Unitarian Universalists, the Quakers, the more liberal Jews, etc., have been accused of systematically covering up for pedophiles and rapists.

In fact, it’s invariably the more patriarchal denominations that have problems with child rape and sexual assault. I think that it’s directly related to the status of women and the treatment of the female half of the human race in their theology.

We’ve been hearing non-stop about the Catholics, and rightfully so; they’reone of the largest single religious groups in the world. But other religious groups are also on the hook big-time for enabling, covering up and denying the existence of child molesters and rapists within the ranks of their clergy, and every one of them is a patriarchal religious hierarchy that disallows or severely limits the role of women in church: Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons were heavily involved in arecent child abuse case against the Boy Scouts of America), Baptists, etc.

You get the point. Misogyny is the root of abuse, because it says one-half the human race is not worthy of serving God in the fullest sense; that only the male half of our species is actually made in the image of God.

Misogyny is also some of  reason that these are the same denominations that fight so rabidly to keep gay people from enjoying equal rights. After all, if you hate and fear women and have to keep them in their place by denying them access to the priesthood or to the right to control their own reproductive systems, how much more are you going to hate and fear women who don’t need or want a man to be complete, or men who “feminize” themselves by daring to love another man? 

Don’t believe me? Well, over at Joe. My. God., there’s a weekly section called This Week in Holy Crimes which keeps a running tally of abuse, rape, and child molestation committed by so-called shepherds of the flock. Look for the Unitarians in there. You won’t find many.

But there are lots and lots of patriarchal, woman-hating hierarchies. I suppose that’s what you get when you take your marching orders from an Iron Age converted Pharisee who didn’t much care for women, like good ol’ Paul. 

But it’s really all about fear—and an appalling lack of perspective.


::posted by Kel Munger @ 2010-07-16 10:30 AM permalink Subscribe to RSS feed  
]]>Sun, 18 Jul 2010 09:31:20 GMT<![CDATA[Parents 'struggle to find holiday childcare']]> Parents 'struggle to find holiday childcare'

girl walking by stream
As the holidays approach, children need to be occupied

Many parents in Britain are struggling to find childcare for their children over the summer holidays, a survey by the Daycare Trust suggests.

The trust found 60 of the 150 Family Information Services (FIS) in England had parents reporting a lack of care.

In Wales, 10 of the 21 FIS said parents faced a shortage of holiday childcare.

The situation in Scotland was slightly better, with 6 of the 31 Childcare Information Services (CIS) saying parents were struggling to find cover.

Regions in England reporting particularly high levels of holiday childcare shortages included the South East, the West Midlands and the North East.

Average weekly cost by region

Continue reading the main story
  • South East £105.74
  • South West £104.43
  • East of England £101.16
  • Yorkshire and Humber £101.15
  • Scotland £100.38
  • North West £95.30
  • Greater London £88
  • North East £85.58
  • East Midlands £81.95
  • Wales £80.25
  • West Midlands £79.02

The Daycare Trust also found the average cost of a week's childcare for one child was £93.

But parents faced differing bills for holiday childcare, depending on where they lived.

In the West Midlands, the typical weekly cost was £79.02, whereas in the South East it was £105.74.

In Wales the average cost was £80.25 and in Scotland it was £100.38.

In response to its questionnaire to 202 information services, the Daycare Trust received responses from 96 FIS in England, 15 in Wales and 21 in Scotland.

High costs

Chief Executive of Daycare Trust Alison Garnham said there was a "gaping hole" in holiday childcare provision which would get worse with the impact of local authority spending cuts.

"Where provision is available, parents are being expected to shell out the equivalent cost of a family holiday abroad over the course of the summer - simply for the privilege of having their children looked after so that they can attend work.

"If the government are serious about getting parents into employment then they must take a comprehensive approach to investing in more holiday and wraparound childcare, whilst ensuring tax credits really do 'make work pay', so that affordable, accessible, quality childcare is available in every community, for every child.

"The recent changes to tax credits mean that many working parents will in future receive less help with childcare costs - this is a seriously bad move and means more help is needed to make childcare more affordable."

]]>Sat, 17 Jul 2010 15:24:40 GMT<![CDATA[The smell of rain]]> A cold March wind danced
around the dead of night in
Dallas as the doctor walked
into the small hospital room
of Diana Blessing. She was
still groggy from surgery.
Her husband, David, held her
hand as they braced
themselves for the latest news.

That afternoon of March 10,
1991, complications had
forced Diana, only 24-weeks
pregnant, to undergo an
emergency Cesarean to
deliver couple's new
daughter, Dana Lu Blessing.
At 12 inches long and
weighing only one pound
nine ounces, they already
knew she was perilously premature.

Still, the doctor's soft words dropped
like bombs.
"I don't think she's going to
make it," he said, as kindly as
he could.
"There's only a 10-percent
chance she will live through
the night, and even then, if by
some slim chance she does
make it, her future could be a
very cruel one"

Numb with disbelief, David
and Diana listened as the
doctor described the
devastating problems Dana
would likely face if she
survived.
She would never walk, she
would never talk, she would
probably be blind, and she
would certainly be prone to
other catastrophic conditions
from cerebral palsy to
complete mental retardation,
and on and on.

