Summer Service
By Shannon Tuttle
June 30, 2017
When we serve with our kids, we help them see the bonds that grow from service, both with those we serve and those we serve with. Show your kids how to help your family members, ward, neighbors, and community! Check out the June Friend for some ideas to get started:
- “Welcome to Cousin Camp” shows how kids can have fun doing service together—and it gives a few kid-friendly project ideas.
- Check out this month’s “Friends with Heart” story. Learn how Jackson and his siblings helped refugees living in their community.
- Read “An Extra Dose of Love” and write a card to someone you care about.
- You can also check out this month’s “Show and Tell” page to see what kids all over the world are doing to love and help others.
Attention, Bookworms!
June 23, 2017
Some kids are out of school for the summer, which means lots of play time—and maybe a good book or two! Hopefully summer reading is part of your child’s summer fun. Did you know that every year the Friend publishes a list of wholesome books for different reading levels? It’s true! Just click, print, and take the list to your nearest library. Click here for this year’s list, published in the June magazine, or click here to find lists from previous years. Happy reading!
Questions, Intimacy, and Saying “NO!”
By Marissa Widdison
June 9, 2017
Where do our children turn when they have questions? If we don’t show them that we can be a trusted and nonjudgmental source of information, they’ll turn elsewhere—like to the Internet or their friends—for answers. It’s especially important that they learn about sexuality from a safe source, instead of just typing words they hear on the playground into an online search engine! So let’s step up and make sure we are having ongoing, age-appropriate conversations with our kids. Doing so will not only help them develop a healthy view of intimacy as they grow up, but can also help protect them against abuse now. If you’re not sure how to start these conversations, don’t worry! The Friend and ChurchofJesusChrist.org have resources that can help.
- Click here to see media library videos from LDS Family Services about talking with your family about intimacy.
- Use the story “Tickling Trouble” in this month’s Friend magazine to help your children practice saying “NO!” Even though we usually encourage our children to be obedient, we want to make sure they know they can say “NO!” to unwanted touch.
- Check out the ready-made FHE lessons about sexuality on OvercomingPornography.ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
Coach, Not Referee
By Kim Webb Reid
June 2, 2017
As a parent, you probably don’t want to play referee within the walls of your own home. Good news—you shouldn’t have to! You’re a coach, and your children are on the same team, even if they don’t realize it yet.
As you try to coach your children instead of referee them, they will feel secure in your love and grow to love each other more.
Here are four ways to help your children learn to get along:
- Give your children words and phrases to use. Instead of just saying, “Use your words,” tell your children exactly which words to use. “Say, ‘I would like a turn now’” or “Say, ‘I would like to play with you.’” Little ones don’t have quick access to very many words yet, and it will take a lot of practice before they do.
- Use stories. Children will like hearing about the times you learned to appreciate your brothers’ and sisters’ differences, especially if those brothers and sisters have grown into favorite uncles and aunts.
- Call time outs. Coaches call players off the field to rest and regroup. With rest instead of punishment in mind, you might provide a cozy time-out space for your child, like a comfy chair.
- Point out the good. When children are having fun together, make sure they notice. “I’m so grateful you have each other!” and “That was really nice of your sister to share with you. She must really love you.”
