Lion Stress

Listening when the answer is no!

By Belinda Jackson

Set in the heart of Africa with lions, elephants, rhinos, buffalos and leopards – THE BIG FIVE. Three little African children Mandla, Becka and Sipho are bored and have nothing to do. The Chief said ‘no’ to go swimming, but the children decided they knew better and went on an adventure anyway; little did they know they were being followed by a lioness. They almost find themselves in hot water but are saved.

This book is educational, not only will your child learn about the importance of listening when the answer is no, they will learn about the African big five and little five. Your child will also learn to match the footprints to the animal. Other fun educational activities include spot the differences, sequence activity and learning new words in Afrikaans. There are many animals, birds and bugs featured in this book zebras, gnus, giraffes, honey badgers, crocodiles, flamingoes, African hornbills, kingfishers, oxpeckers, springboks, honeyguide, ant lions, dung beetles, elephant shrew, leopard tortoise, warthogs, rhino beetles, lioness, elephants, leopards, African buffaloes, rhinos etc.

Most children have trouble listening. Whether they are listening to when the answer is no or listening to other people’s feelings and instructions. This listening series has some valuable lifelong lesson to be learned with fun pictures and activities set in the heart of Africa. Engaging stories with educational activities such as sequencing, spot the difference, match the animal footprints, the Big 5 and the Little 5 African Animals.

Don’t delay in helping your child learn complex cognitive listening skills with these interactive stories.

Ever found yourself daydreaming or thinking about your “to do” list while someone is talking to you? Truth is that a lot of us are guilty of this. Is the person talking not important, heck no. We’re distracted and have other things on our mind. We live in a society where there is a constant demand for our time and attention. Most of us multitask and one of those tasks always suffers as a result.

Why is listening so important?
1. Listening makes the speaker feel significant. We all have an inherent need to feel special and loved. We can eliminate a lot of hatred and hurt by making someone feel that they are heard.
2. Listening says, “What I have to say matters. “Listening usually means you will ask the right questions and reflect on the right topics. You’re not looking at the person thinking, “Holy cow, please don’t ask me a question I have no clue what you just said!”
3. Listening builds relationship. You are not cutting the conversation short or changing the subject because you have no clue what the speaker just said. You’re asking questions and making statements. This shows the person talking, “Wow, they are really interested!” This builds relationship!
4. Listening makes one feel acknowledged. We all want to be heard. Listening does that through our responses and acknowledgment of what is said.
5. Listening gives you something to talk about when you see that person again. Mentioning topics in the last conversation solidifies all the points mentioned above. This is key as it builds a connection. We all want and thrive on connection. Let’s listen to each other and let’s train our children to be good listeners from a young age!
6. Listening when the answer is no could save a life. There are usually very good reasons why parent’s say no.
7. Listening to instructions could save you a lot of time and effort, rather than trying to work it all out on your own.

There are many reasons to listen and hear what the person talking has said, learning at a young age is extremely beneficial for a successful fulfilled life.