"No! No!" was all Diana could say.
She and David, with their 5-
year-old son Dustin, had long
dreamed of the day they
would have a daughter to
become a family of four.
Now, within a matter of
hours, that dream was
slipping away

But as those first days
passed, a new agony set in
for David and Diana.
Because Dana's
underdeveloped nervous
system was essentially 'raw',
the lightest kiss or caress
only intensified her
discomfort, so they couldn't
even cradle their tiny baby
girl against their chests to
offer the strength of their love.

All they could do, as Dana
struggled alone beneath the
ultraviolet light in the tangle of
tubes and wires, was to pray
that God would stay close to
their precious little girl.

There was never a moment
when Dana suddenly grew
stronger.
But as the weeks went by,
she did slowly gain an ounce
of weight here and an ounce
of strength there.

At last, when Dana turned
two months old. her parents
were able to hold her in their arms.

]]>Fri, 2 Jul 2010 10:55:49 GMT<![CDATA[Speechless – © Kyra Lee]]>  

My Name Is Sasha

My Sister Is Leigh
I am six
And she is three
 
Our dads always mad
He screams and he yells
I don’t think he likes us
It's Easy to tell
 
Mums only kind
When dads not around
And when he is home
She hardly makes a sound
 
Mums always out,
Never home
Dads always drunk,
And always alone
 
As soon as we hear
Those jingly keys
We run and hide
We run and plea
 
We find a place
And curl up tight
I hold her hand
And she holds mine
 
And soon enough
Dad then walks in
Don’t make a sound, don’t say a word
I pray inside, deep within
 
But Leigh, she cannot help herself
For the pain is just too much
"O-God" she yells
"Why are you so mean?"
 
He doesn't like what she has said
And beats her even more
And with one last hit
Hard and strong, he pulls away and watches
 
She takes one last Gasp of air
Our hands still holding
Then falls to the ground where I sat
And doesn't move a muscle
 
I stare at him
My eyes so blue
He looks at me
And yells "O you!"
 
"How dare you
Make me so mad
This is all your fault
Go cry be sad!"
 
My name is Sasha
My sister is Leigh
I am six
And my beautiful sister was only three
 
That day my Daddy
Murdered her
My best friend
She was my world
 
We stuck together
Through thick and thin
But now she’s gone
I’m lost within
 
When I was six my sister three
My Daddy murdered Leigh
Since that day I have not spoke
For it's speaking that made her die.
]]>Sun, 27 Jun 2010 17:15:01 GMT<![CDATA[About Child Abuse.]]> Child abuse falls into four categories: neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and emotional abuse. There are certain risk factors that predispose a child to being abused and an adult to abusing a child. Risk factors for children are age, children with learning disabilities, adopted and foster children, children with congenital abnormalities, and a past history of abuse. Parental risk factors include young or single parents, those who suffered abuse themselves, adults with substance-abuse problems or psychiatric disease, and those who didn't graduate from high school.

]]>Thu, 17 Jun 2010 19:59:52 GMT<![CDATA[The Problem with Modern Entertainment]]>  

A guide for parents

Have you ever noticed how audiences these days laugh the most when the actors make cutting remarks and try to embarrass or hurt each other? That's supposed to be funny. Well, to me it's offensive! When I was young, audiences would be stunned and offended at that sort of thing. Now they just roar with laughter.

You can hardly find a movie or TV show about a family with children where the kids aren't fussing and fighting like mad. The parents do it too. Husbands and wives are constantly arguing and putting each other down in front of their children—and in front of your children. Because this has become the norm among families in the media, the children watching naturally assume that it's normal and acceptable for families to behave that way.

Sad to say, it probably is typical of the average U.S. home, since that's where most of those shows originate and that's who the producers are appealing to. It's normal in that sense, but it certainly shouldn't be considered acceptable. It's unloving, hurtful, and wrong—and it's contagious! It's also rapidly becoming a picture of home life almost anywhere, largely due to the influence those shows have as they spread around the world. Isn't that horrible?

Just because a movie or TV show is rated for children doesn't necessarily mean that it's good for your children.

Children imitate what they see and hear, and they seem to have a penchant for copying the negative. Young children, especially, can't always tell the difference between good or bad, and it's even harder when those guilty of some of the worst behavior are made to look so enviable, so "good," in other ways—good looking, affluent, popular, smarter than the adults, and free to do as they please.

Children are in the process of forming the values that they will carry with them through life, and it's their parents' responsibility to guide that process. Parents are failing at that job if they let their children watch what they want without any parental guidance or explanation as to what is acceptable civil behavior and what isn't. And that goes for shows that are supposedly geared to children, even the ones that are meant to be educational.

Just because a movie or TV show is rated for children doesn't necessarily mean that it's good for your children. Parents need to take personal responsibility for that decision. They also have a responsibility to steer their children away from the negative, either by not exposing their children to it in the first place, or by explaining why it's bad and not to be imitated.

What a mess the entertainment world is in! It could be such a good tool for teaching about life, as it once was, but instead it's getting worse by the year!

Today's mainstream media rarely mentions God except in profanity, the occult is intriguing and "cool," and religious people are usually portrayed as kooks.When I was growing up, many movies had positive, reverent references to God and prayer, and often even the most wayward characters would wind up learning their lesson and reforming. Movies back then usually had happy endings, with morals and lessons being taught.

Not now! Sometimes you can hardly tell the difference between the good guys and the bad guys. What I really hate are those stories where the evil wins out in the end.

