Episoder
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In today’s episode, we dive into the exciting world of AI in education with global futurist Graeme Codrington and the team at Future Smart Teacher. Graeme shares valuable insights on how AI tools, particularly ChatGPT, can serve as powerful assistants in teaching, helping educators enhance their workflow, engage students in new ways, and save valuable time—all while preparing for a tech-driven future.
Key Takeaways:
AI as an Assistant, Not a Replacement: Learn why AI tools like ChatGPT are best used to support teachers rather than replace them, and how to integrate these tools thoughtfully.Navigating AI’s Limitations: Graeme provides practical tips for recognising where AI is most effective in the classroom, and where human insight remains crucial.21st-Century Skills: Discover ways to equip students with essential skills for the future while empowering yourself to adapt to new technologies.Why You Should Listen: If you're an educator looking to harness the benefits of AI in a balanced, practical way, this episode will equip you with actionable insights to navigate this ever-evolving landscape confidently.
Resources Mentioned:
Future Smart Teacher Academy: A membership platform for educators that provides tutorials, weekly Q&A sessions, expert insights, and community support—all to help teachers integrate AI and 21st-century skills into their classrooms effectively.Join Future Smart Teacher Academy and Get:
Weekly tutorials and strategies to use AI in your classroomPractical tools for incorporating 21st-century skills into your lessonsAccess to a supportive community and subject-matter expertsFor just R135 ($7.99) per teacher or R980 ($55) per month for schools, Future Smart Teacher Academy provides a resourceful platform where educators can grow professionally, reduce administrative tasks, and maintain a dynamic, future-ready learning environment.
Connect with Us:
Website: futuresmartteacher.comEmail: [email protected]Tune in, empower your teaching, and join us on this journey into the future of education.
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Episode Summary:
In this episode, Jude chats with music therapist Graeme Sacks about what music therapy is, how it encourages growth, self-expression and healing through music and how this might impact parents and their kids today!
Graeme challenges the notion that music should be something we add competition to, especially because of how that pressure can often lead children away from music and singing. Instead he says, we should be encouraging children and teens to be making music and singing regardless of how “good” or “bad” they are, because of the joy that music brings and the way that we can process our emotions through music in so many ways.
“Where communication is physically or psychologically disrupted, where words are not available, or distrusted, or too personal, music can help… Musical meetings can be life-changing.” - Gary Ansdell - music therapist and researcher
If you’re interested in learning more about what music or other arts-based therapy is all about and how it can be transformational for our kids visit www.sanata.org (South African National Arts Therapies Association).
Connect with Graeme:
Website: Graeme Sacks Music Therapy
Social Media: Facebook
Thank you so much for listening! This episode is brought to you by Future Smart Parent Club. Please like and subscribe to our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.
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Episode Summary:
At Exclusive Books On Takealot
In this episode of the Future Smart Parent Podcast, Jude chats to Vanessa Raphaely, co-author of "We Were Perfect Parents Until We Had Children" and founder of The Village, a community of diverse, imperfect parents in South Africa.
Vanessa and Jude talk about the principles of The Village - community support, kindness, respect and constructiveness and chat about the ways in which parents from diverse backgrounds can come together to support each other in raising the next generation to be engaged, kind, courageous citizens. It’s a practical and relatable conversation, especially if you’re a parent trying to raise your family in your own perfectly imperfect way in our chaotic world. None of us are perfect, but when we show up and support each other, we also gift our children with support, optimism and resilience.
Connect with Vanessa and The Village:
Join The Village on Facebook
Follow The Village on Instagram
Sign up to receive their newsletter here
Buy a copy of “We Were Perfect Parents Until We Had Children” now:Thank you so much for listening! This episode is sponsored by Future Smart Parent Club. We’d love to invite you to our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network. And don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss any future episodes.
