Those who can't…Mark Exton's Blog

If there was something that research showed could make your child’s learning more effective, something only you could provide for them and I was to tell you it is free, wouldn’t you grab it? Of course you would, so would I! The good news is that there is – it’s called SLEEP!
Whilst we must always recognise that all children are different it is instructive to note that the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that children aged 3-10 years old need between 10 and12 hours of sleep a night, and this data is backed up by other authorities. Children who are regularly ‘sleep deprived’ will potentially exhibit a range of difficult behaviours. They may display frequent irritability, overreact emotionally, have difficulty concentrating, forget easily, wake often during the night, and they may even display hyperactive behaviours.
Of course, you might think that this is a nuisance but surely it doesn’t impact on the child’s learning that much…does it? Recent research in Israel has shown that “the performance gap caused by an hour’s difference in sleep was bigger than the normal gap between a fourth-grader and a sixth-grader. Which is another way of saying that a slightly sleepy sixth-grader will perform in class like a mere fourth-grader. A loss of one hour of sleep is equivalent to [the loss of] two years of cognitive maturation and development.” If you want to read more on this subject head to Can a Lack of Sleep Set Back Your Child’s Cognitive Abilities?  Be warned, however. The article makes for scary reading and has some very significant implications for us as parents.
So, if you recognise that there might be an issue here for your child how can you make the change? Firstly, your child has to have a set bedtime routine, a pattern of events that he or she goes through before sleeping every night. If this already exists, then just start bringing it forward. If it doesn’t yet exist, then start to develop one. Make sure that once in their bedroom your child has no distractions – no TV, computer, Game Boys, Nintendos, etc. You might think that these activities are quiet and sedentary but the bright lighting often makes children more awake, making it harder for them to get to sleep. Again, more information can be found courtesy of the NYMag website at How to Get Kids to Sleep More.
I know from the reports of teachers that a significant number of children in the Infants cannot be getting enough sleep; they regularly go bed at 10 or even 11pm. I’ve also seen at least one example of where a family has made the change and seen the difference. Their child is more attentive and focused in class, and generally happier. Most significantly, it’s starting to show in their learning too! Do you need to make this change with one of your children?

Last week in the Newsletter I wrote that you should let your children climb trees, and this week my focus is on why going camping is good for kids. This weekend we’re off camping as a family—just one night in a lovely spot on the shores of the reservoir at Jebel Awlia. Apart from the natural beauty of the location, why would we expose our daughters to the cold, biting insects, thorns in their feet, etc.? Well, for the same reasons that the School runs an Outdoor Education (ODE) programme from Year 3 onwards—it is both fun and character-building. Camping is one of the best ways to connect and bond with your family. If a hectic work schedule is leaving you with little time for your family members, a weekend camping trip is the perfect answer. With no television, computers and cell phones to serve as distractions, activities such as setting up camp, fishing and cooking will have everyone working and spending quality time together. Add to this fun activities such as camping games and bonfires, and everyone will have a blast. Our children are more resilient and independent that we often give them credit for and camping and other outdoor activities really gives them a chance to demonstrate this. The connecting with nature and natural problem-solving required in the outdoors are additional bonuses for the children. So, why wait for Year 3, think about a family camping trip before it gets too hot…and go climbing trees with them!

Last week in the School newsletter I wrote about the importance of developing self-esteem within children and promised that this week I would share some ideas on how we can all help to make this happen.

The Child Development Institute (at http://www.childdevelopmentinfo.com/parenting/self_esteem.shtml) has some sensible suggestions:

1. Teach children to change their ‘demands’ to ‘preferences’.

2. Encourage them to ask for what they want assertively but point out that there is no guarantee they will get it.

3. Let children know that they create and are responsible for any feelings that they experience.

4. Encourage them to develop hobbies and interests which give them pleasure and which they can pursue independently.

5. Encourage them to settle their own disputes.

6. Help them to develop ‘tease tolerance’ by pointing out that some teasing can’t hurt unless they let it.

7. Help your children to focus on their strengths by pointing out to them all the things they can do.

8. Encourage them to behave towards themselves the way they would like their friends to behave toward them.

9. Help your child to think in terms of alternative options rather than setting their heart on just one option.

10. Laugh with your children and encourage them to laugh at themselves.

Of course, it’s always easier said than done and these techniques demand gentle persistence in the manner in which they are employed. Why not have  a go, starting with one or two that seem most likely to work with your child?

Please share your thoughts on how we can boost our children’s self-esteem or how you’ve got on with the ideas listed above.

