Learning to Play Fair Begins at Home

Playing is very important, for it is the baby's initial step towards developing many skills needed for life.  Through playing, the baby learns to use the hands and feet.  Allowing for plenty of freedom to move, kick, and stretch helps the baby learn to control his muscles.  At bath time, also allow your baby to kick and move freely.

Toys keep the baby happy.  Just avoid handing the baby toys with sharp edges, buttons, fur, or loose objects on them. A baby does not need too many toys.  Invest in a few good quality non-toxic toys.  Too much toys will only excessively excite your baby unnecessarily.   As your child grows older, the companionship of other children, either family members or friends will be needed.  It is important for a child to play with other children, too.  Physically playing and interacting with human playmates teaches them social skills that they can use as they deal with other people as they get older.  We are not ruling out the virtual playmates, but, a parent should know how to set the balance.

Part of the parents' responsibilities include not only to provide the basic needs like food, clothing, and a place called home but also the playmates of just about similar age level if possible.  This is time to teach children about the principles of fair play and understanding the feelings of other.  The earlier a child learns how to play fair and how to respect other people, the easier it will be to apply these important traits later in life.  

Nurturing Your Child's Creativity

 Creativity is not measured by intelligence tests, and experts disagree concerning the relationship between intelligence and creativity.  Most of them agree, however, that an individual’s intelligence can determine the quality of the creativity.  But a study at Donald MacKinnon at the Institute of Personality Research found a high degree of self-acceptance and confidence, sheer energy, and a whole-hearted commitment to the chosen task as being more consistent than intelligence in highly creative individuals.

Creative children have certain traits in common at a young age.  Can you observe any of these traits in your child?

Is your child very curious?
“How do frogs hop?” “What makes a rainbow?” “Why is cotton soft?”  Some adults may find such questions bothersome, but curiosity is an essential ingredient of creativity as children constantly try to make sense of their world.
Does your child’s play reflect imagination?
Creative children invent new games with their playmates.  They act out fantasies and experiment a lot.  A playful, imaginative childhood is vital to the development of creativity.
 
Does your child use analogy in speech?
The use of analogy to express a thought clearly shows a direct expression of creativity in language.  It is similar to seeing dinosaur clouds or lollipop trees.

Does your child challenge authority?
It is typical for four-year-olds to ask, “Why do I have to go to bed now and you don’t?” These children sometimes rationalize their behavior with what they see others in their life doing.

Is your child intensely animated?
Sometimes a child’s eyes sparkle when describing a playground game.  He or she may wave his or her hands and the cheeks may appear flushed.

Creative children become very involved in their current project or game.  They are eager to tell of their discoveries, and during conversations they often rush on to complete sentences for others.
Does you child like to guess outcomes?
Creative children like to guess the ending to the story or the movie.  Before they complete an experiment, they are usually confident of the outcome.  The fun of doing an activity such as drawing dot-to-dot is in predicting what the completed picture will be.  But being wrong leaves them undaunted and eager for more.
 

Dyslexics: Coping with Their Learning Difficulties

One out of every five children is possibly affected by dyslexia, making it one of the most widespread of the learning disabilities. In the USA alone, 10 million children are dyslexic. Many children are suffering, yet still more remain undiagnosed and unable to receive the needed support to overcome this condition.

Understanding Dyslexia

In 1896, W. Pringle Morgan, an English medical practitioner, provided the first description of dyslexia.  Prior to that, the disorder was thought to be a form of mental retardation.  Published in the British Medical Journal was Morgan’s case of a 14-year old boy who had extreme difficulty in reading yet excelled in game and was at the same level with his peers.  This intrigued many scientists who had been studying the disorder for years.  They finally realized that those who have the disorder could actually possess above average to exceptional intelligence.  Some, they found out, even excel in sports and the creative arts.  Because of this, their notion that dyslexia is a form of mental retardation was finally ruled out.
From the Greek words “dys” meaning difficulty and “lexia” meaning verbal language, dyslexia can be defined as a specific learning disorder resulting from neurological and genetic causes.   It affects one or more of the basic processes involved in understanding spoken or written language.  This results in the difficulty of the brain in stringing words, numbers, and symbols at least average intelligence. Dyslexia may show up as a problem in listening, thinking, speaking, reading, writing, or spelling or in a person’s ability in math.  Letter and word reversal and disorganization of word order are common symptoms.  Problems with coordination, memory, depth, perception, and discerning left from right may arise.  This explains why most dyslexics find it difficult to transfer information exactly from what is heard to what is seen and vice versa.

