Tag: learn

Money

Tips For Helping Your Children Learn About Money

JayneLeave a comment

Photo by Karolina Grabowska from Pexels

One of the best things about being a child is that you don’t have the responsibilities of an adult – including the financial ones. Yet while it is nice to leave our little ones in the ignorance of bliss, it can also be a real blessing to them in later life if you teach them about responsibilities as soon as you can. If you are good with money, then you will have a lot more control over your life, more freedom to do what you want to do with your life, and also the flexibility and fewer constraints with your choices in life. You will be able to go on more holidays or have the luxury to quit your job if you don’t like it and live off your savings while you search for a new one. The benefits from having financial stability really are innumerable.

This is why it is a good idea to teach your children about money and how to save from a young age. They should grow up with a better understanding of finances and be on a more solid foot in their adult life. You can teach them about everything from how to save, what a mortgage is, and about Safety Net Credit should they need it (perhaps this is also something that you have experience with, so can impart this wisdom too.) Here we have put together some top tips for helping your children to learn about money.

Give them a budget and see how they spend it

It is a good idea to give your child some pocket money each week or month and then see how they spend it. Take them out shopping and let them purchase things that they think are important or that they need and see what they spend their funds on. Remind them that once that money they have is gone, they will have to wait another week or money before they get any more. If they ask for extra, don’t just give it to them. Instead, see if they can earn it through doing jobs around the home. This teaches them that in order to get more money they will have to work for it – it doesn’t just magically appear in front of them when they need it.

Teach them about the value of things

As a child, it can be hard to learn the different values of things and this can be a skill that when taken into adult life, leads to people getting into large amounts of debt. To avoid this, teach your child about the value of things. Explain how the same item (such as TV, cars, or even fruits and vegetables in a supermarket) can vary greatly in price. Explain why this is and the differences between them. This should help them to learn the value of items. You could also play a game where they have to guess the prices of items before you show it to them. They might be a bit surprised at some of the answers – and you might be a bit shocked at some of their guesses! If you play this game each time you go shopping, see how they improve and soon have a better indication of the value of things.

Let them earn money by doing household chores

As an adult, the way that you will earn your money is through doing work. Teach your child when they are young this lesson by giving them jobs to do around the house in exchange for money. You could set different tasks at different prices, for example, they get money for washing up, for hoovering, for tidying their bedroom or for washing the car. By showing them this is the best way to earn, they will learn that the harder they work, the more money they can potentially earn and it will also be a good way to teach them responsibilities too. 

Lead by a good example

Children pick up habits from their parents – both the good and the bad ones. This is why it is so important that you lead by a good example. Try not to take them fun shopping all the time and show them that there are just as many other fun pastimes. Try not to be super frivolous with your cash, purchasing items such as fast fashion pieces that you wear a few times and then either breaks or you get rid of as you don’t like it anymore. If your child asks you questions, be as honest as possible with your answers and explain about credit, debts, and overdrafts so they know about these.

Have your child come with you to open up a bank account

A bank account is something that your child will have right from when they are a little child up through their adult life. This is why you should take them to open up their own account when you can. There are a host of accounts out there that are tailored for children, where you can put in a budget each week or month and it is restricted with what they can use it on. They also can’t have things such as an overdraft. If you put money into their account and teach them how to use their bank card, they will learn the value of money digitally. They can even have an app that shows them what they have spent – something that you could go through with them each week, showing them further the value of money and what their spending habits are. 

These are just a few ways that you can help your children to learn more about money and become spending savvy. It is very important that your child is as financially secure in the future as they can be and by following these top tips you know that you are setting them up for as much success as possible. What are some top tips you do to ensure that your children are as financially savvy as possible? Let us know in the comments below!

Education

Who Knew Studying Could be Fun? 5 Ways to Enjoy Your Studies as an Adult

JayneLeave a comment

Photo by Kyle Gregory Devaras on Unsplash

Whether you’re studying to further your career, secure the job you’ve always wanted, or you just want to have the satisfaction of some additional studies and qualifications under your belt, then returning to education as an adult can seem like the perfect solution. But is it possible to juggle the responsibilities of adulthood – parenting, holding down a job etc and yet still have a positive student experience? Is it possible to actually enjoy your studies while you’re juggling everything else in your life?

Read on for 5 ways you can enjoy your studies as an adult.

Get a little help

Ask any student about which aspect of their studies they dislike the most and the majority will tell you that checking for grammar and spelling errors, proofreading their work and trying to get their heads around correct citations is really what drags them down. Luckily, there is help at hand for all these little tasks in the form of proofreading services, spelling and grammar checks and even an apa citation generator! All of which can be found online, click the link to find out more.

