Tag Archives: parenting

college guidance, parenting

Teaching Social Skills Before College

social skills

Social skills are important for all of us in day to day life. The vast majority of us are surrounded by other people at all times. We have to work with others. We socialize with others. We engage with people in countless situations on a day to day basis – buying items in stores, navigating ourselves through crowds in the streets, spending time with friends… the list goes on. So, social interaction is going to be a constant presence throughout your child’s entire life. Teaching them social skills before college is essential. They’ll settle into school, make friends, enjoy extracurricular activities and much more if they are able to effectively interact with the people they’re surrounded by. Here are a few areas to focus on to get your college-bound student ready for college.

Teach Communication

Communication is absolutely essential to getting by in the world. We all need to be able to express how we’re feeling in order to maintain good relationships with anyone. Without effective communication, your teen won’t be able to make friends well. So, encourage your child to talk. Get them to talk about how they’re feeling. Get them to talk about their interests. Get them to talk about what they’ve been up to and what they’re planning on doing each day. Simple conversation can go a long way when it comes to helping your teen express themselves and build bonds with others. You can find more information on how to achieve this at teachkidscommunication.

Teach Empathy

Empathy is another essential life skill. It will help your teen to understand how others feel at any given time. This will help them respond appropriately in different social situations. They will be able to help others when they’re feeling sad, down or distressed. They’ll be able to pick up on signs of anger and help to resolve the issues that are causing it. They’ll be able to share in others joy when others are happy or celebrating. Empathy really is important. But how do you teach empathy? Well, you simply actively encourage your child to see the world through another’s eyes or walk in another’s shoes. Ask them to consider how others such as their siblings or friends are feeling.

Lead by Example

Remember that your teen will pick up on your own social behavior, so lead by example and be a good role model. Make sure to treat others respectfully and appropriately at all times in front of your child. They’ll pick up on your behavior and begin to mimic it themselves!

Hopefully, the above advice will help you to help your soon-to-be college student when it comes to social skills! Focus on these different areas to get the best results possible!

college guidance, college planning, college prep, parenting

College Prep Is a Team Effort

college prep

The college admissions process can be overwhelming. It will be a stressful time for both you and your teen. Your teen will need your help and your support. They will need to know they can count on you to do your part so they can do their part. It’s truly a team effort. Good parenting is key, especially during college prep.

Here are some helpful suggestions for you that will help you help your teen during college prep.

Make a visit to your teen’s counselor– Let the counselor know that you intend to be an involved parent and establish a relationship at the start. The counselor is an important source of information and of course guidance regarding your teen’s college pursuit.

Establish relationships with teachers and staff– Since most parents tend to drop out when their teen reaches high school, it’s crucial that you make it clear to the educators that you will be a partner in educating your child. Keep in touch and verify your teen’s progress via email if it’s available and attend any teacher conferences or parent meetings that are scheduled. Show up at PTA meetings and parent information sessions, making you visible to the staff.

Read all school information– Once you have stressed to your teen the importance of ensuring that ALL information gets home to you, you must take the time to READ it. This means reading the school handbook, teacher handouts, letters to parents, guidance department newsletters, any rules and policies, and homework and attendance rules. Discuss these with your teen to alleviate any future misunderstandings that might arise over failing to follow school guidelines.

Stress the importance of good attendance– Attendance is key in high school. Missing even one class can put the student behind. Schedule appointments, when possible, before and after school. If there is an absence, make sure your teen does the make up work in a timely manner. If the absence will be for an extensive period of time, coordinate with the teachers to assure the makeup work is completed.

Encourage strong study habits– These habits will follow your teen to college. Set aside a regularly scheduled study time. Studying needs to be a priority before any added activities. GPA rules in the college admission process and good study habits will assure your teen enters the process with an impressive one. Don’t allow your teen to procrastinate and go into overdrive because they waited until the last minute to complete a project.

