From Children's Stories to Study Skills: Help Your Children Succeed in School

Introduction

As a parent who wants the best for your children, there are undoubtedly many things that you already do every day to help your children succeed in school. The purpose of this article is to provide some practical ideas for you to try. Some of these suggestions may be new to you, many will be familiar, and some are just plain common sense but, hopefully, they will all serve as reminders of the many simple steps you can take that are too often taken for granted or forgotten about, due to the hectic pace of everyday living.

Read to your kids, whatever their ages

First of all, read to your children. We all know that this is important, but I'd like to point out that reading aloud should begin in infancy. It can contribute to your baby's developing attention span and receptive language skills. In addition, I'd like to encourage parents to read to growing children, even once they are able to read on their own. Don't stop once your kids are in elementary school for, whatever the status of their reading skills, hearing a good book read aloud is an experience apart.

Being read to allows children to focus more on the descriptive passages and the action, rather than having to struggle with understanding every single word. It also allows them to hear great children's stories that are beyond their current reading level, and it's a wonderful way for a family to share a magical experience. Choose a children's book that can also be enjoyed by you as an adult, and have a family reading session each evening or each week. A classic children's story, such as "The Wind in the Willows," or the Harry Potter books might be perfect for your family, depending on the ages and interests of your children.

Encourage independent reading and library use

Offer quality children's literature to your growing children and encourage them to read on their own - at their own level and at their own pace. Fiction and nonfiction can both open up new worlds of knowledge and experience and help prepare kids for success in school and in adult life, and don't forget that online children's stories are an exciting new resource to add to your reading repertoire.

Take your children to the local public library. Be sure that each member of the family has his or her own library card. Help your children see the public library not just as a place associated with homework and drudgery, but rather as an exciting doorway to interesting information and adventure. Encourage library book borrowing related to any special topic that interests your kids - from astronomy to adventure stories, from fact to fantasy.

Get your kids to participate in some of the special free extra activities and programs that are regularly scheduled in many public libraries, like storyhours, craft projects, films, and summer reading clubs. Take your children to museums, concerts, puppet shows and the like. Expose them to any forms of entertainment and cultural enrichment that you may be lucky enough to have access to.

Develop effective research skills and good study habits

Help your kids develop research skills that will serve them well, not only on school projects, but later in daily life as an adult. For instance, if you're planning a family trip, let the kids conduct library and Internet-based research on possible destinations, sites of interest, driving or flying routes, and how to dress appropriately for the climate of your destination spot. If you're thinking of buying a new car, let your kids take part in your consumer research, comparing different car models according to a variety of pertinent criteria.

Nurture good study habits and self-discipline. Set aside a regular, daily study time for homework in a quiet, well-lit room. Be sure that your kids have a study environment that's sound physically, as well as conducive to mental concentration. A quiet room is important, but so too is good lighting, a chair that provides good back support and access to all the materials that your children need to complete projects. Supply them with pencils, erasers, rulers, and so forth.

Encourage kids to keep their desk or other study area neat and well organized. This will prevent lots of time-wasting searches for materials and will really pay off as your children get older and their school assignments become more complex. Good organizational skills, which include the arrangement of physical objects, plus the logical structuring of the steps involved in completing any given project, can last a lifetime.

Take an interest in your kids' day-to-day school life

Take an interest in your children's school projects. Encourage them to show you reports they've written or pictures they've drawn. Make them see that you care about what they're doing and about how they're doing, but don't make them feel like they're constantly being monitored or judged. Don't add pressure, just give them plenty of support, encouragement and praise for jobs well done. Provide them with the resources they need (such as Internet access, library time, books and magazine articles) to do a good job on school assignments, but... resist the temptation to do the school projects for them.

Take the same approach with everyday homework. If your child's having trouble with a math problem, review the rules, explain the procedures, and check the results, but don't just give a child the answers. The learning process is more important than a list of correct answers to hand in to the teacher.

