Do your kids take you for granted? For example, if you’re sick or hurt, so they “feel” for you, or do they still demand the same attention they’re used to? Click to read 5 tips on how you can explain sensitivity to your children - and more…

PARENTS & KIDS

SENSITIVITY STARTER

What is sensitivity? Carefully using my senses so I can better respond to the people and situations in my life. Sensitivity leads to empathy.

What are your five senses?

1. See

2. Hear

3. Smell

4. Taste

5. Touch

You use your senses everyday to help you stay aware of your surroundings, enjoying things like food, flowers, sunsets. They also alert you to danger and help you survive. A SENSITIVE person not only uses these 5 senses in these ways, but also to learn about the people and situations around them in order to have a helpful and kind response.

Sensitivity looks beyond your own needs to the attitudes, needs, and emotions of others! Two of the most important senses for sensitivity are listening and watching. Watch the faces of your parents, your friends, your teachers, your sisters and brothers. You can see a happy face, a sad face, a confused face, or a hurting face, right? A listening ear will bring more comfort than anything sometimes. Practice watching and listening to others and put yourself in their shoes. What would you feel like if you were them?

PRACTICE SENSITIVITY - 5 TIPS

1) Listen carefully to others

A listening ear is one of the best therapies for a sad or discouraged person. Someone who will listen, without distraction or interruption, is a source of comfort and strength.

• Today, practice listening more than you speak

• Did you learn or notice anything new about your friends and classmates?

2) Watch their body language

Facial expressions and body language often communicate more than words can. It is important to pay attention to what a person’s face, body, and gestures are saying when you are trying to understand them.

• Look around at the people in class. What do you think their faces are saying?

• What happens if you make a funny face?

• What can crossed arms communicate?

3) Notice their tone of voice

The tone of someone’s voice is how they say what they’re saying. Are they loud? Quiet? Speaking quickly? Ignoring the tone of voice someone uses means you might miss an important part of what they are trying to communicate with you.

• How many different tones of voice can you think of?

• What emotions do you think those tones of voice correlate to?

4) Put myself in others’ shoes

Everyone has a story that has helped shape who they are. When you put yourself in someone else’s shoes it leads not only to empathy and compassion, but also to better solutions in frustrating or difficult situations.

• How do you feel when someone dies to look at a situation from your perspective?

• Is there someone you don’t understand well? Try imagining yourself in their place.

5) Show that I care

Show others you care by an encouraging word, a written note, or a helping hand. Use your senses to help you identify the emotions and motivations of other students so you can show them you care in meaningful ways.

• What can you do today to show a friend or classmate that you care?

• How does learning to care for other people change you as a person?

Remember: A sensitive person doesn’t just see a person struggling and ignore them; rather a sensitive person reaches out to see if they can help! That’s EMPATHY!

Content above taken from CharacterFirstEducation.com curriculum and used with permission.

EMPATHY - SHORT, FUN, VIDEO

COLORING PAGE

THE BEAUTIFUL, SENSITIVE, SNOWSHOE HARE

The snowshoe hare is a really beautiful animal and survives because it is sensitive. It uses it’s keen hearing with ears that can move in different directions to collect sounds. It can smell food - even beneath snow and ice with it’s nose. And the eyes on either side of it’s head are always looking for movements which could be from friends or enemies nearby.

Hares are different from rabbits in that they are:

• Larger than rabbits, with longer legs too. He is named Snowshoe because he has such large back feet!

• Are born with all their fur and eyes open. Within a few minutes they are hopping around. They don’t need their mothers as long as rabbits do.

• The arctic hare (snowshoe hare) changes colors: brown & gray in summer and white in winter. When the days get longer, they get browner to blend in with the forest floor. When the days get shorter, they become white to blend in with the snow.

GIVEAWAYS

In August, Wanda won a hardback copy of one of my books: Feebs to the Rescue. She gave it to her great-niece as a gift. September’s winner is Ariel who will get their choice of a hardback copy as well. November’s giveaway will be a watercolor painting and social media posts will trickle out in October with photos of this piece as it is created.

(Only subscribers are eligible for giveaways.)

CHICKADEE CHEER GALLERY

This is where you and I share things like artwork, stories, poems, favorite recipes, crafts, family photos, etc. Feel free to email me anytime during the month for posting in the next.

I’m thrilled to share some artwork done by 6-year old Lucy, daughter of one of our subscribing families: Rubber Ducky takes a bath!

The Breeden girls and friends decorated these pumpkins. It IS October and pumpkin time. I love pumpkin recipes. Click here for my favorite. Do you have a favorite pumpkin food?

Would you like to see what I used to do with my creative energy before books? Custom stained glass! Here’s a photo of one of the many pieces I did during the 35+ years I spent perfecting this craft. This one was in a bathroom.

What are your passions? Or, what have they been in the past? To share, just email me.