What to do for your child in a BAD economy

Today we are faced in the papers with the BAD Global Economy. Just about everyone I know is affected in one way or another. Some are losing jobs, other are getting more business due to the slowdowns.

Some parents who are reading this have their children in the martial arts, others are thinking about do so. But with today's restrictions on cash flow how do you know what activity is going to be best for your child? Let's face it there are so many to choose from. In Canada we have hockey, soccer, baseball, swimming, etc etc. Some parents just have their children stay at home and play on the computer or video games. But what is the best solution?

Last week I had a prospective parent call me asking about our classes. When he found out the costs he said that he can't justify spending that much money on something like karate. (if his child plays hockey it can cost up to $9000 per year). Sadly he doesn't understand the benefits of martial arts vs hockey or any other 'sport'.

When times are good and parents can spend money on just about any activity the choices are simple. In bad times parents must make a decision based on what is best for their child, "what are the real benefits for my son or daughter"?

What does the martial arts really do for a child? Here are some examples.

• Increased FOCUS
• Increased Self Esteem
• Increased Physical Fitness
• More confidence
• Better listening skills
• Self Control
• Self Discipline
• Energy and ambition
• Goal setting skills
• Leadership skills
• Better communication skills
• Better grades in school
• Understand social behavior
• etc, etc, etc

Do the arts really do all these things? YES and more! Do hockey and soccer accomplish these benefits? No they do not! Here is a testimonial on the benefits of martial arts training from one of my students parent. Others can be read on my website Art Mason's Peaceful Warriors' Martial Arts Institute.

"Special Thanks,

I am the mother of a boy, who after many diagnosis from several different doctors, was told my son has a number of behavioral disorders. As heartbreaking as that was to hear and deal with I was so relieved to finally find a place where my son was welcomed and not judged for his disability, but encouraged to thrive beyond expectations.

We tried everything from Cubs, Tee-ball, to city soccer league. While all of them were friendly and tried to work with my son, not one could keep his interest for any period of time. He would loose interest and walk off to do his own thing. He had no focus or ambition for anything he tried.

Then while searching the webs for something to help my son, I came across a website for The Peaceful Warriors'. The name alone made me feel comfort. I set up a meeting with Master Art and his son Master Curt. After talking to them and explaining my son's disorders, Master Art assured me that they were not worried about dealing with my sons unusual behaviors and with a very respectful confidence, he assured me my son would excel in his karate school.

I has been two and a half years since my son joined The Peaceful Warrior's school. He will soon become a Red Belt, is in the Black Belt Club, and on the Demo Team, by his own choice.

In less then three years at this school, my son has grown into a calmer, happier more pleasant person to be around. I believe that this school is more then that, they truly want to see children reach their full potential. They have made such a difference in our lives, they believe it takes a village to raise a healthy well rounded child, and they show it in many ways. The Peaceful Warriors' are always in touch with parents on the progress or need improvements of each child. They even ask for input from the child's grade or high school teachers, before they can advance to another belt.

Please believe me when I say that I tried everything to find positive outlets for my son's Hyperactive behavior and until I found The Peaceful Warriors' family, I though it was hopeless for my son to ever fit in anywhere.

So in closing, I give my most sincere thanks to the many Masters, instructors and people involved in The Peaceful Warriors' family. You all truly have made a positive difference in my family's lives..."

Sincerely - Claire Dupont, Windsor Ontario

After this recession/depression we are going through today, the children with the best life skills will prosper. Those with the best video game skills, hockey skills etc will NOT. If you need to make changes in your life to get your child involved in martial arts it is well worth it! The benefits will far and again out outweigh the costs of a great school.

Martial Arts & Kid's With ADHD Part 4

This series of articles on martial arts and kid's with ADD or ADHD is based on my 20+ years of teaching children with this disorder. That is the main reason for the title of the articles, it is not just what martial arts will do, but also other approaches to use that will work with martial arts training.

I had a parent recently telling me about their child's learning disability. Do you see a problem here? Remember back to when you were in school. Do you recall who the 'dumbest' kid in the class was? It was obvious to the kid's in class, the teacher and the child having the problems. But yet, through all this negative reinforcement, someone thought that this child might improve. GOOD LUCK! The situation must improve first!

