Words of Wisdom for Single Parents
December 31, 2008
The cost of being a parent and raising a child in todays world is constantly increasing. The risk of your child becoming involved in problem behaviour is also greater. Parents must work together as a team to ensure the brightest future for their children. But what if there is no team. No other person to rely upon. This is what millions of single parents deal with everyday. But it is not only the parent who sees this as a gloomy situation. Children are quite often left thinking that they are the reason for a separation or divorce. It is the child who must attend father and son day at school without a dad. They have to grow up with all the stigma attached to coming from a “broken home”. These are just a few of the many potential problems that a single parents household are faced with. This article is aimed at providing single parents with some strategies for raising a good child despite what other people may say.
Concentrate on the positives
A Mothers Love
December 30, 2008
Once upon a time there was a beautiful bird whose golden feathers and sweet voice attracted attention where ever she went. She was not only beautiful but also extremely intelligent and talented and she longed to leave the nest and try her wings out in the big world.
At first she did not fly far from home and when she returned to the nest, she still felt a part of it but then she flew to a foreign land and things began to change. She stayed for awhile on the rim of the nest of others but she could not find a place to rest, so she flew around and around getting more and more dis heartened and more and more tired until her golden feathers lost their lustre and her sweet voice no longer broke out in song.
She began to fear that she would never have a nest of her own and believed that there was no other nest that she could return to. She became lost, flying around and around in circles, landing for a short time but always on the verge of flight as the fear over took her.
Are You Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child?
December 30, 2008
Although many parents are concerned with our children’s intelligence quotient (IQ), research shows that a child’s emotional quotient (EQ) is just as important for that child’s personal success. So what is Emotional Intelligence? Emotional quotient is your child’s ability to feel, while intelligence quotient is your child’s ability to think. Although the term was coined in 1990 by psychologists Peter Salovey and John Mayer, the person responsible for bringing more awareness to emotional intelligence is a science writer Daniel Goleman.
Mr Goleman’s book Emotional Intelligence brought to light the importance of a child’s skill of awareness, empathy and ability to manage emotions. Although there is some controversy regarding how emotional intelligence plays a role in a child’s life, there is evidence of the value of emotional intelligence.
Two of the multiple intelligences of Dr. Howard Gardner are Inter and Intra personal intelligence. Inter-personal Intelligence is the ability to relate to and understand others. Intra personal Intelligence is the ability to self reflect and understand inner emotions and identify strengths and weaknesses. Emotional intelligence combines the two intelligences and helps a child to manage their feelings and emotions as well as empathize with the feelings and emotions of others.
Teens: Life v. Electronics
December 29, 2008
Teens: Life v. Electronics
by: Matthew C. Keegan
Teens today have so much more to distract them besides their homework, the opposite sex, friends, family members, and extracurricular activities. Besides learning how to drive, teenagers are occupied with playing with an assortment of electronic gizmos including cell phones, camera phones, personal computers, MP3 players, DVD players, ipods, xboxs, digital cameras, the list goes on. Wired? You betchaand then some. Perhaps all of this electronic gadgetry has you concerned and you are wondering just how you can extract your teen and involve them in an outside activity where they can expand their minds and refresh their bodies. Are you out of ideas? Let’s look at some options that may appeal to them and remove the worry from you.
Work on the Car So, you think that a car isn’t a kid magnet as much as when you first learned how to drive? Think again. Today, kids are pimping their rides and expressing themselves through their cars. Custom paint, decals, blacked out windows, even faux aircraft wings are being attached to the outside of their cars. On the inside, it can be totally surreal: rear view mirrors wrapped with a studded belts, frilly seat cover trim, pushpin art attached to the headliner, decals everywhere, etc. Let them pimp your Camry or Explorerthat’ll keep them off the computerand get you noticed too!
Most Important Decision of a Lifetime - What to Name Your Baby
December 28, 2008
Most people don’t know the meaning of their name, but most names do have meanings. You should at least find out the meanings of your favorite choices before giving one of them to your child. The meaning of your child’s name probably won’t greatly affect his or her life, but may help you to make a decision between your favorites.
Many names are shortened to nicknames during childhood, or other stages of life, so be sure to think about what shortened forms of your child’s name may be. Also consider that names we might think are cute for a child could be embarrassing later in life, before giving your child a nickname as their legal name. For instance - shortening Samantha to Sam or Sammy while your daughter is young may be fine, but will she mind having to put Sam on her business cards or college application later in life if its her legal name?