Help them discover their special talents

Set aside some time for engaging in special activities with your children. Build a model volcano together, perform science kit experiments, design a family tree, build your own dollhouse, draw maps, etc. Make learning into a fun and creative process. Help your kids discover their own unique aptitudes and talents, as they discover new subjects that might interest them throughout their lives. Stimulate your children's natural intellectual curiosity and spark their desire to learn more, to take a subject to a deeper level.

Give your kids an opportunity to participate in extra-curricular activities: to learn to play a musical instrument or to play team sports, for example. Again, expose your children to as many different skills and pastimes as possible, so that they can discover which ones will really click with them. See where their aptitudes and proclivities lie, but don't force them to participate in something if they don't enjoy it and don't put undue pressures on them. It's a cliché, but don't try to vicariously live out your own dreams through your children.

Go to PTA meetings, attend school plays and music recitals. Once more, it's important to show your kids that you care and that you share their interests and concerns, that you know what's going on in their lives and that you're proud of their achievements. This kind of regular positive reinforcement can help them develop self-confidence and a solid sense of self-esteem.

Go that extra mile

Among the most precious gifts that you can give to your children is your time. Put them first and make time for them. Build a happy, stable home environment, full of love and security, and you've already gone a long way towards helping your children thrive and succeed both in school and in life. Be involved in the big and the small events that make up their daily lives. Offer your support, encouragement, resources and love. Be there for them, no matter how busy your professional life is or whatever other commitments you have. Before you know it your children will be grown up and what they'll become depends largely on you. For their sake, as well as for your own, make the most of their childhood.

There are no pearls of wisdom here, just a refresher course in things that we've all heard a million times, but don't always stop to take them to heart. They're so important that they deserve our attention, to periodically remind us of what really counts in life.

About The Author

Barbara Freedman-De Vito, children's librarian, teacher, professional storyteller, and artist, writes and illustrates animated children's stories which are available at http://www.babybirdproductions.com which also has free games and educational activities for children, teachers and parents. Clothing and gift items decorated with artwork from the stories are also available.

mail@babybirdproductions.com

Five Easy Steps To Potty Train Your Baby

No…Don’t let your child pee or poop every where and make your life miserable. Try to potty training your child since baby. Starting since newborn is not a bad idea. Some mom say the sooner you potty train your baby the better you find the result. Thus, parents who will let nature take it course will find that it will take a very long time for their child to be dry at night.

But it is also understood if parents feel that they baby is not ready for potty training. Potty training is a learning process, so you and your child should all be ready. Your child has to understand what you want, and then has to learn how to do it.

1. Those who succeeded in potty training since baby said they started by wearing their baby a clothes diaper. It saved so much money since you don’t need to use expensive disposal diaper. Cloth diapers are made of an absorbent material, such as cotton. Cotton is the best natural fiber for absorbency. When the cotton fibers comes in contact with a liquid, each fiber will absorb as much liquid as it can hold, then pass the remaining liquid to the next dry fiber until all the liquid is absorbed. Baby who wears clothes will feel uncomfortable wet feeling and the knowledge that they can prevent it. Most babies will wake up dry in the morning at several months of age, demonstrating that they are physically able to "hold it".

2. The second step is to make your baby understand more about his body. It's only natural during this development stage that your child notices the parts of his body. He may be able to name some parts like his eyes and feet. He knows his eyes see. He knows his feet walk. Now, he's beginning to know what the beginning of a bowel movement or bladder feels like. Since that he realizes what happened to his body and why he needs to go to the bathroom, he will understand that potty training is important. By that time, it will be easier for you to potty training.

3. After your baby gets bigger take him into the bathroom when you go. That way, they know what's going on in there. Talk to them about what toilets are for. If you are a woman at home all day with boy children, encourage Daddy to show them how it's done.

4. For the continuity of potty training, buy 3 or 4 of those cheap little molded plastic potties and put them around the house. At least, one in each bathroom and one in the kitchen or the room where you spend the most time with your child. Stick a towel underneath for the sake of your carpet if said child is a boy.

