How Much Activity Is Too Much?

Should your child go for the football practice 5 days a week? Are 3 days enough? It is common for parents to be a little confused when it comes to deciding how much is too much with reference to after school activities. They argue that since most of the activities are fun (as different from studies), children will simply lap up these classes. But, too much of fun can also make a child sick. Here is a simple guide that will help you decide how much is too much for your child.

Kindergarten:
Your child is just beginning to learn to interact and get used to discipline. His or her after-school life should be simple and carefree. One or two classes per week are enough at the beginning. Once the child settles down, look for more challenging activities like a music program.

Grade 1:
One or two activities per week, play dates and playground visits are recommended. Avoid competitive sports activities. The child is still too young to have to worry about winning and losing. After the rigors of a full day at school, he or she needs a healthy outlet for pent up energy. Physical activities and noncompetitive sports are best for this age.

Grade 2:
Your child is old enough to voice opinions on what activities he or she wants. Sports, skating, swimming or computers – steer him towards things he likes. Many children begin lessons on a musical instrument around this age. But, allow your child some ‘alone time’ during which he can unwind and just do whatever he wishes.

Grade 3:
Socialization begins to take center stage. Team sports are a good choice. Developing motor skills, painting, drawing etc are good too. Let the child explore areas of interests. But leave aside enough time for the family and for fun activities.

Grade 4:
At this age, the child will tell you what he likes. He needs to get involved in activities that will boost his confidence. This will also help him manage stress as this is the time when social pressure is beginning to build. But, beware of the homework demon. Your child needs more time with his studies. Balancing his schoolwork with other activities is very important.

Grade 5:
The fifth grader is bubbling with energy and will want to do just about everything. But she or he may conveniently push studies to the background. So, close supervision is needed. Keep one or two days free for family time and other activities. Now is a great time to get your child interested in community service.

Middle school:
Steer him away from TV. Get him engaged in activities that reinforce learning. Academic performance can be improved by encouraging your preteen to join clubs like the Girl/Boy Scouts program, language clubs, chess clubs etc. As a thumb rule, 16-20 hours a week of extra activity should be more than enough. But look out for signs of burnout.

What you select for your child and how long he should work at it is basically decided by the child’s temperament. As a parent, you should closely observe your child and base your decisions on feedback from the child himself.

By: Thomas Jackson

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Thomas Jackson is a proud contributing author and writes articles on several after school subjects. You can read more of Thomas’s articles at After School Activity located at www.afterschoolactivity.info

What You Should Know About Preschool Daycare

Preschool daycare is normally where little tots between the ages of 3 & 6 are enrolled to learn how to act together with other kids there own age while their parents are at work. Nevertheless, preschool daycare can also be carried out in one’s home by a qualified child minder of the parent’s choosing.

Qualified preschool daycare centers now also offer first-class educational programs that help children build up academically and physically, as well as socially. Parents are advised to be very meticulous in the establishment they finally select for their child. The more suited a centre is to a child’s individual needs, the happier that child will be.

Licensing is very important, especially in preschool day care. This ensures that both the standards at the centre and the quality of instruction offered by its staff are of a good quality. This standard will meet the requirements demanded by recognized educational bodies in the country.

References from satisfied parents are also a must. Most establishments are able to furnish a dozen or more references at the drop of a hat. However, parents are recommended, often by the institution themselves, to speak with the referees and assure themselves that the services and facilities at the centre suits their child’s needs.

Cost does not always mean quality. Preschool daycare institutions are listed en masse in the yellow pages. Calling them, and their referees, often enables parents to make a rough estimate of the cost and also allows them to narrow down the number of preschool daycare choices in their area in a short space of time.

The main issue that arises when enrolling a child in preschool daycare is whether or not they are physically and mentally ready for the lessons offered by the preschool daycare centers.

Enrolling a child for any sort of instruction before he is able to understand and enjoy it, is not advisable. In the long run, it will prove counter productive to the parent’s intention to lay the groundwork for future education, as it will ultimately make the child dislike preschool daycare altogether.

