Devyani Vij, a senior at The Dunham School, hopes to follow in her father’s footsteps in order to invoke change for a better and brighter future for everyone. At only 17 years old, Devyani is already working toward creating change by providing tools teenagers need to be financially literate. Through working with the Young Entrepreneurs Academy of Baton Rouge, Devyani has created the perfect financial tool: an app for teens that helps them with budgeting in a way that will hold their attention and teach them important financial skills. The inspiration came from her own experience in wanting to have a social life but also be smart with her money. This app will help teenagers successfully manage the two through games and incentives. The best part of the entire experience for her has been working with a mentor and learning the ropes of starting a business from the professionals themselves. In the fall, Devyani will be studying financial engineering at Columbia University. Over the years, she has pursued all of her interests. She has done musical theater (her favorite to watch is Hamilton), and she is a member of Spanish Club and Culture Club. She has also been playing piano for 10 years. She enjoys listening to music, watching movies (her favorite is the remake of Little Women), reading, and learning new things. She’s friendly, a hard worker, and certainly one amazing kid. ■

Staff members at Oak Grove Primary School recently received the perfect pick me up to help get their mornings started. Dutchtown Middle School students from “A Cup of Thanks” recently surprised the entire staff by setting up tea and coffee for the school’s staff to enjoy. “A Cup of Thanks” is a Service Learning project funded through a grant from The Joe W. and Dorothy Dorsett Brown Foundation in which special education students package and distribute cups to local heroes. The program teaches the students important social, self-help, communication, academic, and vocational skills. Oak Grove Primary is thankful for the students’ service.

Each year, the Diocese of Baton Rouge recognizes one fifth grade student and one eighth grade student who have demonstrated excellence in leadership, citizenship, and academics. Students who are selected must create a portfolio to showcase these three areas. After careful consideration of each candidate, the panel of judges selected Audrey Williamson and Benjamin Jones from St. Theresa Middle as the fifth and eighth grade Students of the Year, respectively. Both students have maintained a 4.0 GPA, are active members of their church, and are enrolled in several extracurriculars. St. Theresa Middle School is extremely proud of these students and their accomplishments and wishes them luck in all their future endeavors. In early 2021, Denham Springs High School junior Kameron Arceneaux developed an app called “InPocket’’ for a contest that requires students to create an app that provides a necessary service. Arceneaux’s app is designed to help people manage their money and keep track of their finances. On December 13, he was called into the Denham Springs High School Stem and Robotics Center for a presentation in which the school and U.S. Congressman Garret Graves announced that Arceneaux was the winner of the 2021 Congressional App Challenge for Louisiana’s 6th Congressional District. Arceneaux’s work will also be put on display in the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.

Students at Southside Elementary School recently got to speak via Zoom call with British author Kevin Crookes about his work. Crookes is a children’s book author who is currently working on a poetry animal alphabet book for children. He has also offered the Southside Elementary students an incredibly opportunity to work on illustrations for his new book. The names of the students will appear with their respective illustrations in the published book. “This is the first time I’ve partnered with a school to create a book,” says Crookes. “It’s an extremely exciting adventure.” You can purchase Crookes’ books on Amazon and visit his website at kdcrookes.com.

While the COVID-19 pandemic has certainly changed the way our students are learning, it’s not hindering them from achieving great things. East Baton Rouge Parish Schools have recently announced the 2021-22 Students of the Year in elementary, middle, and high school. The students to earn the honor this year include Victoria Williams of Baton Rouge Magnet High School, Grace Ding of Glasgow Middle School, and Adeline Guidry of Westdale Heights Elementary School. The Students of the Year awards are given to the outstanding students who have demonstrated excellence in leadership, citizenship, and academic and/or career and technical achievement.

The American Chemical Society recently named St. Michael the Archangel High School teacher Lorenzo Foster the High School Chemistry Teacher of the Year. Lorenzo has had a passion for science for as long as he can remember. After teaching multiple grades and sciences for 11 years, Lorenzo says he found his true calling in the high school chemistry classroom. His classes feature hands-on labs such as making ice cream and tie-dying periodic table t-shirts. “Throughout my teaching career, I have been able to share my love and passion for science, particularly chemistry, with my students,” he says. “Seeing my students reach their goals and knowing that I helped them get there, that’s what this is all about.”