In Greek drama, European opera, and Shakespearean plays there were lots of tragedies, but there was always a lesson to be learned. The Greeks believed that the emotions tragedy released, sadness and grief, were good because they had a purgative, purifying effect. Shakespeare's tragedies were insightful and meaningful. Every Aesop's Fable had a moral at the end.

But most of today's music, movies, television, videos, and other entertainment have nothing sensible to teach, no lesson to be learned. They leave you with a feeling of hopelessness. "Everything's a mess! The world's a terrible place! God must be a monster to have created such a thing!" They blame it all on God. Even if they don't mention God, that's what they mean. "Why me? This is unfair! Why does this have to happen to me?"

Cartoons have always had their share of violence—cartoon characters hitting each other and blowing each other up and that sort of thing—but some of the latest cartoons are even worse because they introduce children to the occult and other evil supernatural stuff. I love the supernatural—the good side—but many of today's cartoons portray and promote the other side, a full array of Satan's goods! It's like stepping back into the Dark Ages. It's terrible!

It's the same with much of today's music and music videos. You can hardly ever understand the lyrics—at least most adults can't without really making an effort. But if you make that effort, or if you read the lyrics [most can be found online], in many cases you'll be shocked and appalled at the perversions and warped values that songwriters and bands are preaching to young people through their music.

If you're a parent, you need to take a long, hard look at what's out there and decide if that's how you want your children to turn out, because what they watch and listen to and imitate today, they will become tomorrow.

* * *

Proactive parenting
How to get the most from TV

  • Don't let your children watch unmonitored TV.
  • Preview or read reviews on a movie or TV show before showing it to your children. Be selective.
  • Strive to make watching TV shows, documentaries, or movies both fun and a learning experience by watching and discussing them together. It will help your children develop the right perspectives.
  • Talk with your children about what they do with their friends for entertainment, not in a way that suggests you don't trust them, but to help them build and be true to their values.
  • Balance TV with fun activities other than TV viewing, such as playing games together, sports, outings, etc.
  •  
]]>Wed, 9 Jun 2010 16:32:31 GMT<![CDATA[My little shadow]]> My little shadow my little shadow my little shadow and me
My little shadow was always one step behind you see
My little shadow with her long blonde flowing hair
No matter how many times I looked my little shadow was there

She would roam outside to play but not for long
Little shadows moms quite time was gone
My little shadow would creep into my bed at night
My little shadow would kiss and hold me so tight

I turned around one day to find my little shadow was gone
But I still have the memories of my little shadow to hold on
Mom enjoy your little shadows before they to are gone
It is truly sad when there’s no more little shadow to tag along

My little shadow as I have watched you grow
My dear little shadow where did you go
My precious little shadow you are now grown
My little shadow now has two shadows of her own

]]>Thu, 3 Jun 2010 17:34:56 GMT<![CDATA[How is that I cry all night]]>  

How is that I cry all night,
Yet all you do is smile
And think everything is all right
How is it that when I look up at you
You can't look me in my eyes
And when ever I want to talk
All you want to do is make me cry
 
Is it that you take pleasure in playing games with my heart
Ever since I've given it to you all you can do is tear it apart
 
How is it you declare your love to me one day
And yet I see you on some other girls arm the next day
How is it that you can hold me and look me in the eyes
And then turn around and tell me so many lies
 
How is it that you were able to make me feel so low
That I wanted to pack my things and get ready to go
 
How come I'm only yours when the time is right
How come when ever I want to love you. You always want to fight
 
How come you want to deny your love for me
And turn your back so fast
But don't forget I'm the one who loved you
And held you in the past
 
When you were in pain it was only me there standing by your side
When you wanted to run and leave I was the one ready to ride
 
When you had so many doubts and you couldn't find your way
I was the one who knew what ever to say
 
But you can't take my love for granted
And expect me to wait till the time is right
Because I'm tired of not being your number one girl
And always kept out of people's sight
 
At times I want to get back at you
And cause you so much pain
But even if I did do that
I know there would be nothing to gain
 
You couldn't have stayed with the good woman
Only run to the trash.
Yea I'm going to miss you. Yea I might cry
Yea I might look at you when you pass by
But the heart you once had of mine is no longer there
You can be with them other girls.
But they can never compare
To the love that I gave you
So when you finally realize that
Just give me my thanks.. But
Just don't come back
 
By Jessica Dix
]]>Tue, 1 Jun 2010 15:25:52 GMT<![CDATA[LISTEN TO THE WORDS OF A CHILD]]>  

Teddy, I've been bad again
My mommy told me so;
I'm not quite sure what I did wrong
But I thought you might know.
 
When I woke this morning
I knew that she was mad
Cause she was crying awful hard,
And yelling at my dad.
 
I tried my best to be real good
And do just what she said
I cleaned my room all by myself,
I even made my bed.
 
But I spilled milk on my good shirt,
When she yelled at me to hurry
And I guess she didn't hear me,
When I told her I was sorry
 
Cause she hit me awful hard, you see,
And called me funny names;
And told me I was really bad
And I should be ashamed.
 
