12 Top Kids Homework Tips: Get it done without the fights

 

Homework doesn’t have to be a chore. Instill harmony back into your family with these sure-fire homework tips from parents and teachers… we are passing you the magic wand.

Homework. Ah…homework. The task we all love to hate. Kids, parents and even teachers. It’s somewhat like being lumped with having to clean the toilet. We would all just love to avoid it right? But of course we can’t.

Mums share how they get their kids to school on time every day

Inside - with 12+ years ahead, how do you get to school on time every day? Good habits start at home!

"Pack your bag"

"Time to brush your hair"

"Is everything in your bag?"

"PACK YOUR BAG"

4 weeks into the new school year, and I feel like a broken record already.

6 ways to support your kids' school

Inside - 6 ways to help your school community, without always buying something.

It's no secret that I love volunteering. Being of service to others is my primary love language, which often manifests as helping people my kids are involved with.

I've been a P&C volunteer, Scout leader, family support worker, and classroom reader over the years.

And this year I've stepped into the treasurer's role with the P&C Executive for our primary school.

Nit Prevention Spray (and bonus hair detangler)

Inside - the recipe I've been using for 15 years to help prevent nits taking over our heads

The note was in Sophie's folder on Wednesday evening.

I knew it was coming. I know the mum who found nits in her daughter's hair.

review | ASG Little Learner Pack

brought to you in conjunction with kidsbusiness and ASG

via kidsbusiness on flickr

As parents, we try to teach our children how to get along in the world. But sometimes, the concepts that we use without thinking about can be harder for kids to understand.

These books from ASG's Little Learner Packs take the concepts of resilience, persistence, confidence, organisation and getting along with others, and tell stories in a way that make it easy to understand.

Who is ASG? ASG is focused on supporting children's education - it's all they do. They're typically known for their education funds, but this pack is an example of the educational resources they provide.

Aimed at children under six years of age, Natalie sat with Riley as I read a couple of books out loud to them, and we discussed some of the bigger words {"what does judgement mean, mum?"} After the long summer holidays we've had, my favourtie book is the one about getting along with others, I'll be reading it again and again, until they really get it. {Natalie said "but we do get along sometimes, mum"}

more information about the contents of the pack from the website

• The Cat in the Hat DVD, containing four episodes from one of Dr Seuss’ most popular characters
• five hardcover children’s books from highly regarded education consultant, Michael E Bernard, featuring stories on how to get along, confidence, resilience, being organised and persistence
• membership to MY ASG, an ever-expanding source of articles and resources from parenting experts
• discounted access to Parentingideas Club, an online parenting centre founded by Michael Grose - one of Australia's leading parenting experts
• discounts on all CDs and DVDs distributed by Marcom Projects, ASG’s multimedia educational products division
• discounted health insurance with MediGUARD Health Cover, provided by Australian Unity

Win a share of $15,000 towards your child's education competition 

This new competition gives parents more chances to win. Not only are there three major prizes, but 10 Little Learner Packs and 10 Subscriptions to MY ASG. You can enter here: www.asg.com.au/win 

disclosure - I was given a Little Learners pack for review purposes. All opinions are mine.

5 tips to help kids (and parents) with anxiety | guest post

Inside - A psychologist shares her back to school tips for helping kids with anxiety

Has someone in your house got the back to school blues?

Twelve months ago I became a school mum for the first time. My five year old was off to Primary School. It was a big step.

He has never been a child who coped well with new things and he did NOT like to be separated from me but he loved his preschool year and I figured that starting school might be a little nerve-wracking at first - for both of us – but we’d get into the swing of it after a week or so.

Well it took him about five weeks to settle in. Five weeks until he stopped asking me to stay in the classroom with him. Five weeks until he would sit at his table and start the morning’s activities, chatting to his classmates, rather than hanging firmly by my side. It was five weeks before, on pickup, he said he had a great day and regaled me with stories of what he did at play time rather than tell me it was, ‘okay’ and nothing more.

I expected this stuff. I know him well. What I did not expect was the tantrums, the acting out and the generally difficult behaviour that occurred in the two weeks before school even began and well into those first five weeks.