This year the Infant Show format has been a significant departure from previous years; concerns about whether the amphitheatre is a suitable venue for very young learners caused us to re-think the event. As a result of the very positive feedback from the Early Childhood Picnic at the start of the school year and the more recent KICSPA Picnic it was decided to try to combine the Show with something similar for the Infant Section community. Thus, this year’s Picnic in the Park show was conceived.

I would love to hear from parents and students about what you think of the new format: should we continue it or abandon it, how might we improve it, etc.

Finally, enjoy the break and for those of you traveling outside of or within Sudan, travel safely!

Never too young to start!

Forget to put the piece of fruit in their fatour box on odd days, occasionally forget to get them to throw their goggles in with their swim kit but NEVER forget to read with your child on a daily basis.

Reading is fundamental to success at school; it fosters creative thinking skills, enhances language usage and, most importantly, it is ENJOYABLE! So, every afternoon and evening, and before your child becomes too tired, ask them to choose a couple of picture books, sit down somewhere quiet and read together. Read the stories to them; ask them to have a go at reading them back to you, concentrating not on word-for-word accuracy but on meaning making, i.e. making sense of the words and pictures to re-create the story.

Whilst it is important to share books in English it is also vital that you give your children access to books in their mother tongue/s too. They will enjoy you sharing these with them too. Nothing motivates young emergent readers more than a) seeing their parents reading and b) having access to a good collection of books at home. If you are not sure what books to buy for your child (the perfect homecoming present if you are ever away travelling!), then please feel free to ask our teachers and the librarian, Mrs Amira. Friends with children of the same age are also a great source of information.

Finally, reading is a time to enjoy, so if your child does not like a book or is not in the right frame of mind, change your tactics. Try a different book or at a different time. If they want to read or hear the same book again and again, indulge them! Repetition of this sort is a key facet of gaining confidence in reading. You’ll notice that they start ‘reading’ by memorising stories they have heard repeatedly; this is where we all started!

As ever, please join in with this discussion, posting both your thoughts and questions concerning reading development and how we teach reading at KICS.

It does not matter how one looks at it, all of our children are privileged individuals, wanting for very little in the way of life’s basics. Whilst, on first reflections, this might seem to be a positive thing we do need to be aware of some potential costs. Perhaps the thing that we most notice in school is just how difficult it is to develop independence and responsibility in the children. Too often our nannies and/or drivers do things for them rather then get them to do them for themselves, and we as parents are just as bad!

Independence and responsibility start with us engaging all of our children — even those in Little KICS — in the process of thinking about what needs to go in their bags for school for the next day. By the time children are in Years 1 and 2 they should be checking that timetable on the fridge door and packing their bags accordingly. Then when I meet them at the Infant gate the next morning they should be carrying the bag and putting it in their cubby hole outside their classroom.

It seems insignificant, doesn’t it? It ‘s not; it is the vital life skill of taking responsibility. This translates into active and inquiring learners in the classroom, rather than children who sit passively waiting for a teacher or teaching assistant to bring them a pencil and paper. Our children should be getting off their chairs and be looking for what they need for their work.

Of course, all this is easier said than done; our children are cute, we love them and we want then to have the best of everything. Isn’t that why they are at KICS? However, as Rob Parsons writes, “As parents, you have got to be prepared to take the unpopularity hit.” If we really mean to do the best by our children then sometimes it will involve this ‘unpopularity hit’ but, in the end, they will revel in the freedom that coping with responsibility actually gives them.

So, have I got it right in the above? What should we all be doing both to encourage our children’s independence and to instill in them an embryonic sense of responsibility? What do you do with your children?

Please feel free to add your comments to this post. Thank you.

I thought that I’d better explain the blog title – Those who can’t… – for anyone left a little confused by it. It’s simply a tongue-in-cheek reference to the long established saying in English that ‘those who can, do but those who can’t, teach’.

I’ve worked in communities and cultures where to be a teacher is the most revered profession and in others where it’s barely above the lowest of the low. How does how we view teaching – individually and as a community – impact upon the learning of our children? Why do so few students at international schools seem to be interested in teaching as a career?

Welcome to my brand new blog at Edublogs.

For the past four years I’ve been very much in the background as Deputy Principal at Khartoum International Community School, occasionally surfacing to MC events such as the annual Prize Giving, etc. Now, as I also take on the role and responsibilities of Head of Infants I thought I should raise my profile a little.

This blog is the online equivalent of my office, the playground and anywhere that we might meet, including Ozone! Please feel free to stop by and tarry a while. I’m hoping that all members of the KICS community will add to the discussions here, and if there’s a topic you would like me to kick off please just e-mail me at mark.exton@kics.sd telling me what subject you would like me to address. You, and others, will then be free to add to the discussion in the Comment section.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Mr Mark