Pastor B Culture, Parent Cue

Five Ways Gaming Is Changing Our World

Five Ways Gaming Is Changing Our World

Today we hear from Andrew McPeak again. Andrew is a writer, curriculum designer, and speaker who has served with a number of non-profit organizations (and has spoken to thousands of Millennials) over the last 5 years and now serves on our team at Growing Leaders. Today, Andrew offers his insights on how gaming has changed our world and how adults can respond. We think you will love his insight. You’ll be hearing from him on blogs and in our resources from time to time. Enjoy.

Every young person goes through a proving moment in life; it’s that opportunity when they make their first “adult” decision. I call them “adult decisions” because they come when you realize that you can make whatever choice you want, and you will be the only one ultimately responsible for the consequences of your decision. Sometimes it’s a defining moment. I remember my first decision of this kind clear as day. It wasn’t picking what college I was going to attend, breaking up with a girlfriend, or even some part of learning to live on my own. My moment was the day I decided to sell my Xbox 360 the summer after I graduated from high school, instead of taking it with me to college.

I had plenty of friends that took their gaming consules, but I knew that, with my slightly addictive personality, I wouldn’t be able to handle it. That summer, I noticed that I had played a new game (just ONE game) for over 70 hours in my free time. I poured hours upon hours into that game and at the end, when I realized how much I had given to this artificial world, I asked myself, “What was it all for?” I didn’t have a good answer to that question, and it’s left me fascinated with the gaming industry ever since. As a writer now, I spend more time watching the industry, looking at those who have been unable to (or even consciously decided not to) make the same decision that I did. Overtime, gaming culture has continued to grow, somehow under the radar of most thinkers, leaders, and authors over 30, and that’s why we’re talking about it here.

Five Ways Gaming is Changing our World

gaming

Somehow without us really noticing it, gaming has become HUGE. A couple years ago, for the League of Legends final (currently the world’s most popular video game) in South Korea, more people tuned in around the world to watch than did the NBA finals of the same year. In 2014, upon the release of the highly anticipated console game “Destiny”, developers sold a rumored 10-12 million copies of the game within the first 24 hours of it’s release, making the game’s creators more than $500 million literally overnight. This made “Destiny” the largest release of any form of media ever, more than doubling any releases from the music and movie industries the same year. But while musicians and movie stars often make the front covers of our magazines, the celebrities of the gaming industry continue to make their millions under the radar… at least in America.

So how is this hidden behemoth changing the world around us? Let me give you a few insights:

  • Everyone is Playing

97% of teens play video games every single week and 50% of teens 12-17 admit to playing games “yesterday”. Not only that, but 38% of all teen boys share their gaming handle when first meeting someone they want to be friends with, a Pew survey found. Gaming is on the periphery of culture now, but its influence will take center stage in the next decade.

  • Growing Female Participation in Games

Games are played mostly by males, but in the youngest demographics, females are gaming more and more often. There are also an increasing number of games that are made specifically for female consumers.

  • Your Kids Could Literally Make a Career out of Gaming

Apart from just the development of games, gaming has generated a number of lucrative ‘sub-industries,’ which include Conferences, Cosplay, Game-casting, Team Merchandizing, “YouTube-ing”, and more. The most culturally significant impact of all of this? You can literally make a career out of gaming, even if you don’t play! At Growing Leaders, we know recent graduates who have gotten a tech degree and immediately moved to Silicon Valley to create games. And they make great money too!

  • Mobile Gaming is the Wave of the Future

While console and computer games are huge, the largest and most profitable form of gaming is mobile, a type of gaming played by almost every demographic in the western world. Whether Tetris or Candy Crush, almost everyone (grandparents included) is helping give rise to the growth of the mobile gaming industry.

  • New Celebrities

Gaming has created a new group of celebrities that your kids probably already know. Some of them are players, others are YouTube creators, and still others are marketers, riding the wave of gaming popularity. It’s probable that, in the near future, these gamers will be on the covers of magazines that once only held professional athletes.

