Keeping Kids Safe – and Learning! – Online

Raising kids has always been challenging, but the advancing technology and round-the-clock media consumption that define the 21st century have added even more challenges to the mix. It is no longer enough to teach them right from wrong on the playground and in your home. Now a parent is called to help shape a host of new skills, sometimes dubbed 21st century skills, to prepare the child to be a productive member of this digital society. These skills include flexibility, initiation, collaboration, creativity and, perhaps above all, media literacy.

While it’s not your sole responsibility to educate your child in the workings of the digital world, there is plenty you can do to get your child on the way to having sound judgment and discernment when it comes to the many facets of technology and media. Here are just a few tips.

Protect Them Online

Stick around. When they’re surfing, be nearby. Keep the computers and iPads in common rooms, not in a child’s bedroom.

Limit usage. Allow your child to have free online time for a limited amount of time right after school (or whenever their “me” time is) to IM friends, play games, or visit social networking sites, but don’t let that time stretch too far (or segue into hours of TV or gaming time).

Follow up. Check your child’s browser history to know where your child goes online, and check those sites regularly. Don’t be shy about using security tools and privacy features — whether offered by your browser, Internet service provider, or purchased separately — for extra protection.

Choose Apps and Games Wisely

Stay in charge. Be the one to OK (or deny) the apps and games they wish to buy and play online and on mobile devices. Technology should encourage active, not passive, learning. Just because it’s popular doesn’t mean it’s good for your kids.

Look for skills development. Select games and apps that reinforce skills such as hand-eye coordination, memorization, dexterity, critical thinking and creativity. Read product descriptions and reviews closely, and look for whether an app or game has been endorsed or reviewed by an educational organization.

Watch the ads. Be careful of free or “lite” versions of apps or programs, as these will include advertisements that may be inappropriate. You can, however, use these to review the content before purchasing a premium version.

Another Tech Tip Tuesday

Tech Tips for Parents

Are you a stargazer? What about a star shopper?
This month we’re highlighting three apps that can help save you money, keep your kids safe, and
perhaps even help unravel a few mysteries of the cosmos.

Life360

What it is: Life360 Family Locator lets you find family members on a private map, see recent crimes nearby, and receive alerts when your family members reach specified locations.

Why it’s cool: We can debate the merits of using GPS locators to keep track of your kids, but if you’re
looking for a good way to make sure everyone in your family stays safe, this app gets the job done well. You can even have private chats with your family if you’ve got more to say than “I’m here safe and sound!”

What’s required: The app is free and available for iOS, Android and Blackberry.

Shop Savvy

What it is: Launched as a price comparison tool, Shop Savvy allows you to scan the barcode of an item at a store and search for a better deal on that item someplace else. It has 20 million products and 40,000 retailers (online and offline) on its platform, so chances are good you’ll get a match on something you see.

Why it’s cool: We’ve all been there, holding a pair of shoes or some important school supply in our hands at the store but wondering whether it might be a little cheaper at the store down the street. Shop Savvy helps you make a confident purchase where you are, or can save you some money by pointing out a better option.
It also recently began a relationship with Capital One, so those card holders are eligible for special deals.

What’s required: The free app is available for iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

Star Walk

What it is: Star Walk identifies in real time what constellations, stars and planets are all around you. All you have to do is point your phone at the stars. The 360-degree, touch control star map displays constellations, stars, planets, satellites and galaxies currently overhead from anywhere on Earth.

Why it’s cool: This is one of those apps that actually makes you feel like you’re living in the future. It’s a guide to astronomy for everyone from experts to those of us who can’t remember their Ursa Major from their Andromeda. Great for introducing kids to the wonders of astronomy while being confident you’re actually naming the right constellations.

What’s required: This 99-cent app is available for iOS.

Math Matters: How your “mathitude” can have an impact on your children

The truth is, math gets a bad rap. It’s an essential skill to master, but math concepts can be difficult to grasp, and many students struggle with the much-maligned subject. Adults often speak negatively about their experience in math class. It’s common, and somehow humorous, for people to claim to be “bad at math.”
While it may be true that you barely escaped algebra and still can’t figure out percentages, chances are such an openly negative attitude is hampering your child’s confidence in the subject. Children learn and internalize what they hear from their parents.

 So when it comes to math, try these tips:
1. Share your math experience with your child, but don’t share your negativity. It’s OK to relate to a struggling student with tales of your own math challenges, but be sure to point out that in your child’s case, there are a lot more tools to help – like a parent who really cares about the child’s success, online tools and games, and tutoring assistance.

2. Infuse math into everyday activities. You might offer to give your child a percentage of the grocery money saved by clipping coupons, or ask your child to figure out the savings on a sweater marked down 25 percent.


