YOUTH SERVICES UNIT
Spring 2019 Issue No. 43 ALWAYS FREE
Keeping Creative
Life-Changing Parents Rake the yard. Clean out the garage. Go through closets. Donate unused items. Wash the windows. You know the drill. It’s called spring cleaning. But what if spring cleaning took on a new twist this year, one that would greatly benefit your children? Start by clearing your mind of assumptions and wiping away all the limiting beliefs that keep you from becoming the parent you always wanted to be. It’s not an easy job but we can be life-changing parents by cleaning up our parent-child relationship or mending a mental fence. Parents can strengthen their role in a child’s life by taking on some of these helpful tips for spring-cleaning:
Creativity is the ability to express ourselves. We make something from personal feelings and experiences. It is an opportunity to be innovative and to nurture our mental health and emotional well-being. The experiences children have during their first years of life can significantly enhance the development of their creativity.
A recent report by The Children’s Society noted that a quarter of 14-year-old girls surveyed in the UK have selfharmed. Experts agree there must be a greater awareness for the adolescent mental health crisis and how it can be tackled. Keeping children and teens involved in creative pursuits is one way to help manage…
Cont’d on pg. 7
Reawaken your curiosity. Clean out your present expectations and your knowing of why your children do things. Return to wonder. Be fascinated by what they do. Let yourself be awed. Allow your curiosity to bloom this spring. Eliminate judgment. Judgment keeps you from seeing your children clearly. If you judge a child as lazy, you are less likely to see ambitious behavior. If you judge him/her as uncaring, you will have difficulty noticing his/her benevolent acts. Clean the lens in your eyes by reducing the number of judgments through which you perceive your children… Cont’d on pg. 5
EMELDA DIXON “This is one of the best times of the year to me. I love going camping, spending time on the beach and swimming, but what I enjoy the most is making life-long memories with my family.”
JARELL FISHER “I really like the Easter time. I like going in the boat, going to church, to the beach with my family and fishing. We also light off fireworks with my family.”
EMILIE MCLAUGHLIN “I plan on spending some quality time with my family and doing some activities we have planned together. The school term has been hectic so I also plan to relax over the break.”
Reinvigorate your brand Building your brand online requires commitment, work and consistency. Keep in mind that we all change over time, so in branding yourself, be open to letting these changes reflect.
Acting Head of Youth Services Unit James Myles … In the springtime, many of us seek to reenergize ourselves by assessing the progress we’ve made on our resolutions and commitments. During the Easter, I often reflect on what bad habits I can discontinue to improve my “personal brand.” This is a part of my Lenten tradition and it begins by asking: ‘How do others perceive my qualities and my attitude?’ Springtime is an ideal opportunity to consider the ways you can reinvigorate your “personal brand.” I came across a Forbes Magazine article recently which offered some advice for how to improve your personal brand online and across digital platforms. Personal brand expert Natasa Djukanovic suggests that in the digital era, a strong personal brand directly impacts the way people perceive you and the professional opportunities you’ll be exposed to. A strong personal brand can bolster your reputation and help you access career and learning opportunities, grow your networks and much more.
Also remember that while your digital footprint shapes your “online persona,” it is equally important to be aware of our “offline persona” while living in a close-knit community where your personal brand is often informed by your associations, your career and your ethics. As you seek to reinvigorate your personal brand through online channels, take a look at these “spring cleaning tips” for bolstering your career, your impact and professional qualities: Start with self-reflection. Your road to building your personal brand begins with knowing who you are. Selfawareness is key and will inform all decisions. The greatest challenge people face is deciding what to focus on and what to share – especially online via portfolios, websites or blogs. Focus on the things you are passionate about and that you invest your time in: causes, charities or your career. Have any projects resulted from your passion? Highlighting them does not have to result in bragging; but be open to sharing it with others. This will tell people a bit about what you're good at. Be your best advocate. When telling your story, do not be shy and try to downplay your capabilities. You have a lot to offer and people want to know this. Infuse your personality in everything you share, whether it be a