The child should be happy and comfortable in their preschool daycare environment. It may take them a week or two or even three, to adjust to their new surroundings and minders but, once they settle down, they generally don’t want to leave it.

After school chats as well as the occasional open discussions with other parents are essential to keep in touch with what’s happening. These conversations help in drawing out issues and problems. This discussion will also help parent determine how happy the child is at the centre. This helps parents form a clearer picture of what a normal day at preschool daycare is like for their child.

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For all kinds of great information about day cares and what to look for and when to look for help, please visit Scott”s website at: Free Day Care Info”

Have A Shy Child? Teach Him Or Her To Be More Upfront

There are children that are naturally more outgoing than others. As a parent, you should understand that shyness or inhibition is driven by both genetic and environmental factors.

However, this temperament isn’t necessarily permanent and does not always determine a child’s personality when he or she grows up. In fact, these traits can be influenced by time and life experiences — a timid person may overcome his shyness, while a confident person might become withdrawn.

There are many ways to help a child overcome shyness. But, first, you have to look into the reason why your child is too shy for his or her age. Go back to your earliest recollection of your childhood. Were you and your partner shy when you were at that age? Are either of you shy up to now? Remember that you are your child’s social model.

Your responses and interaction with other people are your child’s first social template. Model social phrases for common situations, like greeting a person “Good morning!” or “How are you today?”, asking permission (“May I help you with that?”), or introducing oneself (“Hello, I’m __. How do you do?”) are great starters.

Meaningful and fun interaction with siblings is also necessary. Observe the quality of interaction they have and make sure the older ones do not overshadow the younger kids. You can also arrange play dates or have a friend who has a child over to play with yours. Take time out to bring your child to a place where he or she can meet with kids of the same age.

Healthy social development is central in early childhood. If you feel you’ve exhausted all means to draw your child out and he or she still stays withdrawn, do not be afraid to seek professional help. Shyness can sometimes turn out to be a manifestation of behavioral difficulty.

Some kids are naturally shy and sensitive, and may need more time to adjust to their surroundings and with new faces. Give them that time. Don’t force them to interact if they’re not ready as it increases the risk of them being more scared of people in the long run. Introducing your child to the people around him or her is a good start, and will make him or her comfortable and safe. But let the first move truly come from him or her and let it happen naturally.

By: Matthew Roberts.

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Matthew Roberts (the author of this article) has set you up with a special gift on his website.

In an exclusive personal interview he uncovered the secret success strategies of multi-millionaire John Di Lemme. For your FREE 18 minute extract of this interview, head on over to Inspiration To Achieve Goal Setting Success

Top 20 Baby Girl Names

It’s a lot more important to name a girl right than to name a boy right, in the eyes of many statisticians and child development specialists. A girl is a lot more sensitive than a boy and having the wrong name would affect her much more than it would affect a boy, hence the above-mentioned theory. Another factor would be her future relationship with men. Whereas a girl won’t really care if she’s dating or marrying a “Dave” or an awkward named boy, men are admittedly more shallow from this point of view, as they tend to give the name of their girlfriend or spouse more importance than they should. For men, these external and seemingly superficial details are important, whereas girls tend to look into much more important and deeper factors and traits of their boyfriend or future husband.

This said, there are a couple of ways you could get inspiration to name your daughter. You could try naming her after someone in the family, the girl’s grand parents or great grand parents being a popular choice. You could also name her after a historical figure or a popular star of our days: Joan or Jeanne (after Joan/Jeanne D’Arc, heroine of the Hundred Years War), Elizabeth (after Queen Elizabeth), Abigail (after Abigail Smith Adams, the wife of the 2nd President of the United States), Josephine (after Josephine Baker, civil rights activist and World War 2 heroine) to name just a few historic figures. Names that would point to popular figures and entertainment stars include Marilyn (Marilyn Monroe), Barbara (Barbara Streisand), Tina (Tina Turner), Shania (Shania Twain) and so forth.