Starting school, and starting a new school year after the long summer holidays, can be a cause for real anxiety for some kids. 

There are a number of symptoms you might pick up on, including:

• Complaints of physical symptoms such as headaches, stomach aches, nausea, and diarrhoea. These might occur in the days, maybe even weeks leading up to the start of the school year but may be particularly prevalent in the hours before you set off on the school run.
• Behavioural signs such as tantrums, inflexibility, clinginess, avoidance and defiance (that’s what I got from Mr 5 last year.) 

What causes it?

Kids, like adults, can be fearful of new situations and starting a new school year, even if they have been at that school for years already, is new and different. A new classroom, new teacher, new classmates. This can be compounded if there is something additionally new for your child this year. Maybe a new campus, new playground or even something exciting like a new leadership role. It’s all different and that can unsettle the best of us.

Additionally, some children can harbour deeper fears that they may not be able to put into words; the fear that something might happen to a loved one while they are at school, or they may not do as well this year as they expect of themselves. Some kids may fear another student if they have experienced bullying or social difficulties in the past.

What can we do to help? 

Try talking to your child about what might be worrying them and reassure them if you can. This will be easier with older rather than little kids who might not yet have the language and ability to understand or express their fears. Even older kids might find it tough, however, and you might need to do a bit of probing and careful questioning to uncover the issue. 

Explore and establish a support system at school. Chat to you child about friends they have in their class, teachers or other staff they feel comfortable with and who they might go to if they are feeling sad or anxious at school. 

Relaxation is great for kids and adults alike when dealing with anxiety. Simple, kid-friendly mindfulness techniques can help kids to get less caught up in their thoughts and worries. Lying in bed and listening to outside noises such as birds and street sounds for a minute or on waking can help set them up for the day. 

Get them out and about to play. This is a great distraction if kids are getting anxious about the approach of the school year. Physical play like running, trampolining, climbing, swimming, ball play and bike riding does wonders for kids’ mental wellbeing as well as their physical health. It also helps their sleep, their concentration, their social skills (when playing with others) and it has been shown to help their ability to cope with emotional challenges.

Laughter! This is a wonderful way to shift a negative mood to a positive one and it has been shown to soothe physical tension and to help the body relax. Pull funny faces, tickle, make a joke or watch silly cartoons. A great distraction from anxiety too.

My boy hasn’t shown any signs of worry about the beginning of the new school yet but two weeks is a long time when you’re six. I have no doubt there are tantrums and difficult behaviour on the horizon. But I know what to expect this year and I know what to do about it. Hopefully you do now too.

Onwards and upwards,

Ellen.

P.S. If anxiety about school continues for more than six weeks into term, if you are concerned about the degree of anxiety your child is experiencing or if symptoms of school anxiety are becoming too difficult to manage please see your GP who can refer you to a psychologist. Many psychologists are now able to bulk bill their services through Medicare.

About Ellen

Ellen is a Psychologist, writer and mum. Melbourne-born she spent most of her 20s and 30s in Sydney and now lives in beautiful Ballarat, in the Victorian Goldfields. Ellen writes stuff to inspire, to inform and sometimes to challenge. She knows a lot about how people work at work, how people are different and unique and how people make the most out of life. Ellen blogs at www.potential.com.au. If you’d like to ask a question or share a story she’d love to hear from you. You can email her at psych@potential.com.au.

my number one lunch box tip

Chloe is in year 12 this year. And before she started school, she attended daycare while I was studying at university. So I've been packing lunch boxes for about 15 years. I don't profess to know everything about packing lunch boxes, but my number one tip is this - don't pack new foods, just pack foods you know they'll eat, at least in the beginning.

Trust me, if you looked in my kids' lunch boxes some days, you'd be horrified by the number of packages, and lack of *good* foods in there. But, except for one minor incident involving cold mac&cheese, lunch boxes regularly come home empty.

When kids start school, they want to take it all in. If they're like Riley, they get distracted by everything around them; and Natalie is a talker with her friends. So giving them foods that they can eat quickly, and will fill their tummies for their busy day, will see empty lunch boxes coming home, and you'll know that they're getting their energy requirements to see them through the day.