social media post, a website biography or links to your work. Make sure your personal website and social media channels showcase your values and passions. After all, you are human. People will want to interact with that side of you. It’s okay to be vulnerable; it makes you relatable. Share content that resonates. Don't be afraid to share your opinions or participate in social media conversations. On your channels, start with reposting relevant news articles and outside perspectives that align with your interests and profession. Add in your own comments as well. Write blog posts on your professional journey. Start a discussion with your audience on a trending topic in your industry. By producing or sharing content that resonates, you will be perceived as a thought leader and organically cultivate an audience. Make time for networking. Don’t wait for people to come to you, as that happens very rarely. You may hear stories of people getting contacted by LinkedIn recruiters and being hired on the spot, but instances like this are rare. Start reaching out to people you want to connect with. Suggest you grab coffee or hop on a phone call to discuss something you're curious about. It’s through these meaningful connections that you will be able to advance in your personal and professional journey. Source: www.forbes.com
UPCOMING DATES
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April
May
June
19th Good Friday
1–31st Child Month
16th Fathers’ Day
20th–22nd CARIFTA
12th Mothers’ Day
17th Queen’s Birthday
22nd Easter Monday
20th Discovery Day
Teaching generosity
In spring we often aim to turn over a new leaf by renewing ourselves with fresh attitudes. Whether we have an established tradition of charitable giving or have just begun our tradition by giving modest donations; it is clear that regardless of the monetary value we give, an attitude of generosity is needed most as we seek to invest in our community and the social causes that we care most about. A generous attitude in parents will model positive behavior for children who see this first-hand, but it takes more than just that. According to a study conducted by Indiana University, parents who talk to their children about charitable giving significantly increase the likelihood their children will give to charity, even more so than role-modeling alone. But what exactly does it mean to talk to kids about charitable giving? According to the study, “…parents who want to raise charitable children should talk intentionally with them about their own philanthropic values and practices throughout childhood and adolescence in addition to role-modeling.” Here are some practical suggestions to try with your children:
The Give Jar. Learning by doing is an excellent way to begin. Start a “Give Jar” so that a portion of your child’s weekly allowance can be set aside for the purpose of donating it. While the Give Jar can be baffling at first – especially for very little kids – after a few explanations of the benefits of charitable giving, kids begin to get it and setting aside money to give to others becomes commonplace. Once enough cash has accumulated in the jar – maybe begin with about $25 – let your children decide where they want to donate their money. First me, then you. When trying to grasp the idea of charitable giving, kids first need to understand how the organisations they’re donating to help others and what better way to understand that concept than to experience the impact of these organisations themselves? If your child adopted a dog recently and wants to donate to animal welfare causes (or other such charities and interest groups), they will enjoy seeing their donations used to make a positive impact. They may begin by thinking of themselves first; but gradually you can start talking about other charities that could benefit from their support. As Ron Lieber says in his book “The Opposite of Spoiled“, after a few years of giving to organisations near-and-dear, consider introducing a new challenge to older kids – have your kids give money to reputable organisations that help other people they don’t know directly. This not only exposes kids to a variety of non-profit organizations trying to accomplish good but also fosters a sense of empathy in kids that hopefully grows over their adolescence.
Spring Facts! FACT #1
Spring almost always arrives on March 20th or 21st, but sometimes on the 19th. The reason the equinoxes and solstices don’t always come on the same day is that Earth doesn’t circle the sun in exactly 365 days.
Make it personal. Trying to make the concept of giving to others as tangible as possible to children will carry the lesson of charitable giving even further. There are a few ways parents can accomplish this: 1. Donate in the child’s name – if you receive letters in the mail share them with your child; 2. Give money in person – if it is possible to do so involve your child as this really solidifies where the money is going and who it is helping; 3. Let kids have a say – when they’re older, letting kids have a say in how to spend the family charity budget will give them even further hands-on experience in donating money. In the first year, kids can be in control of a small percent of the budget that increases each year. The long run. The benefits of charitable giving aren’t something kids are going to grasp tomorrow. The journey of raising empathetic kids happens in small steps and over time. Even though they might give willingly to the Give Jar, it might not register what happens to that money when it “disappears.” But with most lessons, introducing the concept of charitable giving at a young age and enforcing it through adolescence with increasing responsibility can help carry our kids into adulthood with a strong understanding that helping others is the right thing to do. Source: selfsufficientkids.com
Article contributed by the Financial Awareness Now (FAN) Club
pg. 3
FACT #3 FACT #2
If Earth rotated on an axis perpendicular to the plane of its orbit around the sun rather than on a 23.4º tilt, there would be no variation in day lengths and no variation in seasons
Holidays that occur in spring include: Easter, Passover, April Fool’s Day, Earth Day, Arbor Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Cinco De Mayo, and Holi (festival of colors in India).