When I said "I love you Mommy",
I guess she didn't understand;
Cause she yelled at me to shut my mouth,
Or I'd get smacked again
 
So, I came up here to talk to you
Please tell me what to do
Cause I really love my mommy,
And I know she loves me, too
 
And I don't think my mommy means,
To hit quite so hard;
I guess sometimes, grown ups forget
How big they really are
 
So Teddy, I wish you were real
And you weren't just a bear
Then you could help me find a way
To tell mommies everywhere
 
To please try to understand
How sad it makes us feel;
Cause the outside pain soon goes a way,
But the inside never heals
 
And if we could make them listen,
Maybe the'd understand;
So other children just like me
Wouldn't have to hurt again
 
But, for now, I guess I'll hold you tight,
And pretend the pain's not there.
I know you'd never hurt me,
So goodnight, Teddy Bear...
 
Cindy Pike Dunning
]]>Mon, 24 May 2010 23:13:46 GMT<![CDATA[School Phone Menu ..... California School.]]>  

"Hello! You have reached the automated answering service of your school. In order to assist you in connecting to the right staff member, 

please listen to all the options before making a selection:

- To lie about why your child is absent - Press 1

- To make excuses for why your child did not do his work - Press 2

- To complain about what we do - Press 3

- To swear at staff members - Press 4

- To ask why you didn't get information that was already enclosed in your newsletter and several flyers mailed to you - Press 5

- If you want us to raise your child - Press 6

- If you want to reach out and touch, slap or hit someone - Press 7

- To request another teacher, for the third time this year - Press 8

- To complain about bus transportation - Press 9

- To complain about school lunches - Press 0

- If you realize this is the real world and your child must be accountable and responsible for his/her own behavior, 
class work, homework and that it's not all the teachers' fault for your child's lack of effort: Hang up and have a nice day!
 

]]>Sat, 22 May 2010 10:19:56 GMT<![CDATA[How Come?]]>  

How is that I cry all night,
Yet all you do is smile
And think everything is all right
How is it that when I look up at you
You can't look me in my eyes
And when ever I want to talk
All you want to do is make me cry
 
Is it that you take pleasure in playing games with my heart
Ever since I've given it to you all you can do is tear it apart
 
How is it you declare your love to me one day
And yet I see you on some other girls arm the next day
How is it that you can hold me and look me in the eyes
And then turn around and tell me so many lies
 
How is it that you were able to make me feel so low
That I wanted to pack my things and get ready to go
 
How come I'm only yours when the time is right
How come when ever I want to love you. You always want to fight
 
How come you want to deny your love for me
And turn your back so fast
But don't forget I'm the one who loved you
And held you in the past
 
When you were in pain it was only me there standing by your side
When you wanted to run and leave I was the one ready to ride
 
When you had so many doubts and you couldn't find your way
I was the one who knew what ever to say
 
But you can't take my love for granted
And expect me to wait till the time is right
Because I'm tired of not being your number one girl
And always kept out of people's sight
 
At times I want to get back at you
And cause you so much pain
But even if I did do that
I know there would be nothing to gain
 
You couldn't have stayed with the good woman
Only run to the trash.
Yea I'm going to miss you. Yea I might cry
Yea I might look at you when you pass by
But the heart you once had of mine is no longer there
You can be with them other girls.
But they can never compare
To the love that I gave you
So when you finally realize that
Just give me my thanks.. But
Just don't come back
 
By Jessica Dix
]]>Thu, 20 May 2010 11:07:24 GMT<![CDATA[LIFE IS WHAT YOU MAKE OF IT]]>  

Your attitude towards life defines not only who you are, 
but the quality of life you are after.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whatever it is that has been bugging you,

doesn't seem so bad anymore, does it?

If only we all could have the spirit that this little boy has!
 
]]>Wed, 19 May 2010 18:00:56 GMT<![CDATA[FOCUS ON YOUR SOUL ]]>  

 















Look back and thank God.



 
Look forward and trust God.
 
Look around and serve God.
 
Look within and find God!"
 
 
God closes doors no man can open and
God opens doors no man can close.





 


FOCUS ON YOUR SOUL



]]>Wed, 19 May 2010 17:53:49 GMT<![CDATA[The smell of rain]]> A cold March wind danced
around the dead of night in
Dallas as the doctor walked
into the small hospital room
of Diana Blessing. She was
still groggy from surgery.
Her husband, David, held her
hand as they braced
themselves for the latest
news.

That afternoon of March 10,
1991, complications had
forced Diana, only 24-weeks
pregnant, to undergo an
emergency Cesarean to
deliver couple's new
daughter, Dana Lu Blessing.
At 12 inches long and
weighing only one pound
nine ounces, they already
knew she was perilously
premature.

Still, the doctor's soft words dropped
like bombs.
"I don't think she's going to
make it," he said, as kindly as
he could.
"There's only a 10-percent
chance she will live through
the night, and even then, if by
some slim chance she does
make it, her future could be a
very cruel one"

Numb with disbelief, David
and Diana listened as the
doctor described the
devastating problems Dana
would likely face if she
survived.
She would never walk, she
would never talk, she would
probably be blind, and she
would certainly be prone to
other catastrophic conditions
from cerebral palsy to
complete mental retardation,
and on and on.

"No! No!" was all Diana could say.
She and David, with their 5-
year-old son Dustin, had long
dreamed of the day they
would have a daughter to
become a family of four.
Now, within a matter of
hours, that dream was
slipping away

But as those first days
passed, a new agony set in
for David and Diana.
Because Dana's
underdeveloped nervous
system was essentially 'raw',
the lightest kiss or caress
only intensified her
discomfort, so they couldn't
even cradle their tiny baby
girl against their chests to
offer the strength of their
love.

