Summer is in full swing! Children are home from school and parents may be on the hunt to keep them engaged and involved this summer. A popular choice that many parents have selected is summer camps. There can be a variety of summer camps to choose from. Some opportunities may be day camps; while others are a week away from mom and dad and full of new adventures to enjoy. There are many benefits to youth attending summer camps. These benefits include meeting new friends, trying new activities, physical activity, and creating memories that will last a lifetime. Studies show camps offering structured programs and physical activity may prevent weight gain in youth and help maintain physical fitness over the summer.
Along with the many memories made, summer camps also teach independence. During the week, participants get themselves up, get dressed, and brush their teeth all before the bell sounds to start breakfast and to begin the day. Summer camps also encourage well-being. Youth get to attend camp, see their friends, meet new ones, and come home with so many stories to share. Camps provide opportunities for practicing self-advocacy and other social skills. Youth may also have opportunities to increase self-esteem in these programs. Campers get to try activities and have experiences they can bring home for the rest of the family to enjoy. Various summer camps offer different activities for all to enjoy; there is something for everyone. I know when I was young, summer camps kept me busy and entertained all summer. My favorite memories as a kid came from the various camps I attended. I also made some of my very best friends at summer camp. I encourage parents to provide an opportunity for their youth to attend a summer camp of some variation. It will get children into the great outdoors and there the opportunities are endless.
Written by: Kearsten Kirby, Student Intern, Ohio State University Extension Miami County kirby.305@osu.edu
Reviewed by: Alisha Barton, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator, Ohio State University Extension Miami County barton.345@osu.edu
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education; Board on Children, Youth, and Families; Committee on Summertime Experiences and Child and Adolescent Education, Health, and Safety; Hutton R, Sepúlveda MJ, editors.
Recently, I met an 11-year-old who likes birds. Since I self-identify as a bird nerd, we started talking and I quickly realized this young person had a genuine curiosity and passion for birds. She told me she had checked out Smithsonian Handbooks: Birds of North America from her school library and had no intention of returning it.
As a parent of teenagers, I struggle to get my kids off screens and out in nature, despite my constant reminders about the health benefits of getting outdoors. Here was a young person who wanted to get outside, so we made plans to go birding together.
And birding we did. The two of us spent 5 hours out in the cold on a gloomy, gray day and we had a blast. She brought (and I carried) the large, heavy Smithsonian library book with her. When we spotted a bird, she knew exactly where to find it in the book.
It was delightful to bird with a young person who was excited and engaged. I look forward to birding with her and other young people in the future. After spending time with a young birder, it became clear to me why we should take young birders under our wing:
They are connecting with nature: Our young people are disconnected from the natural world. Studies found that 8- to 12-years-old spend 4 to 6 hours on screens every day, while teens spend up to 9 hours. Time spent on screens almost always equates to time spent indoors, disconnected from nature.
They can showcase their strengths: Birdability is a non-profit organization that “ensures that birding truly is for everybody and every body, regardless of disability or other health concerns.” Their blog has stories from birders who are autistic, color-blind, hearing-impaired, and mobility-challenged. One young birder described her ADHD as her birding superpower since she saw and heard so many details around her!
They benefit from Vitamin N (Nature): There are decades of research that show the positive impact that spending time outdoors has on our mental and physical health. Nature has unique health benefits to young people, especially when it comes to kids with ADHD, allergies, asthma, weight issues, and mental health challenges.
They are becoming environmental stewards: Children who spend time in nature are more likely to feel connected to nature as adults, and therefore, more likely to care for and protect the natural world.
After our birding outing, I purchased my new birding buddy her own copy of the Smithsonian Handbook. I am selfishly hoping the returned library book will inspire another young birder at her school. I also added a Birds of OhioField Guide to her collection so the next time we’re out birding, neither of us has to lug a 752-page handbook.
Additional Birding Resources: To find more information about birds and birding, please visit: go.osu.edu/nature-matters-birds
Written by Laura M. Stanton, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator, Ohio State University Extension, Warren County, stanton.60.osu.edu
Reviewed by Shari Gallup, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator, Ohio State University Extension, Licking County, gallup.1@osu.edu
Photo Credit: Kindel Media from Pexels
References:
Alsop, F. J. (2001). Smithsonian Handbooks: Birds of North America: Eastern Region. New York, NY: DK Publishing.