No one likes having their name constantly misspelled or mispronounced, so keep this in mind before choosing a unique pronunciation or spelling of a common name. Remember that your child will spend his or her lifetime explaining to others how the name is really spelled or pronounced.
Guide to Choosing a Computer System for Your Child
December 27, 2008
Before going further into choosing computers for children, I believe that you would like to know the answer to the following question:
Why do children need computers?
The easiest answer for this one is: "A child needs a computer so that he can play computer games". Everybody agrees. Nevertheless, let’s not just limit on the short term use of the computer? Let’s analyze a little the world we live in and see what can acomputer do for children.
Computers are starting to have more and more importance in our daily life. Almost everywhere you go, you find computers. At office or at home, a computer is almost indispensable.
Not knowing to use a computer, you find many difficulties. Moreover, things will not get easier in the future, because the world is getting more and more computerized. That is why your child should get accustomed and work with computers from an early age. If your child does this, it will be much easier for him to adapt to the ever-changing technology.
Educational products are nowadays released mostly on computer CD’s.
Free Money For College
December 26, 2008
What if someone came up to you and offered you $5000 to attend college? Or after college, what if someone called you and asked if you wanted a couple thousand dollars to pay off some student loans? The obvious answer is, "Where do I sign up?" But, the truth is that there are hundreds of ways for you to receive free money for college today ? you just need to know where to look.
Search For "Free" Money First
With the emergence of the internet, finding places, companies, and events that offer free money for college has never been as easy. To start, try typing in "free money for college" into a search engine on the internet. Behold thousands upon thousands of web sites that offer you free money just for attending college. Obviously, no site will just hand over money, but there will provide great opportunities for you to further your education in the future with the help of some "free" cash.
Scholarship-Takers Wanted!
Helping Your Child Develop
December 25, 2008
Here are some things that you can do to help your child develop.
Show your child that you care about him and that you are dependable.
Children who feel loved are more likely to be confident. Your child must believe that, no matter what, someone will look out for him. Give your baby or toddler plenty of attention, encouragement, hugs and lap time.
Set a good example.
Children imitate whatthey see others do and what they hear others say. When you exercise and eat nourishing food, your child is more likely to do so as well. When you treat others with respect, your child probably will, too. If you share things with others, your child also will learn to be thoughtful of others’ feelings.
Provide opportunities for repetition. It takes practice for a child to crawl, pronounce new words or drink from a cup. Your child doesn’t get bored when she repeats things. Instead, by repeating things until she learns them, your child builds the confidence she needs to try new things.
Tracking Your Child Progress
December 25, 2008
As a parent, you can learn a lot about your child’s learning and watch for signs of possible problems. Here are some things to look for and to discuss with his teacher:
Starting at age 3 or 4:
Does your child remember nursery rhymes, and can he play rhyming games?
At about age 4: Can your child get information or directions from conversations or books that are read aloud to him? Kindergartners:Is your child beginning to name and write the letters and numbers that he sees in books, on billboards and signs, and in other places?
At age 5:
Can your child play and enjoy simple word games in which two or more words start with the same sound? For example: “Name all the animals you can think of that start with d.”
At ages 5 and 6:
Does your child show that he understands that spoken words can be broken down into smaller parts (for example, by noticing the word big in bigger)?
Does he seem to understand that you can change a small part of a word and make a different word (for example, by changing the first sound and letter of cat, you can make hat, sat, mat, bat,rat, and so on)?
A GED is Worth More than a Fake High School Diploma
December 24, 2008
A GED is Worth More than a Fake High School Diploma
by: Leonard Williams
For today’s student, distance learning is an ffordable way to work toward a GED, the best way for an adult to demonstrate the skills of a high school education. But there are a growing number of companies and schools who aren’t really in the business of education. Instead, they’re in the education business — their biggest business is selling quick and easy programs or simple online tests that result with worthless transcripts and fake diplomas.
In most cases, the GED — the term for General Education Development credential — is the only official ‘diploma’ that has value and is meaningful for adults who never completed their high school education. There are exceptions. But as a rule most transcripts and diplomas ordered or obtained from online high schools are worthless. Unfortunately, students and adult learners are often misled — and easily misled — by these diploma factories or diploma mills. Here’s a recent letter from a new GED student, who learned about one education business the hard way:
