Parent skills
The Popularity Contest
Every school and every class has students who stand out – not for being the smartest – but for being the ones everyone else wants to be like. The popular people! What sets one student apart as ‘popular’? The answer is usually self-confidence and that leads to becoming a bit of a [...]Read more
Teaching children to think big
Children start young with big aspirations. They don’t start off seeing any career as a tough nut to crack – they dream big and don’t see any reason why they shouldn’t become anything from an astronaut to a zoologist. As they get older they respond to being told ‘you’ll have to [...]Read more
The art of creativity
If you’re from a certain generation you’ll have heard about Edward De Bono and the concept of lateral thinking. Some people call it creative thinking, some people describe it as right brain activity – but whatever you call it, being able to think creatively is a life skill every [...]Read more
Starting them young
Life seems to move faster and faster, work-life balance is constantly challenging and stress is now something we expect to suffer from on a daily basis – not just a very occasional issue. We look back at our schooldays and wish we could go back to when all we had to do was play [...]Read more
The happiest days of your life
A recent survey of parents revealed that the number one concern they have was their children’s academic performance. They wanted to ensure their children were doing well, achieving good grades and setting themselves up for success in their future careers. All good stuff – but [...]Read more
Developing a love of language
Kids invent new words – and new uses for existing words – confusing their parents and older family members. Anyone who has seen Gran’s reaction to their favourite grandchild describing something as ‘sick’ – and their confusion – will know what we’re talking about here. It’s not [...]Read more
Collaboration or cheating?
In today’s world of social media, What’sApp, Skype and many more means of communication, children tend to be much more collaborative about how they learn. It’s not unusual to find your child online talking to their friends about the current homework assignment and sharing their [...]Read more
Why do kids skip going to school?
Students miss school for a wide range of reasons, but a study by the Johns Hopkins University pinpointed three broad categories. The first category identified is because of circumstances or obligations: Illness is the first and foremost reason for non-attendance, including [...]Read more
How’s your relationship with your child?
Whilst children may be young and inexperienced it doesn’t mean they are lesser human beings. A good relationship with your kids is the utopia for most parents, but the kids aren’t always reading the same book as you – and sometimes developing a good relationship seems [...]Read more
The many faces of a bully
Bullying is no longer confined to the classroom or playground. It can happen anywhere – in or out of school – at any location. It can take place face to face, in a text message, during a phone call or in cyberspace. These types of abuse may have a single label but the catch-all [...]Read more
Planning for your child’s future education
Keeping up with the annual new school uniform hits your bank account right after the summer holiday has already made a serious dent. The rate at which kids grow can seem to generate endless shopping trips for bigger sizes. Shoes that only seem to have been worn for a few weeks [...]Read more
How good is your relationship with your child?
Whilst children may be young and inexperienced it doesn’t mean they are lesser human beings. A good relationship with your kids is the utopia for most parents, but the kids aren’t always reading the same book as you – and sometimes developing a good relationship seems [...]Read more