Monthly Archives: September 2012

General Safety Issues

TEACHING KIDS GOOD SPORTSMANSHIP (Guest Post)

During the Olympics, parents, caregivers and athletic coaches were presented with the perfect opportunity to introduce the concept of sportsmanship to their kids and emphasize its importance. Athletes from around the globe converged  to compete against one another for worldwide recognition, and the vast majority did so with grace by showing strong sportsmanship every step of the way.

Between youth league team sports, school physical activity initiatives, and the variety of athletic lessons and skills that today’s kids participate in, there are tons of opportunities every day for kids to showcase either sportsmanlike qualities or the foibles of a sore loser. Emotions tend to run high, especially in younger children, making it even more difficult for them to display themselves as a good sport. There are several ways that parents and authority figures can help kids to become sportsmanlike competitors; these are a few of the simplest and most effective.

  • Model Sportsmanlike Conduct – Kids learn by emulating the adults that are important to them, so it’s imperative that parents, coaches, and caregivers model good sportsmanship at every opportunity. That means applauding good plays regardless of who made them, keeping negative comments and criticisms to yourself, and never making a child feel bad about himself because of an athletic mistake.
  • Don’t Focus on Wins and Losses – Instead of focusing on the wins and losses of a kids’ sports team, adults should concentrate on acknowledging good plays and offering supportive assistance to build skills that children are less confident in. Emphasizing the importance of playing to the best of your abilities rather than obsessing over a win helps kids feel less absorbed with scoring and allows them to be more in tune with teamwork and dedication.
  • Never Reward Excessive Aggression – A child that delivers a win through overly-aggressive conduct should be congratulated on her success, but also encouraged to do so in a manner that can’t be construed as bullying the other players on the field.
  • Instill a Sense of Pride – When children are praised and taught to feel a sense of pride in their athletic accomplishments, parents and coaches can also help to instill a sense of humility. Kids that learn the difference between confidence and cockiness are also beginning to understand the concept of sportsmanlike conduct versus swaggering conceit.
  • Emphasize the Importance of Having Fun – At a young age, even budding athletic stars are still learning the fundamentals of the game and are beginning to build the foundations of skill. Kids that feel pressured to perform beyond their means or are forced into participation are not only almost certain to grow to resent their sport, but also to become more focused on winning at all costs. Keep kids’ sports focused on having fun, working together and building skills that may be valuable in the future.
  • Don’t Coach From the Bleachers – In addition to embarrassing your child, shouting at his teammates, coaches, and the other team from the sidelines is a great way to teach kids exactly how not to behave. There’s nothing sportsmanlike about railing the other team, berating children for a fumble, or badmouthing a coach your child looks up to. Remember the first rule of teaching kids to be a good sport is to model that behavior yourself, and this includes refraining from taking on the head coach role from the bleachers.
  • Point Out Good – and Bad – Conduct in Professional Athletes – The Olympic Games and other sporting events provide parents and coaches with a great opportunity to point out stellar sportsmanship, but it can also create talking points for discussing bad conduct on the part of a professional athlete or sports figure. When major sports names make the news for either a temper tantrum or an impressive display of grace, talk about it with your kids. Ask them how they feel about the situation, creating a dialogue that allows you to both hear what your child has to say and pass along the wisdom that you’ve learned over the years.

Discouraging kids from looking up to trash-talking, insulting athletes who make a name for themselves by bashing their teammates and opponents is one of the most important steps to helping them learn to be good sports themselves, as children will model their own behavior after that of their heroes. While you can’t control who your kids look up to, you can calmly and gently point out their favorite stars’ attitudes, when they’re someone to look up to, and where they have room for improvement. Remember, though; badmouthing a rude professional athlete to your child isn’t likely to be viewed by him/her as much different from that athlete threatening to pulverize his opponents. Choose your words carefully, and help your kids become the best sports they can be. 