YOUTH ECHOES For the most part, being president was something that I was scared of and I had lots of doubts. I thought: ‘What if no one wants to listen to me?’ But I did get some helpful words of guidance from an advisor who said: “You can do it! You need to stop doubting yourself, you must always believe in yourself and when you do, you can achieve anything you want to as long you put your mind to it.”
ABOUT ME Name: Jordyn (Chance) Thompson
Mohyndra Brown, 2019 CIYA President
Age: 18 years
The Cayman Islands Youth Assembly (CIYA) is a multi-school initiative comprised of students tasked with researching a pressing topic of social and civic importance. I am Mohyndra Brown, the current CIYA President. I became a member of the CIYA because I wanted to understand the power of youth and how our unique voice can contribute to Cayman’s future.
Date of Birth: February 8th Born: George Town, Grand Cayman Things to Do: Photography, Writing, Traveling & Vlogging my trips to different countries Future Plans: I want to earn my MFA in Film and Media Production at the New York Film Academy in Los Angeles and to someday become a film director, script writer and an inspiration to the young performers of my country. Community: I am the 2019 Public Relations Officer for the Cayman Islands Youth Assembly. Also on holidays I enjoy working with my family to make and deliver care baskets to local hospitals and medical offices for those in need.
I have seen way too many youth make bad decisions based on poor reasoning, and those youth need a mechanism to speak up about the problems they see in their community. They may be scared that their voices will be ignored by adults but the CIYA has proven to me that youth in Cayman do have a voice and through this programme we can help other young people to use it. I have been a member of CIYA for 3 years. I’ve noticed that every year I learn something new and I am proud to say that this year, 2019, I have the honour of being president. I want to guide the CIYA to help the youth in Cayman because I think that the only real way you can understand the problems that youth go through every day is to “spend a day in our shoes.”
I now realise that I can help people, regardless of what leadership role I take on and I feel equipped to meet the challenges I will face as I discover my talents along the way. When I was younger I wanted to become a doctor because my mom encouraged me to see it might be one of the best and most tangible ways to help the people in our community. I’ve since changed my career aspirations as I want to become a chef thanks to a love of my grandma’s home-cooking. I’ve competed in some prestigious youth culinary competitions and through this huge change, I’ve developed my leadership qualities and found happiness. Young people don’t need to be afraid to be adaptable whether we’re taking on a new role (like a CIYA president) or exploring career options. You never know where your path might take you or what a large impact you can make if you improve your confidence! I thought I would never be able to help the people in the community unless I followed a specific path but I’m noticing now that I still can help people in a new leadership capacity. Martin Luther King said: “I have a dream” - well I do have a dream that helping our youth now will help shape the future ahead and it will be a future we can all be proud of. pg. 4
Life-changing Parents Cont’d p
rid of old obligations and habits that prevent you from investing time with your children.
Be out of your mind. Use silent times to wash old and useless thoughts from your mind. Resist the urge to over-analyse parenting issues. Stop thinking and cluttering your mind with incessant chatter. Listen to your heart. Follow your intuition. Pick parenting strategies that have your heart in them. Appreciate the moment. The best present to give your children is to be fully present when you are with them. Throw out thoughts about the future and the past when you interact with your children. There is only one moment to see, feel, express, learn or grow with your children. This is it. Clean up your schedule. Every child in the world spells love T-I-ME. Adjust your priorities. Pick through your list of social and business activities. Get
Easter Pie
Looking for a tasty treat you can make for family and friends? Here’s an easy springtime recipe to indulge in.