Stress regular contact with teachers and counselors-This contact will play an important role when your teen needs recommendation letters. It will also establish in the minds of these educators that he or she means business. They will see that your teen is there to learn and excel and ask questions. Those students are the ones that are recommended for leadership positions and academic awards. It can be something as simple as saying hello in the hallway or using the counselor’s office to research scholarships.

Be the organization coach– My mantra for high school was: Preparation Prevents Panic. If you know where everything is, have a schedule and a plan, you won’t get stressed and frustrated. Sometimes the only filing system a teen has is their floor. It’s your job as their parent coach to help them start and maintain good organization for their date planners, notebooks, folders, files and college related materials.

Stay informed and involved– This does not mean camp out at the school every day and follow your teen around (although that is tempting). It means monitoring quizzes, grades, daily homework assignments and long-term projects. If you begin to notice any problems, schedule an appointment with the teacher and work out a plan for tutoring if it’s necessary. Don’t wait for the report card to lower the boom. If you stay proactive and informed, you and your teen will be able to fix any problems before they become catastrophes.

Know your teen’s friends (and their parents)– Your teen’s out of school activities will always affect in-class behavior. In high school, it’s as much about social activity as it is about academic success. Assuring that your teen’s friends share the same values and goals will make a difference in their focus in and out of school. Encourage them to make friends that have college as a goal and have the same study habits. Take the time to meet and get to know your teen’s friends’ parents. Make sure they share your values and understand your position on smoking, drinking and drugs.

Be proactive when you encounter problems– All types of problems arise in high school: academic, behavioral and even social. There is a logical solution for all of them, but the key is to be aware when they arise and address them quickly. Academic problems require additional teacher help, tutoring, and possibly study skill courses. If you encounter behavioral problems, contact the school counselor or principal and discuss with them recommendations for the particular situation. Coaches can often help, along with a mentor. Sometimes professional counseling is warranted. Don’t ever be afraid to ask for help. And don’t make the mistake of turning your head and going into denial. Problems only get worse if they are ignored, especially in high school.

homeschooling, move-in day, pandemic, parenting

Helping your Student During the Pandemic

pandemic

We’re living through some pretty strange times right now. Just a few months ago, life was on track and routine. We were living day to day life to schedule – dropping the kids to school, heading to work or completing tasks around the house, socializing with our free time or heading out for fun days out. But since then, the unprecedented spread of coronavirus – a contagious and potentially lethal virus – around the world has turned many of our lives on their heads. The majority of governments have asked us to remain at home as much as possible. Schools have been closed. People are working remotely or not working at all. Socializing outside of your household isn’t really an option. This has posed many of us with a variety of difficulties and problems. But for those of us with kids, school tends to be a main concern. Here are just a few different ways you can maintain your children’s education during the pandemic!

Reduce Pressure

First and foremost, reduce pressure on yourself and your little ones. These are difficult times for everyone and all children are going to be falling behind on their education right now. When schools reopen, all kids are going to find themselves in the same position and teaching will recommence from where it was left off. So, don’t be too hard on yourself or your kids. Instead, focus on this time for bonding.

Look Up Your Child’s Curriculum

If you do want to help to introduce your little one to a few of the things they’d currently be learning at school if there wasn’t a pandemic, you can always look up their curriculum and see what they would be being taught right now. Remember that curriculums vary from one school to another, so ensure you’re focusing on the right one. If in doubt, you could always contact the school and ask.

Use All Resources Available

There are so many great, free online resources out there that can prove educational for your child. Watch a few educational Youtube videos for their age group and determine whether any are good for your child to watch. Use sites like PennyDell Puzzles to challenge them with logic and numbers. Stimulate their creativity with arts and crafts projects or writing projects. Encourage them to read books. Watch kids shows on history, science and other areas with them. Consider investing in language learning software for them. There are so many different options out there!

Set Your Own Tests

Basic spelling and maths tests are easy to set up yourself when you have little ones. Challenge them with simple maths and spellings. Many kids find this fun and enjoy the element of competition.