All they could do, as Dana
struggled alone beneath the
ultraviolet light in the tangle of
tubes and wires, was to pray
that God would stay close to
their precious little girl.

There was never a moment
when Dana suddenly grew
stronger.
But as the weeks went by,
she did slowly gain an ounce
of weight here and an ounce
of strength there.

At last, when Dana turned
two months old. her parents
were able to hold her in their
arms for the very first time.
And two months later, though
doctors continued to gently
but grimly warn that her
chances of surviving, much
less living any kind of normal
life, were next to zero, Dana
went home from the hospital,
just as her mother had
predicted.

Five years later, when Dana
was a petite but feisty young
girl with glittering gray eyes
and an unquenchable zest for
life.
She showed no signs
whatsoever of any mental or
physical impairment. Simply,
she was everything a little girl
can be and more. But that
happy ending is far from the
end of her story.

One blistering afternoon in
the summer of 1996 near her
home in Irving, Texas, Dana
was sitting in her mother's lap
in the bleachers of a local ball
park where her brother
Dustin's baseball team was
practicing.

As always, Dana was
chattering nonstop with her
mother and several other
adults sitting nearby when
she suddenly fell silent.
Hugging her arms across her
chest, little Dana asked, "Do
you smell that?"

Smelling the air and detecting
the approach of a
thunderstorm, Diana replied,
"Yes, it smells like rain."
Dana closed her eyes and
again asked, "Do you smell
that?"

Once again, her mother
replied, "Yes, I think we're
about to get wet. It smells like
rain."

Still caught in the moment,
Dana shook her head, patted
her thin shoulders with her
small hands and loudly
announced,
"No, it smells like Him.
It smells like God when you
lay your head on His chest."

Tears blurred Diana's eyes
as Dana happily hopped
down to play with the other
children.
Before the rains came, her
daughter's words confirmed
what Diana and all the
members of the extended
Blessing family had known, at
least in their hearts, all along.

During those long days and
nights of her first two months
of her life, when her nerves
were too sensitive for them to
touch her, God was holding
Dana on His chest and it is
His loving scent that she
remembers so well.

"I can do all things in Him
who strengthens me."
This morning when the Lord
opened a window to Heaven,
He saw me, and He asked:
"My child, what is your
greatest wish for today?"

I responded:
"Lord please, take care of the
person who is reading this
message, their family and
their special friends. They
deserve it and I love them
verymuch"

The love of God is like the ocean,
you can see its beginning,
but not its end.

]]>Wed, 19 May 2010 17:42:20 GMT<![CDATA["I AM KAT" ]]>  

"I AM KAT"
 
 
 
This was written by a young girl who was in jail for drug charges, and
 
was addicted to KAT. She wrote this while in jail. As you will soon
 
read, she fully grasped the horrors of the drug, as she tells in this
 
simple, yet profound poem. She was released from jail, but true to her
 
story, the drug owned her.
 
 
 
Please keep praying for our Children, Teens, Young adults.
 
Understand,
 
 
 
this thing is worse than any of us realize...
 
 
 
 
 
My Name: "Is KAT"
 
 
 
I destroy homes, I tear families apart, take your children, and
 
that's just the start.
 
 
 
I'm more costly than diamonds, more precious than gold, The sorrow I
 
bring is a sight to behold.
 
 
 
If you need me, remember! I'm easily found, I live all around you - in
 
schools and in town.
 
 
 
I live with the rich; I live with the poor, I live down the street, and
 
maybe next door.
 
 
 
 
 
I'm made in a lab, but not like you think, I can be made under the
 
kitchen sink.
 
 
 
In your child's closet, and even in the woods, If this scares you to
 
death, well it certainly should.
 
 
 
I have many names, but there's one you know best, I'm sure you've heard
 
of me, my name is crystal KAT.
 
 
 
My power is awesome; try me you'll see, But if you do, you may never
 
break free.
 
 
 
 
 
Just try me once and I might let you go, But try me twice, and I'll own
 
your soul.
 
 
 
When I possess you, you'll steal and you'll lie, You do what you have to
 
-- just to get high.
 
 
 
The crimes you'll commit for my narcotic charms Will be worth the
 
pleasure you'll feel in your arms, your lungs, your nose.
 
 
 
You'll lie to your mother; you'll steal from your dad, When you see
 
their tears, you should feel sad.
 
 
 
But you'll forget your morals and how you were raised, I'll be your
 
conscience, I'll teach you my ways.
 
 
 
 
 
I take kids from parents, and parents from kids, I turn people from God,
 
and separate friends.
 
 
 
I'll take everything from you, your looks and your pride, I'll be with
 
 
 
you always -- right by your side.
 
 
 
You'll give up everything - your family, your home, Your friends, your
 
 
 
money, then you'll be alone.
 
 
 
I'll take and take, till you have nothing more to give, When I'm
 
finished with you, you'll be lucky to live.
 
 
 
If you try me be warned - this is no game, If given the chance, I'll
 
drive you insane.
 
 
 
I'll ravish your body, I'll control your mind, I'll own you
 
completely, your soul will be mine.
 
 
 
The nightmares I'll give you while lying in bed, The voices you'll hear,
 
from inside your head.
 
