Montessori Preschools for Nurturing the Overall Personality of a Child

Montessori Preschools for Nurturing the Overall Personality of a Child
By Roosevelt Hunt

Montessori preschool or the Montessori method of education has proved to be the best system of education for preschool kids. It is a very innovative educational system where a perfect learning environment is created for the kids so that they naturally develop an urge to learn with an eagerness for knowledge. The system gives focus on the overall physical, emotional, social and cognitive development of a child.

Characteristics of Montessori

• Multi age grouping - This facilitates peer learning as children of different age groups get a chance to interact each other. The older children impart their skills and knowledge to the younger ones. Moreover, these schools train the child to socialize with others.

• Uninterrupted blocks of work time

• Discovery model - Unlike learning a concept through instruction, here the children work with materials and learn it.

• Guided choice of work activity

• Montessori learning materials

Advantages

The early years of a child are a very crucial phase and have an influence in the development of his/her personality. The traits which he learns during the childhood stay with him throughout the life. So molding of a child must begin from this phase itself. Though parents play an integral role in the molding of a child's personality, they will not be able to impart all the necessary approaches which are essential for a child's overall development.

Moreover, due to work commitments, the parents may not be able to give the child proper attention. Montessori preschools work on the nourishment of the overall character of a child. Rather than the regular classroom sessions, here the child gets an opportunity to interact with children from different age groups. This interactive form of learning helps him develop his innate skills and talents in a healthy environment.

The cognitive powers like tasting, smelling, hearing, touching, movement and seeing is also enhanced through these sensory-motor activities. The teacher guides the child in pursuing his interest in this environment. So a close interaction between the children, teacher and the environment takes place. The children also get the freedom and independence to do the activities which are of his interest. The child develops an interest for academics and extracurricular activities here which will help him in the next stage of school. Subsequently, he will be able to have a rewarding career which is of his/her interest.

The strong academic base imparted to the child in the Montessori school will help him learn other concepts in academics as well as society. So your children must be enrolled in a top notch Montessori school for ensuring a sound overall development.

If you are looking for a good school in Gilbert and Chandler AZ, Arizona area.Visit Spondeo Preschool

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How To Effectively Help Children Overcome Their Learning Disability

How To Effectively Help Children Overcome Their Learning Disability
By Floyd B Rivers

Dyslexia is a well-known learning disability that occurs when the brain recognizes, processes, and interprets symbols or information in another way. It is a lifelong challenge that many children go through as it prevents them from acquiring the proper skills of reading, writing, spelling, and to some degree, speaking. And oftentimes, such learning disability is mistaken for poor intelligence and also laziness.

Understanding dyslexia will help parents recognize the essential symptoms of the learning disability and this can be a great factor in effectively treating it should specialists confirm such a condition in their child. Once the symptoms are recognized, the family as well as the teachers of the child with dyslexia should come together and think about the best intervention programs that will promote dyslexia treatment.

Dyslexia symptoms in children may include difficulty in pronouncing words, recognizing letters as well as matching letters to sounds, problems with learning and accurately using new vocabulary words, troubles in rhyming, and many more. Since there is no known cure for dyslexia yet, the only solution is to seek literacy programs that are designed to address the many symptoms of the learning disability and help the child overcome certain difficulties associated with it.

Educational tools are generally used as treatment as opposed to medication. Basically, an initial assessment should be conducted to evaluate the child's weaknesses and strengths. Parents should approach a specialist or perhaps an innovative education establishment that are centered on treating dyslexia. Then expert teachers together with assessors will work hand in hand to formulate an individualized education program that will address the child's difficulties in reading, writing, spelling, and speaking. Such intensive literacy program must enumerate in detail the child's particular disabilities along with the specific teaching methods.

Well-structured programs created by professionals with countless experiences with children with dyslexia usually apply a multi-sensory approach that may focus on vocabulary, fluency, comprehension, reading and writing, synthetic and analytical phonics, and phonemic awareness.

When it comes to treating dyslexia, it does not solely depend on the teachers at school, the tutors, and other educators who specialize in the learning disability. An effective treatment of a child's dyslexia should also include the responsibilities of the parents. Having a structured environment at home can definitely motivate a child to work on his or her skills in reading and writing. Parents and other family members can instrumentally reinforce the child's comprehension by helping him or her to maintain focus and also by emphasizing certain lessons. For more info, click here.

