Welcome to the September edition of Family Matters. This month, we have informative articles on teens and technology and preparing a budget for the Holiday season. You'll also find information on upcoming Child & Youth activities, patriotic events, and our first-ever Strong Bonds Mega Event. Take time to see what's inside, and please share with others.
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SEPTEMBER 2012 FAMILY MATTERS 1 Family Matters NCNG Family Programs ~ September 2012—Volume 4, Issue 9 Holiday Spending & Preparing Ahead Volunteer Webinars Learn the fundamentals of Joint Services Support (JSS) this September Kids on Guard “Boots On Boots Off” Explore the Wonders of Science Bonded By Change, Stronger Together Excing New Strong Bonds Mega Event Across the State Become a Fan “North Carolina National Guard Family Programs” Texting Effects on Writing and Communication NCNG Family Programs ~ September 2012—Volume 4, Issue 9 Family Matters
Transcript
SEPTEMBER 2012 FAMILY MATTERS 1
Family Matters NCNG Family Programs ~ September 2012—Volume 4, Issue 9
Holiday Spending & Preparing Ahead
Volunteer Webinars Learn the fundamentals of Joint Services
Support (JSS) this September
Kids on Guard “Boots On Boots Off”
Explore the Wonders of Science
Bonded By Change, Stronger Together Exciting New Strong Bonds Mega
4 Director’s Column 6 Holiday=$ 9 IDKWTM? LOL 10 KOG—Cape Fear Museum Trip 12 Upcoming Events 14 FRG—JSS Webinars 15 Child and Youth Programs 16 American Airlines Military Movie Night 17 Family Assistance Centers 18 Strong Bonds—Event Registration 19 2012 Patriot Day—Jacksonville, NC
@ncngFamily
Kimberly Lewczyk and spouse, Sgt. First Class David Lewczyk, 882nd ENG CO,
exchange goodbyes on June 22, 2012, before he departed Charlotte Douglas
International Airport for a deployment to Kuwait, while the couple’s middle
son nestled in-between them. Mrs. Kimberly Lewczyk says, “Saying goodbye
is never an easy task…. We have three sons, but our middle child, Isaiah (age
6), was having a difficult time at the airport. I think this picture shows of the
great sacrifice that even our children have to endure.”
Photo taken by Lori Mathis, Sister of Kimberly Lewczyk
Need to talk? Call us today.
Voluntary, Confidential,
Free, and Professionally Staffed
1-800-621-4136 Option 1
SEPTEMBER 2012 FAMILY MATTERS 3
Pre-Registration is required for those interested in attending. The day of the event sign-in will begin at 8:30am for all age groups. First For-mation will begin promptly at 9:00am. Lunch will be provided for all (Kiddies & Kids). We ask that you inform us when you RSVP if there are any special dietary needs of attendees you are registering. To ob-tain a registration form and/or further information, please contact:
Carina Surface
1-800-621-4136 Ext. 8820 line 23 919-693-3651 Ext. 23
About Family Matters Family Matters was created to provide Servicemembers and Families the most up-to-
date information and services available. If you would like to contribute to future is-sues, or if you have suggestions and comments, please contact the NCNG Family Pro-grams Marketing and Communications Department personnel, Angelena Dockery or
Kathryn Jarvis, at [email protected]. E-Versions of Family Matters can be downloaded at the NCNG Family Programs webpage at www.nc.ngb.army.mil.
References in this newsletter to any specific commercial products, processes, or ser-vices, or the use of any trade, firm, or corporation name does not constitute en-
dorsement, recommendation, or favoring by NCNG Family Programs.
DIRECTOR’S COLUMN
NON MEDICAL
COUNSELING
SERVICES
Anger
Management
Communication
Relationship
Issues
Productivity at
Work
Conflict
Resolution
Parenting
Decision Making
Skills
John Alleman
Adult & Family
Specialist
919.745.9635
Betty Steelman
Child & Family
Specialist 919.665.9178
MILITARY
FAMILY LIFE
CONSULTANTS
SEPTEMBER 2012 FAMILY MATTERS 5
SEPTEMBER 2012 FAMILY MATTERS 6
Holidays=$ By Mrs. Kathryn Jarvis, NCNG Family Programs
Co-author David Porter, Accredited Financial Counselor Fall is coming and some Families’ finances are still recovering from the hefty cost of getting kids ready for
school. Soon Families will gear up for more spending as Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas approach.
These extra expenses can be stressful during an already taxing season. Now is the time to have a plan for
what money will be going out compared to what amount is coming in.