A child with attention deficit disorder does not have a disease, they are not suffering from a learning disability, they are simply distracted. These children, who have above average intelligence, also have a better connection between the right and left hemispheres of the brain than do other children. Therefore they receive on a continuing basis more information from their non-conscious mind than most people do.The sad part is that the education system and doctors don't know what to do about this (even if they understand it) and will subscribe drugs to stimulate the conscious mind, thus 'dumbing down' the unconscious mind, helping (supposedly) the child to focus. WRONG.

Our educational system works with what can be called 'explicit learning'. It is focused on learning using the left side of the brain, memorizing and calculating with the information provided. Children with ADD or ADHD thrive at learning in a way that is 'implicit'. Actually, that is the best way for everyone to learn anything, but that ability has been silenced by our eductional system.

What are example of implicit learning? Learning to walk, crawl, run and talk as an infant. All the rules of your primary language are learned this way. Right/Wrong, manners, much of the day to day behaviors you have were all learned implicitly.

Martial Arts instruction is an implicit learning method. This would apply to about 90% of the materials. This is a reason why martial arts is so very beneficial for children with ADD/ADHD or other similar conditions. There is one catch at this being successful! We need to work on the child's self esteem,becuase they are often being confronted by parents, teachers and piers about their alleged learning disablilities!

My final bit of advice for this article. Children will always live us to the expectations of their parents. How high are yours? If your child is not excelling is life, raise you expectations!

Some Great Information

I just posted 2 excellent PDF files on our website about Martial Arts training and children with attention deficit disorder. Check them out!

http://www.adhd.thepeacefulwarriors.org/articles-addadhd/65-adhd-and-martial-arts-training-can-it-help

ADHD and the Mozart Effect

ADHD and The Mozart Effect

The Mozart effect can refer to:

A set of research results that indicate that listening to Mozart's music may induce a short-term improvement on the performance of certain kinds of mental tasks known as "spatio-temporal reasoning;"[1]

Popularized versions of the theory, which suggest that "listening to Mozart makes you smarter", or that early childhood exposure to classical music has a beneficial effect on mental development;

With this being said imagine what the possibles are for kid's with attention deficit disorder. Could we use classical music to help calm the mind of a child with attention deficit disorder, and help them focus and therefore do better in school and life in general?

It has been reported than when Albert Einstein was trouble, or confronting an problem, he would often pickup his violin and plan along with Mozart. This would calm his mind and help to find the answers he was search for.

What affect does certain kinds of music have on the human brain? First let's look at the different brain wave patterns;

There are four categories of these brainwaves, ranging from the most activity to the least activity. When the brain is aroused and actively engaged in mental activities, it generates beta waves. These beta waves are of relatively low amplitude, and are the fastest of the four different brainwaves. The frequency of beta waves ranges from 15 to 40 cycles a second. Beta waves are characteristics of a strongly engaged mind. A person in active conversation would be in beta. A debater would be in high beta. A person making a speech, or a teacher, or a talk show host would all be in beta when they are engaged in their work.

The next brainwave category in order of frequency is alpha. Where beta represented arousal, alpha represents non-arousal. Alpha brainwaves are slower, and higher in amplitude. Their frequency ranges from 9 to 14 cycles per second. A person who has completed a task and sits down to rest is often in an alpha state. A person who takes time out to reflect or meditate is usually in an alpha state. A person who takes a break from a conference and walks in the garden is often in an alpha state. Classical Music, like Mozart will induce an Alpha Wave state in the brain.

The next state, theta brainwaves, are typically of even greater amplitude and slower frequency. This frequency range is normally between 5 and 8 cycles a second. A person who has taken time off from a task and begins to daydream is often in a theta brainwave state. A person who is driving on a freeway, and discovers that they can't recall the last five miles, is often in a theta state--induced by the process of freeway driving. The repetitious nature of that form of driving compared to a country road would differentiate a theta state and a beta state in order to perform the driving task safely.

The final brainwave state is delta. Here the brainwaves are of the greatest amplitude and slowest frequency. They typically center around a range of 1.5 to 4 cycles per second. They never go down to zero because that would mean that you were brain dead. But, deep dreamless sleep would take you down to the lowest frequency. Typically, 2 to 3 cycles a second.

