Family Awareness Network

Upcoming presentations:

BULLYING AWARENESS PRESENTATION

Barbara L. Monier, licensed clinical social worker and writer for Winnetka Alliance for Early Childhood

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 6th, 2008 1:15-3:00pm
Nygaard Auditorium, Sears School, 542 Abbotsford Road, Kenilworth, IL
Co-sponsored with the Discipline and Ethics Committee of the JSSPVA

Mark your calendars for a special Bullying Awareness Presentation on Thursday, ! November 6th, 2008 from 1:15pm-3:00pm at Nygaard Auditorium . Barbara L. Monier, licensed clinical social worker and writer for Winnetka Alliance for Early Childhood, will provide insight into:

What is bullying?
Why has there been such an increased focus on bullying in recent years?
Different types of bullying
Developmental perspective—what does bu! llying mean at different ages?
Signs & symptoms of bullying
Personality characteristics of “typical” bullies
Personality characteristics of “victims”
Specific strategies for helping children who bully, at school and at home
Specific strategies for helping children who are being bullied, at school and at home
General strategies to prevent and address bullying: tolerance and acceptance of differences

This program is sponsored by the Discipline and Ethics Committee and is part of Sears School’s focus on Sixteen Trends-Their Profound Impact on Our Future by Gary Marx, the book sent to all Sears families at the beginning of the year. Trend 9 of Marx’s book stresses that “if we think and care about how our actions will affect our fellow human beings and our environment, we’ll be on the road to making better decisions.”

Plan to attend this informative presentation. Parents, friends and caregivers are welcome! (On-street parking in the neighborhood is available; pay attention to posted signs.) More.

More than 375 people turned out to hear Tal Ben-Shahar, the author of Happier and popular Harvard lecturer on that topic, on Wednesday, October 15, 2008. The event is over, but we still have links, including streaming video his lectures for the Harvard course.

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Parent Education Consortium

PEC (Parent Education Consortium) prepares a consolidated calendar of programs in or near New Trier Township of interest to parents. All of these programs are open to the general public, most without admission fees or reservations required. Current PEC Calendar. Upcoming PEC website for current information, searchable events, and ways for you to add presentations you hear about!

Of note (see the PEC calendar for complete information):