3. Highlight math as a skill that’s both cool and profitable. Almost all careers, from interior designer to architect to engineer, include math. So if your child is allowed to dismiss math as something he or she
probably won’t ever be good at, that perceived failure closes the doors on the opportunity to go into a vast array of rewarding, lucrative careers.

4. Encourage your child to practice math. Parents encourage their kids to practice sports, musical
instruments and art, but rarely do they push math as a skill to be honed outside the classroom.

5. Take an active interest in math homework. If you’re confused about the concepts involved, stay positive and learn together. And watch the language (both spoken and body language) you use when math homework is on the table.

National Teacher's Day is Tuesday, May 7

Teacher’s Pet – The Dos and Don’ts of Teacher Appreciation Gifts

The end of the school year is the perfect time to show appreciation for your child’s teachers. But how many apple-related knick-knacks can one person

accept with grace? If you’re a fan of websites like Facebook and Pinterest, you can become

overwhelmed by the choices of handmade Teacher Appreciation Gift options (most of which claim to be easy to make but are anything but).

While getting creative is great for some, it’s not for everyone. So before you head down the Pinterest rabbit hole, we asked some teachers to give us their gift requests – and advice for which gifts to skip.

Safe Bets:

1. A handwritten note. Nothing says “thank you” quite like the actual words, which you’d be surprised to learn aren’t spoken or written to teachers all that often. Putting pen to paper – and having your child do so as well – is a thoughtful expression of appreciation that a teacher will treasure for years.

2. Gift cards. Some think gift cards aren’t personal enough, but teachers say they love them. Gift cards to big-name craft supply stores or department stores (think Target, Walmart, Michael’s) allow teachers to get classroom supplies without digging so deeply into their personal funds. If you’re looking for more of a pampering present, consider a gift card to Barnes and Noble, Starbucks or the local movie theater.

3. Homemade goodies. Edible gifts are gobbled up, particularly sweet treats that teachers can bring home and share with their families.

4. Something for the classroom. The vast majority of teachers spend at least some of their own money on things for their classroom, so if you see a need (or ask the teacher directly!), fill it!

5. Something personal. Only go personal if you really know the teacher well. If you’ve been a classroom volunteer and discovered your child’s teacher is heavy into butterflies, getting something for her

collection might be nice.

Steer clear of:

1. Decorations and knick-knacks. The average classroom has just four walls, and not nearly enough shelves to handle the load of trinkets and keepsakes and decorations well-meaning students give to their teachers each year. When considering a gift, think practical, not dustable.

2. Scented gifts. Everyone loves lotion and candles, right? Possibly, but everyone’s personal tastes (and

allergies) are different, so it’s best to steer clear of that raspberry-scented foot lotion unless you’re

absolutely certain your child’s teacher loves it.

3. Apples. No teacher surveyed knew why apples are supposed to be what you give teachers, but they all have received apple-related gifts that just didn’t make much sense. Just because it has an apple on it, or is made with apples, or smells like apples, doesn’t mean it’s a good gift for a teacher. (Note: According to these guidelines, an apple-scented knick-knack might be the worst thing you could give a teacher.)

Creative Ways to Keep Your Family Connected

With spring sports in full swing and recitals and finals on the horizon, families really start to feel the time crunch this time of year. Even as daylight hours continue to grow, family time often seems to shrink. When schedules get this crazy, it’s a trick to just keep track of everyone’s whereabouts and obligations.

So how do you stay connected to the people you live with – not just their calendars? The answer’s simple: Creatively. Here are four secrets to squeezing the best out of limited down time and increasing connections in the smaller moments of your family’s day. Institute ‘No Phone’ Zones. When you only have 20 minutes a day with your teen, not spending that time checking your Facebook  feed seems like a no-brainer. But many of us are so tied to our electronic gadgets we don’t realize how addicted we’ve become. Turn it off, leave it in the car, put it in a drawer -- do whatever you have to do to keep yourself from looking at a screen even once while your child’s in the same room. We promise that email, text or status update will still be viewable after your son has been dropped off at baseball practice or your daughter is in bed.


Think outside the box.
Many families know that, given busy schedules and pressing homework, sitting around the dinner table all together is impossible. So they simply give up the goal of gathering as a unit. But there must be some time of day – whether it’s 7 a.m. or 8:30 p.m. – when the whole family is under one roof. Use that time. Instead of family dinner, have a nighttime family snack. Kids can’t resist the smell of popcorn popping or the lure of apple slices smeared with chocolate  spread or peanut butter. Put out a plate of something simple and appealing and get a check on everyone’s day.