When we go to bed and read for a few minutes before attempting sleep, we are likely to be in low beta. When we put the book down, turn off the lights and close our eyes, our brainwaves will descend from beta, to alpha, to theta and finally, when we fall asleep, to delta.

Now, what would happen if we were to bring the ADHD child to an Alpha state, using music, when they needed to complete a task (homework is a good example.) Children with normal brain activity will product Beta Waves when they are engaged in an activity. ADHD kid's will produce more Theta Waves, which is why they tend to drift off more easily that other children. The ideal learning state, a state were the non conscious mind is absorbing the most information is Alpha Wave state.

Now, this is only a theory, I will do more research and make amendments to this article as needed.

Martial Arts and Kid's with ADHD Part 3

In our last article on the Martial Arts & Kid's with ADHD we talked about increasing lung capacity through underwater swimming. I hope everyone has given this a try. Reading about it is great, but action must be taken to get results.

Let's take a look at building intelligence and focus at the same time. Now, it really does not matter if your child is ADHD or not, in fact you can do this to build your intelligence also.

The brain does not record information they way we first thought it did. Science now knows that memory was created for survival, not school or career. Our memory is an intricate web, very similar to the internet. We all know how hard it is to find thinks on the NET. If Google or Yahoo have not indexed it, it is impossible to find. With memory, something of interest is easy to retrieve and reconstruct, if it is not of interest, then it is very hard to locate.

Your unconsciousness mind is were memory is stored. All sensory input is woven into the web or your memory. Some is very deep inside. Your conscious mind edits this information for your attention. I deletes 99.9% of what comes in.

So your child goes to school, they are filled with energy (when I was a kids this was expected) and are taught things that in real life are irrelevant and uninteresting to them. They hear or read the information and delete it from the conscious memory, because it is boring!

This deletion is instant! That is why an child can forget what you said to him or her 2 minutes ago.

How do we overcome this is the real question. No drug with do this for them either!

Ok, here goes, have your child list on a piece of paper all the letters of the alphabet. List them vertically on the paper. Beside each letter your child will write a word, form a specific topic list, that corresponds to the letter. This will build associations in the brain for the topic, the letter and the word. This is will trigger other thoughts related to the topic and thus what happens in the mind is exponential! Do topics that your child likes at first, then slowly more to other topics that are school related.

How does memory work? Here is a brief explanation. Imagine you are holding a 15 inch flashlight in your hand. You are in a room that has no light at all, and you are looking for something is a file. The flashlight is your conscious mind, the darkness is your unconsciousness mind.The problem is the dark room is approximately 11 square miles in size and your flashlight is 15 inches long. See the problem?

The random thoughts that are constantly flowing into the mind of a child with attention deficit disorder are not only remarkable, but the way we all should be! They just don't have the tools need to tap into the unlimited potential. This exercise will build these tools! Drugs just numb the mind, they don't increase the ability to use this amazing gift!

Here is a sample of the exercise I am talking about. I am using martial arts terms for this one.

A -Aikido
B - Budo
C - Combat
D - Discipline
E - Elbow Strike
F - Front Kick
G - Grapple

The list goes on till Z. Try to get your child to do one list per day, then 2, then 3. The results in a month will astound you!

Yours in building strong, focus children,

Master Art Mason

Interesting Information Video

Here is an interesting video on Attention Deficit Disorder

Martial Arts & Kid's With ADHD Part 2

In the last article I discussed the idea of underwater swimming to increase a child's focus. This is especially beneficial for a child with ADD or ADHD. So, why exactly does this work? First, think about a time when you are really trying to focus on something. What happens? You guessed it, you hold your breath!

Anytime someone focuses intently on any object they hold there breath for a few seconds. When they begin to breath normally again, their attention does dwindle, but it is still there.

Having someone swimming underwater holding their breath will increase lung capacity substantially. Also, the act of holding your beath while swimming underwater in of itself will increase attention and focus.

For more information on this topic check out this book by Dr Win Wenger called The Einstein Factor

So, how does the martial arts help kids with ADD/ADHD? First, it provides physical movement, along side of work that requires focus. The need for focus starts small and builds over the months and years to follow. Martial Arts also provides a disciplined environment, with set routines that must be followed. Let us also not forget the built in goal setting that our belt system provides.

