My kids loved painter’s tape.  A few rolls and they were entertained for hours in the
car!

Tear strips off to decorate the window.  Give them a shape to make or
pattern.  Let them use their imagination.

Have them decorate their pants.  Seems simple enough, but they can make
stars, stripes, dots.   So fun to see what fashion they come up with.  And if you
make a stop you won’t know anyone, so let them strut their stuff in their
fancy pants!

Bring paper along and have them tell a story with tape only.  You can see
what their creative minds come up with.  They can use it to make animal
shapes and even create letters with the tape.   Have them read their stories to
you on vacation!

Any other ideas?  What would you have your kids do with 2 rolls of painter’s tape and a two hour car ride?

The study, presented recently at the American Public Health Association‘s annual meeting in Philadelphia, is based on survey results from more than 10,000 middle-school students who anonymously answered questions online.

Here’s the frightening part…

Bullies did much of their intimidating in the classroom, lunchroom and school hallways, the researchers found. Those who were bullied in the classroom felt more threatened and unsafe on campus than other students.

You’d think that being under the supervision of teachers and other adults would at the very least keep your child protected in and around the classroom. But contrary to the idea that most bullying takes place in the schoolyard, kids feel just as intimidated in class. That’s why it’s important to teach your child about standing up for him or herself, and speaking up to you to let you know what’s going on in school. We often hear about these situations when they’ve already been going on for too long.

For some great tips and advice on how to deal with bullying and stop it in its tracks, visit Stop Bullying Now! Here are some warning signs from the site that your child might be getting bullied:

• Comes home with torn, damaged, or missing pieces of clothing, books, or other belongings
• Has unexplained cuts, bruises, and scratches
• Seems afraid of going to school, walking to and from school, riding the school bus, or taking part in organized activities with peers (such as clubs)
• Has lost interest in school work or suddenly begins to do poorly in school
• Appears sad, moody, teary, or depressed when he or she comes home
• Has trouble sleeping or has frequent bad dreams
• Appears anxious and suffers from low self-esteem.

Being a kid is tough, but if we tell our kids that they can come to us about anything at all — even the embarrassing stuff! –  maybe we can help them through it before it gets out of hand. Letting them know that we went through the same sort of teasing at one time or another might help them realize you understand what they’re going through.

Let’s hope it’s an issue we don’t have to deal with. But knowing there are resources out there to help makes me feel slightly better.

Did you ever have to help your child deal with a bully? Tell us about it!

The newest Duggar sibling is due to be born in March 2010.

Over at Real Mom’s Guide, Stephanie Precourt has this to say:

Oh I am itching to ask her when she thinks she’ll know when she’s done having children. There doesn’t seem to be any pausing between her pregnancies.

And, be sure to check out my article at SheKnows that offers advice for this supersized family on their new family dynamic (their first grandchild is due to be born next month and will be about six months older than her aunt or uncle).