Sue Scheff: Kid Critic Holiday Gift Guide 2009

Lane, the Kid Critic reviews movies, books, entertainment, food and more that’s Kid-Friendly and Family-Friendly. Everything is written and reviewed by a kid, from a kid’s point of view.

Any and all locations are in Massachusetts and beyond. Kid Critic began in January 2009. Reviews are written as time permits in-between homework & other activities.

Kid Critic Guide - Holiday 2009 Gifts

Picking 10 of his best reviews, Lane offers special offers including a free bonus gift (surprise!) along with a copy of the conveniently and hard bound guide. (15 pages) by Lane Sutton

$40.00 value at $6.99! Learn more - click here.

Don't forget to follow Lane on Twitter @KidCriticUSA

Sue Scheff: FTC Releases Guide to Help Parents Talk to Their Kids About the Web

Many know that one of my favorite organizations is ReputationDefender. I believe they are a force in helping you and your family maintain a level of safety online - cyberspace has become an area of concern for many parents, however ReputationDefender is diligently keeping up with the time and even 10 steps ahead of most of us! Here is a recent article from their educational Blog.

FTC Releases Guide to Help Parents Talk to Their Kids About the Web

The Federal Trade Commission recently released a new guide to help parents talk to their kids about the internet. Released through the FTC program, OnGuard Online, the guide is titled Net Cetera: Chatting With Kids About Being Online.

Here is a description of the guide from the FTC:

“Kids and parents have many ways of socializing and communicating online, but they come with certain risks. This guide encourages parents to reduce the risks by talking to kids about how they communicate – online and off – and helping kids engage in conduct they can be proud of. Net Cetera covers what parents need to know, where to go for more information, and issues to raise with kids about living their lives online."

Netcetera was produced in conjunction with a variety of governmental and non-profit agencies, including one of our favorite organizations, the Internet Keep Safe Coalition. ReputationDefender and iKeepSafe have worked together on multiple occasions to advance children’s safety issues online, and we will continue to do so in the future.

Finding solutions to safety and privacy problems on the web isn’t something that can or should be done alone. It is refreshing to see so many groups working toward the common goal of helping parents connect with and protect their kids online.

Sue Scheff: Holiday Safety Tips

As we are now approaching the holidays, many people will be in malls or shopping plazas. It is time to review some tips to insure you and your family’s safety.

Be sure to go over these with teenagers and caregivers.

•When parking your vehicle to go shopping, remember where you parked it! Write it down if you have to. This can save you time and frustration after a long day of shopping.

•Always park in a well lit and well traveled area.

•Have your keys in your hand when approaching your vehicle.

•Before entering your vehicle, scan the interior of your car to be sure no one is hiding inside. Check to see if you are being followed. Always be alert.

•When storing items purchased at stores, place them out of sight in a locked trunk.

•Do not leave your purse, wallet, or cellular telephone in view; always LOCK VEHICLE, while driving or leaving your vehicle parked, even when in your own driveway.

•Don’t resist if someone tries to take any of your belongings. Don’t chase someone who robs you, they may have a weapon. Instead, call 911. If your cell phone is stolen with your belongings look around for an emergency phone or find someone immediately to call 911.

•If you go to an ATM for cash, check for people around and make sure it is well lit and in a safe location. Also be sure you complete your transaction and retrieve your ATM card.

•Carry only the credit cards you need and avoid carrying large amounts of cash.

For more information visit Road and Travel Magazine.
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Sue Scheff: Zig-zagging into LIVESTRONG to Help Others

With the recent news of the controversy of breast cancer early detection, there isn't a better time for you to learn more about how breast cancer effects so many lives.

Tom Wilson II, cartoonist of Ziggy, lost his wife, Susan, on November 18th, 2000 to her battle with breast cancer. Last spring he bravely released his memoir of this painful and spiritual journey through Zig-Zagging: Loving Madly, Loving Badly...How Ziggy Saved My Life (Health Communications, Inc 2009).

Tom Wilson recently announced he is donating 100% of his personal royalties of his book from November 18th (Susan's death) until January 19th (Susan's birthday) to LIVESTRONG.

