Celebrate World Read Aloud Day & Encourage Your Child To Read Books

You will agree that reading a book in this day and age is gradually taking a back seat especially as technology continues to advance. 

This is why having a day like World Read Aloud Day to remind us is very vital. The 16th of February is that day set aside to motivate children, teens, and adults worldwide to celebrate the power of words and reading.

World Read Aloud Day is celebrated by millions of people in more than 100 countries and is a day dedicated to reading aloud. It started in 2010 and was established by Litworld, an organisation founded to advocate Global literacy. 

This global literacy movement is about taking action to show the world that the right to read and write belongs to everyone. The day is meant to be celebrated by grabbing a book, finding an audience, and reading out loud.

Research shows that over 800 million people worldwide cannot read a book or even sign their name and literacy is a human rights issue.

According to Pam Allyn, the founder of Litworld, by learning to read, we all have access to information, the power of shared stories of the human experience, and a way to connect with one another. 

Through books and stories we can introduce children, and even ourselves, to people outside of our immediate community and also get to improve our knowledge of so many things.

So, I encourage you to read aloud to anyone who might like it, share a book with a child who might need it, share a story with someone who would treasure it, listen to someone else as they read to you and enjoy the gift of reading in every way possible.

All rights reserved (2017) ®  Bimbo Olasope

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Family Affirmations;I Believe In My Child

As a parent, your affirmation for your child daily should be " I believe in my child'

This should hold true even if the child struggles academically or otherwise.

It is so easy to compare a child with either a sibling or classmate BUT you must understand that children develop in different ways and have got different temperaments.

However, you must keep believing in them ALWAYS as that will encourage them to be more

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Family Affirmations; Encourage Your Child To Excel

As a parent, this is one affirmation we should always have in mind.

Encourage your child to excel physically, spiritually, emotionally and academically

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7 Year Old Girl Applies For Job At Google

One is never too young or old to dream and a 7 year old girl, Chloe Bridgewater proves this as she recently applied for a job at Google, one of the biggest tech companies in the world.

She sent Google a handwritten letter stating her computer skills and expressing her interest in working with the tech giant.

One of her reasons might be because Google provides bean-bag chairs, go-karts and slides for their employees and the work environment is very laid back.

The amazing thing is that Google CEO, Sundar Pichai actually replied Chloe and says he looks forward to receiving her job application once she grows up. 

Her father, Andy Bridgewater says he continues to encourage his daughter to be a good student and get goo grades and that one day she just might have a job at Google.

PHOTO CREDIT: ANDY BRIDGEWATER

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Black History Month Naija Style, Meet 15 yr Old Kimberly Anyadike & Sister Who Broke Flying Records

Every child has got the ability to excel but they need parents who believe in them and are ready to support them. Such is the case of the Anyadike sisters who make our Naija Style Black History hall of fame today.

Both girls, born to Nigerian parents, have gone ahead to break records in aviation in the USA. At the age of 16 years old in 2008, Kelly Anyadike broke the world record by flying solo, four different fixed-wing aircrafts in a single day!

Meanwhile a year after that in 2009, her sister, Kimberly Anyadike at the age of 15, became the first Nigerian American to fly across the United States. She flew from Compton, California to Newport News, Virginia and it took her 13 days to complete the flight of over 7,000 miles.

Their parents are Igbos from Nigeria, and their surname, Anyadike means (Eye of a Warrior) in the Igbo language. They registered their children at the Tomorrow's Aeronautical Museum, TAM, which offers aviation lessons in an after-school program for disadvantaged youths. It was here that Kimberley learned to fly at age 12.

TAM is run by Tuskegee Airmen Foundation, a foundation that has a history of fighting in the World War II. The foundation is made up of a group of African American pilots.

According to Kimberly, her dream of flying was inspired by a group of airmen and the first African American female to travel in space among others. She took aviation lessons as well as youth mentoring at TAM and paid for her flying lessons through several regular and odd jobs such as washing airplanes as well as running other errands.


That is not all, during this period, she also maintained an outstanding academic record which was one of the criteria to remain in the program. Kimberly said she was never scared and always prayed before every flight she took.

Despite her passion for flying, she wants to become a cardiovascular surgeon and is studying hard to achieve this. Both Kelly and Kimberly Anyadike mentor other kids to believe in themselves and not limit their options when it comes to education and employment.

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Family Quotes; Put Your Family In Order And The Nation Will Be In Order

Like they say, charity begins at home. What values are you exposing your child to? What actions do they pick from you? What do they see you do or say?

It is important to put your family in order to put our nation in order. If every family raises up children with correct values, it will reflect in the leaders of tomorrow who make up our nation.

