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Category: Tips & Tricks

How to Help Kids Cope With Divorce

A divorce can be difficult on a child. Learn how to help kids cope with divorce. These tips below can help.

After parents choose to file for a divorce, it is essential that they do all they can to help their children through the transition by being honest and open with them.

When parents file for a divorce, it can be very stressful for their children. Helping kids cope with divorce can be put on the back burner, due to all the issues that parents are dealing with.

It’s essential that parents take the time to help their children understand the changes that will occur and the feelings they may go through. Kids do not ask for these kind of situations and they need help getting through the divorce process just as much as the adults do.

How to Help Kids Cope With Divorce

Helping Kids Cope With Divorce

First off, parents must be patient as everyone transitions into the new situation. When parents are going through the divorce process, children may feel very sad, confused and angry.

These are just some of many emotions they may feel and this is a lot of stress for a young child to deal with.

Be Open and Honest With Children During the Divorce Process

When a child comes to a parent regarding questions as to why the parent chose to file for a divorce, it is very important to be as open and honest with the child as possible. While being open and honest with children during the divorce process, it’s also important to keep from putting them in the middle.

Parents must never point blame at each other in front of their children or talk badly about each other to their child.

Children are already feeling a flow of mixed emotions during the divorce process and parents should never add to that by talking negatively about each other in front of them.

Helping kids cope with divorce by being honest about why individuals choose to get a divorce and what happens after a divorce is the best way to talk to children.

With each change that comes with the divorce process, it’s vital that parents talk to their children about how their children are feeling and how parents can help them through each step.

Helping kids cope with divorce by letting them know that it’s okay to talk about their feelings openly is a very important step during the divorce process.

When Parents Choose to File for a Divorce, Children are Innocent

Overall, the most important thing parents should tell their children after they file for a divorce is that the situation is between mom and dad, as children have nothing to do with their decision.

Kids often feel as though they are to blame during the divorce process. Even after parents assure them that they have nothing to do with their decision, it is common that they still question their part in the situation.

This is why parents must continue to talk to their children time after time during the divorce process.

When parents choose to file for a divorce, they often become so wrapped up in their own emotions that they forget about the importance of helping kids cope with divorce. Children are innocent to the entire situation and they deserve to receive answers during the whole divorce process.

Talking openly with children after parents file for a divorce is a very important step to helping them through the painful transition.

July 29, 2020
Ways to Help Your Child Succeed At School When You’re Pressed for Time

For busy moms, prioritizing and paring back is key. One thing you never want to have to cut back on, though, is helping your children with their homework. Thankfully, helping your children succeed in school doesn’t have to require you to sit down at the table together for hours every night. Here are four great ways you can help your children succeed in school even when you’re strapped for time.

1. Quiz Your Children in the Car

Between driving to work, school and several after-school activities, does it feel like you practically live in the car? Why not use this time to your advantage? Quiz your children on their math facts, ask them to spell words for you or hold up lose change for them to identify. Practice counting by twos, list state capitals or discuss the judicial system–whatever your children are working on in school.

2. Cook Together

Cooking and baking aren’t just fun (and delicious!), they are also a great way to teach your children several important skills and concepts, including numbers, reading, following directions, fractions and science. Depending on your children’s ages, you can have them dump and stir ingredients you’ve already measured or you could have them do most of the work themselves. They’ll have so much fun, they won’t even realize how much they are learning!

Check out the Better Homes and Gardens New Junior Cook Book for cooking fun in the kitchen!

3. Have Your Child Read to You While You Clean

If you want to sit down and read with your children but your house is a wreck, why not have them read to you while you clean instead? Pick children’s books that are exactly at your children’s reading levels and have them read aloud while you dust, wash dishes or fold socks. This way, you’ll be right there if your children needs help with a word, but you’ll also get a few things done as well.

4. Sit Down to Work Together

Do you have desk work you need to do? For example, paying bills, replying to emails, grading papers or finishing up a project for the office? Sit down at the table with your children to do your work together. This is a great way to help reinforce good study habits in your children, especially if you get in the habit of sitting down to work at the same time every day.

A busy lifestyle may cause you to miss out on a few things, but helping your children with their schoolwork should not be one of them. Thankfully, if you can get creative and find ways to use your time well, you’ll quickly see that there are plenty of chances for study and learning no matter what you are doing.

Of course setting everything aside and sitting down together is always ideal, but for those days when you are simply overwhelmed with little to no time to spare, helping your children with their homework doesn’t have to be the item that gets left off of your list.

Do you have any creative tips for helping your children with their schoolwork even when you’re busy? I’d love to hear more suggestions!

July 29, 2020
How to Deal with Teenage Drama
Do you have a teenager? Are you struggling with figuring out how to deal with teenage drama? These tips below can help!

