Kids like to make crafts. Stories scrapbook is an example of kids creativity. They put things together and they make up a story or tell a story.  Stories scrapbook can be used as learning resources for kids. Kids learn and practise  to write stories. Below is stories scrapbook done by my girl. She personalize the person in the story, that’s her friend, Kim Jenny. She visualized their activities by drawing pictures. She gave each of the girls in her class a story scrapbook and each scrapbook has a different story with the child’s name.

Parents, you can encourage kids to do stories scrapbook. The stories can be from their favorite story book or family’s holiday with photos and mementos that you  had during holidays.

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Motivational quotes  and positive images are not only for adults. I looked around my kids’ school and there were plenty of  positive images and positive words are pasted on the walls to motivate kids and teachers.  Visualization has the power.  How people invent or create things is because of visualization.   Below are parenting tips given by Natalie Ledwell on how you can help your kids in visualization process:

1. Encourage your kids to think what they want in life and what positive characters that they want to develop.

2. Teach your kids to say it often in powerful affirmation in present tense,  I AM…

3. Put in descriptive words that your kids want to be such as I AM BRAVE, I AM HAPPY, I AM SMART

4. Surround your kids with positive images and music.

5.  Transforming Mind. RAS, reticular activating system is the gateway between subconscious mind and conscious mind.  Nurture the subconscious mind of your kids with positive things. Do you know that subconscious mind is more powerful than your conscious mind. Your subconscious mind actually gives a command to your conscious mind to execute things. If your  kids’ subconscious mind is bombarded with positive words and positive images repeatedly,  their mind will undergo transformation and  their mind is programmed to do wonderful things. It will happen to your kids. Do take notes if your kids watch television about all bad or negative things,  these will affect their subconscious mind as well.

Check out Free Mind Movies Videos that can transform yourself and your kids:

This is the special Mind Movies video created for kids:

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No one can predict exactly what opportunities will be available for today’s kids by the time they grow up to be adults. There will be new careers or new opportunities  arise  in the future due to demand.  ICT, technology and science are predicted to dominate the  world business and careers. IPC  (International Primary Curriculum) prepares kids to be adaptable, resilient, globally-minded learner for the fast changing world where they will live and work.

How IPC helps kids in their learning?

IPC, International Primary Curriculum was introduced in year 2000 and it is now implemented in preschool and primary schools in 65 countries. Initially, it was designed for international schools but now non-international schools use it as well.  Learning through IPC is learning based on a theme. For example:  if the topic is about RAINFOREST, you learn rainforest from different aspects such as english, geography, science, history and art.  There’s a connectivity among all subjects to learn one topic.  Kids are taught  about teamwork, how to work in groups, discussion and work together on a project.  IPC trains kids to use their knowledge, skills and understanding. Children are encouraged to express their ideas,  look for information and do research from all kinds of resources such as  magazines, books or internet. Kids use mind mapping in chart or diagram to record the information or their findings and to memorize better. Mind mapping can be used for brainstorming or to find solutions. Below are some samples of my kids’ mind mapping chart.

The following video shows how IPC in action  is put into practice at school:

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Parents may have some reasons why they prefer homeschooling for their kids over public schooling. Although my kids are going for formal education at private school, I have seen that few parents are opting for homeschooling.  The reasons behind homeschooling vary.

1. Bullying at School.

A child can be a target of bullying at school if he or she is different from others.  Sometimes, bullying can go really bad. Demi Lovato, American teen actress and singer-songwriter, opted for homeschooling in seventh grade because she experienced painful bullying at school.

2.  Kids with Special Needs

Children with mild ADHD may go through formal education in the beginning but find out that the lessons are too fast for them as they go for higher level. They can’t go to special school for children with special needs because the curriculum is too easy for them either.  Then, homeschooling is the better choice.

3. Education Cost

For parents who work overseas and kids can’t go to public schools in the country but you can’t afford for high cost of  international school, homeschooling is an alternative.

Apart from the 3 reasons above, there are parents who insist to educate their kids at home. The benefits of homeschooling can be greater than public schooling as your kids learn  real life education. 5 main benefits  of homeschooling are:

1.  Real Life Education

Daily chores or living skills become parts of homeschooling such as home organizing and cooking.

2. Freedom

This can be time freedom. You can arrange the time for learning and the choices of subjects. Kids feel more relax, no pressure and concentrate more with home atmosphere.

3. Individual Attention

Your child will receive undivided attention from you.  The amount of time allocated to learn each subject  depend on the abilities and interests of the child.

4. Moral and values

parents can instill  moral and values in homeschooling curriculum. Kids will see what is taught and what is being practiced.

5. Health

You don’t have to worry if there is pandemic because home environment is clean.  Your kids enjoy healthy diet from home meals and they are stress free.

Apart from advantages, there’re disadvantages that you must tackle it.

1.  Lack of Social Skills

Kids don’t meet often with their peers. Try to organize with homeschooled parents community to meet up and let kids have their time together. You can let your kids to join enrichment activities outside such as music class, sports  so they will meet their peers.

2. Competition

Competition can be healthy. Homeschooling kids don’t have a benchmark. Competition at school push kids to excel against each other. You have to set the benchmark or goal for your kids.

Visit  Homeschooling Resources Community.  I often visit BBC School to equip what my kids learn from school. BBC school has interactive learning. With the resources from the internet, parents can learn to be a great teacher for their kids. For parents with homeschooling kids, you can share your experiences or resources here. Thank you!

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The key factor for a child to succeed in life is happiness. If kids are happy and motivated, they will use their best abilities to do things.

