With the Summer school break quickly approaching, now's the perfect time to add some fresh titles to your child's bookshelf. To help, we asked moms who have also been teachers to share some of their favorite children's stories. Whether you have a color-loving toddler, a beginning reader needing practice, or a preteen looking for an exciting plot, there's something in here for kids of all ages.
Some kids collect rocks or marbles. Ten-year-old Archer and his 6-year-old brother, Ansel, collect napkins . . . their mom's, that is.
Every day since Archer was in nursery school, Nina Levy has created colorful napkin illustrations and packed them with her sons' lunches to remind them that she loves them and is mindful of what they're doing each day, reports the Huffington Post.
"The act of drawing something for them every evening reminds me to pay attention to what they are thinking about, even if it is the 15th rendition of Batman," she says.
The creative napkins became such a hit that Archer and Ansel slowly began bringing more and more of them home at the end of the day. And after garnering even the New York Times' attention, Levy has begun collating the art into a series, "24 hours of dysfunctional parenting," that tells the story of a day in the life of her family.
With such works of art, the boys might give up a tuna sandwich or even a cookie from their school lunches, but it's unlikely that they'll trade away their napkins.
A New Hampshire teen surprised fellow competitors and judges when she took home the top prize in a Boston computer-programming contest. The mostly male field of 80 competitors included professionals from ESPN and Klout, yet the Associated Press reports that Jenny Lamere was the only person to complete a project. Her winning idea: Twivo, or TiVo for Twitter, which allows you to block tweets using key words, in case you don't want tweets to spoil the ending of a show you haven't yet viewed.
Lamere says she got into computer programming thanks to her dad, a tech company developer, who would routinely share "intriguing" stories about projects he was working on. With women representing only 12 percent of the US workforce with computer science degrees, Lamere's win is a source of inspiration.
How can you, too, spark your daughters' interest in male-dominated careers?
The first day my child started school, he became the subject of the class bully's attention. Starting at school for the first time is nerve-racking enough for both parent and child, but to have that first day memory shredded by bullying is truly awful.
It's easy to feel helpless when your child seems to dislike school for no clear reason. To help you tackle this common problem, we asked moms who are also teachers to share the best advice they've gleaned from years of experience. From what you should say instead of "How was your day?" to a solution that has worked in as little as a week, here are eight ways to help your child enjoy both the social and academic sides of school again.
Finding a free, quality app that's geared towards little fingers and free of ads and in-app purchases is very hard to do. But I've found eight amazing educational kids apps — available to both Apple and Android owners — that you and your children will love!
Before I ever became a mom, I was a teacher. While I don't claim to be a perfect teacher or a perfect mommy, I do believe that I relate to children quite well, thanks in part to my time spent "in the trenches." Those six precious years of forging relationships, offering guidance, and teaching science to 150 students each year taught me several things that have also served me well as a parent. Keep reading for the eight most important.
"Is my child gifted?" Parents often wonder at one point or another whether their child is gifted. Here we've rounded up some basics to help you identify signs of giftedness in your child.
Whether they're trying to remember routines, communicate clearly, or wait their turn for a toy, young children are problem solving and learning every day. If your child is struggling with one problem in particular, one of these excellent apps may help. Though all the apps in this list were originally designed to help kids with special needs, they're great for helping all children learn to navigate the complexities of their world.
When President Obama announced the White House's 2014 budget earlier this week, it included an increased commitment to prioritizing early childhood eduction through a new Preschool For All initiative. The program strives to give every child in the US — particularly those in low and moderate income brackets — access to a high-quality pre-K experience. We had the privilege of learning more about the program through a conversation with US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who believes passionately in the government taking a "cradle to career" approach to educating and empowering our youth. Here, the ins and outs of how the initiative could affect your family and your kids' future:
What Preschool For All Entails
One of the president's key themes in his new budget proposal is a focus on the "cradle to career" continuum. "The only way to build, support, and grow a thriving middle class is by providing access to world-class education," said Duncan. This translates to state-level partnerships to provide all low- and moderate-income 4-year-olds with access to high-quality early childhood education.
The initiative is supplemented by investments in home-visiting programs for those families in need, including access to social workers and home health-care aides as needed to improve a child's health, development, and ability to learn.
Click here to learn more about Preschool For All's funding, who it affects, and more.
