YouTube Link: The Power of Words
The words we say (and how we say them) reveal so much about the kind of people we truly are. Everyone needs to hear positive talk from parents, teachers, and friends…we never know what they are hearing from others in their lives.
Phrasing is everything~we can choose to be uplifting no matter what we need to say. It’s not necessary to speak in a derogatory manner. Think positive, Speak positive, Be positive
Many middle school aged students have a hard time just being themselves. At this age, life can be difficult with school, friends, and family. We encourage all of our students to “Just be You” and enjoy the many changes and events that occur at this time in their lives.
YouTube link: I am Me
Every decision matters in our lives! Whether big or small, every time we make a choice, it does affect our lives. We are encouraging our students, staff, and community to make smart decisions to make our lives better. Developing healthy minds and bodies helps create positive outcomes.
YouTube Link: http://Every Decision Matters
We are having a great first week at White Oak Middle School! Students are happy to be back and see their friends and teachers. While this year’s start has been different from any other, we are still learning, interacting, and making the most of everyday!
Attached to this post is the district link to help answer any questions you may have about procedures and policies
http://www.woisd.net/back-to-school
While limits are still important, it’s understandable that under these stressful circumstances, kids’ screen media use will likely increase. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggest some ways to help keep media use positive and helpful.
Remember, staying at home and other social distancing recommendations may feel like an inconvenience, but it’s the best way to protect our family, friends and neighbors.
As schools across our country are closed to stop the spread of 2019 coronavirus disease, millions of people are being forced to remain at home. During this time, it’s beneficial for parents to consider their child’s needs for structure, education, physical fitness, social contact/communication, and even appropriate leisure time.
Hopefully this Youtube video will be helpful.
Staying positive may be hard when we are somewhat isolated from our friends and family members. Always remember that you are enough! Positive thoughts lead to positive actions.
These slides were shared with me through Region VII service center. They provide many great ideas of how to deal with the stress and extra time during our time at home.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/16J2W0N1vbdI6oDTk3frg9JrgCSau5-fa/view
Maintaining a positive attitude is critical when you want to achieve anything… or just to improve the quality of your life. Most success literature will talk about the power of positive thinking and how important it is. It’s often easier said than done.
In this article, you’ll find 11 tips for maintaining your positive attitude no matter what’s going on in your life.
It’s important to realize that you determine your reality by the way you react to the outside world. When something happens, you get to choose whether it’s a positive or negative experience and react accordingly. Losing your job might be a disaster or it might be the opportunity for bigger and brighter things… you choose what it will mean to you.
Most of the population have to drag themselves out of bed and this sets a negative frame for their entire day. Positive people create a morning ritual that reinforces how great life is and how happy they are to be alive.
I used to wake up and immediately turn on Bon Jovi’s “It’s My Life“ to get me into state. Now I start my day by reading or listening to something positive. Whether you have 1 minute, 15 minutes or an hour to dedicate to your ritual, you can start the day in whatever state you prefer.
Exercise is a great way to maintain a good attitude because of all the positive chemicals it releases into the blood stream. I used to exercise in the morning (after Bon Jovi) and this is often recommended as a powerful way to start the day. Now, I exercise by doing activities I love (kung fu and dancing) most evenings but even a walk around the block with inspiring audio will help.
There are millions of amazing books, podcasts and videos for you to absorb from people who are inspiring and living the life of their dreams. Tap into their positive emotions and their experience by learning how they think and what they do to create the lives they want.
You can do this in the morning or while exercising, eating, commuting, cooking, cleaning… there’s always time for positivity.
Little changes in your language can change the way you think and how you act. Whenever someone greets you and asks how you’re doing, do you answer with “fine” or “not too bad?” Think about just what this language is communicating to others… and yourself.
I always answer with “great,” “fantastic,” or “amazing.” Not only does this remind me that life really is great but, it usually surprises and lifts the state of the person I’m talking to as well.
It is often said that you will have a similar level of health, income and lifestyle as the 5 people you spend the most time with: The Hidden Power of Every Single Person Around You
So if you want to be fit, then start to hang out with fit people. Want to start a business? Then hang out with business owners. And if you want to be positive, make sure you’re hanging out with positive people.
By appreciating others for a job well done, their outfit or their smile, you start to cause a positive chain reaction.
Don’t you feel great when you receive a compliment from someone else? Well, if you want to receive more, then start giving them out and watch what happens to the people around you.
This is an expression from programming where the result is only as good as the input. So if you’re feeding yourself with negativity all day long, then it’s pretty obvious you’re going to be feeling negative as well.
A lot of the media including news and TV thrive on negativity. So put yourself on a negativity diet (including people) and watch how much easier it is to maintain your positive attitude.
It’s hard to be a constantly positive person and negative thoughts are going to bubble up from time to time. These will be more frequent in the beginning but, decrease as you practice the tips we’re talking about. When you start to notice negative thoughts, you can use a pattern interrupt to stop them in their tracks.
The idea is to interrupt your current thought pattern and change your state. My most successful one is The Smurfs theme song. Whenever I start to feel frustrated, sad or angry I simply start humming the tune and pretty soon a big silly smile comes over my face.
So many positive things happen during our day and we often ignore them while letting one negative comment or event ruin our mood. It can help to keep a gratitude journal where you jot down things you are grateful for each night or during the day.
If you’re reading this, then you probably live with a roof over your head and food in your belly which is a daily struggle for most of the world… so it should be easy to find tons of things you’re grateful for.
A key to maintaining your positive attitude is taking the time to recharge your batteries. This might mean taking a few hours on the weekend to read a positive book or taking a few weeks for a holiday.