Children with dyslexia can effectively gain the core skills they need to overcome their disability. But it will be more effective when they have a dedicated support system at home from their families. Visit this site for more.

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5 Significant Strategies to Improve Your Children's Math Score

5 Significant Strategies to Improve Your Children's Math Score
By B. Jacob

Math is one of the highest scoring subjects and by gaining a good score in math; students can have an overall commendable grade in exams. The only one thing needed to achieve good grades, is constant practice. Research suggests that math is different from other subjects and it improves student's reasoning skills. Parents are always conscious about their children and they do their level best in improving their scores in exams. Parents are also known as the first tutors so in that respect, they play a vital role in their children's lives. They can boost their children's confidence and support them to achieve their learning goals.

Parents are the ideal mentors for their children. They can bring about some positive changes in their children's lives. Five easy and useful steps are discussed below that can make your children good scorers in math.

Help children in managing time: Time management skill is highly required for students to score well in exams. If students can properly divide their time for each question, then they can easily solve the entire test paper on time. Parents should teach them the importance of time management. This skill helps children in organizing their career, as well.

Hire a good math tutor: Parents should choose an experienced tutor for their children. An experienced subject expert can only assist his/her student in a better way. Neither parents can be available all the time nor do they help their children in all subjects. Therefore, taking learning help from proficient professionals is the best way to get knowledge on each topic. They can choose online tutors, as well. While choosing a tutor, parents should check some information such as the qualification and experience and the flexibility in terms of time.

Provide useful math worksheets: Several free math worksheets are available online. Parents can download and provide these to their children as working on these worksheets surely improves their skills. Parents can also encourage them to practice these worksheets repeatedly. It is one of the convenient ways to brush up your knowledge on a particular topic.

Motivate children to improve their weak areas: Some times, children cannot find out their weak areas and repeat their mistakes again and again. In that respect, parents should play a significant role to make their children understand faults. They can also show ways to improve their errors.

Provide moral support: Children generally depend on their parents most. They rely on their parents in many aspects. They need their parents the most especially when they face some unmanageable difficulties or problems. In that case, parent's moral support works as healing mantras to them. Many failed students can again do better results by having moral support from their parents.

To improve your maths you have to work hard on the subject there are different ways to overcome from the problems like you can get help through free online math tutor and math problem solver and more practice with the problems.

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What Is Loyalty?

What Is Loyalty?
By Jennifer Ruth Russell

How to teach your child about loyalty?

As your children begin elementary school they learn a lot about relationships. Your daughter's best friend today may betray her trust tomorrow. Or possibly your son wants to leave his basketball team because there's someone he doesn't get along with.

How do you help your child when you see her blindly following a friend or a trend? Or maybe your son keeps leaving a friendship whenever someone more interesting comes along or things become a little difficult.

What about talking behind someone's back?

This is the perfect opportunity to teach about how to practice loyalty. Without loyalty we change our commitments as often as we change our socks.

What is loyalty? The Virtues Project gives a simple and clear definition. "... Loyalty builds relationships that last forever."

Loyalty is standing by what you believe in, even when someone else may not agree with you.

Loyalty helps you listen closely to your own heart. Loyalty keeps your heart safe. If you can't stand up for something, maybe it doesn't ring true to your heart. Your heart will always tell you what is true for you.

When you practice loyalty it's important to choose wisely. The way you begin a relationship sets the tone for the way it will continue to be.

Take the time and really listen to your heart. Ask some important questions: is this someone that I can be myself with? Can I see myself being a good friend? Is this someone/something that I can stand up for? What is loyalty? What does my belly (your gut) say about this person?

Loyalty keeps you faithful (true) to your friends and family. It helps you to set your heart on things that really matter. Telling your true feelings to people who are close to you is practicing loyalty.

Loyalty helps you to protect what is important to you.

Here's an inspirational children's song that I wrote, that will give you a good definition of loyalty:

Stand by what you believe in.

Listen closely to your heart.

Be careful and choose wisely, loyalty keeps safe your heart.

