Starting the New School Year Off on the Right Foot

From primary school to university, today’s students have more responsibilities—and more opportunities to learn—than students of previous generations have had. The upside of this point is that with enough hard work, students can eventually become proficient and successful in a career field of their choosing. The downside, however, is that it’s easy to be overwhelmed and intimidated by the cumulative weight of the school’s requirements.

The key to thriving is planning ahead, and the following tips will help students of all ages to start the new school year off on the right foot.

Let’s take a look.

Make Time for Revising

Revising is to school as cardio training is to sports: a means of honing one’s skills and securing the tools required to perform optimally in competition—i.e. tests. Revising will be difficult for those who’re unaccustomed to it, but with consistent practice, the process will become easier, and the results will speak for themselves.

15 to 30 minutes of general revising will make new concepts more understandable, and in the end, this investment will prevent students from falling behind.

Because as graduates and experienced students can attest to, learning is exponentially harder when one’s trying to catch up on lessons and ideas.

Stay Organized

Taking concise notes, organizing folders (and corresponding papers), maintaining a calendar to keep track of due dates, and implementing other organization-centered steps are important ingredients in the recipe for educational success. Between family, friends, and hobbies, students’ time is in high enough demand, and wasting minutes (or even hours) looking for papers, deciphering notes, and “cramming” is unwise and unnecessary.

Speak Up in Class

Last but certainly not least, speaking up in class—especially when core concepts are unclear—is a must for students who wish to start the new school year off on the right foot.

Receiving clarification from an educator is beneficial in two key ways: It helps one to understand lessons, and it also demonstrates to others that it’s alright to ask questions—a point that will result in additional lesson-plan clarity.

Summer has been nice, but the new school year is right around the corner. Thankfully, students need not be nervous; the listed tips will help them to succeed, and a strong work ethic will turn their dreams into reality.

Thanks for reading, and here’s to being successful in school!

This article was originally published on JamesCrickmore.org.uk. 

How To Encourage Your Kids To Get Outside This Summer

With so many entertainment-providing technological devices at their disposal, youths might not see the need to spend time outside. Witnessing young people avoid the outdoors can be discouraging for parents, especially during the nice weather that occurs during the summer months. That said, parents may be able to help their children overcome this frustrating and potentially unhealthy habit by employing tips such as the following.

Relocate Activities To The Outside

Parents are encouraged to relocate specific activities and games they enjoy outdoors. At the very least, young people will be outside. Moreover, sunlight and warmth might encourage them to partake in more physical activities.

Foster Outdoor Family Outings

Parents may be able to stimulate a youth’s interest in being out and about by organizing outdoor family events like neighborhood walks, picnics or nature hikes.

Have Children Partake In Outdoor Chores

Adults might drum up their children’s interest in being outside by requesting their assistance performing specific outdoor chores such as washing the family car, raking leaves, painting or performing a variety of yardwork-related tasks.

Champion An Outdoor Hobby

Sometimes young people who lack the interest have no desire to participate in sports or other physical activities. However, that should not deter parents from encouraging them to spend time outside. Adults might be able to circumvent this issue by championing participation in certain outdoor activities such as gardening.

Do Not Get Upset If A Mess Occurs

In certain instances, young people might express hesitation over engaging in outdoor activities in fear of returning home looking messy. Adults are encouraged to not frown upon messes that occur when their children enjoy the outside. A little dirt and mud can be part of that experience.

Set Up Outdoor Play Dates

Parents with young children are encouraged to organize outdoor play dates with other neighborhood kids. The only prerequisite for the excursion is that the young people are engaging in some type of outdoor activity.

Incorporate Your Pets

Many young people enjoy spending time with family pets. Animals, especially dogs, typically like to spend time outside. Another method adults might employ to get their children outside is to allow them to walk the family dog. They can also play fetch. Your dog will be grateful for the exercise, and chances are your children will enjoy themselves as well!

This article was originally published JamesCrickmore.org.uk. 

Which Sport Should Your Child Play?

It is far too easy for children to spend the entire day on their phone or computer. This sedentary lifestyle can potentially lead to major health problems including obesity and high blood pressure. The best way to get kids to spend time outside is by getting them invested in sports. In addition to providing physical activity, sports will also build the social skills of any child. These are the four best sports for children.

Football

Football is beloved by millions of people around the world because it is such an easy game to learn to play. There is just something exciting about trying to pull the same moves as the professionals. A great thing about football is that children can start learning the game at a very early age. Juggling and dribbling lessons can be started as early as age three. Once they develop the simple skills, they will be ready to run around the pitch with a team.

