The "must haves" in child raising.

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In today's world it's all about the must haves in life.  Personally, I hate the must haves.  You'd be surprised on how little we need to survive, but that's just me.  Most of the time the must haves are for personal status symbols.  The guy down the street got a motorbike so I must have a Harley to keep up.  People I went to school with live in a three hundred grand house on the golf course, so I must have one to save face.  It doesn't matter they work at a law firm and I work at the local hardware store.  It even applies to stay at home moms.  If little Johnny's mom has a Lexus in the car pool line, then by all means we have to get an eighty thousand dollar car to pick up Suzy from school.

The problem comes when the keeping up with the Jones attitude is applied to raising kids.  Ask these parents about little Johnny's clothing and they will tell you in great detail about which high fashion mall boutique they buy those in style threads.  Ask them about little Johnny's Biology teacher and they don't know so much about that.  If every other kid has $300 pair of headphones named after a famous rapper then little Johnny will have that asap.  Do we buy little Johnny the latest encyclopedia CD or online subscription?  No, not really in the cool category so maybe later.  This year the hottest going jersey is a Chris Paul limited edition at $178.  Do we buy that and have little Johnny sit home all summer or use that money to send him to camp to learn and interact with other kids?  And my least favorite is the bloody I phone.  No, not just an I phone an I phone 5 is the only thing that will do!

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The question I have is what good does all this do for the kid in the long run?  What is the purpose, desire, and goal of raising a kid?  If you goal is to have a kid that feels like he is cool, then stick to the trendy fashion boutiques.  The supposed purpose is to raise a kid to have a better life.  In today's world, a better life requires one thing, a degree.  The chasm between the people that have an education and the one's that don't is growing exponentially.  Your trendy child is going to make minimum wage and blow his entire paycheck on the newest smart phone.  So that means he's going to live with you for a very, very long time.  But if you invest in your child's education with more than an ambivalent attitude, then he will be driven to get that degree and be able to sustain himself. He will be part of the crowd that demands and gets top pay at any job he seeks out.   Kids take note of everything you do, including your attitude towards their education.  So make sure they see you put as much value into education as you do any other thing.  This world is split right down the middle based on education.  The question is what half of the must have fence are you falling on?

It's so easy to get caught up in the rat race these days.  I hope your children give you the focus it takes to look at the bigger picture.  There future depends on it.

The case for Music

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Most know that I have been very involved with my kid's school band.  I have proudly headed up the band booster program for the last two years.  I have been the pied piper for logistical and financial needs of our band.  I've helped our school gain acceptance into a ground breaking A+ program for Arts.  This program will help our school incorporate art into every aspect of learning.  Their are many forms of art.  Art can be as simple as drawing, as beautiful as dancing, as tasty as food, and an emotional piece of  music.  So I wanted to take the time to show why music is so important in the process of learning.

High School students that study music have been shown in study after study to hold a higher GPA than non music students.  There is a reason for this.  Music is a lesson in math.  Every note is counted against a beat, therefore every note is a fraction.  Kids playing music are constantly doing math and figuring out fractions.  The College Entry Examination Board has reported that students with music training score 44 percent higher on Math than students with no Art training.  Kids are also getting a lesson in languages while learning music.  Many music terms are still in Latin such as crescendo, diminuendo, vivace, and many others.  They are learning root words that give them insight to some of the obscure vocabulary words their English Lit. teacher throws at them. In 1994 a study of 7,500 University students showed the music majors scored the highest reading levels of all majors including English, biology, and chemistry.  Studying music is also a study of  History. Music students learn about musical movements such as Renaissance, Medieval, and Contemporary that gives them a glimpse into the history of our world.  It's also a look at our own American History.  The transformation of Folk into Country and Blues into Rock n Roll is an insight to music kids that others miss out on.  History and Geography scores are usually 40 percent higher for kids studying music.  Playing music (as well as other group artistic activities) helps kids with their social skills.  Learning to be in sync with others in art teaches camaraderie and leads to 71 percent fewer disciplinary problems.

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The case for music in learning is astounding, but it also has benefits for the family.  Playing music brings feelings of joy and euphoria to the brain.  Kids that play music believe their music brings their families closer together.  Kids entering college, having played music, have less problems adjusting.  It has to do with having conquered performance anxiety.  The top academic countries in the world, such as Japan and the Netherlands place high emphasis on music education starting in elementary school.  So please, introduce your kids to music.  Lots of different types of music. Then plant the seed, that they can take lessons and play the music that stimulates their souls. Your kid will thank you in the long run and their test scores will reflect a positive return on your investment.  Now excuse me while I jam out before going to bed.


Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything.
Plato