Archive for the ‘General Education Topics’ category

Give your child a chance before outbreak

December 14th, 2009

Yesterday was Sunday. I went shopping to buy a gift to the daughter of my colleague. It will be her four years old birthday the day after tomorrow. I looked around and finally chose a beautiful house shaped saving box with two cute pigs lying beside the door. I gave it to my colleague in the afternoon and in the evening I got the telephone her child called with happiness and thanks. How beautiful the whole thing was!

This morning, I was told by my colleague that the saving box was broken last night just two minutes after the call. What the hell was going on there? Her daughter broke the new saving box with the old one when trying to remove the coins to the new one and one of the black corners was crashed off. She was very nervous and face was suddenly flushed because the new box gone bad just several minutes after she got it. What to do with it? What to say next? Beat your children? Scold your child? What if it was not a saving box, what if it was something you treasure and valuable? When I was a child, my mother published me at that time.

The moment my colleague started to outbreak, her daughter whispered:” Mom, you know, I broken the corner so that the separated part can be the smoke from the chimney. I won’t touch the house saving box any more.” What a forced interpretation!

Telling this story, I want every parent to stop a while to give a chance for your children’s explanation before your outbreak erupt and punishment follows. We are all grown ups and all can feel the sadness and self-blame when we do the wrong things. Our child can feel it too. Give your child a period time and let he recognize the lesson learned from the things he mess up. It is good for you both.

Let your kids like cooking!

December 8th, 2009

I like cooking much more than washing dishes. I can always create several delicious food when not much ingredient and materials available without a recipe book. I am very proud of it because my peers and friends have to rely on their parents.

There is a reason for everything. First, my mom is a good cooker and when I was a kid, she showed me her passion on cooking and always gave us surprises. Good sense of taste and my mom’s love on cooking affect me in my life. It is an attitude to life.

When kids become grownups, they have to live on themselves and if kids have a good ability of cooking, life should be much more tasteful.

We have some tips to share. Let your kids love cooking. This is one of those abilities that make life colorful.

Among all those tips, in my opinion, mum’s tasteful dishes help a lot than others.

  1. Let you kids feel the fun of cooking and help them cook when they want to have a try. Don’t be afraid of getting things messed up or scold them if kids waste some of the raw material.
  2. I think every kid especially girls have experienced the period of pretending cooking days. I did. If they like pretending cooking, buy some plastic bowls and dishes so that less damage will be occurred. As parents, do not stop them doing this is ok.
  3. Seize the chance of baking cookies with your kids. Let kids be your assistant in the kitchen. It is also good to make a happy atmosphere when the whole families join in cooking.
  4. If you have teenagers, let them play their favorite music while they wash the lettuce and set the table.
  5. When spending time preparing food with your children, include lessons about healthy eating choices. Keep the conversation positive and avoid listing foods they can’t have.
  6. Another important thing is sharing the job of grocery shopping with your kids. Always work from a grocery list and let your children help you retrieve items and cross them off the list.
  7. It is perfect if the whole families enjoy the meal which has each member of the family participated in.

What is your gift this Christmas?

December 6th, 2009

When I was a kid, the New Year’s Day is the happiest time. Not only because a lot of delicious food that unavailable normal days can be ate but also New Year’s Day means we can obtain gifts, new clothes or lucky money for the new year.

Christmas day is one of the most important festivals in west countries and nowadays is associated with gifts, toys, shoes, play stations and etc. How many kids know the meaning of Christmas and how does it come from? When parents are busy at choosing a good turkey and wrapping gifts for kids, maybe it is a good time to teach your kids a lesson about Christmas and the meaning of it. Tell a story of Christmas to your kids and let them know more about Christmas rather than the Santa’s image and Christmas tree invented by Coca Cola Company.

You can buy a book or download a passage of christmas day from the internet and it could be extra gift for your kids.

How much would you let your kids exposed to TV before kid garden?

December 5th, 2009

My colleague’s daughter is four years old and it seems that she is much taller than her actual age. Last Sunday, it was her birthday and my colleague bought a big birthday cake to celebrate. Of course, she was very happy to see it. After the cake was put on the table, she required her mom to comb her hair back and place it neatly. My colleague didn’t take it into mind and said they can comb hair the next morning before going to kid garden. Then her daughter ran to the cake, open the cake box, put her hair back with two hands and throw her face into the cake and came out with colourful cream all over the face. It was really a surprise for both my colleague and her mother in the kitchen. “Is it right to do so? I learn this from the TV. I saw them doing like this. ” She had her finger dipped into cream and tried to touch her mother’s cheek. She sucked the cream around the mouth and it seemed that she was the role in the TV.

This is just one plot of a family story. Of course, the above episode is not a big one.  We can not erase the good effect of TV brought to us and also the side effect it expend.

How long would you let your kids exposed to soup TV plays? Would you ever limit the time of watching TV? What kind of channels would you choose and would you let your kids watch as long as he wants?

Media transmit most of the information we need and TV plays a great role in our daily life. Bloody scene, violent films, sex and raping plot make our kids exposed to negative side of the society so early in their age. Kids are good at imitating. A lot of teenagers get to the wrong way of their life and one of the reason is the media all around of us, transmitting the negative sides. 

