L-R, James Long-Goth, Leonard Mukai, Amy Kessinger-Okuyama. Day at the Park, a family fun and educational event sponsored by Thy Word Ministry, March 10, 2010.
An affiliate of Starts at Home Leonard Mukai, Ph.D, has an excellent online program called No Parenting Problems. He and his wife Cecilia Mukai, Ph.D are giving this 30 day video presentation FREE to encourage and help parents; he believes parenting “Starts at Home” and is sharing his program. Speaking to Leonard, his most distant viewer comes from Russia who found his lessons simple and effective. Each video is about one minute. Here’s a link to one (1) of thirty (30) FREE videos.
You know how difficult it is to teach a child and sometimes when we say “no”, all hell breaks loose …. the crying, the pouting, the tantrum and tirades. This video teaches us one way how to say “No” the right way. It’s a pretty simple and cool technique; enjoy this one minute video.
Last month on their way to the airport, Amy said to our granddaughter Andee, “Grandma is going home to the Big Island”. A few times since then, Andee has mentioned to her mother Kimberly, “gamma big island”. Much to both Amy and Kimberly’s surprise, Andee started using the words “Big Island” after hearing them only once. Amy knows she had said “Big Island” to Andee only once during her stay in Honolulu; Kimberly never mentioned big island before. Wow, kids at the age of two learn at tremendous speeds, a time period in early childhood I refer to as the “Planting Twos”. What we say, do, and teach during this period will greatly impact their personalities, intelligence, and social life.
The “Planting Twos” is a wonderful time before preschool to teach about God, social morals, health and wellness, reading, music, science, mathematics, sports, obedience, kindness, sharing, caring for others, chores and rewards. The Planting Twos are the golden teaching years in early childhood development.
These wonderful years are academically described by Barbara Rogoff, in her book The Apprenticeship of Thinking: Cognitive Development in Social Context. The book is about guided participation by children and their companions. Barbara Rogoff is UC Santa Cruz Foundation Distinguished Professor of Psychology. Barbara Rogoff has held the University of California Presidential Chair and has been a Fellow of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, a Kellogg Fellow, a Spencer Fellow, and an Osher Fellow of the Exploratorium.
“Parenting is the most challenging and is the most rewarding job there is” says, Christian Ross, Dad
Starts at Home encourages parents with children under seven years of age. You’ve heard it said it “starts at home”. Children don’t come with instruction manuals. Starts at Home are people who love parents and children, who are devoted to helping children achieve the best in whatever God given talents they have.
Parents are empowered to teach good attitudes and skills like faith, sharing, obedience, honoring parents, reading, math, memory, budgeting, and other practical life skills. We want our children to be the best they can be, giving them the freedom to choose their path in life.
We believe that parents whether married, single, or custodial, can teach children and protect them against the temptations they will face in the world like, unhealthy eating, sexual permissiveness, illegal drugs, internet safety, selfish pride, and excessive materialism.
We have a lot of work when it comes to loving the children and encouraging parents. There’s a lot of traumatized children out there.. Charles Manson, a life-sentenced murderer, is an example; he grew up without the love of nurturing parents and eventually release his ugly anger. When Charles Manson was born his mother did not give him a name, later, his mother sold him for a pitcher of beer.
In the United States, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, “the homicide 1) rate doubled from the early 1960s to the late 1970s, increasing from 4.6 per 100,000 U.S. residents in 1962 to, 2) 9.7 per 100,000 by 1979, 3) in 1980 the rate peaked at 10.2 per 100,000, and 4) subsequently fell to 7.9 per 100,000 in 1984. 5) The rate rose again in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s to another peak in 1991 of 9.8 per 100,000. 5) The homicide rate declined sharply from 9.3 homicides per 100,000, 6) in 1992 to 4.8 homicides per 100,000 in 2010″.
The poverty of no love and rejection can lead to many forms of mental illness. With hope, faith, and love, we come to serve. We are a group of individuals, businesses, organization working together to help families because children are not born with instructions. For more information on this group see the Organization in this website.
We would be pleased to have you be part of Starts at Home, call us at (808) 937-4392, or email us at startsathome@hotmail.com. Have a wonderful and joy filled day!
This article was originally published on April 4, 2010
What do 1st U.S. President George Washington, singer Elvis Presley, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., comedian Sinbad, and singer Katy Perry have in common? Answer: As children, they all were raised and influenced by the church and gospel music, then later in life influenced our society.
In the below YouTube video, these children singing are not only learning music, also reading, stage confidence, public speaking, and teamwork. Music greatly has a positive effect on early childhood development.
I had the fortunate opportunity to serve on the University of Hawaii’s Presidential and Regent’s Scholarship selection committee for four years. Hawaii’s brightest students competed for the most generous scholarships the University system offered; its objective was to keep Hawaii best students in Hawaii. One common tread stood out among the gifted winning applicants, they all had music training.
As parents, singing with your children or having them participant in music programs can influence their success. Enjoy the video !2 Days of Christmas – Jesus Style – Messiah. Lyrics to this song is available on YouTube, click “show more”, additional information is available.
Amy and I would like to say thank you very much to Miss Emily, Mrs. Pacheco, Mrs. Newcomb, and Mrs. Niimi for teaching our children to sing at the Kaumana Baptist Church – Keiki Land Preschool Program, in Hilo Hawaii.
Starts at Home 