How To Travel With Kids - Top Three Tips

By Greg Pierce

Most parents are excited to bring their kids to their first vacation. Sometimes though, due to the excitement before the trip, everyone ends up arguing because the right preparations have not been made. Whether you like it or not, kids will be kids and it doesn't matter if you're taking them to Disneyland or Ocean Park in any state or country. When kids have to sit and behave on a plane ride, they probably won't. That's why adults should always plan a little extra things when kids are involved in traveling. Of course, the whole point will be to keep them still and safe. Apart from your convenience, keeping your kids in one place while flying will be safe for all.

You'd like to remember that the main issue here is how to keep your kids interested enough in something that will divert their minds from their "explorative" tendencies. To keep them glued to their seats, here are three things you can do:

1. Get some new toys just before the flight. You'll be amazed at what this trick can do. You can bring old ones, but the point is, kids aren't really that interested in old stuff and these things won't be able to keep them on their seats long enough. If you get new toys, that's a different story. Apart from satisfying your kids' eagerness to play, those toys will also get them curious about the new things they can play with. Combine that eagerness and curiosity and you'll have kids who won't mind sitting through a whole flight, as long as you let them discover their new playthings. There's a catch, though. Don't just get one or two. Get a bagful. That way, you're sure you'll keep him busy as long as you need to.

2. Aside from the urge to play, children can also be uneasy when they're not feeling their best. That's why you should always have your medicine kit with you, even for a short vacation. Even if it's just mild abdominal cramps, a child is going to complain when he feels he's not okay. It's true that we shouldn't overload our bodies with medicine and we can just let some minor conditions pass. But for a kid on a plane, this can be a problem. You should have some pills ready, just in case anyone needs to pop one.

3. When you have your luggage checked in, ask for window a window seat for your child. When you have him sitting by the aisle, you'll encourage him to explore and roam around the plane. This will not be safe, so it's good to have him in his seat through the whole duration of the flight. The sights he'll see through the window will also keep him preoccupied.

Whether you're traveling for a vacation or for relocation, make sure your stuff is packed safely. Make use of only the most durable materials, from clear poly bags or reclosable poly bags to corrugated shipping boxes and the like. When you use the right materials, you can travel confident that your things will be safe and secure.

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Musical Baby Toys

By Shelley Duncan

Musical baby toys are some of the best learning toys out there for toddlers and infants. Our culture puts a lot of emphasis on recognizing patterns, textures, shapes, and sizes, but being able to understand the structure of music and the complex patterns it entails is often deemphasized. Musical toddler toys are not just a way for babies to amuse themselves. Although the effects of music on the mind are not well understood, it is clear that it plays a profound role in our society. Music affects our emotions, inspires us, makes us dance, and can even be used to control us and make us docile in shopping malls and waiting rooms. By getting your kids musical instruments, You can help give them a head start in understanding the fascinating world of sound.

There are all sorts of musical baby toys out there. The ones for smaller kids actually tend to be more elaborate. Things like the Speak and Spell and miniature children's synthesizes require very little input to get complex output. You press one button and the whole machine flashes and plays a melody. You press another button and you get a different pattern of flashing and a different melody. This gives the child a lot of gratification for very little work - a useful thing for kids who are only just beginning to develop basic hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills.

Musical toddler toys, by contrast, tend to be quite a bit simpler. Whereas musical baby toys make all of the music for you, instruments for slightly older kids tend to be simplified, inexpensive versions of real instruments. A kids accordion works much like an adult to accordion except that it only has notes and chords in a major scale. A kids harmonica is more or less identical to a professional harmonica, except that it is cheap to make and cheap to buy. And of course all the kids drums, rhythm sticks, and other percussion instruments, are exactly what they appear to be: a low cost way to let your child explore the world of rhythm.

I've always thought it was good to give your child a selection of different musical toys. Baby learning toys with a musical component are great for the first year or two of life. After that, your child can move up to junior musical instruments that allow him or her to really play a rhythm or compose a song. Finally, if the kid is really interested in playing music, he can move on to half-size guitars, small violins, and things like that. Going from musical baby toys to actual musical instruments is not one big jump, but rather a series of progressive steps.

