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Monday, March 30, 2009

Search safely with 'Family Friendly Sites'

Internet is a world of information and if you intend to use it safely for you or your family you should use the search engines which provide family or kid friendly site links. Parents and teachers can help the kids learn how to use internet safely. Picking up family friendly search engines for search purposes is the safe way to browse the net.

Family Friendly Sites is a search engine based site which believes in supporting the online safety of family members using the Internet.

At the left side bar there is "Parent friendly link" where you can search for 'Internet Safety Resources' and 'Parenting Tips'.

There are "kid friendly link" categories like as 'Early Learning, Educational Sites
Games & Entertainment, Online Safety Tips, Search Engines.

Site link: family friendly sites

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Download free 'Home work Toolkit'

There are lots of tips and ideas which can help students do their home work efficiently. These tips can help teachers and parents guide their children in completing the home work successfully.

'Homework Toolkit' is free offer from 'Soar study skills' which is site offering help for students, teachers and parents. This 'Homework Toolkit' includes a variety of resources to help you and/or your child get started on the path to homework success.

This comprehensive guide will help you identify specific homework problems and introduce you to many time-saving techniques.

This kit includes:

* Homework Scorecard
Can you use a homework tune-up? Use this scorecard to see how you measure up and to identify the specific study skills that are best suited for you.

* 25 Ways to Make Homework Easier…Tonight!
This insightful guide is filled with tips and tricks that can help ease homework hassles immediately. Pick two to try tonight, then two more for tomorrow night, etc. A few simple strategies can make life much easier!

* Homework Inventory for Parents
Filled with some of the most common homework frustrations we hear from parents, this inventory helps parents identify their specific needs. Then, it provides some tips about how those problems can be turned around into positive homework experiences.

* Homework eNewsletter
Once a month, you will receive practical newsletter with helpful tips for managing homework. Some articles are written specifically for parents and others specifically for students, but they are always relevant for anyone who has to deal with homework!

- 'Download page link'

Monday, March 16, 2009

Get the simple and basic answers to your questions at 'Brain bashing'

People who search the net for information or seeking answers to their questions, are usually not lucky to find the basic information they need to know. Often the process of getting specific information is very time consuming. Brain Bashing is one of the sites which help you get the basic information and simple explanations of your questions.

Brain Bashing is a centralized resource of questions, Answers and information, provided directly from experts in their relevant fields.

The emphasis is to give clear and simple explanations to your questions so that not only do you get an answer, you get one you can understand!

- You can browse the category, brain cloud from the discussed topics, but if you think that you are not getting the answer to your questions then just write your question at the provided box and submit it.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

"Shambles.net" - A useful resource for teachers, students and parents

There are many online useful resources for teachers, students and parents but you need to search at specific search engines which are typically for education purposes. Searching at regular search engines like google, yahoo may bring millions or results which are not practical to get the required information within short time. This blog is created just to keep all the necessary information and links at one place. And my intention is to share it with students, parents and teachers as well.

Shambles.net is designed to support the international school communities (teachers, support staff, administrators, students and families) in 17 countries in South East Asia. This site offers particular help to families that are moving or living in S.E.Asia and are looking for education opportunities for their children.

It provides links to over 20,000 education websites which will save your time when looking for resources on the internet. You an browse or use the search facility. Many of the more than 25,000+ links to other educational websites have been put on this site by teachers.

Shambles gets between 10,000 and 20,000 'HITS' most days.

The 'Education Project Asia (TEPA)' is a consultancy established in 2002 with the aim of offering support to the international schools in 17 countries in South East Asia.

Link to other pages of the site: 'Educational games'

* The 'Shambles' newsletter is emailed out three times a year in February, May and November.
It contains information and news that will be of specific interest to members of the International Schools Community in seventeen countries in South East Asia.

To subscribe send a blank email to: newsletter-subscribe@shambles.net

You can also read archived newsletter at 'this link'

Thursday, January 29, 2009

An origami frog or a toy?

It looks like an origami or toy frog, but you would be astonish to know that it is a real frog.