The Games We’re Playing

If you think that gaming in America has reached a troubling level then you may be starting to ask the question, where is this gaming shift taking us? There is an answer to this question for us in the robust gaming culture of South Korea. In South Korea, gaming celebrities are as popular as sports stars and young men and women are starting to show signs of gaming addiction. While the U.S. has yet to recognize gaming as a possible subject of clinical addiction, South Korea has gone so far as to create laws banning underage gamers from playing past midnight, and building health facilities specifically dedicated to helping to resolve internet addiction. If you have the chance to view about five minutes of this YouTube documentary it will give you some fascinating insights into the problems that could be in our future.

On top of that documentary, here are other suggestions on how to remain familiar with the changes coming to our world through the gaming industry:

  1. Talk to your kids or students about which games they are playing and review those online.
  2. Check out what’s happening on sites that show live gaming like twitch.com or gaming.youtube.com.
  3. Read this article from the Guardian about 16 gaming trends. Its’ fascinating!

When it comes to gaming, there is a lot to be fascinated about, if you’re into that sort of thing. Sadly, there is a lot to be worried about as well. Studies show that heavy gaming can slow the development of morality within young men. Gaming is also changing the norm of social interactions, especially among young men as most of their friendships are maintained by gaming together as opposed to physical interactions. And perhaps most concerningly, as the number of heavy gamers increases, there is a growing trend towards a cultural acceptance of wasting large amounts of time consuming media via gaming or binge-watching television. These changes are a part of a culture shift that we must be watching carefully. If we don’t we are, ironically, playing games with our future.

 

Pastor B Fall, Parent Cue, Students

For King and Country – Baby Boy

 

Soaring melodies, driving rhythms, theatrical instrumentation and personal themes are the heartbeat of for KING & COUNTRY’s sophomore album, RUN WILD. LIVE FREE. LOVE STRONG.

The duo, comprised of Australian brothers Joel and Luke, has accomplished several notable feats on their new record. Perhaps the most remarkable is that the award-winning rock/pop duo has achieved the unexpected.
Not only have they ventured into new musical territories with some of the highlights being a collaboration with hip-hop artist Andy Mineo, their continued creative partnership with artist/producer Aqualung and their discovery of new soundscapes with producer Tedd T. (MuteMath) as well as Seth Mosely, but for KING & COUNTRY also managed to surpass the bar that the brothers had set for themselves with their debut album. They raised expectations tremendously with the release of 2012’s Crave and a win for New Artist of the Year at the 2013 GMA Dove Awards, where they received six nominations. Billboard also named them as one of the New Artists to Watch for 2012 and American Songwriter called them “Australia’s answer to Coldplay.”

Check Out More on the Interlinc Web Page

Pastor B Culture, Fall, Oakwood, Parent Cue

Generation Z… The Homelander Generation

Generation Z represents the batch of students born after 2001.  This means YOUR MIDDLE SCHOOLER!

Find out what research is saying about who they are… as well as how we can lead them.

  1. Instant Access – Google Reflex =look things up immediately and instantly
  2. New Normal – Growing Up in Post 911 age with terrorism as common place, along with the current racial unrest, economic low and uncertainty in their world.
  3. On Demand – Netflix, Hulu, Watch and entertain NOW, instead of waiting later
  4. Multicultural – 50% increase in mixed ethnic races

Check out More Tim Elmore Videos Here

Pastor B Culture, Fall, Oakwood, Parent Cue, Students

the 62 Worst and Weirdest Nativities (the 2015 revised list!) | whyismarko

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MARKO is a Youth Ministry GURU and also specialist in finding the WORST or WEIRDEST NATIVITIES!