Find out 7 action steps on how you and your kids can deal with challenges successfully and build happiness habits that will last a lifetime. You will learn how to help your child to overcome negative feeling, to stay positive and to create self-confidence in him. Download free e-book the Ultimate Kids Guide to Happiness from Patrick McMillan.

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A positive attitude towards change involves realistic assessment of what an impending change may involve, both negatively and positively. It is not a Pollyanna naivete or the repression of feelings. On the positive side, change is seen as an opportunity to expand one’s experience. There is a sense that change is life enhancing and renewing, and essential to well being. On the negative side, when change involves loss, it means actively grieving and processing feelings. And when a change presents obstacles, it means being proactive and confident that one can impact his fate for the better. The following are some steps that parents can take to foster such an attitude in children:

1.As much as we try to make our children’s lives safe and predictable, they will experience changes from time to time, sometimes dramatic changes. As parents, we can use these experiences as teaching opportunities. The first step is to observe your child over a period of time. Note of how your child reacts to the prospect of change. Is there a pattern? Does he generally dig in his heels? Does he become anxious and fearful? Or does he look forward to new experiences? These patterns and attitudes can become the modus operandi going into adulthood. The goal is to change negative patterns and attitudes now before they become entrenched.

2.When your child is faced with a new situation or impending change, talk with him about his feelings. Sometimes this is easier said than done. Depending on the child’s age, temperament and background, he may or may not be able to discuss his feelings directly. If a child has trouble articulating how he feels, approach it indirectly. Perhaps bring up an parallel example from your own life and discuss how you felt at the time. With younger children, it is helpful to use a picture book which in which the main character goes through similar experiences.

3.Allow your child to grieve over losses brought about a change in his life. Acknowledge the losses as real and comfort him in his sadness. If a child is not permitted to express his sadness, it can heighten his anxiety and possibly lead to depression.

4.Discover the picture in your child’s head. A child’s feelings about an impending change are directly correlated to his understanding of what is happening. If the child is telling himself that he will move to a new neighborhood, and be shunned by the neighborhood kids, it makes sense that he is feeling sad and fearful. Ask your child specifically what he thinks the future will hold once the change occurs.

5.Look for catastrophic thinking. Catastrophic thinking is what it sounds like: envisioning a catastrophic outcome, a worse case scenario. It is black and white thinking, but with just the black. Look for the use of the words like “never” “always” “everyone” and “no one”. Some examples might be “I’ll never make any friends at my school”, “Everyone already has friends” “No one will want to be friends with me.” These statement might feel like reality to the child but they are not. It is your job to challenge these statements and help your child develop a more balanced view of what the future may hold. If you repeatedly challenge catastrophic thinking, your child will pick up on the technique and begin to use it himself.

6.Prepare the child in case some his fears are realized. For example, if nobody talks to the child in the new neighborhood suggest that he strike up a conversation up at the bus stop, or knock on a neighbor’s door and introduce himself. Obviously, if the child is very shy or there are other obstacles, you should adjust your suggestions accordingly. Also, ask the child if he can think of solutions. Teaching a child to be proactive as a response to change will have immeasurable benefits over a lifetime. Proactive people feel more in control of their circumstances, and that is directly correlated with life satisfaction.

7.When appropriate, ask a child to try to envision a positive outcome to the change. Encourage him to think of all the wonderful possibilities that a change might bring. This exercise teaches a child to think optimistically. Again, after enough repetition, the child may adopt this technique himself.

8.After a change has occurred and a child has adapted, call attention to his success. Remind him of his “picture in his head” and contrast it with the reality of the situation. This will help him be able to reality test future thinking.

Cindy Jett, LICSW is a psychotherapist living in Reston, VA. She is the author of  “Harry the Happy Caterpillar Grows: Helping Children to Adjust to Change”, a picture story book that teaches young children adaptability skills similar to those outlined in this article. For reviews of her book see Cindy’s website:

http://www.harrythehappycaterpillar.com.

To purchase the book at Amazon.com, please  click the link below:

Harry Happy Caterpillar Grows Children

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Learning from school is often associated with learning from textbooks, it is true somehow. School develops child’s academic performance while enrichment programs after school are toward developing talent or skill of a child. Parents shall do the checklist before enrolling a child into after school program:

• The objectives and goals must be clear. Ask about what kids will learn during the program, how are the measures for kids achievement, the number of kids and their age in the class. You certainly want to make sure that your child fits into the program where there are kids of his age.
• Safety is the main requirement of after school program. Look for the program that has professional and trained coach/staff.
• Fun and recreational. Avoid rigorous and boring after school activities.
• Take into child’s opinion. He/she will join the program not you. Gauge his/her interest. You may ask for a trial class and you may watch her response during the trial class.

After school program are all about enhancing a child’s sense of competence. Good and effective after school programs support the resilience of kids and help them to grow stronger, mentally, emotionally and physically. Some benefits of after school program are:

1. Widen child’s interest. Kids learn something new, it’s challenging and fun. Mastering a new skill will boost child’s self confidence.
2. Enhance social skills. Kids meet other kids who share the same interest and make new friends.
3. Keeps kids busy and entertained. The program will divert kids attention from PC and television. Kids will put their energy and creativity throughout the program.

You may do evaluation if the after school program fits your child. Enroll one program at the time. Add another if your child can take in. Art, ballet, gymnastic, sports, drama/acting, music are examples of good after school programs which kids can learn and develop a new skill. Kids will take up a new skill easily when they start young as they are within the window of development and parents shall take this opportunity to develop young talent.

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