These are just a few suggestions when it comes to educating your kids at home during the pandemic. They’ll be back to school soon enough, but hopefully, these steps will really help for now!

move-in day, Sponsored posts

Campus Arrival Helps Students Prepare for Move-In Day

campus arrival

My goal here is to help parents navigate the college maze. Part of that process is to find and recommend products and/or services that will help parents as they navigate the process.

With college move-in day approaching in the fall and parents using the summer to shop and gather items to send with their college students, I’ve found a FREE service that can help: Campus Arrival. This service makes it easy for parents and students to view and check off all the items the college either requires or recommends for students to move on to campus.

All you need to do is sign up for an account which lets you save your supply checklist. By doing this, you can mark items as done. You’ll also be able to set your school as a favorite so you can link to it quicker. Also, if any other family members want to help and buy you something for college, they can see what you need and what you already have.

Once registered, type in the name of your school (or search on the list by state), and you will see a curated list of college-ready items to pack based on the college’s official recommendations. They have also included items from other schools’ suggestions and expert advice compiled from around the internet. All their recommendations are based on a balance between quality and value.

You will also notice a checkmark next to an item that indicates it is included as an official recommendation from the college. According to their FAQ section:

Our recommendations come in three flavors.

  • First are specific item recommendations. These include an explanation for why we are recommending the item along with a link to that specific product.
  • Second are ‘Starter Pack’ recommendations. These are lists of items that are similar. We added the lists for items that are small and don’t require significant concern about reviewing the product – things like toiletries, desk supplies, etc. Lists provide an easy way to grab a bunch of things at once.
  • Third are search recommendations. For some items, there can be a lot of personal preference involved – things like bedding, posters, bikes, etc. The search recommendations provide a link to Amazon with many options that meet the need but you can personalize for your personality.

For example, here is a screenshot from a college in Texas: Texas A&M University.

For those parents who are concerned about the coronavirus, Campus Arrival has also included recommendations for Covid-19 prep:

Sincelaptops are a major asset while you’re at college, their recommendations help you with the specific hardware requirements for your school and major. They search the school’s official site. Each school is different in terms of the info they provide. Some schools provide general specifications. Some give major’s specific needs. And some schools don’t provide any recommendations.

Campus Arrival includes the links to the official school recommendations so you can reference them (in the Sources section of the school page). With the hardware specifications, they use CNET extensively to make product recommendations. They also consider Amazon reviews and will search other technology sites to make sure the products are high quality.

Campus Arrival also provides a list of prohibited items and posts the links to the sources they used to compile their lists. This takes the guesswork out of trying to prepare for move-in day and helps parents shop confidently and easily for their student.

If you don’t see you your college on their sight, you can make a recommendation for them to add it their list. While you wait for your specific school to be added, you can check out their General Recommendations list. This list is a combination of all the items they have collected from all the schools completed. It’s a good start and provides everything you’ll need.

If you have a college-bound student, take advantage of Campus Arrival’s convenient service to help you and your student prepare for move-in day.

This is a sponsored post

life lessons, parenting

10 Lessons a Pet Can Teach Your Children

pet

Families with children are known as the highest demographic to most likely own a pet. Children have numerous gifts to offer a pet, with countless hours of attention and play, cuddles, and a life-long companion. However, the rewards work both ways.  

Your children can learn a lot from owning a pet, whether it’s compassion, empathy, or the responsibility they may need to take them through college and into adulthood, these 10 valuable life lessons are what they could learn: 

Responsibility

Whether you choose ot have a dog such as a chocolate lab from https://chocolatelabradorretriever.ca/ or a smaller pet like a guinea pig, pets need to have daily food, affection, and exercise as well as potty time and grooming. Older children can learn these skills and use them and even younger children can help to feed them and play with them. 

Trust

It’s easy to confide in your pet, they will offer you unconditional support in return. Pets make trusted companions for children and can be an important step to helping your child build trust in other relationships they may have through their life.

Compassion

Caring for a living creature requires compassion, empathy, and understanding, Kids learn to be kind and how they can take care of another’s needs. 

Bereavement

You child will inevitably feel the pain of any loss of a pet, but it will also teach them how to cope through a bereavement period. A lesson not many get to learn when young. 

Physical Activity

If you own a dog, your children can learn how to have fun physical activity through games like fetch or tug of war. And enjoy going for walks. Research suggests that children who own a dog spend more time being physically active than children who don’t. 

Patience

It can take time to bond with a new pet, so your child will learn patience whilst your new pwr becomes comfortable and starts to feel at home during training. 

Respect

Owning a pet is a great way to teach children how to respect others. They much tend to their needs, touch them gently, and learn not to disturb them when they are sleeping or eating. 

Self-Esteem

Pets will show them unconditional love, which can be a wonderful boost to a child’s self-esteem. So, too, can the proudness and satisfaction from having the responsibility of caring for a pet’s needs. 

Loyalty

A pet’s loyalty toward its owner is hard to match. With this, children can learn the importance of showing loyalty to their furry friend. 

Social Skills

A dog can be a fantastic way to break the ice in social situations. This means taking your dog on family walks can help to improve your children’s social skills as they see you interact

in the news, parenting

Teachable Moments About Racism

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racism

This has certainly been one of those years. It all began with news of a virus in China. Then it began to spread and the world was in the midst of a pandemic. As time progressed it made it to our country and everyone was frightened and scared. People were dying. There seemed to be no hope. Schools closed. Businesses closed. Churches closed. We all stayed home and waited.

Just when it seemed the outlook was improving, a senseless and cruel act of murder occurred at the hands of a policeman—someone we trusted to protect us. I kept remembering the words spoken in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner: “All hell done broke lose around here!” Truer words were never spoken. 

I’m certainly not a psychologist or pretend to understand what it’s like to live as a person of color in this country. But I have children and grandchildren and it’s moments like these when they are watching us. They watch how we respond and how we treat others. Raising an independent adult should also involve raising a compassionate human being. 

These are teachable moments.

Violence is not the answer

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into a Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the chest with a knife. King survived, and the attempted assassination only reinforced his dedication to nonviolence:

“The experience of these last few days has deepened my faith in the relevance of the spirit of nonviolence, if necessary social change is peacefully to take place.”

Look for the helpers

Mr. Rogers’ mother had the best advice for a time like this—look for the helpers. We looked for the helpers during the pandemic at its worst. We should look for the helpers in the midst of this civil unrest.

Policemen, sheriffs and mayors speaking to the protestors and asking to “walk with them” in solidarity and as a promise to do better. People showing up to help business owners clean up after the damage from the riots. Protestors protecting the police when surrounded by an angry mob. A protestor bringing a case of water to the policemen standing watch. Helpers put all of this into perspective. 

Which brings me to the next teachable moment…

Love one another

Nothing good ever comes from hate. Our children are innocent and loving when born. If they are taught to hate, they will hate. If they are taught to love, they will love. Teach them to unconditionally love their fellow humans. Martin Luther King Jr. said, 

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

Stand with those who are hurting

Every single person who viewed the video of that policeman kneeling on George Floyd’s neck was outraged. There’s no question that he used his position of authority to murder that man and showed no mercy when the man was crying for help. Your teen should know you are outraged and understand why. It should open a discussion about how you feel about racism and give you an opportunity to talk about this issue. If you feel moved to act, allow your teenager to participate if they ask. Nothing will change if we don’t teach our children to be color blind. Martin Luther King Jr. explained it clearly, 

“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”

college prep, parenting

Helping your Student With Dyslexia

dyslexia

Dyslexia can affect one in five people, according to the National Institutes of Health. Once you have noticed the symptoms such as laboured or inaccurate reading and/or spelling. As well as difficulty rhyming, associating sounds with alphabetic symbols, sequencing and ordering sounds you can take the next step to be diagnosed. There are many ways to help Dyslexia. 

