Felipe J Hernandez fhdez@islandnetjm.com wrote:
>>>
Ken
?
Very interesting read.. I see a couple of our assumptions being confirmed by
you.
but also 3/3 aint bad! you got your three children to get licenses under a
year!!!
?
If heavy brivary wasnt envolved then this is a clear story of success, and I
believe is much harder to get your own children to get interested in Ham radio
than what it is to get others to do it.
>>>
Hi Felipe -
Thanks for the note.?? In my case, I didn't have to use any more bribery than I
normally.?? I just tried to make it as fun as possible.?? Without getting too
deep into 'parenting technique' (way beyond the scope of this reflector) tricks
that have worked include:
- creating a 'ham radio war room', with big sheets of 2-foot x 3-foot white art
paper on the walls, so each time a concept came up that I needed to explain, I
would illustrate it with markers and tape the sheet on the wall.? after 3-4
months, we had 3 walls covered.?? But K3DIO's powerpoint slides are really
great to begin with.
- keeping the radio in the same room (a guest bedroom) as the study materials
so I could use it in demonstrations when we covered a topic (what does QRM
and?QRN mean, how does RIT work, or "let's check if we have any propagation on
80-meters during the day", etc.)
- SUGAR!!?? my 15-year old took a SAT-prep class where the instructor threw
Mars bars at the kids after they got a certain number of correct answers.?? My
son told me that was the 'coolest' teacher he ever had.?? When?trying to keep
kids' attention for 60-minutes straight, I do it in short increments and give
them rewards.? Popcorn, Mars bars, whatever works.
Functionally, I don't see much difference between saying 'Hey, let's do
60-minutes of radio and then go get ice cream" versus "Hey, how about you mow
the lawn (part of your allowance anyway) and then we'll go get ice cream."?? I
prefer to think of that as 'fun with Dad', not 'bribery' per se, but others
have a different definition
In general, my position with teenagers is "OK guys - lying around and doing
nothing is not an option.?? I have lots of great ideas of how to use your time
constructively (like radio), so if you don't have any better ideas, we'll use
mine today."??? That approach seems to work well enough.
Also I am not beyond presenting Amateur Radio as a 'differentiator' which can
help kids get into college, as long as they are passionate enough about some
aspect of it.?? I've even had them read some of the profiles of the ARRL
Foundation award winners.?? That line of argument tends to?resonate more?with
my 15-year old than my 10-year old, though.
I just keep changing the game plan until something works, since in my opinion
the 'end' (getting their licenses)?justifies the 'means'.?? It's sort of like
broccoli - it's good for them, although they might not?know it?yet.
73, Ken KE3X
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