Wednesday, December 29, 2010

ENVISION.YOUR.LIFE

Teach Kids to Set Goals with Dream Boards

The last week of the year is usually the week people start to really evaluate what they did last year and then, based on this information, set some goals for the next year. But many of us forget to include our children in this amazingly powerful process. 
If you have a child or mentor a child of any age (and gender ) you can encourage them to set a few of their own goals. And if this is your first time setting goals... ummm what are you waiting for? Think about your dreams as a "to do list". We write down everything we need to accomplish in a day, right? We cross them out as we get to them and how do we feel after completing a task? Let me guess... ACCOMPLISHED!!!! Think about a dream board or vision board in the same capacity. A Life's To-Do List... hey, I like the sound of that... Life's To-DO list. 
Here are a few tips for my first time goal setters: 
Ask yourself... What do I want in life? Before you begin the actual building  of the dream board, write this question on the top of a piece of paper and just sit quietly and answer it. Have each child that is creating a board with you do it as well. Kids generally love and hate this part!!! It forces them to really dig deep inside. I don't limit the type of dreams the children come up with because I believe it stifles their imagination and can create a defeatist attitude. We don't want them to feel like what they dream is invalid or unimportant; however, be sure to focus the child on their interests. This will make for a more realistic board..
1)Two-three hours of uninterrupted time to relax and create.
2)Poster board. I use this as the main surface. It is very inexpensive and can be bought at any store that sells arts and crafts (Walmart, Dollar Store, etc.)
A Dream girlie's Dream Board for 2011
3) Lots of old/new magazines filled with great photos, alphabet letters (for ransom note like cut out words), etc. Magazines of your favorite hobbies and interests are great. Libraries often have lots of magazines they are willing to part with if you don't have any.  
 4) Tape, glue, scissors, markers, other art supplies for cutting out and attaching images to your poster board.


The girlies and I keep our dream boards in the one place we frequent... the kitchen! Yes, we keep our dream boards on the fridge for display, as a constant reminder.Now go plan your future...you'll be surprised at how much fun it is. And when things start coming true and showing up for you and your kids, you'll be even more excited about creating one for next year.
Dream Big or don't dream at ALL!!!! 

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