Yup, I’ve seen the Coke can nativity. And I’ve seen the one with the pack of Camel cigs. And the live dogs posed as a nativity. And, yeah, the many glorious combinations of Barbies and Godzillas and just about everything else. But they’re not on my list of the XX Worst and Weirdest Nativities. That’s…

Source: the 62 Worst and Weirdest Nativities (the 2015 revised list!) | whyismarko

Pastor B Oakwood, Parent Cue, Students, Winter

Unexpected: Middle School Christmas Series

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Unexpected: Series Overview
When it comes to Christmas, there is a lot to look forward to. Candy canes, tinsel, twinkling lights, and—oh, right. The gifts. If you’re like most people, you’ve probably spent some time thinking about the gifts you’re hoping to receive this Christmas. Maybe you’ve even made a list so your friends and family know exactly what to give you. But while it’s fun to unwrap a gift you’ve been waiting and hoping for, have you ever been given a gift that took you entirely by surprise? A gift you didn’t even know you wanted until you opened it? A gift that was completely unexpected? Unexpected gifts have been at the heart of the Christmas story for more than two thousand years, beginning with the very first Christmas. And believe it or not, it was God who began the tradition. For the next few weeks, we’ll talk about three times God surprised the world with a gift that was entirely unexpected. And, as we do, we might just discover how much those gifts continue to matter today.

SESSION 1: SILENT TREATMENT (November 29)

BOTTOM LINE: God is with you.

SCRIPTURE:  “… And Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.” MATTHEW 1:1-16 (NIV)

“But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son.” GALATIANS 4:4 (NIV)

 

SESSION 2: BY MY SIDE (December 6)

BOTTOM LINE: Jesus gets you.

SCRIPTURE:  “…She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.’ All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel.’” MATTHEW 1:20-23 (NLT)

“[He] understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do.” HEBREWS 4:15 (NLT)

 

SESSION 3: POWER SOURCE (December 13)

BOTTOM LINE: The Holy Spirit helps you.

SCRIPTURE:  “‘Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.’” MATTHEW 28:18-20 (NIV)

“‘And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth.’” JOHN 14:15-17A (NIV)

Pastor B Culture, Parent Cue

The Science Behind Effective Coaching

Check out http://growingleaders.com/blog/category/athletics/ for more articles by Dr. Time Elmore

I recently finished watching video coverage of the last batch of inductees into the Baseball Hall of Fame. It prompted me to watch even more footage from the last three years of inductees. I focused my attention on the managers who were given an honor representing the pinnacle of their career. The last three managers inducted into the HOF used what I would call a “new school” style of coaches, rather than “old school.” They embraced a different approach to connecting with athletes. Whether conscious of it or not, they found ways to coach and connect with players from Generation X and the Millennial Generation in another manner than, say, Billy Martin or Leo Durocher did back in the day.

After studying effective coaches, in both professional and NCAA levels, I have come to some intriguing conclusions, at least for me. While “old school” coaching was the norm decades ago, replete with yelling, anger, distant personalities and the focus on improving weaknesses, today’s “new school” coaches motivate young athletes using new methods. What “old school” coaches used to call a “soft” approach is working far better these days. Whether or not we like it, it’s actually getting results.

And now, we can peer into the science behind why this is.

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photo credit: 100706-218-4×6 via photopin (license)

The Science Behind the Switch From Old School to New School

Over the past few decades, neuroscience has leaped forward thanks to improvements in medical imaging technology. We’re now able to see more definitively how the human brain responds to stimuli.

I found an article by Marshall Moore which was posted in a Berkeley publication very intriguing:

“In a study, published in Social Neuroscience, researchers collected data from undergraduates at Case Western Reserve University. After finishing an initial questionnaire measuring their emotional tendencies, students had two interviews within five days. One of the interviews was a positive-based coaching session in which the ‘positive’ interviewer would ask questions such as, ‘If everything worked out ideally in your life, what would you be doing in 10 years?’

“The second, ‘negative’ interviewer took on a more traditional coaching style, with questions designed to have the students assess their performance in terms of ideal standards: ‘What challenges have you encountered or do you expect to encounter in your experience here? How are you doing with your courses? Are you doing all your homework and readings?’

