May_2017_Voice_of_SWLA_Mag

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Q&Awith Linda Simien - Educator {Linda Simien is a divorced mother, grandmother, educator and tutor that taught in Calcasieu Parish for 38 years. She has three successful children: Jamar Simien, LSU Graduate, Nominated 2016 Texas High School Outstanding Art Educator and also painted a portrait of Louisiana’s first lady Donna Edwards. Two daughters, Lori Ross, MSU Graduate-The Voice of SWLA-Marketing, (Jonathan Ross and three sons). Jene’ Smith, MSU Graduate-Clear Creek Houston Independent School District, (Sean Smith and a daughter and son). Happy Mother' s Day By Jessica Hunt and Brenda Hill QHow important is it to recognize God-given talents/gifts in a child? ALinda: It is of great importance that a parent is aware of their child’s interests and natural abilities. Once there is a clear understanding of what their child seems to gravitate towards, it is up to the parent to create a safe environment for those traits to be cultivated into meaningful skills that the child will carry for a lifetime. QHow do you recognize a child’s talents/gifts? ALinda: It’s important to carefully observe your child and have a good understanding of what truly makes them happy and what holds their interest. Every child is different. What makes them happy and hold their attention is usually what enables them to deal with stressful situations, even as a child. QHow do you nurture a child’s talents/gifts? ALinda: You nurture by genuinely encouraging your child and give them permission to be confident and pursue their interests. Instilling confidence fosters the child’s passion and enables them to explore who they are, and who they want to be. QWhat do you wish you would have known as a young mother that you learned while rearing your children? ALinda: While rearing my children I learned that the single most important thing that I could teach them was to be confident. Instilling confidence in a child teaches them to try their hardest and never give up. Once the child gains confidence, faith in God and faith in self, they will get through adversities in their life. The “can’t never could” philosophy is a good one to instill in a child because they grow to realize that if at first you don’t succeed, try again, no one is perfect and it is ok to make a mistake. A child who lacks confidence in today’s world could become discouraged and stop trying to reach his or her goals in life. Just as the old saying, “You can lead a horse to water, but can’t make it drink unless you feed it lots of salt,” so giving a large amount of love and praise for big and little achievements will go a long way on a child’s journey in life. You are what you think you are and our tongue can be used to either bless or curse. The book, The Little Engine that Could is a good book to read to a young child when trying to instill confidence. QWhat significant changes have you observed in students from the first start of your teaching career to now? ALinda: I find that students today do not come as prepared and ready for learning as in my beginning teaching phase. Many times because of parents’ work schedules children are released from school to go home to a grandmother or sitter, older kids or just to an empty home. Include the many challenges in this world today and it can be quite difficult for parents to work and meet all of a child’s needs. Students are given a lot more responsibilities today 24 May 2017 WWW.THEVOICEOFSOUTHWESTLA.COM Volume 4 • Number 8
and there's a lot more pressure for them too. QPlease share some key tips for mother/son relationships? ALinda: Mothers should teach their sons about love and how to love. Women have sensibilities that men don’t have, so teaching proper communication skills is key. It’s also important for a mother to teach her son that setting high expectations can encourage the people around them to reach higher. Respect, trust and support must be taught in order for her son to approach his future relationships with women in the same way. QPlease share some key tips for mother/ daughter relationships? ALinda: It is important for a mother to model positive female traits to her daughter. Similar to a son, respect, trust and support must be taught in order for her daughter to approach her future relationships with men in the same way. Even though some girls seem to stray away while they are young, as they mature they typically grow closer to their mother and respect her in a different manner, and with more appreciation. QHow involved should grandmothers be in parenting grandchildren ALinda: It takes a village to raise a child. As a grandmother, my grandchildren will look to me for guidance and encouragement in their lives and I should always try to point them in the right direction. The birth of a grandchild is one of life’s greatest joys. Grandmothers usually have time to devote to their grandchildren because most mothers work. Wisdom is a gift that grandmothers can share which will allow grandchildren to perhaps live a better life and not make the same mistakes as we have made in the past. QWhen I first heard about you, I was told that you are very spiritual. How has your spirituality influenced your various roles? AMy faith is of vast importance, especially when it comes to rearing a child. Without it, it is very difficult to solve situations that we encounter on our journey. Teaching our children how to develop a relationship with God during good times and bad times allow the child to know that through God all things are possible. God says yes, no, wait, or, my strength in you is sufficient. QI was really blown away by how your children are coming back to you and saying that this taught them many things. Can you tell me about that? AAs a parent I wanted better for my children not worse. I felt that I had let them down and I had to pray about that. My children understood. They said to me, “Mom, we can do this. We will all pull together.” So my children and I came up with a plan, and that plan was, ‘everybody’s gonna go to work.’ I worked two jobs, and that was through a lot of prayer. In my prayer I said to God, “I can't do this.” But you can. I had a can and on it was written “I Can God Can.” So I would put my petitions in there and prayed. My children tell me now how pulling together taught them responsibility, how to save and how to get along with other people. So if you take a bad situation and look at it in a positive manner, it can turn into something a lot better than you expected. QWhat are some helpful tips for divorced parents with children? ALinda: It is important for parents of children involved in divorce to help the child understand that it is not their fault. Many children try to bear the weight of an adult problem that they will never be able to solve. Instead of putting the child in the middle of the problem, the parent should take the opportunity to make parental conflict a formative experience for the child. Divorce can be a teachable moment in a child’s life. It builds character and gives ability to deal with adversity and learn from it, instead of running from it. The child can also use what they learned from the experience to teach others and let them know that divorce is not an excuse for failure. Also, a child who is a product of a divorce should be given counseling. This will help the child understand that they are loved by both parents even though they do not live together in the same house. QAs an educator and tutor, how do you handle kids who are struggling? AChildren struggle with reading. I tell them it is okay. You are going to get there. Practice makes perfect. You may not read like your mama but you are going to read better than you were reading when you first started. It's going to click. It may not happen right now. It's going to take a lot of time, a lot of work on your part, my part and your parent, but one day you're going to be able to read and that's going to be awesome. But we must go back and learn those letters and sounds first because we put them together to make words. Reading is a process. They get happy and after that it only gets better. QIn your experience of working with at risk students, how do you manage their unique needs? ALinda: I have a minor in Special Education and my heart has always gone out to children and people who struggle. First, I pray and ask the Lord to show me how to work with them. It makes me feel good to see them get out of a bad situation. It's a big reward for me if I can help turn it around. They don't care how much you know until they know how much you care. Once they know you care about them, they tend to want to work to make you happy, in most cases. Children have to know that you see them, you hear them, you feel them and you got them. QWhat advice can you give to parents and teachers about finding that 'Good Place' where you are pushing the child enough but not too much so that you are lowering the standard? AWell, I start at the higher level at the beginning because I expect the best and the most for each child. I tell the parents “Look, if you see any signs of frustration get with me and we can make some adjustments. I want children to like school, like learning, and like me.” QHow can a mother help her child(ren) cope with death? (father, grandparent, sibling, etc.) A Linda: She can pray with them, cry with them, go to the grave with them and encourage them. Most of all teach them humility by letting them know that God gave His Son for the world. Tell them it is ok for us to give up our loved ones, because dying is part of the life process. If it is death of the father, link the son with a strong family role model because I could only be my son’s mother, not his father. Daughters tend to lean on the mother. Volume 4 • Number 8 WWW.THEVOICEOFSOUTHWESTLA.COM May 2017 25
Page 1 and 2: May 2017 Vol 4 No 8 Happy Motherʼs
Page 3 and 4: editor’s PEN By Brenda Hill Mercy
Page 5 and 6: SWLA news I-10 Bridge DOTD & DEQ Wh
Page 7 and 8: SWLA non-profit The First c c Delta
Page 9 and 10: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE SWLA Contact:
Page 11 and 12: Photos by Tori Hebert Tori Hebert P
Page 13 and 14: Saturday book signing at Stellar Be
Page 15 and 16: Reflective Light A Cowboy’s Delib
Page 17 and 18: SWLAUnconditional Love Easter's Tip
Page 19 and 20: SWLA women's health Understanding M
Page 21 and 22: about reading The Voice of Southwes
Page 23: Rediscover Feeling HEALTHY ...use S
Page 27 and 28: SWLA entertainment Starks Mayhaw Fe

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