Children Archives - Page 36 of 37

Benefits Beyond the Game: Boosting Child Development Using the Family Card Night

April 13, 2016 by admin

Kids are smart enough to know that play time is more fun than school time. However, they are not experienced enough to know that learning is good in itself and can be fun too. If your kid has a tough time with school work, you’ll be happy to know that you can help them develop skills at home. Even better, since you’ll be playing cards, your child will be more willing to learn and have fun doing it.

Good Winner

Of course, all people like the feeling of winning and no one likes to lose. Yet it takes emotional intelligence and a great attitude to be a good winner. A good winner feels great about winning yet remains humble and considers the feelings of those who have lost. Moreover, it takes a special person to lose and see it as an opportunity to get over it and try again. Winning and losing at cards helps children become more emotionally intelligent, which is a skill they will need in and out of school for their entire lives.

Extraverted Player

There is nothing wrong with being an introvert. Plenty of healthy, smart, and successful people are introverts. However, it can be hard for child introverts to be more social, especially in school settings. When it comes to participating in class, learning to be more social can help kids gain a higher sense of self esteem, especially if they enjoy a subject and can supply the correct answers. Playing cards in a family setting helps kids become more socialized versus retreating to their rooms or hiding behind a phone or video game screen.

Computational Skills

Particular card games require computation. This is a great opportunity for your child to add, subtract, multiply, and divide numbers. To give them added practice, you can make them the ‘official’ scorer, which would require them to compute the scores for all players or teams of the game.

Increased Memory

The brain functions like a muscle; areas of the brain grow stronger with increased activation. A particular portion of the brain is responsible for short term memory. Card games, such as Memory, help children become better players as well as strengthen their long and short-term memory. If your child is a fan of Memory, find similar family card games online.

Boosted Confidence

Depending on a child’s natural abilities, some school work may come easy to them. Most of the work at school will pose certain levels of challenge, which can be stressful and test a child’s confidence. Confidence is built through experiences. Children feel better about themselves by doing things successfully as well as when they overcome mental obstacles. Playing card games boosts confidence as children learn how to play and get better.

Followed Instructions

Games have instructions just like schoolwork and tasks within the workplace. Children benefit from learning how to play by the rules and follow instructions. It requires diligence and discipline to learn the rules and play accordingly. Moreover, children can teach younger siblings and older family members how to play games, which strengthens social skills.

Dominic Hicks is raising 4 kids with his wife. He enjoys writing on family topics once the kids are tucked up in bed and he has 5 minutes to himself.

The Power of Play: Top Toys and Activities for Healthy Child Development

April 12, 2016 by admin

Every parent wants their kid to be smart. However, as child experts know, there is room (and even a need) for play time regarding a child’s social and cognitive growth. Toys and activities are a part of a healthy child’s development. The caveat is making a distinction between helpful toys and activities and those children can do without.

Books and Music

Reading is an incredible exercise for the brain. Kids will need to read all through their school years and starting early places them at an advantage. Moreover, school teachers are directed to create multi- sensory lessons, so listening to music is just as stimulating and helpful as reading books. Teach kids to read books and think about characters, plot, and action within. Similarly, introduce your children to different varieties of music that use a multitude of instruments and range of beats and tempo.

Dolls and Action Figures

On the surface, children may want to play with dolls because they are possessions, keepsakes that they can claim as their own. However, dolls and action figures help children understand and mimic the world around them. Dolls and figures are used to emulate human interactions and can be a great way to teach children valuable lessons related to ethics and emotional intelligence. Rather than command children or reprimand for misconduct, you can use dolls and figures to help them make the cognitive connection themselves.

Puzzles

As kids grow older and mature, they begin to understand the world around them and how objects interact. Physical puzzles help children develop motor skills as well as understand mathematical concepts. Moreover, solving puzzles requires critical thinking, and playing with them serves as opportune times to be introduced to advanced concepts and principles. Puzzles help your child prepare for the NNAT. The test evaluates your child’s ability to reason and problem solve.

Cooking

A cookbook and utensils are not usually considered toys yet cooking can help kids make cognitive connections. Cooking requires children to gather materials, combine them, and follow directions in order to produce an end product. Of course, they will need help and monitoring in using utensils and devices, yet the process is great for development. Moreover, you can teach children to eat healthy and turn them onto a hobby that they can enjoy throughout their lives.

Building Blocks

Building blocks help children develop motor skills and understand geometric concepts. Young children begin to understand principles such as balance and symmetry. When your child gets a bit older you can graduate their love of building blocks and help them build things such as small chairs, foot stools, etc. Who knows? You may be helping to pave the way for the world’s next leading engineer or architect.

