Rural Schooling is a post from: Education Uncensored

Despite their best intentions, parents can make unwise choices on their children's behalf. The dangers that children can encounter are often less insidious than obvious dangers, like playing too close to the street. Keeping your children safe while they're inside the home is also paramount. Here are some strategies that can help parents raise their children without putting them at needless risk.

Stay safe in the kitchen

Microwaves are wonderful and efficient tools in the kitchen but they should not be used for heating up your child's bottle. Doing so can cause the liquid to heat unevenly, resulting in cold and hot spots that can cause your child discomfort. The American Academy of Pediatrics also advises parents to heat liquids in microwave-safe containers before transferring to a child's bottle due to concerns about Bisphenol A leaching into foods and beverages.

Don't placate the palate It's no secret that children need foods that will nourish their growing bodies. Children can easily form picky eating habits, which can make mealtimes stressful. Rather than only feeding a toddler fish sticks and macaroni and cheese because he refuses to eat anything else, sneak vegetables into foods he will eat, such as spaghetti sauce or smoothies. Numerous foods like soups and hamburgers can disguise the appearance and taste of vegetables. Be patient as you discover what your child will and will not eat; tastes can and do change during a person's life. Make sure as well that you are leading by example and eating the foods you are serving your child.

Curb TV time

It's very easy to spend too much time in front of the television. Adults are advised to watch fewer than two hours of TV each day but generally watch a minimum of four hours an evening. Watching television distracts parents' attention from their children and provides no intellectual stimulus for children under two, despite the prevalence of videos that are marketed as being educational in nature. While you're not always going to be able to keep kids from plopping down in front of the TV, you can reduce the amount of time they spend watching it. Fill your newfound free time with age-appropriate interactive play, such as tumbling or art activities.

Don't brush off conflict

Though small children are unlikely to fully understand a lecture from their parents about manners, it's still important to teach them about boundaries and acceptable behavior. Whether at daycare, school, or at home during a play date, your child needs to learn about responsibility and accountability. Activities that cause hurt feelings or physical injury, however minor, should not be brushed off with a "kids will be kids" excuse. This does not mean resorting to corporal punishment to discipline a child. It is important to curb bad behavior before it becomes an issue that might take considerably more time to correct down the line.

Being a parent isn't an easy job but it doesn't have to be the toughest endeavor you've ever experienced either. Make your job as protector as easy as possible by teaching children often and well, from proper eating habits to accountability. Your efforts will pay off in the short- and long-term.

Danielle, who blogs on behalf of Sears and other prestigious brands, enjoys reading parent-authored blogs and those that keep her apprised of trends in education for Generation Z.

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Things Good Parents do That Unintentionally put Their Young Children at Risk is a post from: Education Uncensored

Department of Education Audio is a post from: Education Uncensored

Contributed by Alec Bates

I was talking to my mom today about our home security plans. She called me after she heard about some recent break-ins in our area on the news. There has been some really strange break-ins in our neighborhood for the last couple of weeks. Some thief has been breaking into house and stealing women’s undergarments. It is so weird. I just can’t imagine wanting to break in to someone’s house, non the less, I can’t imagine handling someone else’s panties or briefs that they wear. It is just sounds really gross to me. I am hoping that the police catch this panty raider ( sounds like college kids!) quickly. Quite frankly, if this panty raider broke into our house and stole our under garments I would be really frightened. Just the thought of some one being in your house, touching your things, and going through your stuff when you have absolutely no idea is really scary ( especially your private underwear drawer). I hope that the culprit isn’t someone that we know well, because that would be a really awkward conversation!

Panty Raider is a post from: Education Uncensored

That said, I have decided to participate in the Books Make It Better by virtually hosting a book drive.  Here are the details on how you can join in:

Research has proven that reading aloud to children is the single most effective tool for developing language, literacy, and cognitive skills; it also builds motivation, curiosity, and
memory. Early language skills, the foundation for reading ability and school readiness, are based primarily on language exposure resulting from parents and other adults talking — and reading — to young children. Books contain many words that children are unlikely to encounter frequently in spoken language; in fact, children's books actually contain 50% more rare words than primetime television or even college students’ conversations.

In addition, did you know:

*   2/3 of families living in poverty in the U.S. (61%) have no children's books in their
homes.
*   Fewer than half (48%) of young children in the U.S. are read to daily; this means that more than 13 million children under 5 go to bed every night without a bedtime story.
*   The percentage of children read to daily drops even lower (to 36%) among low income families, whose children face the highest risk of literacy problems.
*   Middle income neighborhoods have a ratio of 13 to 1 books per child; low-income neighborhoods have the ratio of 1 age-appropriate book for every 300 children.
*   Children from low-income families hear as many as 30 million fewer words than their more affluent peers before the age of 4.
*   34% of children enter kindergarten without the basic language skills they need to learn to read.

Now, with that in mind, you can go to the Virtual Book Drive Link provided here and participate in this awesome event.  The Virtual Book Drive, you and your supporters can donate books directly to Reach Out and Read. The link provides the opportunity to choose from eleven different titles, or sponsor a child for the full five-year Reach Out and Read Program.

Books Make It Better: Virtual Book Drive is a post from: Education Uncensored

Consequently, many schools are taking steps towards helping their students be more environmentally aware. By taking the initiative now, students will be better off in the future.

Setting an Example

Maryland has required its schools to teach kids about environmental awareness for years, but feared that not enough was being done and that schools were still trying to dance around the issue.

In response to these concerns, state lawmakers now require school districts to have a lesson plan for environmental literacy set firmly in place for each school year. The goals of these lessons are to teach students how to protect the environment and how to identify any environmental threats.