One of the most important things that needs to happen in the life of a child with ADD/ADHD is for things to be routine and consistent. This is also very important at home. Rules and boundaries must be set, and held to consistently. This is the same for punishment. All punishment must be consistent and then must be reinforced with positive afterwards. When a martial art school and parents work together, a child with ADD/ADHD will thrive!

If you would like some parenting tips on bringing up strong focused children, check out my book called; Children Don't Come with an Owners Manual.

Your in building strong, focused children,

Master Art Mason

Martial Arts & Kid's With ADHD Part 1

Almost every doctor who deals with child or adults with Attention Deficit Disorder will agree that martial arts, if taught correctly, will help kid's or adults with ADD/ADHD, but why?

Well first any parent who has ever talked with me about this problem knows that I am apposed to drug use unless the child's safety is at risk. Drugs are a band aid solution at best. So, why does martial arts training work? Well it is a combination of exercise (aerobic) and having to focus or concentrate on what you are doing. What his means is that lung capacity and focus have a direct relationship.

It has been show that intelligence can be increased in any person, if the proper learning steps are taken. Unfortunately school in the traditional sense will not accomplish this. If you look at history you will see many examples of this phenomenon in action. Albert Einstein is one such example. As a child he was considered to be mentally retarded, horrible in math, and a waste of teaching resources. So what happened? How can I help my child to become an Einstein or can i?

Now I am not saying here that martial arts alone will turn an ADHD child into Einstien, but it can be one giant step toward the goal of curing the problem. Back when I was in grade school the average class size was 30. One teacher handled the duties day in and day out. In this class there was one or two very smart children, and there was always one who was looking at failing the grade each year. Everyone else fell into the 'average' category.

Currently researchers are looking for the reason that ADHD is on the rise in children in North America. They are looking at environmental factors as well as food etc. But they are missing one very important item, that is lifestyle! Today children are far more sedimentary. They play video games, (which does stimulate the mind) and watch TV (a huge waste of time). They do not however play the physical games that I did as a child. Now I know what some of you are thinking, your child plays soccer, hockey, karate and other activities but is still struggling in school. The reason is simple, the physical and mental must be put together in a proper sequence to see a result.

In the martial arts, and again I must say if taught by a professional martial arts instructor, the physical and mental are combined together, then we see growth in the child's mental capabilities.

Now here is an interesting experiment you can do with your child. If you have a swimming pool at home or access to one, this summer play this underwater game with your child. Take a golf ball or any other item that will sink to the bottom. Play a game to retrieve this ball from the bottom of the pool. Work at having your child swim underwater for longer and longer periods of time. This will very quickly increase your child's lung capacity. Retrieving the ball, as a game will also engage the mind. When the game is finished sit down and do some mental activity with your child. Anything, like a board game, reading etc. Over time you will see an increase in your child's focus during normal everyday activities.

Try this for July and August, you will be amazed at the difference in September.

In part 2 of this article I will explain more as to how this works. In the mean time parents, pay attention to how you breath when you are focusing to accomplish a task. Look for changes in your breathing pattern.



Yours in raising strong, confident children,



Master Art Mason
Founder: Art Mason's Peaceful Warriors' Martial Arts Institute

Are your children in danger?

Attention Deficit Disorder can affect far more than just classroom participation at school. It can affect how safe your child is on a day to day basis. The world is full of predators looking for an easy victim. Sadly, a distracted child is that easy victim.

So, what do you do? Lock your child in the house to protect them from the bad element? Certainly not! You do, as parents need to arm yourself with the information needed to keep your child safe in today's world.

Check this website out; it is totally FREE and has a wealth of information to help you out.

Kid's Safe Canada - not just for Canada either!

Parents; resist the temptation!

Parents, you must resist the temptation! For a great part of the world school is now out. It is a relief at first for the parents having to deal with homework, lunches and getting your child off to school each morning. But if you believe your child suffers from ADD/ADHD you cannot just let them have the summer off!

As a martial arts teacher I do encounter those parents who actually believe that their child works very hard during the year and deserves to do nothing during the summer months. BIG MISTAKE. First instilling a good work ethic in your child by having them continue to learn and work a few hours per week during the summer is a benefit that will last them a lifetime. Second, if you are dealing with a learning issue, the teacher will not have the need to re-teach a lot of material, thus saving time and keeping your child growing!