“After both interviews had been completed, 20 of the students went into a functional MRI machine to measure their brain activity as they endured a third interview (conducted by video) with the same ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ interviewers, appearing separately. As the researchers predicted, students indicated that the positive interviewer inspired them and fostered feelings of hope far more effectively than the negative interviewer.”

The areas of the brain activated by these two approaches were most telling. Moore continues, “During the encouraging interactions with the positive interviewer, students showed patterns of brain activity that prior research associated with global processing (the ability to see the big picture before seeing small details), visual processing (the ability to see or imagine the future), feelings of empathy and emotional safety (fostering transparency and trust), and motivation (the predisposition to pursue big goals, instead of playing it safe).”

Not surprising, I believe the findings in this study can help coaches lead today’s athletes. Below, I offer you my interpretation of four tools that “new school” coaches utilize:

  1. Strength-based Coaching – Enabling a player to focus on developing their strengths and envision performing well when in his or her “strength zone” should take priority before tweaking a weak area. Moore stated in his article “Brain scans explored the effects of different coaching styles. Based on what’s happening in the brain, this more positive approach helps people visualize a better future for themselves—and provide the social-emotional tools to help them realize their vision.”
  1. Visual-based Coaching – Humans are visual learners. Our brains think in pictures. There are the regions that kick into gear when we imagine a future event or when someone provides imagery to guide our understanding. Based on research from 3M, visuals in a classroom accelerate learning by 400%. Further, they tell us images increase engagement as the eye processes visual information 60,000 times faster than verbal. We’ve all said it: a picture’s worth a thousand words. 65% of American’s are visual learners, and I believe its even more among the emerging generation. Socrates told us 4,000 years ago, “The soul does not think without a picture.”
  1. Trust-based Coaching – This means our style communicates we believe the best about our players. We give them the benefit of the doubt, until they forfeit that right. (And even then, we err on the side of trust). Trust-based coaches have very few rules, but lots of equations. Instead of a long list of rules, you merely state that this kind of behavior results in this benefit, or that kind of behavior results in this consequence. It enables the coach to lead in a quiet yet authoritative manner. For instance, when giving hard feedback, this coach might say: “I’m giving you these comments because I know you’re capable of achieving them. I believe in you and your potential and can see you playing a key role on this team.”
  1. Relationship-based Coaching – This means our style connects with each player relationally, based on their personality and strength. You lead by cultivating personal power, not using positional power. You realize your position gives you authority, but your relationships earn you influence and trust. Players go the “extra mile” and give you more than they would by merely fulfilling a job description. They follow you out of “devotion” not “duty,” and it’s because their coach has initiated a relationship with them. For instance, this coach may ask to spend extra time with an athlete who’s ethnically diverse and say, “Hey, I know we come from different backgrounds—so I’d like to get to know you better and see how much we have in common.”

I’m looking forward to seeing more research in this area. In the meantime, I think we can put what we’ve learned from this study into practice by being open to new styles of coaching and communication.

I recently spoke to a baseball player who used to play for the Kansas City Royals. Although he’d been released, he was writing a thank you note to their management. When I asked him why, he smiled and said, “They treated me like family. I’d do anything for Dayton Moore.”

That’s what “new school” coaches tend to get from athletes.

– See more at: http://growingleaders.com/blog/the-science-behind-effective-coaching/?utm_source=Master+List+%28Monthly%2C+Weekly%2C+Daily%2C+Events+%26+Offers%29&utm_campaign=8dd60c4b50-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b8af65516c-8dd60c4b50-304459745#sthash.BNsFHNnu.dpuf

Pastor B Culture, Parent Cue

We are at war: 2 lessons from the Paris massacre

We are at war: 2 lessons from the Paris massacre

https://vimeo.com/54623402
Category: Cultural Commentary
Published: Monday, 16 November 2015 05:00
Written by Jim Denison

“Friday’s Paris strike is not just another in a growing cavalcade of terrorist assaults; instead it signals a tactical change in Islamic terrorist strategies—one that militants have been moving towards for years.” Newsweek‘s Kurt Eichenwald is right.

