Parents | The Whole Kitten Kaboodle

Teach Your Kids to Love Learning

When it comes to kids and school, it can be difficult to get your kids to enjoy certain subjects. Some children enjoy subjects like math and science, while others are more into art and reading and writing.

One subject that most children have a love/hate relationship with throughout school is science. Why? Because it can either be a lot of fun or downright boring. If you have a child who is handling science class in this way, know there’s a simple solution to the problem.

Make learning fun. There are many ways you can do this, and the best way, especially if you can’t spend much money, is to create activities around the house and yard. Your backyard can offer many different science activities for kids. Over the past ten years, the availability of science-related items has exploded, with many different toys that let kids explore science. From growing a terrarium to growing crystals and building your own butterfly habitat, the possibilities can be endless. Some of these items may even work well with backyard science exploration.

The backyard can be explored with simple objects like magnifying glasses, allowing kids to see seedlings, sprouts, and numerous bugs up close. You and your children can bird watch with or without binoculars and keep track of the birds you see. You can even make a collage from items in the backyard. Leaves, blades of grass, flowers, and even a preserved but or two–all can make a beautiful collage of nature. With these items available outside, your child is sure to find something of interest.

Filed Under: Education, Elementary, Parents Tagged With: Educational Resources, Learning, Science education

3 Reasons Why You Should Buy Your Child a Laptop

Image via Wikipedia

There is no end to the benefits your child can receive by having a laptop. You don’t have to wait till they’re in college to invest in a portable computer either. High school students and even junior high students have laptops that they use strictly for homework. While there are the common safety concerns to be aware of, the uses a child can receive with a laptop outweigh the cons.

Homework is always centralized on one unit. There is no need to worry about where their homework is, or scrambling at the last minute to find it. Younger students can benefit from understanding how to structure folders on their laptop for specific classes and studies. It will also teach them about personal responsibility for their work.

Portability is another great benefit of a laptop. If your student has trouble studying in a certain area of your home, they can move to another area that may be suitable for them. Some classes require students make a presentation to the class. This can be done all on their laptops without the fear of having lost their work. A student can bring their laptop if it’s needed during class, especially when it’s time to download new material from the school’s virtual computer labs.

Using the virtual computer labs with their laptop is another benefit. With a school making use of a computer lab online, your student has the ability to share their homework with their teacher, ask questions related to their work and download new work through this lab. They don’t have to be physically present all the time either. And, they can access these labs from anywhere they have an internet connection.

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Filed Under: Education, Parents Tagged With: Class (education), Homework, Laptop

Getting Involved in Your Children’s Learning

Helping your children learn is very important for their development. Working with your children’s schools and creating a positive attitude can make a big difference in your child’s life. Talking helps children lean a lot. It helps them connect with people and become more social. Not only can they learn from you, but you can also learn from them. Listen to your child and make an effort to understand them and get to know them.

Try to make learning at home fun and exciting. Try reading together or going to public places such as the zoo to learn about different things. Get your child into hobbies such as art, music, or sports. There are so many different ways to learn. Limit the amount of TV your children watch. Keep them active and healthy.

It is helpful if you get involved with your children’s school activities and attend parent teacher conferences. Know what areas your child is having trouble in at school and help them in those areas where they are struggling. When you work with the school, you are teaching your child to work with other people and getting involved with the community.

Make sure your child has a comfortable place at home where he or she can study. Encourage your child to have an opinion and explore their own ideas. Know their personal interests. Their interests may differ from yours, but you always want to encourage them and have a positive attitude towards their thoughts and opinions.

Talk to your children about your own experiences and how the trials in your life have helped you grow. A parent is someone children look up to and the more they understand about you, the more they will respect you. Try not to be too strict, but protect your children in every way possible.

Filed Under: Education, Parents Tagged With: Child, Children Learning, learn

Helping Your Struggling Child

Many children have trouble getting through school. Whether they are being bullied, peer pressured, socially isolated, or simply having trouble concentrating on schoolwork. There are many different ways you can help your child through this. Children need someone to look up to, usually their parents. If they feel like they have no one they can count on, they may develop behavioral issues such as social anxiety or depression.

Try making learning fun for your child. Play educational games at home so they have social contact and are also learning at the same time. Keeping your child healthy is also something you need to keep in mind. Children who do not eat healthy and get regular exercise are more likely to fall behind in school, have more behavioral issues, have health problems, and develop low self-esteem.