BY PAM MOORE PHOTO BY KLEINPETER PHOTOGRAPHY 2021-22 LILA AND LISA W.

PODCAST

Haven’t we all left a copy of The Five

Love Languages on our partner’s side of the bed at some point? (Or maybe that’s just me.) According to the book’s author, Gary Chapman, the five love languages are: -Physical affection -Acts of service -Words of praise -Quality time -Receiving gifts

While you might hope to come home to flowers after an argument, your partner might prefer you volunteer to do the dishes to show you care. According to Chapman, the key to a healthy relationship is for each person to express love in their partner’s preferred love language, instead of their own.

Chapman says this concept applies to children, too. According to child therapist Megan Cronin Larson, a child’s primary love language typically emerges around age three or four. While you can respond to cues from your child to figure out what his or her love language is, in The 5 Love Languages of Children, Chapman encourages parents to use all five love languages with their children in order to lay a healthy foundation for future relationships.

Research shows that touch is vital to healthy neurodevelopment in infants. But the need for touch–whether a hug or a fist bump–doesn’t end with infancy. Physical affection lets children know you care, and that you will listen when they’re ready to talk. But what if your child’s love language is touch and you’re not a big hugger? Licensed psychotherapist and play therapist Brenna Hicks recommends parents “keep the physical touch small but consistent. [It] can be as simple as placing your hand on a child’s shoulder as you pass by, rubbing their head a few times on the couch, or giving them a quick kiss on the forehead. It isn’t necessarily long, bear hugs.”

You could… -Let him sit in your lap while you read to him (or have him read to you). -Give a back rub. -Put the couch cushions on the floor and have a WWF-style wrestling match. -Wash her hair. -Hold hands. -Invite her to snuggle while watching a movie.

As parents, our lives are a neverending blur of acts of service. How can we possibly do more? And why should we? There is a difference between responding to rapid-fire requests for snacks and help with school projects versus setting your phone aside, making eye contact, and offering to help, or taking time to do something extra special for your child. -Bring your child breakfast in bed (note: plan to change the sheets after breakfast). -Cook his favorite meal. -Cut their sandwiches into fun shapes (kitchen scissors or a cookie-cutter make it easier.) -Give a manicure.

Research shows we aren’t actually helping when we tell our children they’re great at everything. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t use praise to connect with them in a meaningful way; rather, we should be deliberate about what we say. Parents should strive to acknowledge the effort, not the outcome. For example, instead of saying “Nice job!” when your child comes down the slide, you could say, “I noticed how hard you worked to get up the ladder.”

You could… -Acknowledge how hard she’s working on something specific (e.g. “You’re putting so much effort into practicing your cartwheels/math problems/being kind to your little sister.”) -Say “I love you.” -Tell her three things you admire about her.

-Ask if he knows how lucky you feel that you get to be his parent. -“Catch her” being good. (e.g. “I really appreciate you doing your chores without being asked,” or “You were an awesome listener at the park.”)

Experts agree, play is the optimum way to engage in quality time with young children. Says Hicks, children “use play as their language and toys as their words. By playing with them, you learn more about them and meet their need for someone to share in their experience.” By adolescence, children are no longer interested in playing. They are often busy with school, friends, and activities. Jen Harrison, mom of busy twin teens, tries to focus completely on them in the rare moments they are together–and that this often happens in the car, which she describes as “our best quality time.”

You could… -Play hide and seek. -Engage in pretend play. -Go to the library. -Enjoy the outdoors together; walk, hike, or go for a bike ride. -Bake together. Younger children can be responsible for helping you pour ingredients into the mixing bowl with hand-over-hand supervision. They can also “help” by stirring a small amount of water and flour in a bowl. -Have a dance party. For older children, draw the shades first.

As with the other love languages, the importance of the gift is not the gift itself, but the intention behind it. As Hicks explains, “You can feel very confident that a gift need not cost money or be extravagant for your child to appreciate the extension of love.”

You could… -Surprise her with a homemade card. -Inscribe your old copy of a book you enjoyed at his age and give it to him. -Find an accessory or a piece of clothing you no longer wear and give it to your kids as a dress-up item. -Draw him a picture. -Build something for her if you’re handy (or brave).

No matter what love language you “speak” with your child, Cronin Larson reminds us that our full presence is the greatest gift we can give our children. So, put your phone down and connect with your child on Valentine’s Day and every day. ■