According to 'wikipedia':
The Red-eyed Tree Frog (Agalychnis callidryas) is a small-sized tree frog, reaching lengths of about 5 to 7 centimeters (3 inches), native to Neotropical rainforests in Central America. They are not poisonous and rely on camouflage to protect them. During the day, they remain motionless with their colorful parts hidden. Thus, they appear almost completely green, and well hidden among the foliage.

There are more featured pictures which you can read and watch at wikipedia site.

Link: Featured pictures

Saturday, January 24, 2009

How to empower your child's self esteem?

Healthy promotion of self esteem skill among children is very important as it can help them grow as a positive and confident personality. This article would be helpful for parents and teachers to help learn this very essential life skill for their children. There are many techniques and tips which are useful to empower and boost the self esteem skill.

Webster's dictionary defines self-esteem as "a confidence and satisfaction in oneself" and self-concept as "the mental image one has of oneself "

Self-esteem is considered to be the overall value that one places on oneself as a person (Harter, 1989), whereas self-concept is viewed as the body of self-knowledge that individuals possess about themselves (Rosenberg, 1986).

When parents and teachers of young children talk about the need for good self-esteem, they usually mean that children should have "good feelings" about themselves. With young children, self-esteem refers to the extent to which they expect to be accepted and valued by the adults and peers who are important to them. During their early years, young children's self-esteem is based largely on their perceptions of how the important adults in their lives judge them. The extent to which children believe they have the characteristics valued by the important adults and peers in their lives figures greatly in the development of self-esteem. For example, in families and communities that value athletic ability highly, children who excel in athletics are likely to have a high level of self-esteem, whereas children who are less athletic or who are criticized as being physically inept or clumsy are likely to suffer from low self-esteem.

Children and teenagers with low self esteem will display a variety of traits, including:

- Being easily influenced by advertising or others.
- Avoiding new challenges for fear of failure.
- Becoming frustrated easily by setbacks.
- Blaming others when activities are unsuccessful.
- Disbelieving that (s)he has any talents or special abilities.
- Feeling unloved.

Children and teenagers with a high level of self esteem and strong feelings of self worth will also display stereotypical traits, such as:
- Welcoming new challenges.
- Tolerating frustration.
- Taking responsibility for unsuccessful ventures.
- Recognising and sharing his/her talents and special abilities.
- Feeling loved, and loving others in return.

While many children develop self esteem as they grow, for some children self esteem must be nurtured and tended. Parents and teachers can help the children develop this life skill by adopting few simple tips and techniques. Parents are at the front line of promoting children's self esteem, and while often their opinion is enough to make even the littlest chest swell with pride.

Be loving with your child, giving hugs and kisses regardless of achievements.
Help your child set realistic, attainable goals.
Praise your child for the effort, not for the outcome.
Avoid criticising your child's performance at a given task, and instead praise his/her enthusiasm or imagination.
Encourage your child to engage in activities due to interest, not ability.
Do not tolerate self criticism from your child. Help him/her focus on positive points.
Lead by example. Do not criticise yourself in front of your children.
Foster a caring environment at home by dispelling sibling rivalry.

Sources: Developing Self Esteem

Debbie Mandal at 'Bella Online' who si a stress management editor suggests these tips to boost child's self esteem:

* Exercise: Children need to be active to relieve stress hormones and sharpen learning ability which improves by 20% after exercise. Athletics, teams, dance classes and one-on-one sports training create empowerment by literally strengthening both the body and the mind.

* Healthy eating: If you want children to think highly of themselves, make sure that they eat quality foods, not junk. Food and mood are connected. A rainbow array of fruits and vegetables create sunny dispositions. Lean proteins promote academic success. Whole grains help manage stress.

* Guiding children to pick a creative hobby: Nurture their creativity. Nothing boosts self-esteem like developing a creative gift which might range from cooking and constructing to singing and writing. Through creativity children can tangibly identify and observe their uniqueness. “Look what I did.”