5. Last but not least, always give your baby appreciation for what he/she has done. One popular method is to give stickers and a calendar to keep track of his/her successes. Every time he/she goes to the potty, your baby gets a sticker that he can then paste onto the page.

If your child starts to lose interest but is well into toilet training, you may want to consider offering other rewards.

About The Author

Amy Fadden is a mother and a book writer on newborn, potty training and other family matter from home. She likes to read book while taking care of her children, house and the whole family. You can visit her Website at http://www.pottytrainingtoddler.info

author@inspiringthings.com

Responsible Fatherhood - A Unique And Irreplaceable Role

Something happened the other day that made me feel uneasy. Yet I shouldn't have felt that way!

My wife had left for work and I was hanging the washing out to dry. A neighbour from down the way was in his backyard doing the same. 'Good day for drying', he called. 'Let's hope the rain stays away.'

I had to think about what made me uneasy. Then it hit me. Two men hanging out the washing!

When I was a kid that would never have happened. That was women's work, after all!

And that made me think about the changing role of men and fatherhood.

Change is seldom easy, hence the deeply buried sense of unease - even in someone like me who considers himself an enlightened individual!

The image of fatherhood has changed very much in recent years, hasn't it?

We've come a long way from the distant, unemotional, patriarch figure. The god-like master who provided for his family, but didn't expect to be troubled by family issues!

After World War II there was a definite shift. Men became much more involved in the play and leisure areas of family life.

Maybe this was due to the separation caused by the war and consequent feelings of vulnerability. But men still didn't get involved in household chores!

Today we see a much more enlightened image of the male as a co-parent, getting involved in all aspects of family life and pulling his weight in the home.

Or do we? . . .

Are we really there yet? Some men are moving in the right direction. Others need a gentle push!

Perhaps they need encouragement more than anything.

Young boys tend to see their dads as role models and often absorb, even unconsciously, their dads attitudes and habits. So if some of today's dads haven't witnessed and experienced the input of an involved father, the role may not come easily to them.

And yet a dad's involvement in family life has so much benefit both for the children, the mother and the dad himself.

By pulling their weight with the household chores Dads give a good example to their kids AND they help ease the burden on an all too often over-burdened Mum.

By getting involved in play and educational activities Dads can help build that vital relationship on which confidence depends: their own confidence as parents and the confidence of their kids to explore and discover their talents and abilities to learn the boundaries within which they must operate to absorb the values of the person in charge of them

So much to be gained, for all parties involved!

So if Dad is a rather reluctant participant in family matters, remember that as well as a firm push he may need lots of encouragement.

After all, the role may not come easily since hundreds of years on non-involvement are in his genes.

Let's all look forward to the day when hanging up the laundry is no big deal for a Dad!

Happy parenting.

About The Author

Why do some parents and children succeed, while others fail? Frank McGinty is an internationally published author and teacher. If you want to develop your parenting skills and encourage your kids to be all they can be, visit his web pages, http://www.frank-mcginty.com/peace-formula.html AND http://www.frank-mcginty.com/for-parents.html

The Seven Keys to Child Obedience

Learning obedience is an important part of child development. This is the tool that allows you as parents to train your child. Through obedience your child will learn self-control and develop other positive character traits that he will need as an adult.

However, obedience cannot be forced upon the child. Parents who simply command their children will foster resentment, which will eventually lead to rebellion. In fact, some researchers feel that poor parenting techniques contribute to the development of oppositional defiant disorderin some children. Although you can punish a child for not obeying, this will not foster any long-term obedience. When the child reaches his teen years and becomes more independent, punishment will only serve to destroy the already faltering parent child relationship.

Our goal then is not to force our children to obey us, but to get them to want to obey us. This willingness to obey will only come about if the parent’s commands are based upon seven principles.

