Building Interaction Into Your Online Course
May 31, 2007
You’ve already decided that you’re ready to author online and you have your content organized. Now it’s time to face the ultimate challenge in online learning - making it interactive!
Interaction in online courses is a two-edged sword. On one hand you want students to participate. This enhances their learning by letting them question and discuss issues in the course. On the other hand, as the instructor, you need to decide the level of interaction you want to have with each student - and build your courses accordingly.
As an illustration, let me relate a poor choice I made in a course I wrote several years ago. Because I wanted everyone involved, I required that each student post at least one message per week to the discussion group. In addition, I required that they respond to two other messages. Simple? Yes. But because I had decided that my level of involvement was to respond to every posting, I was faced with 3 messages for every student every week - and this was only the minimum requirement! I soon found myself bogged down in responding to an overwhelming number of messages.
Back to School Feng Shui
May 30, 2007
Every school year parents and students dutifully trudge through the malls in search of the perfect sneaker or the cool new outfit for the coming school year. However, it’s unlikely that the new shoe or shirt will benefit them as much as a new design in the bedroom. That’s because a bedroom makeover will create new interest and energy ? what feng shui calls "chi" ? in the bedroom that will benefit a child. According to feng shui, the Chinese technique for design and arrangement, rooms that have good energy, or "chi", create happier, well-adjusted children. Feng shui theories suggest that for a child’s room to have good "chi," the room must follow certain guidelines such as that they must be restful, promote good relationships others and generate good self-esteem. Perhaps most importantly, harmonious children’s bedrooms encourage good study habits and promote greater success in school.
What does it take to promote greater success in school? According to feng shui, the following seven tips are key to creating rooms that inspire kids to study.
10 Ways to Make Toilet Training Fun & Exciting
May 30, 2007
Blue & Yellow Make Green - Put a few drops of blue food coloring in the toilet and show your child that the color turns green when he or she pees!
Potty Targets - Purchase or make toilet targets to teach your child to aim. Cheerio’s are a cheap alternative and work just as well.
Musical Potty Chair - Musical chairs, such as the Tinkle Toonz, play a tune when your child uses the potty!
Potty Training Doll - Anatomically correct drink & wet dolls, such as the Corolle or Aquini dolls, help make potty training fun and easy. These dolls can be used with Dr. Phil’s Potty Training Method.
Potty Training Watch - Make potty time reminders fun and exciting with the VibraLite potty training watch. The VibraLite watch can be set to vibrate every 30 minutes as a fun reminder that it’s time to sit on the potty!
Books, Videos, & DVDs - Potty training bedtime stories, videos and DVDs are a fun and educational way to introduce toilet training to your child.
The Importance of Mothers
May 29, 2007
Moms, did you ever question your value as a role model, caretaker, administer of hugs and Band-Aids? I think we all have in today’s climate of “do more, get more, have more.” Many of us work to bring home a paycheck and others work for our sanity. Have you ever wondered if your children were better off with the baby sitter than you? Scientific studies are beginning to point to the overwhelming value of a mother’s love, hugs and support. Nannies, baby-sitters and relatives are terrific. They just aren’t as terrific as Mom.
I have had the best of both worlds, I suspect. I worked a high-powered executive job until my older daughter was 2 and a half. At a crossroads in my career, I opted to “get pregnant and stay home for a year.” HA! Little did I realize I was about to take a ten-year hiatus from my much-loved life! I didn’t get pregnant right away, but, after having spent a year basking in the glow of being Mom, I couldn’t bear giving up the care and nurturing of my daughter to another nanny, no matter how wonderful. I think it was the best career move of my life.
Teaching Children Good Manners
May 28, 2007
Last week in my newsletter, I mentioned that my children knew how to behave in nice restaurants because they had been exposed to the atmosphere at an early age. My idea of well behaved might be different from yours, however, I think there are certain basics that are important and universal.
When my daughters were babies, we would take them wherever we went. If they began to fuss or cry, one of us would promptly remove them from the room/restaurant/market/wherever. Not because we felt their crying or fussing was a bad thing. No, it’s a perfectly normal occurrence for infants and toddlers. We removed them as a courtesy to others who we felt did not need to be as tolerant as we were with our children’s noise. In consequence, my daughters know that other people are not as wildly in love with their racket or with them as we are. Nor should they be expected to be.