We should take the responsibility to control the headstream in our house and limit the time of watching TV. Try our best not to see those bloody scene and films in the face of our kids. All is for them good.

Enjoy his meals

November 30th, 2009

I have a cousin who is twenty one years younger than me. When I went to colleague, he just started to learn to eat. I went to my uncle’s to see him in summer vacation. When we had each meal around the table, he was the one made disorder. We have to admit that during the kid’s education, there are great deals of annoyed headache for parents to research and tackle. Toddler’s eating is one of them.

What to do if he is a picky eater? Would you punish him if he makes the good meal an angry one?

When toddler gets 12 months old, he has the desire to do everything he wants. He wants to walk, run, play and eat by himself. This is the normal signs and we should encourage them. Baby will feel fresh and active when he eats himself. We have several suggestions for your kids to build up an independent eating.

  1. If kid has the willing to eat by himself, we should say ok and let him do freely. Maybe at the beginning the disorder would make you annoyed and the food and soup splash everywhere on the table. Keep in mind that let kid have meals by himself is the start to set up independence.
  2. Parents could give kid signs of correct eating method and feed him while he is playing eating at the same time so that kid would have enough food.
  3. Make sure that the table ware that kid can get in touch with is safe and no harmful.
  4. Turn down the TV and make him sit around the table to let him know that having meal should be at the table.
  5. It is mum’s work to make meals delicious and colourful to let your kid a good appetite.

Each mum has her way to let baby eat happily. Your suggestions are welcomed here.

Respect kid’s will and thought

November 26th, 2009

When I was a kid, my mum’s voice was always the first sound in the family. She decided most of my affairs because she said she had experienced it when she was a teenager. She thought her experience should be the best education book and wanted me to follow the right way. Negotiation and democracy, not always so lucky. Twenties years past, this phenomenon should never be ended because parents always desire their opinion can always be accepted by their kids. When children begin to know the world, they have their own thoughts and ideas about everything they meet. Their opinions are seemed childish and immature compared with adults’. Though it is far from the world of the adults, it becomes closer and closer after they get older. It is valuable when kids especially teenagers communicate with parents what they think about some subjects, what they want, what they dislike and the way they like to use. It is valuable for kids to decide their way, make choice, and have their own thoughts. Let children talk even they are wrong. It is a good time for parents to appreciate and respect kids and build up a democratic relationship in a family. Here are few tips for parents.

 1. Respect kids will and thought, try to give them a chance to make choice.

2. Before your decision, why not listen to teenagers what they think about it.

3. Be patient to your kids’ talking if even you are busy at work.

4. Try to communicate with them initiatively about what’s their consideration.

Trust, a powerful way

November 20th, 2009

I have a brother who is three years younger than me. When he was a teenager, his school learning is a headache for the whole family. He is clever and good at sociality. He is just not the kind makes his credit wonderful at school. His behaviour at school had triggered a lot of problems later in daily life. One of them is my mum’s trust. But I believe that he should never do things, which is humiliated. I clearly remember it happened in a sunny day in the afternoon after we came back from high school. My mum was in bad temper because she found the changes in the plate disappeared and was sure that my brother took it. Of course, he denied it and insisted his innocence. We had a furious quarrel and I was on my brother’s side. I trusted him, because of the feeling from his voice and the look on his face, which was so similar to mine when I was unfairly treated and identified as someone took a pair of earrings at the age of 10. I shouted to my mum why not trust your own son. (my cousin lived in my home temporally.) Several years later, I referred it again and my brother said it was not he took the several bucks.

I think that many teenagers; especially those teenagers out of control have experienced this kind of things. They lost parents’ trust to some extend. Without trust, relations between parents and children are always in a vicious circle. Children don’t open their heart to parents and parents feel disappointed day by day. Parents are too busy and are always caught up in too many annoyed things. They sometimes have no patience to listen to our explanations. They judge it on the basis of the previous behaviour teenagers have done.

Actually, trust is the force that makes us move forwards. It means concerning and encouragement. It is always simulative. It sets up equality and respect between parents and children. Always keep in mind that parents should be the first and most reliable friends children can count on.

How much do you pay for child education?

November 11th, 2009

The fees of child education accounts for a great part of parent’s income, especially for those middle class families. Not to mention those who cannot pay for it.

Parents pay for education fees from preschool and when it comes to university, a great part of students from poor and middle class families have to loan and do part time jobs to make ends meet. Leading universities in every country such as Harvard, Stanford Universities, and MIT and so on requires 30000-40000 us dollars each year. The amount should be less in a generic private university, which is 15000-30000 a year. Most students have to pay for tuition loans when they find a job after graduation.

Have you ever calculated carefully how much you have already paid for your child education and how much will be paid in future? What is the percentage of child education out of your income?

It is a hot topic in UK right now that the government may hike up tuition fees in universities so that these leading institutions continue to be internationally competitive. As for parents, they want their child to receive the first class education and also they have to bear the education fees that may beyond paying ability.