There is an amazing opportunity that comes from sewing whether you're working with your own children or somebody else's. It's the opportunity to give a gift that can last a lifetime, and benefits both the child and yourself.

Here is a sad research finding, from1998. "Research show that stay-at-home moms spend about 30 minutes a day conversing with their kids, and mothers who work outside the home spend fewer than 11 minutes. Now, if we assume that half of that time the parent is doing the talking, listening time drops to 15 minutes for the stay-at-home mom and 5.5 minutes for the working mom." (Sharon Jaynes, Being A Great Mom, Raising Great Kids, pg.47)

Considering all of the technology that has been added to our lives, it would not surprise me if these numbers have decreased in the last 9 years.

Studies have proven, that a child's success in school and later on in life, have more to do with someone showing that they are interested in who they are, believing in them, and loving them unconditionally than their IQ, household income, or outward appearance.

Here are examples of two such studies: 1. "A study was done in a classroom by Robert Rosenthal, a Harvard psychologist, and Lenore Jacobson, a San Francisco school principal..., in which a group of kindergarten through fifth-grade students was given a learning ability test. The next fall the new teachers were casually told the names of five or six children who were designated as "spurters." The tests supposedly revealed that they had exceptional learning ability. Unbeknownst to the teachers, the names of the "spurters" had been chosen randomly. At the end of the school year, all the students were retested. The pupils whom the teachers thought had the most potential had gained fifteen to twenty-seven IQ points. Plus, the teachers described these children as happier, more curious, more affectionate, and having a better chance of success in later life than the average student. But the only change in that school year from the one before was the teachers' attitude. Because the teachers expected more of certain students, those children came to expect more of themselves." (Sharon Jaynes, Being A Great Mom, Raising Great Kids, pg.128)

2. "A study was conducted on two hundred boys from the Baltimore slums to predict their future success. Each boy's evaluation was the same: 'He hasn't got a chance.' Twenty-five years later, a follow-up study was done on the same boys. Of the 180 men located, 176 were successful lawyers, doctors, or businessmen. When asked to what they attributed their success, each mentioned a particular teacher's name.

The teacher was still alive, so the researchers sought her out and asked the old but alert lady what magic formula she had used to pull these boys from the slums into successful achievement. The teacher's eyes sparkled, and her lips broke into a gentle smile. 'It's really very simple. I loved those boys.'"(Sharon Jaynes, Being A Great Mom, Raising Great Kids, pg.119) This woman, in the second study, possibly had only one year to teach these kids, probably one hour a day, and that hour was spent with at least 20 other children. Yet her "love" effected their entire life!

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