The Mighty Pen!

Sponsored by BIC

Here at Vita Daily, we firmly believe in the power of the written word (does it show?)! And, when it comes to our tweens and teens, experts agree that writing by hand remains critical to a young person’s education and development, providing benefits ranging from building confidence to encouraging expression, inspiring creativity, developing critical thinking skills and promoting individuality.

So, with back to school upon us, we’re teaming up with our friends at BIC—who are passionate about encouraging young Canadians to "Dream Bright. Live Colourfully"— to offer the following tips and advice on how "goal mapping" using the hottest new writing tools can help inspire and educate tweens and teens far and wide. —Vita Daily

Crafting Your Roadmap to Success

It’s challenging for anyone—especially young people—to know where you’re going if you don’t have a roadmap to get there. Goal mapping is a critical strategy to give your tween or teen focus and help them visualize the upcoming year. Here’s how:

Start now. There’s no better time to start mapping out goals than at the beginning of the school year. Take some time to sit down with your teens and talk about their plans for a successful semester.

Ban the boring! Give your tween or teen bright, fun and colourful supplies to add vibrant creativity to the project. Try the new Gel-ocity Quick Dry gel pen (available in 13 bold colours, that offers a super-smooth writing experience featuring fast-drying ink), or the Cristal Up ballpoint pen (with eight vivid colours and trendy designs that bring creativity to life).

Talk it out. Discuss the framework for their goals. Maybe it’s achieving academic benchmarks. Maybe it’s finding a balance between school, athletics and social activities. Whatever the aspiration, the ultimate goal should be helping your tween or teen achieve happiness and a sense of accomplishment this school year.

Put it to paper. Encourage your tween or teen to pick up a pen or pencil and start plotting their path. Keep in mind, it’s not just about words on paper. This should be a creative endeavour, and can include exercises such as:

> Vision Boards: A mixture of drawings, doodles, written statements and inspirational images that all lead toward set goals
> Photo Journaling: Photos accompanied by handwritten notes that share feelings, reflect on experiences and integrate goals
> Mind Mapping: The identification of one key goal with various short labels, illustrations and action items inspired from this initial concept; continue branching out with purposeful objectives
> Daily Written Journals: If your teen is a natural writer, a daily journal is a fabulous tool for capturing ideas on paper; if daily journals are intimidating, try five-minute or 52-week journals to set intention, track growth and inspire regular reflection
> Goal Flowcharts: For the analytical teen, map out goals at the top of the page and identify the steps involved in achieving each goal compartmentalized below; use bright colours to make it easier to follow, and to add a little fun

Make the words come alive. Sometimes a picture really is worth a thousand words! Visual representation of text invokes emotion and communicates the passion behind the goal in a unique way. If your teen isn’t interested in talking about their goals, showing a pictorial representation can be a great conversation starter.

Make it a family activity. Parents can participate by sharing their goals too, making everyone accountable and taking some pressure off their teens.

And finally, remember: just like our tweens and teens, no two goal mapping exercises will ever be the same!

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