What Does Environmental Literacy Look Like?

For elementary students, abstract concepts like "environmental awareness" can be difficult to grasp. But, younger students can come to understand abstract concepts through real-life application and integration.

For a school in Maryland, science is the best way to help students understand the world around them. Something as simple as taking students out on a quick boating field trip and testing the temperature and levels of oxygen in the water can teach students that the world around them is alive and in need of their care. When an entire school district participates, science and environmentalism can become more than just another in-classroom subject.

What Can Your School Do?

1. Encourage Kids to Take Their Knowledge Home: This idea is one of the best ways for kids to better understand what they've learned – and for the knowledge to spread. If kids learn about energy efficiency in school, they might go home and ask about their family's appliances, air filters, light bulbs, windows, wall insulation and electronics. This will help kids understand that environmentalism is not just a school subject, but a real-life issue.

1. Organize Relevant Field Trips: Instead of going to the zoo or children's museum, why not take students to a nature preserve, water company or an eco-friendly building? They can see firsthand how their work in class is actually relevant to the world around them.

1. Point Out Real World Trends: Have your students noticed more recycling bins in public places? What about unstable gas prices? Or maybe extreme weather and unpredictable changes? Talking about these issues or brining in local experts to speak about the topics is another great way to show kids the importance of taking care of our environment.

1. Practice What You Preach: If you encourage students to recycle, put plenty of recycling bins in the school. If you tell students how to save water or not waste food, try to implement these techniques in school bathrooms and cafeterias. If students see these practices in action, they'll get in the habit of doing it themselves both at school and everywhere else.

An Enjoyable Future

We want our kids to enjoy the environment in future generations and not have to clean up our problems. Readying a generation of thought leaders and environmental activists could spell the difference between prosperity and disaster.

Environmental Literacy Being Integrated in Schools is a post from: Education Uncensored

Esther Joseph doesn’t need to read studies or statistics to understand the problems of child abuse. She survived it.
Joseph, an advocate against corporal punishment in the home, spent her childhood alternately suffering physical abuse from her mother and emotional abuse from her father. But she doesn’t consider herself a victim.
"I’m a survivor of child abuse," said Joseph, author of Memories of Hell, Visions of Heaven—A Story of Survival Transformation and Hope (www.unityinherited.com). "In overcoming the damage of an upbringing riddled with violence, I was adamant that I would not grow up to be an abuser, as well. I know the dangers of striking a child to discipline them and then explaining that you’re doing it for their own good and because you love them. All that does is teach the child that violence is an acceptable part of love, and as they grow up, they accept violence in their adult relationships because they’ve been taught that it’s completely normal."
Joseph believes that discipline is important, but that it can be delivered without making violence an acceptable part of life.
"No matter how out of control a child may be considered, a beating is never an effective way to get their attention, obedience or respect," she added. "Parents must understand that there are other disciplinary measures, less violent and degrading methods that will garner the results they seek, while raising children to become emotional health and fulfilled adults."
Joseph offered a few simple tips for alternative means of helping children behave. They include:

• Be a Good Example – Parents must live by example, allowing their actions and not just their words to exemplify the kind of person they would like their child to become.

• Be One Step Ahead – Don’t wait until your child has done something "wrong" to have a talk with them. Parents can circumvent many foreseeable challenges by addressing them before they become an issue.

• Be Creative – One type of punishment does not work for every child. Parents must figure out and utilize a form of reprimand that would work best for their child’s particular temperament.

"Every spanking, no matter how mild, has an impact," Joseph said. "Parents should be aware that a spanked child becomes a emotionally crippled adult who goes out into the world and plays this handicap onto others, perpetuating the idea that abusive relationships are just a normal part of life. Now, I understand that people justify it by thinking, ‘I was spanked as a child and I turned out okay,’ but that equation doesn’t work for everyone. When we begin to justify violence as a part of our children’s lives, it becomes a slippery slope when we try to determine how much is too much? A spanking every once in a while? Using a belt or a hairbrush instead of a hand if a child is really misbehaving? At what point do you say it’s too much? The bottom line is that once is too much, because it makes a second, third and 20^th time that much easier to rationalize. But for those who have been abused, no matter their pasts, it does not define them nor does it determine their future. Everyone can break the bonds of their past experiences and find their way to the life and future they crave."

About Esther Joseph

Esther Joseph was born and raised on the tiny Caribbean island of Saint Lucia. She moved to the U.S. at the age of 16 with her mother and two older bothers. She holds a Master’s Degree in international affairs from New York University. Her goal is to help others still in the grips of abuse and violence to break the cycle and find a way to a place of healing.

Why Shouldn’t I Spank My Child? is a post from: Education Uncensored

Walden University Online Degree is a post from: Education Uncensored

Guest post of the week by Moises Henderson

Owning a fixer upper isn’t nearly as much fun as it sounds and although I thought I had the basic renovation skills necessary to do most of the work myself it’s been a lot harder than I imagined. The tiling in the bathroom and behind the cabinets in the kitchen was supposed to be something that was easy for me and that I could do without much work. Think again! It ended up taking an entire weekend and it still doesn’t look good! Calling HOMESECURITY101.COM/ to get an alarm was easy but it was really hard for me to find someone to do the deck the way we wanted to. I’m starting to get used to the idea that I’m not really a handy man but that doesn’t mean that my place is any closer to being finished than it was when I first bought it! I love being a homeowner but if I had any idea this was going to be such an ordeal I may have thought it through more.

My Fixer Upper is a post from: Education Uncensored

Educate My Alabama Makes Christmas Wonderful is a post from: Education Uncensored