Are you currently raising a teenager and wondering how to deal with the day to day drama that goes on between you and your teen? Keep reading! These tips are for you. They can help you navigate through the teenage drama and find ways to deal with this drama.

Parents can make teen drama worse or can plan ahead to respond with parenting techniques that teach teens life skills such as self-calming techniques and taking a positive time out break.

How to Deal with Teenage Drama

Stay Calm – Do Not Engage in Teen Drama

Teenagers use drama for several different reasons. One reason is that teen drama achieves a desired reaction from the parent. When parents respond to teen drama with parental drama, they add fuel to the fire, escalate the tension and model the exact behavior they do not want to see from teens.

Although many parents want to win and focus on being “right,” parents lose in the long run when they join in with a dramatic attitude or actions. “If you are feeling defensive, ask yourself, ‘What are my long-term goals? – to control behavior or to teach life skills?’”.

State Limits in Positive Discipline Strategy

Decide what you will do, not what the child will do. In dealing with teen drama, it is usually much easier for parents to decide on their own actions rather than trying to control the behavior of a teenager.

Once parents decide what they will do, they can state a limit. Examples of stated limits about what the parent will do are:
- “I will listen to your concerns after you’ve calmed down.”
- “I’m willing to listen when you are calm and respectful.”
- “I’m going to go calm down and we can talk later when we both are not upset.”
Parenting Techniques to Walk Away Calmly

After stating limits, the next step is to calmly walk away. Staying in the same space together makes it hard for both parent and teen to calm down and not engage in more drama.

A parent’s first reaction is often for the teen to go away – “Go to your room!”, “Get away from me!”, but those strategies engage teens into more drama. It’s more effective for a parent to decide what he or she will do and leave the room with as calm a demeanor as possible.

Positive Time Out for Parents and Teens

Positive Time Out is different from traditional time out and means that a parent and child both take a break and use self-calming skills to regroup their emotions before discussing solutions.

Teenagers can develop self-calming skills when parents give teens an opportunity to calm down using a positive time out. But when parenting techniques either demand that teen drama stop immediately or when parents give in to teen drama pleas, teens don’t get the opportunity to practice and learn self-calming skills. It may take a while for teens to develop self-calming skills if they haven’t had the practice before.

It can be especially challenging for parents to use effective parenting techniques during moments of intense teen drama. Positive Discipline strategies such as “deciding what you will do”, stating limits and positive time out can teach self-calming skills to teens and demonstrate that drama won’t engage a parent, induce parental guilt or nudge parents to give in.
July 28, 2020
How to Help Your Child With Homework

Does your child struggle with completing homework at home? Read our tips on How to Help Your Child with Homework.

It’s a familiar refrain every afternoon everywhere: A child gets off the school bus, plops an overloaded backpack onto the kitchen counter and says, “I have too much homework!” As a parent, helping your child with homework may be like a second job.

Homework may seem like a dirty word to children and parents alike, but statistics show that children who spend more time on homework do better in school and develop good habits and attitudes. When children do homework, they’re connecting school and home life and helping their parents get involved in their education.

Homework may be assigned to review, reinforce and practice what was taught during the school day. Homework can also prepare a child for an upcoming lesson, give him practice using Internet and media resources, teach him to work independently, and simply get more done than a class period permits.

Before parents can help their children with homework, they need to understand their teachers’ homework philosophy, expectations and the grade weight given to homework assignments.

Parents who are involved in their children’s school are taking the first step in homework help by understanding what’s going on in the classroom.

How to Help Your Child With Homework

Does Your Child Have Too Much Homework?

Homework expectations can range from 20 minutes per day to three hours per day, depending on a child’s grade level and course difficulty.

If you think your child’s homework is inappropriate, talk to his teacher about it and voice your concerns.

Regardless of whether you feel your child has too much homework, not enough, or not the right type of homework, by encouraging him to do his homework well and on time, you’re teaching him to follow rules and get the most out of his education.

Know Your Child’s Learning Style and Homework Methods

As tempting as it is to get your child to adopt your old homework methods, the homework style that works best for him may differ. Your child may most effectively study for a test by being quizzed by you, or he may do better studying on his own.

Observe your child and determine whether he works better alone or with others, if he studies best by writing, reading, listening or through hands-on activities.

How to Help Your Child With Homework

The US Department of Education’s Office of Educational Research and Improvement’s handbook on Helping Your Child With Homework suggests parents set a regular time and place for homework, have supplies on hand, and get involved by offering help and guidance, and being in touch with what’s going on in school.

Setting the Right Atmosphere for Homework

Set a regular homework time for your child, based on what works best for your child and the family schedule. Some children do better by getting homework done immediately after school. Others need an hour or two of time to unwind, play and relax before starting in on homework. Arrange homework time around extra-curricular activities, but emphasize to your child that homework is a high priority.