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Empower A Child Today With Positive Words, Buy Them Kidfirmations

Its always a big deal to empower children and that is what Kids Station School Ajah have done with their purchase of Kidfirmations.

Kidfirmations is a list of ten positive affirmations that children can recite everyday to boost their confidence and self esteem.

It is no secret that there is so much power in words and if you can get a child to believe in themselves then there will be a better chance of having bolder and more confident children.

Need I say more? Order for yours today....bulk purchase attracts a special discount. Take advantage of this offer and empower a child today!

Call Bunmi on 07069171767 to make your order today.

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Family Funtime With Aunty Bimbo Celebrates Black History Month Naija Style

We start our own Nigeria Black History month of February with Samuel Ajayi Crowther who was the first African bishop of the Anglican Church and the man who translated the Bible into the Yoruba language. Though many people don’t know, he was also instrumental in the translation of the Bible into the Ibo language as well.

He was born in Iseyin, Oyo state but when he was just 12 years old, some slave traders captured his family and sold them as slaves to Portuguese slave merchants in 1821. Luckily for Ajayi Crowther, he was released in Freetown, Sierra Leone by the Anglican Christian Missionary Society who took care of him and that was how he converted to Christianity and was taught the English language.

To show his appreciation, he named himself after the vicar of the church, Samuel Crowther and that is how he officially became known as Samuel Ajayi Crowther. 

He became very interested in languages and was taken to England to study after which he returned to Freetown, Sierra Leone. By now he had mastered the Greek and Latin languages as a linguist and eventually became a teacher in the Fourah bay College.

It was around this time he started translating the Bible into the Yoruba language and also working on a yoruba dictionary. In 1843, a grammar book which he started working on during the Niger expedition was published and a Yoruba version of the Anglican Book of Common Prayer followed later.

Ajayi Crowther loved languages so much he also compiled a vocabulary of the Yoruba language including a large number of local proverbs. He also produced a primer for the Igbo language in 1857 and a primer for the Nupe language in 1860.

Samuel Ajayi Crowther died in 1891 but had established himself as a prominent feature in East Africa and also a respectable figure in both the Anglican church and the wider academic community with his work in linguistics.

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Family Affirmations With Aunty Bimbo; I Teach My Child About God

Research shows that a lot of religious terrorists start being groomed and brainwashed from when they are children.

What are you teaching your child about God? What are you telling your child about God? What are you showing your child about God?

#dailyaffirmations 

#familyaffirmations 

#auntybimbo

#marypoppinsofparenting

#familyfuntimeshow

#ffab

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How Hugs Can Help Improve Your Family Bond

When last did you give any member of your family a hug? How often do you give any member of your family a hug? Does giving a hug to any member of your family come naturally to you? These are some of the questions I need you to ponder on today as we discuss how hugs can improve your family bond.


Due to the very busy world we live in nowadays, it is becoming very easy to spend less time with your family and even when you get to spend time with them, it is filled with doing just the basic necessities.

However, something as simple as giving your child or spouse a hug before dashing off to your busy day can actually go a very long way. This is because a a hug can mean love or attention to your child or spouse. The truth is that a hug can let someone know you care without having to say a word as it communicates more than actually speaking.

A few weeks ago, the 21st of January 2017 precisely was National Hugging Day and even though it was celebrated in many countries internationally, it was on a serious low key right here in Nigeria. I know some people will say it is not in our culture to hug but do you know that there are actually health benefits associated to hugging?

According to researchers at Harvard University, hugs help promote normal levels of cortisol necessary for child development and it has been proven that babies need hugs as much as water and food!

Below are 6 major health benefits of hugs:

1. Hugs can make you feel happy because when you hug another person, your bodies releases oxytocin which is a hormone associated with happiness, according to scientific studies.

2. Hugs have been found to reduce stress because it increases your oxytocin levels and decreases your cortisol or “stress” levels.

3. Hugs can improve your game. This is according to Scientists at University of California, Berkley who discovered that the more affectionate members of a team are with each other, the more likely they are to win.

4. A hug stimulates the thymus gland, which in turn regulates the production of white blood cells that keep us healthy and disease-free. In other words, a hug a day keeps the doctor away!

5. Researchers at Carnegie Mellon have proven that individuals who were sick and received hugs had less severe symptoms and were able to get better quicker.

5. Research from University of North Carolina also show that a good hug helps ease blood flow and lower cortisol levels, which in turn help lower our heart rates.

A Hug can also be broken down as an acronym to mean;
H-Help
U- Understanding
G- Gift

Helping others is a major function of being a member of a family as you are concerned about your spouse or child's welfare. So also the ability to understand members of your family will help you all live together with less strife and more love. Finally, giving gifts shows how much you care about each other.