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In this episode Jude chats with Dr. Michael Mol about the invisible labour that oftens lands on the shoulders of moms. The fact that women are typically taking on more of the labour of childcare, organising the home and housekeeping, often in addition to their ‘actual’ jobs is a sad reality.
The burnout that so many moms experience should not be the norm. And so in this conversation Michael and Jude talk about practical things, backed by science, that we can do to care for ourselves.
There really are four simple pillars that ground this approach to self-care: eat, sleep, move and connect. Listen to the full episode to hear more detail about all of these areas for self-care.
And then you have to find your WHY? What is going to compel you to care for yourself?
Connect with Guest:
Website: www.drmichaelmol.comLinkedInInstagramFacebook
This episode is brought to you by Future Smart Parent Club.
Please like and subscribe to our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.Join the Future Smart Parent Community here.
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Helen Nicholson is the Founder and CEO of The Networking Company. She specialises in speaking and teaching people to develop powerful personal brands and networks all over the world. Her work in Mindful Resilience has helped thousands of individuals overcome burnout. She has also written a best selling book “Mindfulness: How to Stay Sane in an Insane World”.
In this episode, Helen and Jude discuss what mindfulness is and how parents can practice mindfulness in their every day lives. It’s not about waking up at 4am and meditating - it starts with becoming more present, more aware.
Helen shares some practical tips and tricks that she uses in her own life, which have helped her on her parenting journey.
Connect with Helen:
Website: helen-nicholson.com
Email: [email protected]
Social Media: @networkwithhelen
Thank you so much for listening!
This episode was brought to you by/sponsored by Future Smart Teacher - a monthly membership that empowers educators with cutting-edge AI tools, tutorials, resources and a growing community that will revolutionize the way educators can teach, plan, and manage their classrooms.
For more information, visit www.futuresmartteacher.com
Please like and subscribe to our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.
Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
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In this episode of the Future Smart Parent podcast, Jude chats with Tarryn who is the creator of a life-changing ADHD system designed for overwhelmed and frustrated parents who want smoother days, less chaos and to see their ADHD kids thrive.
Tarryn is an Occupational Therapist and a mom to a daughter with ADHD so is able to help through both her professional and personal experiences. This was a very insightful conversation!
Resources mentioned:
The Anxious Generation book by Jonathan Haidt.
Connect with Tarryn:
Website: Nurture ADHD
Email: [email protected]
Instagram: nurtureadhd
Get your free ADHD Routine Checklist here.
Read more about Quiet the Chaos program here.
Thank you so much for listening!
This episode was brought to you by the Future Smart Parent Club.
Get the Tools & Insights you need to Equip your Kids and Teens with the Essential Skills they need to Thrive both Now and in their Futures.
Join our community and get 21st Century Expert Parenting Advice, Practical tools to keep your kids Safer and Saner Online, Insights on the Future of Work, and Resources to help your kids & teens Develop 21st Century Skills & Community Support for just $7 (R135) a month.
For more information visit www.futuresmartparent.com/join-the-club.
Please like and subscribe to our community, and if you enjoyed the podcast, please consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network… because it takes a village.
Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
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In this episode, Jude speaks with parenting coach, Lelia Schott, about engaging with our teenagers - a time often accompanieed with many emotions (from both teens and parents), boundaries being pushed, connection sometimes being tested, but also a time where our teens need these deep connections with both their peers, and their families - the family being the safe harbour that it provides through holding boundaries, while maintaining and working on deeper connects and relationships.
Lelia reminds us that a lot of the time this also includes connecting with ourselves and being aware of what we’re experiencing as parents..
What is my child feeling?What are they needing?
What are they believing?
And then, what am I feeling?
What am I needing?
What am I believing?
And how can we connect…?
Lelia is a parenting coach whose work is all about helping people to reclaim (inner) child and parent wellbeing. As an empathetic listener and dedicated therapist, she loves working with people seeking a deeper connection to themselves and others.
Connect with Leila:
Website: Lelia Schott
Connect on Instagram: @leliaschott_synergyparenting
Thank you so much for listening!