Thanks for this lesson for parents and grandparents.  We know very few of our athletes will grow up to be Olympic stars; however, if they learn good sportsmanship,as well as learning to master their particular sport safely, they will take that lesson with them throughout their entire lifetime.  pb 

Meghan Walker, (http://www.babysitting.net/blog/teaching-kids-good-sportsmanship/)

General Safety Issues, Home Safety Products

TEN STEPS TO BABY-PROOFING YOUR HOME (Guest Post)

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Before you bring your bundle of joy home from the hospital you’re likely to be under the influence of some fairly strong nesting instincts. After washing tiny onesies and bibs, it’s a good idea to get a jump start on baby-proofing. Though your newborn won’t need many of the new security measures for a few months, you’re also not likely to have much spare time on your hands after she arrives. Rather than realizing a few moments after an injury that your baby’s old enough to require safety precautions around the house, here are a few steps for baby-proofing your home that you might want to consider taking early.
  1. Keep Bedding Safe – While cute, fluffy bedding can be tempting, it can actually pose a suffocation risk for newborns and infants. Make sure that there’s no more than a finger’s width between the edges of a crib mattress and the sides of the crib, that plush toys and pillows are removed from your baby’s crib while she’s in it, and that you do not use crib bumpers. They may tie a nursery together, and supposedly protect an infant’s head from knocking against the side of a crib, but they are also officially outlawed in some areas and emphatically denounced by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
  2. Choose the Right Furniture – The antique nursery furniture that you found or inherited might be beautiful, but it may also be unsafe. Before using it, make sure that slats in the crib are less than 2 3/8 inches apart, that changing tables have side guards of at least 2 inches high to prevent falls, and that the surfaces are not painted to eliminate the risk of lead-contaminated paint.
  3. Install Toilet Locks – Infants that can crawl will soon be able to pull themselves into an upright position by holding on to a stable surface. When that surface is a toilet, curiosity about the water inside and the unsteadiness of a standing child who can’t support their own bodies properly combine to create a risky situation. Installing locks on toilet seats can help to prevent your little one from drowning.
  4. Use a Faucet Cover – To protect your baby’s soft, delicate head during bath time, using a specially designed cover as a buffer between her sensitive skin and the cold metal of the faucet is best. Be warned, however, that these covers can slip off and are not a substitute for careful monitoring.
  5. Change the Temperature Setting on Your Water Heater – Scalds are among the most common types of burns among children seen in emergency rooms; to ensure that your baby doesn’t inadvertently sustain such an injury, turn the temperature setting on your hot water heater down to 120° or less.
  6. Move Cleaning Fluids and Chemicals to Upper Cabinets – In the average child-free home, cleaning solutions and other chemicals are kept in the lower cabinet, directly beneath the sink. Infants begin pulling themselves along and crawling sooner than some parents expect, which can lead to poisoning scares if such substances are still in reach. Moving your cleaning fluids to an upper cabinet early helps you become accustomed to the placement and reduces the likelihood of you forgetting to do so later.
  7. Be Mindful of Blind Cords and Curtain Tie-Backs – Cords used to open and close blinds, and tie-backs used for drawing back curtains are among the most common culprits in infant and toddler strangulation. There are winding and securing products on the market to help prevent these tragedies, and they should be used in all rooms of the house.
  8. Cushion Edges of Furniture – Padding sharp corners of coffee tables and other low-slung furniture, along with the sharp, hard edges of brick hearths, can protect your baby’s head and face from injury as she learns to grasp these surfaces to gain rudimentary balance skills.
  9. Install Cabinet Locks – In addition to moving dangerous chemicals to upper cabinets well out of a baby’s reach, parents are also encouraged to install cabinet locks to block access. Because inventive or determined babies can sometimes outsmart them, you should still make an effort not to leave your child unattended in kitchens or bathrooms.
  10. Check Carbon Monoxide and Smoke Detectors – In the hustle and bustle of preparing for Baby’s arrival, it’s easy to forget to check the batteries and functionality of your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide alarms. Be sure to test them to ensure that your growing family is protected from poisoning or fire.

Sent to us by Barbara Williams, findababysitter.org