So before you turn down the idea of giving a hug to either your child or spouse, remember what the hug signifies and feel free to give that hug wholeheartedly . Simply see it as building a stronger bond with your family.


All rights reserved (2017) ® Bimbo Olasope

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Special Valentine Offer, Advertise On Radio For Just N20,000

Get a long mileage in front of your ideal customers that will ensure you make that sale! Stop winking in the dark and take advantage of our special offer! Let's help you put the light on so more people can see how wonderful your offerings are.

You can get to talk about your goods and services on radio for 5 minutes, get a post on our blog, Facebook and Instagram page, ALL for just N20,000 (twenty thousand naira only)

Advertise with the Family Funtime With Aunty Bimbo radio show today, you will be glad you did! Kindly send a mail to familyfuntimeng@gmail.com or call 07069171767 for more details.

This special valentine offer consists of the following:

Benefits:

More visibility for your products & services

Wider reach for your target audience

Online real time advantage

More social media presence

Eventually more customers

Features:

Radio Interview

Blog Feature

Facebook Feature

Instagram feature 

Twitter Feature

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Get More Visibility For Your School On Family Funtime With Aunty Bimbo (FFAB) School Showcase

Mrs Ariyibi sent me a message earlier this month telling me how she has changed school for her 7 year old daughter Fola, 3 times already in the past few years and wants to change her school again. 

She was asking me to recommend a school for her and it was in the process of asking her the reasons why she chose the previous schools that I realised she barely even knew anything about the schools she chose for her daughter in the first place.

The decision of choosing a school for your child is one of the most important decisions a parent will take for their child and getting it right can be critical to your child's development. 

I get asked so many times to recommend a school for children but the truth is there are so many good schools out there that cater to children in so many ways and unfortunately I don't know them all.

However, I choose to be a compass that will help navigate parents and families in the right direction hence the Family Funtime With Aunty Bimbo (FFAB) School Showcase, a service that will serve as a map that highlights the features of schools with a first hand interview with them to let us into what they have to offer students and parents alike.

Schools who take advantage of the FFAB School Showcase offer will get the following:

Features:

Radio Interview

Blog Feature

Facebook Feature

Instagram feature 

Twitter Feature

Benefits:

More visibility for your school

Wider reach for your target audience

Online real time advantage

More social media presence

Eventually register more students

If you are a school that wants to subscribe for this service, kindly call Bunmi on 08029762167 or send a mail to familyfuntimeng@gmail.com for clarification of terms and conditions.

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Family Affirmation Study Wk3; I Get Better Everyday

WEEK 3 : I GET BETTER EVERYDAY

What Does It Mean To Get Better?

                                  

This affirmation is to help children improve on their skills both academically and even socially. It is about encouraging your child on continuous improvement and not resting on his/her oars. The goal of this affirmation is to replace bad habits with good ones and saying this affirmation regularly will change their way of thinking.

When your child thinks of improving themselves and getting better everyday, it will help them use their minds in a positive and uplifting way. Automatically, the brain will start looking for ways to actually help them get better because the affirmation is already programming it subconsciously to think that way. 

Your child gradually starts to think of how he or she can do better with their assignments, tests and examinations. Affirmations help you learn how to think and talk positively. 

Saying I AM GETTING BETTER EVERYDAY will help your child use their thoughts to create their actual experience and you see them actually get better as the days go by.

While growing up can be fun, it also brings with it times of doubt and failure. Sometimes as parents we don’t know how to help our children with these feelings of helplessness because we always want them to feel good about themselves.

However, we need to get our children to sometimes help themselves which is what this affirmation does as it gives them the right mindset on getting better everyday and this will build their belief system which will serve as the foundation of their entire life.

All rights reserved (2017) ®  Bimbo Olasope

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#marypoppinsofparenting

#familyfuntimeshow

#ffab

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Updates From The Family Funtime Show With Aunty Bimbo (FFAB) #FamilyFuntimeChronicles

It has been an amazing time thus far on Family Funtime© With Aunty Bimbo (FFAB) on radio. The show debuted to an amazing audience of parents, children and caregivers which reflected via incessant phone calls all through the show and a wide reach and interaction via social media especially the Facebook Page: Family Funtime© With Aunty Bimbo.

The show continues to empower families via its content which is a mix of fun and learning to achieve its primary aim with positive feedback on many fronts stating how they always look forward to it and some people via Instagram said that they have recurring alarms set up on their phones already to ensure they don't miss the show which comes up every Saturday on Kiss Fm Lagos 98.9 from 11am to 12noon.

