Children, unlike adults, don’t need to be told to dream big. They do it naturally and they dream amazing things: to rid the world of poverty and help others, to become world-renowned artists, astronauts, doctors, teachers… because why not?

And we agree. Why NOT?

These little mavericks already have an exciting adventure ahead of them, and the only monsters on their path are the monsters we adults can defeat. TODAY.

Every 1 in 2 children in Serbia lacks access to early childhood education. And that’s huge! We want to change and close that gap, one community at a time.

So far, we did GREAT THINGS thanks to YOUR help:

• Over 22.000 children helped
• 1322 teachers trained
• 1575 families supported
• 41 schools built or refurbished
• 11 playgrounds opened

But we are not done yet.

We need YOUR help to show these little champions that equal access to early childhood education and development is possible.

Why Do We Invest in Early Years?

By focusing on early years, we focus on the future of our society. A child that has been supported, cared for and educated early on in life has greater chances to lead a more fulfilling life than a child who never received this opportunity.

Investing in early years is a powerful way to reduce gaps that often put children with low social and economic status at a disadvantage.

It means everything.

How can your donation help?

• $70 can give 1 child 1 month in preschool
• $140 gives 2 children a month of preschool
• $490 can put 7 children in preschool for a month
• $840 gives 1 child a year worth of preschool

Join your voice and support with thousands of others and help us shape their future! One child at a time!  

Support our campaign TODAY!

Please, share this campaign with your friends and families. Help us raise awareness about the low preschool participation rates in Serbia!

Every little help goes a long way! Let’s do this together!  Let’s pave the way to their future!

The post Why you should join our Giving Tuesday Campaign? appeared first on Novak Djokovic Foundation.

My favorite part about birthdays, besides spending them with the people we love, is that we can use them to achieve something really good and meaningful like spreading awareness of something we care about or doing something to add to the cause we care about.

Here is what I mean by that:

Growing up, I was so lucky to be given the chance to have a good early childhood education, as well as to grow up with love, care, and support from my parents and family. I cannot begin to describe how meaningful these early experiences were for me because they have shaped me into the person I am today. And I am beyond thankful to all of my teachers and later professors for guiding me and teaching me about all those wonderful things around us.

Because of them, I have never stopped learning. They taught me how to expand my thinking and because of this, my curious and knowledge-hungry mind always seeks a new challenge, a new book, a new skill to learn.

“The influence of teachers extends beyond the classroom, well into the future. It is they who shape and enrich the minds of the young, who touch their hearts and souls. It is they who shape a nation’s future.” – F. Sionil José, author

That is why today, I am happy to dedicate my 32nd birthday to help support the professional development of teachers in Serbia who have such an important job in front of them: to help shape our young minds into champions of tomorrow.

Why teachers inspire me so much?  

Teachers have always been the most significant moving force in the world. They shaped whole nations, inspired great and wonderful deeds, sparked curiosity in their students so they could make the most amazing discoveries this world has ever seen. They shaped champions and leaders, and yet, we almost never talk about them and how important they are.

So here is what I will be doing for the next month (and I might even take it further and make it a year-long challenge), and I’d like to invite you all to join me on this journey.

The Challenge

Every one of us can be and is a teacher. It doesn’t matter that we may not have the best pedagogy degrees under our belts, but we too play this role every day in helping our children become the best versions of themselves.

The whole point is that teachers don’t always have to sit in a school to make a difference. Each one of us has a great opportunity to impact someone’s life by only taking time to share the wisdom, lessons learned and the knowledge gathered. You and I, we too have the power to help shape the world into a far better place.

Here is what inspired me to do this:

Ever since I’ve become a mother, I have noticed how much information my little ones are absorbing from all the people that surround them: grandparents, family, neighbors, teachers, nannies, and friends included. They simply thrive on this kind of care.

Grandparents who share their life lessons with our kids in a form of lovely bedtime stories that I’m sure Stefan and Tara will remember for years to come. Uncles and aunts who always offer to help out whenever they can and without whom our little family gatherings would never be so memorable.

But let’s not also forget the nannies who dedicate their every minute to help not just our little ones but the whole family by easing us into the new life of parenthood. Then our teachers and tutors who always find the way to motivate our kids and us too, to learn even when we don’t feel like it.

And what about our kind neighbors? They too are such a great help because they always offer their understanding and support when they see us having a tough time teaching our kids about extreme sides of emotions. And they help us out without knowing by showing us that it’s ok to not always have a happy child all the time.

Hats down to all you, and to all of them, for being the most amazing teachers our kids can hope to have! Each one of you makes our world a better place every single day!

So here’s the big deal:

For the next month, I want to do a “month of teaching” challenge. I will share stories of what I did with my kids: Stefan and Tara, and how I tried and failed or succeeded to teach them something. I will share experiences we had and how they helped us to become better parents. Or at least the best we can possibly be. And I want you to join me by sharing your experiences too. We can all learn from one another and help each other on our way.

I promise you, things won’t always be rosy with us, but the truly great teachers never give up. They try to adapt their teaching in a way a child can still grow and prosper in some way, and that’s what I’m trying to do every single day.

I admire all of you — parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts, friends, teachers, tutors, nannies — every single one of you involved with the raising of our children, and I can’t wait to learn from you too!

I’m already getting really excited about this! Are you?

Follow my stories and share yours with me and other parents in our facebook group: #Care4Kids

Good luck to all of us!

The post My “month of teaching” challenge appeared first on Novak Djokovic Foundation.

When kids push your buttons

Usually we get upset when our kids are not doing what we want them to do. They’re not listening or they’re not complying. In our heads, we start worrying that were not doing a good job as parents. We worry that we don’t know what to do to get them under our control. Sometimes, we fast forward to the future and wonder if this is how they’re going to be the rest of their lives. And in doing that, our anxiety increases. Much better solution in these situations would be to prepare for your child to push your buttons and not take it personally. Your child is doing his “being a kid” job and your job is to remain calm so you can guide him.

The most important thing to remember about anger is not to act while you’re angry. You’ll feel an urgent need to act, to teach your child a lesson. But that’s your anger talking. It thinks this is an emergency. It almost never is, though. You can teach your child later, and it will be the lesson you actually want to teach. Therefore, commit to no hitting, no swearing, no calling your child names while angry.

The next time you find yourself getting inappropriately irritated or angry with your child try to put the interaction on hold and, if possible, take time to calm down. In this way, you can stop yourself from inflicting greater emotional damage in the heat of the moment and  give yourself the opportunity to reflect about what may have triggered your emotional reactions in the first place. Then you can reconnect with yourself and once again feel compassion for your children.

How to cope if close to yelling or snapping

Here are some tips to help you control your temper before you lose it:

Stop, drop and breathe.

The feeling of annoyance or anger at your child is a signal to stop. Drop everything else you’re doing, take a deep breath and count to 10. It also helps to repeat a mantra like “Everything will be ok” or “He’s acting like a child because he’s a child.”   Keep breathing slowly until you feel some calm flow through you. It gives you that tiny space between thought and action that lets you choose more wisely.

Put your own oxygen mask on first.

What will calm you right now?   A cup of tea on the back steps listening to the birds while the kids run around?  Putting on music and dancing with your kids while you all sing and shout as loudly as you can?   Do it for five minutes. You can always make it up somewhere else, and this will change the whole tone of your day.   After you’re calmer, you can revisit whatever was upsetting you with your child, and make things better.

Recognise triggers.

If the same things get to you all the time, then learning to recognise what triggers your temper can help you stay calm. Whether it’s a teenager’s attitude or a toddler’s never-ending use of the word ‘no’, knowing what can set you off can help you keep control. Even the fact that you’re aware you may lose your temper in that situation can be enough to stop you going down the shouty path.

Cheer up.

Try to find a way to laugh, which discharges the tension and shifts the mood. Even forcing yourself to smile sends a message to your nervous system that there’s no emergency, and begins calming you down. If you need to make a noise, hum. It can help to physically discharge your anger, so try putting on some music and dancing.

Turn “I must” into “I want”.

Define your priorities. “I must clean this mess” or “I want to teach my child to pick up his toys, and put an end to the toys everywhere”. Which statement is getting you closer to your “remain calm and find the way to finish what you have started without hurting anybody’s feelings” goal?

See the bigger picture.

Think about this for a moment. The next time you’re upset at your child, think if this is a situation that will affect you and your family a year from now. No? Then it’s probably not worth getting too worked up about. Remember that your child is exactly that, a child.   Don’t expect him to act as an adult.

Exercise.

Instead of letting the anger boil up inside you, offer to get yourself of the situation with your child and instead go for a walk around the block. You’ll both feel much better and calmer afterwards.

Finally, if nothing works go into your car with the windows rolled up and scream where no one can hear.

Your children get angry too, so it’s a double gift to them to find constructive ways to deal with your anger. You not only don’t hurt them, you offer them a role model. Your child will certainly see you angry from time to time, and how you handle those situations teaches children a lot.

“Support, not Perfection” program the Novak Djokovic Foundation launched last year brings some of the most effective methods to deal with this and other top parenting challenges.

For more information about the program email us at projects@novakdjokovicfoundation.org or share your experiences and impressions in the comment section below.

About the author

Smiljana Grujic  is a psychologist and psychotherapist dedicated to education. The focus of her work is compassionate communication and emotions management. Smiljana is the expert associate of the Novak Djokovic Foundation.

The post How to avoid losing your temper when your child won’t listen appeared first on Novak Djokovic Foundation.