This episode was sponsored by Tweenology. The best skincare for tweens - natural, locally made, smells amazing and makes our tweens skin feel soft and healthy and that isn’t too expensive! I mean what’s not to love - and you haven't even smelt it yet!
The team at Tweenology have a wide range of products, from face washes and creams, howzit star pimple patches which are just so cool, a choklit face mask and the most amazing ‘No Stress Magnesium Soak' which this FSP Mom uses just as much, if not even more, than my teen girl and tween boy does.
So, if you are looking for a natural skin care range that’s kind to your tween’s skin, effective in helping them keep their skin healthy and want the peace of mind knowing that there are no nasty ingredients being applied to your tweens gentle skin, go to www.tweenology.co.za/fsp to get 5% off your order...
Tweenology is 100% Future Smart Parent approved and recommended.
Please like and subscribe to our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.
Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
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In this episode Jude speaks with Natalie Meerholz, the headmistress of Holy Rosary Primary School, who started this campaign where many students pledged to go ‘phone-free’ for 40 days.
The campaign was about calling for the delay of smartphone ownership in children "in a bid to restore a play-based childhood and to protect the mental health and well-being of its learners."
We know that with technology our children have more access to information than any generation before them. And while there are many wonderful benefits to technology, there is also a lot of inappropriate content and honestly, their brains are not able to cope with what they see, especially while they’re in primary school.
Natalie and Jude discuss the experience and what students went through during the 40 days. Some pupils volunteered to journal and anonymously share their experiences.
"Initial feedback shows that children found themselves bored, not knowing how to occupy their time. This isn't a bad thing because children who are allowed to experience boredom are more creative and innovative.
"They are forced to either learn a new skill, create something new, or think outside the box, and it was our hope that the campaign would push this to happen.”
At the end of the episode Jude also got to talk to some of the girls and hear their personal experiences of going without their phones for 40 days.
Connect with Holy Rosary School for Girls:https://www.facebook.com/HolyRosaryJHB/
https://www.instagram.com/holyrosaryjhb/
Resources mentioned:
The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan HaidtFeeling overwhelmed?
Join our Upcoming Bootcamp that starts on Tuesday 7th May : Transform Your Digital Parenting Journey - From Overwhelmed to Confident in 4 Weeks. -
In this week’s episode, Jude chats with Buhle Dlamini, author of Unleashing Your Greatness. They chat about how to raise greatness and nurturing potential in our kids.
Buhle Dlamini discusses his concept of unleashing your true potential, your greatness and specifically how this can impact our parenting. We all possess untapped potential, and this is your guide to help your kids harness their potential to the fullest.
Be Who You Be: This emphasizes finding what sets you apart, your unique qualities, and distinctions.Pursuing Excellence: Discover the importance of aiming for excellence in all your endeavours. Living Your Values: Learn how values aren't just words on paper; they are the core of your behaviour and actions.Unleash That Winning Attitude: Your mindset and how you show up daily play a significant role in distinguishing you from others.Creating the Future: Understand that seizing opportunities when they arise is crucial to unlocking your greatness.
Buhle breaks down the process of unleashing your greatness into five essential keys:You can chat with Jude or Buhle for more information on his 'Unleashing his Greatness' keynote presentation. Buhle will be in South Africa in February and March 2024 for in person events, but is available to present globally, either in person or virtually.
Get in touch with Jude here: [email protected]Connect with Guest:
Website: Buhle Dlamini
Email: [email protected]
Social Media: LinkedIn or Facebook
A reminder to celebrate what makes your kids come alive and 'always look for their magic’. Remembering this really helps us let our kids be their own unique, beautiful selves. We’ve created this free printable that you can access here.Thank you so much for listening! This episode is brought to you by Future Smart Parent. Please like and subscribe to our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.
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Episode Summary:
Mandy is passionate about supporting parents, teachers and schools on their journey to develop safe, connected and problem solving environments for children to thrive.