1-Loving Concern for the Child

A child knows quickly whether a parent’s demands are for the sake of the child or for the personal convenience of the parent. If the parent’s primary motive for giving orders is to make his own life easier, then the child learns to place his own interests first, also. If you want to be successful in raising your child, then your reason for giving orders must be for the benefit of your child. When your child senses that your demands are for his sake, he will much more readily obey you. He knows that it is for his own good. He will know that any demands made of him, no matter how unpleasant, come from a genuine concern for his welfare.

2-Sincere Respect for the Child

Parents must respect their children. This is a concept that is not well practiced by our society. Western society focuses on possessions. Somehow in the back of many parents’ minds their children are counted among those possessions. We must remember that our children are not objects, but people. As people, they are deserving of respect. We must remember to give respect to our child to the same degree we would like others to respect us.

3-Patience

Very often our children do things that bother us. This is usually unintentional on their part and is just a reflection of their immaturity. However, if we show our children that we are annoyed they will begin to resent us. This resentment feeds their desire to rebel against our wishes. One of our goals as parents must be to try to keep our negative emotions in check.

4-Speak Softly

Nothing gains a child’s cooperation more than a gentle tone of voice. Speaking softly helps us to control our negative emotions, especially anger. A soft voice soothes and is more likely to be met with cooperation. It creates a relaxed atmosphere and is reassuring to children.

When we speak in a soft voice it also conveys strength. We show our children that we are in control of the situation and not merely reacting to it. If the only step you take is to control the volume of your voice, particularly in stressful situations, that alone will foster better child compliance. You will find that everything around you goes more smoothly.

5-Make Moderate Demands

No one likes having demands placed upon him. Children are no different. Yet we are constantly commanding our children. We feel that as parents we must take steps to correct every misdemeanor that we see. When the orders become excessive or arbitrary the parent becomes more like a dictator that an educator.

If you place a lot of obligations on your child, then your child is going to resent and resist your authority. One of the most important steps in getting your child to listen to you is to reduce the amount of demands that you place upon him. This will require you to stay calm and overlook a lot of childish behavior. Commands should be made thoughtfully and be within reasonable limits. The general rule is that if a certain behavior is not something your child will be doing as an adult and if it is not dangerous, then you should not make it a priority to correct.

6-Follow Through

Even if you do all that has been mentioned so far, you will still need to give your child orders. When you do so, you must be firm and make sure that your child obeys. If you give your child an instruction you must insist that he fulfill it. Often it will be easier or more convenient to just overlook disobedience. This is the end will erode your authority as a parent.

You should only make moderate and well thought out demands on your child. However, when you do make those orders your child must fulfill them. If we want our children to take our words seriously, then we must show them that we are serious.

7-Be Free with ‘Yes’, but not with ‘No’

We must try to grant every reasonable request our children make of us. They should feel that we are giving to them freely and in overflowing abundance at all times. You should make it a rule to give your child whatever he wants unless you have a good reason not to do so.

In addition, we should try to temper our use of ‘no’. Try not to avoid saying ‘no’ whenever possible. For example, if your child wants to have a treat before dinner and you want him to eat first, rather than say ‘no’ or ‘not now’ say, ‘yes, after dinner.’ This small change in the way you use the words ‘yes’and ‘no’ will change your child’s perception from the feeling that most of his desires are being denied to that most of them are being granted.

Conclusion

It is natural for a child to want to obey his parents. It is also necessary for his proper growth and development. Applying these seven keys will help you to make it easier for your child to obey you. If you want to see how you are doing as a parent, see our Parenting Quiz at http://addadhdadvances.com/parentquiz.html .

If you want more information on ways that you can teach even the most difficult child to obey you, please see our Child Behavior Program at http://addadhdadvances.com/betterbehavior.html

Anthony Kane, MD
ADD ADHD Advances
http://addadhdadvances.com

About The Author

Anthony Kane, MD is a physician and international lecturer. Get help for your ADD ADHD or ODD child at http://addadhdadvances.com. Sign up for the free ADD ADHD Advances journal. Send an email to: subscribe@addadhdadvances.com?subject=subscaa.