Each child who takes the summer off from martial arts needs about 1 month to get back on track. If there is a learning disability present it takes longer!

Parents, enroll your child in a martial arts program this summer, or get them involved in some type of private learning activity to help them in their weak areas. Shut the video games off, and keep them learning! You will be amazed at the results you will see!

Master Art Mason

Attention Parents! Is your child safe?

Attention Parents! Is your child Safe?


Our world is becoming more dangerous by the minute. Children are being molested, abducted, murdered and hurt in our cities and on our streets. Is there anything that can be done to make our children safe, aside from taking the law into our own hands? Yes there is! Education is the answer. The more you and your children know and understand how predators work and think the better.

Surprisingly there are few groups in Canada and the United States that are really interested in helping children, until now. On Sunday June 22nd 2008 Art Mason's Peaceful Warriors' Martial Arts Institute launched their new information website called The Kid's Safe Canada Network.

This website is dedicated to providing FREE to the public information on how to teach your child to be "street smart" and avoid problems with predators, and even school yard bullies!

It doesn't matter were you live in this world, the information provided on this website will benefit you! Bookmark the site and visit often!

Go to http://www.kidsafecanada.net

If you register for this site you will be added to a mail list which will keep you apprised of workshops and seminars in your area.

Registration, like the website is totally FREE.

Yours in building strong confident children,

Master Art Mason
Founder: Art Mason's Peaceful Warriors' Martial Arts Institute
Founder: Kids Safe Canada Network

This Blog is busy

I host several blogs and many websites, all dealing with martial arts, children with different learning issues, bullying and marketing for martial art school owners. Of all the sites I have this is one of the busiest!

Back when I was growing up there was no such thing as ADD/ADHD. In a class of 30 there was typically one or two children who had poor grades and just did not get the work. There was however no 'label' for these children as there is now.

Since WWII psychologists have come up with literally hundreds of different ways to raise and teach your children. But sadly and obviously their ideas don't work! Doctor resort to drugs to control children's behavior after telling the parents that the child cannot do it themselves. What a pile of cr**!

Dealing with ADD/ADHD requires a solid foundation of behavior be set for the kids, boundaries set, consequences put in place. Once this happens learning and development come next! This is no where near as difficult as some would believe. I have taught martial arts to thousands of children with amazing results, all using this simple idea.

Parents, there are a lot of resources out there! Some good, some great and some bad. Here are a few links that will help you. Don't be afraid to spend a few dollars to increase your education on these subjects. Parenting is an important task, likely the most important one in your life. Your education needs to continue also.

http://www.thepeacefulwarriors.org/adhd.html

http://nomanual.thepeacefulwarriors.org/

At these 2 links you will find some amazing information and resources. Join the mail list at the first one if you do nothing else!

Martial Arts and Kid's with ADHD

How does the martial arts help a child with attention deficit disorder? Follow this link to read more on the subject. You will be very surprised at some of the information you will find here.

Yours in raising strong, confident, focused children,

Master Art Mason

Children Don't Come with an Owners Manual

Dear Parents;

Are you are frustrated with trying to be the perfect parent and raise the perfect kids... I understand. I've raised three kids of my own and I've made a many mistakes along the way. However, thanks to my experience with the principles taught in the martial arts, I was able to instill inside my kids a sense of ethics, morals, self-esteem and confidence rarely seen in other kids their age. As I was raising my family, I was also helping hundreds of other children in my martial arts school learn "character" through these techniques.

I've created the most effective tools, techniques and strategies any parent can use to build stronger, happier, healthier kids. After 20 years of raising my own (and hundreds of other kids)... I've written down my system to share with other parents looking for a better way to insure their children's success.

After all, isn't it true you feel responsible for you children's success or failure? Now, we know we shouldn't feel that way, but we do. Parents will do whatever they can to give their kids the opportunities they never had. We can't help it. It is human nature to feel obligated to give our kids 110% of ourselves.

Although it looks like a book, it is really an "Owners Manual" that you wish your children had come with on day one. A step-by-step guide that makes child-raising brilliantly simple by taking you back to the basics. You'll gain universal and timeless strategies that guarantee wonderful results.

