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The Appreciation Station Newsletter - June 2007
June 1st, 2007 | Share this with a friend!
Summer Days = Family Days
The days of rushed mornings, late night homework and packing daily lunches has come to a close yet again. All families can look forward to a summer of fun activities, relaxing outdoors, road trips and doing team projects around the house. Here are just a few ideas to help you fill your summer days…
June 12 – Anne Frank’s Birthday
The story of Anne Frank can spark some great learning conversations among family members. Born in 1929 in Germany and exiled by Hitler’s Army, Anne and her family went into hiding in Amsterdam in 1942 in order to avoid arrest. For families with older children and teens, reading Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl can demonstrate that even in the most difficult of circumstances, it is important to maintain a positive attitude, fortitude, determination and hope. You can also enjoy some discussions around a few of Anne Frank’s beautiful quotes:
"I don’t think of all the misery but of the beauty that still remains."
"And finally I twist my heart round again, so that the bad is on the outside and the good is on the inside, and keep on trying to find a way of becoming what I would so like to be, and could be, if there weren’t any other people living in the world."
"Despite everything, I believe that people are really good at heart."
"I must uphold my ideals, for perhaps the time will come when I shall be able to carry them out."
June 15 – "The Power of the Smile" Day
Did you know that 10 minutes of hearty laughter has the physiological equivalence to 35 minutes of mid-paced jogging? Smiling and laughing has emotional, physiological and social effects and is highly contagious. On June 15, speak to your family members and talk about the power of a smile and how each of you can make someone’s day brighter with a smile AND get one in return! At the end of the day, share your smile stories. You’ll have fun while recounting your day of spreading smiles!
June 17 – Father’s Day
Father’s Day is a time for you to tell the Father’s in your life how much you appreciate them. Looking for a gift idea from the heart? Give him a full day to relax with his feet up, surrounded by happy kids and his favorite snacks all without a to-do list. Have all the kids go out of their way to make sure Dad has what he needs to relax today.
June 21 – First Day of Summer
Embrace summer today by turning off the television and video games and head outdoors! Create an adventure by grabbing a glass jar and going on a "bug hunt", or do a quick and easy scavenger hunt for unique items you might find. If your first day of summer involves household projects, be sure to give the kids something fun to do so that they are contributing to making their house a better place to be! Kids love to learn, especially with their favorite teachers, Mom and Dad!
Summer Mealtime Conversation Ideas:
What is your favorite thing about summer?
What do you miss about school?
If you could take the family on an adventure, where would it be to?
What outdoor sport or activity would you like to try this summer?
If you went camping, what would you NEED to bring with you?
Make Mealtime Fun for the next 101 Days with The Conversation Station!
The Conversation Station, a supplemental product to The Appreciation Station, is the perfect way to connect with your family around the dinner table through fun and inventive questions that the entire family can answer. At just $14.95 this is a great way to find out more about your kids and for the kids to find out more about their parents! Log onto www.theappreciationstation.com and click on "Products" to order.
$10.00 DISCOUNT ON PURCHASE OF THE APPRECIATION STATION
To kick off the summer, we are offering a special $10.00 discount on The Appreciation Station through the month of June. When you order your treasure chest, use the code below on the check out page. Please feel free to share this code with friends and family that you feel might benefit by using positive reinforcement in their home! Be the parent you want to be!
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The Appreciation Station Newsletter - February 2007
February 1st, 2007 | Share this with a friend!
It’s never too cold to appreciate the people in your life! The Appreciation Station encourages you to set aside some cozy family time this month to remember who and why we love.
Valentine’s Day: February 14
In these "high-tech, low touch" times, a written expression of love is greatly appreciated and there is no better occasion than Valentine’s Day to make homemade cards with your kids!
Dig out the construction paper and encourage your kids to get creative. Find items from around the house that can be attached to the brightly colored construction paper in order to add their personal touch: glitter, sequins, cupcake sprinkles, stickers, etc. To add even more of a personal touch, use your digital camera to take photos of your kids to add to the Valentine’s. To make it personal for the recipient, end each card with "I appreciate you because _____!"
Be sure to make a few extra cards for others who may enjoy them… neighbors at a nursing home, the mailperson, a Sunday school teacher, etc.
February is Black History Month:
Take time to appreciate and celebrate the achievements and contributions of Black Americans. As a family, be sure to talk about the importance of equality in our day-to-day life. Some suggestions for starting the conversations or activities…
Activity Suggestions:
- Teach each other: Each family member should be assigned a Black pioneer that made a difference in our country’s history. Research their lives and teach the other family members about them around the dinner table.
- Same/Different Game: Gather in a circle and one person starts from their left and tells the person next to him one thing that’s the same, ex., we both have two eyes and one thing that is different, ex., your hair is blonde and mine is brown. You can go around the circle as many times as you wish. Everyone’s a winner in this game because we realize that although we all have things in common, we all also share differences as well and that’s what makes us special!
Discussion Suggestions:
- Can anyone describe a time that they felt as if they were treated unfairly? How did it make you feel?
- Have you ever seen someone treated unfairly? How did you help make that person feel better?
- End the evening with a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King such as this; "Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, what are you doing for others?" (This may bring about even further discussion and learning!)
Do you have suggestions or ideas that you would like to share? Send them to us and we’ll include them in our "Advice from Parents" portion of the website. This portion of the website will be launched in March and we need your help to fill it with true-to-life experiences and suggestions from parents! We look forward to your input.
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