 
 
The sweats, the shakes, the visions you'll see, I want you to know,
 
these are all gifts from me.
 
 
 
But then it's too late, and you'll know in your heart, That you are
 
mine, and we shall not part.
 
 
 
You'll regret that you tried me, they always do, But you came to me, not
 
I to you.
 
 
 
You knew this is would happen, many times you were told, But you
 
challenged my power, and chose to be bold.
 
 
 
You could have said no, and just walked away, If you could live that day
 
over, now what would you say?
 
 
 
I'll be your master, you will be my slave, I'll even go with you, when
 
 
 
you go to your grave.
 
 
 
Now that you have met me, what will you do? Will you try me or not? It's
 
all up to you.
 
 
 
I can bring you more misery than words can tell, Come take my hand, let
 
me lead you to hell.
 
 
 
If you care enough, please forward this profound poem and share the
 
deadly outcome of this drug that is killing our young people & even our old.
]]>Wed, 19 May 2010 17:31:32 GMT<![CDATA[Beyond the church: Most child sex abuse never sees the light]]>  

Beyond the church: Most child sex abuse never sees the light

By Susan Nielsen, The Oregonian

March 28, 2010, 7:39AM
popewindow.JPGView full sizePeter Morrison/APMost victims of child sex abuse stay silent, whether they are abused at church by a clergy member or, more commonly, at home by a relative or family friend.Is it hard for survivors of child sex abuse to speak out?

Is the pope Catholic? 

Victims worldwide continue to pour forward with stories of abuse as children at the hands of clergy. Many of the allegations have been substantiated by priests who've confessed. Even the pope himself was drawn into the scandal last week with questions about his past role in protecting an abusive priest from earthly consequences. 

The surprising part here isn't the sheer number of victims, from the deaf children in Wisconsin to the altar boys in Ireland. The real shocker is remembering that most child sex abuse victims aren't connected to churches, don't file lawsuits and never speak publicly at all. 

At least one in five girls and one in 10 boys experiences unwanted sexual touching or other sex abuse, based on federal data and research cited by the National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Most of the bad actors in these cases are not priests or pastors. They are stepfathers, family friends, fathers and neighbors. 

The majority are never held accountable. 

"I think of that as the hidden iceberg," says legal scholar Marci Hamilton, a national authority on child abuse at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law and the author of "Justice Denied: What America Must Do to Protect Its Children." 

She added, "There is a tremendous amount of suffering." 

Traditionally, about 90 percent of victims don't speak out, and the reasons are as messy and common as the crimes themselves. It can take decades for victims to shake off enough of the shame to stop feeling responsible. 

"Denial and survival play a huge part in the reason why victims of abuse 'wait' to come forward," or never say a word, says Kristi Kernal of Beaverton, a co-founder and board member of OAASIS, Oregon Abuse Advocates and Survivors in Service. 

Also, until recently, most state laws enforced a tight window of time during which victims could successfully seek justice. The statute of limitations would close while victims were still in their teens or early 20s, typically unprepared and ill-equipped to take on the authority figure who abused them. 

Finally, there are stark personal costs to coming forward. If the abuser was a family member, victims risk an ex-communication of sorts by their own family. If the abuser was a trusted coach or pastor or teacher, victims risk other forms of social exile. 

Staying quiet is a rational decision. So is eventually speaking up years later, whether in a counselor's office or a lawyer's conference room. 

The alternative is to keep paying the price with compromised health and troubled relationships. 

"Depression, anxiety, fear, post traumatic stress, trust issues, body image issues, relationship problems, suicide attempts -- the list goes on," Kernal says. 

The Catholic Church eventually will work through its backlog of sex abuse cases. Some evidence suggests that American churches are inching toward resolution, even while Europe confronts its own crisis: In 2009, the number of new allegations, victims and known offenders in the United States dropped to the lowest point since 2004,according to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. 

The process of legal and spiritual atonement is terribly wrenching, both for the Catholic Church and the people within it. But a clear upside exists. 

The scandal is transforming American culture, forcing people to adopt prevention strategies and talk to children about warning signs. The fog of shame around sex abuse is beginning to lift. 

This change may help the church recover and renew itself. 

More important, it will help victims -- including the silent ones everywhere -- slowly heal. 

