Teaching a Child to Read

Reading is a gift and literacy is a basic need as well as a right for every individual. As parents, one of the most precious gifts that we can give to our children is the ability to read. It is our greatest desire that at an early stage of their life they can be able to grasp things so quickly. But how? With the presence of television shows and characters which they idolized. It becomes a big struggle to divert their concentration. That is why as parent, it is our responsibility to properly guide them and help them understand the value of reading. With the right reading skill, your child will find studying much easier. Below are some of the tips that we can apply to our child.

1.      Limit your child’s time spent in watching television.

2.      Make reading time a bonding time especially with small children.

3.      Let the small children get involved in the story. Allow them to turn the pages of the book and let them enjoy observing the various pictures and figures inside.

4.      Ask your child some questions after  a reading session. Always remember that reading is also a skill which will be a good value when she goes to school. Studies have shown that humorous stories will keep children’s attention longer than other stories. Try to be appropriate in choosing books for your child.

Study Tips for Parents in Motivating their Children to Study

Parents a very important role in motivating their children to have a good study habits. Havng a good parental supervision could lead your child to study effectively. It is correlated that having a good study skills could result to good academic performance. That is why parents, should inculcate to the minds of their children the importance of study habits. Below are few tips for parents which can be use to improve their children’s study habits.

a.       a. Be a partner to your child. It is oftentimes a mistake for parents to scold their children in order for them to study. By doing this, the child will associate their parents’ reminders aversely and would rather bum around. Being a partner, try to assist them in their academic activities in a very encouraging tone.

b.      b. Explanation. Children must be explained by their parents why, how and what is the reason for studying. Try to explain to them the need to study and make them realize the effects of studying their lessons.

c.      c.  Set time for studying. Parents must set time for studying and must be consistent and follow that time. Children have short concentration spans, make sure that you set their study time before allowing them to play.

d.      d. Maximize study time. To maximize study time, it involves just studying and not distracting them while studying. Do not serve them food while studying and most importantly, put away toys and other distracting objects away from them.

e.       e. Reward their good behavior. Children must understand that studying is a desirable behavior and a reward is given after a successful study session. Reward must always come in monetary value, it might be giving them time to play because they have studied well and performed well in their studies. Children will associate studying and reward as an encouragement to repeat that behavior.

f.       f. Always remember that they are still children. Parents should bear in mind that they are still a child and playing is part of their actitivities as individual. Therefore, allow them to play and enjoy, parents must not burden their children with so many and high expectations. These expectations, might be a source of frustrations instead of helping them succeed in their studies. Children will be successful not in a high pressure envronment but with a nurturing, encouraging way.

Teaching Kids the Right Chores for their Age

It is really important to teach our children some light household chores. We may assign them to some specific tasks according to their capacity to handle it. Like for 5 to 7 years old, they can already sweep the floor, arrange her bed, clean the room, hang up her towel, feed the pets, set the table and even help in clearing the dishes after a meal. And as they grow, like age 8 to 10 years they can be assign to a more bigger task like unloading the groceries from the bag, do laundry, help prepare foods for a certain meal or snacks, brushing the bathroom and prepare her own breakfast, lunch and snacks into a container. As a general rule, these kids must be supervised and be guided so they can perform it well. Try also to accompany them during shopping for groceries, as this can be an opportunity to teach them about making healthy food choices and also you can teach them about budgeting. By training them at an early age, they will grow up responsible and will be able to value the worth of every task they accomplished.

Tips  for Parents in assigning task

1.      Kids wants to help. Sometimes when kids saw you working on something and wanted to help you, take advantage of her desire and encourage her excitement about doing kid chores.

2.      When she says she’s bored. This happen very often it’s because young kids have a short attention span, or she could be having problem in doing the task or she doesn’t like to do the task. You could ask her to do the task with you or let her do something else.

3.      Make chores more fun. It can be done by switching on dance music while sweeping the floor, dusting the sofa, windows and dividers in order for them to get motivated and will not feel tired.

4.      Praise her a lot. At first, she performed with mess but as she go through for a long time she will be able to do it right, don’t forget to praise her achievements.

