Waking Up to the Importance of Sleep

Sleep. I never used to think much about it. Then I had kids and I started obsessing over how many hours of sleep they are getting a night. I knew it was important for my children even if I couldn’t be more specific than “it’s important for their growth and development”. Then I learned just how important. Even the loss

Easy Ways to Practice Mindfulness with the Children

We know about the benefits of teaching children about meditation and mindfulness but how do we put that into practice? While the idea is great, the practice sometimes goes a little awry, so here are some terrific tips we found from Kidsstuffworld and HuffingtonPost that we’re borrowing… 1. Mindful Smelling. Collect a few household items for your children to smell,

Love Protects: It Makes Children Smarter and Healthier

The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread. – Mother Teresa Love protects. It sounds cliche and feel good – almost like a Hollywood ending – but it’s true. When you break it all down, what is love but a series of chemical reactions in our brain? It feels

6 Tips for Raising Moral Children

There is a very interesting article published in the New York Times recently on “Raising a Moral Child” which I wanted to highlight because raising a moral child is the top priority for most parents – myself included. What I found to be most alarming is that many families are failing to raise children with the

Books: Harry Potter – What Age Should a Child be to Start Reading this Series?

The first thing I ever heard about Harry Potter was how all the kids were crazy about the books and how even the kids who hated reading wanted to read the books. It made me wonder what magic JK Rowling was weaving around her readers to mesmerise them so. To find out, I started reading

10 Ways to Make Your Kids Smarter

If you want to know how to make your children smarter, there is an excellent overview article on Time: How To Make Your Kids Smarter: 10 Steps Backed By Science. In a nutshell, these are the factors to consider… Music Lessons (more here) The Dumb Jock Is A Myth Don’t Read To Your Kids, Read With Them

G1 Recommends the Children’s Book Author – Michael Morpurgo

G1 is an avid reader. He devours books the way G2 woofs down a bowl of niku udon – without pausing to take a breath. Being a bit of a precocious reader, it has been hard to decide what books are appropriate for him to read – just because he can read the words doesn’t

First World Problems with the iPad Generation

Firstly, I would like to state that I am not anti-iPad. Far from it. I love it. I think it is one of the most wondrous devices ever conceived. The kids have learned so much from it and they have a lot of fun in the process, too! Best of all, it shuts them up

Child Safety Awareness and Education

One of the scariest things about being a parent are the increasing dangers in the world that our children are facing. As they grow older and start to spend more time away from us, there is an understandable concern from parents with regards to issues like sexual predators, child abuse, and internet safety. Even though

A Powerful Message for Our Children – “How to Succeed When You Have No Special Skills”

I have always loved these inspirational stories about parents who stumble on an activity that becomes their child’s passion… Like the 4 year old who makes paper dresses… That kid who reviews books on his own blog… The amazing kid who shoots “impossible” hoops… And then that kid goes on to become something amazing… Akiane