Loyalty is the guardian (keeper) of my soul (spirit);

It sets my heart on things that matter.

It keeps me faithful to my friends and family.

I'm loyal. I am secure.

So let's ask the question again. What is loyalty? It's choosing wisely what you give your heart to.

Jennifer Russell is an award winning songwriter, founder and director of This is Where I Live Community Sing-along. She has written empowering & fun songs that bring out the best in our children. http://www.rembakids.com

To date, This is Where I Live Community Sing-along, has reached over 10,000 children in 500 schools throughout the world. The very nature of the songs themselves creates a recognition of, and participation in global citizenship awareness.

http://www.rembakids.com/

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How Do You Teach Your Child to Forgive?

How Do You Teach Your Child to Forgive?
By Jennifer Ruth Russell

Why is it important for a child to learn about forgiveness? It keeps their heart clean and healthy. Which is just as important as keeping their body healthy and whole. It builds self- respect and community skills.

We are sensitive creatures and Elementary School is the school of bumps and bruises in learning how to relate to others. This week's best friend can quickly become the betrayer, the liar, the 'enemy'.

When a child makes a mistake, how do they make it right and move on?... with forgiveness.

Here is The Virtues Project definition of Forgiveness:

Being forgiving is giving someone another chance after they have done something wrong. Everyone makes mistakes. Instead of revenge, make amends. Instead of feeling hopeless after a mistake, decide to act differently and have faith that you can change.

This simple technique will give you something to do with your child that will help her/him learn how to forgive.

Remember we are all in this together and many times people don't know how they hurt us. We're not talking about justice, about who was right or who was wrong; we're making things right in our hearts.

Begin by letting your child tell the story. Let them have their feelings about what happened. Ask them if they are willing to forgive. The Course in Miracles tells us that willingness is all that is required of us.

1. Have them close their eyes and see in their mind's eye the person standing in front of them.


2. Have them repeat after you:
   
   I forgive ____________ (say their name or myself) for __________ (not being the kind of friend that I want right now, saying something mean, making a mistake, etc)
   
   I let God take this over now and to make it right. I trust God to heal any hurt I feel in my heart.
   
   I promise to love myself and stop thinking about this.
   
   I forgive and I am free.


3. With their eyes still closed have them lift this person (or themselves) up, in their mind's eye, and into the sky until they can't see them any longer. This simple motion will help them release.

Do this with your child as often as necessary, until they start doing it for themselves.

If there are amends that need to be made with another, start with this forgiveness exercise. Help your child decide on what would be appropriate. Keep it simple and in the heart.

Jennifer Russell is an award winning songwriter, founder and director of This is Where I Live Community Sing-along and Professional Development. She has written some excellent, empowering & fun songs to bring out the best in our children. http://www.rembakids.com.

The Virtues Songs A-Z received the Parents Choice Award and the National Parenting Center Seal of Approval. These songs make teaching a child about forgiveness, compassion, unity, respect and honesty, simple, easy and fun.

http://www.rembakids.com/

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Celebrating Earth Day With Your Children - 5 Top Tips to Teach Your Children About Kindness on Earth

Celebrating Earth Day With Your Children - 5 Top Tips to Teach Your Children About Kindness on Earth
By Jennifer Ruth Russell

April 22 is Earth Day's 40th anniversary. Yippee, a day set aside just to celebrate our amazing mother earth. Her beauty and generosity are inspiring.

Earth day is a wonderful opportunity to teach children about kindness.

Here are 5 Top Tips to Teach your children about Kindness on Earth Day

• Play a game with these questions. There are many answers to these questions, let your children use words, pictures, charades and body sculptures to express their ideas.

What is kindness? What are some ways that you show kindness to others and to yourself? How can you show an animal, a plant or the earth kindness? How does reduce, recycle and reuse show kindness to the earth?

• Kindness Challenge:

Have a contest, with your children, to see how many acts of anonymous kindness they can do in a day. Ask them to think of several things he/she could do that would bring a smile to someones face. Include the earth in the acts of kindness. What would bring a smile to her face? Start them off with a few of your own ideas. Let your children keep track of their own progress. Keep a chalkboard or a piece of paper eye level to mark each act. Tally the total in the evening and celebrate the kindness that you have brought to the earth and the people on it.