But if you’re still unsure of what name to give to your daughter, or if you don’t want her name to point out at any particular figure in history or entertainment, we prepped up a list of today’s most popular 20 baby girl names. Although you might not want to choose a popular name per say, this list might help you as a starting point, so here’s the top 20 baby girl names we have for you:

1. Emily
2. Mary
3. Grace
4. Sarah
5. Olivia
6. Samantha
7. Anna
8. Julia
9. Claire
10. Katie
11. Rebecca
12. Alexandra
13. Jessica
14. Pam
15. Nicole
16. Janet
17. Angie
18. Jennifer
19. Britney
20. Martha

Naming your daughter with any of the above names from our top 20 baby girl names list should be considered a “safe bet” if you’re thinking about how your daughter’s name will affect her future development. These names are neither unique (or even too uncommon) nor common to the point they could stamp you, as her parent as uninspired. You might not even find something you like in the top 20 baby girl names list above, but it could prove to be a good way to start off your search. Just pick out the few names that you like from the list than go hunting for others. If you don’t find anything you like, you can come back to our suggestions and pick one from here.

Because Your Baby Deserves The Best Name Fraser Wheaton is the founder and publisher of The Baby Name Kit website. http://www.BabyNameKit.com We aim to be the worlds largest content provider for baby name information on the internet. If you have a baby naming question, chances are, we have the answer. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Fraser_Wheaton

Top 20 Baby Boy Names

As a parent, one of your toughest jobs is naming your child and thinking on how his name will affect him later on. Oftentimes, parents will be undecided on the name and since they have equal rights on naming him, this could lead to a problem.

Sometimes both parents will choose to name their newly born after a celebrity, a historical figure, a famous character or a family member, although this practice is a bit old by now.

You can simply choose a common name that you hear a lot around you, go for the classics like John, Jim, Michael and so forth, or look for a good baby name for your son over the Internet. Although there are hundreds of sites, each having their own “Top Baby Boy Names” list, this is what we consider being the most accurate top 20 of our times:

Top 20 Baby Boy Names

1. Matthew
2. Jack
3. Andrew
4. Michael
5. Ryan
6. Jacob
7. Alexander
8. William
9. James
10. Daniel
11. Anthony
12. Gabriel
13. Lucas
14. Christian
15. John
16. Thomas
17. Sean
18. Robert
19. Jason
20. Adam

As you can see, some of the names are more modern (Ryan, Sean, Jack) while others are classic or have a historical resonance (Lucas, William, Alexander, Robert). Regardless, all of them are very popular baby boy names and they’re considered “safe bets” in how your boy’s name will affect the way he develops.

Names constantly vary in popularity and what might be a cool name today, may be “obsolete” tomorrow so you should consider this factor as well. One thing that statisticians have discovered is that names have a tendency to cycle, every 20-30 years or so, so what is popular now was probably extremely popular in the 80s (just look at all the Mathews, Jacks, Andrews, Johns and Jasons around you). The answer behind this cyclic nature is that parents tend to name their children after themselves or after close relatives and with the average parent having children at 25, the cycle’s interval is explainable.

Because Your Baby Deserves The Best Name Fraser Wheaton is the founder and publisher of The Baby Name Kit website. http://www.BabyNameKit.com We aim to be the worlds largest content provider for baby name information on the internet. If you have a baby naming question, chances are, we have the answer. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Fraser_Wheaton

10 Easy Early Learning Activities for Babies and Toddlers

I have spent my career researching early learning in children and babies. My carefully designed programs have achieved remarkable results, teaching babies as young as six months to read. Now, anyone can quickly and easily put their child on the path to acquiring essential learning skills by following these proven activities:

1. Use Multi-Sensory Learning
When your child shows an interest in a particular topic, try to help them learn about it using as many sensory systems as possible. If your child is interested in learning about flowers, let them see, smell, touch, and even hear the gentle sound the flower makes brushing against their ear. This type of learning is usually more interesting for the child, and more effective.