Education should not be dry and boring. I enjoy finding learning opportunities that are outside the box.

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Why Our Kids Are Behind in Math and Science

By Patricia Oaklief

Did you know that our eighth grade students do worse in math than students in eight other countries and in science, ten countries? Even worse, as they get older, the scores decline even more. The U.S. has never been near the top and there are no signs this will be any different when our kids are tested next spring for the�Trends in International Math and Science Study.�

Our children's standard of living may decline

True, many of our kids will not choose to become scientists or mathematicians but these low scores will impact them regardless because jobs will be leaving the United States, and not just jobs in math and science but jobs in areas of our economy that are growing. As the talent accumulates abroad, U.S. companies will do more in those countries.�

"If the next great technological advances in energy, the environment, medicine, and information are made elsewhere, American workers will have a much tougher time earning good pay in those key industries, said Geoff Colvin in a recent �Fortune article. "The scariest part of it," says Roger Bybee in The Bent of Ta Beta Pi "is that our students have the highest aspirations, but we are near the lowest in terms of problem-solving skills. Our skills are not commensurate with aspirations."�

Our school curriculum - a mile long and inch deep, repeated year-after-year

The countries we compete with teach fewer ideas per grade. A typical U.S. eighth-grade math textbook deals with 35-50 topics. A Japanese or German math textbook, for example, has only five or six topics for that age.�

Skip Fennell, president of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and professor of education at McDaniel College in Maryland, says, "In my job, I get to hear the frustration of elementary classroom teachers around the country.� In 49 of 50 states, there are state curriculum frameworks, and their requirements are all over the place. They have 20 to 30- and sometime hundreds-of objectives. This sends a signal to a fourth-grade teacher who may not have a degree in math that all these 100 objectives are equally important. But they've never been equally important." ��

"If you look at U.S. textbooks, you'll find topics early and then they repeat them year after year,�according to the authors of an article in the American Educator. �"To make matters worse, very little depth is added each time the topic is addressed because each year we devote much of the time to reviewing the topic."

"I say this as a high school valedictorian, national merit scholar, soon-to-be PhD student. They are covering math and science I didn't see until my first and second years of college! I attended one of the best schools in the state and received one of the finest educations available, but I wouldn't be able to compete with the average high school student in a rural village in China," said a commentator in an online discussion at Education in Review.��

Right now there's a raging debate across the United States about increasing the length of our school year and amount of homework. Given our focus on 35-50 concepts for each grade versus the five to seven in all the other countries beating us in science and math, maybe the question should begin with not how much we're studying, but are we studying the right things.

For more information and links to article sources, see Amigram

Pat Oaklief is a co-owner of Amigram. com Life's Happy Announcements, a website for free online announcements including engagements, weddings, babies, pets, graduations, anniversaries, birthdays, businesses and promotions, and any fun or special announcement. Private or public, users can insert their personal message, photos, video, and space for visitor comments.

Share your happy news with friends and family. Visit http://www.amigram.com/ today.

Pat also writes the Amigram blog for mommas, nannas and families.

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3 Steps to Reversing Childhood Obesity

By Bonnie Hershey

Obesity in America has become an epidemic. That's no secret. Greater than 60% of Americans are overweight or obese, including 1 in 3 children.

The number of obese children in America has doubled in the last ten years alone. As a result, the incidence of Type 2 Diabetes is rising quickly among kids--a disease once labeled as an adult-only disease.

Should it surprise us that our children have become innocent victims to the sedentary lifestyle choices and poor nutritional habits of the adults around them?

What's A Parent To Do?

Step 1: Take A Long Hard Look In the Mirror
Reversing childhood obesity is impossible without first changing our own habits as parents. We are our child's biggest role model and teacher for the nutritional choices they make.

Our kids watch what we eat, how we spend our time, what sports we like--and from all of these, they learn what is most important.

Jamie Oliver, chef and food activist, says that, "Food skills are life skills." We have to be teaching our kids how to eat well, how to prepare food, so that they can grow up to live long, fulfilling lives.

So, the first step to helping your child with weight issues, is actually the hardest--to take personal responsibility for any bad habits or wrong thinking about food that they have learned from you.

Own it. Forgive yourself for any responsibility you had in their upbringing--whether due to ignorance or lack of self-discipline.

Commit to change things. Determine to carve a new path for yourself and your family by relearning some healthy eating habits. Seek outside help if you're not sure where to start.

Step 2: Apply Dr. Dungan's 5-2-1-0 Formula
Dr. David Dungan, Internist and Pediatrician, of Lombard, IL recommends the following daily formula to helping kids return to a healthy weight and even prevent childhood obesity issues.

• At least 5 servings of fruits & vegetables.
• 2 hours or less of screen time. This includes TV, computer, and video game time.
• At least 1 hour of physical activity. (i.e. organized sports, biking, swimming, playground time, etc.)
• Zero sweets and soft drinks.

Again, the only way your kids will follow this formula in your home, is if they see you adopting the same standards. Play with them, eat with them, and refrain from sweets with them.

Step 3: Rule Out Candida Albicans Overgrowth
Candida albicans is a common yeast that can grow out of control in the guts of our kids and can actually perpetuate weight gain issues. It can cause insatiable cravings for sugar and simple carbs.

With the increased use and misuse of prescription antibiotics and steroid treatments, candida can grow and wreak havoc on a child's health. It manifests itself in the form of seemingly unrelated health issues: allergies, eczema, frequent ear infections, digestive problems, etc.

We are seeing candida as a more and more common issue among the kids and families that we work with. It is worth getting this bacterial overgrowth in check and starting with a firm foundation of optimal bacterial balance.

Childhood obesity will not go away without family intervention. Parents cannot sit back, encourage their kids to eat healthier, and be downing a bag of chips. The change must start with us.

To find out more information and receive personalized health coaching for your family, visit our website: http://www.ProvenNutritionForKids.com

Download our free eBook, "The 6 Great Lies of The American Diet" to take the first step.

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Interviewing Skills for Teens

By Tish Tisherman

Most people think I'm crazy when I tell them that my "passion" is working with Teenagers! I find that once you break through, (and that's a challenge) they can be inquisitive, curious and even helpful!

Most people think I'm crazy when I tell them that my "passion" is working with Teenagers! I find that once you break through, (and that's a challenge) they can be inquisitive, curious and even helpful!

I've had quite interesting experiences lately. I was brought in to a local hospitality company to handle the recruiting for their summer help. Most of the applications were from students who had never worked before. This particular client has numerous opportunities for high school students to gain their first experience in the world of work. I probably hired over 100 kids, and then provided orientation and counsel. It was quite eye opening to see how they dressed for the interviews, how they handled the questions about themselves, and above all, their attitudes. You can teach those simple skills about how to dress and what to say, but you can't teach attitude. It's either good or it's not. It was my job to find the good ones. Uniforms were provided, but the little things like ladies jewelry, tattoos, piercing, facial hair and proper shoes were all conveyed in orientation. Customer Service was the most important factor in these jobs, these kids needed to understand. Simple safety instructions made sense, but had to be taught. It's also interesting to notice the lack of knowledge in simple communication skills. And above all, the competition for these jobs was fierce. There were never less than 4000 applications in my inbox at any time. There were probably 20 walk in applicants each day. And still, recruiting to find quality was imperative.

It was probably one of the most fun recruiting gigs I've ever done. The location was fabulous! Who wouldn't want to work right on the ocean! I was able to put some of my friend's kids to work for the summer, giving them a sense of ownership and pride (along with their own hard earned spending money). I was able to build better relationships with local parks, teen organizations and schools. But, the best part of my job was walking through the facility, and hearing the kids call out their thanks for hiring them. Best of all is watching the progress and growth. They're learning responsibility, teamwork, and patience. It's a job I am very proud to have done.

So, here are some of the tips I want to pass along:

- Don't assume anything

- Ask, ask and ask again

- If this is your first job, don't be afraid to say so

- Volunteer to help/mentor someone newer than you are

- Please and Thank you go a long way

- Make sure you understand the rules and regulations

- When in doubt, find your supervisor

- Never EVER lie on your application or resume or to your potential boss, I promise you'll get caught!

- A smile is your best source of communication

Contact Tish for future classes and webinar dates! Individual coaching and training also available.

All children are beginning to want control over their own lives. They want to pursue their dreams, whatever they may be. They want to hear that it is possible - even in today's climate. Tish's kids learn what truly IS possible when they are coachable, committed, want to develop conviction, persistence and a mindset that failure is not an option!

With that, we make their dreams and vision a reality!

Visit Tish at http://talk2tish.com and download her free eBook, "One Teen's Story", or contact: tish@talk2tish.com

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Top 5 Ways to Prepare for the Back to School Routine

By Kathi A Flynn

If your child with special needs is heading back to school, the transition can be difficult. It is especially difficult if your child will be entering a new school, classroom, or getting a new teacher and classmates. Even if your child is fortunate enough to have the same teacher or classroom, he is currently having a 2-3 week vacation since summer school or camp ended. It is important to prepare your child with parts of the routine before the school routine begins. This will facilitate the transition and decrease the time it takes to adjust to so many changes. Below are the top 5 ways to prepare.

1. Visit the school/classroom/teacher

If it is possible to do all 3, that is excellent! Due to extenuating circumstances such as staffing and construction, sometimes it is not possible to go in and visit the classroom or teacher before school begins. If you call the school, and you are given permission to enter the building, you may be able to at least see the classroom, and possibly catch the teacher who may be setting up the classroom. This week is probably the most likely time to catch your child's teacher. Whether the school is familiar or new to your child, one thing you definitely can do is visit the outside of the school and the grounds. Walk around the building and spend some time on the playground. Drive to the school several times. This will help familiarize your child with the route to school and what the school building and playground look like.

2. Start the morning routine

With school not in session, you've probably had some lazy summer mornings consisting of staying in pajamas for a while, and/or going out to breakfast. It's time to set the alarm, get dressed, brush hair and teeth, and have breakfast in more of a structured routine so that you and your child become used to getting ready for school in a limited time frame. This is especially helpful if your child needs continuous prompting during the morning routine, is not very independent with some of the daily living skills of getting dressed, etc., or if your child does not move very quickly and mornings are particularly challenging.

3. Go for a morning outing

Right after breakfast, pack a backpack with a snack and some reinforcers if needed, and head out of the house, just like your child would on a school day. First, you can go for a drive to your child's school and, as mentioned above, spend time visiting the inside or just the outside grounds. Then, if you want to continue the outing, you can go for a visit to the Library (which is very similar to school), or to a sensory gym, park, etc. The idea is to head out early to a set location to get used to having a place to get ready to go to in the morning. Even if your child will take the bus, driving to the school and heading out together will help ease anxieties and build some elements of the school routine.

4. Add more work related tasks to your day

Now is the time to start adding more structured tasks into your child's day so the demands of school are not so overwhelming on day one. Set up table top activities and try to increase time on task. These tasks should be simple or review of mastered skills so that your child is focusing more on sitting and working in a structured space like she would be at school. Set up activities that your child enjoys. Some suggestions are puzzles, coloring, simple matching games, or any other language building tasks you may have with picture cards, etc. Try to set a goal of 2-3 table top activities a day.

5. Get back the night time routine

With 2 of my own children, I know that summertime and vacation time has consisted of going to bed late, staying out late at a friend or family member's house, or staying up to watch "one more movie." It is time to start going to bed early with a routine, whatever that may consist of with a bath/shower, bedtime story, etc. This will also help your child get up in the morning.

Best of luck preparing for the school routine! Your child has a lot of changes to adjust to. It is best to get your child used to the parts of the routine that you have control over now so that there is less to adjust to once school begins!

Read more special education resources, especially tips for children with autism, on my blog, http://www.tips4specialkids.com

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