Researchers determined that a specific gene is responsible for dyslexia.  The condition results from a brain difference.  The right hemisphere of the brain of dyslexics is larger than that of normal individuals.  This may be the reason why dyslexics excel in areas controlled by the right hemisphere of the brain – such as artistic and athletic; 3D visualization ability, musical talent; and creative problem solving skills but are poor in perceptual, motor, linguistic, and adaptive—areas controlled by the brain’s left hemisphere.
For years, the organic cause of dyslexia has puzzled doctors who have been studying the disorder.  A significant breakthrough, however, was provided in 1998 by Dr. Sally Shaywitz, a researcher at the Yale University of Medicine and author of the book Overcoming Dyslexia.  Dr. Shaywitz’ s findings revealed that areas in the back of the brain that are usually activated when readers sounded out words are significantly less activated in dyslexics.  Areas in the front of dyslexics’ brains show more activity than in those of the brains of normal individuals.

Battling Dyslexia

The best way to treat dyslexia is to recognize it in the earliest stage, between the ages of 5 and 7 when the elementary reading skills are still easily learned.

The nature of dyslexic’s learning difficulty should be explored by a physician.  This is done by conducting physical examination and obtaining a comprehensive health history.  Upon confirmation of dyslexia, the child should then be referred to a specialist in psychoeducational diagnosis for further evaluation and treatment.
The primary goal of the specialist is to determine what appropriate educational intervention should be administered since no single learning method works for all dyslexics.  Each dyslexic has his own particular learning difficulties.  For instance, one dyslexic may be poor in reading but seldom reverses words while another may have long attention span but have poor memory.

Choosing Appropriate Learning Strategies

After determining the specific learning difficulties of the dyslexic, as well as his strengths and needs, the specialist then chooses appropriate learning strategies.  These strategies are usually based on the three main styles of learning:  auditory (use of sounds and words), visual (use of images and mental pictures), and kinesthetic (touch, active participation, hands-on activities).

Science has progressed enormously.  With the extensive researches done, there are specific scientifically-based programs that work.  Finding the right school with the proper reading programs and well-trained teachers is also essential.  Dr. Shaywitz, in an NBC News Today interview, states that “there’s a huge need to educate our parents and our teachers.”
Though dyslexia is permanent, it does not leave dyslexics in a helpless condition for the rest of their lives.  However, recognizing it and accepting their limitations are the very first steps in dealing with the disorder.
Dr. Shaywitz’s advice is, “go get help.  It’s remarkable.  The news is so good.  We’ve learned so much and people who go and get help can totally turn their lives around.”

published by by Athena Goodlight 10/2009 Healthmad

How to be an Effective Homeschool Teacher

The success of imparting knowledge lies greatly in the hands of the teacher. In most homeschooling situations, the teacher is a close relative or a parent.

In a few cases, parents might split up the subjects between them. Seldom, if both parents are busy, they might hire a homeschool teacher. Whatsoever the case, children require time with their parents. Parents, as a rule, make up very good teachers.

Teaching doesn’t require a clinical demonstration of facts. Learning has to be structured lovingly into daily life with the interest of the child in mind. That’s where parents come into the picture. Grandparents also make fine teachers, particularly since they possess an abundance of patience.

If you feel uneasy about your knowledge or skill, relax. There are plenty homeschooling resources that are directed at aiding you. Professional curriculum bundles, support groups, virtual schools, online help desks and library resources are all in hand. When you begin, you would like to capitalize on the commercial curriculum packages. Readymade software package also allows for you to record and log crucial accomplishments.

Local support groups are a great source of help, materials and ideas. This is where you have the chance to meet seasoned homeschoolers, who would be more than willing to offer their perceptiveness and advice. Once you fall into the homeschooling routine, you’ll find yourself tailor-fitting the curriculum to befit your own needs.


Copyright © 2011 Athena Goodlight

Homeschool Tips: Avoid Homeschool Burnout

Once a parent takes on the obligation of educating his or her child, homeschool burnout is among the more common effects they must deal with.

There are several reasons that head to this burnout; an illness, a new baby, additional responsibility, change in daily routine etc.

The symptoms of burnout deviate from lack of patience to binging and crying with no obvious reasons. Astonishingly, a burnout does not have to be such a bad thing. It’s a wake-up call – a signal that things are not holding out well and that you have to reschedule. Inverting or avoiding a burnout is conceivable if you have fair warning.


First, bring down your expectations. Don’t be a perfectionist. Accept the good days as well ad the not-so-good ones. Then when something doesn’t appear to work out, search alternate methods. Flexibility is a central factor. If stress starts mounting up, take a break. When necessary, alter the trend of teaching. For example, small children love to take on their spellings when they quiz an adult.

Stave off overkill. Don’t compact too many activities for the sake of the socialization of your child. A stressed out mom signifies a grouchy kid and that means zero happiness. Get back up from your spouse or a neighbor or a support group. Do not try to accomplish everything by yourself. Homeschooling means ‘happy schooling’ – do not ever forget

Copyright © 2011 Athena Goodlight