Wells, N. M. & Lekies, K. S. (2006). Nature and the Life Course: Pathways from Childhood Nature Experiences to Adult Environmentalism. Children, Youth and Environments, 16(1), 1–24. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7721/chilyoutenvi.16.1.0001
Louv, R. (2008). Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder. Chapel Hill, NC: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill.
With the holiday season comes gift-giving to our young people. Often, the gift box contains new technology for our teens and even younger children. The device could be a first cell phone, tablet, or even a laptop. When our young people exhaust playing with toys, we default to technology as the next level of gifts. My children are young adults now, but I can remember back to the iPod, laptops, Nintendo DS, Wii, and smartphones opened from the boxes at Christmas. For my son, we waited until 13 for his first phone, but for my daughter, we surprised her a year early at 12. As adults, we were in control, and we decided when they would get access. However, looking back, I would have delayed gifting some technology until later.
It does not have control when it is in the box, but once you open Pandora’s technology box, devices can control a person. It is hard enough as adults to have the willpower to set down our devices. Young people struggle even more without fully developed will-power or self-regulation. Healthy boundaries are good to provide and can benefit children’s mental health. Setting technology boundaries before a device is out of the box or turned on for the first time is the best practice.
Some best practices include setting up data limits. If the data runs out, they can still use the device as a phone or in Wi-Fi, but they have just exhausted their “connected time”. Most phones now come with a screen time feature that limits time on certain apps, at certain times of the day, or which apps can be downloaded. Use these features to help enforce the guidelines, but do not depend on them alone. The Internet is a dangerous playground for youth to access unsupervised. Set restrictions on which types of websites they can visit and ensure all Internet use is done in public spaces.
Phones also have helpful features, like knowing your children’s location or contacting them after school. Some educational apps will help youth study and learn about different topics. Show your youth how they can be content creators rather than just consumers. Many apps teach youth coding to create the app versus just consuming the app. Ohio 4-H just launched a program called Clovers CODE, which helps youth in 4-H learn to create apps and the code behind the app.
Modeling guidelines is also important. If your family rule is no phones in bedrooms, then have a family charging station in a central place in the home. Introduce a “no phones at dinner time” rule and abide by that. Show your children that immediate responses to their friends are not urgent and can wait by delaying your own replies. And instead of spending time on devices, enjoy time together this holiday playing family games.
As you wrap up all your boxes this holiday season, do not forget to think outside the box and set your family boundaries before the technology is gifted to your children.
Written by Mark D. Light, Ph.D., Leader, Ohio 4-H STEM & Digital Engagement Innovations
Reviewed by Jenny Lobb, MPH, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator, Ohio State University Extension Franklin County
References:
Abi-Jaoude, E., Naylor, K. T., & Pignatiello, A. (2020). Smartphones, social media use and youth mental health. Canadian Medical Associaton Journal, 192(6), E136-E141. https://www.cmaj.ca/content/192/6/E136
Dempsey, S., Lyons, S., & McCoy, S. (2019). Later is better: Mobile phone ownership and child academic development. Economic and Social Research Institute. http://aei.pitt.edu/101971/1/RB201903_01.pdf
Wiles, B. B., Schachtner, L., & Pentz, J. L. (2016). The New Screen Time: Computers, Tablets, and Smartphones Enter the Equation. Journal of Extension, 54(2), 10. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/joe/vol54/iss2/10/
During this time of unknowns, are we forgetting to check in on our teenagers? Do we sometimes think, “they have their video games and phones” and don’t bother to check in on them anymore than that? I have many friends with teenagers who share how self-sufficient their teenagers have become in the midst of COVID-19. Sure they sleep in too long, stay up too late, and may not be eating as healthy of a diet, but overall they appear to be happy and healthy. However, is that truly the case for our teenagers?
A recent study conducted by the National 4-H Council shared startling statistics. Of the 1,500 youth who were polled, 7 out of 10 identified they are struggling with their mental health. One key indicator found that teens report more pressure to hide their feelings than to do drugs. The Harris Poll conducted on behalf of the National 4-H Council was published by multiple outlets including HuffPost. For more detailed statistics, the 4-H National page provides more.
While concerns of suicide are on the rise in our youth already, this global pandemic has increased the importance for us to check in with our youth to see how they are feeling. A statistic from the Youth Mental Health First Aid course shares that if a youth feels they have one trusted adult they can seek out to share feeling with, it decreases their chance of suicide drastically.