Apologise & begin again. Spring is the time of new beginnings. Do you need to begin again with one of your children? Do you need to make amends? If so, tell your children what you learned and what you intend to do differently from now on. Then follow through. Cut down on talking. Reduce your need to explain, lecture, moralise, rationalise, and convince. The first step towards a healthy relationship is to listen. Offer your presence by hearing rather that telling, by acknowledging instead of convincing, by understanding rather that jumping to conclusions. Rework truth. Cleanse you mind of the notion that there is one truth. You know your truth. Allow your children to find theirs. Model for your children how you live your truth. Support them in their efforts to find their own truth and encourage them to trust it. Fix it up. What parenting concerns need to be fixed in your home? Do you need to fix a
pg. 5
relationship, the use of the TV and the internet, or a reoccurring stress? Fix your mind first so you are tuned into fixing problems rather than fixing blame. Maintain a solution-seeking mindset as you fix it up this spring. Give yourself a perception check. Remember, you can choose to see any parenting situation differently from the way you are presently seeing it. Perception is always a choice. Clean up your mind by asking yourself, “Is this way of seeing this problem the one that brings the most light and love to the situation?” Use springtime to enlighten your parenting perceptions and actions. Going beyond. A thorough spring cleaning of your parenting style could make your home sparkle. It could be like a fresh coat of paint that brightens the exterior and the interior of you and your children. It might work like the cleansing combination of adding energy and love to a bucket of soap and water. Brighter, cleaner, healthier family relationships could well be the result of your “spring cleaning” this year! Source: www.parentguidenews.com
Ingredients
Instructions
50 Hershey's Kisses Brand Milk Chocolates 20 Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups Miniatures 1 large tub frozen non-dairy whipped topping, thawed 1 packaged graham cracker crumb crust Additional Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups Miniatures or Hershey's Kisses Brand Milk Chocolates (optional) Hershey's Candy-Coated Milk Chocolate Eggs (optional)
1. Chop each peanut butter cup into 6 pieces; set aside. 2. Microwave 50 chocolates on medium heat for 1 minute or just until chocolate is melted when stirred; stir in 3-1/2 cups whipped topping until blended. 3. Spread half of chocolate mixture into crust; sprinkle with the peanut butter cups. Top with remaining chocolate mixture. Refrigerate 3 hours or until set. 4. Spread with remaining whipped topping just before serving. Garnish with additional candies. Makes 8 servings.
pg. 6
Family fun! Hosting an egg hunt for your friends, family or members of your local youth organisation? You can also use these tips to pull off a fun activity at any time of the year by simply swapping the eggs out to match your chosen theme or another holiday!
1. Set the date Not all hunts happen on the same day. Easter Weekend or later in the month are great options in the springtime. If you’re planning on hosting outdoors, have a back-up rainy day plan.
2. Pick the location Whether the hunt is taking place on your front yard, indoors, or on the grounds of a community centre, make sure the location works. Pick an area that's large but not too difficult for finding eggs. Define the boundaries and stay away from the road!
3. Stock up on eggs While some hosts prefer real eggs, it’s often best to use plastic eggs if there are a lot of little kids invited to your hunt. And the more eggs the merrier. If you’re not sure about how many to have onhand, we’d suggest about 10 eggs per child, depending on the age group.
4. Have baskets, buckets, pails It would be great if everyone arrived with baskets, but play it safe and assume that no one will show up with his or her own egg-loading gear. Plan to have at least one for every guest invited to the hunt.
5. Hide the eggs Before you start hiding anything, count the eggs. (Trust us, you’ll thank us later.) Choose hiding spots that make sense for the ages of the kids invited. You’ll want some eggs in more obvious locations (on the lawn), and others hidden in more challenging spots like tucked behind the stump of a tree or hidden in a fern out of view.
6. Be ready to hunt & count eggs If you're hosting kids of all different ages, think about letting kids go out in heats. To be fair, let the youngest kids have first dibs on eggs. At the end of your hunt, when you're certain that all the eggs have been found, it's time to count. Sometimes even the egg hiders forget about those clever hiding spots. Source: www.realsimple.com
Brunch Pizza
Ingredients
Instructions
1 cans (11 oz.) Pizza Crust 1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Spread pizza crust onto ungreased baking dish. Thin Roll edges to form a crust and then 10 slices cooked thick-cut drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil. bacon 10 cherry tomatoes, halved 2. Lay bacon pieces and tomatoes over the top. Crack 6 eggs all 6 eggs around the pizza crust. Sprinkle 1 avocado, sliced thin with salt and pepper to taste. 2 tablespoons olive oil 3. Bake for 15-18 minutes, then 2 tablespoons parsley remove from the oven, sprinkle (optional) avocado slices, olive oil & parsley. Salt and pepper (optional)
Keeping Creative Cont’d
…their mental health. While resilience lessons, peer mentoring, awareness campaigns and early intervention are valuable initiatives; tackling mental health issues can also be enabled by creativity. In a ten-year national study by Shirley Brice Heath of Stanford University, it was discovered that young people (in the US) who are involved in highly effective nonschool arts-based community programmes in under-resourced communities, in comparison with a national sample of students were:
Four times more likely to win an academic award, such as being on the honour roll. Eight times more likely to receive a community service award. Three times more likely to win a school attendance award. Four times more likely to participate in a math or science fair. Likely to score higher on their SAT college admission test scores if they have been involved for more than four years of after-school arts study.