Can a book like this help if you have a child with ADD/ADHD? Most assuredly! This book will help you establish routines and boundaries your child needs to help them cope with attention deficit disorder!

For more information please follow this link;

Yours in raising strong, confident children,

Master Art Mason
Founder: The Peaceful Warriors' Martial Arts Institute

The 10 Warning Signs of Low Self-Esteem

“People don’t often understand just how damaging having low self-esteem can be! People with low self esteem are often go unnoticed at school and at work because they do not do anything to stand out. They don’t ever go for the goal or even try to make the sports team.”

“Low Self Esteem Sufferer’s are often the target of bullies at school as well as at work because they “bullies” know they won’t give them any hassle or a hard time and will be “easy” victims who will quickly bend to their will!”

The 10 Warning Signs of Low Self-Esteem:

1. Walking with head and eyes down focused on the ground instead of Straight ahead.
2. Shy and Reserved around new people and situations
3. She does not ask questions in school or at home
4. Hard for her to make friends
5. Poor Hygiene
6. Lack of Goals and Ambition
7. Struggles to get out of bed
8. Fails to believe she can do anything meaningful or worthwhile, so she never even tries!
9. Does not try new things in fear of looking foolish and failing
10. A Victim of a Bully!

These are just SOME of the warning signs of Low Self-Esteem you may be seeing in yourself or your child. You do not necessarily show all of these warning signs, just one is enough to suffer from Low Self-Esteem.

To discover how to raise your or your child’s Self-Esteem call us at
(519) 962-9820 and learn what you can do to become or help your child become a STRONG and CONFIDENT person!

http://www.thepeacefulwarriors.org

Attention Deficit Disorder, the disease of the day

Dear Parents

Over the past 3 decades, attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has emerged from the relative obscurity of psychologists' research laboratories to become the "disease of the day" of North America's school kids. Along with this popularity has been a totally complete acceptance of the validity of this "disorder" by scientists, physicians, psychologists, educators, parents, and others.

Upon closer critical examination, there is much to be alarmed about concerning ADD/ADHD as a real medical diagnosis. There are no definitive objective set of criteria to determine who has ADD/ADHD and who does not. Rather, instead, there are a loose set of behaviors (hyperactivity, distractibility, and impulsivity) that combine in different ways to give credibility to the "disorder."

These behaviors are highly opinion based. A child may be hyperactive while seated at a desk doing a boring math assignment, but not necessarily while preforming in a school play. These behaviors are also very general in nature and give no indications as to root cause. A child can be hyperactive because he's bored, depressed, anxious, allergic to milk, creative, upset, stressed out or any number of other causes.

The tests used to 'diagnoise' are not based on how the child is in the real work. This makes these tests and diagnoses soley based on the testers opinion and not any kind of actual fact. If you bore the child to death while testing them, you will get the result you are seeking.

The drugs used for this supposed disorder are also problematic. Ritalin use is up 500% over the past several years, yet it does not cure the problem, it only masks symptoms, and there are several disadvantages: kids don't like taking it, children use it as an "excuse" for their behavior ("I hit Fred because I forgot to take my pill."), and there are some indications it may be related to later substance abuse of drugs like cocaine in later life. While it is true that psychoactive medications properly prescribed and monitored by a physician can be an important tool to help some kids experience successes with teachers, parents, and peers, it still must be viewed as a last resort intervention and used with great caution.

Behavior modification programs used for kids labeled ADD/ADHD work, but they don't help kids become better learners. In fact, they may interfere with the development of a child's intrinsic love of learning (kids behave simply to get more rewards), they may frustrate some kids (when they don't get expected rewards), and they can also impair creativity and stifle cooperation.

Over the past few decades, our families have broken up, respect for authority has eroded, mass media has created a "short-attention-span culture," and stress levels have skyrocketed. When our children start to act out under the effects, it's convenient to create a scientific-sounding term to label them with, an effective drug to stifle their "symptoms."

