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Show B2 The Emery County Review, Tuesday, September 16, 2008 The FAMILY PAGE Horoscope Focus On The Family Crossword Figuratively Speaking FOCUS ON THE FAMILY Schools are in Need of Strong Leadership, More Structure Dr. James Dobson Q What immediate changes would you make in junior and senior high schools to improve the learning environment there? Most importantly, we must make schools safer for students and teachers. Guns, drugs, and adolescence make a deadly cocktail. It is unbelievable what we have permitted to happen on our campuses. No wonder some kids can’t think about their studies. Their lives are in danger! Yes, we can reduce the violence if we’re committed to the task. Armed guards? Maybe. Metal detectors? If necessary. More expulsions? Probably. No-nonsense administrators? Definitely. When schools are blessed by strong leadership, like the legendary Joe Clark at Eastside High School in Paterson, N.J., they make dramatic progress academically. Above all, we must do what is required to pacify the combat zones in junior and senior high schools. We will not solve our pervasive problems, however, with the present generation of secondary school students. Our best hope for the future is to start over with the youngsters just coming into elemen- A tary school. We can rewrite the rules with these wide-eyed kids. Let’s redesign the primary grades to include a greater measure of discipline. I’m not talking merely about more difficult assignments and additional homework. I’m recommending more structure and control in the classroom. As the first official voice of the school, the primary teacher is in a position to construct positive attitudinal foundations on which future educators can build. Conversely, she can fill her young pupils with contempt and disrespect. A child’s teachers during the first six years will largely determine the nature of his attitude toward authority and the educational climate in junior and senior high school (and beyond). I made a little off-handed comment the other day about my daughter’s hair, and she cried for an hour. I didn’t mean to hurt her. I guess she’s just more Q sensitive than I thought. Do I have to walk on eggshells around her? You should always be mindful that your daughter is listening to what you say about her and that she’s “reading” the subtle attitudes that you might like to conceal. Kids are extremely sensitive to their parent’s love and respect. That’s why adults must learn to guard what they say in their presence. Many times I have been consulted by a mother regarding a particular problem her child is having. As Mom describes the details of the boy or girl’s problems, I notice that the subject of all this conversation is standing about a yard behind her. His ears are ten feet tall as he listens to a candid description of all his faults. The child may remember that conversation for a lifetime. Parents often inadvertently convey disrespect to a child whom they genuinely love. For example, Mom may become tense and nervous when little Jimmy speaks to guests or outsiders. She butts in to explain what he is trying to say or laughs nervously when his remarks sound foolish. When someone asks him a direct question, she interrupts and answers for him. She reveals her frustration when she is trying to comb A FIGURATIVELY SPEAKING HOROSCOPE Holiday Mathis It’s funny how certain things don’t need to make rational sense to be true. Under this week’s Pisces full moon, we’d be wise to place our attention on subtle psychic forces instead of the logical dictates of the sun in Virgo. We also celebrate the Harvest moon, when, according to Norse legend, the Goddess Loki promises abundance. It doesn’t matter whether you believe in Loki or not, just know that what you believe in matters. ARIES (March 21-April 19). Your impulses may rage against your sense of reason. If living in a prescribed way is so correct for you, why is it so difficult to get yourself to do it? Falling in line with the dictates of your higher mind takes great discipline. If you falter, keep trying. You will eventually get hold of your habits and create your desired destiny. TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Though many of your plans have come to fruition, life is not looking entirely the way you thought it would at this juncture in the road. There were a few areas you forgot to think about, and this week gives you the chance to do just that. Fill in the details and tweak key points. By Friday the scene has already improved some. GEMINI (May 21-June 21). There are immediate benefits to enlarging your circle. The ways to expand that most interest you, like joining a club or organization, involve money. Strongly consider other means of meeting new people. Bottom line, the world needs to hear about your work and your causes. An intelligent man helps on Wednesday. CANCER (June 22-July 22). Your good financial habits are starting to pay off. It his hair or make him “look nice” for an important event. If he is to spend a weekend away from the family, the mother gives him an extended lecture on how to avoid making a fool of himself. These subtle behaviors are signals to the child that the mother doesn’t trust him with her image and that he must be supervised closely to avoid embarrassing the whole family. He reads disrespect in her manner, though it is framed in genuine love. The first step in building a strong selfconcept in your daughter is to be very careful what you say and do in her presence. Be particularly cautious about the matters of physical attractiveness and intelligence. These are two primary “soft spots” where boys and girls are most vulnerable. (Dr. Dobson is founder and chairman of the board of the nonprofit organization Focus on the Family, Colorado Springs, CO 80995(www.family.org). Questions and answers are excerpted from “Solid Answers” and “Bringing Up Boys,” both published by Tyndale House. Copyright 2008 James Dobson Inc. Distributed by Universal Press Syndicate.) turns out that a lot of the things you used to buy you can either get cheaper or don’t need at all. Thursday features a juicy situation. The one you love loves you right back. This weekend, there’s nothing more valuable than quality time with your people. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Oh, it’s tough running after an elusive goal. Who needs the thrill of the chase? You’ve got the thrill of the “pur”-chase. Yes, there’s something shiny and new that’s caught your eye, and you feel you need a treat. With a little finagling you’ll figure out how to get what you want and be back on track to the big goal next week. THIS WEEK’S BIRTHDAYS: You march on even if you don’t see results. You have faith that your way is the right way, and when it’s not, that you’ll be given a sign. You’ll be rewarded for your belief. By the start of November you’ll have beat the odds, made a large sum of money or been promoted to the position you’ve been wanting for years. January shines a light on family matters, and ailing situations are healed. Someone shares your romantic feelings in March. A stellar vacation is featured in May. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Work you are already proud of can escalate to an even higher level if you are willing to risk your ego. Ask around. Find out how you are being received. You’ll still, in the end, be wise to disregard most of the opinions you gather. But there will be some gems in the group worth taking into consideration. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). You feel you could have gotten more from a situation or handled it better. The planets encourage you John MacIntyre $122.9 billion: Esti- mated annual price tag for the United States caused by Americans’ expanding waistlines, according to Gold’s Gym-sponsored research titled “Fat-O-Nomics.” $10,000: Estimated amount that obese Americans lose annually out of their own pockets (based on the median U.S. salary of $48,451). Source: Gold’s Gym. a Center for Economic and Policy Research report -United States and Australia. 24 weeks: In the United States, total guaranteed (non-transferable) weeks of unpaid leave for two-parent family under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) - 12 for mother; 12 for father. 20: In terms of total guar- anteed time off from work, rank of the U.S. out of 21 high-income countries. by CareerBuilder.com. 56: Percentage of hiring managers who said Generation Y employees (born between 1979 and 1999) are the most difficult to recruit, perhaps because of high expectations about pay, career advancement, flexible schedules and overall work environment. Source: CareerBuilder.com. 84: Percentage of college as the most generous tippers in the nation, according to a Zagat survey. terms of time off from work -- 14 weeks of protected leave, though financial support is paid at 80 percent of a mother’s income. students who say they are educated about money management and understand the consequences of debt, according to a poll for Western Union Payment Services conducted by Javelin Research. 19.6: Average tip -- as a 78 weeks: Paid leave of- 50: Percentage who still say 65: Percentage of hiring 65: Percentage of finance 1: Rank of Philadelphians percentage of the bill -- left by those from the City of Brotherly Love. 19: Countrywide average. Source: Zagat. 2: Number of high-income countries that offer no paid parental leave, according to 21: Rank of Switzerland, in fered to mother or father in Sweden. Source: Council on Contemporary Families. managers who said they are willing to negotiate compensation for top candidates, according to a survey they wish they had a plan to help decrease their debt. Source: Western Union Payment Services. and accounting professionals who think the United States is currently experiencing a recession, according to a poll by Ajilon Finance for the Institute of Management Accountants. 54: Percentage who feel Continued on Page B4. the economic uncertainty is making their jobs more complex. Source: Ajilon Office. 60: Percentage of U.S. workers who own pets, according to a national survey of working adults commissioned by Workplace Options. 72: Percentage of workers who are currently stressed by their job and for whom convenience services can help reduce worker anxiety over the competing daily demands of work and family. Source: Workplace Options. 1, 2, 3: Rank of the United States with 590,200 international students in 2007, Great Britain with 318,400 and Germany with 246,000 on the list of worldwide destinations for foreign students, according to the 2008 edition of the survey “Wissenschaft -- weltoffen,” co-edited by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). Source: German Embassy. Idle Thought “The highest reward for a person’s toil is not what they get for it, but what they become by it.” -- John Ruskin (Copyright 2008 John MacIntyre Inc. Distributed by Universal Press Syndicate.) Puzzle answers on Page B4. |