Learn These Study Skills and You Can Expect Straight A’s
May 27, 2007
Learn These Study Skills and You Can Expect Straight A’s
by: Scott Palat
By following these twelve tips, you will be guaranteed to get straight AAAAA’s. Read each tip carefully.
1. Find a quiet area in your house in which you are
comfortable and can isolate yourself from distractions. Be
sure that this space includes a chair, table or desk, and
sufficient lighting. Ask others not to disturb you while you
are in this special location and turn off all phones, beepers,
televisions, videos, music, or anything else that your mind
will wander to instead of focusing on the schoolwork.
2. Find the best time to study. Some students tend to do
their best work as soon as they get home from school
while they are still in the school mode. Others need a
break and don’t settle down to study until after practice,
playtime, a nap, dinner and/or family time. Just be sure to
allow yourself enough time to get everything done and still
get enough sleep each night.
3. Organize your day, week, month, etc. Set aside a specific
How to Stop Bad Behavior Before it Starts
May 26, 2007
Coping with a child’s bad behavior, perhaps more than any other aspect of parenting, can cause stress, family disfunction, and a general loss of harmony in your home. Over time, negative behavior cycles can become ingrained in a family’s way of interacting with each other 1. Be a Benevolent DictatorIn today’s times it is tempting to think of our family as a small Democracy, giving equal weight to the wants and needs of every member. Families schedule meetings to discuss rules. Negotiation is a skill learned even before tying shoes. Rules apply only if children choose to obey them. Giving children lots of choices seems to be of paramount importance. Parents who operate these types of Democracies think that they are showing their children love and respect. In fact, what these parents are showing their children is that they don’t have the fortitude to do what is right.
End Homework Battles
May 25, 2007
Ask parents what their biggest school year challenge is, and you’ll likely hear that it is the difficulty they face in getting their kids to do homework. With so many other attractive ways for kids to spend their time, getting them to buckle down and complete that extra bit of schoolwork can be like pulling teeth. As with any chore, though, there are strategies you can use to get it done and make it more fun.
1. Make Time for HomeworkFitness gurus have known this for years: you are more likely to stick to an exercise regimen if you do it at the same time everyday and make it an inviolable part of your schedule. The same goes for homework. Don’t leave it up in the air as to when homework will be completed. This only ensures that it won’t get completed until you have an extended argument with your child about it-usually one hour after bedtime. Instead, sit down with your child and review your family schedule for the upcoming semester. Decide where homework will fit in your daily schedule and make it non-negotiable. It is always helpful to anchor homework time to some other regular activity. Good choices are: directly after school or right before or after dinner. (Scheduling homework in the hour before bedtime is usually not a good practice since your child may be too sleepy to do a good job.)
7 Stages of Potty Training
May 25, 2007
There are seven stages of potty training. They begin with showing signs of potty training readiness and conclude with being able to use the toilet away from home.
Signs of Readiness - The first stage of potty training begins when your child shows the following signs of potty training readiness:
· Expresses an interest in the potty · Express the need to go potty (verbally or through body language) · Able to dress and undress · Uncomfortable in wet diapers · Stays dry for two hours · Imitates family members · Interested in big kid underwear · Has regular bowel movements
Introduction to the Idea of Potty Training ? When your child shows a majority of the signs of potty training readiness, it’s time to introduce him to the concept of using the potty. This can be done by reading a potty training book as a bedtime story or watching a potty training video or DVD together. Purchase a potty chair and let your child watch you use the potty. Children will often imitate family members.
10 Steps to School Year Success
May 24, 2007
One of the most important aspects of parenting, is ensuring that your child gets a good education. School is a place where your child not only learns skills such as reading and writing; it is also where your child will learn about friendship, responsibility, and fairness. In short, school is a test run for the ‘real world’, and your child needs your help to navigate this complicated arena. When your child was a baby, you set your life around nap times and diaper changes,
1. Establish Consistent RoutinesTake the ‘year at a glance’ approach. If you have a child starting first grade and one in fourth, one a musician and the other an athlete, then you must sketch out how you will achieve a balance between school, their activities, your work, and your activities. It is best to look at all of these areas at once, so that you can spot the trouble areas. Once you have the big picture, it is time to ask how you can set up a regular routine to ensure that everyone’s needs are met, including yours.