Schools that specialize in Dyslexia 

Schools such as CLOI’s Dyslexia PD offerings can often provide extra attention towards teaching them how to utilize, systematic and sequential instructional approach while reading and writing. The best method they use is a multisensory method. This can ensure that each plan is helping them to succeed with every journey with something like their writing and reading. They understand Dyslexia in a way that looks at it from different views to ensure that they choose the best method for them as every case is different. Having a personalized program is essential. 

What parents can do to help

If your child has Dyslexia, you can often feel helpless. There are multiple ways in which you can help at home. Start reading aloud of your child as young as you can, even six months and younger can make a massive difference to their vocabulary. If you are not comfortable with reading aloud yourself, then playing a recorded book with your child can be an effective method. Work side by side with your child’s school to ensure that you can proceed with the same techniques at home to avoid confusion. Scheduling in reading time each day can encourage your child to read that will improve their literacy skills. You could do this by reading something of your own while your child read their book. This shows that you are there to support your child, and they will see that reading is an enjoyable activity to do together. 

Support your child

Finding ways to support your child without being intimidating can be difficult. Expressing your love and support when they are reading or talking can help build their skills and show their strengths. This can be done by having conversations with your child regularly.

Designating a specific time of day to help them at home by organizing a place and time for your child to study. This space is then known as a place of work rather than play. This also means limiting the amount of time they spend on electronic screens and swapping them for reading practice.

If you are feeling alone at this time, then joining a support group can help you massively to provide useful information and emotional support. Building you and your child’s relationship to helping their strengths and weaknesses.

Hopefully, with this guide, you will be able to find different learning techniques to learn your child’s Dyslexia. Whether that is having support from a school such as CLOI’s Dyslexia PD. They offer comfort and personalized methods to help your child. And changing up your home environment to allow your child’s reading and writing to grow and improve.

graduation, parenting

Transitioning Toward Independence After Graduation

graduation

Whether your child is leaving for college soon or they are coming towards the end of their studies, ensuring you support your child in the right way, not just in a professional sense but in an emotional sense as well, can prove to be a wide-ranging subject. Ultimately, there is a massive transition from college to the real world. For anybody that has been through college education and has now come out on the other side, they may tell you just how much of a shock to the system it is to go into the real world. So what can you do to make sure that you support your child in the right way when they are transitioning toward independence after graduation?

Will Additional Qualifications Help At This Point?

Many people decide to move on to a master’s course after their degree. For some, this can be prolonging the eventuality of going into the real world. But it all depends on the degree that your child initially undertook. If they’ve got a very clear-cut career plan but they need to acquire a master’s in system design & management or a niche subject, it’s vital that they work towards this. The best thing you can do if your child is adamant about completing extra qualifications is to make sure that they’ve researched their career choice at every angle.

Encouraging Them To Find The Best First Job

Some parents feel that their child needs to get any job after they come out of college, but this can be a huge mistake. If your child is not continuing their education, you should encourage them to explore a wide variety of opportunities. Many people these days decide to accept a job for the sake of it, but this means that they could very well get stuck in a professional rut. And even if you, as the parent, have been in the same position before, it’s essential to encourage them to diversify their efforts. Encourage them to make strategic decisions from the outset. This could mean undertaking career questionnaires or helping them to realize what skills they have right now that lend to a specific profession.

Remember To Take A Step Back

They are your child, and you want the best for them, but you have to remember that you can’t force them to do something. If you feel the need to go down a particular direction, they will likely do the opposite. Think about your emotions and keep them in check. Manage their moods rather than trying to force them down a specific path. After college, your child can feel somewhat empty in-between that chasm of finishing their education to starting a career. There will naturally be bumps in the roads, and they may feel the pressure to get on to the “right” career right away. The best thing that you can do is to take a step back and also realize where you are helicopter parenting.