If you’re not in the position to travel, you can take a staycation, or have a “home holiday” where you simply switch off from the outside world and spend time doing things you love.
You now have 11 tips for maintaining your positive attitude but they are no use to you unless you implement them into your life.
Start small. Pick the easiest tip or the one that you really love and introduce it into your life starting right now. Then over time, start implementing the other tips and watch your positivity soar.
With help from the CDC, we answer some of Google’s most searched questions about the coronavirus crisis. USA TODAY
If you have children, you are likely monitoring your email and social networks for potential school closings.
Coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization on Wednesday, and schools throughout the region are grappling with whether to close or pivot to remote learning. There is the possibility that your family may have to self-quarantine.
A 14-day or longer period of isolation is no joke for parents who already know the challenge of keeping kids engaged. And in this case, it may not be advisable for them to spend time with other children.
With that in mind, we’ve come up with 12 creative suggestions for having fun and continuing learning as a family.
Did you know the Boiga guangxiensis is a species of snake of in the Colubridae family? Or that The Five Pagoda Temple dates back to 1727 in a Buddhist region of northwest China?
You can learn about these things and much more by visiting Wikipedia and using the random Wiki generator to pull a topic at random for the website’s deep archives.
Use Wikipedia to learn more about geography, science, history, the arts, sports, pop culture, true crime and pretty much anything else. Random Wiki can be used as a prompt for short stories, poems, essay topics or drawings; as a launching point for family discussions; or as a first stop in a deeper investigation of any topic. Keep in mind: Wikipedia is an open platform that can be edited by anyone, so facts should be double checked with standard sources of information such as encyclopedias and traditional media.
Go: Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
These are stressful times. Whether you have done yoga for years or have never unfurled a mat, it’s a good time to explore some of the ancient practice’s soothing benefits. And why not explore cat stretch, downward dog and crow (all common asanas, or postures) as a family? Everyone from toddlers to teens can get in on the act. There are tons of good, free yoga classes available online (start with YouTube). Or order a deck of Yoga Pretzel flash cards and learn a few poses each day.
Go: Yoga Pretzels: amazon.com/Yoga-Pretzels-Cards-Tara-Guber/dp/1905236042
If your family is feeling bad about derailed spring break trips, and the threat of infection hanging over all of us, it may seem an odd time to plan a trip. But how often are you all sitting home together in need of distraction? No one says you have to pull out your credit card. This is about aspirational travel. Whether your drive around Prince Edward Island, hike through Yellowstone or journey to Spain becomes reality or not, it can be fun — and educational — to research it. And all those beautiful photos on travel websites and blogs are better than watching “Stranger Things’’ for the fourth time. Need daydream inspiration? Check out Atlas Obscura.
Go: Atlas Obscura: atlasobscura.com/
There are few things more soothing than watching animals at play. Wildlife centers and zoos throughout the globe offer live cams so you can tune in anytime to check out how your favorite wild things are doing in real time.
The Smithsonian’s National Zoo Conservation Biology Institute offers live cams of naked mole-rats, panda, lions and elephants. From the Philadelphia Zoo, you can watch the penguins glide around Penguin Point.
To think globally, check out the live feeds of explore.org, which offer the chance to observe manatees, Grace gorillas, hummingbirds and much more. And don’t just settle for watching: Commit to checking in at the same time each day and keeping a log of what you witness, Googling around to learn more about your favorite wild things and searching streaming services for National Geographic Explorer documentaries that can offer opportunities to learn more as a family.
Smithsonian: nationalzoo.si.edu/webcams
Philadephia Zoo: philadelphiazoo.org/penguin-point-cam/
Explore.org: explore.org/livecams/grace-gorillas/gorilla-forest-corridor
When is the last time you pulled out the family telescope? Warmer weather and clear nighttime skies offer an opportunity far from the flat screen to gather together and learn about the heavens. Consider downloading an astronomy app that uses your smartphone’s gyroscope and compass to determine what you can observe in the night sky.
You could also use your flashlights to read bedtime stories gathered ’round a firepit and sharing s’mores.
Go: digitaltrends.com/mobile/best-astronomy-apps/
My husband got lost in a complex National Audubon puzzle of backyard birds over the winter holiday break. And at some point, everyone in the house wandered by the table we left it on, taking a stab at a feather, a beak, a claw …
Magnificent puzzles by both Audubon and National Geographic offer opportunities to work your brain and spatial skills while learning about nature.
And you can always check out a National Geographic Explorer documentary or stream a nature podcast while you puzzle over the pieces.
Go: imdb.com/title/tt0146386/; audubon.org/ or nationalgeographic.com/
Sometimes nothing quite cuts it like getting your hands dirty to blow off stress.
What better way than making your own slime? Kids of all ages love the ooey, gooey of it. And you can use clean up time as an extra lesson on the importance of thoroughly washing hands.
Slime-making offers some valuable STEM lessons. Check out the website below for dozens of ways to concoct it.
Go:littlebinsforlittlehands.com/make-slime-recipes-ideas-kids/
Remember mix tapes? If you’re over 40, you undoubtedly either received or created mixed tape — or the CD equivalent — at some point in your life, for a road trip, a new love, a breakup recovery package.
Two current shows you can stream with older teens on Hulu — “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist’’ and “High Fidelity’’ — are celebrations of the power of music in very different ways, and are both escapes from the news right now. And “High Fidelity’s’’ premise is built around the power of a perfectly crafted mixed tape.
Want to share the fun with your kids? There are plenty of digital means of crafting your family’s homebound playlist.
Go: nbc.com/zoeys-extraordinary-playlist or imdb.com/title/tt8577458/
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