Academics aren’t enough! We need to equip ourselves with tools to teach children missing skills through Social Emotional Learning.
In this episode, Mandy and Jude discuss what social emotional learning actually means, and how we need to shift our mentality, as parents and teachers, to connection over correction. Jude shares a real-life example and asks Mandy for her insights on how to prioritise connecting with a child, especially when there’s been a problem or incident where we might be inclined to punish, rather than connect. That’s not to say consequences don’t exist, but Mandy explains how connection and developing certain social emotional skills can really equip our kids and often the natural consequences teach them the lessons in any case.
A very interesting discussion - we’d love to hear your feedback and what you think about Social Emotional Learning.
If you want to connect with Mandy, her social links are here. And if you’d like to hear more of these discussions and engage with other parents, attempting to parent a little differently, but very much intentionally, in this changing world, we encourage you to join the Future Smart Parent Club today!
Connect with Mandy:
Website: www.mandyherold.com
Email: [email protected]
Instagram: @the_connection_coach
Thank you so much for listening! This episode is brought to you by Future Smart Parent. Please like and subscribe to our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.
Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
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Episode Summary:
In this episode, Jude talks with Naomi Holdt, author, mom and child psychologist, all about her new book Bounce: How to Raise Resilient Kids and Teens. This book is so important and we encourage you to read it - if nothing else it will remind you, as a parent, that you are not alone. Bounce will help you tackle this messy and beautiful journey of life and parenting in a very human way.
Bounce: How to Raise Resilient Kids and Teens is an easy-to-read, effective guide that can make an immediate difference to your parenting approach and your relationship with your children. Based on years of experience as a parent and a parenting expert, it provides accessible information and advice, thought-provoking exercises and proven techniques. It explores issues that impact us all, including:
What is resilience?Anxiety and depressionBuilding resilience in our children by working on our own resilienceBoundaries and gentle parentingHelping children through griefParenting the anxious childTips for divorced parentsChildhood depressionHighly sensitive children and resilience.Jude talks about what she found most important when reading the book, and Naomi and Jude both discuss what it looks like to be parenting intentionally in a changing world, breaking generational cycles and how to create that sense of belonging for our kids. The book also reminds parents to have more fun with our kids, while at the same time keeping it real.
For anyone who doesn't follow Naomi on social media, please do. She shares so generously and authentically daily. And please do go out and grab a copy of her book: Bounce: How to Raise Resilient Kids and Teens.
Connect with Guest:
Website: https://naomiholdt.com/
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/naomiholdtspeaker
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/naomiholdtpsychologist/Thank you so much for listening! This episode is brought to you by Future Smart Parent. Please like and subscribe to our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.
Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
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This week Jude chats with Graeme Codrington, global futurist and co-founder of the Future Smart Parent Club. Graeme specialises in the future of work and in this episode, we specifically talk about a job of the future. We discuss prompt engineering and how it might be a career path for our kids in the future. Prompt engineering does mean we should teach our kids how to use AI, how to think differently about technology and give them the opportunities to play with this technology themselves.
The future is going to look drastically different than what we are capable of imagining. And the potential for our kids is vast! Listen to this episode to understand the potential impact for your children and their futures.
Connect with Guest:
Website: www.graemecodrington.com
Email: [email protected]
Social Media: Facebook
Thank you so much for listening!
This episode was brought to you by Future Smart Teacher - a monthly membership that empowers educators with cutting-edge AI tools, tutorials, resources and a growing community that will revolutionize the way educators can teach, plan, and manage their classrooms.
For more information, visit www.futuresmartteacher.com
Please like and subscribe to our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.
Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
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Today, I’m thrilled to talk with Cheryl Williams, an exceptional STEAM Based Learning Educator.
With a teaching journey that began in 2000, Cheryl has gained invaluable experiences in various grades and leadership roles - however, her true passion lies in the Edtech world, where she has been wholeheartedly dedicated for the past decade.