In 2008, coordinated terror attacks in Mumbai killed more than 175 people. They showed that a small number of suicidal jihadists with sufficient ammunition and preparation could devastate a confined urban area. Militants used the same strategy five years later in Nairobi, Kenya, killing sixty-seven people at a shopping mall.

Last month, a double suicide bombing at a peace rally in the Turkish capital killed more than 100 people. The day before the Paris massacre, a double suicide attack on a crowded urban area in Beirut, Lebanon killed more than forty. Authorities believe a jihadist arrested last week may have been planning a similar attack in Istanbul. Now we have seen the effectiveness of this barbaric strategy in Paris.

What do France, Turkey, and Lebanon have in common? They have recently escalated attacks on Islamic State forces in Syria. Now the jihadists are striking back. In their view, we are at war with Islam. Since the Qur’an requires Muslims to defend Islam (Sura 2:190-192), these militants believe they are obligated to attack us. And since the West is composed of democracies, where citizens elect their leaders and support their military financially, ISIS believes we are all complicit in this war. (For more, see my The Islamic State: What You Need to Know.)

So we can expect more attacks like the massacre in Paris. Any urban center could be the terrorists’ next target. There is no end in sight to what The Wall Street Journal calls “the Long War Against Terrorism.”

What should we learn from the Paris tragedy? How should we respond?

First, the Paris massacre shows that no one is promised tomorrow, that we must “make the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:16, NIV). What happened in France could happen anywhere.

So surrender this day to the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18), choosing to live and serve in God’s power for God’s glory. Pray for your non-Christian friends and share Christ with them, because every soul deserves to hear the gospel before it’s too late. Live each day as if you would meet Jesus today, because one day you’ll be right.

Second, the spread of jihadist violence shows that Satan is threatened by the advance of the gospel. Radical Islam has arisen at a time when more Muslims have come to Christ than ever before in Islamic history. And Paris has been attacked at a time when the church in France is experiencing a remarkable resurgence. Friends of mine who work with European Christian movements say a genuine revival is at work in this secular nation.

So expect the enemy of God to attack the children of God, and refuse to be afraid. Jesus warned us, “In the world you will have tribulation.” Then he called us to “take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Know that “he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). And your joyful courage will be your witness to a frightened world.

Hours after the attacks in France, Parisians came outside bearing signs that proclaimed, “We are not afraid.” Let us join them.

http://www.denisonforum.org/cultural-commentary/2077-we-are-at-war-2-lessons-from-the-paris-massacre

Pastor B Fall, Oakwood, Parent Cue, Students

Middle School – Out Of This World Series

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OUT OF THIS WORLD: Series Overview
Have you ever been part of two very different groups? Maybe you go to a different school or you’re in different classes than the people in your neighborhood. So you’re a part of both groups. Or maybe you play on a different sports team than all of your friends. So after practice hang out with the team but on the weekends, you hang out with completely different people. When that happens, we feel like we’re from one world and living in another. We’re torn. And if we’re honest, sometimes going to church or being a Christian can make us feel that way too. We go to church and what we hear makes sense. We see people living out their faith and it looks perfectly normal, maybe even fun. But what looks good on Sunday doesn’t always feel comfortable on Monday. Back in the everyday world, living as followers of Jesus can make us feel like we’re from another planet. But does it have to be that way? And what does it look like to live for God in a culture that doesn’t necessarily think the same way? Believe it or not, these aren’t 21st century questions. Long ago, the Apostle Paul wrote a letter to the church at Philippi as they figured out how to navigate their faith and culture at the same time. As we spend the next few weeks talking about what he said, we may find that Paul’s advice to the Philippians is just as relevant for us as we learn to manage the tension and live in a way that is out of this world.

November 1 – BOTTOM LINE
Out of this world thinking is about here and there.