Always make sure your child eats breakfast in the morning. Eating breakfast gives their bodies the energy they need throughout the day to help them concentrate and be more alert and willing to learn. Try teaching them new things and exploring new ideas. If you make learning fun, they will want to learn more and they will have a better chance at success.

Get your child to keep a journal to increase their writing skills. If you have a struggling child, it also helps if you have other parents you can talk to who are going through the same things. Get your child involved in the community. The more social experiences your child has, the more willing they will be to try new things, open up to people, and eventually have more success in life. Just support your child. If they are into sports, go to the games and cheer them on. They feel more secure and noticed if you support them in every way you can.

Filed Under: Parents Tagged With: Child

Helping Your Child With a Learning Disability

As a parent, having a child with a learning ability can be very stressful. You might be worrying about how it will affect their social life, how it will affect their future, how they will cope with stress and if I will affect their health as well. You want your child to reach his or her full potential. Of course education and success is very important for anyone, what you really want to focus on is whether or not your child is happy and is leading a good life, staying healthy, and making the right decisions.

Your influence as a parent is more important than that of anyone else for your child. If your child has a learning disability, your support, love and guidance are the most important things in his or her life. Self-confidence is what your child needs the most, and you can help give that to them.

You can’t necessarily “cure” a learning disability. All you can do is guide them through their life and help them where they struggle. Do not push them to do better. Only guide them and support them. If they feel like they are being pushed, they will get stressed more easily, lose some self-confidence, and it can lead to depression. You want your child to stay social.

Don’t focus only on learning. There are many different ways children can learn. Try making learning fun. Maybe home school your child and teach him or her yourself so they can go at their own speed. That way they have a better chance at understanding what they are being taught and they are in a comfortable place where it is easier to learn. Also a good thing to remember is keeping your child healthy. Being healthy is one of the first steps to being happy and successful.

Filed Under: Parents Tagged With: Disability

What Kids Need To Not Let School Intimidate Them

It is a fact of life that there are things. Which do scare us. Kids are very prone to feeling fears. This especially applies. If they are facing their first day at school or trying to survive peer pressure. School can definitely be a fun place to be. However, on the flip side, it can prove to be a stressful place in addition.

Another area that can be just as equally intimidating to children. Is education itself and being exposed to the wide world of learning. Some kids may feel that they are not up to par or not smart enough to compete with other students. Therefore, school is a marvelous realm on one hand, while it can be a place of uneasiness too. How does one go about lessening or getting rid of the insecurities that children feel? The answer is by being the most supportive parent around. Children will always face some sort of fear about school or what not. So a parent can step up to the plate immediately. Should any fear about school and or learning present arise.

It is also wise to let your child know that nervousness and anxiety are common issues when going back to school. There are other students. Who probably feel as your boy or girl does. So they are not alone. A big comfort is also knowing that the teacher is there for support too.

The one way that kids can conquer fears. Where school is concerned. Is this. Fears are part of everyday development. They come and they go. This is what a child should take into account. When faced with a sudden fear of school in some way. The fear will not stay. Eventually it will go. They should simply face it and tell it to go away.

Kids should also focus on how great a place school is. It is a fun world of learning. Nothing at all to fear in adventure and discovery. Fear does not fit in here. Only room for happiness and cheer!

Filed Under: Parents Tagged With: Education

The Importance of Establishing a Teacher and Parent Relationship

Establishing a relationship with your child’s teacher is crucial especially during elementary school. Many teachers will meet parents the first time during a parent/teacher conference. This is usually scheduled when a child has performance or behavioral issues in school. Meeting a teacher for the first time under these conditions can be stressful and frustrating.

You should introduce yourself to your child’s teacher prior to the beginning of class or after class one day of the first week of school. You will want to express to the teacher that you are committed to you child’s education. Many teachers welcome parents that wish to be involved.

It usually takes most teachers at least six weeks to become familiar with each child. By this time, many teachers can determine any shortcomings a child may have. This is a fantastic time to meet with your child’s teacher. He or she will be able to discuss any issues that may affect your child’s performance. If your child is doing well, then you know your efforts in the home are helping. However, if your child is having trouble, you will be able to prevent the situation from becoming worse with early intervention.

While a child’s academic performance is important, you also want to make sure your child is able to get along with other children. Your child may struggle socially and this may impact his or her academic performance. Often children need encouragement to participate in group activities. They are unsure of themselves and may need guidance to become more socially adept.

Elementary school is a challenging time for young children. There is much to learn and a wide variety of subjects to master. They must also develop social skills and learn to make new friends. Children will benefit from the guidance of a teacher, however, nothing replaces having a parent’s guidance as well.