Cheryl's days are immersed in the world of technology, exploring innovative approaches like the Internet of Things, Computers, iPads, Robots, and Coding to enhance learning. She is passionate about inquiry and experiential-based learning, understanding its potential impact on preparing children for the future of work.
We had a really interesting conversation about different modes and methods for teaching, as well as the ways that AI tools, such as ChatGPT, can help teachers! It’s not that these technologies are going to take over teaching or replace teachers, but more than they’re going to give teachers an edge. AND - they will help teachers save time!
Free Bootcamp for teachers!
The Future Smart Parent team is also hosting a free boot camp especially for teachers, helping you to jump in and embrace A.I. to save you time and mental space & shape an educational experience that prepares our students for success in a rapidly evolving world.Sign up for free today! https://www.futuresmartparent.com/teacherbootcamp
Thank you so much for listening! Please like and subscribe to join our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.
Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
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Today I got to speak with Rebekah Clark from Happy Marlo. Happy Marlo is an organization dedicated to helping children build skills for dealing with their emotions and being empowered to find their calm space. While these tools and resources are designed specifically for 3 to 11 year olds, the holistic approaches to emotional well-being can, and should, also apply to the parents, guardians and carers of these children.
Some of us parents also need to learn some emotional regulation skills and find ways to ease our anxieties and centre ourselves. Happy Marlo is a wonderful resource for parents and kids!
In this episode, Jude and Rebekah speak specifically about EFT - Emotion Freedom Technique, aka Tapping. EFT can help children process emotions and take control of their own wellbeing. The positive effects have been so widespread that some schools are starting to introduce it into the curriculum.Benefits include:
Helping children recognise, understand and express emotions Significantly reduce stress levels Increased self-esteem and self acceptance Increased happiness, energy and overall sense of wellbeing Reduced perfectionism, fear of failure, or procrastination Improving academic performance or managing learning difficulties Supporting friendship dynamics, anger issues, bullying-related events or self-harm Overcoming fears or phobiasConnect with Rebekah:
Website: www.happymarlo.com
Email: [email protected] / [email protected]
IG & FB: @happymarlolife
If you want to read more about the science behind tapping as a calming and healing technique, look at Dr. Peta Stapleton’s book: The Science Behind TappingAnd here are some free Happy Marlo resources for you.
Thank you so much for listening! Please like and subscribe to join our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.
Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
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Today we’re talking about tech habits - specifically tech habits for families because I don’t know about you, but I find it incredibly difficult to break some of my own bad tech habits. Yes, I'm also acutely aware of the saying that goes 'More is caught than taught' and so I'm acutely aware that I need to try a little harder!
For example, I know I sleep so much better when I read a physical book before going to bed, but too many nights I’m on my phone right before bed.
Even as parents we get sucked into our phones when we’re bored rather than finding something to do etc and then get frustrated with the time that we’ve wasted..
No phones in bedrooms overnight. Charge phones in a communal space.No phones (for anyone) during meal times. Use this time rather to connect and catch up as a family.Check in and check up on your kids’ phones regularly. For their safety.
Saying all that, in today’s episode Kate, from our 'online safety and well-being' partners, Be in Touch, shares some tech habits that we can (and should) implement into our parenting strategies.
And to be honest these habits will help us adults too!They seem like simple points, but being consistent and demonstrating these tech habits will be beneficial for everyone in the family. You’ll all sleep better, and us parents have the chance to really engage with our kids and understand them, while also creating boundaries that are meant to protect them from online dangers.
Connect with Kate from Be in Touch:
Be in Touch Resources
Family Tech Rules
Wheel of Life
Smartphone Contract
Parental Controls
Thank you so much for listening! Please like and subscribe to join our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
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Zanele has built her profile as one of Africa’s brightest organisational change & learning influencers. She’s known to her clients as 'The UnLearning Lady', and is a global leading voice on using key unlearning principles to help companies build cultures that support change & transformation. She’s worked with companies such as Visa, Coca-Cola, The South African Reserve Bank, Deloitte & Discovery.