Basketball

Basketball may not be very popular in the UK, but it is actually the perfect sport for children. The game helps strengthen a kid’s hand-eye coordination, reflexes and endurance. With only five people covering the large court, basketball also requires a team to communicate and work together at all times in order to succeed.

Swimming

It is completely natural for a child to be afraid of the water. This fear will not go away until the child learns how to swim at a high level. This is why it is vitally important for children to pick up the sport of swimming at a young age. Swimming laps and breathing underwater are great ways to build lung strength. Overprotective parents that are afraid of the dangers of sports will absolutely love swimming because there is almost no risk of injury.

Tennis

While most sports teach kids to work together as a team, tennis forces them to learn how to compete on their own. This will be an extremely important skill later in their life. It is impossible to have a successful career without the determination to succeed as an individual. In addition to the positive lifestyle skills learned through tennis, the sport also helps improve a child’s physical strength and quickness.

This article was originally published on JamesCrickmore.org.uk.

Encouraging Healthy Eating Habits in Children

As a parent, you’re responsible for helping your children establish healthy habits that will affect them the rest of their lives. The following are suggestions to help create an environment that encourages your children to follow a healthy lifestyle.

Support Mindful Eating

Make sure to remove screens from your dining table to help your children remained focused on their food. Talk to your kids about listening to their bodies. Ask what it feels like to be hungry, full, or uncomfortably full, and the discuss the differences between those feelings.

Make Sure Everyone Is Present

Not only is eating at home with the whole family normally healthier and less expensive than eating out, but it also makes a big difference in relationships! Eating at home allows you to better monitor what your children are eating, and creates a special time that children can look forward to.

Encourage Kids to Enjoy Fruits and Vegetables

Doctors recommend that children consume at least two cups of vegetables and one and a half cups of fruit each day. Try to provide fruits and vegetables with every meal, and offer them as healthy alternatives to other snacks. Make eating fruits and vegetables fun! Keep an eye out for new recipes, and encourage your children to help you prepare them.

Limit Soft Drinks

Sodas and other soft drinks are full of added sugars, and are especially unhealthy if children are drinking them instead of drinks with the nutrients they need, such as milk. Even fruit juice often contains added sugars! Encourage your children to drink water before anything else. To create replacements for soft drinks, make homemade iced tea or lemonade with only a small amount of sugar.

Make Sure Your Kids Eat Breakfast

A healthy, balanced breakfast provides an important start to your child’s day. Children who skip breakfast are often unfocused and tired during the school hours. Offer healthy and filling breakfast options such as yogurt with granola and fruit, scrambled eggs, and oatmeal.

Pack Your Child A Lunch

Not only is packing your child a lunch cheaper than purchasing one every day at school, but a homemade lunch is often healthier than the mass-produced school lunches. Sandwiches on nutritious whole-grain bread are a good option. Make sure to include sides of fruits and vegetables rather than chips.

These techniques will help you and your child develop nutritious eating habits. These habits will be the foundation of a healthy lifestyle.

This article was originally published on JamesCrickmore.org.uk.

Best Spring Cleaning Chores for Children

Spring has arrived and with it, the need to freshen up the home. Spring cleaning is a tradition that has endured so long in part because of the satisfaction and sense of accomplishment that comes from a yearly purge-and-cleanse routine.

But that sense of accomplishment doesn’t have to be limited only to the adults in the home. It’s been established that children also benefit from the inclusion and teamwork, as well as the cleanliness itself, when they’re allowed to participate in easy chores around the house.

A beginner’s chore that’s often recommended for tots ages two through four is helping to make their beds in the morning. For some, this may simply mean making sure the pillow is at the head of the bed and the blanket is not wadded up in a corner. But for older children it can be rewarding to begin the very start of their day with an act of tidying.

Another favorite that older children can get in on is taking care of any household pets. Spring cleaning is a good opportunity to introduce children to the idea that it’s good to cleanse areas of the home, like the animal’s dining space, now and then. Children can be shown that, just like with humans, it’s good to wash out dishes with hot water and some soap.

Picking up toys is another good habit for children to learn early so that they have that set of cleanup skills later in life. While it may be necessary even daily to put away toys strewn around the home, spring cleaning is a chance to take it beyond that and introduce the concept of sorting.

During sorting, children can decide which of their playthings are still in good condition, get played with often, and are well-loved. This may need to be split up into several different sessions, to avoid getting overwhelmed. Then, any toys that aren’t being used or are damaged can be put aside for donations or discarded, respectively. This will leave more space for new playthings or it can simply offer children a larger area to play in.
In general, children tend to be left out of the larger spring cleaning chores. It can help them feel capable, included and important to be given their own assignments, as well as providing occupation for them so that the tasks which aren’t child-friendly can be done in relative peace.

This article was originally published on JamesCrickmore.org.uk.