Sports

Athleticism is a recognized intelligence that necessitates athletes manipulate their bodies and objects in space and time to achieve one or more goals. For example, a baseball player at the plate must learn to determine the speed and position of an oncoming ball within fractions of a second, which is just one aspect of the game that requires conditioning and agility too. Keep in mind that it is also important that kids have the proper equipment so as to avoid injuries, such as properly fitting youth baseball cleats and a helmet for when they are up to bat.

Courtney Nolan is a nurse who works at a children’s health clinic. She enjoys getting to know the families, and enjoys seeing kids grow up as younger brothers and sisters come along to her clinic.

No Fear: Getting Your Child Ready for Their First Dental Visit

March 10, 2016 by admin

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Your child is probably like most children. They don’t have an irrational fear of the dentist. But, they do learn to be afraid of one over time because they pick up their fears from you. Here’s how to settle their apprehension and ease them into their first dental visit.

Prep Them With Good Dental Habits

Before you take your child to the dentist, try to instil good brushing and flossing habits. It’s important that these habits be ingrained at a young age. Now, if your child is really young, it may not be possible. But, you can work to keep your child’s teeth clean, floss them, and take care to not feed your child overly sugary foods or acidic foods which will damage the young child’s teeth.

Choosing The Right Dentist

You need to be able to choose the right dentist. The dentist makes all the difference. Ask friends for recommendations. Alternatively, do some research on kid-friendly dentists in your community. These dentists are very sensitive to the fact that some people, adults and kids alike, simple don’t like the dentist. And, they will bend over backwards to make sure your child is comfortable.

It’s also a good idea to establish a relationship with a particular dentist so that, as your child gets older, he or she trusts that dentist. A good Invisalign Teen in NYC dentist is can help your child when it comes time to get braces or tooth alignment. But, the child will be more apt to trust the dentist only if he’s been going to the same one for many years.

Talk To Your Kids

It might not be the easiest thing in the world to do, but talk to your kids. Get some books about visiting the dentist and use them to kick-start a conversation about cleaning and oral hygiene. Some of the best ones out there are Doctor DeSoto, by William Steig, and Just Going To The Dentist by Mercer Mayer.

Another way to talk to your kids is to play “dentist” by using various props like toothbrushes and flashlights, cups for rinsing, etc. and invite all their stuffed animals in for a checkup. Your child can be the dentist, or the assistant, and you can do a cleaning on all of the stuffed animals.

Then, you can have your child be the patient, and you can pretend to be the dentist and clean your child’s teeth.

Set An Example

When you’re afraid of the dentist, it’s more likely that your child will be too. Your child looks up to you. And, because of that, they will believe whatever fears you have. If it’s something that can make mommy or daddy afraid, then it must be scary.

Be strong, and set a good example. Go to the dentist to get your teeth cleaned. Show that it doesn’t hurt, and that it’s a good experience. Make sure your kids see you flossing and brushing as a normal part of the daily routine.

Yasmin Hancock works at a dentists clinic just round the corner from her home. She enjoys talking to the patients, catching up with them and trying to calm any fears they might have. In her free time she enjoys travel and writing, and often blogs for health blogs on the topic

Items to Include in the Baby Hamper for Baby’s 1st Birthday

March 4, 2016 by admin

A baby’s 1st birthday is usually the most anticipated birthdays since it marks his 1st year of existence in this world! Surprise the parents with a special hamper and make sure to include these items in your gift.

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Image by code_martial via Flickr

Baby hampers have been growing in popularity recently due to the fact that new parents love them.Mum and baby get to use every item, and you get the “oohs” and “aahs” of aunts and uncles who thought they couldn’t have gotten a better gift than the one that you got.

Baby hampers are a creative spin on a timeless gift giving tradition.

There’s an unlimited range of choices out there; hampers in different sizes, colours, themes, designs, and combination of items. No two hampers are alike and you are guaranteed to find one that is just as unique for the baby; but if you want to make it extra special, customisation is the way to go. This means you will be building your own baby gift hamper with the items that you selected and wrapped yourself.

Don’t have an idea what to include in the baby hamper? Why not make a call or a visit and fish for some ideas from the new parents? Having a quick chat with them could give you an idea of what they would like to get or better yet, why not just ask them straight ahead? This ensures that the money you spent to purchase the gift is put to good use.