What should you pack in lunch boxes?

Five items is what I've found best to pack in lunch boxes. Fruit, sandwich, dairy, crackers, biscuit.

Fruit is a must. Our school encourages "snack attack" for the preppies, a mid-morning fruit break.  Sliced fruit that is ready to eat is best - grapes, watermelon, orange segments, bananas, apples (try this method to keep it from going brown)

Dairy. [I don't push this one if they have cheese on sandwiches.] Try yoghurt (decant from a big container - I just discovered this nude food yoghurt cooler, so we'll be trying it out), or cheese and crackers for a change.

Sandwich. This is totally going to come down to what your kids eat - you could also call this "main component" My kids don't really like leftovers for lunches, and tend to stick to basic meats for sandwiches (although Douglas has spread out into leftovers and salad wraps in recent years)

Crackers and biscuits. Once again, depends on what your kids eat - at the start of the year, I bake a lot, so they pack baked goods instead of biscuits. And if they have cheese and crackers, then we don't pack a second lot of crackers.

Just remember - five items of foods they eat, and the lunch box will hopefully be empty every day.

Linking with Jess for #ibot

Also joining From the Left Field, Boiled Eggs & Soldiers, Gee You're Brave, You had us at hello, and Veggie Mama to host a Back to School link up. If you've written a post about heading back to school, please share here. {share on any blog, and it will appear on all of them}

An InLinkz Link-up

choosing shoes for school

We're almost halfway through January, and the kids go back to school (or start school) in just two short weeks. Besides uniforms and books, they probably need new shoes. (If they're like Douglas, they'll need new shoes every term!)

Most state primary schools allow children to wear either black leather lace ups, or black or white runners. In high school, kids will need both black leather lace ups, and runners (our high school specified no dunlop volleys, or skate shoes of any sort)

My number one tip for buying school shoes is buy the best ones you can afford.

If you can afford the $60 leather Clark shoes, then buy them. If you can afford the $30 Grosby shoes from Big W, then buy them.

The dollar value of the shoes isn't how you tell if it's the best shoe for your child - the fit of the shoe, and how your child feels at the end of a long day at school (especially in the beginning of the year, when they're so busy playing with people) tells what is the best shoe.

Do you have kids heading off to school this year?

back to school | routines

I want Natalie to start her school journey with some good routines in place. Currently, on daycare days she does the things that need to be done, but the rest of the week we have little or no routine (or a slower than normal routine.) I think she will be surprised at how tiring the days are, and having a routine will help her keep calm.

The kids get up at 7am, and leave for school at 8-810am (first bell is 8.15am, but they only have to walk around the block, less than 5 minutes, to get to school, so leaving time is flexible-ish). Some days, it can take 30 minutes to eat breakfast and pack lunches, other days it can be completed in ten minutes. It depends on the child and the attitude on waking.

I've changed our afternoon routine from previous years. In previous years, the kids have had to complete homework and chores before afternoon tea, this year, we're trying afternoon tea before everything else.

Do you have a morning or afternoon routine, or do you make it up each day?

back to school | baking

We're in back-to-school mode here - next Monday, January 23rd, sees Chloe starting year 9 (which is equivalent to freshman, I think), Douglas moves into grade 5, and Natalie begins her schooling journey in prep.

We've purchased her first pair of school shoes. And a new lunch box. And she's decided to use Chloe's old drink bottle. (Chloe has left us to live with her father again.)

And I've been baking, trying new recipes and filling the freezer. These orange cranberry muffins received mixed reviews from the kids - Riley liked them, Douglas threw his in the bin, Natalie ate the top half before disposing of hers. I think they're fantastic warmed up with a cup of tea.

These apple sultana muffins will definitely be made again. Just the right amount of cinnamon to make these absolutely awesome warmed up, and they freeze well for lunch boxes.

I also had a go at making muesli bars. The kids have yet to try them, but they smelled pretty yummy.

Do you have any favourite freezer lunch box recipes?