* Carving out private time: Children are overscheduled and over-stimulated. They need quality, private time to explore and find their own way to reset their natural rhythm. You don’t have to constantly amuse them when they say, “I’m bored.”

* Give them responsibilities and chores: Even if you have a nanny or a housekeeper, children need to do chores. Contributing to the household gives them structure and accountability which creates personal pride. Small children can help set the table or pick up their toys.

* Humor: Laughter breaks negativity instantly. Show your children how to reduce and reinterpret those “little disasters” with a comic eye. Children who have a sense of humor are magnets for positive social relationships.


Related articles: How Can We Strengthen Children's Self-Esteem?

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Tips to stimulate a child's creativity

Creativity is a skill which can be learned and developed through practice. This talent can be encouraged among children with the some tips and tricks. These tips and tricks can dramatically accelerate child's personal growth and help sharpening their thinking skills as well as exercising their natural creative powers.

Bill Gates recently said that “Too few young people are acquiring the knowledge they need to use technology in creative and innovative ways.”

Bill goes on to say that, “We can all help address this issue. As parents, we must help our children appreciate the joys of learning and discovery. Teachers and educators must find ways to teach science and math so it is relevant and exciting.”

These 10 ways to stimulate your child's creativity are taken from 'About.com' and for detailed post you can read the full article at the bottom of the post. May be these all tips cannot be adopted but they can definately help you to train your child's creativity development.

1. Create A Magical Dress-Up Box
2. "When I Grow Up" Drawings
3. Cast The Kids In A Play
4. Create a Never-Ending Bedtime Story Starring Your Child
5. I Feel Like Dancing!
6. Plan A Garden Together
7. Make A Kite First...Then Go Fly It!
8. Let Your Kid Lead The Way
9. What's Cookin' Outside
10. Create A Musical Band

Source: Top 10 Ways To Foster A Child's Creativity

Related posts:

* Learn doodling to make you more creative

* 7 activities to stimulate creativity

* Games that stimulate creativity

* Crafts activities improve students learning skills

* Interested in inventions, innovation and creativity?-Let's explore!

Monday, December 29, 2008

Free e-book for parents -Beyond the Golden Rule

'Tolerance' is a skill which helps us deal with life matters. In simple words I think we can resemble it with 'patience'. This post is about a free e-book which you can download and learn how to teach your kids 'tolerance'. As a parents first we should learn it and then teach it to our young ones. First let's learn more about this term:

Merriam webster dictionary provides definition of 'tolerance': 'Capacity to endure pain or hardship'
Wikipedia says: Toleration and tolerance are terms used in social, cultural and religious contexts to describe attitudes and practices that prohibit discrimination against those practices or group memberships that may be disapproved of by those in the majority. Conversely, 'intolerance' may be used to refer to the discriminatory practices sought to be prohibited.

"Beyond in tract ability" explains: Tolerance is the appreciation of diversity and the ability to live and let others live. It is the ability to exercise a fair and objective attitude towards those whose opinions, practices, religion, nationality and so on differ from one's own.[1] As William Ury notes, "tolerance is not just agreeing with one another or remaining indifferent in the face of injustice, but rather showing respect for the essential humanity in every person."[2]

Intolerance is the failure to appreciate and respect the practices, opinions and beliefs of another group. For instance, there is a high degree of intolerance between Israeli Jews and Palestinians who are at odds over issues of identity, security, self-determination, statehood, the right of return for refugees, the status of Jerusalem and many other issues. The result is continuing inter-group violence.

Drawn from our handbook, Beyond the Golden Rule: A Parent’s Guide to Preventing and Responding to Prejudice, the age-specific sections here offer practical advice about the challenges and rewards of parenting

The ideas in this guide will help foster tolerance in yourself, your family, your schools, your workplace and your community. Some of the ideas are things to do. Some are things to think about. Some are things to remember.
This guide is not a sure-fire recipe for making the world a better place. These ideas are only some of the possibilities. The best ideas are those that work for you and your community.

- Download PDF version of parenting handbook: "Beyond the Golden Rule"
or go to this link to download from the site link.

Links:

Tolerance
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