2. Respond to Your Baby
An important skill for parents is the ability to respond to the interests of their infant. This will help them more easily understand their world. The baby looking at their toes could be told, “These are your toes.” This means the infant would simultaneously have visual (seeing her toes), auditory (listening to you say “these are your toes”), and haptic (feeling you touch her toes) information. This helps a young baby develop a very elaborate idea of “toes”. These types of responsiveness activities may also increase their IQ.

3. Categorize
A fundamental building block for intelligence is the ability to categorize. You can stimulate your child by grouping animals or objects that are similar. For instance, your child’s toys or clothes could be grouped by color, size, shape, material, or function. Simply show them and say, “This is a sock and this is a sock. This is not a sock.” Your baby should enjoy the activity because they will be able to see you sort the clothing, hear your voice, touch the soft clothing, and smell the clean clothes.

4. Improve Spatial Reasoning Abilities
Studies have shown that infants who self-locomote using a walker improve their spatial abilities. This improvement may be a result of infants’ increased attention to objects when they self locomote rather than being carried. Pediatricians recommend that parents not use walkers for safety reasons; however, in safe conditions, a walker can help improve an infant’s spatial abilities. Reading simple maps and playing with mazes can also improve your toddler’s spatial reasoning abilities.

5. Play Classical Music for Your Infant or Toddler
Play classical music for your infant or toddler on a regular basis. In a controlled study, young children who listened to classical music outperformed those who had not listened to classical music.

6. Learn a Second Language
It is easier for a young child to learn a second language than it is for adults. A recent study found that children who learned a second language after the age of 11 had two distinct areas of the brain for understanding language — one for their native language and one for their second language. Children who learned a second language before the age of four had one large area of the brain active for both languages. This suggests that children who learn language skills in their first years are able to develop brains that are more efficient.

7. Respond to Your Infant’s Sounds
If the parent responds excitedly to a baby’s new sound and repeats the sound to the baby, then the connection to make that sound will have some value to the infant and it will likely be strengthened. On the other hand, if the infant makes a new sound and no one responds — the baby will be less likely to repeat that sound. Not only does the infant probably feel more attached to caregivers who respond to their sounds, but they can learn to make more sounds when people respond.

8. Make Learning Videos for Your Child
Parents can make learning videos for their infants and toddlers. Be sure to include your family in the video. This will attract your child’s attention and allow them to see you even when you are away. You may want to include your child’s name and the words ‘mommy’ and ‘daddy’ in your video.

9. Play Games!
Matching games are fun. Show your infant one item, for example a tennis ball. Next, show your baby several other objects and ask him/her to find the one that matches the first object. Talk with your child throughout the game and describe how the objects are the same or different. These fun games help the child learn more about object properties such as color, material, function, shape, etc.

10. Use Different Postures During Play
Allow your infant to play while in different postures and locations. Make soft, clean, safe areas for your baby to play while on its stomach, back, and seated. Set up these play spaces in different locations. Babies may practice lifting their heads or rolling over while on their stomachs. While on their backs, infants may play with activity gyms, practice rolling, or look at objects. It may be easier for infants to explore toys while in a bouncer.

Dr. Robert Titzer is a prominent professor and infant researcher. His award winning educational DVD program, “Your Baby Can Read!®”, published by Smart Kids® of Penton Overseas Inc., has produced remarkable results worldwide. For more information visit http://www.yourbabycan.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dr._Robert_Titzer

Educational Toys Are Important For Infants

Every child has an instinct to learn, as evidenced by his or her ability to act like a sponge to every idea and visual stimulus that crosses his or her path. Because of this, people who say that play has no value whatsoever are eating their words right now. Toys and play, even experts say, play vital parts in children’s learning and discovery.

Kids’ development and learning abilities vary. Some might already be walking at just nine months, while some children learn late and start at only about two years old. There is nothing unusual about this. There are children that are adept at a particular thing, while other kids are more proficient at another.

