Ready, Set, PARENT!
A WebQuest about effective parenting for Family Literacy, Adult Education and Advanced Level ESL Students
By Astrid H. Robitaille
Introduction:
It’s been a long nine months, but you’re finally home with your first baby. There’s so much to learn! Parenting is the most important job you’ll ever have, and of course you want to be the best parent you can be, but right now it seems so overwhelming! You’re getting tons of advice from everyone, but how do you know what works? This WebQuest will help you have a better understanding of the basics of positive parenting skills.
Tasks:
In this WebQuest, you will research several parenting sites and learn about ways to parent effectively and positively. From your research, your group will complete these tasks:
1. Produce a poster about proper nutrition for babies, toddlers and preschoolers.
2. Complete a “Frequently Asked Questions” column about positive discipline.
3. Write a letter or an email to a parenting magazine of your choice, reviewing an educational toy.
4. Share with the class your views on a controversial parenting topic of your choice.
TASK 1:
Your poster will be divided into three sections: Infants, Toddlers, and Preschoolers. Learn about proper nutrition for children in these age groups, and either print pictures from the Internet or cut out magazine pictures to represent typical foods for each. Be sure to include the names of acceptable foods and the number of servings per day for each age group. Use these websites for your research:
Feeding Your Baby
http://www.umext.maine.edu/onlinepubs/PDFpubs/4061.pdf
Food Reflections: What EVERYONE Feeding a Baby Should Know
http://lancaster.unl.edu/food/ftoct01.htm
Toddler Nutrition
http://lancaster.unl.edu/food/ftoct01.htm
Age-By-Age Guide To Feeding Your Baby and Toddler
http://www.babycenter.com/refcap/baby/babyfeeding/1400680.html
Toddler Nutrition: Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital
http://www.lpch.org/DiseaseHealthInfo/HealthLibrary/growth/tdlr.html
Preschooler Nutrition: Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital
http://www.lpch.org/DiseaseHealthInfo/HealthLibrary/growth/prschlr.html
Health Tips: Growth and Development: Preschool Nutrition
http://www.driscollchildrens.org/health/peds/growth/prschlr.asp
TASK 2:
Using the websites provided below, find answers to the following questions:
þ My two year old son takes toys away from other children when we’re at playgroup. What can I do make him stop this?
þ When she doesn’t get her way, my three year old throws a temper tantrum. It’s embarrassing when she does it in public. Any tips on avoiding these scenes?
þ Though he’s loving and sweet most of the time, sometimes my son acts out and actually hits me! He’s only two and a half. How should I deal with this?
þ My four year old is so stubborn! She will NOT pick up her toys, ever, no matter how I beg or threaten her. How can I get her to put away her things without a fight?
Each answer should be at least a few sentences in length, and should give a quick answer about how a parent or caregiver should address the situation with positive discipline. The final product should be typed, and in “Q & A” format.
Positive Discipline for Toddlers and Preschoolers
http://www.mo-river.net/Community/positive_discipline.htm
Positive Discipline of Young Children
http://www.peelcas.org/pdfs/Positive%20Discipline%20Young%20chilidren.pdf
Make Lemons Into Lemonade: Use Positives for Disciplining Children
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/5000/5153.html
TASK 3:
It’s extremely important for children to be offered a variety of toys that are appropriate to their developmental age. If a young child is playing with a toy that is designed for much older children, they can easily become frustrated because they may not be able to get the toy to “work” right. More importantly, a child’s safety could be at risk. Very young children put everything in their mouths, so toys for that age range need to be sturdy, easy to clean, and too big to be a choking hazard.
First, choose an age range. Do you want to review toys designed for infants, toddlers, or preschoolers? Then, choose an interesting but educational toy for that age range and write a letter or an email to a parenting magazine of your choice, reviewing the toy and telling why you think it would be a good toy to buy for a child of that age. Here are some websites to try:
Toys To Grow On
http://www.toystogrowon.com/
One Step Ahead
http://www.onestepahead.com/jump.jsp?lGen=category&itemType=GATEWAY&itemID=117&iMainCat=117&change=117
Mastermind Toys
http://www.mastermindtoys.com/
Once you’ve checked out the toys and written your review, choose a parenting magazine from these websites, find their contact information, and send them an email or write them a letter about your toy review!
Parenting Magazine
http://www.parenting.com/parenting/magazines/
Parents Magazine
http://www.parents.com/
Family Fun Magazine
http://familyfun.go.com/
TASK 4:
Take a few minutes to think about these controversial parenting topics, or one that you think of.
Family bed
Homeschooling
Limiting TV
Spanking
Thumb-sucking
Vaccination refusal
Vegetarianism
Violence on TV
Choose one that you are interested in. Then use Google (http://www.google.com) to search for some information about that topic. Take some notes, and talk to a friend or family member to find out their feelings on the topic. Give an informal overview of this topic to your class, and open up discussion among your classmates about it.
Evaluation:
Talk to your teacher about ways he or she will be evaluating your growth and learning through this WebQuest.
Conclusion:
Congratulations! You’ve completed this WebQuest, and hopefully learned a lot about how to cope with “the toughest job you’ll ever love….” Parenting! Keep the websites included in this WebQuest handy; they are a valuable source of information and advice.
Thank you for your participation, and enjoy the job of raising your kids…..present or future!