Photo Copyright: sxc.hu/SteveFE

Discipline takes on new meaning when kids reach their tween years. It becomes less about controlling behavior and more about guiding development. Although I’ve taught youth for over 15 years, it wasn’t until my daughter became a preteen that I fully realized that truth. Timeouts and stern looks were no longer enough. Although she followed the rules, it was time for her to grow in self control and make wiser choices. To effectively guide her, my discipline needed to foster maturity and build her character.

So, here’s what I did. Try these 10 discipline tips to foster maturity in your tween…

Kids and Body Image

Body image is a tough battle for kids to fight. Heck, if we’re honest, most adults still struggle with learning to love and accept our bodies. In the 15+ plus years I’ve been working as a youth leader, I’ve seen and heard the self-doubt and critical appraisals of their bodies from the tweens and teens over and over again.  And I knew it was only a matter of time before my own preteen daughter would be facing many of those same issues. Little did I know, my daughter was already struggling with her body image.

While I couldn’t change how she saw herself, I could help her learn to be comfortable with her own body and develop a more positive self-image. Read “Looking in the Mirror: How to Help Your Daughter with Her Body Image” to learn five ways I helped – and continue to help – my daughter with her body image.

Host a manners party to help kids learn & practice manners

Do your child’s table manners leave something to be desired? How about his or her social skills? If so, throw a party.

What? Yes, you read that right. I said throw a party. But this is not your typical party… it’s a manners party.

One of the greatest challenges parents and teachers deal with is learning how to effectively help children become social human beings. We long for them to be polite, secure, well-adjusted, and caring people. Unfortunately, those qualities aren’t something they’re born with and they don’t magically appear overnight either. (Wouldn’t it be great if the manners fairy could just sprinkle a little magic pixie dust over them as they sleep to make their manners grow overnight?)

Often times, teaching kids the proper or socially accepted ways to behave seems too much like work and not enough like fun to grab and, more importantly, to keep their attention long enough for them to learn. As a youth worker and Girl Scout leader, I searched for a unique way to teach my troop of 6- and 7-year old girls about manners. They needed to grasp the basics of table manners, communication with other children and adults, and respect for others. More importantly, those basics had to come to life for them. (Remember, kids learn and retain concepts better when it is applicable to them.) To make all of that happen for the students, I decided to create and help them host a manners party.

As with any other learned life skills, in order for children become skilled at using proper etiquette they must have plenty of practice. Hosting a manners party for kids allows them a fun and comfortable environment in which to practice their manners. Read How to Host a Manners Party for Kids for a complete guide on how to plan and implement the party.

Toy Review: Activity Bus by PlanToys

Product Description
The Activity Bus is made of solid wood – chemical-free rubberwood – and creatively designed to turn into a classroom when opened up. Included with the bus are two action figures, three wooden desks, a teacher’s/bus driver’s seat, a chalkboard/map, and school books. All of the items can be conveniently stored inside of the bus for storage.

Here are the details:

• The school bus (closed) measures about 8 1/2″ long/ 5 1/4″ tall/ 4 1/2″ wide.

• The action figures are about 2 1/2″ tall.

• The recommended age is 3 years and up. There are small parts, so I’d advise parents to adhere to this recommendation.

• The product number for the Activity Bus is 7503.

• The toy is reasonably priced at $25-35.

Education, Learning and Development Value
The Activity Bus is great for individual role playing or for building social interaction with other children. Kids can pretend to be the bus driver taking the students to school or park the bus and open it up for class time. However the kids choose to use the toy, it offers excellent opportunities for sparking their imagination and thinking skills.

Quality & Durability
The adorable bus and all of its accessories are made from a durable rubberwood. The quality of the items is top-rate and environmentally safe. And there’s no need to worry about lead paint or other toxins with the product. All of the products provided by PlanToys are made from chemical-free rubberwood and toxin-free glue and dyes.

Fun Factor
Creative Kids Ideas believes this rating is best determined by kids, so the creator put the Activity Bus to the test with her four-year-old. The toy was a big hit! One who is typically ready to move on to another toy after a few minutes, she has spent countless hours on the floor playing with just the one toy. That proves the fun factor for us.

Would we purchase this toy or other PlanToys products for children in the future? Yes, without a doubt. This is a toy both kids and parents will love!

The Activity Bus can be found on Amazon.com, Only-Toys.com, Gifted Imaginations, KangarooBoo, and various other online locations.

Thanks to PlanToys for providing a free sample of this excellent product for Creative Kids Ideas to review.