Mainly, the ADD/ADHD label is a tragic decoy that takes the focus off of where it's needed most: the real life of each unique child. Instead of seeing each child for who he or she is (strengths, limitations, interests, temperaments, learning styles etc.) and addressing his or her specific needs, the child is reduced to an "ADD child," where the potential to see the best in him or her is severely eroded (since ADD/ADHD puts all the emphasis on the deficits, not the strengths), and where the number of potential solutions to help them is highly limited to a few child-controlling interventions. It gives the 'system' an excuse not to do their jobs.

Here are some suggestions to help your child cope with the situation and take control of it themselves.

• Provide a balanced breakfast each and every day.
• Cut the JUNK from his or her diet
  
• Limit television and video games
• Teach your child positive self talk.
  
• Learn your child's interests.
• Play physical games with your child.
• Enroll your child in a martial arts program.
• Use background music to focus and calm.
• Use color to highlight information.
• Teach your child to visualize.
• Remove allergens from their environment.
• Increase your child's self-esteem.
• Find out when your child's most alert.
• Provide a variety of stimulating learning activities.
• Teach your child physical-relaxation techniques.
• Provide positive role models.
• Channel creative energy into the arts.
• Provide hands-on activities
• Spend positive times together.
• Provide appropriate spaces for learning.
• Teach your child focusing techniques or mediations.
• Provide immediate feedback.
• Teach problem-solving skills.
• Offer your child real-life tasks to do.
• Help your child develop social skills.
• Use effective communication skills.
• Hold a positive image of your child.

Yours in building strong kids,

Master Art Mason

Founder: The Peaceful Warriors' Martial Arts Institute

http://www.thepeacefulwarrior.org/adhd.html

Looking for ways to help

Dear Parents,

I spend a great amount of time each week searching for EXCELLENT resources to help parents deal with various issues and problems that come along the way raising children. Today with the need for both parents working, just to make ends meet, it is getting far more difficult to get the job done well. Our school system is underfunded, and classrooms over crowded. This makes it difficult for children to get what they need at school, especially if they are ADD / ADHD and a few other syndromes.

Here are some new resources I hope you will look at. They can also be found on our school website at http://www.thepeacefulwarriors.org/adhd.html

Control Your ADD, Control Your Life

Better Behavior Wheel, help for you in handling an ADD / ADHD Child

The Parenting Asperger's Resource Guide

Keep your eye on on website for frequent updates and information,

Yours in building strong kids,

Master Art Mason
Founder: The Peaceful Warriors' Martial Arts Institute
519-962-9820
http://www.thepeacefulwarriors.org

Considerations in Treating Children with ADD / ADHD

Here are some important consideration in treating ADD / ADHD before you run to the drugstore.

• Allergies; Especially Food Allergies. The best way to find out if your child is allergic to the foods he or she eats everyday is a food elimination diet. Look at the common food allergens first. milk and dairy, wheat, peanuts, corn, chocolate, sugar, soda pop, citrus, eggs, food dyes, additives and preservatives.
• Nutritional Deficiencies - Especially brain nutrients like the B vitamins, B1, B3, B6 and B12. Also choline, inositol, calcium, magnesium, selenium, ZINC, manganese, potassium, iron EFA's, vitamin C, lecithin.
• Overuse of Antibiotics - How often does the doctor put your child on antibiotic. If here or she does this often, my advice is look for an new MD! Repeated treatments with antibiotics wipe out the beneficial micro-organisms in the intestinal tract. This always an overgrowth of CANDIDA and other bacteria in the body. The body becomes ACID. Your body needs to be ALKALINE to function properly.
  
• Over stimulation with Electronic Media - Look at our society, we are overweight, over stressed and have no imagination any longer. By statistics the average American child will have watch 7 years of TV by the time they are 18. Do you see a problem? Say NO to excessive TV, Computer Games, Cell Phones, hand held games etc. I am not even going to talk about radiation!
• Toxic Pollution - Toxins come into our live via the air, water and food! There is little we can do about some of this. However if we change the way we live our body has the tools to fight these toxins off and remove them from the body. But first we need to alkalize our bodies with the right foods and plenty of WATER.

Let's not forget the exercise! Get your children involved in something that will increase their focus, imagination, fitness level and build their confidence! Check out the website below if you have not already done so. Martial Arts is great for kids with ADD / ADHD.