In the past couple of weeks, Aunty Bimbo and her crew of Ayokunmi and Ayolana have hosted Curriculum Expert, Rhoda Odigboh and Creative Educator, Queenette Enilama on the show and it was amazing learning from them.

There was clarification on different types of curriculum and the difference between a lesson teacher and a tutor. Just in case you have been wondering, a Tutor is actually the professional name for a lesson teacher.

You can also be a part of the show by sending a mail to Auntybimbokids@gmail.com and showcase your services to the world via our medium at affordable and flexible rates. There is also a Family Funtime Club open to children from ages of 3 to 15, all they need to do is to send their name, age, class and birthday to 07069171767. 

Make sure you join the Family Funtime© train every Saturday on  Kiss Fm Lagos 98.9 from 11am to 12noon. For Sponsorship and advert bookings kindly send a mail to familyfuntimeng@gmail.com or call 07069171767

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Good News For Parents As Lagos State Kicks Off Child Protection Policy

With the increasing rate of child sexual abuse in recent times, it is comforting to know that appropriate steps are being taken by the authorities to reduce this menace to children in the society.

The Lagos State Government has commenced implementation of the Executive Order ratified by Governor Akinwunmi Ambode on December 16, 2016 which established the Lagos State Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy.

The Executive Order highlights the importance and priority which the State Government placed towards protecting the lives of children and it applies to all State Government organisations, all schools, child centered institutions, orphanages and child related institutions located in the State, both public and private.

Speaking during the annual general meeting and intervention programme put together by the Office of Education Quality Assurance which was attended by over 1,000 participants, Coordinator of Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team (DSVRT), an agency under the Lagos State Ministry of Justice, Titilola Vivour-Adeniyi said the State Government was determined to implement the Executive Order to ensure the protection of children.

She said the need for the landmark engagement was crucial considering the fact that schools have resumed and there was need for key stakeholders such as principals, school administrators, Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), public and private school guidance counsellors, evaluators and others, to become conversant with and abreast of the provisions of the policy.

According to Vivour-Adeniyi, “The Lagos State Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy must be used wherever services are provided for children and care givers are mandated to adopt a Child Protection policy in their respective institutions, nuanced to suit their respective peculiarities.

“The major aim of the policy is to provide clear direction for reporting disclosures of abuse and commitment to the development of good practice and sound procedures to keep children safe.

“The policy also ensures that child protection concerns are identified, referrals are handled sensitively, professionally and in ways that support the needs of the child’s wellbeing.”

The DSVRT Coordinator also used the medium to sound a very clear warning to all Child centered institutions both public and private, that the State Government would no longer tolerate negligence in ensuring the safety of children under their supervision and failure to adopt and implement the policy would amount to both civil and criminal actions.

Besides, copies of the policy in the form of booklets were distributed to all participants, while the participants were also informed of their mandatory duty to report actual or suspected child abuse cases, and consequences for failure to report.

SOURCE: WWW.AKINWUNMIAMBODE.COM

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Mothers Pampering Series Wk 4; We Celebrate Madam Adenike Adebusola Awe

Since I started the Mothers Pampering Series, my antenna to any news about impact-making mums has been on an all time high so it was no mistake that I stumbled across Top Radio OAP, Wyse's tribute to his mum on her birthday and it got me gushing.

This is because most men don't come across as emotional but it seems good mothers actually get them all lovey-dovey which is why Madam Adenike Adebusola Awe is making it on the Mothers Pampering Series Hall Of Fame today.

Wyse is one of the most hardworking OAPs I know and personally, he was one of my first teachers who helped chart my path into the media world. Below are his exact words in describing his mum which I find very deep and worth reflecting on.

"I came by God through you many years ago and I have never regretted my channel and source of entry into this world.


You gave, are giving and will still give everything you have and you are to make us happy because you are a true Abiyamo to o to! (a true mother)


I grew up watching you live a life full of the Fear of God, in total surrender to his will, ways and directions. I see the hunger in your eyes to see us succeed, the passion in your life to ensure all is well with us,  the faith in your eyes to tell us all will be well with us, the few spanks to keep us in line, your soothing words of advice and encouragement that echoes in our heart and resonates in our minds when you are not physically present, the love that remains a background tune even in your scolds.


A true mother with a tender heart and a woman with a man's heart. Your journey is sure still filled with plenty of Joy because that all that surrounds you.



You will live many more years in good health and age gracefully with peace of mind, e De Jeun Omo lagbara Olorun"


N.B Watch out for the next Mother I will be celebrating….you want it to be your Mama? Send me an email at (auntybimbokids@gmail.com) with her picture and details about her and let the whole world celebrate this woman who birthed you.

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