-- Associate Editor Susan Nielsen, The Oregonian 
 
]]>Thu, 13 May 2010 10:07:21 GMT<![CDATA[Random Acts of Kindness]]>  

Title: Random Acts of Kindness for Kids
Submitted by:
Name: Marcia Cousins
School Building: Ballard Elementary
School District: Niles Community Schools
School Address: 1601 Chicago Rd
Niles MI 49120
E-mail Address: mcousin@remc11.k12.mi.us
Subject(s): Language Arts, Social Studies, and Character Education
Intended Grade Level(s): K-12
Description:
Students create an email chain around the world where they write about their acts of
kindness.
Curriculum Benchmarks:
MI.ELA.2.EL.1 Write with developing fluency for multiple purposes to produce
a variety of texts, such as stories, journals, learning logs, directions, and letters.
MI.ELA.1.EL.3 Employ multiple strategies to construct meaning, including word
recognition skills, context clues, retelling, predicting, and generating questions.
MI.ELA.3.EL.8 Respond to the ideas or feelings generated by texts and listen to
the response of others.
Materials/Hardware/Software:
One computer with email access
The book: Random Acts of Kindness by Conari Press (Editor), Dawna Markova, Daphne
Rose Kingma (Authors) paperback, Jan 1993.
Pre Learning Activities:
¨ Defining Random Acts of Kindness: The first step in teaching Random Acts of
Kindness is defining the phrase. Most kids easily understand "act" and "kindness" but
might be unfamiliar with "random". Helping them define and learn to use this word is
crucial to understanding the phrase.
¨ Explaining Random Acts of Kindness: Reading or telling children Random Acts of
Kindness stories is a very effective way to get them to fully understand the concept.
¨ Post a Call for collaborators looking for participant classrooms around the world.
Some good sources are
¨ Intercultural Email Classroom Connections
¨ http://www.awesomelibrary.org/
¨ International Education and Resource Network
¨ http://www.iearn.org/iearn/
¨ Global SchoolNet Foundation
http://www.gsn.org/
Electronic School House (ESH) on America Online
¨ GrassRoots on Canada’s SchoolNet
¨ http://www.schoolnet.ca/grassroots
¨ Classroom Connect
¨ http://www.classroom.net
Activities & Procedures
1. Decide what role you want your partners to play and for this project limit the
number of participants to the bare essentials. Since you are doing web
collaboration, you may find you only need a few classrooms to meet your needs.
To meet your goals your call for Collaborators should include:
¨ A brief description of your project
¨ An outline of the educational objective of the project
¨ Your project registration form
¨ Your project’s timeline
¨ Details about whom you wish to partner
¨ The project director’s contact information
TIP: Post your call 4 weeks in advance of your project launch, including
a timeline to help teacher’s plan.
2. Begin by asking one student to write about a time when he or she did a good deed
or was kind to someone. Create an order for each student in your classroom to
respond (similar to a chain letter).
3. Have the next student in order respond to the first’s essay with his or her own
essay. They must begin their essay building on the previous person’s essay (a
single word, topic, theme, etc.). For example, they might begin with “I, too,
helped a stranger…”
4. Email your class’s essays to the list of participants with instructions on how to
continue the chain to 10 or more classrooms (with a deadline). Keeping your
classroom’s email address at the bottom of the list.
Assessment/Evaluation:
1. Pose a challenge: once a week, practice anonymous acts of kindness for someone
who might not expect it.
2. Mark on a wall map where the essays come from.
3. Create a scrapbook from the collection of essays and illustrate.
4. Have students read selected essays from the chain and discuss. How do these acts
affect the world?
5. Watch as the essays flood in! Are there similarities between the essays? Are
there differences? What have you learned from other students” acts of kindness.
Follow-up Activities
General
¨ Create a web page posting the information and have students share some of the
essays.
¨ Create posters with samples of “acts of kindness” with pictures.
¨ Share these activities with other classes.
¨ Submit articles to the local newspaper.
¨ Arrange for kids to attend a meeting of your local or state government and talk about
the importance of RAK. They might want to bring RAK bags filled with little
goodies and decorated with kindness pictures or sayings.
¨ Have your principal start each day with a reading about kindness, or let kids do
reading.
¨ Hold a children’s kindness drawing or coloring campaign; winner receives a copy of
the Random Acts of Kindness book or other kindness book.
¨ Collect food for your food bank or shelters for the homeless or abused.
¨ Bridge the gap between “rival” school with a special event, encouraging kids to “look
for the similarities” instead of the differences.
¨ Raise money for your school’s kindness programs through the kids, such as “Hat
Day,” where kids donate 50 cents in exchange for being able to wear a hat on that
day, or buy candy bars in bulk and see them back to the kids.
¨ Hold a Teddy Bear Drive and donate the bears to a children’s shelter for new arrivals.
¨ Have classrooms create murals depicting kindness and bring them to nursing homes
and senior centers.
¨ Contact local restaurants and coffee shops. Ask them to provide blank paper place
mats on which kids can write their kindness stories or drawings depicting kind acts.
The restaurant can perpetuate the supply by offering customers a 5-cent discount in
exchange for their creating a replacement Kindness Placemat.
¨ Use a “button campaign” to spread kindness: Staff members get buttons each Monday
as they sign in, then give them to kids they observe doing a RAK, telling them exactly
what they did to earn the button. Kids wear the buttons all week (can receive more
than one). At the end of the week, kids with buttons get their picture taken with the
principal. One is enlarged and placed on a centrally located bulletin board.
¨ Create a program where kids write their commitments to specific RAK’s on
construction paper cut out in the shape of footprints. The completed footprints are
then put up on the walls of the school, with a sign saying, “Follow the way to a better
school and a better community.”
¨ “Connect” classrooms in the hallway with cutouts in the shape of people, showing hot
“we are all connected”.
¨ Purchase a button-making machine and let kids design and create kindness buttons for
themselves or community.
