Northville Public Schools
Community Wellness Newsletter June 2019
The Northville Public Schools Health Advisory Board (HAB) is comprised of many members, from across the district and the community. The Health Advisory Board includes two co-chairpersons (a district parent and the district's Director of Instructional Programs and Service), along with teachers and administrators from each educational level, community members, parents, health professionals, and secondary students.
Staying Hydrated
Many fruits and vegetables contain large amounts of water which can help keep you hydrated. Cucumbers, watermelon, lettuce, celery, tomatoes strawberries, oranges and grapefruit are good choices. Listen to your body! The Academy for Nutrition and Dietics gives a guide on keeping your kids hydrated. There are ways to make getting and staying hydrated fun! You can flavor your water with fresh or frozen fruit and herbs. You can even make your own popsicles with fruits, water or coconut water. Using a reusable water bottle is better for the environment and also helps you keep track of how much water you are actually consuming.
Sport Snacks
Photo credit: Sally Kuzemchak, MS, RD of Real Mom Nutrition.
Summer Safety
Another side of safety is related to technology. Here are some things to consider as it relates to internet and cell-phone safety.
Ideas for Summer Family Fun
If you're looking for inspiration, this check list from Real Simple is a great start.
Here are a few other ideas:
- Stargaze in your backyard
- Have a bonfire and roast marshmallows
- Fly a kite
- Shop at a farmers market - Northville, Plymouth, Ann Arbor
- Listen to live music - Summer Concerts (Northville), Music in the Air (Plymouth)
- Watch some fireworks - Ford Fireworks, Livonia Spree ,
- Take in a baseball game - Detroit Tigers Schedule
- Go see a movie - maybe at the drive in?
Growth Mindset & Resilience
Growth Mindset & Resilience - two factors that can contribute to a person's success. According to Carol S. Dweck, PhD, author of, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, when a student has a fixed mindset, they believe that their basic abilities, intelligence and talents are fixed traits; while students with a growth mindset believe their abilities and intelligence can be developed with effort, learning and persistence.
With a growth mindset, children (and adults) can see an endless opportunity in developing skills like resilience, along with problem solving, goal setting and even risk taking. With these skills, one can face a world full of challenges and know they can get through those challenges even stronger because of them. Let's take a closer look at resilience.
Merriam-Webster defines resilience as an ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change. While resilience can't make your problems go away, it can allow you to see past them, enjoy life more and better handle stress (Mayo Clinic)
The Mayo Clinic outlines a few steps to take to develop resilience:
- Get Connected. Building strong, positive relationships with loved ones and friends can provide you with needed support and acceptance in both good times and bad. Establish other important connections by volunteering or joining another community based on your interests.
- Make every day Meaningful. Do something that gives you a sense of accomplishment and purpose every day. Set goals to help you look toward the future with meaning
- Learn from Experience. Thing of how you've coped with hardships in the past. Consider the skills and strategies that helped you through rough times. You might even write about past experiences in a journal to help you identify positive and negative behavior patterns - and guide your future behavior.
- Remain Hopeful. You can't change the past, but you can always look toward the future. Accepting and even anticipating change makes it easier to adapt and view new challenges with less anxiety.
- Take Care of Yourself. Tend to your own needs and feelings. Participate in activities and hobbies you enjoy. Include physical activity in your daily routine. Get plenty of sleep. Eat a healthy diet. Practice stress management and relaxation techniques, such as yoga, meditation, guided imagery, or deep breathing.
- Be Proactive. Don't ignore your problems. Instead, figure out what needs to be done, make a plan, and take action. Although it can take time to recover from a major setback, traumatic event or loss, know that your situation can improve if you work at it.
A great resource to help your kids with growth mindset and resilience is Big Life Journal - chock full of information, printables, posters and journals - designed just for kids and parents. They offer weekly articles with free printables you can use at home with your children and their blog features informative articles to keep a growth mindset top of mind. This blog post is titled "How to Raise Resilient Kids Who Never Give Up (Based on Science)" - a great read.
Check out this Tedx Talk about the Power of Resilience!
Book Club Launches to Support Parents
Parents – are you overbooked? Of course you are! Get ready to add another thing to your calendar and join the Northville Youth Network for our new parenting support book club,
OVERBOOKED. Parenting is hard but your book club shouldn’t be! Join us for a casual monthly meet-up with other local parents to discuss a specific book or article that explores hot topics in parenting and the emotional wellbeing of our kids.
Come to all the discussions, or come to only those that pique your interest. Read the material in depth, skim it, or take a look at the cover on Amazon before you run out the door! The objective is to use the reading material to frame a discussion with other parents who face similar parenting challenges. All that is required is a willingness to learn, as we discuss the main truths of the reading and find support and encouragement from other parents in our community. No judgement. No shame. Nothing but empathy and kindness as we learn from each other’s successes and failures. Oh, and a lot of laughs, too!
Overbooked is facilitated by Kerri Ann Sondreal, a licensed professional counselor, Youth Support Specialist at Northville Youth Network, and an overbooked Northville mom of two herself.
Each month we will cover a new reading selection. Our first book is How to Raise an Adult: Break Free of the Overparenting Trap and Prepare Your Kid for Success By Julie Lythcott-Haims. This is an excellent book that describes what overparenting is and the negative impact it carries for our kids, us as parents, and society at large. The book also offers practical alternative approaches that lead to more successful kids and happier parents! This is a great read for parents of toddlers to twentysomethings.
Beginning on August 1st , Overbooked will meet on the first Thursday of each month from 7-8PM at the Northville Community Center, 303 W. Main Street. For more information contact Kerri Ann Sondreal, Youth Support Specialist, Northville Youth Network at 248-344-1618.
Northville Public Schools
Website: www.northvilleschools.org
Location: 405 West Main Street, Northville, MI, USA
Phone: (248) 344-3500
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/northvilleschools/
Twitter: @NorthvilleEDU