In this episode, Jude and Zanele talk about how to help our kids manage transitions. Dealing with disruption and change is a natural part of life, but it’s also difficult. If we’re not setting our kids up with the skills to deal with life’s transitions, then we are setting them up for struggle. Empowering them with tools and coping mechanisms to deal with the disruptions and change that is inevitable will give our kids the confidence they need to thrive.
Zanele recommended the book “Managing Transitions” by William Bridges and Susan Bridges. You can get it on Takealot here.
You can subscribe to Zanele’s weekly newsletter, where she shares weekly tips on building a culture of learning, unlearning and relearning. Sign up here.
Website: Zanele NjaphaEmail: [email protected] Social Media: LinkedIn
Connect with Guest:Thank you so much for listening! Please like and subscribe to join our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.
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Sextortion might sound like the name of a really bad movie, but in fact it’s a lot more serious than that and it’s affecting all of our kids online.
Essentially “sextortion” is a crime, classified as cyber extortion under the South African cyber laws, and occurs when predators blackmail our children into sending them sexual or nude pictures and videos. This is obviously child pornography, which is a criminal offence, and these predators need to be caught.
This might be scary, but as parents we cannot bury our heads in the sand and pretend it doesn’t exist. And we definitely cannot just say “Oh, but not my kids… My kids would never do that.”
Because as much as we say that children shouldn’t be taking and sharing nude images of themselves, the predators who are engaging with them are exerting an extreme level of power over our kids and are coercing them into doing such things. Our children are victims. So yes, it could happen to your kid.
That’s why this topic is so important for parents to be aware of and to prepare ourselves and our kids to deal with. It’s happening on all social media platforms. Predators will lurk in social media and gaming apps, such as Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok and Discord.
They will follow your kids, message them and then move to more private apps like Whatsapp, where they will send unsolicited nude images and coerce your children to reciprocate, leading to your children being blackmailed and threatened for sexual favours or money, once your child has sent them photos or videos of themselves.
So let’s be cautious with our kids online. Put protections into place as much as possible and really engage with our children often so that they know that we are a safe place for them to come, if something like this ever happens.
If something like this does happen to your kids, make sure that there are screenshots of the conversations (on the social media platforms and on Whatsapp), as this counts as evidence to the police. And then, before blocking the predator, send this simple message:
“I have spoken to my parents. They are reporting it to the police for investigation because you are in possession of child pornography.”
Although the predator might try to contact your child in another way, this simple message can deter them or slow them down (as they are often preying on multiple children at one time).
Settings to keep your kids safer:
SnapchatTikTok InstagramYouTubeFor more info you can sign up for our 90-minute workshop on how to keep your kids safer and saner online for just $37 here:
You can also book a device advice consultation with Kate from Be in Touch, if you’re finding this all too overwhelming.
Connect with Kate and Be In Touch:
Website: https://beintouch.org.za
Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
Instagram | Newsletter signup | Facebook Group
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Today I spoke with Melanie Williams, who is a psychometrist and careers expert. She used to teach high school English and Life Orientation and now works with high school students on looking beyond high school and preparing for life in the real world.
In this episode, we discuss:
The benefits of school leavers taking a gap yearIs a gap year for everyone?Who should take a gap year?Melanie is the author of The Good Gap Year Guide and she breaks down what makes a successful gap year, and how both young adults and their parents can approach it.
A structured gap year can boost young people’s confidence. It can help them clarify their interests, get a taste the real world and realise that there is a place for them where they can flourish.
