“Encourage & support your kids because children are apt to live up to what you believe of them.” Lady Bird Johnson
The beginning of a new school year is here for some and right around the corner for others. What that mean is that during this time of the year many students are feeling a bit anxious about what the new school year holds for them — in regards to connecting with friends again as well as encountering new experiences, such as new school environments and new teachers.
I am sure students will enter the 2018-2019 school year with a desire to make this their best year yet. They know that they have greatness inside of them waiting to be developed so the rest of the world can acknowledge it as well. If they don’t know it, then please realize that God has given them talents, skills, knowledge and intellect that can be used in a positive and productive way to make the world a better place in which to live.
I want to wish every student (elementary, middle school, high school and college level) success in their educational pursuits for the 2018-19 school year.
With that said, let me just acknowledge that I know parents are also very busy preparing for their child(ren) return to school as well. They are busy shopping for school supplies and clothing so students go back prepared for success in the classroom. While shopping for those tangible things, that can be bought in a store, I want to also remind every parent out there to be extremely cognizant of what children need from us that is crucial for their development but that money can’t buy. That would be our time, our unconditional love, our guidance, our support and our discipline. When we look at the various unfortunate events that took place this past year in schools across our nation, we have to realize and come to grips with the fact that something is extremely lacking. What that is exactly, I can not say. I just want to encourage each and every parent, guardian, and responsible adult to invest in our young people and give them what they need to be the best they can possibly be.
An Example of Giving Back and Investing
Just recently we saw basketball great, LeBron James, invest in students in his hometown of Akron, Ohio as he opened the doors to his new I Promise School. The school is funded by the LeBron James’ Family Foundation and opened in collaboration with Akron Public School District for “at-risk” third and fourth graders. Even though these children are considered “at-risk”, by society, due to circumstances in their environment — it does not mean that they do not have greatness within them or that they do not have the ability to achieve and contribute to society. Mr. James recognizes that. So the school was created to give them a different educational experience by incorporating improving their home circumstances with providing them with an enhanced academic curriculum.
How I admire what LeBron James has done. This is his way of paying it forward and reaching back to help youth within his hometown. While most of us don’t have the type of financial resources he has and can’t help our young people on the same scale as he can, it does not mean that we can’t have the same impact. Our impact can come through what we do by mentoring, tutoring, counseling, teaching, befriending, disciplining and encouraging our youth.
We can help our young people and support the teachers and educational environment they are in by helping them understand the importance of an education and encouraging them to participate and get the most out of what is being taught to them.
For Parents:
Let me just say that when we become parents we are given the awesome responsibility of shaping another person’s character and molding them into moral, decent and responsible individuals. As parents, we need to take that responsibility seriously which will require us to make an investment, not only monetarily but also emotionally. Of course, the most important investment we can make is the emotional investment, which doesn’t have to be complicated. That emotional investment can be simply being mindful of the words we speak to our children.
I don’t want to seem preachy in this post but I do want to say that the bible passage of Proverbs 18:21 holds a lesson for all of us. Proverbs 18:21 states that “Death and life are in the power of the tongue”. What that says to me is that the words we use with our children can either build them up or tear them down. Words have a way of breathing either life or death into a person in that they can build up a person’s character and self-esteem or absolutely destroy it.
I am always mindful of an article I read by author Sharon Jayne. The article was entitled “The Power of a Woman’s Words”. The message in the article was that from the time a child emerges from the safety of the womb, he/she is shaped and molded by the power of their mother’s words. Therefore parents, let us watch what we say to our children because their future and the person they will become depend on it. Let the following poem remind each and every one of us how powerful our words are in a child’s life:
Children Learn What They Live
Dorothy Law Nolte, Ph.D.
If children live with criticism, they learn to condemn.
If children live with hostility, they learn to fight.
If children live with fear, they learn to be apprehensive.
If children live with pity, they learn to feel sorry for themselves.
If children live with ridicule, they learn to feel shy.
If children live with jealousy, they learn to feel envy.
If children live with shame, they learn to feel guilty.
If children live with encouragement, they learn confidence.
If children live with tolerance, they learn patience.
If children live with praise, they learn appreciation.
If children live with acceptance, they learn to love.
If children live with approval, they learn to like themselves.
If children live with recognition, they learn it is good to have a goal.
If children live with sharing, they learn generosity.
If children live with honesty, they learn truthfulness.
If children live with fairness, they learn justice.
If children live with kindness and consideration, they learn respect.
If children live with security, they learn to have faith in themselves and in those about them.
If children live with friendliness, they learn the world is a nice place in which to live
(Copyright © 1972/1975 by Dorothy Law Nolte)
Celebrating Accomplishment
Around the middle of July a young rising high school senior named Jordan Thomas won first place in the annual Harvard Debate Council summer tournament in Cambridge, MA. Jordan attends Grady High School in Atlanta Georgia. He and other Atlanta students were able to participate in the tournament because of the efforts of Brandon Fleming. Mr. Fleming serves as an assistant debate coach in the Harvard summer program and recognized the lack of student diversity in that program. As a means of achieving that diversity, he created the Harvard Debate Council Diversity Project(HDCDP) which recruited and selected minority students for participation. For 2018, HDCDP selected 25 African American students from Atlanta out of a pool of 150 applicants. All expenses for the students’ participation was funded by a sponsor.
During the July 2018 summer residential program at Harvard, the 25 Atlanta students, along with approximately 400 other students from around the world, took part in a daily 10-hour academic regimen that taught them research, analysis, argumentation and political science skills. Students were then split into twelve debate teams that competed against each other.
Most of the Atlanta students had no prior debating experience but 10 out of 12 Atlanta teams advanced to octo-finals, with 6 moving into the quarterfinals and two teams competing in the semi-final round. Jordan Thomas was on one of the semi-final teams and went on to win first place.
Upon winning, Thomas commented the following statements:
“I was determined to represent my city and my story. I wanted people to see where I came from and how I could keep up.”
“Being a young, middle class, black, public school student from the South created a stigma that automatically set me back in comparison to the competition, most of who were international students or from preparatory schools in the Northeast.”
Well Done Jordan Thomas and Congratulations!
Please
- Share this article on your preferred social media network.
- Leave a comment
- Join our mailing list by signing up (on the right) for email notification of future posts.