PLUS: Smokeless tobacco on rise, spanking leads to aggressive behavior, more
Mind Your Manners … Online — The Internet has given us many things—unparalleled connectivity, access to dizzying amounts of information and lolcats, to name a few. But it’s also given us a whole new way for youth and teens to harass and bully one another. But many children may not understand what cyberbullying is or why it’s such a big deal: Some children’s experts believe that many kids don’t understand that the Web is, essentially, a public forum—not a whispered conversation among friends. Now, an organization called Common Sense Media is offering free curriculum to schools that focuses on how to teach youth how to behave on the Internet. School districts in New York City and Omaha have taken Common Sense up on their offer, and several others are considering it. “You want to light a fire under someone’s fanny?” says Liz Perle, editor in chief of Common Sense Media. “Have your child post something that is close to a hate crime.” (New York Times)
Smokeless Tobacco Use on the Rise — While youth aren’t drinking, smoking or using illicit drugs in nearly the numbers they used to, more teens are using smokeless tobacco, and many point the finger of blame at tobacco-chewing baseball players. About a third of professional athletes in baseball use the stuff, according to research out of the Harvard School of Public Health. “The use of smokeless tobacco by players has a powerful role model effect on youth,” says Gregory Connolly, a Harvard professor, “particularly among young males in sport, some of whom ironically remain addicted in future careers as professional athletes.” (Reuters)
Spanking Sparks Aggressive Behavior — While the American Academy of Pediatrics have long been against the practice of spanking, many parents believe that a swift thwack to a child’s rear end is sometimes the most effective way to stop problematic behavior. And while that may be so in the short term, new research suggests that spanking can cause long-term issues. Experts at Tulane University discovered that children who had been spanked more frequently before they turned 3 were more likely to be aggressive at age 5. Researchers took into account a child’s inherent aggression levels, too, so the scientists are confident that spanking really does cause aggression — and that naturally more aggressive kids aren’t just more likely to be spanked. “I’m excited by the idea that there is now some nice hard data that can back up clinicians when they share their caution with parents against using corporal punishment,” says Dr. Jayne Singer of the Children’s Hospital Boston. (Time)
Chew on This Fashion Statement — You can’t say that Elizabeth Rasmuson doesn’t stick to her plans. The high school junior pieced together her entire prom dress from discarded chewing gum wrappers — and when she had some left over, she made her boyfriend a matching vest. (New York Daily News)
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