It is important to acknowledge that while arts and creative programmes are often the first to be considered non-essential during budget cuts; these are important mechanisms for youth to express themselves. Young people need a place for dialogue, self-expression, playfulness and exploration. Researchers have documented a rise in mental health problems—such as anxiety and depression—among young people that has paralleled a decline in children’s opportunities to play as some specified curricula and performance-focused education systems may impact access to these creative activities.
pg. 7
Play has a role in fostering crucial socialemotional and cognitive skills and cultivating creativity and imagination in the early childhood years.
4. Expand your musical repertoire! At home and in the car, play some new music so that you and the children can hear something out of your usual fare.
Creative outlets enable young people to understand the world around them and thrive despite adversity. It is through creative programmes that young people can make friends and collaborate outside the constraints of a curriculum.
5. While the music is playing at home, dance together. Teach your children traditional dances you know or improvise with them. Body movement is fun and good exercise.
Children learn to make choices and solve problems; every step of a creative process involves making a decision— what color to use, how to make a line, what size to make something. With every choice the object becomes more and more their own. Everyone has an imagination but art takes it a step further. Through art, youth create something that, until that point, was only imagined. Thus, they create visual manifestations of abstract ideas. Children who may be having difficulties in other parts of the school curriculum may find an expressive outlet through art. It’s a way to uncover talent that may not be seen otherwise. Art is also a means of communicating ideas, feelings, and solutions in a way other than verbally or written. Families can create a harmonious balance in their children’s lives when they make provisions for the arts. For young children you can incorporate some of the below ideas into your home life: 1. When you read to your children, be dramatic. Act out stories with props and costumes or create a new story together.
6. Sing together. Teach the kids your favourite songs. Learn some of their favourites and play them in your home or while you’re in car together. 7. Create a scrapbook together. Put photos, memorabilia, drawings, and captions together creatively. 8. Look for arts programmes after school, on weekends, and during vacations. Summer camps based on the arts are a good departure from the typical competitive sports camps. If you have a teenager who enjoys the creative arts, call a local art studio, the national gallery or cultural-arts not-forprofits to see what programming they offer and if discounted prices are available for youth to access them more readily. The most important support you can offer is to be interested in your child’s creative outlet. Be there to appreciate and encourage during every step of the creative process. Encourage your child to take care of their mental health by incorporating a creative activity that allows them to express themselves and to explore the world around them.
2. Save old clothes as kids’ costumes. They can use these for dress-up fun on a rainy day or weekends. Watch them enact a scene from their favourite story or a play. 3. Put together an “art studio” in your home. Stock it with a variety of materials: crayons, markers, finger paints, scissors, pastels, watercolors, brushes, glues and papers.
Sources: www.childdevelopmentinfo.com, www.time.com, www.theconversation.com.
Around The Country
SPRING WORD SEARCH Find the words listed below and cross them off!
PUTTING ETHICS INTO PRACTICE UCCI students participated in the inaugural Ethics Challenge coordinated by the CFA Society of the Cayman Islands. A total of seven teams (three members each) were tasked with evaluating a case study with ethical dilemmas. Students applied the CFA Institute’s Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct to suggest best practice solutions and promote professionalism amongst leaders. Winners Charles Lewinson Jr., Tiffany Gilbert, and Aliyah Knox took home the coveted trophy!
UWC SCHOLARS NAMED! Congratulations to Aleigha General (l) and Ayanna Davis-Eden (r) pictured with Aubrey Bodden, Chairperson of United World College (UWC) Cayman Islands. Aleigha (16) will attend Li Po Chun UWC in Hong Kong and Ayanna (15), will attend UWC Thailand.
TEEN POETRY Teens joined the New Self-Help Community Foundation to share original poetry at auditions to compete in the finals on Wednesday May 8th. Pictured right is Alia Smith of Cayman International School. Alia is currently the top scorer and will be progressing to the finals in May along with other youth poets.
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YSU STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS
interested in writing, photography and/or editing who would like to contribute to the production of The Advocate should contact us. Send us an email at TheAdvocate@gov.ky or call us at 943-1127.
James Myles - Acting Head of Youth Services Camille Angel - Programmes Officer Victor Crumbley - Youth Empowerment Officer Jada Dixon - Intern
YOUTH SERVICES UNIT James M .Bodden Civic Centre Bodden Town, Grand Cayman
This publication is produced by the Youth Services Unit for young people, parents and youth workers. The Advocate serves as a tool for persons to read about the positive things that are taking place within the Cayman Islands. If you are interested in receiving this publication via email, let us know at TheAdvocate@gov.ky