Work at Home Success By Jill Hart
Mom Laughs By Cheryl Moeller
Simplifying Motherhood By Trish Berg
Ask A Twin Mommy By Cheryl Lage
Mothering By Heart By Cheri Fuller
Jelly Mom By Lisa Barker
Family Check-up By Sheila Wray Gregoire
Parent to Parent By Jodie Lynn
Moments for Mom By Elisabeth Corcoran
Making the Most of Marriage By Paula Friedrichsen
Raising Motivated Kids
Reviewed by Amy B
By far, Raising Motivated Kids was the book I was interested in the most. Who, in their right mind, wouldn't want their kids to be motivated? Ms. Fuller discusses building the foundation for motivation, ways to boost motivation and how to avoid busting motivation.
To be successful in raising motivated kids, you need to have a solid foundation, and the first thing you need to work on is the relationship you have with each child. You must provide your children with your love and time, give them boundaries, and be truly interested in their lives. Also discussed in this first section are your example, expectations and a healthy perspective. Next, comes the motivation boosters, which consist of patience, storytelling, curiosity, learning about the world, the attitudes of responsibility, and optimism. I think the chapter on patience hit home with me. Our elementary school has gotten more rigid in teaching the kindergarteners this year and I'm sure it has to do with wanting to do well on the national testing that goes on in later grades. I'll need to see how the classroom is, in a couple years, when it is time for my son to go. If the children must be at their desks all day, skipping recess to get all of their work done, I may end up homeschooling him for at least the first couple of years. In the last section, motivation busters are discussed, and they are perfectionism, attention problems, single-parent families and burnout. The chapter on perfectionism lists the characteristics of a perfectionist, so you can recognize if it is afflicting your child. Ms. Fuller gives examples of ways to counter perfectionism, such as sharing times you weren't perfect and expressing how it was not the end of the world. It is also recommended that you don't stir up competition among your children because it can damage their self-esteem and cause even more worry about not meeting your expectations.
We all want our kids to be motivated. But we also need to have realistic expectations of what they can or can't do, according to their age and maturity level. We need to praise them not only for their abilities, but also their attitudes and for who they are. If you have some questions about getting your children motivated, I'd be surprised if you didn't find some answers in Raising Motivated Kids.
You can find more details about Raising Motivated Kids by Cheri
Fuller, here.
http://www.cherifuller.com/
© Amy, 2004-
Amy is a SAHM of two. She volunteers with her church youth program and at her childrens' schools. She lives in Ohio with her husband, two beautiful children (ages 4 and 9), and a couple slobbery 'fur babies'.