From Tom Wilson:

Dear LIVESTRONG Friends,

My wife, Susan Shephard Wilson, died in my arms on November 18, 2000. She was forty-four years old. From the moment she was diagnosed with Stage 3b invasive breast cancer, Susan, who had always been my strength, began to teach me what it truly means to LIVESTRONG.

"From the first day we discovered this arch villain called cancer had struck at the very heart of our life together, I witnessed the one constant in my life, my beautiful, sweet, gentle "Tweety Bird" become a hawk so fierce that General Patton himself would have saluted her. Susan went into battle with more strength and courage than any fictional superhero could possibly muster…"Zig-Zagging: Loving Madly, Losing Badly…How Ziggy Saved My Life, came from the journaling I did in an effort to make sense for myself of the seven years my family battled the consuming, insidious disease that is cancer.

The decision to publish the raw, emotional, and painful story of our personal war against cancer and my personal struggle against the crippling grief, was in the hope that telling it might bring comfort to someone else struggling along a similar path of cancer diagnosis.When I recently had the opportunity to meet with the staff at the LIVESTRONG Headquarters in Austin, Texas, I saw an extraordinary chance to allow this terrible tragedy in my family's life to do something truly positive for fellow survivors and co-survivors.

ZIGGY's MILLION DOLLAR LIVESTRONG CHALLENGE is OUR opportunity to come together to make a real difference! Through this campaign starting November 18, the anniversary of Susan's death, to January 19, her birthday, I am donating 100% of my personal royalties to LIVESTRONG, and coupled with the HCI affiliate program, that averages out to roughly $4.50 from every purchase of Zig-Zagging to the LIVESTRONG organization when ordered from this link.

My HOPE is that together we will raise a MILLION dollars (or more!)for LIVESTRONG over the next two months!

With love,

Tom Wilson…and Ziggy

I have read this wonderful book. If you haven't, isn't now the time to do so? It is not only a gift to yourself, it is a way to give to a wonderful charity. Holidays are almost here, I am confident there is someone on your gift list that will benefit with a gift from Ziggy. After all, who doesn't love Ziggy?

Read an excerpt from Zig-Zagging - click here.

Order Zig-Zagging today!

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Sue Scheff: Volunteering Just Got Easier!

It is always better to give than it is to receive. We hear that a lot and for good reason. It is true!

This is such an important topic, there will be two parts to this article. VolunteerSpot is a fantastic organization designed to help you give back to your community. There are no more excuses! During this holiday season, take the time to learn more about your neighborhood and what their needs are.

The founder of VolunteerSpot, Karen Bantuveris, recently took time to answer questions about her mission and hopefully will give you inspiration to take steps to help others this holiday season and all year round!

Part 1:

1. Why and when did you start VolunteerSpot?

I'm a working mom and when my daughter entered school I knew I wanted to be active in the classroom and with her Scout troop, etc. I wanted to quickly and easily schedule my volunteer commitments with the rest of my business calendar, but my inbox kept filling up with back and forth emails over how many cupcakes to bring to the class party or whose turn it is to help at recess or other really clutter some communication - I knew several parents that just said ‘take me off the list' because of this.

It's not that parents didn't want to help, it's that there wasn't a good way to ask them - so that's when I got the idea for VolunteerSpot.

We launched our ‘Early Edition' in the Spring of 2009. What started as a tool to help my PTA in Austin, TX has grown to helping more than 100,000 volunteers participate in their communities across the country.

2. VolunteerSpot offers many resources. What do you feel people benefit most from your organization?

We save volunteer leaders time and frustration and get more people volunteering. Typically we hear that it's always the same people volunteering at school, little league, library, etc. With VolunteerSpot, we make it easy for more parents to volunteer - because it's so easy to find a spot on the schedule that fits in their busy lives. Open an email, click to the schedule, click a shift and you've found a volunteer job. Plus parents also love our automated reminders so they never forget what they signed up to help with.

3. How many different states have participated in VolunteerSpot and how can people join?

We're currently serving volunteers in more than 40 states (and several countries)! Anyone can launch a VolunteerSpot sign up - it's really easy to get started with our simple planning wizard. It's been truly remarkable seeing all the wonderful ways folks find to use VolunteerSpot. In addition to helping parents and teachers coordinate volunteers at school and sports, we see congregations and nonprofits using us for their good work like after school mentoring programs, literacy outreach, community arts festivals, handicapped riding programs, building teams and community kitchens.