Start ‘Pay It Forward’ at Home. 
To “pay it forward” is to ask the receiver of a bit of kindness to “repay” it to someone else instead of to the original giver. Implementing this little game of goodwill could yield immeasurable gains in your home, and it takes very little time. Design a simple “Pay It Forward!” card and give one to each family member, then let them loose on one another.Think of little ways to lighten a family member’s load or make them smile, and  instead of taking credit for the bit of kindness, simply leave the card. The goal is to never have a card for more than a day – and certainly no more than a single card at one time.

Make Hellos and Goodbyes Count.
In a tightly scheduled family, interaction is often relegated to a series of pickups and drop-offs throughout the day. You can think of this as not enough quality time together, or as an opportunity for more of what are among the best emotional moments between people – the hello and the goodbye. The way we greet one another and the way we leave one another leaves imprints on our hearts, so make the most of the many tries you get. Be intentional and positive. Swallow any inclination you have to nag, yell or ridicule in these moments. Make eye contact when you say “I love you” (and always say “I love you”).

Tech Tips Tuesday

We know parents are caught in a never-ending whirlwind of carpools and homework and parties and practices. Luckily there are a ton of apps and websites out there designed to make your life easier, more organized or just more fun. 

Here are our top two Tech Tips this month:

My Job Chart

What it is: My Job Chart is a chore and allowance tracker that works on a points system, allowing children to earn points for chores done and then allocate those points toward their spending, saving and sharing goals. Parents can choose from a big list of chores or make up their own, and the kids log into their accounts to see their daily chores and check them off as they go.

Why it’s cool: The site links directly to Amazon.com, where kids can find things they’d like to spend their money on and add them to wish lists that automatically keep track of how many points they’ve earned toward the purchase. Once they have enough points, an alert is sent to Mom or Dad, who can then purchase the item and have it shipped directly to the house. If this seems too consumer-driven, the site also links to several charities (again you can add others), and points are earned toward donating to those as well.

What’s required: The website is free, with free apps for Apple iPhones, iPads and Android phones and tablets.

Couch to 5K

What it is: The C25K program was designed to get you from never running to completing a 5K in only nine weeks. You can listen to your own music while the helpful voice prompts you to walk, to run, and to congratulate yourself for a job well done. You follow a simple training plan that gradually increases your distance and stamina, and you can measure your progress by either time or distance.

Why it’s cool: It’s free and it’s easy, and your health is worth so much more than that. If you ever wished you had your own personal trainer, someone to tell you what to do to get in shape without killing yourself or your budget, then this app might be your dream come true. It takes the guesswork out of getting in shape, and quiets that self-defeating voice inside your head telling you to slow down, walk, or stop.

What’s required: There are several mobile apps for iPhone and Android, some free, some paid.

Testing Jitters: Four Ways to Help Them Overcome Anxiety

     Test stress happens to just about everyone, and severe anxiety can sometimes strike even the most prepared students. But for some kids, every single test is a nightmare. Their palms sweat, their hearts race, and their minds go into overdrive with negative thoughts about failure – and that can be before they even get a foot in the classroom door on test day.

     Almost 20 percent of today’s students experience test anxiety, according to the American Test Anxiety Association. They don’t just worry they might not ace the test – they actually “freeze” while taking it. High test anxiety reduces working memory, confuses reasoning, increases mistakes, and lowers test scores. Research suggests students with high test anxiety perform around 12 percentile points below their peers who are not anxious test-takers.

1. Have a Studying Strategy.
Being prepared can make a world of difference in a  student’s self-confidence. Take a good look at how,  where and when your child studies. Is it too late  in the day? Are there distractions around? Is your  child trying to learn while hungry or overtired?  Does your child procrastinate learning new  material? Do your best to address each need and  set your child up for success. That means a healthy  snack, a quiet study corner, a good night’s  sleep – and no electronics (including a cell phone  or TV!) nearby.

2. Have a Test-taking Strategy.
You can’t be there to help your child through the  test, but you can tell him how to take one. When the test is set in front of him, tell him to flip through it to gauge how many questions there are and what’s involved. Then have him answer every question he knows right away, skipping anything he’s not sure about, then backtrack carefully to answer the questions he skipped. Tell him not to fret about the clock, but try to save a few minutes to go back through and check his answers. Finally, encourage him to raise his hand and ask a question if he needs something clarified.

3. Practice Positive Thinking.
Negative, self-defeating thoughts can sap your child’s mental strength, mucking up her ability to do well even if she knows all the answers. Challenge negative ideas (“I never do well on tests.”) and reframe them in a positive, honest way (“You studied hard for last week’s spelling test and passed with flying colors!”) so your child begins to see there are no absolutes.

4. Hold Your Tongue.
The morning of the test is not the time to suggest your child should have studied more or started preparing earlier. It’s not the time to nag about how late your teen stayed up or pick a fight about what your teen chose for breakfast. Try to remain calm and positive without smothering or shoving encouragement down your child’s throat. Your anxious test taker needs all the good vibes he or she can get.