Guidelines For Finding Quality Childcare

Childcare Guidelines

In today's two-income family households, finding childcare is more of a necessity than a "what if" situation. During the time when childcare was not the norm allowed parents more time to scope out circumstances. However, for today's working parents - married or single, the time to find a great childcare home or center is an immediate need. For this reason alone, parents need to know how to quickly identify if the environment that the child will be placed meets - or hopefully - exceed their expectations. Below is a guideline for finding this type of quality care:

1. Don't jump at the first place you look. As exhausting of a process it can be to look for a fitting childcare, quick decisions may leave you looking quickly for better solution. If you feel forced to quickly decide, this should set off a "red flag" that perhaps that place is not right for you and definitely not for child. Advise from friends and relatives about places might not help either - only you really know what childcare is right for your child. A state licensed provider or facility should always top your list.

2. Reputable providers are often on non-profit organization's list since these providers know how to prioritize your child's best welfare. Other sources for daycare centers are in the phone book and online. Take the time to talk to each provider and also visit in person to get the best feel about the surroundings. Don't hesitate to ask as many crucial questions as you can.

An crucial quality indicator for day care is the ratio of adult staff to children. You want to ensure that your child receives proper attention for health and development. For infants, the recommended ratio is 1 adult for 4 babies. The ratio for youngsters under the age of 5 is one adult for 10 children. However, it is also important that children socialize in smaller groups. Thirty children and three adults in one large room could be a chaotic environment for a 3-year old child.

It is important to know the caregiver's background in child care. Many technical schools offer certificates in child care and development. States also have licensing programs. Similar to training, ask if the day care center has been accredited by any state or national organization. This means that the center meets the quality criteria of that organization and voluntarily opens its doors to inspection.

5. A large staff turnover rate is another big red flag. This a sign that something about the day care is not working for the employees. If a daycare center skirts around this information, this also is another bad sign. A child who is exposed to new teacher after new teacher in a short amount of time will not feel as secure or have the ability to bond well with others as a child who has a happy staff member or provider.

Your experience with a childcare provider and childcare center should feel like a comfortable fit for you and your child. The safest way to find this fit is not to jump into the first place you look into. If you give yourself a few days to mull over your selection and carefully review any contracts, you will end up with a much better success story that will keep your child happily going to this new daycare for years and years down the road.

About The Author

Copyright 2005 Luca Jenkin. All rights reserved.

Luca Jenkin is the webmaster for Flexi Childcare which is a leading on-line resource for childcare information for parents and carers on the internet. For more information and for any questions please visit his archive of articles here: http://www.flexichilcare.com/

The Training Baby

My kid is only 6months old, yet he has taught me more than I have ever learnt in the last ten years of supposed life’s experience. It is amazing really, that one so young can teach so much, that a ball of squeaking immaturity can give and educate others who are theoretically so much wiser and more learned than an ‘incy’ bit of life that has just popped its head out for a look.

I mean he has taught me nothing startling like quantum physics or rocket science just simple things, an increased awareness of what is around me and a much better understanding of life and how people think and operate as they do! I have over the last twenty years made a career for myself in Marine Engineering, with Diplomas, certificates and degrees falling out of my ears and all backed up by a wealth of hands on experience. But all of this background was so pointless when faced with the pram that we bought!

What is a pram? A pram is a perambulator, a four wheeled vehicle for a baby pushed by one on foot”! Nothing startling there! What my son taught me was that nothing is what it seems in life and that you can have all the certificates in the world but they don’t help with prams! This thing that we purchased was so technologically advanced that it took me three weeks to figure out how to raise the seat! Eiffel and his Tower, Edison and his Light Bulb or even Ferris and his Wheel had nothing on this “Combi” invention! A fully-equipped mean machine, an all-terrain off-the road and all weather state of art vehicular transport that could fold up into handbag dimensions, perform to 80% even with flats on any two of its eight wheels and turn a circle on a dime (for this last action all wheels do have to be at peak performance). It weighed less than two kilos could shrink or expand to suit the size of baby it would carry and it was multi-directional (the baby could be pushed forwards or backwards with the flick of a switch).

