Family Tips Archives - Page 36 of 38 -

How Children Can Deal with Bullies – Especially in a Group Setting

January 20, 2015 by Young Scholars Academy Leave a Comment

Colorado Springs childcare When we think of bullies we tend to think of bigger kids picking on littler kids, older kids taking milk money from younger kids – all when our children are a little older. But bullies in day care?

Sadly, it’s never too young to start dealing with them. Bullying – no matter what age – is NOT just kids being kids and as soon as everyone gets that out of their mindset, we can be on the way to helping the problem disappear.

Children become bullies for different reasons – maybe they are acting out behavior that they’ve seen somewhere before, maybe they are doing it for attention from adults or the other children. In extreme cases, children may bully because they enjoy seeing others in pain, fearful, miserable or even injured. If bullying gets to this point, it can be very difficult to stop.

Regardless of the underlying cause a child bullies another child, as parents we need to teach our children how to deal with it if they become a victim of a bully.

First, you’ll need to find out just what is going on. If you suspect your child is being bullied, you can ask questions like “Has someone hurt you?” Even at a young age, children are able to tell you something that happened that made them feel bad or hurt. Let your child explain what happened – let them talk until they are finished – and no matter how upset you are, keep your emotions under control so that you can reassure your child that they have done nothing wrong and you will help take care of this.
Once you know what is going on, you’ll want to figure out how to help your child respond if it happens again. You can play out different scenarios to help your child find the best way to deal with the situation if an adult happens to not be close by – ignore the bully, stick with friends (think safety in numbers), act brave and finally tell an adult.
As the parent – you will need to take action. Talk to the daycare director, teachers and/or caregivers who are in contact with your child and the bully. There is a very good chance that they may not be aware of the situation because your child has been afraid to say anything. Many times talking to those in charge will help stop the harassment. But if it doesn’t, keep working at it with those in charge until it does.

It’s difficult to fight our protective impulses when our child tells us he or she is being bullied, but fight it we must. Let you child know that you are there for them and the lines of communication are open and that you are there for them to make the situation right.

How to Determine What Level of Book is Right for your Child

January 14, 2015 by Young Scholars Academy Leave a Comment

Your child isn’t going to become a great reader over night, but it can happen one book at a time. But what is the best way for you to choose the right book for your child to read?

It may be second nature to feel like you should be picking your child’s books, but the fact remains that letting your child choose their own books is a skill that they should learn at a young age.

By allowing your child to choose their own books independent of your input, allows your child to learn the different reason we choose a book to read in the first place.

If your child has reached reading age, here are a few helpful tips to help him or her learn to choose books that will make them want to read more:

When your child is ready to start reading, begin instilling the fact that we read for a purpose– whether it’s to learn something or if the purpose is simply for enjoyment.
Have your child browse through the books either at the library or the bookstore. If this seems to be too overwhelming, then have them narrow down their choices by either a type of book (fiction or nonfiction) or by action, funny or other subject.
Say “yes” as often as you can when your child selects a book that he or she is interest in. Rather than saying “non” try saying that a choice is a “not so great” selection.
If your child selects a book that is beyond his or her reading ability, solve the problem by reading the book out loud with your child. Let them read as much of the book as possible, you can jump in if there are difficult parts.
If your child has really enjoyed a particular book, remind him or her of the author name when they are selecting books the next time.

Thank you for reading!

How to Deal with Picky Eaters

January 6, 2015 by Young Scholars Academy Leave a Comment

One of the most common struggles parents have is dealing with picky eaters. Does any of this sound familiar to you?

Your toddler takes a few bites of food and announces he’s “done”
You can stock your fridge and shelves full but your little one will only eat the same 5 things over and over.
Your child asks for one thing, you make it, then she asks for something else then decides she wants something completely different altogether.
Coaxing your children to just take “one more bite” is a constant battle in your home

First things first – meal times are supposed to be relaxing and enjoyable so you want to avoid these battles every time you sit down at the table. Toddlers between the ages of 1 and 3 typically have smaller appetites, so if they only eat a little at a time, that’s ok.

However, also realize that their appetites can change on a daily basis and even from meal to meal. If they like carrots, don’t be afraid to throw some in at breakfast. Do they prefer eggs? Who says you can’t have eggs for dinner?
Dinner time is typically going to be the meal that your child feels like eating the least. It’s the end of the day and they are tired and unless they have been doing a physical activity like swimming or playing outside or at daycare, chances are they aren’t going to be as hungry as they are at other times of the day.

