Tips for Bringing it all Home:
Apps!
So many of my kids are into "screens" that I have been encouraged to find some ways to engage them in emotional learning and skill building through apps that they can access with parents or on there own. I only review free ones and here are my up-to-date favorites! Let me know if there are apps that you enjoy for helping your family with feelings and behaviors.
"Team Orange"- My teens love this app! It allows them to journal and track their feelings. I love it because it offers teens and adults a way to build and customize their own tool list. You can even upload favorite videos and songs into the app. I teach teens a lot of skills but being able to recall them when they are heated can be tough sometimes. This app is a great way to have it all quickly accessible in seconds.
"My Smiling Mind"- For ages 7- adult, this app helps kids learn and practice meditation. I have instructed kids and parents to listen to a calming meditation at bedtime (to ease those active minds) and they have reported back great results using this easy to navigate app. I love the positive reinforcement as the app totals up all of your meditation and mindfulness minutes!
"FOCUS on the Go"- Great for younger children and families, this app helps users increase their feelings vocabulary and identify helpful activities. I think it offers some nice family education and thoughtful discussion for parents. Even though it is for a younger audience, I admit to playing the feelings word finder often :).
"Feel Electric!"- Honestly, I found this one to be a little corny but I do appreciate how it can help a younger kid learn facial expressions. If your child likes this one, it can be a great teaching tool. The user can even create their own "mood dude."
"My DPS"- I found this app to be very simple and I can see how a child might get bored with it after only a few times. The one thing that I really like about it is teaching young kids the connection between mood and choice. The user can pick their mood and then gets to pick a strategy on how to overcome it.
"Team Orange"- My teens love this app! It allows them to journal and track their feelings. I love it because it offers teens and adults a way to build and customize their own tool list. You can even upload favorite videos and songs into the app. I teach teens a lot of skills but being able to recall them when they are heated can be tough sometimes. This app is a great way to have it all quickly accessible in seconds.
"My Smiling Mind"- For ages 7- adult, this app helps kids learn and practice meditation. I have instructed kids and parents to listen to a calming meditation at bedtime (to ease those active minds) and they have reported back great results using this easy to navigate app. I love the positive reinforcement as the app totals up all of your meditation and mindfulness minutes!
"FOCUS on the Go"- Great for younger children and families, this app helps users increase their feelings vocabulary and identify helpful activities. I think it offers some nice family education and thoughtful discussion for parents. Even though it is for a younger audience, I admit to playing the feelings word finder often :).
"Feel Electric!"- Honestly, I found this one to be a little corny but I do appreciate how it can help a younger kid learn facial expressions. If your child likes this one, it can be a great teaching tool. The user can even create their own "mood dude."
"My DPS"- I found this app to be very simple and I can see how a child might get bored with it after only a few times. The one thing that I really like about it is teaching young kids the connection between mood and choice. The user can pick their mood and then gets to pick a strategy on how to overcome it.
Games/Play
Play is one of the most powerful things we can do with kids! You can help your child build important skills by playing on a regular basis. Whether you create a special time or incorporate it into daily activities, I encourage you to find time for play. Think of the skills that you want your child to learn and match them to a game that naturally calls upon those attributes.
Here is a list to get you started:
Pretend play: Symbolic play is the training ground for important brain development including cognitive flexibility, self-monitoring, and working memory. The social aspect helps form the child’s ability to collaborate and cooperate.
Checkers: Reasoning, goal orientation, impulse control, and frustration tolerance are all utilized. Many board games can be entertaining as well as educational.
Riddles and jokes: Thinking outside the box builds cognitive flexibility.
What Happens When: Mix silly questions with real life examples to help kids learn the relationship between actions and consequences. Examples- What happens when you mistake your finger for a carrot? What happens when you forget your homework?
I Spy with my Five Senses: Adding onto this familiar game encourages children to develop a greater sense of detail and become more aware of their environment. Examples- I spy something that smells sweet, I spy something that sounds like “Rumble Rumble.”
We are Going to the Park and We are Going to Bring: Come up with a fun or silly destination then take turns adding what you are going to bring. The next player repeats the sentence, your word, and then adds his own. This continues for as long as it is fun. Strengthens auditory processing, memory, and attention skills.
Mirror: Face your child as if he were looking in the mirror. Your child gets to move in whatever way he wants and you copy his movements. Switch places. This fun game builds awareness of the reciprocal nature of relationships.
Here is a list to get you started:
Pretend play: Symbolic play is the training ground for important brain development including cognitive flexibility, self-monitoring, and working memory. The social aspect helps form the child’s ability to collaborate and cooperate.
Checkers: Reasoning, goal orientation, impulse control, and frustration tolerance are all utilized. Many board games can be entertaining as well as educational.
Riddles and jokes: Thinking outside the box builds cognitive flexibility.
What Happens When: Mix silly questions with real life examples to help kids learn the relationship between actions and consequences. Examples- What happens when you mistake your finger for a carrot? What happens when you forget your homework?
I Spy with my Five Senses: Adding onto this familiar game encourages children to develop a greater sense of detail and become more aware of their environment. Examples- I spy something that smells sweet, I spy something that sounds like “Rumble Rumble.”
We are Going to the Park and We are Going to Bring: Come up with a fun or silly destination then take turns adding what you are going to bring. The next player repeats the sentence, your word, and then adds his own. This continues for as long as it is fun. Strengthens auditory processing, memory, and attention skills.
Mirror: Face your child as if he were looking in the mirror. Your child gets to move in whatever way he wants and you copy his movements. Switch places. This fun game builds awareness of the reciprocal nature of relationships.