Fortunately, Shawn is learning to face the challenges of his environment in new ways through LFCS Community Prevention Services. This program aims to support at-risk youth through evidence-based life skills education and interventions. Areas reviewed include day-to-day challenges, self-esteem, substance abuse, violence, and other risky behaviors. Although new to the program, Shawn is beginning to see the opportunities beyond the familiar. And, for the first time in his life, Shawn has a male role model in his program mentor.

This positive experience has set Shawn on a new path. He is ready to beat the odds – to overcome any challenges that may come his way today so that he may build a better tomorrow.

Did you know poverty, single-parent households, and trauma are factors that impact a child’s success?

• The poverty rate for single-mother households is 31%.
• Poverty reduces a child’s readiness for school because it leads to poor physical health and motor skills, diminishes a child’s ability to concentrate and remember information, and reduces attentiveness, curiosity, and motivation.
• 30% of children raised in poverty do not finish high school.
• People who do not earn a high school diploma by age 20 are seven times more likely to be persistently poor between the ages of 25 and 30. [1]
• When a child experiences a traumatic event, the effects can have a life-long effect. As the number of traumatic events experienced during childhood increases, the risk for the following in adulthood increases: depression, alcoholism, drug abuse, and suicide attempts.[2]

[1] ChildFund. 2015. https://www.childfund.org/Content/NewsDetail/2147489206/

[2] Mental Health Connection. Recognize Trauma. Statistics. http://www.recognizetrauma.org/statistics.php

The post Beating the odds first appeared on Lutheran Family and Children's Services of Missouri.

At LFCS, our CALL and CHOICES mentor programs provide this valuable service to many young people throughout St. Louis. Our mentors work with children after school and all day throughout the summer and encourage smart daily behaviors, such as finishing homework, encouraging positive social interactions, and the ability to say no when it counts.  Our mentors empower young people to make smart choices that put them on a path to making better life choices.  Other impacts mentoring has on young people include:

• Young adults who had mentors as kids are 55% more likely to be enrolled in college
• More than twice as likely to hold a leadership position in a club or sports team
• 78% more likely to volunteer in the community

Mentoring has a large impact on the children, but is also a shared opportunity for learning and growth. In fact, many mentors say they are surprised and grateful for the chance to mentor because their experience is more rewarding than they imagined.  Our mentors have had many encouraging experiences working with youth in the community.  One mentor shared that “mentoring allows me to create long lasting relationships with youth and their families.  It facilitates a unique bond that encourages growth and development.”  Another stated, “the impact of mentoring, why it matters in what we do, can be seen, heard and felt when a participant in our program says ‘I wish you were my mom or dad’, or a parent says how grateful they are that a program like ours exists to help them connect with their children in a more positive way.”

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At some point, many parents feel they are losing that sense of closeness with their child. Children get older and become more self-sufficient. They find activities that perhaps parents aren’t interested in and parents rightfully enjoy some regained freedom. But then communication lines become more closed and parents feel their kids aren’t talking to them like they used to. While part of this is very natural and will happen no matter what, there are ways to lessen this strain.

One of those ways is for many parents to stop looking at video games as a kid’s activity. Play video games with your kids instead of sending them off to play by themselves. I have nothing against Candy Crush or Mario Kart, but don’t shy away from the deeper games with story lines, adventure, strategy and personal achievement. Maybe this isn’t where your interests lie, but it is often where their interests lie. As a parent you likely weren’t stacking blocks or playing monster in your spare time, but you did it with them. Children play video games for the same reasons they played as infants and toddlers and parents should be playing games with them for the same reasons they did at that time.

There is a sense of accomplishment and fulfillment in gaming that mirrors those feelings they got as children. When you and your child are accomplishing those things together, you are strengthening a bond that was formed early on. So, with appropriate boundaries and time limits in mind, play video games with your kids, or at least watch them play and ask questions. They will likely be excited to tell you all about it and you can feel good that you are staying connected, or reconnecting with your child.

By Jay Stone, M. Ed., LPC

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If you’re the parent of a child old enough to operate a smartphone or computer, you have probably heard of Minecraft. It’s the third-best-selling video game of all time, and it has become a popular pastime for millions of kids. As a family therapist, I have met more than a few parents who wonder if Minecraft is a waste of their child’s time. If you are wondering the same thing, I will tell you what I tell them: You know all those important life skills you’re always trying to figure out how to teach your kid? Well, Minecraft is teaching quite a few of them for you. For instance:

• Creativity. Minecraft isn’t like other games that tell a player how to play or hold their hand through a linear experience. It presents a world with complex rules and a large set of tools one can use to manipulate that world. Your child is learning the rules, mastering the tools, and using them to build whatever their imagination can dream up.
• Planning and Patience. Gathering resources and building structures in Minecraft is time consuming work. Your child is learning to plan complex projects and make incremental progress towards long term goals. There is no instant gratification in Minecraft.
• Resource Management. “Crafting” items using gathered resources is a major part of Minecraft, and those resources can take a lot of work to gather. Your child is performing a cost-benefit analysis every time they make a choice about whether to spend those resources on an item now or to save them for a better item down the road.
• Organization. Your child has likely developed an organizational scheme for the hundreds of resources and items they have collected and made in the game. Without organization, it would be nigh on impossible for your child to keep track of it all and find what they need at any given moment.
• Social problem solving. If your child is playing multiplayer Minecraft with friends, they are learning how to work with others towards a common goal.
• Research skills. Want to know how to craft a bookshelf or operate a minecart with an on/off switch? The answers aren’t in the game. To figure out how to do most things in Minecraft, your child is having to perform honest-to-goodness research. There are Wiki pages, published guidebooks, internet forums, YouTube videos, and more. Your child is learning important lessons about evaluating the reliability of sources by comparing information gathered from each.
• Computer programming skills. Minecraft has an element called redstone that can be manipulated to operate in the same way as a real life simple circuit. These circuits can be combined into arrays to accomplish all kinds of tasks. Your kid can even combine these circuits (using the same principles that apply in the real world) to build a working computer within the world of Minecraft, with its own virtual memory and capable of performing simple functions.

So parents, please believe me that Minecraft is nothing to be afraid of. It’s like Lego for the new generation, except it’s more complex, less expensive, and less painful to step on. Some caveats apply, of course. Video games can be addictive, and if your child is neglecting important areas of their life because of too much time with the game, that’s a problem. As with anything, set clear boundaries to limit the time they play. In the meantime, ask them to show you around their Minecraft world—you might be impressed by what your child has learned to do.

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http://thefamilydinnerproject.org/

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This year is an important milestone – 50th Birthday – for the Head Start program.  PBS Newshour highlighted the Head Start anniversary with its video, “What’s the legacy of Head Start 50 years on?”

Thanks to advocates more than 50 years ago, Head Start was created and more than 32 million children living in poverty were given an opportunity for success in school and in life.  You can continue their legacy and join LFCS in advocating for today’s kids by joining our Online Advocacy Network.

LFCS operates Hilltop Child Development Center in North St. Louis County and offers Head Start slots.  We are grateful for the Head Start program and its work to help make families stronger and children be the best they can be.

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What do the youth get out of participating in youth leadership and engagement programs?

Five areas of competency that distinguish leaders and shape youth leadership development efforts:

1. Communication- public speaking/writing, and engaging the participation of others
2. Teamwork– respecting others, performing roles of both leader and follower, building on strengths, and commitment to free group input and expression
3. Personal Identity – understanding the relationship between oneself and the community, pride in being a member of a larger group, awareness of areas for self-improvement, taking responsibility for one’s actions and the resulting consequences
4. Professionalism-demonstrating tactfulness, understanding protocols, appropriate dress and action given appraisal of context, delivering quality work, positively presenting oneself to others
5. Project Management-setting goals/developing action steps, meeting facilitation, reflection, distinguishing between one’s interests and community needs

Youth need opportunities to both learn about and practice leadership, in meaningful and authentic ways.

To learn more about our Youth Development Programs and how your child or school can benefit, contact Lee at 314-754-2766 or LeeH@lfcs.org.

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There have been numerous different studies and articles published on this topic over the years. Recent psychological studies are showing that violent video games may be contributing to desensitization and a lack of empathy in those who often play them. It seems that the more that people are exposed to violent video games over time, the less sensitive they become to real-life violence.

This is described in a recent article in the New York Times, found here: http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/06/15/looking-at-link-between-violent-video-games-and-lack-of-empathy/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0.

There are many video games on the market today that seem to promote violence, having the player kill police officers or “bad guys,” steal cars, etc. While some studies have been conflicting and it seems that President Obama has not gotten his clear answer.

It seems best to closely monitor the video games that your children play and make sure that you are comfortable with them. Ensure that they have other interests and do not spend too much time on violent video games so that they do not become numb or less sensitive to real violence.

The post Do video games lead to violence? first appeared on Lutheran Family and Children's Services of Missouri.

Share your love of reading by volunteering to be an OASIS tutor in one of our Lutheran grade schools. By attending a training class you will learn how to use your gifts and talents to assist a student who is struggling with basic language skills.

Future training classes will be offered in January, 2015.  Please check back!

For additional information and to register for a class, please contact Luanne Beumer at 314-842-4826 or blbeumer@gmail.com

The post Consider Reading to Kids – OASIS Volunteers needed first appeared on Lutheran Family and Children's Services of Missouri.

Youth who become involved in mentoring programs reduce their risk factors for things such as substance abuse, teen parenthood, poor grades, low self-esteem, criminal and discipline behaviors, dropping out of school, and so many more. It is important that youth have a non-parental role models who will maintain a healthy relationship and help in developmental issues.

LFCS youth programs provide support in daily living, school and planning for the future.  LFCS staff help kids improve on academic skills and assist with self-esteem and communication skills. Moreover, our mentorship and development programs help young people develop career goals, find internship/job opportunities, and navigate the many choices they have before them.

Effective youth mentoring has numerous benefits. It provides valuable support to the youth and ensures a smooth transition onto adulthood. It also provides youth leadership with interpersonal and problem solving skills. Youth mentoring provides the added relief and fun experience that children need to help them develop into caring and responsible adults.

The post What is Youth Mentoring and Development and Why is it Important? first appeared on Lutheran Family and Children's Services of Missouri.