What is common to all children, nevertheless, is the fact that they are all naturally born curious about the world around them. Babies, in particular, are ultimate learning sponges because they start out with a clean slate. We should, therefore, never be annoyed at kids who always ask the question “why”, as this is an indication of their interest to learn new things and wonder about their environment.

And because infants are the best teaching subjects, great pains have been undergone to develop educational toys that would enhance their sponge-like abilities. Learning starts at home. It is the responsibility of parents and the people that surround infants to make sure these formative years are maximized by exposing their children to toys and things that would encourage and feed their hunger for knowledge.

Toys are what children almost always interact with, and exposing them to a number of well-chosen educational toys will boost their individual growth.

As parents and adults who choose these toys, however, we must realize that educational toys are made according to a child’s age and learning pace. Thus, we must only purchase and gift toys that are appropriate for the kid we are giving it to, otherwise, our purpose of teaching and instilling knowledge will be defeated.

Infants, in particular, because their sensory abilities are not as developed as toddlers yet, need toys that stimulate their hearing, touch and sight. Strong contrasting colors and soft colorful objects and toys are best for babies to help them with their hand-eye coordination. Therefore, just when we think that these soft balls do nothing for infants, we need to think again. Any toy that stimulates infants’ senses is considered educational.

Low Jeremy maintains http://educational-toys.articlesforreprint.com This content is provided by Low Jeremy. It may be used only in its entirety with all links included. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Low_Jeremy

Tips for Potty Training Your Toddler

The toddler years are truly the great learning years in a person’s life. Although it may become taxing for some parents, it may also give some sense of achievement. There are simply so many things parents can teach toddlers. Each and every parenting tip can focus on the different aspects of toddler life. You can have a parenting tip about feeding your toddler and another parenting tip about disciplining your child. Parents however are always after a parenting tip on potty training. Indeed potty training can be a very messy affair and parents will need a practical parenting tip once in a awhile.

Check on Overall Readiness

Every parenting tip about potty training would invariably involve something about checking readiness. Some parents may think that a child’s age is the way to measure potty readiness. Some may offer that parenting tip to potty train a child when he reaches 2 years old. Some potty train their kids even earlier. The fact is, not all kids can be potty trained at the same age. One should remember the parenting tip that each kid is unique. What one should look for therefore is readiness. A good parenting tip is to consider a child’s physical, mental, social and emotional readiness to use the potty. Your child for example will be ready of there are more than 30 minute dry diaper spells, knows that he has to go, imitates adult mannerisms in the toilet and is eager to use the toilet.

Introduce the Topic Casually

A parenting tip that matters greatly is to introduce the issue of the potty in a non-threatening manner. You can perhaps start by reading potty books to your toddler. You can also bring him for a visit to the toilet and demonstrate with dolls where the pooh goes or where everyone else in the family goes to pooh. It is also a vital parenting tip to bring the child along when you shop for a potty and some training pants. Let him make the choices. Another parenting tip is allow your child to play a bit with the potty at home in an area he is comfortable in.

Encourage and Praise

One crucial parenting tip in potty training is continual encouragement and praise. Keep on cheering for your child as he sits on his potty. Make sure to always praise him too when he has been successful. Clap your hands to make him see how happy you are that he is using his potty. You may also consider using a potty chart to let him see that he gets a star every time he uses his potty properly.

Don’t Punish

In line with the parenting tip on encouragement and praise is the parenting tip on not punishing. Even if your child is not successful do not be angry. Smile and say that you’ll try again someday. This parenting tip also means that you shouldn’t show any sign of anger or frustration when accidents happen and your kid ends up making a mess on the carpet. Clean up the mess and show him that the mess goes into the potty or toilet.

Help with Food

It can be very traumatic for your child when he experiences constipation. Help him excrete his waste smoothly by giving him lots of juice and water as well as fruits and vegetables.

Get more of Veronica Fisher’s FREE Advice and Tips on Raising Toddlers at http://www.parentingadvicetips.info Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Veronica_Fisher

Preparing Your Child for School

The new school year starts soon. Is your child ready for his first day? By preparing your child for his first day of the school year, you can help him succeed. As with so many events in our lives, the more prepared we are, the better the outcome. The following practical tips can give your child a good start to the school year.