4. Do you charge any fees? Do you have sponsors?

VolunteerSpot is free for teachers and grassroots volunteer leaders. We ask that workplace volunteer teams, leagues and nonprofits with budget contribute to keep us free for groups that can't afford us. Sponsors are important to our business and we'll be adding new features soon to help them support the good work of our volunteers.

5. What motivates you and what inspired you to start this wonderful organization?

Professionally, I'm a business process expert. When I saw good people drop out of volunteering, and leaders burn out over frustrating communication obstacles, I just knew that there had to be a better way! By simplifying the volunteer experience, our tool has increased volunteer participation by more than 20%, reduced leader burnout and increased donations to the organization that use us!

Part 2 continues with how VolunteerSpot can help you! Click here.

Follow VolunteerSpot on Twitter @VolunteerSpot and get updates on their Blog.

Reminder: Holiday Safety Tips!

Article on Holiday Jobs and Volunteering for Teens.

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Sue Scheff: Marketing Products for Kids

I have written about Lane Sutton, also known as KidCriticUSA. At 12 years old he created his own little empire of “all things kids.” He enjoys visiting different restaurants, reviewing movies and giving his advice to parents through a kids opinion.

Do you have products for kids (toys, games, books, etc) you would like to have reviewed? Contact Lane today at Lane@KidCriticUSA.com ! Remember, the holidays are around the corner, Lane can help promote your products. Follow him on Twitter at @KidCriticUSA

In September I interviewed Lane Sutton for an Examiner article. Check it out here. Lane has expanded into reviewing summer camps! Soon enough summer will be here, get a jump start. If you own a camp, invite Lane to review it!

For more places to showcase your products, be sure to visit MommyPerks, Kidlutions and BingNote!

Sue Scheff: Teaching your Kids Gratitude

Parenting expert, Dr. Michele Borba, recently released her BIG BOOK of Parenting Solutions, 101 Answers to your Everyday Challenges and Wildest Worries. Part 3 in this huge book, which is formatted like a cookbook, she writes about "character."

The parenting recipes in this book are priceless! As the holidays approach, it is time to share some of these family recipes - all thoroughly researched and proven delicious for today's parenting. This book makes an excellent holiday gift for any parent raising kids today. There isn't a parenting topic that is missed.

This is not only a HUGE book, it is the manual the hospital should have handed out when your children were born.Part of your child's character should be gratitude. As Thanksgiving is fast approaching, let's review some of Dr. Borba's proven advice on character building with gratitude.

This is a sneak peek of inside the Big Book of Parenting Solutions:

Thank you ABCs. This one is great for younger kids to do at the dinner table. You and your kids say the alphabet together, but for each letter include something you are grateful for: A, Aunt Helen; B, my brother; C, my cat and so on. Take it up one notch by having the person explain why he is grateful. Families with small kids rarely get beyond H, but the point is that you're having fun together, and your kids are also learning to be appreciative. Older kids can reveal one thing they are grateful for that happened to them during the day and why.

Prayers of thanksgiving. Say a prayer of thanks together before meals. Some families take turns so that each night a different member leads the prayer.

Bedtime family blessings. Each child exchanges messages of appreciation for one another, followed by a goodnight hug and kiss.

Gratitude letters. Your child writes a letter to someone who has made a positive difference in his life but whom he has probably not thanked properly in the past (such as his teacher, coach, scoutmaster, or grandparent). Research shows that to maximize the impact, your child should read the letter to the person face to face. If the person lives far away, videotape your child reading the note and send it to the recipient, or have the child read his not over the phone.

Gratitude journals. Younger kids can draw or dictate things they are most grateful for; older kids can write in a diary or in a computer. Just remember to start one for yourself or for your family. Research show that your kids should write something they feel grateful for four times a week and continue for at least three weeks.

Focus on giving, not getting. Involve your child in the process of choosing, making and wrapping gifts. Give your kid the honor of handing out the presents to relatives during the holidays and giving a thank-you gift to the hostess, teacher, or coach. Switching the emphasis from the role of the getter to that of the giver may help your child recognize the effort and thoughtfulness that goes into selecting those gifts.