If you are dealing with older children who are picky eaters, you may be able to reason more with them and enforce the “one bite rule” – meaning they have to take at least one bite of every food on their plate and if they don’t like it, they don’t have to eat it again.

Here are just a few ideas for dealing with picky eaters:

Don’t nag or coax smaller children. Pick and choose your battles – plain and simply put, your child WILL eat when he is hungry.
Have realistic portions: Many parents set unrealistic goals for their children when it comes to mealtime. A good rule of thumb to follow: If your child is under the age of 5-6, use a tablespoon per year of age. If they ask for more when they’ve finished that then you can always give more.
Keep trying to introduce new foods – even if they haven’t liked them before. Tastes change and you never know when you find something new they like.
Avoid too much milk, juice and soda in place of food. Many kids will fill up on sugary drinks and have no room for food.

Remember, pick your battles and don’t make meal time miserable for everyone!

Helping Your Child Fall Asleep at Bedtime

December 16, 2014 by Young Scholars Academy Leave a Comment

While as adults, we tend to enjoy our bedtime and welcome it with open arms, our children aren’t as excited when it comes time to sleepy time.

Here are a few tips to help make the bedtime struggle with your little ones a little less of a struggle.

No big meals right before bedtime – no caffeine either!
Once dinner time is over, stay away from over-stimulating activities. Don’t “wind them up” and expect them to be ready for bed a short time later.
Give them a choice when it’s almost bed time – do you want to go now or in five minutes? Only do this once and when it’s bedtime, it’s bedtime.
Form a quiet and relaxing bedtime ritual that you can start about half an hour before bedtime. Whatever the routine is, have it end in your child’s bedroom with them tucked in. A bath and reading is good but avoid scary movies or exciting television shows.
When establishing that calming bedtime routine, avoid rocking and singing your child to sleep. If he or she wakes up in the middle of the night, they may need that same routine to get back to sleep and can lead to sleep disorders. If you are already doing this, gradually phase this out of your routine.
Make sure your child’s bed and bedroom are comfortable – the room shouldn’t be too warm or too cold and the bedding should be comfortable but not restrictive.
If your child calls for you after you have left the room, don’t respond right away. This allows them to remember that it’s time for bed and they should really be trying to get to sleep.
Finally, set up a reward system of some kind. For example, every night your child gets in bed at bedtime and stays there, he or she gets a star or a sticker of some kind. After a number of stars or stickers are earned, give them a prize.

Family Fun on a Shoestring

December 9, 2014 by Young Scholars Academy Leave a Comment

It’s a common thing today: most families have two working parents. It’s a must just to survive, let alone for a family to have anything extra like even a small vacation.

Even if you’re careful to watch every penny spent, there are still plenty of ways to have some family fun even on a shoestring!

• Season passes: Whether you’re heading to a theme park, water park or zoo, most will offer season passes at a decent discount. If you live close enough that you could visit one of these places often, don’t be put off by the initial dollar amount investment and buy the season pass. You’ll find that because of the discounted prices, most season passes pay for themselves in just a couple of visits. Although the passes only cover the price of admission it can still save you money on food by allowing you to leave the park to eat and be readmitted without being penalized.

• Do you have a second-run theatre near you? These are theatres that play new release movies, but after they’ve already been released in the big theatres. What’s the point? Well think about it this way: when you go to see a new release when it first comes out, you’re likely to spend $8-$10 per ticket, per person. With a family of 4 or more, you’re looking at $40 in tickets and that’s before you buy snacks and drinks. A second-run theatre will play the same movie in its entirety but a few weeks after it’s considered a “new release”. These theatres tend to charge $5 or less per ticket. Worth the wait don’t you think?

• Consider the minors. If you are a family of sports enthusiasts but can’t quite swing the cost of even general admission tickets to see your favorite sports team, consider checking out a local minor league game instead, or even a local high school or college game. These smaller teams have smaller venues and typically smaller audiences so they do what they can to fill the seats – even charge as little as $5 for a general admission ticket. Some will even offer a ticket and snack package. There are few better memories than snacking on a ball park hot dog in the cheap seats.

These are just a few ideas to get your creativity flowing. Just because you’re watching your pennies doesn’t mean you have to sit at home on the couch and watch each other. Get creative and I’m sure you’ll find something you, your family and your wallet can all agree on.