Filed Under: Elementary, Higher Education, Parents Tagged With: Teacher and Parent Relationship

How parents can help their kids start and finish school

A parent has a lot of responsibility for their child’s education. Preparing their child for school and making sure they’re staying on track is one of those responsibilities. It’s up to the parent to make sure the know know what kids need to start and finish school.
Before a student goes to kindergarten, in most states, shots are needed and also proof of birth, like a birth certificate must be presented. Besides these requirements, it’s a good idea for parents to go a step beyond and start working with their child academically before they even start kindergarten.
Kids succeed and do better the earlier they start learning. Kids can be taught at home to read and write and say the alphabet. All of these help a kid when they go to school, and is part of what kids need to start and finish school. By giving them a great start, a child is more likely to finish school.
Through out the child’s education, a parent needs to stay involved in their child’s education. Parent involvement is a big part of what kids need to start and finish school. Parents should ask their child every night if they have any homework. A parent also needs to stay in touch with the child’s teacher to check up on the child’s progress.
Kids also need a healthy diet and lots of sleep to start and finish well. A well-rested child that eats a balanced diet will do better in school and is more likely to finish school. Kids should eat breakfast every morning before going to school to make sure they’re on track.
Having proper supplies is also part of what kids need to start and finish school. A parent should carefully look over the supplies list each school year to make sure their child has everything on this list.
Knowing what kids need to start and finish school helps a parent guide their child through the educational process.

Filed Under: High School, Parents, Students Tagged With: Academic term, Child, Education, Kindergarten

Impact of Social Media on Family Life

: Image via CrunchBase

If you want to take advantage of social media, you must first have a firm understanding of what it is. Is social media about social networking or social bookmarking? Is social media about using a wiki? Social media is a phrase that is seeing a lot of action these days, but people still have some difficulty wrapping their minds about what social media actually is. MySpace, Facebook, Mag.nolia, Wikipedia and YouTube are all social media sites, and I have used all of them—but what does social media actually mean?

I think that the best way to define the topic of social media is to actually break it down a bit. Media is a type of instrument that we use for communication, like radio or newspaper. As such, social media should be perceived to be a social instrument for communication. In the realm of 2.0 and with the birth of the social media company, a social media site is one that uses interaction to pass you the information that you need. Websites that let you vote for articles or ask for comments are therefore social media websites, as are complex websites like Digg, Reddit and YouTube. Flixster, a website that recommends movies to you based on your ratings of other movies, is another example of social media because it lets you interact with other people baring similar interests.

Social media encompasses social bookmarking websites, social news websites, social networking websites, social video sharing websites, social photo sharing websites and wikis. All of these websites are different examples of how social media can be used, relying on social interaction through tagging, voting, searching, commenting, joining groups, participating in discussions, adding articles as well as editing existing articles. The realm of social media is growing and changing, giving people more and more unique and exciting ways to communicate with one another.

Filed Under: Parents Tagged With: Facebook, MySpace, Social media

The Prepaid Credit Card Lessons: Generating Childhood Interest

It’s an age of easy debt — countless individuals each year struggle to maintain their accounts, to conquer the challenge of finance. They spend too much; they save too little; and the balance is a precarious one, with bankruptcy forever looming. You wish, therefore, to spare your children the worries of financial poor planning. Money must be understood and utilized properly. So you seek to expose them to cash, credit and all of the concerns in between.

When trying to provide good sense for the future, be certain you establish it in the present. Offer your children their lessons as soon as they can count, allowing them to learn of money early (so they may avoid being overwhelmed). Use everyday activities, such as visiting shopping centers to offer examples of common costs and the importance of budgeting. Stress the necessity of saving dollars rather than simply tossing them away. Allow your children to have bank accounts, encouraging them to place portions of their allowances there each week. Teach them to keep their statement books and checks organized (outline each entry with them until they’re capable of doing it alone). Offer them each a prepaid credit card, when they have proven themselves to be responsible, so they may track their expenses and recognize the diligence that instant access demands.

It is an all too simple thing to become a victim of money complications; and millions prove this every day, scrambling to replenish their empty accounts and strengthen weak credit scores. It is essential therefore that all parents provide their children with wisdom for the days to come. Emphasize the importance of proper spending habits. Introduce them to the fickle nature of cash. And ensure that there is a complete understanding of finance and the burden it can demand.

Filed Under: Parents, Students