Give your children the gift of your time

Give your children the gift of your time

 

 

Kids do better in school when families schedule fun time together, says Marissa Gehley, founder of Kids Need Our Wisdom. "Time when families can just enjoy each other in the moment, when parents aren't asking, 'Did you do your homework, clean your room, clean your cleats for soccer, study for your spelling test?' It's during those times that you learn what's going on in kids' lives." The following gifts will last a lifetime, says Gehley.
• Schedule family dates. Plan a weekly or monthly activity such as a hike, geo-cache search, bike ride or movie. "It may seem obvious, but if you don't plan it and make it a priority, it won't happen. Set up an event everyone can look forward to," says Gehley "TGIF means something special when you ask kids on Friday morning, 'Tonight is family movie night. Which one shall we watch?' "
• Plan memory makers. Get kids to talk about things they've always wanted to do around town or within a day's drive. Encourage brainstorming. Make a budget, a list and an action plan. "These memory makers don't have to be long, expensive trips," Gehley says.
• Get your green on. There's evidence that we're becoming a nation that lives indoors. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, kids ages 8 to 18 spend more than seven hours a day indoors using electronic media and very little time in outdoor unstructured play. "Some parents worry about safety, so make getting into the great outdoors a family affair," Gehley suggests. The National Wildlife Federation's campaign, Be Out There, promotes an hour of outdoor play a day. Parents can find activities at the federation's Web site, nwf.org.
• Eat meals together. Research from the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University shows that teens who have five or more family dinners per week are less likely to abuse prescription drugs, use marijuana or drink alcohol than teens who have two or fewer family dinners per week.
• Everyone in the family will benefit when you give each other the gift of time. Time magazine essayist Nancy Gibbs says we all need to reinvent free time. "One thing technology can't give us is time for serendipitous discovery."

Buy Children Educational Toys for Your Kids

Buy Children Educational Toys for Your Kids

Education is very crucial; it is not just one of the most important aspects of life, it is life. It is very important to gain a stand in the society. Now, education starts in the initial phases of life; even an infant learns a lot from mother in the form of education. Education is simply not confined to books; there are Children Educational Toys which make education easy and a fun process. This is because for kids, playing is working. As a matter of fact, educational toys for children have entered the zone as a ray of hope as children learn more while playing over proper academic studies. Though academic studies are very crucial, educational toys make things easy for the children to understand. This is because when a practical aspect is incorporated in theory, it becomes a lot easier to understand a concept.

The very purpose of educational toys is to educate, and at the same time, making learning a fun process. In fact, children who take time to understand various disciplines theoretically or verbally, they learn very quickly when explained through Children Learning Toys. Nowadays, teachers and educational experts also prescribe the use of such toys in order to improve and/or increase child's intellect. On a typical note, these toys help developing children's ability intellectually, physically and emotionally. While purchasing a toy for the child the most important aspect to be considered is the age. For instance, for infants, the toy must help those holding things, and help them to know stimulation. A quiz will be too much for a toddler. So, keep the age factor in mind. These toys actually stimulate a child's creative pursuit. So, parents must look for toys that may give an edge to creativity in the child. A toy must motivate your kid to think and then accordingly take the decision as to what to do next.

The best aspect of Teaching Toys or, say educational toysis that they solve dual purpose. One, they remove stress, and second, they make learning easy, thereby, helping in the development and ability of mind. At the end of the day, it can be rightly said that these toys perform multiple function. They do not let kids realize the fact that they are actually learning while playing. While playing, children gain really valuable things. To add to, educational toys for kids build both knowledge and interest. They help a lot in increasing the knowledge base of kids. The market has a lot to offer. As of now, curriculum based educational toys are also available.