SCRIPTURE
“They think only about this life here on earth. But we are citizens of heaven, where the
Lord Jesus Christ lives.”PHILIPPIANS 3:19-20 (NLT)
“Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven, conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of
the Good News about Christ.” PHILIPPIANS 1:27 (NLT)

November 8 – BOTTOM LINE
Out of this world thinking puts others first.

SCRIPTURE
““Don’t be selfish, don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others too.” PHILIPPIANS 2:3-4 (NLT)
““You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had…” PHILIPPIANS 2:5-11 (NLT)

November 15 – BOTTOM LINE
Out of this world thinking changes what we do

SCRIPTURE
“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing: Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”
PHILIPPIANS 4:8 (NLT)

November 22 – BOTTOM LINE
Out of this world thinking impacts others for eternity

SCRIPTURE
20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.
PHILIPPIANS 3:20-21 (ESV)

Pastor B Fall, Parent Cue

Who is Generation Z? by Tim Elmore

Parents,

Dr. Tim Elmore is a leading authority on how to understand the next generation and prepare tomorrow’s leaders today. He is a best-selling author, international speaker, and president of Growing Leaders, a nonprofit that helps develop emerging leaders under the philosophy that each child is born with leadership qualities. I had the privilege to hear from him and wanted to connect you with his insights as well.

  Here is a taste of what his leadership blog produces about the next generation:

What do you make of a person who describes his or her life this way:

  • I spend the equivalent of a full-time job on three to five screens each day.
  • I made my best friends through Tumblr and Instagram.
  • I binge watch YouTube and Netflix.
  • I am not totally sure about my sexual identity.
  • I don’t identify with an ethnic race, but with the human race.
  • I don’t remember a world before social media.

photo credit: The cousins play so well together via photopin (license)

 

This new breed of people makes up a population called “Generation Z.” They’re the ones following Millennials (aka Generation Y) who have dominated our culture over the last decade. They now make up the youngest and largest percentage of the workforce, and Generation Z trails right behind them. They’re the new kids on the block, the teenagers. They’ve grown up in a post-9/11 culture, filled with wars, terrorism, economic recession, racial unrest, sexual-identity expansion, and lots of uncertainty. They’re extremely post-modern. If Millennials are slackers, these new kids are hackers. They know life is hard, and they plan to make their own way. Here’s a glimpse of the contrast between Gen Y and Gen Z:

Generation Y Generation Z
Alias: Millennials or Digitals Alias: Hackers or Homelanders
Born: 1983 – 2000 Born: 2001- 2018
Grew up in a time of expansion Grew up in a time of recession
Norm for teen connection: texting Norm for teen connection: social media
First tech gadget: iPod First tech gadget: iPhone
Naive and nurtured Savvy and cynical
Facebook/Instagram Snapchat/Whispr
Goal with social media: garner shares Goal with social media: disappear
Music: Lady Gaga / Bruno Mars Music: Taylor Swift / Lorde
Style: Narcissistic, I am awesome Style: Gritty, I will survive
Perspective: Optimism Perspective: Pragmatism
Shaping events: Fall of Iron Curtain; Columbine; Dot.com era; iPod Shaping events: 9/11 terrorist attacks; economic recession; iPhone

I spoke to Hannah, a fifteen-year-old who’s in her sophomore year of high school. She is a prototype of this new mindset—and gladly embraces her “people.”

She told me, “I gave up my older brother’s optimism a long time ago. I am a realist. I am a pragmatist.” (Pretty elaborate words for a fifteen-year old, don’t you think?) “My brother did a lot of stupid things and posted a bunch of them on Facebook. Now, he can’t get a job. I guess you could say I learned from him. I mean, I don’t drink at parties because… you know… someone might post their pics of me and I’d get in trouble. Maybe lose my chance to get the job I want.”

Such is the savvy spirit of Generation Z. A report by marketing firm Sparks and Honey says, “Their cohort places heavy emphasis on being ‘mature and in control.’”