There are several ways to effectively budget. One way is to break down a budget for each holiday and set
a limit for how to spend on what. For example:
HALLOWEEN $30.00 limit on Costume Create your own costume $15.00 limit on Candy $15.00 limit on decorations
THANKSGIVING $75 limit on Thanksgiving Meal Divide the cost of the meal among
the guest attending $100 expected travel costs
CHRISTMAS Gifts Bake goods/make gifts gift certificates for your time/talent $50 Spouse/Significant other $100 each Child $15.00 Other people up to four
Since the boom of instant messages, Twitter, Facebook and text messages a new language has surfaced and taken over the way teens communicate. Now teens use abbreviations, emotional symbols and incorrect grammar structures in a great amount of their communication. James Billington, Librarian of Congress, noted that electronic communication might be “the slow destruction of the basic unit of human thought, the sentence”
IDKWTM? LOL
In a 2008 PEW Internet and American Life Project
Research Report, “Writing Technology and Teens,” a
group of researchers concluded that 85% of teens in
the age range of 12-17 communicate through e-
messages and 60% don’t consider it a form of writing;
but it is. It is considered an informal style of writing
which is concerning educators as it unintentionally
creeps into school assignments and even college ad-
mission essays. In the US News and World Report
article, “How Slang Affects Students in the Class-
room” by Ryan Lytle, a foreign language teacher with
more than 10 years of teaching, Terry Wood says
there is a decline in writing skills. "They do not capi-
talize words or use punctuation anymore… even in E
-mails to teachers or [on] writing assignments, any
word longer than one syllable is now abbreviated to
one."
Electronic Communication is not all doom and
gloom. Teens write more often than before using e-
communication and most youth realize the im-
portance of the skill. The Pew research report found
that 98% of teens “agree that writing is a least some-
what important for their future success.”
Participants of the focus group said, “…You have to
have good writing skills to get a job.” And “…Writing
well is a part of doing well.” They attributed writing
improvements to teachers who gave harder assign-
ments and used tougher grading standards.
Ways to Help At Home
The National Council of Teachers of English devel-
oped a comprehensive guide for parents to help their
teen expand their writing skills at home. In the guide,
teachers suggest having a notebook where teens can
keep their writing assignments for them to read and
analyze later on, and to encourage teens to write out
plans, problems or activities. Writing is about organiz-
ing thought and ideas; it is a part of thinking.
There are free resources and programs for military
teens. Tutor.com is a free service for Military Families
that can help parents and teens with writing. You or
your teen can upload a writing project or assignment
anytime and qualified professionals help by editing
and providing suggestions to help improve the writing
project.
(continued on page 11)
At Cape Fear Museum
E xplore
The
Wonders of
History and Science
Cape Fear Museum
814 Market Street
Wilmington, NC 28401
Pre-Registration is required for those interested in attending. During
the event lunch will be provided. We ask that you inform us when you
RSVP if there are any special dietary needs of attendees you are registering. To obtain a
registration form and/or further information please RSVP to:
October 13, 2012 from 9:30 a.m.—3:30 p.m. for Ages 5 and Up
Join the Kids on Guard team for a day at North Carolina’s oldest history museum! Located
in historic Wilmington, youth will learn about history, science, and cultures of Lower Cape
Fear through fun and exciting educational exhibits and programs.
Carina Surface 919-693-3651 Ext. 23 [email protected] Pre-registered attendees will need to be at the Museum between 9 a.m—9:30 a.m. for Check-in and Drop-off.
SEPTEMBER 2012 FAMILY MATTERS 11
What’s That Mean???
AFAIK: As Far As I Know
AWHFY: Are We Having Fun Yet?
B4N: Bye For Now
BBFN: Bye Bye For Now
BBL: Be Back Later
BF: Boy Friend
BFN: Bye For Now
BIF: Before I Forget
BION: Believe It or Not
BRB: Be Right Back
BTW: By The Way
BWL: Bursting With Laughter
BYKT: But You Knew That
CU: See You
CUL: See you Later
CWYL: Chat With You Later
DIKU? Do I Know You?
DK: Don’t Know
FOAF: Friend Of A Friend
F2F: Face to Face
FTF: Face To Face
G: Grin or Giggle
G2G: Got to Go
GA: Go Ahead
GAL: Get A Life
GF: Girl Friend
GFN: Gone For Now
GIWIST: Gee, I Wish I’d Said That
GOW: I Get On With It
GTG: Got To Go
GTSY: Great To See You
H&K: Hugs and Kisses
HAK: Hugs And Kisses
IC: I See
IDK: I Don't Know
IDKWTM: I Don’t Know What That
Means?