Nationwide Children’s Hospital has a campaign called On Our Sleeves that offers a place to begin a conversation. Resources are available to help parents, educators, and healthcare providers talk with youth about mental health. Honest and open conversations allow young people to share openly and honestly with you, a trusted adult. This helps them so they don’t feel like the 65% of youth that are “dealing with it on their own”.
Our youth are resilient, but they need your help to navigate these difficult years. Whether it is from a parent, guardian, or family friend, our youth need to have advocates when it comes to their own mental health. What are you waiting for? Invite that teen you know out to lunch (virtually or in-person!) and let them know how much you love and care for them.
As parents, we want to know that our kids are going to be able to function without us. We send them to school to learn all the academic essentials and we stress the importance of good grades. However, are they really prepared for adulthood? Do they have the skills to navigate life effectively? Can they survive on their own? A study published in the Child Development journal, revealed “youth are taking longer to engage in both the pleasures and the responsibilities of adulthood compared to teens from the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s”. Jean Twenge, leading author of the study, found youth often arrive at colleges and jobs unprepared for independence. Sarah Clark, is an associate research scientist with the University of Michigan and co-director of the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health. In a recent poll she asked parents how confident they were in their child’s ability to perform different life skills. She found:
8% could make an appointment with a doctor on their own.
25% could dole out the correct dose of an over-the-counter medication.
41% expected their kid to eat healthy foods.
46% would save money for the future.
50% could handle a minor injury with first aid.
It seems our youth are not as prepared as we would like them to be entering adulthood. Where do we go from here? How can we produce young adults who can function and thrive independently? I believe we need to go back to the basics and provide them opportunities to learn practical life skills. GreatSchools.org suggests teaching your teen the following:
Starting at a young age, my daughter had chores to complete, was given choices to make, and was provided opportunities to develop basic life skills. It was not always welcomed with open arms. In fact, the older she grew the more it was met with resistance and often anger. I am proud of the strong, independent 16-year-old daughter I have raised but was reminded the other day she still has life skills to learn. She completed an application for summer employment and struggled to answer the questions. I was surprised she could not complete this seemingly simple task. She is an honors student and loves to read and write. After I reflected on the situation, it validated that learning life skills is just as important as learning to read, write, and do math. It takes both academics and life skills to produce quality, motivated, contributing members of society.
Note: A team of Ohio State University Extension professionals have been developing short videos with a number of these basic life skills in them – check them out here. Topics include: interview skills, basic first aid, how to change a flat tire, how to make a healthy smoothie, how to develop cultural intelligence, how to measure ingredients, and much more.
Written by: Lorrissa Dunfee, OSU Extension Educator, Belmont County dunfee.54@osu.edu
Reviewed by: Lisa Barlage, OSU Extension Educator, Ross County barlage.7@osu.edu
You have probably heard about the increasing number of children who are overweight and the efforts to decrease the trend. 5-2-1-0 Let’s Go! is a national childhood obesity prevention program which focuses on policy and environmental changes to increase physical activity and healthy eating for children through age 18. Let’s Go! works with youth and families through a collaboration of six sectors including schools, early childhood, communities, workplace, out of school and healthcare. While the initiative originated in Maine through the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital, communities across the nation have implemented the program.
The goal of the campaign is to change unhealthy behaviors and adopt healthier habits. While the primary target is youth, people of all ages can benefit from the guidelines. Strategies are evidence-based and the messages are consistent and simple:
Eat 5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day
Spend 2 hours or less of screen time – television, smart phone, video games, etc.
Enjoy 1 hour or more of physical activity each day
Consume 0 sweetened beverages per day, such as soda, juice and energy drinks
Graphic courtesy of Keys for Healthy Kids
Collaboration is key to the success of the program in any state. Teams of nutrition, health and education specialists develop trainings to provide to partners within the community setting. Some of the successful strategies that have worked for Maine and Florida include:
Engage community partners to support healthy eating and active living
Prohibit food being used as a reward
Implement staff wellness programs that incorporate physical activity and healthy eating
Provide water rather than sugar-sweetened beverages
Limit unhealthy snacks provided for celebrations, offering healthy snacks instead
In 2015, more than 350,000 children and their families living in Maine were reached through 5-2-1-0 Let’s Go! Future opportunities of the program may be extended to parents in the home environment and disabled children.
Live Healthy Live Well 