• Visit a Recycling Center and discuss how recycling helps the earth.
• Visit the Animal Shelter in your area. Find out what it takes to adopt an animal and take care of it. Ask them about their rescue program.
• Sing-along with the song Kindness

I am kind to the earth, I am kind to the animals, all of creation deserves to be treated with kindness

Verse: I look for ways to help others, and show kindness to all that I see

When I reach out to another, I become sensitive, to the world around me

Repeat Chorus

Verse: I care about the earth; the air, the land and the deep blue sea

Reduce, recycle and reuse, I'm connected to the world around me

HAPPY EARTH DAY!

Jennifer Russell is an award winning songwriter, founder and director of Remba Kids Songs & This is Where I Live Community Sing-along. She has written some excellent, empowering & fun songs to bring out the best in our children. http://www.rembakids.com

To date, This is Where I Live Community Sing-along, has reached over 10,000 children in 500 schools throughout the world. This program addresses issues such as bullying, fighting, lack of courtesy and disrespect. The very nature of the songs themselves creates a recognition of, and participation in global citizenship awareness.

This tips are included in the Character Building Music Kit called Together We Can Do Great Things.

http://www.rembakids.com/

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Educating Children With Attention Deficit Disorder - Importance of Establishing a Dominance Profile

Educating Children With Attention Deficit Disorder - Importance of Establishing a Dominance Profile
By MaryEllen Jirak

What Are Dominance Profiles and How Can They Be Used

I'd like to begin with a Paul MacLean quote from his book, The Triune Brain In Evolution: "If uniqueness were an indispensable requirement for an evolving society, every person would be indispensable."

Unfortunately uniqueness is not something that we highly treasure in school yet it is what we most admire in our greats in all walks of life. In other words, there is a large disconnect in how our educational system treats those that learn differently.

Lateral dominance is our natural and innate way of learning from and processing information. Dominance Profiling is a technique for assessing a person's learning style. Each of us has a preferred way of taking in and learning from the world. Understanding your child's (or your own), learning characteristics can assist you to see why we each act and learn in certain ways especially when under stress. From this knowledge strategies can be developed to ensure your child will learn more effectively.

Our dominant, innate, basal patterns are especially valuable for understanding children in school. Yet they are also helpful to understand the behavior of adults when they are under stress. Knowing about and developing new strategies for learning enables a person to broaden and break free of the restrictions of their innate profile. Our dominance profile is based on our dominant brain hemisphere, eye, ear, hand and foot. This profile determines how we prefer to learn, perceive, and respond to the environment. As we take in new information especially when we are under stress, we access the senses which are ideally linked to our dominant brain hemisphere. This direct link is formed when our dominant eye, ear, hand, and foot is opposite our dominant brain hemisphere. When our dominant brain hemisphere is not opposite our dominant senses (as is true for many people) then learning is more difficult if different strategies are not used.

Learn how you can test your child for their Dominance Profile

Why Schools and Parents Need to Know About Dominance Profiles

Research shows that there is a huge and disheartening incongruity between unfavorable school instructional methods and the learning profiles of the majority of students. Schools have certain expectations about the ways students should learn. Student's who fail to fit this profile are seen as inferior rather than viewed as learning differently.

Labels that are used in school systems like "Gifted and Talented" or "Special Education", have a direct correlation to a child's inherent dominance profiles. This incongruity is a major contributing factor in higher numbers of students with dominance profiles that don't fit teaching methods being identified as ADD/ADHD, Dyslexic, and Emotional Behavioral challenges and other limiting labels. With no considerations or adjustments made to address normal differing profiles, children whose profiles don't fit the set teaching methods will continue to appear less capable. The sad truth is however that only about 15% to 20% of the population ideally fit the typical teaching practices used in schools today.

MaryEllen Jirak MS. Ed is a long time educator with a master degree in Special Education.

She is also the author of several books for parents of ADD children, including of The Gift of ADD Secrets For Transforming Liabilities Into Possibilities and a new book called Cracking The ADD Code: Why Outcomes Haven't changed and How They Can, Success in High School and Beyond and Creating Your Life, While Loving What Is: The ADD Self Care Manual

Get more natural treatments for attention deficit disorder

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