Contributors to Learning I By Dr. David Snyder by age thirty-five, each of us have begun to resemble either our mother, father, or a combination of both parents. I have identified the following three contributors of learning to help guide today’s youths to be tomorrow’s enlightened leaders. One: Parents Those in the equine community understand “out of, by”- i.e. out of the mare by the stallion. Such is one of life’s principles for a good start. Our parents and family are our primary educators, and it is the lessons they provide for us that make up the core of a successful life’s journey for each of us. Two: Teachers Our schools, with good teachers and an effective curriculum for the demands of life’s journey are at the core of one’s second phase of learning and enlightenment. Three: Life Itself The third phase of this journey of enlightenment for all phase of a successful life is life itself. All three contributors are most effectively taught by experiential education, learning by doing with a good master to show us as apprentices the right way. Keep in mind that those that are called to teach and guide us cannot successfully do so unless they are living the life of truth, love, and freedom. A “learned” enlightened nation is best judged in history by the quality and strength of the family and its culture. Make learning the central core of life’s adventure for you, your family, and community. This basic principle of learning must be at the core of our learning as a community, nation, or world to avoid the misfortune of being lost in the darkness of ignorance. Always beware of the path we select for our journey of enlightenment and especially for our children and youth, for they are our most precious commodity and today’s greatest challenge for our future. In the end, the ultimate question for each of us should be, “Where am I on my journey from ignorance to enlightenment, and how well am I leading the way for those who will follow me?” Dr. David M. Snyder is an orthopedic surgeon and founder of Verdun Adventure Bound, which you can learn more about by visiting www.verdunadventurebound.org. gnorance is one of mankind’s greatest challenges. And the answer to this blight is learning and enlightenment. Only truth can set us free from the bondage of ignorance. The key to life is to learn and live out a philosophy and value system, and to develop the relationship skills that enable you to become fully human, fully alive, and fully actualized. We are called to cultivate ourselves to our fullest potential and give of ourselves to the needs of the world. What we learn comes from the world we live in and those who have gone before us. Because of this, it is paramount that we choose our teachers well. In addition, having good parents enlightened by truth, love, and freedom is a gift for one’s life journey because Beyond Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic: Life Skills to Teach Children s my children head into their teen years and prepare to leave home in the not-too-distant future, I think about all the knowledge they have acquired and the formal education that has helped to prepare them for success. Through school and home, they have learned well the lessons that most parents would want their children to know: manners, how to be a good friend, self-respect, and of course, reading, writing and arithmetic. As a parent, I have focused much of my time on supporting their formal education and making sure they have a solid foundation on which to build. A By Danielle Rice Still, there are some other basic life skills that I would like to see my children acquire before they head off into the big, wide world. Many of these are things that adults might take for granted; it might not even occur to us to teach these things to our offspring. We may just have learned them by trial and error and assume that our children will learn this way as well. But taking time to teach a few life skills can help teach your children to be socially responsible, independent, and successful adults. Here are a few of the life skills (in no particular order) that I would like to make sure my children have mastered before leaving home: 1. Daily money management Even if your child has no income or expenses when living at home and you might intend to support him financially for quite a while, it is still important to understand the basics of money management. In today’s world of ATMs (magic money dispensers?) and online banking, the tangible aspects of using and managing money can be hard to grasp, and this is one area especially where it is not so great to learn by trial and error. Before leaving home to live in a dorm or apartment, young adults should know how to prepare and follow a budget (including how much of a paycheck to save and how to budget for annual bills such as taxes and insurance); how to apply for, use and track a credit card (and the consequences of misusing credit); the differences between credit cards and ATM/ debit cards and the pros and cons of each; and how to write a check. It would be a good idea to open a bank account with your child before he leaves home, but Life Skills continued on page 9 4 Piedmont Family Magazine 2013 • Issue 5