If there’s no way you can get in touch with the parents or you’d rather surprise them, here’s a list of some ideas to help build your very own baby gift hamper:

Body care items

Lotion
Oil
Wipes
Shampoo
Powder
Bath
Sunscreen lotion
Rash ointment

Grooming items

baby hairbrush
nail clippers
cotton swabs

Practical items

thermometer
baby bottle
bath thermometer
bibs
pacifiers
bath towel
wash clothes
bathing sponge

Clothing

onesies
socks
booties
rompers
hat

Toys

spoons
rattles
books

Anything which you feel is useful on baby can be placed inside the hamper. It doesn’t even have to be baby items. It can be something that mom and dad could really use after having just had a baby. Below are some of the things you can add:

Wine
Gift certificate to a spa
A voucher at a local restaurant
Bottle of perfume
Earplugs
Photo album
Scented candles
Chocolates
Magazine subscription

It’s good to reserve at least 1-2 items for the parents in the hamper. It shows that you also thought of them while making the baby gift. After you have gathered the items, place them all in one big container. It can be any of the following:

Basket
Cloth lined basket
Plastic bowl or a bucket
Baby bath tub
Canvas storage box

Arrange the items in the baby gift hamper and if you want to make it look stuffier, place cotton balls, cloths, diapers or boxed wipes at the bottom. This creates the illusion of the hamper having more items than there really is. Be as creative as you want when wrapping the baby gift hamper. If not, you can employ the help of a friend who’s good at gift wrapping or get ideas from websites that sell quality gift hampers in Australia or in your local area. There’s a rich source of baby hamper photos to take inspiration from.

In Conclusion

You don’t have to include all these items in the baby hamper nor does all of it have to be in the same category. You can pick one for each to include in the baby hamper. Only get the items which you feel will suit mom and baby best. The parents who receive it will appreciate the thought that went behind the gift and will be able to use all the items in the gift hamper. Did we miss any item? If there’s anything you’d like to add, let us know in the comments

Family Stories and Successes: Tips and Tricks for Scrapbooking Your Past

February 13, 2016 by admin

Victorian Child's Scrapbook. — Victorian Child’s Scrapbook.

Scrapbooking is big. Huge. So, here are some of the more fun ways to preserve your family’s stories, successes, and even unusual events.

What Kind Of Memories Do You Want Immortalized?

Think long and hard about the types of memories you want preserved. We all have painful memories that we’d rather not remember, but there’s more than just happy memories in our lives too.

It might be easy to come up with photos and keepsakes from times when we were having fun. Try to also come up with memories of challenging times – not necessarily negative, but challenging.

For example, have you, or any of your family members, ever competed in an event before? What was that like?

Do you have any photos that commemorate it? By including these in your scrapbook, you’ll not only be able to look back and laugh, you’ll be able to look back on all of your hard-won victories.

Getting Organized – What To Do And What To Avoid

Get organized. As you start accumulating photos and materials, try to work towards organization of life events, time periods, and “moments.”

You could also divide photos and keepsakes into groups – piles with people, places, or even by family and friends.

This will ultimately help you make sense of your scrapbook as well as help you find things when you need them. Most people choose themes for their book, which is another great way to organize your scrapbook.

What Themes Should You Pick?

Themes can be tricky because everyone has a different idea about what the best themes are. Even so, themes can make your scrapbook much more memorable. It can also help you relive specific memories.

For example, let’s say you want to relive a particular Christmas when you were young. Or, maybe you want to relive all of your Christmases. Making a scrapbook oriented around that theme will let you focus on just the things you want to remember or relive.

Getting Supplies

What kind of supplies will you need? That depends on your scrapbook. But, in general, you’ll need an album, adhesives, scissors, and journaling pens.

The album should contain acid-free pages or allow you the option to add them. It should also have PVC-free sheet protectors so that you can protect your pages and photos. As for the size of the book, it all depends on you and how big you want it. Most scrapbooks are either 8 ½ x 11” or 12” x 12”.

There are a variety of adhesives you can choose from too, but look for ones made specifically for scrapbooking.

Get straight-edge and decorative edge scissors so that you can cut photos into interesting shapes and crop out any unwanted areas.

Finally, get yourself some journaling pens – acid-free, permanent pens for writing down important names, family memories, dates, and even just for doodling and stick figures.

Printing Your Scrapbook

If you want a more formal scrapbook, download some templates from the Internet, stock up on ink from StinkyInk, and print your scrapbook after you’re finished scanning in all of your photos and keepsakes.

While it’s common to create a “live” scrapbook that’s not printed or made from copies photos, many people are finding that copying photos allows them to preserve the originals for future use, while also allowing for creative use of the copies.

John Sollars started Stinkyink.com in 2002, a printer cartridge supplier in the UK. He knows a thing or two about printing and he enjoys sharing his ideas and insights online through blogging.