They’re hackers, figuring out what to do by watching the mistakes of others. They buckle up in the car more often than Millennials did; they don’t drink or smoke as much. And they know life is tough.

Insights to Know How to Lead Them Well

The following are thoughts that could spark conversation with your colleagues about how to lead these kids from Generation Z well:

  1. While Millennials tended to look more like Baby Boomers as teens, Generation Z tends to look more like Generation X. Not ironically, these generations are their parents. We must balance the positive and negative impact of mom and dad.
  1. While Millennials want to “stay forever young,” Generation Z wants to be mature and figure out how to succeed in life. We must capitalize on this interest to grow up and be wise. Share insights on how to save and make money, as well as plan for the future.
  1. While Millennials are optimistic, Generation Z can border on pessimistic at times. Certainly, more of them are pragmatic and realistic. We will need to offer hope and vision to a generation who grew up watching unemployment and global conflict.
  1. While Millennials were into “today” and “me,” Generation Z has learned a little about life from Millennials’ shortsidedness and are thinking about the future. We must leverage this perspective and help them think long-term and big-picture.

What do you think? Have you witnessed any of these trends in Generation Z?

Click here for the Tim Elmore Blog

Pastor B Fall, Oakwood, Parent Cue

Parent Cue: Wired

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Your student is changing fast. Chances are this isn’t a surprise. Their classes are changing. Their friends are changing. Their bodies are definitely changing. But one change you may not see as quickly are the changes that are happening in your student’s brain. As our students approach puberty, their brains are being physically rewired to function less like a child and more like an adult. New connections are forming. Old ones are collapsing. Parts of the brain are being reorganized. And with all of that activity, it’s no surprise that they may experience occasional “outages” or glitches in their judgment, their memory, and their emotional control. That means…
your straight-A scholar may suddenly forget their homework.
your sweet, quiet child may now have teenage emotional outbursts.
your reasonable, responsible student may have a few mindboggling lapses in judgment.
When that happens, our first reaction may be to panic and wonder, What went wrong here? But, most of the time, nothing is really wrong. Our students’ brains are simply under construction.
In their book, Teen Stages, authors Ken and Elizabeth Mellor describe this as a “cognitive rebirth” beginning around age 13 and continues into young adulthood. That means during middle school and high school, your student may show some behaviors reminding you a lot of their toddler and early elementary years. And…it’s perfectly normal.
While no two children are the same, and development is surely going to look different and take different amounts of time for each one, it may be helpful to look at the stages Mellor outlines to see where your student fits and what may be coming next.
As you check out the table below, find which descriptions best match your student and read to see what maybe coming in the next year. No matter what phase of rewiring your student is in, it’s important to remember that it’s only a phase. Enjoy them exactly as they are today and know that you play a key role, even during the later stages, in guiding them toward what’s next.

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ParentCue_Wired_XP3MS-2

TRY THIS

Sometimes the scariest thing about our students’ wiring is that it comes from us. It’s tempting to focus all our attention on the traits in our students that make us cringe—especially when we know they learned it from us. But those aren’t the only traits we’ve passed down. If you think about it, there are also some pretty great things in your students’ wiring that came from you.
This week, take notice of one positive trait in your student that they inherited from you. (This can be something you can do as a step parent, adoptive parent or foster parent as well. Genetics may be responsible for some traits, but observation and learned behavior play an important role, too!)
Maybe you’re both good at math. Maybe your son is starting to show some of your great conversational skills. Or maybe your daughter is wired to be competitive, just like you. No matter what it is, pay attention to the positive traits passed on to your student. Then, copy the section below. Fill it out and leave it somewhere for your student this week.

DEAR
ONE THING I’VE NOTICED ABOUT YOU LATELY IS THAT YOU’RE…

 

THAT’S A GREAT TRAIT TO HAVE AND IT’S ONE THAT HAS HELPED ME OVER AND OVER. I’M PROUD OF THE PERSON YOU’RE BECOMING.
LOVE,