This is only a fraction of Michele Borba's BIG BOOK of Parenting Solutions, she also states that practicing gratitude 365 days a year is what is important, not just at the holidays. Order this book today, whether for yourself or as a holiday gift and get ready to be blown away at all the valuable information you will read.

For those busy parents that don't have time to read, this is the perfect book for you since it is not the type of book you sit down to read. As parenting questions come up, you can go straight to the index and find the page number. Immediately you will see the pages divided by boxes, quick tips and advice and easy to read and understand resources. Did I mention she also lists proven statistics?

Coming soon, more sneak peeks inside this Big Book of Parenting Solutions. You will soon see you need this book in your kitchen, I mean library!

Part 2 - How do you handle "ungrateful" children? Click here.
Part 3 - Seven Deadly Parenting Styles
Part 4 - Sex Talk with your Children

Click here for more articles on parenting. Don't forget to subscribe to my latest articles, and you won't miss the sneak peeks inside this valuable book as well as other great tips, resources and stories.

Reminder: Holiday Safety Tips!

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Sue Scheff: Students Being Paid for Good Grades

We have heard about this controversy lately. Like with many situations, there are several sides of the story. Many can remember being rewarded for a good report card, however today it almost seems like we are paying our kids to do well – in reality, shouldn’t they want to be successful so someday they will earn their own money? Let’s not answer that – today’s society is a new generation. I am not speaking about all teens, however the sense of entitlement has reached a level that is disturbing to many parents and teachers.

Recently I read an article by Connect with Kids about “A Little Incentive” that offers tips that can help you make a decision that is best for your family. Take the time to read this. Be an educated parent and weigh both sides of the issue.

Tips for Parents

Is it a good idea to give cash in exchange for good grades? That is something each family must discuss and decide. Evaluate your teen's grades. If the grades are good, continue with the plan you are using. If the grades could use some improvement, take the opportunity to discuss the importance of good grades. Explain how good grades will help them children into the college of their choice.

If this does not work, consider a reward system. Ask them what they would like to receive for grades. If money seems to be the best motivator, but you are not comfortable handing over cash for them to "blow," you do have some options that will motivate and educate.
One option is to take the opportunity to teach your teen the value of a dollar. Family Education Network suggests the following tips:

Once a dollar amount is established, sit down with your teen and establish a money management program or financial plan.

Begin by designating 35 percent of their "grade money" as free spending money. This would be theirs to do spend as they wish. At least half, in this example 65 percent, must be saved.

Your teen can open their own savings account, or if you are stock and mutual fund savvy, try to get them investing early and on a regular basis.

Have your teen give a percentage, 10 percent for example, to charity. If you are uncomfortable with rewarding good grades, consider other options for helping them achieve academic success. One of the most important things you can do to help your teen succeed in school is to become involved. Consider the following ideas suggested by the American Federation of Teachers:

Know your child's school family. The teacher is the primary player in your child's school environment, but there are others (such as counselors and librarians) who make a valuable contribution. Attending parent-teacher conferences, open-school nights and other events are the best way to get acquainted with these important people.

Expect success at school. Children work best when they know what you expect of them. Discuss these expectations with your children -- expectations for good grades, attendance and study habits. Encourage them to take courses that will challenge them, but not overwhelm them. For example, high school students usually can choose from several English courses and several mathematics courses. Discuss these and other course options with your children. Make sure they are choosing courses that will interest and challenge them.

View unsatisfactory grades as an opportunity. All parents want their children to receive good marks and advance to the next grade, but do not expect a teacher to give your children a grade or honor that they have not deserved. Make it clear to your child that grades are not ''given'' - they are earned. If your child receives an unsatisfactory report card, use this as an opportunity to restate your own commitment to high standards. Discuss with your child (and the teacher) what he or she will need to do differently to improve the grade and advance to the next level.

Help your child keep pace. Absences, family problems and other distractions make it difficult for a student to keep up with lessons and assignments during the school day. Ask a teacher if your school district offers after-school tutoring, summer programs or other activities that can prevent your child from falling behind.

Monitor your teen's part-time job. For many teenagers, holding a part-time job is an important rite of passage into adulthood. It teaches students about the working world and how to manage money. But a part-time job can cut into study time and add to the stress of teen years. Grades can fall, and attendance can suffer

References: American Federation of Teachers, Family Education Network, New York Post article, Reuters, Connect with Kids

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