Kid Group Session #12

Hi all,

Tonight was our bowling excursion and eating at Carneys, a real (non-moving) train. We had 12/13 kids show. The first task, getting their bowling shoes, was easy for some, more challenging for others. Just a tip... it helps if your child knows their shoe size (looking inside of their existing shoes wasn't always successful). We set up three lanes, with four kids on each lane. Things went pretty smoothly, some kids did better with bowling strategies than others. My general goal for the group is for them to pick up the ball, pause, look at the pins, walk up, look at the pins, and bowl. Ideally, they will watch how the ball travels, and pay some attention to where it winds up. If things, i.e., their score, works out the way they wanted, can they be excited, but not over the top. Similarly, if the score is less than they expected, can they modulate their level of disappointment. The majority of group members did well with this.

Bowling went slightly more slowly than expected, but not out of hand. I had planned we would eat around 5:40pm, but bowling took longer than expected. We wound up bowling a full game, then about 1/2 of a second game. We had some tortilla chips to tide them over until dinner.

Everyone transitioned to dinner without incident. Bathroom breaks were more organized than when we went for laser tag. When a group member would want to use the bathroom, we would often have them wait just a few minutes so they could go together with others. In any case, we walked down the sidewalk to Carney's. It was a little warm in there, although not crowded when we arrived. A couple of the kids behavior appeared to reflect their discomfort with the warmth and change, but all were able to recover within a few seconds to a few minutes. The ordering process itself, took quite some time, but they all made it through patiently and surprisingly well. Some of the kids waited with their drinks off at a table while other continued to order. Once everyone had ordered, we transitioned outside to picnic style tables. A few of the alumni members brought out every one's food and they engaged in casual conversation, with no further problems or incidents. The majority of them finished eating by 6:40pm, and they horsed around and played until it was time to leave at 6:55pm to walk back for pick up.

So, in all, a good outing, with lots of socialization, emotional control, quick transitions, and only a few disappointments.