Even if you went straight into work, you have to remember just how much a shock to the system it can be going from years of education to the real world. They worked hard at getting their qualification, and now they want to make sure that it counts. The best thing you can do for them at this point is to be supportive of their decisions.

empty nest, move-in day, parenting

Leaving for College

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college

These have certainly been times of upheaval. Students were told to finish the year at home. Parents scrambled to help their teens adjust. Graduations were cancelled and even college plans are uncertain. But that doesn’t mean you can’t prepare for the day when they will leave for college.

It seems like only yesterday you are dropping your child off at their first class, and they are upset about leaving you. But now your child has decided to go off to college and will be leaving you without so much as a wave before long. But this is a wonderful testament to the job you have done as a parent up to now, and it’s hard to forget just how much you have done for them, and How they are so successful already from your support and their hard work. There are a few things you can do to make sure that you have prepared yourself for the big day, and that you don’t end up too upset when it happens. Our children taking the plunge and becoming independent is something special, and something to be proud of. So what can you do to prepare yourself for this transition?

Be proud

Be proud of your child’s achievements. Sharing this with the world and your family and friends is important, and showing your child that you are proud of them will do great things for their confidence. It isn’t always about academic achievements of course, but it does show a certain level of resilience and confidence, as well as a hard-working nature to gain a place in a college. Making sure that you don’t forget the role you have played in getting into this point, and congratulating yourself for the great support you have given your child along the way, is important. So never feel as though you are going too far by showing your pride in your children.

Prepare practicalities

Making sure that all of the practicalities such as student accommodation and the small details are covered when it comes to preparing your child for college, will give you a sense of confidence that everything is taken care of. You can, of course, continue to support your child once they have left for college, and many people do send care packages on a regular basis. But making sure that your child knows where they are going, what they are doing, and they have the support there if they need it, will help you relax and feel much better about the whole situation.

Be there

Being there when your child needs you, or even when they don’t, is all we can do. Sometimes they will act as though they don’t need any support whatsoever, and this may be true for many grown-up children spreading their wings, and if we have done our jobs correctly then they really should be quite independent anyway, but just being ready to take a call, or be there when they need you, it’s going to be the most important job you can do when your child is going off to college. Being there is our number one role once all the basics of parenting are done, we teach them everything we can to a certain age, And then must take a step back to just support when needed. You will find that even the most independent college children will feel as though they have got everything under control, but we can always be there ready to catch them if they fall.

parenting

Parenting College Students

college

If you have a student in college and you are hoping for them to do as well as possible, there are things that you might be able to do to help them along. While you should mostly let them do it on their own, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be encouraging them or offering them just the right amount of help – so long as you don’t get overly involved, that is, and you still let them achieve it by themselves. If you want to help your children pass their college exams, there are a number of things you can do to ensure that they are much more likely to, so let’s look at what those might be.

Stress Busting

One of the main things you can do for them is to show them how to deal with the exam stress. All children get stressed when it comes to exam time, and it is a natural part of the process that they are going to have to find a way to deal with. A little stress is not even too much of a bad thing; it shows how important the situation is, and it has been known to help people work to their fullest degree where necessary. But too much stress is definitely a problem, and you can help them by showing them how to keep stress at bay. Keeping calm, breathing deeply, and getting plenty of sleep are all good ways of doing this.

Getting Help

If you feel that your child really needs it, you might also want to think about getting them some extra education which they can make use of. If your child is falling back in English, for instance, then hiring a private English tutor could be all you need to do to make sure that they are going to get back on track, or even get ahead of their peers. However, it’s not a competition, and the main thing is that you should be trying to help them get to a point where they are confident they will pass their exams. If you can do that, you will find that they will have a much higher chance of success.

Study Skills

When it comes to the actual preparation for the exams, you can help them there too, even if they are living on campus and you are not seeing them in person. If they can learn from you how to properly prepare for exams, then that is going to do them very well, and you will find that they are going to have a much better time of it in general. That is absolutely something that you are going to want to think about if you are particularly keen for them to achieve great things. Good exam preparation is something that can be learned, so make sure that you are helping them wherever necessary in learning it before they have their exams.