After three weeks of trying to assemble the thing I eventually got it in motion. Unfortunately I was so afraid of the thing collapsing with the baby inside that I went out and bought a four wheeled monstrosity that was un-collapsible, omni-directional and could do not much more than be pushed strenuously along the road with a baby inside. It also meant that I didn’t have to carry a puncture repair kit with me!

So however educated and knowledgeable a person is: not all is as straightforward as it seems!

I love my son. He is such a character full of life and energy, full of cheek and smile!

He has taught me that adults are so bogged down with trying to wade through life that we can no longer enjoy that which is around us! We walk around and through daily life with chips, worries and problems weighing us down as if the whole world is resting precariously on our backs. Looking at my son, I realize that what we do in life is crazy; we grow older in a manner that builds problems on top of problems. We are all so desperate to be at the top of the ladder as regards material possessions or status, working harder and harder to earn the money to buy the latest in technological advance, so rushed and harried to get there before the next door neighbor that we forget what life is all about. I buy my son toys, I bought him this all singing, all dancing red thing that had mirrors and handles and all sorts of jingling things on it. The lady in the shop told me that it was the most popular toy they had in stock and that it would keep the baby occupied for hours. When I gave it to my son he looked at it with immediate wonderment, picked it up and neatly dropped it over the side of his cot! He is only six months old for ……..sake! Anyway, he dropped it, thus discarding this ultra modern toy from his life and since then he has neither looked at it nor even acknowledged its presence. He loves the remote control though, even better he loves this tiny little one-dollar squeaky toy that looks like a pregnant hippopotamus!

My son taught me that it is only our own fault that we live the way we do, burdened and weighted down. So much pleasure can be gained from so little, yet as adults we want so much more yet never quite reach a degree of satisfaction or happiness that can be maintained for longer than a day!

My son also taught me that he can fill a nappy faster than I can recover from changing the last one, babies really control their parents rather than us controlling them and screaming is the closest emotion to laughing hysterically!

My son also told me to love unhindered and without thought or care for anything else in the world.

Thanks for everything but the pram son!

About The Author

Ieuan Dolby - Author and Webmaster of Seamania. As a Chief Engineer in the Merchant Navy he has sailed the world for fifteen years. Now living in Taiwan he writes about cultures across the globe and life as he sees it.

seadolby.com

ieuandolby@seadolby.com

7 Safety Tips For School Kids

Travelling to and from school is often not very safe. However, there are some simple rules that can help to make the school journeys safer, ensuring peace of mind for both children and parents.

1. Waiting for the school bus in the mornings, while traffic is at it busiest, requires a degree of commonsense. Try to have a safe place for children to wait at away from the street and heavy traffic.

2. Don't let children move close to the school bus until it has come to a complete stop and the driver has signalled that it is safe to board.

3. At the end of the school day when children leave the bus, instruct your child to move away from the vehicle at least a dozen large strides to a point where the driver can clearly see them. This helps the driver and keeps the child safe as well.

4. Instruct your child to keep a close eye on all traffic near to the school bus. The law has some special protection measures for school buses, but car drivers are only human, and they can and often do make mistakes.

5. If your child walks to school, make sure he or she wears reflective material. Aim to make them as visible to as possible to all drivers. This will help to avoid accidents.

6. If a child rides a bike to school, instruct them to walk the bike through intersections, observe all traffic light signals, and be wearing reflective material. They should also be with a friend if possible as one can help to look out for the other.

7. If you take your own child to school in your car, always have older children in a seat with a safety belt on, younger children in a booster seat with a safety belt on, and very small children in special safety seats, all seated in the back with only you, the driver, in the front.

About The Author

Janet Booth lives with her family in Ohio. She is a freelance journalist for a local newspaper, and often has articles published in magazines. When she’s not writing she tends to her website at: http://www.gearupforschool.com/.