IIWM: If It Were Me
IJWTK: I Just Want To Know
IKWUM: I Know What You Mean
IRL: In Real Life
ISS: I’m So Sure
ISSYGTI: I’m So Sure You Get The Idea!
ISWYM: I See What You Mean
IYSWIM: If You See What I Mean
JAS: Just A Second
JTLYK: Just To Let You Know
K: Okay
KIT: Keep In Touch
KWIM: Know What I Mean?
KYFC: Keep Your Fingers Crossed
Some abbreviations are not appropriate
for this publication and were not included.
(continued from page 9)
Additionally, North Carolina National Guard Family Programs has
launched the Teen Council. The council is where military youth partici-
pate and support in a myriad of events and activities. As part of this pro-
gram, military teens are often asked to share their experiences or
thoughts, which is later used for publications such as Family Matters.
Alice Dean, North Carolina National Guard Lead Child and Youth Co-
ordinator, says teens develop more than writing skills in the Council.
They learn how to be an advocate for Military Youth in their communi-
ties, how to be a leader and a follower, and gain lasting friendships with
other Military Youth across the state.
This fall the Child and Youth Programs Teen Council invites military
youth ages 13-18 to join us for one of our regional face-to-face Meet-
ings. For more information or to attend contact Alice Dean.
To find the Teachers Association Helping your Teens Write Better
1451st TRANS CO Family Day, Sept. 9, 8am-3pm Boone Armory, 274 Hunting Hills Lane, Boone 105th EN BN Family Day, Sept. 9 9am-2pm, Buncombe County Sports Park, 58 Apex Dr., Can-dler
Free Stuff and More at www.militaryonesource.com
Tip #1: Develop organizational systems that will work for YOU. Not all organizational systems will work for all students. You should choose the ones that will work best with your schedule and needs. Remember, though, that learning to be organized takes time and practice. If a system doesn’t work the first time you try it, try again. You may just need more time to become accustomed to it. Tip #2: Avoid distractions in your study space. If your study space includes a TV and radio, it’s probably not the best place for you to study. Your study space should be used for studying and working only. Choose a space that doesn’t have a lot of tempting distractions available. Tip #3: Keep all of your books, notebooks, binders, and folders for each class together on a shelf. Then when you need to grab your math materials for school, they are all in one place, making it less likely for you to forget something. You can even label the shelves to make it that much easier to find the right materials. Tip #4: Reward yourself! Positive reinforce-ment is an amazing thing. When you have completed tasks, reward yourself in small ways. This can be anything from allowing yourself to take a 10 minute break to treat-ing yourself to a movie. This will help to avoid procrastinating!
Tip #5: Schedule time to complete your as-signments based on anticipated time on task and urgency. Once you know all the assign-ments that you need to complete, determine their deadlines and estimate how long it will take to finish each one. You can then priori-tize your tasks and set a clear schedule for completing them! Tip #6: Use an academic planner to keep track of your assignments, deadlines, and appointments. By having all this information in one place, you’ll know exactly where to look to find out what you need to do. You can even use your planner to prioritize tasks and set a study schedule. See the example provided. Tip #7: Use shorter, less grammatically cor-rect sentences. Since you are the only one who will be reviewing your notes, you need not write grammatically correct sentences. You should do your best to shorten your sentences as much as possible. This will enable you to take notes at a faster speed and will reduce the risk of falling behind. Just make sure that you don’t abbreviate the sen-tences to the point where you are unable to understand what you wrote when you go back to review your notes. Tip #8: Divide your study time into blocks separated by quick breaks. It is most effec-tive to study in 30-45 minute blocks of time, allowing yourself quick 3-5 minute breaks in between study blocks. This approach gives you time to focus while also allowing time to relax and reenergize. Be careful though—you need to make sure that your quick breaks don’t turn into longer procrastination breaks! Tip #9: Create and save study guides and aids. Students often wait until the night be-fore big tests to start creating study aids. Instead, you should create study aids for each quiz and test that you have in a class. Once the quizzes and tests are completed, you should save your study aids. Then when it comes time to study for your big tests and quizzes, you will already have your study aids created, which saves you valuable time that you can dedicate to studying. Tip #10: Learn how to effectively communi-cate with your teachers. Your teachers are there to provide guidance and sup-port. You’ll find that most of your teachers are more than happy to provide additional instruction and extra help. This also shows that you care about your academic perfor-mance. Your teachers want to see that you are interested in the class material and that you are driven to succeed. There’s a good chance that a portion of your grades will be based on your class participation. By effec-tively communicating with your teachers, you can help maintain and increase your class grades.