Tuesday, October 21, How to Teach Kids to be Responsible, Solve Problems, and Handle Stress, 7:30–9:00 PM, North Shore Country Day School, Conant Science Center Atrium, 310 Green Bay Rd., Winnetka, 60093.: Too often we jump in and solve our children’s problems for them instead of helping them develop the skills to become independent problem solvers. Learn exactly what to say and do to help young people of all ages handle the challenges of growing up at home and school. This session will be lead by internationally acclaimed education and parenting expert, best-selling author and Emmy award winning presented Michael Brandwein. For more information, contact Arlene Haas at arlene@duodesign.com or Mary Hayes at hayesanson@mac.com.
Tuesday, October 28, Learning to Eat, 7:00 PM, Glenbrook Pediatrics, 2551 Compass Rd., Glenview, 60026. (RSVP): Glenbrook Pediatrics is conducting parent educational seminars covering many topics, including sleep, feeding your toddler, sports, behavior, school, drugs and social issues. This presentation will be on strategies for helping your child learn healthy eating habits, with nutritional anthropologist Elizabeth Barden, Ph.D. Dr. Barden will present parents with strategies to assist them in encouraging the development of healthy eating behaviors in their children. Healthy eating and weight status in children has always been an important concern for parents. Even so, parents today seem to face increased challenges in this area due to changes in time constraints, the kinds of foods that are available, and limited opportunities for sufficient exercise. Topics include: the division of responsibility in feeding; basic principles of good nutrition; and increasing healthy foods in children’s diets. Seminars are small, so please call to reserve a spot, 847-729-6445, ext. 18.
PARENT UNIVERSITY Saturday, November 1, Northbrook Citizens for Drug and Alcohol Awareness (NCDAA)’s Parent University, 8:00 AM–1:30 PM, Glenbrook North High School, 2300 Shermer Rd., Northbrook, 60062. ($; RSVP): Parent University helps parents address the following issues: Communication; Setting Limits & Boundaries; Family Traditions; Youth Anxiety; Sibling Relationships; Parent/Child Relationships; Media & Technology Influence; Being Role Models; and Respecting Individuality. Keynote address will be given by internationally known author and speaker Char Wenc, who will present on the topic, “I Love You and the Answer is No!” Ms. Wenc is a professor at Loyola University and at the Adler School of Professional Psychology. She is the winner of the “Those Who Excel in Education” Award and the National Speaker Award for Excellence. Choose to attend any of the dozens of workshops throughout the day. Wenc is the author of Parenting – Are We Having Fun Yet?, Cooperation: Learning Through Laughter, and a third book to be released this year, Stop The Door From Slamming – The Power of Respect. Continuing Professional Development Units (CPDUs) are being offered. NEW THIS YEAR: Register online at www.nbparks.org, and pay by credit card. You may also mail or bring registration form to NCDAA, 1710 Pfingsten Rd., Northbrook, IL 60062. $25/person by 10/17; $30/person after 10/17 or at the door; SPECIAL FEE of $15/person by 10/17 when you register yourself AND your spouse or friend(s) at the same time. Free childcare, but pre-registration is required. Complete brochure available for download online at www.nbparks.org. For further information, call NCDAA at 847-272-7870, or email at ncdaainfo@ncdaa.org.
Thursday, November 6, Problems with a Child: A Different Look at this Challenge, 9:30–11:00 AM, Wilmette Community Recreation Center, 3000 Glenview Rd., Wilmette, 60091. ($; RSVP): This is the second of Family Service Center’s “Connecting with Our Children” series of monthly lectures. This discussion will present a dynamic, holistic and intriguing view for families facing difficulties with a child. The series is presented by Kelly Matthews-Pluta, LCSW from the Family Service Center of Wilmette, Glenview, Kenilworth and Northbrook. This “Family Focus” program costs $20 for Wilmette residents, $25.50 for non-residents, and requires advance registration by contacting the Wilmette Park District at 847-256-6100.
Tuesday, November 11, Bringing Out Their Best: How to Teach Your Kids Outstanding Skills for Life, 7:00–9:00 PM, Lake Forest Hospital Health Education Center, 660 Westmoreland Rd., Lake Forest, 60045. ($; RSVP): How can you teach your kids to pick, make and keep friends? Be a team player? Be respectful? Michael Brandwein, educator, author and dad, will teach you practical things you can do and say every day to build the skills that will matter the most to your kids. The techniques used in this workshop have been endorsed and used by parents and educators alike. Most importantly, you will learn to increase the positive communication in your home while developing warm, supportive relationships with your children to guide them to success. For parents of children in grades preschool through 5th. $10 per person/$15 per couple. Registration required. Visit www.LEADweb.org, or email us at LEAD9075@aol.com, or phone 847-295-9075 for further information.
Wednesday, November 12, Transforming Math Ability Into a Skills Set: The CLSO Approach, 8:00 AM-3:00 PM, Gorton Community Center, 400 E. Illinois Rd., Lake Forest, 60045 ($; RSVP): Sponsored by the Illinois Branch of the International Dyslexia Association, this workshop will feature a presentation by Shad Moarif, Ed.M. (Harvard University); Founder, CLSO-MATH; President, CLSO Learning Systems, Inc.; former Vice-President and Member, Advisory Board, IDA (B.C.) Canada. The workshop offers ways of helping teachers scaffold the learning of so-called “chronic under-achievers.” Participants will explore different ways of unraveling elementary mathematical concepts by using cognitive exercises. The workshop will examine ways to present a visual scaffold for teaching addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and fractions. The program will also discuss the scope of multisensory approaches using manipulatives, the role of meaning-making in math, and the integration of math-learning with math-teaching. The goal of this workshop is for teachers to learn how to transform a student’s latent math abilities into a tangible set of math skills by using imagery that guides mathematical thinking. The session will also introduce a clinical approach to evaluating a student’s math needs based on the CLSO Assessment Protocol. The novel CLSO (Concepts-Language-Symbols-Operations) approach suggests the sequence in which math is assimilated by learners, and offers a teaching methodology based on that same learning pattern. Participants will receive a CD-ROM of worksheets/workbooks to use the very next day in their classrooms or private practices! Register online at www.readibida.org, or call 630-469-6900.
Saturday, November 15, Creating and Maintaining Old-Fashioned Goodness with Your Family and Friends, 8:30 AM-12:30 PM, Attea Middle School, 2500 Chestnut, Glenview, 60025.: Come and participate in a wide variety of breakout sessions designed for parents with children aged pre-K through high school. FREE childcare available, FREE good food, and PRICELESS advice/parenting tips! Questions? Call Mark Walther, Principal, Hoffman School, 847-998-5042.

