When children are asking for love

Dapper Dan was a first grade student in my classroom. Unfortunately, he represents many children and grandchildren today who are asking for our love. In my twenty years of teaching, there is no child who challenged me more than Dapper Dan. He also is child I remember most from my twenty years of teaching. I will never forget my first week in classroom with Dapper Dan. He was a skinny small boy with a gorgeous smile. His smile however was displayed far too infrequently. He came from a broken home and craved love and attention.

The day this was most apparent was day Dan decided that he was not going to go to lunch with other children. He had latched onto his desk with his head inside and he wouldn't let go. What was I to do? The only option I could think of was to carry Dan, his chair and his desk down to Principal's office while we went to lunch. I remember feeling like a mother duck as I carried Dan, his chair and his desk and was followed by twenty-five little first graders through secretary's office and into Principal Kovatch's office. Five minutes later, Dan came walking into cafeteria with Mr. Kovatch wearing a big smile on his face.

Practicing, "Bringing Generations Together"

Sharing ourselves with younger generations keeps us young. Childtrends reports 47% of all grandparents provide child care assistance with young grandchildren living nearby and a growing number of grandfathers are getting involved as well. I found this fact rather surprising, a higher number of grandparents who are employed and live close to their grandchildren provide child care than those who are retired. Childtrends also reported that approximately 1 in 5 grandparents are being paid for their help. What do all these information mean? Families need assistance of family and close friends and we can all benefit from time together. More than one of our friends who are grandparents have made decision that they want to live close to their grandchildren, sold their houses and moved closer to their families. Another couple reported taking their son and five other young adults to Boundary Waters. Most of these teenage children had never been fishing or had experience of eating fresh fish over open fire.