Yours in building strong focused kids,

Master Art Mason

Founder: The Peaceful Warriors' Martial Arts Institute

519-962-9820

http://www.thepeacefulwarriors.org/adhd.html

A Brain Disorder with a biological basis

Dear Parents,

More than 7,000,000 North American children are currently taking Ritalin daily to help them with attention deficit disorders. However back 100 years ago this 'disorder' did not exist. Why? 100 years ago there was no food additives, chemical pollution, drugs, refined sugar products, process foods, television and computer games. Interesting isn't it?

The cause of these disorders points to toxicity and / or deficiency in the body. In the causes with hyperactivity, consumption of food additives, sugar, and food allergies seem to be responsible for the problems in the majority of children. Often the parents have no idea. In cases of ADD, repeated and overuse of antibiotics, heavy metal toxicity and nutritional deficiencies are the root cause. Low vitamin B as an example.

ADD/ADHD is manifest in the central nervous system causing symptoms like brain fog, mood swings, tearfulness, aggressive behavior, hyper activity, headaches, ear infections, bed-wetting, digestive disorders, short attention spans, learning problems, respiratory problems, anger and depression, the list goes on.

Hyperactivity can be controlled by diet, but the parent or guardian MUST take responsibly to correct this. Health is far more important than a child's want or need for candy or other sugary substances. I have had parents say to me that their children don't get candy, but if you examine their diet, the sugar comes from other sources.

As for ADD what is a better solution than that being offer by the medical field? First, find our if your child does have food allergies, and get this stuff out of the house!

Now we know that ADD affects the central nervous system of the child. Our next step must be HYDRATION. You child need WATER, not milk, pop, koolaid or juice, WATER. I deal with children day in and day out. I would say that 90% are dehydrated. Water will clean the organs of the body, remove heavy metals over time and help the nervous system of the body function.

Get the B vitamins into your child's diet! B1, B3, B 6 and B12. You will see an improvement quickly if you do. Especially in mood.

In the next posting I am going to give a breakdown that will help solve this problem. If you child is in a martial arts program already, AWESOME, get them to class regularly! If not, look into it. Martial Arts helps the mind and body work together and focus.

Remember drugs are man made chemicals. They cure nothing. Diet is the number one way to combat any bodily disorder.

Yours in building strong focuses children,

Master Art Mason

Founder: The Peaceful Warrior's Martial Arts Institute

http://www.thepeacefulwarriors.org/adhd.html

519-962-9820

The Benefits to my ADD/ADHD child.

Dear Parents,

When the SYSTEM diagnoses your child as having attention deficit disorder with or without hyperactivity it is devastating news. The doctor will often talk of drugs to keep the disorder in check. Despite the feeling of the parents at having their son or daughter on a lifetime of drugs the parents will take the advice. Why? Because they believe the story they are being told. Afteral the drugs do help? RIGHT?

As my children were growing up I heard similar stories from doctors and as a result I have little or no respect for that segment of the medical profession. Sorry to say it, but the DR. before someones name does cut it with me. 2 out of 3 of my own children were 'diagnosed' with various learning disabilities, and drugs were suggested. My children are all grown now and very successful in their fields, NO DRUGS.

I don't want to get on the soapbox too much here but remember our medical professionals basically work for the drug companies, so you know that the prescription pad comes out quickly.

Is their a solution? Yes, get your child involved in a martial arts program, the best one with the best instructors you can find! My school is in Windsor Ontario Canada, and most of my readers here are not even in this country, so I don't benefit from your enrolling your child in the arts. But it works!

WARNING! Martial Arts is not a QUICK FIX, the results take time! The real benefits of martial arts training comes over time and last because of this. I have seen parents bring children into a martial art school, see some result and say 'thank you' and remove their children thinking the results will last. They will disappear, just like they do now if you don't give your child the 'pill' in the morning. Over time, if your child is on medication, you could be able to wean them off, slowly. I have seen many, many children go from being dependent on the medication to not needing it anymore. But it takes times.

My next suggestion for this article, Mom and Dad READ EVERYTHING you can on the subject, especially that which talks about natural cures. I have some great links and information on my website below.

http://www.thepeacefulwarriors.org/adhd.html

More to come,

Yours for building strong, confident children,


Master Art Mason
Founder: The Peaceful Warriors' Martial Arts Institute
519-962-9820