1. Learning Tools. Pick up school supplies before the first day of school. Most stores have lists of the supplies children are expected to have.

2. Dress for Success. Have your child pick out what they will wear for their first day at least a day before school starts. Wearing a favorite outfit helps a child feel more at ease and ready to take on the challenge of a new year of learning. In addition, this helps alleviate delays during the morning rush.

3. Keep your child reading all summer. Reading is an essential skill for learning. Like all skills, reading (especially when you are starting out) is a perishable skill. Give your child plenty of practice time. Have your child enroll in the summer reading program at the local library. Many schools offer summer reading lists (some even have mandatory summer reading). Make weekly visits to the library so your child can pick out fresh reading material. Set aside time each day for reading.

4. Learn a new word each day. Working vocabulary is one of the prime indicators of success in school. The more words your child knows and feels comfortable using, the more likely it is that he will do well in school. So put a new word on your family bulletin board or refrigerator each day. Have your child look it up on the INTERNET or in the dictionary. Have everyone in the family use the word in a sentence at the dinner table. Make the word a regular part of your family’s vocabulary.

5. Act the part. Play the role of the teacher and have your child play the role of student. Make sure your child knows about the class rules like raising his hand in order to ask a question, helping the teacher hand out papers, or how to be quiet when asked. You may also want to explore any situations that your child is concerned about. What does he do if someone is mean to him? What should he do if the teacher asks him a question and he does not know the answer? Once you know his concerns, give him possible solutions to the problem and then practice those solutions with role playing.

Adopt these five strategies today. They will better prepare your child for the new school year and impart confidence and solutions which will help him succeed.

Celia Webb President, Pilinut Press, Inc. http://www.pilinutpress.com Publishers of advanced readers for children and ESL students ©Celia Webb, 2007 Reprint Rights: You may reprint this article as long as you leave all links active, do not edit the article, give the author credit, and follow all of the EzineArticles terms of service for Publishers. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Celia_Webb

The Gift Of Personalized Baby Clothing

The birth of a baby is a joyful and momentous occasion – one that is shared with family and friends as we unite to welcome this new life. Part of the celebration of birth is often the gathering of loved ones for a baby shower – presenting the parents-to-be with gifts for their new family member. While many gifts are utilitarian in nature – and much needed – such as a car seat, changing table, or stroller, others are more personal in nature. Personalized baby clothing can be a lovely gift for a new baby and a keepsake for many years to come.

Personalized baby clothing can be described as any clothing that is monogrammed with the baby’s initials or full name. For those interested in purchasing personalized baby clothing, there are a great many options from which to choose; you are only limited by your imagination and budget.

Personalized baby clothing for a newborn can include anything from a hat with the baby’s initials sewn into the material to a receiving blanket beautifully stitched with the baby’s full name, birth date, birth time, and birth weight. Not only is this a useful item, but it will stand the test of time as a treasured keepsake for you and, eventually, your grown child.

You may also wish to consider monogrammed shirts, sweaters, towels, socks, diaper bags, even onesies. The more creative you are in your search for personalized baby clothing, the more cherished the gift will be for years to come.

Keep in mind, however, that personalized baby clothing cannot be simply handed down to another child once it has been outgrown; it serves its purpose for one child – albeit a dual purpose as an article of clothing and then as a keepsake item.

You can find personalized baby clothing in a number of different places including clothing boutiques for children. Most often you will choose the item that you want and the personalization will take place according to your instructions. Many times monogramming is free of charge.

The Internet is also a great place to find personalized baby clothing. The prices are usually affordable and the convenience of ordering from home can’t be beat.

Personalized baby clothing can be a wonderful way to welcome a new baby and present the parents with a timeless keepsake.

For easy to understand, in depth information about personalized baby clothing visit our ezGuide 2 Baby Clothing. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michelle_Bery