Into the void of parenting books for fathers seeking parenting assistance comes Peter Atkinson's WOW DAD! books. The title will get fathers' attention, but mothers, don't be put off, for there are wonderful ideas for both mothers and fathers in the books.
- John Hunsley, PhD, CPsych
Portable; For instant fun indoors and out, anywhere and anytime
Simple; no long list of materials here - just fun...and learning
Variety: From math to magic, lots of different activities to keep things fresh and interesting
Great for BUSY, TIRED fathers who want to be GOOD FATHERS. This book should be part of every parents' toolbox, A great book that brings back memories of games I played as a kid. Every parent should share these games, activities and tricks with their children.
- A reader from Gibbsboro, NJ
Fresh and innovative ideas with a minimum if any props - full of super ideas that make me a super mom to my child. This book is a great contribution to any parent or child caregiver. It is a great way to share with your child - educate yes, and great fun!
- A reader from Ontario, Canada
A great little book full of suggestions that are simple yet awe-inspiring for the young. A useful book for parents and caregivers, grandparents and others involved with children.
It has great ideas that will entertain and amuse any kid. I used it to keep my kids busy on our flight back home. It amused us in various ways and we truly did spend quality time together as a family. This book is highly recommended! Being a teacher, I used it in school as well and wow did I get my kids' attention.
- A reader from Singapore
You know that if you're making math fun, you must really be a great parent. These simple math games just might do the trick.
You could use a calculator for some of these but you might also get older children to do the calculations themselves; often once they see the answers they want to work out the pattern to see how it happened. "What?" you say. "A child doing math voluntarily?" It can happen.
Take any number between 1 and 9, add 3, multiply by 2, subtract 2, divide by 2, subtract 2 again and you get the original number.
For example, using 5:
5 + 3 = 8, x2 = 16, -2 = 14, /2 = 7, -2 = 5
There are lots of license plate games. Start by making up phrases using licence plate letters.
For example, my license plate of FHV 709; could mean a fairly heavy vehicle, fried hot vegetables or flying high vultures. This can also introduce the idea of something called mnemonics, (which for some reason is pronounced 'nemonics', like that first m isn't even there), which means using phrases to help remember things.
You can emphasize the mnemonics aspect by adding one rule; that the phrase has to be relevant to something, but you can give a lot of leeway on the something. It might be the car the license plate is on, where you are, where youre going, what time of day, etc.
While we're talking about the sky, here's a simple way to remember the order of the planets. In order moving away from the sun, they are: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn Uranus and Neptune. (Remember that Pluto was demoted from a planet and so isnt included on this list).
But anyway, its not the names that are so hard to remember, it's the order. So try passing on this memory trick using the first letter of each planets name:
My Very Educated Mother
Just Served Us Nachos
There you have it. Much easier, isn't it?
I wrote this song for Scott almost 20 years ago when he was just a few months old and I was travelling a lot.
I think it's a good message to give every child: "No matter where I go, your Daddy thinks the world of you".
There's more but...well, give it a listen. I hope you like it.
For better or worse, I'm to blame for most of the noises you'll hear but I have to give enormous thanks to Deni Gauthier of Second Records for his magical abilities to make me sound better than I am.
I'm working on a downloadable version; if you'd like a free copy, <blush> please just send me an email.
Peter Atkinson is a dad, but long before that I was a child, born in Ottawa, Canada in 1961.
After the usual schooling and some unremarkable jobs, I began a career in the hotel industry, where my first job was setting up tables and chairs in the meeting rooms of the Chateau Laurier Hotel in Ottawa. I eventually worked my way to the hotel front desk, where I was the worst cashier in the hotel's long and distinguished history. But I persevered and ended up working in several countries, holding senior positions with major hotel groups and a consulting firm.
My son Scott was born in 1992. Shortly thereafter the family moved to California where, after a divorce, the seeds of Wow Dad! were sown out of my own insecurities as a new father and wanting to be a big part of Scotts life.
Scott and I returned to Canada in 1998 where Wow Dad! was originally published as a trade paperback. Now back in Ontario, I'm very happily remarried. Long involved in the business end of the Internet, I see the boom in e-books as a perfect platform to spread the message and the benefits of the Wow Dad! books.
Scott is a young man now and has grown beyond the ideas in these books. But we can still have a laugh as we share the moments and memories that we created together.
I'm a dad, but long before that I was a child, born in Ottawa, Canada in 1961.
After the usual schooling and some unremarkable jobs, I began a career in the hotel industry, where my first job was setting up tables and chairs in the meeting rooms of the Chateau Laurier Hotel in Ottawa. I eventually worked my way to the hotel front desk, where I was the worst cashier in the hotel’'s long and glorious history. But I persevered and eventually ended up holding senior positions with major hotel groups and a consulting firm.
My son Scott was born in 1992. Shortly thereafter the family moved to California where, after a divorce, the seeds of Wow Dad! were sown out of my own insecurities as a new father and my determination to be a big part of Scott’'s life.
Scott and I returned to Canada in 1998. Now back in Ontario, I am very, very happily remarried. Long involved in the business end of the Internet, I believe that the boom in e-books is a perfect platform to spread the message and the benefits of Wow Dad! books.
If you have a question, a comment or a fun idea I'd love to hear from you.