Township Alliance for Youth

For the last two years a group called TAFY -- the Township Alliance for Youth, a collaboration of local agencies and community groups has been working to reshape local programs and services to improve the lives of our community's youth.

They have conducted interviews with key decision makers, held focus groups with parents, teens, pre-teens, and leaders of service organizations, and held townhall meetings in each of the villages (Wilmette, Kenilworth, Winnetka, Glencoe, and Northfield).

At the beginning of June, a random sample of 5000 households were invited to complete an on-line survey as part of our Youth Needs Assessment. A similar survey was sent to sample of high school students at New Trier, and to all of the 6th/7th/8th graders. The survey marks the end of a year-long, comprehensive township assessment of youth needs, the first to be conducted in more than 20 years. The surveys are frank, and touch upon all of the topics that were raised in by adults and teens during the focus groups, interviews, and town hall meetings.

If you would like to know more about TAFY, please contact Ginny Anderson at 847-441-6191.

Wilmette Youth Commission

The Wilmette Youth Commission’s 2007 report on youth highlights a variety of topics related to the social and emotional needs of our youth. The report features information and recommendations on teens and alcohol, a topic of considerable interest. The report include news of a local youth needs assessment project led by the New Trier Alliance for Youth (TAFY), and an update regarding the Red Flags program, an innovative new curriculum in our schools related to youth depression and mental health.

The entire report is available at www.wilmette.com, the Village Hall and the library. Bulk copies for area organizations are available by contacting youth@wilmette.com.

FAN’s Board invites new participation in a variety of roles. If you are an interested parent or professional, who would like to contribute to or learn from a vital organization-- that is committed to educating and connecting parents -- we invite you to please contact Mary Raitt at Mmr1111@aol.com. Planning has already begun and we await your contribution.

Parent Networks

Parents are encouraged to form and join new parent networks. Interested? Drop us a note. A parent network is a small group of parents, of middle school and beyond, who gather for a discussion, facilitated by a local professional, about the joys and challenges of raising children in our communities.

Volunteers make FAN go!

At every school in New Trier Township we have one or more liaisons - you can help FAN by being a liaison. You can join the FAN board and help in your area of interest and expertise. Want to know more about how you can help and the time required, and the benefits? Write or call Mary Raitt or Chuck Jameson.

Email updates from FAN

FAN has a email list which receives monthly reminders on our schedule and pointers to web resources of interest.

Add me to the FAN email list

Past Programs of Note

We have a report and copies of Dr. Stuart Twemlow's slides from his September 19. 2007 presentation titled Power Triangles: Bullies, Targets and Bystanders.

Pushed Too Far or Left Behind? Child Development and Curriculum Planning in Grades K-12 with Linda Yonke, Ed.D., Superintendent, New Trier High School Meeting Report

From Binge to Blackout Mother and Son Team, Chris and Toren Volkmann Speaker Website: www.bingetoblackout.com Meeting Report

Alcohol and the Adolescent Brain Aaron White, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Dept. of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center. Speaker website: http://www.duke.edu/~amwhite/ Meeting Report

Deborah Roffman, author of Sex and Sensibility, spoke on September 21, 2006. Here is more about Deborah Roffman including handouts and a meeting summary.

Ed Dunkelblau, PhD, Director of the Institute for Emotionally Intelligent Learning spoke on Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child January 25, 2006 Meeting notes, referenced works, weblinks.

Dr. Michael Bradley spoke on More “Yes, Your Teen is Crazy”on April 19, 2006. He has a website and a monthly emailed newsletter.

Information on Internet Safety and Children prepared by Charlene Entman, webmaster at New Trier High School. Audio and Video

Erika's Lighthouse with resources, local events and support related to teen depression.

NT Kinetic Wellness Department homepage

Center for Disease Control - Youth Risk Survey (the survey that was administered at NT)

National Institute on Drug Abuse: information for parents and fact sheets

Department of Health and Human Services - www.health.org

LINKS - Northshore Youth Health Service

Need help now? FAN does not provide emergency services, but recommends these services

FAN’s Mission Statement

Family Awareness Network of New Trier Township (FAN) makes a positive difference in families' lives by building parents' confidence and helping them connect with other parents, their children, the schools and the community through effective educational programs, active parent networks and other practical parenting resources.