*All tips are brought to you by Study-Points, Inc.
Back-to-School Study Tips
It’s that time of year…students are heading back to school. To ensure your child starts the school year off right, StudyPoints, Inc. has provided some helpful tips.
September Did you know? September is full of holiday’s remembering and honoring people starting with Labor Day in celebration of working Men and Women, the 9th is Grandparent’s Day (spending time with them is the best present), 21 September is POW/MIA Day, a day of remembrance and hope for a safe and speedy return and this year is the 11th anniversary of the 911 terrorist attacks please spend a moment in silence hon-oring those who gave their lives that day and since protecting our freedoms. Other days to celebrate in September are Good Neighbor Day and National Play Dough Day. Why not plan a special block party or lend a hand to an elderly neighbor or veteran in need. Have fun with your kids celebrating the crea-tion of play Dough with the recipe below. Simple Play Dough 1/4 cup salt 1 cup flour 1/4 cup water Have your child mix the flour and salt in a bowl then add water. Knead and squeeze the dough to make a clay consistency. You may need to add more water. Note: This dough doesn't last as long as the cooked recipes. Kids love to Color: Divide into sections, then knead in food coloring (liquid or paste). Use unsweetened Kool-Aid for color and scent. Add glitter for sparkly play dough. www.tutor.com/military
Kinston Unit Family Contact Center (UFCC) 2875 Dobbs Farm Rd., 28504 Fax: N/A Gabrielle H. O’Flanagan, FAC Specialist [email protected] (252) 208-0255 Ext. 15817 Lenoir State Family Assistance Center (SFAC)1535 Beecher Anderson Road, 28645 Frances Johnson, FAC Specialist [email protected] (828) 757-4365 Ext. 4 line 1 Morganton Unit Family Contact Center (UFCC)
411 Kirksey Drive, 28655, Fax: (828) 437-2068
Nancy Davis, FAC Network Coordinator [email protected], (828) 437-0746 Ext. 2 Raleigh Unit Contact Center (UCCC) 4105 Reedy Creek Rd., 27607 Fax: N/A Earlene Capps, FAC Specialist [email protected], (919) 485-9554 Lisa Faison, FAC Specialist [email protected], (919) 437.3190 Mark Woolbright, FAC Network Coordinator [email protected], (919) 437-3191 Smithfield Unit Family Contact Center (UFCC)406 Hospital Road, 27577 Fax: N/A Abby Millsap, FAC Specialist [email protected] (919) 934-2013 Ext.16 Southern Pines Unit Family Contact Center (UFCC) 500 Morganton Road, PO Box 1317, 28387, Fax: N/A David Butler, FAC Specialist [email protected] (910) 692-8747 Ext. 6 Wilmington Unit Family Contact Center (UFCC) 2412 Infantry Rd., 28405, Fax: N/A Jim Marley, FAC Specialist [email protected] (910-) 251-7100 Ext. 16918 Judy Howard, FAC Network Coordinator [email protected] 910-251-7100 Ext. 16925
FAMILY ASSISTANCE CENTERS | CONTACT US
Asheville Military Family Resource Center (MFRC) 7 Yorkshire St. Suite 101, 28803 Fax: (828) 274-8572 Debra Collington, FAC Network Coordinator, [email protected], (828) 274-7209 Charlotte Unit Family Contact Center (UFCC) 4240 West Blvd., 28208 Nikki Newsome FAC Specialist, Fax: N/A, (704) 344-2352 Ext. 14547 Fayetteville Unit Family Contact Center (UFCC) 3555 Owen Drive, 28306 Amy Wallace, FAC Specialist, [email protected], (910) 321-1001 Ext. 14920 Greensboro State Family Assistance Center (SFAC) 110 Franklin Blvd., 27401, Fax: N/A Katy Jones, FAC Network Coordinator [email protected] (336) 691-7700 Ext. 15649 Sandy Harrison, FAC Specialist [email protected], (336) 691-7700 Ext. 15651 Greenville State Family Assistance Center (SFAC) 1401 N. Memorial Dr., 27834, Fax: N/A Dawn White, FAC Network Coordinator [email protected], (800) 621-4136 Ext. 11150 Kannapolis Military Family Resource Center (MFRC) 6001 Gateway Center Dr., Suite 109, 28081 Fax: (704) 788-0550 Lynn White, FAC Specialist, [email protected], (704) 788-4554