Provide a quiet, well-lit study area in your home for your child to do homework. Remove distractions and make homework time a no-phone, no-iPod, no-TV zone.

Stock your home with pens, pencils, erasers, notebook paper, a stapler, pencil sharpener, paper clips, glue sticks, a calculator, maps, scissors, a dictionary and a thesaurus. It’s a good idea to also have composition notebooks, folders and poster board, for last minute projects.

Show Your Child His Homework is a Priority to You

Show your child that you’re interested in his schoolwork by asking him what went on in school, what assignments he has, and what grades he’s received. “What happened in school today” is the perfect dinnertime conversation for a family.

Be available during homework time. If possible, arrange to be home and around the house when your children are doing homework. Even if you’re fixing dinner, paying bills, or reading the newspaper, being available means your child can come to you for help.

Keep open the lines of communication with your child’s teachers. Many teachers now have Web sites and calendars posted on the school Web site with assignments, test dates and project due dates.

You can help your child with homework without doing the work for him. Taking over a project or providing too many suggestions or criticisms will erode your child’s confidence and keep him from getting the benefit of the assignment.

Be generous with praise for your children’s work, and make any criticism constructive.

Offer suggestions to your child in scheduling his own deadlines for projects. Help him avoid cramming for tests and doing big projects the night before they’re due, by dividing up the work on a calendar.

How to Help a Gifted Child with Homework

Why You Should Get a Tutor for Your Child

How to Help Children Read Better

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July 24, 2020
Why You Should Get a Tutor for Your Child
Does your child need more help in specific subject areas in school? Consider hiring a tutor. Read Why You Should Get a Tutor For Your Child.

Parents often worry that their child is not meeting their full potential from regular classroom instruction. There are a number of circumstances where children would benefit from extra tutoring. This article discusses when hiring a tutor is a wise decision.

Why You Should Get a Tutor for Your Child

A Tutor Can Build Self Esteem

It may be time to think about outside tutoring if a child is suffering from feelings of inferiority regarding academics.

When a child constantly doesn’t want to go to school or suffers from frequent headaches or stomach pains, this can be a sign that she is falling behind at school. Extra coaching can revive a student like water and sunlight can help a withering plant.

Poor School Grades and Performance

There are many ways that a parent can tell if a child has low school performance. It may be time to find a tutor if any of the following situations applies.
- The child gets bad grades or comments on a report card.
- The teacher requests an interview and says the child is not achieving at grade level.
- The parent or a teacher may notice that the child is not grasping key learning concepts.
- The student may not be learning sight words and decoding skills, which will greatly impair the reading process.
- Basic math skills may be lacking and require intervention.
- Assignments are not done, or they are completed but lost or not handed in. This is a problem for many students, but particularly for students with attention deficit disorder ADD or attention deficit hyperactive disorder ADHD. A tutor can teach strategies and tricks for getting organized.
- A student lacks motivation and is doing the bare minimum. This could be linked with self-esteem or having a learning style different than the teacher’s teaching style. A tutor can provide some customized challenges and motivators.
Learning Style Different From Teaching Style

At school, sometimes a child’s learning experience isn’t effective. It might simply be a bad match with the curriculum, teacher’s teaching style or school philosophy. Tactile, or hands-on learners often encounter a mismatch with a teacher.

A tutor can use customized multi-sensory teaching methods. One-on-one instruction offers more opportunity for touching, seeing and hearing the teaching materials.

At home, often, homework is causing big conflicts between child and parent. There are situations where homework has become a power struggle. If school work has become a nightly battle, it may be time to turn the conflict over to a third party.

A tutor can assume the role of coach and teach the child independent homework skills and preserve the parent-child relationship.

There are a number of tutoring services and options available to parents who decide to get a tutor for their child. There is the private tutor, tutoring centers, online tutoring and some communities and schools offer free tutoring sessions as well.

How to Help Children Read Better

How to Help Your Child with Homework

How to Help a Gifted Child with Homework

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July 24, 2020
What Do Kids Learn While Cooking?

Are you asking yourself, “What Do Kids Learn While Cooking?” Kids learn so much when they are in the kitchen helping with the cooking! Find out how much they can learn below.

Cooking with your kids is more than just bonding together. This magical time spent in the kitchen with your kids is an excellent way to educate your kids.

Recently, I’ve been calling my girls into the kitchen to help with meal prepping and cooking. I’m teaching my oldest daughter how to cut vegetables like bell peppers and potatoes. My youngest daughter pitches in with some of the easier cooking tasks like preparing the pans with the food. They are both learning how to read and follow directions as well as use the correct measurements when cooking and baking.

