Welcome back to new day.
Northwest Summer is a fun
most of the time for kids,
but these last few years have
been really, really tough.
My next guest wrote a workbook that
helps your child become stronger,
more resilient, and ultimately happier.
Here's my conversation with author
and educator, Maureen Healy.
I love this little workbook full of
advice and the idea that being happier
means reframing challenges, right?
Like we know adult, it's hard for adults,
sometimes for sure, right?
So as a child it's even harder
because everything seems bigger and
you don't have the life experience.
So I think you use tools you know.
There are certainly some days that
are lemons that are just lemons.
They are what they are.
But if we can make lemonade we we that's
a skill to develop, so oftentimes
there's an activity in the book.
It's like put your challenge in a box
and on each of the four sides you write
what can be the upside of this so you
start to look at being willing to see
something good that will come out of it.
Whether it's learning or growth or even the
practice of patience as a parent, right?
I mean when someone's yelling at you,
how do you love someone you know
it's it's a skill you have to be
patient and loving and kind and
forgiving all these good things.
The book also, you know, teaches kids
how to help someone else. Why is that
an important tool to teach them? Yeah,
well, there's you know,
temporary happiness is like you
have an ice cream cone and you're
licking the ice cream cone, right?
Someone bumps into you and it falls,
right? So that's it.
It's a bummer, but a deeper type of
happiness like lasting happiness.
Are more contentment is like when
you help other people then you then
you go from being feeling like me,
me, me to wee, wee, wee you realize.
Oh as I help other people I feel helpful.
I feel useful and ultimately
you feel happier.
You know and and what you mentioned about.
You know knowing, helping other people,
feeling better. It also seems to go into
the idea of gratitude and appreciation.
Does your book teach kids about that as well?
Absolutely so gratitude.
That feeling of feeling really
thankful and then appreciation.
That demonstration of of feeling thankful.
So you know whether it's just helping
Mom or dad in from the car with
groceries or helping a neighbor.
I have. I have one of my neighbors
helped another neighbor like cleaned
up their yard for 4th of July party.
So being able to just go out of
your way a little bit and help
even volunteering at the Humane
Society and walking a dog.
It doesn't have to be something grand.
It could even be a thank you note,
but as you do that you feel good.
The science shows that
it boosts your happiness.
It's true, it really is true also.
The making memories that seems like
a really important thing to do.
As a kid, we all have our memories,
but making a point to create
them and remember them seems
really key to a happy childhood.
Yeah, so much about life.
We sort of always a little
bit beneath the surface,
and science shows that as you put photos
around your house or your bedroom,
or have like a, you know,
a wall that you have all your
positive experiences from that you
have an immediate like happiness.
So you start to feel happier,
you don't even realize it,
so you're having positive
experiences over the summer.
But by taking that photograph
and putting it on the wall,
you see it and the first thing
you wake up and you're like,
oh, that was a great day.
And immediately you start
from a different place.
So that's a good thing
that is such a great thing.
And that's why I love those
digital picture frames too.
That can pop all those pictures in and out.
Finally, I love that you teach
kids about learning something new,
and the importance of continuing
to learn throughout the summer.
Shows that if you struggle with something,
whether it's building a tree house,
making a new food in the kitchen,
or you know learning to read or coding on
your computer as you struggle with something,
and then you master it,
it boosts your happiness level
because you realize you have
everything you need within you.
But if you apply effort,
you can master something you can.
You can learn a new skill and
that's really important because we
all know we don't necessarily hit
it out of the gate the first time,
so being able to like practice
and keep going, it's important.
That is great. This is just been
a delightful treat for us to look
at and thank you so much for the
happiness workbook for kids.
All these activities,
including how to calm themselves.
I'm really excited to get
started with my kids.