JANUARY 2022 EDITION:

In this issue: 

• Bob's Message: Don't Forget About Chores
• Featured Article: Processing Power: What Every Parent Needs to Know 
• Announcement: Introducing Our New Coach Romina!
• Announcement: Download the NACD App!
• NACD on YouTube: Processing & Simply Smarter
• Upcoming Evaluation Schedule

Don't Forget About Chores
by Bob Doman

Click above to watch the video

Please take a look at these videos (above) of my 26 month old grandson, Lachlan, doing one of his chores and learning another. This first one is a chore that he owns that helps his dad out in his office.

As I have often stated, chores are the route to independence, learning about and working with intention, responsibility, service, contribution, self-worth, attention span, development of motor skills, becoming highly capable, and on and on. Don’t underestimate what your children can do or the importance of them doing it.

Guess what this grandfather got his little grandson for Christmas? Would you believe a real metal snow shovel? This video (above) shows his first experience with it. A few lessons are needed.

I started my first business, a snow removal business, when I was eleven. I had two employees and made enough my first winter in Philadelphia to buy myself a nice boat. Don’t underestimate what your children can do. The more independent the become, the more they initiate on their own.

One of the tragedies of what most people call “education,” which has children sitting in a classroom (or for many today, looking at a computer screen) for six hours a day and then often doing homework on top of that, is that there often is not enough day or energy left for parents to teach their children about little things like values, the importance of family, or to give children time to initiate and learn to love reading and learning, or have ownership of chores, and to derive all of the benefits of them. We are producing many 20 year old narcissistic children who spent 12 or more years plugged into a curriculum that was not targeted to them, that was filled with things that they forgot within weeks, and that deprived them of the ability to learn and develop those things that are needed to turn them into successful adults.

Don’t forget about chores.
 —Bob
 

Read all our articles about chores

Processing Power:
What Every Parent Needs to Know
by Bob Doman

The potential of our children is not a reflection of what they were born with, but rather the stimulation and opportunities we provide for them. Not the least of these needs centers on building their ability to take in and manipulate information–their cognitive ability, basically, how smart they are. As parents we need to understand that this is not part of any school’s curriculum, or even on their radar, even though it should be an integral piece. It is something that parents need to understand and assume the responsibility for. Our children, whether they are developmentally challenged, have learning or attention issues, are “typical’ or gifted, all have great untapped potential.
 

Click here to read the rest of this article

Introducing Our New Coach - Romina!

Romina is from Romania, and from a young age has been passionate about learning foreign languages. She studied English, German, and Italian intensively and worked in fields that required mastering these languages in Romania, Germany, and Great Britain. 

Struggles with health issues most of her childhood and young adult life have made her very sensitive and empathetic towards children with health and developmental issues. She knows all about missing time from school, spending time in hospitals, not having access to proper diagnoses or treatments, dealing with laws, and maybe most important of all, overcoming limitations that others tried to impose on her. It took many years for her to heal and overcome the trauma of being labeled as a sick individual and treated as such by society. Romina started making it a goal to help others as a career. The first step in this direction was finding a university program in this field. As a result, she is currently completing a degree in Special Education. Second step was finding NACD. This happened in 2017 when a close friend started volunteering for NACD. As she says, “The program and overall approach is unique, and I immediately wanted to be a part of it.” Learning more and more about us over the years, Romina was sure that she wanted to be a part of the NACD family and dedicate her life to helping others. 

“All the hard work and dedication of the NACD families has been a true inspiration for me. Being a part of their journey is a true honor and a dream come true. Meeting Bob in person was a life changing experience for me.”

Download the NACD Family Portal App!

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Processing & Simply Smarter
NACD Home Education Series

February 2022

To view our list of chapters and complete schedule, click here