You may be shocked to learn that a kitchen is an excellent place for science, math, and even a little life skill lesson. If you’re wondering what your kids will learn from being in the kitchen more often, then continue reading.

I’m going to share all of the good that happens when kids cook with you, and it’s not just about those delicious recipes you’re making!

What do Kids Learn While Cooking?

Math Skills

Pull out a recipe or two. Do you see something in common with them? Each recipe has a measurement for every ingredient on the list. This means your kids will have to learn some math skills to measure and sometimes double a recipe ingredients list to cook in the kitchen.

Chemistry and Science Skills

What happens when you mix cornstarch into a recipe?

What happens when you forget to use baking soda in a cake?

You may already know that cornstarch can thicken a soup or stew recipe, while baking soda helps the cake rise properly.

These are both science and chemistry skills that your kids will learn while cooking.

Geography or Social Studies Skills

There are so many recipes from different cultures that you can easily help your kids learn about geography or social studies while cooking.

Grab a few recipes from around the world like South America, Mexico, and Spain.

Enjoy learning more about how these cultures make food versus your home region. This is an excellent way to get your kids hands-on while learning about geography.

Health Information

As you find recipes with your kids to make in the kitchen, you may discuss nutrition information and serving sizes.

This will help your kids learn about health. Proper nutrition and serving sizes will matter for a healthier lifestyle.

Kids will learn a lot about portion control, recommended serving sizes, and what type of nutrients are in each of the recipes they’re making.

Fine Motor Skills

Lastly, cooking with kids helps boost those fine motor skills. Tasks like whisking, cutting, and measuring are all using fine motor skills. Some kids are delayed in the area of fine motor skills, so cooking can be an excellent way to help your kids build these necessary motor functions.

In conclusion, cooking with kids is an excellent way to strengthen your family bond while learning more about science, math, geography, and health. There’s nothing but positives that come from cooking with kids in the kitchen regularly.

I hope that you’ll use this information to start planning more time cooking with kids.

Help your kids get started in the kitchen with these fun gift ideas! Kids will love having their own baking tools and supplies to use in the kitchen.

Each year for Christmas, Santa brings something new to add to my girls collection of baking and cooking supplies!
Tovla Jr. Kids Cooking and Baking Gift Set with Storage Case Handstand Kitchen 17-piece Introduction to Real Baking Set with Recipes for Kids CrEATive Kitchen Junior Chef Set Real Kids Cooking Set Complete Kids Cooking and Baking Set
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July 11, 2020
What Superheroes Teach Our Kids

Does your child have a favorite superhero? Read What Superheroes Teach Our Kids!

Perhaps you remember that special superhero you adored when you were little. Maybe your kids have a few superheroes that they look up to. Regardless, superheroes do exist and they do teach some valuable lessons.

My son is about to turn 4 and he’s really into several superheroes right now! It’s fun watching him interact with his superhero toys while he’s engaged during play time.

While superheroes are not human-like and have some extraordinary superpowers, they’re really amazing characters.

Superheroes can go on the big screen, take on amazing difficulties, and leave us mesmerized at their ability to solve a crime and fight the bad guys. Today I’m going to discuss more about what these magical super-beings teach our kids.

What Superheroes Teach Our Kids

Be Creative

Superheroes always find some creative way to solve a problem, a crime, or fight off a bad guy. It doesn’t matter what film you’re watching, that character who’s been deemed the superhero will find a creative way to solve anything.

This simple act being watched by your kids helps teach your kids to be creative. Superheroes are a fabulous example of thinking outside of the box to resolve conflict in a unique way.

Inspires Sense of Self

Perfect examples of what I mean by superheroes teach our kids to be inspired to be themselves, Batman or Iron Man.

You see, neither Batman nor Iron Man have any extraordinary superpowers. They’re simply equipped with their superhero suits and some special tricks that the suit may contain.

Overall, both Batman and Iron Man have to find new ways to solve a crime. They use their personality and individual strengths to ward of those bad guys, thus inspiring our kids to have a strong sense of self.

Introduces STEM Concepts

In a world where STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) lead the way, our kids’ superheroes start to introduce this concept.

With chemical reactions, and mutation or other technological advances featured during our superheroes adventures, our kids start to learn more about science, math, and technology.

This is quite useful in encouraging our kids to have a love of learning. Many kids will start to ask questions about these STEM concepts during the film, which opens the door to introducing STEM concepts at home.

There are so many things superheroes teach our kids. Most kids who grow up having at least one superhero that they adore tend to be more creative, open-minded, confident, and more engaged in academics.

Superheroes may be people that our kids look up to, but perhaps more parents should be looking up to superheroes for teaching our kids’ such valuable lessons.

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July 11, 2020