By taking the time to teach you kid gets into the habit of helping around the house, you’re setting her the pattern that will benefit you as a parent and your kids as they grow up.

Building Healthy Eating Habits for Kids

When it comes to healthy eating habits and food preferences of kids differ in some ways. Some are picky eaters while others may become adventuresome gourmands. But no matter what kind of habits they have, you can help your kids develop and shape his food preferences and attitudes toward food by guiding him toward healthy eating habits.

1. Accompany him during food shopping – show to your child how to choose healthy foods and explain to him the health benefits that you can get from the food. Instead for processed foods, go for fresh vegetables and fruits.

 

2. Let your kids help during cooking – whatever age your children are, invite them to help you during cooking, they may not be able to cook but certainly they can perform simple preparation. In this way your child will be able to know how to cook on their own as they grow up.

3. Promote smart snacking -  even if you served her favorite dishes during meal time but if he just taken his snacks too close to mealtime he will likely not eat it. That is why don’t let her take his snack at least an hour before mealtime, and if he wants make it light by serving a slice of fruits.

4. Avoid bribery – most parents certainly do this trick in order for their kids to eat by saying no to TV, computer or whatever he wants to do unless he eats his meal. But this idea can create an uneasy relationship with food in your child. Instead of pressuring him to eat which he doesn’t feel like, give him choices that are more likely to go down easy.

5. Don’t ban junk food – allowing him to eat such food doesn’t mean good for him but if you try to forbid even a piece of lollipop in your home will more likely to make him feel ignorant. A better way to handle sugary snacks is to let him take a piece of it once a while and if he wants for more, try to steer him toward healthy snacks like nuts.

6. Set a good example – examine yourself first, if you try to ban your kids from drinking soda and eating sugary foods, be a model to them by setting them good example.

Say No To Sweety Foods

Kids really love to eat sweet foods. You cannot say no when they want it, even adults likes to savor processed foods, soda, and other food beverages which found out to contain high fructose corn syrup. A new study from Medical College of Georgia at Georgia health Science University examined the 559 teens between the ages of 14 and 18 and found a link between diets that are high in fructose and increased risk for health problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, insulin resistance and cardiovascular diseases. The researchers emphasize the importance of a healthy diet and exercise and urge parents to keep an eye on the amount of high fructose corn syrup that is being eaten by kids at home and at school. So the next time your child ask for a soda or junk foods, always consider the effects of the foods that he intake on his body. It’s better to say no them at once than to suffer the effects later.

Why Play Is Important for Your Child?

Play is a normal part of a happy childhood development. It is one of the child’s rights. In fact, studies show that play is actually a way for your child to prepare their brains for the challenge of adulthood which is derived whether through games, music or puzzles. Play reinforces the bonding and interaction between the parent and child. Play will give your child the following benefits:

1.      it lets him to assert his independence

2.      allows him to explore his capabilities at his own pace

3.      develops their imagination

4.      encourages socialization with peers

5.      promotes good health

6.      lengthen their attention span

7.      it makes them relax and release any form of stress or anxiety

8.      strengthens the bond between parents

9.      it helps them have fun on their own

Simple Ways To Prepare Your Child For School

Though we are conquered with the latest gadgets and fast evolving technology, it is still good to know that traditional ways of imparting knowledge to your child are still effective. There are several ways that parents should know to unlock the academic potential of their child without spending too much. Below are some of the basic steps to optimize the development of your child in order him to prepare for school.

1.      Read to your child everyday and expose him to books. Reading a book together with your child not only helps practice reading comprehension, it also helps foster a bond between the parent and the child. It is recommended that you set aside at least 20 minutes a day reading to your child. There are benefits that your child can get from reading: It promotes longer attention span. Develops listening skills. Stimulate the imagination. Build vocabulary. Develops a love for books as well as love for reading.

2. Talk with your child as much as you can. Talking to your child not only develops open communication between you and your child, but it also help him express his feelings and interests and boost intelligence.

3. Increase his playtime. Play reinforces the bonding and interaction between parents and child. It develops his imagination, explore his capabilities, encourages socialization and become independent.