The way you measure a society’s soul is by the way that it treats its children.
Nelson Mandela
Kidz Newz no. 146 – 19th November 2015
Welcome to Kidz Newz, especially to all new subscribers. Kidz Newz is a regular newsletter with information and teaching tips for anyone involved with young children. You are receiving this because you have attended one of my workshops, purchased a book, or you have requested to be on the mailing list. Thank you. Please forward this to anyone you feel it may be of interest to. Feedback is welcome. Don’t forget to stay in touch on our Facebook Page and watch out for our exclusive fan page competitions.
ANCOS – TUTTI – Conference Hobart 11-15 January 2016
I first heard about this conference a couple of years ago. It’s a bit like the hare and the tortoise – I thought I had so long to think about it I forgot! Miraculously, I am now conducting two workshops at this conference so I hope to see you all there. As I’ll also be running a trade table, do drop by and say hello.
Xmas Specials
It is very obviously the end of year in the southern hemisphere as staff use up their budgets! I have had a run on hebi products – especially rainbow rings. Unfortunately I am not in a position to discount these but they are worth purchasing. But I can offer these –
Scarf Magic Pack – normally $55.00 – NOW $27.50 (50% discount!)
Scarf Magic DVD – normally $27.50 – NOW $14.00 (50% discount!)
Let’s Get Physical DVD – normally $49.50 – NOW $25.00 (50% discount!)
KFB Multicultural – normally $85.00 – NOW $45.00 (50% discount!)
Be quick as these specials are only valid until 18 December. Contact me directly so I can invoice you (info@kidzfizbiz.com) as these specials go only to those on my database and will not appear on the website.
You Can Be Anything
I was reading Winston Marsh’s newsletter the other day (www.winstonmarsh.com.au) and always have a look at the advertisement he’s featuring for the day(he is a business coach, after all)as it’s usually funny. I won’t spoil it here, but in this particular advertisement the message was very clever on many levels. I highly recommend you have a look at the link below in the Entertainment section to see what I’m talking about. Although it focuses on girls and imagining what is possible for their futures, the same applies to boys too, of course.
What is important is that children are believed. In the advertisement all the adults featured went along with the children’s play-acting. This is vital. Nothing children say or do, or imagine they can, is ever silly. There’s nothing worse than a child’s self-esteem being crushed by an adult with no imagination. The other thing that was so interesting in the advertisement was the variety of vocations chosen by these children. We are not all the same so what we choose to pursue will not be the same. This is self-evident but it’s surprising how children can be channelled into areas not really suited to their personalities. Maybe their choice may not make a lot of money, or maybe it will be short-lived, as in professional sport, but is that any reason not to pursue a passion? How many adults change career mid-stream? Is that necessarily a bad thing? Of course not. So why can’t children imagine the impossible and go for it? Most importantly, be encouraged to follow their dreams.
I was speaking to a teenager last week who wants to pursue medicine and then specialise. Her teachers told her that her maths were not good enough. Dismissed. End of story – implication being ‘choose another course’. Why? She is an A student! She was devastated. She has so many options that will allow her to do her course so why was the door slammed in her face by adults who couldn’t be bothered looking into her options or worse still, couldn’t be bothered encouraging her to pursue her dreams? As a student applying for university, she needs to have plan B and plan C up her sleeve, but to dismiss plan A outright? Really? How many of us, as children and young adults, had adults around us who didn’t believe in us? It can have lifelong repercussions. I know the adage, ‘whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,’ but really, does it have to be that tough?
So, the moral of the story is, encourage children to dream, to imagine, to be creative, so that they really can be anything they want to be. And enjoy the advertisement. It is fun! Thanks Winno!
Quotes of the Week
Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Act as though it were impossible to fail.
– Dorothea Brandt – Children’s author
So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then when we summon the will, they seem inevitable.
– Christopher Reeve – actor
A great pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.
– (unknown)
If you can imagine it, you can achieve it. If you can dream it, you can become it.
– William Arthur Ward
Testimonials
From GESS Indonesia conference feedback form –
I would like to have more sessions on early childhood as well as English as a second language. Ms Marlene Rattigan is definitely my favorite speaker on GESS 2015. Would really love to have her back 🙂
Another comment from GESS – Very creative. So much to do with a scarf!
Entertainment
Click Here to view the advertisement mentioned in the article. I’m not endorsing the product.
About The Author
Marlene Rattigan B.A., Dip. Ed. (ECS), CELTA
Marlene Rattigan is an Early Childhood teacher, a teacher of English as a Second Language, and from 1987-2000 was a nationally accredited fitness leader. Her background is in music education. A keen interest in motor development in children led to the creation of Kidz-Fiz-Biz which she taught successfully for 13 years. Marlene also conducts workshops for children, teachers and parents at schools, in the community and at festivals. She has produced teaching manuals complete with audio CDs which are an extension of her ‘Kidz-Fiz-Biz’ program.
Kidz-Fiz-Biz
PO Box 6894, East Perth WA 6892, Australia
T: +61 8 9355 4890 M: +61 (0) 410 64 2781 E: info@kidzfizbiz.com
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Until next time … continue being a legend in your classroom.
Marlene Rattigan, Editor
Kidz Newz
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