¨ Establish specific days of the week that focus on kindness in different areas of their
lives, such as “Kindness in the Classroom Day, “Good Manners Day” and “Kindness
at Home Day”.
¨ Promote special classroom recycling projects; proceeds benefit special activity.
District-wide student rally with performances/storytelling/honorees/addresses/etc.
¨ Create “Kindness Wands” for kids in grades K-4… children anoint each other as
Kindness Kids when they witness kind deeds.
¨ Try a “Pizza Kindness Kids” event, where each child gets a kindness pizza
(cardboard) divided into sections. When they do a RAK for someone, they get that
person’s signature on one section. When all kids in the class have completed their
Kindness Pizzas, they get a Pizza Party.
¨ Put photos of kind acts in hearts on classroom or hallway walls.
¨ Special RAK Day assemblies: sing kindness songs/give out “Caught You Being Good
Certificates”.
¨ Teachers or PTO parents make a “Friendship Salad” from fruit brought in by kids…
everyone shares.
¨ Students and teachers donate pennies and purchase/plant flowers/ bulbs; or otherwise
beautify school grounds.
¨ Classrooms collect “cans for kindness” and hold “ant parade” assembly where
students march up to collection bin with their donation made in the name of someone
who’s been kind to them; child send certificate to that person saying food was
donated in honor of their kindness.
¨ Music classes focus on kindness songs.
¨ Help kids practice goal setting about kindness to be accomplished during weekday.
¨ School library provides free cocoa for students.
¨ School newspaper creates a special “kindness section” where good news about acts of
kindness is reported. If there’s no school newspaper, create a classroom newspaper.
¨ Create school kindness chain. Each classroom uses precut 2” x 11” strips of
construction on which students committing or witnessing kind acts can write about it.
At the end of week read strips and make into chain. At end of project link all
classrooms’ chains together and display them in the halls or at city hall.
¨ Make construction paper train engine. Writer “Kindness Chain” on it; post it on the
wall in main hallway. Each teacher gets a construction paper train car with his or her
room number etc. on it. When student commits act of kindness, their name goes on
train car. When all students in class have name on train car, teacher can hitch car for
their class to train. Plan special even to celebrate when train is complete with car
from each class.
¨ Class sends letter to local businesses offering suggestions for how they can make the
world kinder.
¨ Look in newspaper for stories about acts of kindness; summarize for the rest of the
class.
¨ Write and deliver “thank you for being a good neighbor” notes telling neighbors what
makes them special to the child.
¨ Create and decorate collection boxes for kindness stories for merchants’ counters.
Kids
¨ Send letters, poems, artwork, or special treats to our soldiers in Bosnia or other
countries. Keep a Kindness Journal; younger kids include drawings.
¨ Make kindness posters for display in the windows of local merchants
¨ Draw Kindness Buddy names and secretly do something kind for that person during
the week. Older kids write poems, raps, songs, plays, etc.
¨ Create kindness bird feeders
¨ Bring double lunches for the week; extras given to homeless
¨ Give coffee/donuts/chocolate kisses and hugs or other goodies to crossing
guards/school bus drivers/school staff/police, firemen, etc.
¨ Create kindness posters and deliver them to city service workers with smiles and
treats
¨ Write their own stories on hearts and place them on a wall; try surrounding a large
heart with a kindness slogan on it
¨ Make banners, put up in sponsoring/participating merchants' stores thanking them for
their help
¨ Form a group of kids to help the school staff... in the cafeteria, younger kids can clean
lunch trays while older kids can patrol the aisles to give the adult monitors a break;
pick up trash or dust classrooms for the evening custodian.
¨ Create special kindness banners for display near principal's office
¨ Present signed petition to local Senator/Representative requesting state Kindness
Week. Pick up litter on school grounds.
¨ Write positive notes to another child in their class.
¨ Write letters to your mayor asking for an official community RAK Week.
¨ Write appreciation notes to their homeroom teachers.
¨ Write letters of appreciation to past teachers/school support/parents/friends who made
a difference in that child's life.
¨ Pair up during the day and read to one another.
¨ Make coupon books for parents/siblings/friends to do kind deeds/tasks for them.
¨ Older students "adopt" younger students for the day; read to them, etc.
¨ Student Council launches poster campaign; creates kindness slogan marquee.
¨ Tutors do acts of kindness for teachers for whom they tutor.
¨ Special interest clubs brings theme goodies to classrooms.
¨ List their fears related to kind acts (such as intervening when another child is being
bullied). Then divide fears into two columns: those that should stop them from doing
an act of kindness (such as being alone with a stranger), and those they can try to
overcome so that kindness can be done.
¨ Make a kindness collage for a friend from pictures and words found in magazines or
newspapers; it should tell something about that friend.
¨ List words and short phrases that could be used to describe a kind person; class
reviews to see how many different words/phrases they all came up with.
¨ Make a crossword puzzle with names of kind people from history; when puzzles
complete, discuss how each of them was kind.
¨ Forms “Kindness Gangs,” with a great name; a symbol, mascot, or color; write a
mission statement telling why gang was formed/goals/etc.; establish any rules to
follow. Write list of acts gang can do right away;
¨ Write theme/rap song using a tune they all know.
¨ Create a "smile file" with cartoons that make them smile, when a friend seems down,
give them a cartoon.
Great Web Sites for Random Acts of Kindness
¨ Random Acts of Kindness for Kids
¨ http://www.conari.com/
¨ Random Acts of kindness for Kids: Kids' Random Acts of Kindness is filled with
inspirational stories of generosity written by children of all ages. From whimsical
and funny to moving and thoughtful, these stories reveal the surprisingly
insightful ways our children feel about kindness and compassion.
¨ Kids Act – neat site
¨ http://www.scsn.net/users/kidsact/
¨ Random Acts of Kindness page where you can share your stories
¨ http://www.readersndex.com/randomacts/
]]>Wed, 21 Apr 2010 13:26:59 GMT