Melanie highlights 6 seminal aspects of a good gap year and we discuss them in more detail in this episode.Connect with Melanie:
Email: [email protected]
More from Melanie: https://www.optimyze.co.za
Purchase The Good Gap Year Guide here
Thank you so much for listening! Please like and subscribe to join our community. If you enjoyed the podcast, consider leaving a review and sharing the episode with your network.Join the Future Smart Parent Community:
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In this episode, I chatted with Christy Herselman from The Chat. We spoke about the changing gender landscape, and what this means for both our children, and for us parents as we all try to navigate and understand this phenomenon that's unfolding so quickly.
We spoke about the massive rise in transgender and nonbinary teens, and touched on how the world got here.
I think what I loved the most from this conversation is the way Christy helps us parents think about this topic. She doesn’t come in with all the answers, but rather helps us understand this changing landscape, acknowledging the many complexities on this subject. This conversation was another reminder to me as a parent of the fundamental job we have to just love our children, provide them with the safe space that they need, and to have these sorts of conversations with them.
Christy is a speaker, teacher, researcher, author, wife, and mom to 3 kids with a passion to help cultivate deep connections, facilitate healthy dialogue helping raise a generation who are secure in who they are and where they are going.8 years ago Christy founded a movement called The Chat. The heart of THE CHAT is to empower parents, organizations and communities to confidently dialogue around big topics like sexuality, digital healthy and social media in a natural, open manner that creates safe spaces for ongoing conversations.
Upcoming Zoom for parents with Christy on Sex & Gender: Understanding the Conversation. 24th November. 5-Part Video Series for schools: The Gender Project: A 5 Part Video Series for schools, to help orientate and prepare South African teens for the Gender Conversation.Book: Irreversible Damage by Abigail ShrierBook: Untangled - Guiding Teenage Girls Through the Seven Transitions into Adulthood by Lisa DamourBook: The Emotional Lives of Teenagers: Raising Connected, Capable and Compassionate Adolescents by Lisa DamourPodcast: Ask Lisa - The Psychology of Parenting. [Podcast]
She also equips tweens and teens to make healthy, future-focused decisions around their sexuality and identity and does workshops at schools, helping children and teens become healthy, wise digital users.
Resources mentioned during the conversation:To connect with Christy from The Chat:
Website: www.thechat.co.za
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: thechatdurban
Stay in touch with the Future Smart Parent team:
Website: www.futuresmartparent.com
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: /futuresmartparent
Instagram: @futuresmartparent -
Episode Summary:
Today I spoke with Dr Beulah van der Westhuizen, who is a specialist in neuro-development, education and the founder of EduExcellence.
In this episode, we discussed the education system, and where traditional schooling stems from and how it functions. The institutionalisation of schooling first appeared during the Industrial Revolution, when children needed to be somewhere while their parents were working in factories. School became a place to train children for their future working in factories, following rules and training their minds and bodies to a 9-5 structure.
We discussed how this traditional model doesn’t apply to 21st century children. Our world has changed! We’re in a new era of technology, and of information, an era that is constantly evolving. And so shouldn’t schooling and education should evolve too?
Mainstream school didn’t work for either of my children, but it was only during COVID that we took the opportunity to move away from traditional school.
Something interesting that came up in my discussion with Dr. Beulah is that we have to treat each child as an individual and try to find the form and structure of learning that stimulates and encourages them as individuals. Some children shine in mainstream school – enjoying sports, competition and community. But not every child will thrive in such an environment.
We also talked about neurodiversity. There are different types of intelligence, different ways of taking in and processing information, and different sensory processes. If we can understand our kids and their diversity, we can nurture their neuro-processing and allow them to come out of their shells. There is no “one-size fits all” approach when it comes to schooling.
Enjoy listening to our conversation, which challenges our ideas around education and offers alternative approaches we have for educating our children. Let’s learn how to bring out the best in each of our children!
Connect with Dr. Beulah:
EduExcellence Website: https://www.eduexcellence.co.za/home
Find out more about EduExcellence’s Eduation Offering: https://www.eduexcellence.co.za
Dr. Beulah’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-beulah-van-der-westhuizen-professional
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