Get some good music

Beware! Not everyone is able to study and listen to music at the same time. It just depends on how your brain works. For some, listening to heavy song lyrics and writing a compelling essay about 19th century art comes naturally. For others, it could be a bit of a hindrance. If you think you might struggle, try listening to some movie soundtracks instead or perhaps some classical music. Before you know it, you’ll be the star of your own study montage!

Use stationary you love

Forget those boring old pens and pads that remind you of school or your place of work. This is your study time, so make it your own. Use stationary that ignites your desire to write, take notes and gives you inspiration. From pretty post-it notes and thought provoking notebooks to highlighters in gorgeous colours, pretty pens with fluffy toppers or sleek and stylish fountain pens that compliment your stunning annotations. Head to the stationary store and treat yourself!

Try studying somewhere different

You might have created the best studying area that allows you to concentrate and work without interruption. However, even the most productive of workspaces can feel a little stagnant. To shake things up and to make your studies more fun, consider studying somewhere different. Head outside to the garden and enjoy the sunshine or head to a café and treat yourself to a slice of cake. You deserve it! You could even consider reading your study materials in the bath or writing some study notes whilst waiting for the bus.

Give your memory a boost!

Struggling to remember all those dates and names? Try turning the trickier elements of your studies into rhyme or poems to help make them stick. You could draw pictures that trigger your memory or write flash cards and stick them all over the house!

Education

Why You Should Teach Your Children a Foreign Language at Home

Jayne4 Comments

While English has become one of the most spoken languages around the world, learning a foreign language opens many doors. It is extremely beneficial to teach children a foreign language from a young age to assure that they can have a future in which they can travel around the world and communicate with people from different nationalities and backgrounds. With a foreign language one can form cross-cultural friendships, have a boosted cross-cultural understanding but also benefit from broader career opportunities and exciting travel adventures. Teaching a child a foreign language no longer means sending them off to language classes but it can also be easily taught at home through reading and interactive games and videos. Another great guide is How to Learn Spanish and Succeed.

It is always encouraged to begin teaching a child a foreign language from a young age as the younger the mind is, the easier it is to pick up the language. As a child starts getting older certain windows close in terms of language acquisition therefore learning a language before puberty will allow children to speak with a native accent. Knowing a foreign language is certainly an incredible skill to have especially when thinking ahead of the child’s future career. Career-wise it is in fact known that professionals who can communicate in a second or third language are always more desirable for the job. It has also been studied that thinking in a foreign language helps people make quicker and better decisions and can contribute to a higher standard of living.

There are many ways to teach children a foreign language and the very first place to begin is inside the child’s home. If the child’s parents speak two different languages a highly recommend approach is the One Person One Language method. With this method each parent consistently speaks a different language to the child, for example one parent will speak their native Spanish while the other speaks their native English. This method is highly effective in raising a bilingual child as there is a consistent exposure to two different languages. A few other ways to teach a child a foreign language is to have them read consistently in the foreign language. Watching videos that are 100% in the target language is also a great way to interactively learn. Language learning apps also provide a simple, effective and comprehensive system for learning languages at one’s own pace through interactive lessons, numerous courses and with the help of voice recognition. For example a child can easily learn French thanks to the combination of effective education methods and the use of apps like Babbel that are interactive and therefore very intuitive.

When deciding which foreign languages to teach your child it is important to think of their future and which languages might benefit them the most. Spanish for example is the second widest spoken language in the world, with over 300 million people speaking it every day. Spanish is therefore one of the most useful languages in the world for travel and business opportunities. Meanwhile, French is the most widely studied foreign language in the world, with 200 million speakers worldwide. French is also the official language of 29 countries and is the basis for many words in English such as “naïve” and “cinema”. Mandarin Chinese instead is spoken by over 1 billion people worldwide, making it the most widely spoken language in the world. The Chinese have always interacted with hundreds of cultures and many nations today enjoy Chinese-specific cultural contributions in the areas of cuisine, commerce and the arts. As Mandarin Chinese is tonal, meaning that pitch is used to distinguish its lexical or grammatical meaning, the earlier a child begins to learn this language the easier it will be for them to pick up on the difference in tone.

Many parents have become more proactive in jump-starting foreign language education for their children knowing all the benefits a second or third language can bring for their children later on in life. Language learning has many benefits on the brain: in fact it is proven to boost cognitive, memory and listening skills and is therefore a wonderful way to stimulate a child’s brain while in its peak development.

Education · Family

Five life skills your kids don’t learn at school

JayneLeave a comment

Five life skills your kids don’t learn at schoolThere is no “right” way to bring up children, and sometimes the more advice and opinions you hear, the tougher it can seem. Even the views of the greatest teachers and psychologists always differ to a certain extent.

Still, there is one thing on which everyone is in broad agreement: if you give your children freedom and value their individuality, they will grow up confident and happy. Another basic truth is that parents have as important a role in educating their kids as schoolteachers. With that in mind, here are five lessons that will be of value to every child, which you can help them to learn:

Independence

Before doing something for your children, step back and ask yourself whether they can do it themselves. Everyone needs freedom, but keep in mind that freedom and permissiveness are not the same thing. Let them try to do their own shoelaces, for example. Encourage, guide and most of all be patient. They will get there in the end.

Housework 

Here’s a secret: Kids love to help out with things. The only reason they get lazy and reluctant is through habit if you don’t let them get in on the act from a young age. The sooner children learn to perform ordinary household chores, the more confident and self-sufficient they will be in future. Aside from that, it’s always nice to have an additional pair of hands to help with cleaning or washing up, and it’s a great time to chat without the intrusion of a TV screen or games console.

Of course, kids don’t become skilled in domestic chores overnight, and role play games are highly valuable here. Those toy kitchens and toolkits are the perfect start, and you will see how much they love preparing pretend meals or repairing their toy cars.

Choosing and analysing

Your children will ultimately live their own lives, not the ones that you or the teachers in school have in mind. Where you can make a difference is to coach them on how to make wise decisions. Provide your child with the opportunity to choose as often as possible. For example, what to wear or what colour backpack to buy.

Beyond that, get the kids involved in broader family decisions, so that they can see how to research options and make the right choice. Whether it’s booking a family holiday or choosing the right printer cartridge, there is research to be done. Using the latter example as a case in point, show them the price of cartridges on the high street, then search online for Canon MG5750 and decide which is better!

Outdoor activities

Children need to spend time in the wide world. This is where they learn to observe, see the beauty of nature and live in harmony with the world. That doesn’t mean throwing them out in the morning and hoping they come back in the evening, as some generations maintain they spent their childhoods. In truth, it’s a great opportunity for us, as parents to spend more time outside too, not to interfere, but just to be around.

Education · Happiness · Health · Kids

Getting Our Kids Outdoors

JayneLeave a comment

One of the main reasons that we moved to the countryside back in September of last year was that we wanted the kids to be able to spend more time outdoors, surrounded by nature. Our house, as well as having big front and back gardens, is completely surrounded by farmland and footpaths which are perfect for exploring or going on an evening ramble after tea. Here’s a shot taken by Husband just this evening whilst taking Chuck out for his evening constitutional (isn’t it absolutely stunning?!):

outdoors

The thing is, Husband and I were raised during a time when it was completely normal for kids to play outside; we both remember leaving the house in the morning and only ever popping back for lunch and dinner, and we often comment about how sad it makes us that our girls will never experience the same sort of freedom. That’s why when I heard about the new campaign being spearheaded by Sudocrem and PlayMore, I knew I had to write about it.

Their research has shown that, on average, the modern child spends less than five hours a week playing outside, compared to over 11 hours for their parents’ generation.

Child psychologist Dr. Lindsay Ip explains, “Children today are more used to immediate gratification from technology and digital games than active, creative play in the outdoors and connection to humans and nature. That’s why we have a responsibility as a society to encourage our children to get outside and play. It’s important for their health and educational development.”

Based on this research, Sudocrem has teamed up with PlayMore to offer 10 nurseries across the country the chance to win £500 towards improving their outdoor play facilities, in an effort to get pre-school aged kids outside more.

Sudocrem’s Brand Manager, Nick Lang said, “Children love outdoor play but they’re bound to get stung by stinging nettles and scrape their knees. This is all part of the learning process for parents as well as children. A cuddle and a tub of Sudocrem Antiseptic Healing Cream can make a lot of things better. We’ve been healing skin for generations and we’re proud to promote the spirit of adventure with Play More.”

The reception classes at Sausage’s school have recently upgraded their outdoor facilities, including an astro-turfed area to allow year-round ball sports, mud kitchens to let kids enjoy messy play and a canopy-covered area so that they can still get fresh air during wet weather. It’s really refreshing to see the outdoor space being incorporated into the classroom in this way and I can’t wait to see how BB enjoys it when she starts school in a couple of years.

If you think your child’s nursery could do with improving their outdoor facilities, go to www.sudocrem.co.uk/social-hub and nominate.