Tagged with 'parenting'

On Sunday, November 5, you should wake feeling slightly better rested than usual, as you’ll have gained an hour of sleep due to daylight savings time. Messing with our bedside clocks (not to mention our internal clocks) may seem strange, but there is a good reason. 

Why do we change our clocks an hour back? 

To understand why we move our clocks forward and back in the spring and fall, we need to understand why we have seasons in the first place. You see, the Earth does not stand perfectly straight as it rotates around the Sun. Rather, it rotates at a tilt. This means that the part of our planet that’s tilted toward the Sun has warmer, lighter days for half of the year and colder, then darker days for the other half, as the Earth makes its full, year-long rotation. Most of us live for those warm summer days when our part of the world is tilted toward the Sun. Those days – and Benjamin Franklin – are the reason for daylight savings time. Franklin was the first to publicly observe that most of the world was sleeping through those glorious, bright, warm, early morning summer hours, essentially wasting them. A British builder named William Willet was the next to push for a shift in time, to push the bright sunny summer hours from morning to evening, when people could enjoy them rather than sleep through them. Willet proposed shifting the time gradually, say 20 minutes a Sunday for four consecutive weeks. His plan was adopted first by Germany, then by Britain, who called the program Sun Time. Other countries followed suit, including the U.S., in 1918. 

Tips & Tricks for getting and keeping your kids in bed 

And yes, daylight savings time gives us nice, long summer hours. And yes, research indicates that it also saves energy (more time playing at the park in the evening means fewer lights on and dishwashers running) and decreases evening traffic accidents. But daylight savings time can be brutal for those of us with kids. Have you ever tried to put your kids down for the night while the Sun was still shining bright? Or to wake them up an hour early in the morning? Good luck! But there is hope. Willet had the right idea in terms of gradually introducing this change. Beginning about a week before the time changes this fall, start pushing bedtime by about 15 minutes each day (your kids are going to love this!). Then, try to keep them in bed an hour later on Saturday and until the equivalent of their regular wake-up time on Sunday. The goal is that they’ll be just tired enough by Sunday night to go to bed at their regular but now adjusted time. As always, avoid electronics, sugar, and crazy, active play in the hour before they climb into bed. Ah, daylight savings time. We relish that extra hour of sleep in the fall and loathe the loss of an hour in the spring, but, to quote Danny Zuko, “Oh, those summer nights! 

Thanksgiving dinner is such a special time. You’re surrounded by friends and family and about to enjoy a delicious feast at a beautifully set, festive table. With your kids. But not to worry! We’ve compiled a list of age-appropriate table manners to help you set your expectations just in time for the holidays.

Before you lay down the law, make sure your child understands why it’s important to use good manners at the table – mainly that eating together as a family is important to you and that it’s more fun for everyone when the whole family follows certain rules. Then practice, practice, practice! Don’t wait until the big day. Be consistent with your table rules and practice at home and in restaurants for several weeks before turkey day, praising your kids for using good manners and gently correcting forgotten rules.

Speaking of expectations, depending on your child’s age, you may need to lower yours, but most children, even preschoolers, can master the manners below:

1. Sitting Still – Okay, maybe just sitting would be a more realistic goal. But your young child does need to remain in his seat during his meal. Expecting him to make it through a four-course meal without moving is somewhat unrealistic. Still, he should remain seated – not under the table, standing up, or running around – while eating his dinner and then be excused to play quietly while the adults finish their food.
2. Inside Voice – Special occasions and unfamiliar faces can get preschoolers excited, and excitement can lead to, yes, yelling. Remind your little one that mealtime is a quiet time, where we talk in quiet, inside voices. Be sure to engage your child during the meal or task an older sibling with chatting her up – little ones can get loud when they’re feeling ignored.
3. Hands Off – Make sure your kids understand that their food will be served to them on a plate, and the plate (or their mouths) is where it should stay. Rather than reaching or grabbing for what they want, help them learn to ask politely for more of something. And, conversely, food that’s on their plates should stay there (versus being put back in a serving dish or thrown across the room).
4. Please and Thank You – Preschoolers love to please! Odds are, they’re already great at saying please and thank you, and mealtime is just another place to practice these good manners. Model saying thank you when you’re served and using please when asking for seconds or refills and give kudos to your kids when they do the same.

Older kids who have mastered the four rules above are capable of learning more advanced table etiquette (and modeling it nicely for your little ones), including:

• Waiting until everyone has been served to take a first bite of food.
• Placing their napkins in their laps. And using them. Save those sleeves!
• Keeping negative feedback about the food to themselves. If you don’t have something nice to say…
• Sitting up straight. And maybe even participating in the group conversation!
• Asking to be excused when there’s a break in the conversation.

 By setting realistic, age-appropriate expectations, being clear about them with your kids, and practicing, practicing, holiday meals will be more enjoyable for everyone. Happy Thanksgiving!

Back to school is looking different for everyone, whether you are fully online, in-person, or a little bit of both. Learning Resources has you covered, we picked some of our favorite products that can help you elevate your student’s learning. This list contains five products that can be used together or separately in the classroom! As you use these products, you and your little ones will continually find new ways to use them.  

Translucent Geometric Shapes  

Using our Translucent Geometric Shapes, there are different exercises from sorting and classifying, identifying the shape, building, fractions, geometry, and more! The different angles of certain pieces allow for introduction an introduction to right, obtuse, and acute angles. This comprehensive geometry set includes fourteen different shapes in seven colors! Relational shapes are perfect for combining small shapes to form larger shapes in multiple ways. This set also features circles in whole, half and quarter increments, which open engaging avenues for fraction exploration. Encourage students to classify and sort the shapes by attribute, such as number of sides, number of angles, straight sides, curved sides, and so on. Have your students 

Shapes Don't Bug Me 

In conjunction with our Translucent Geometric Shapes, the Shapes Don't Bug Me set is bound to be a classroom favorite. Pieces are relational and translucent, so the creative opportunities are endless! Crawling in the garden or buzzing through the park, bold buggy shapes bring geometry out of the dark! Become an artist of geometry with Shapes Don’t Bug Me while learning that math can be as fun as a summer day. The best part about these shapes, is that they can be sanitized in between uses.  

Big Time Student Clock 

The Big Time Student Clock is a great way to help kids grasp time skills. Besides the fact that it is super fun to play with, hands-on, and will get them excited about telling time, it will also help them learn how a clock works, where the numbers are, and what order they go in. Teaching time can also be done in everyday conversations, have your student move the clock handles to 12:30 and explain that lunch is at that time. Telling time can be fun and the Big Time Student Clock is ready to play! 

Lights and Sounds Buzzers 

Kids will light up when they reach for the Lights and Sounds Buzzers. The lights and sounds answer buzzers get little ones giggling and imitating these silly sounds just press to listen add buzzers to any lesson for some extra fun. These buttons are great for teaching patience while waiting for their turn. The buttons include the following sounds: a siren, game-show buzzer, laser and voice saying, "Charge". 

Patterned Hand Pointers 

These engaging hand pointers are the perfect way to liven up any lesson plan-and encourage students to get excited about learning. These pointers draw student attention and interest and provides positive behavioral intervention. Patterned Hand Pointers show up sharply against light-colored surfaces, but works equally as well on pocket charts, word walls and more!