Patch blues -- Getting some traction out of your loops

Anyone who's ever used patches knows that they come in a range of types, from truly uninspiring to highly adventurous, interesting ideas. Getting them to work, however, can be a labor of love. Whether you're working in a nightclub gig or trying to get some sense out of your equipment at a club, some patches don't cut it and some do. Depending on your style, some are suitable and some aren't, and the people who put these patches together sell them like garage sales. You can get whole batches of patches, useful or otherwise, even from some major distributors.


Photo: Ianz

The issues
The problems tend to be:
Tinny, useless, things that really don't work or mysterious things that sound "wrong" when they're in your sound system

This is a result of not matching patches to signals. Sounds send power signals through amps at different levels, and that can create loop issues in a mix. The things that don't work don't send the right signals for your system. They lose power, and if they sound great on the systems of the people who made them, your sound system isn't picking them up.

For loops, that's potential murder. It can be more trouble than it's worth to create a good loop and then have it buried. The loop track has to struggle through the signals. If you've heard mixes where things seem to have been shoved into the background, and those are loops you're listening to, that's how that happens, particularly in woofer-heavy mixes.

The solutions
Top and bottom are naturally separated in good mixes, and you'll hear a lot of stuff online and elsewhere where they've obviously been recorded and mixed separately to avoid this result. That's basically what you need to do. There are several options:

1. Focus on creating strong loops from scratch: Use your own sound mixing software on your own sound system. (Note: Musical key detection using the mixer isn't a gimmick. It drastically improves sound quality and signal quality and really will solve problems.) These things are bulletproof, and they can stand on their own two feet. They only use one or two tracks, so you can run them through your sound systems easily.

2. Dedicated mixing routines- This is fussy work, but if you're prepared to do it, it'll work well. Separate the outputs from your treble mix materials and your woofers. Synchronize your outputs through the mixer, and the loops will be fine.

3. Check your inputs systematically: If you've got sound bugs, one or more of the inputs is the problem. Go through each one, starting with the woofers, and adjust. Use your controls to get the signals properly mixed, setting up a trustworthy balance.

4. Rehearse your mixes: Never mind "All right on the night", you need to sizzle, sparkle and shine, and dud loops caused by mixing won't do that. Find the patches that are causing the problems before they find you explaining things to pubs or other gigs.

3 Reasons You Should Invest in Help Desk Training For Your Staff

The Help Desk is the default first option call for internal and sometimes external clients. The Help Desk is the most visible, and often the busiest, area of IT frontline support. It performs a critical ongoing service across any organization. Help Desk functions are so important operationally that they're built into major ITSM (IT Service Management) methodologies like ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) as structures for IT management.


Photo: Walker Library @ MTSU

IT Help Desk fundamentals
It's rarely appreciated by people outside IT exactly how much balancing of priorities and resources is involved in Help Desk functions. The IT Help Desk is usually viewed as a one stop shop for all problems. Issues can range from "My computer isn't working" to "We've lost all our accounts data!" in a few minutes or seconds.

This menagerie of situations, which is usually continuous, requires very efficient management. It also requires high quality training to instill the necessary knowledge and understanding of issues involved in Help Desk work.

Time and space are big issues for Help Desks, requiring real time solutions and good organization of functions.

Priorities can change rapidly, for example:

• "My computer isn't working" is a local issue, easy to fix even in a worst case scenario.

• "We've lost all our accounts data!" is a high priority, critical organizational issue requiring an immediate response and quite possibly extensive, time consuming IT support work at the expense of lower priority jobs.

The ability to understand and manage IT support issues effectively has to be learned. Help Desk staff must be trained to a very high standard to deal with this shifting set of issues and manage their time and work productively and efficiently.

Return on Investment in Help Desk training
Training defines the core capabilities of any organization in any role. IT training, particularly for Help Desk roles, is absolutely vital to ensure organizational efficiency. The better trained the Help Desk staff, the better and more efficiently IT services will operate.


Photo: jisc_infonet

For organizations, the returns on investment for Help Desk training can be truly excellent. An efficient Help Desk doesn't just respond well to issues. It can also anticipate them, and cover multiple areas of IT support including upgrades and similar functions which prevent problems. A well-trained Help Desk can also manage hardware issues, change and growth seamlessly.

Levels of training required to achieve this level of efficiency requires formal industry training and high quality benchmark qualifications like ITIL Certification. International standard ITSM certifications are rapidly becoming extremely important as the global economy and New Economy business modes impose increasing diversity and demands across the spectrum of IT functions.

Training for the future
Help Desk training is very much an investment in the future. Help Desks need to be able to deal with regular change and manage new systems and their business applications efficiently. The ITIL training, for example, provides a full suite of skills covering the entire gamut of IT operations, with an integrated approach which enhances overall IT management. This training is a long-term benefit, designed to provide much higher value operational capacity for any organization.

Education Needs Learning Outside The Classroom

The learning time in a classroom is limited. Operational constraints can reduce the core teaching time to around 30 per cent of the lesson length, but outside the class children see the practical reference point to their learning that increases the absorption rate. A biology game played in the open can reveal the difference in the size, shape and seed dispersal techniques of trees.


Photo: One Laptop per Child

Arguably so can a text book, the difference is the tactile nature of outdoors learning combing the feel, touch, smell and relative size of the subject and its association with its surroundings. Peter Carne, a former geography teacher with a passion for hands-on practical experience and a champion of “learning outside the classroom” says “Education in more than the acquisition of knowledge. Learning outside is a vehicle to develop the capacity to learn”.

There are some limitations. Planning a trip for 30 excitable children takes some organization which can sometimes limit the effectiveness. This is where parents can give great support or even take the lead role. Letting 30 children en masse see the inside of a synagogue, mosque or chapel needs tenacity and diplomacy. A parent and child combination introduces greater flexibility. The educational bond developed can turn the process of exploration into an educational game that supports progress back in class.

History, science, biology and geography are obvious choices for practical learning through parks, museums and theme parks. But maths? I recall a class trip to Wandsworth library in London when I was 9. Learning about the reference system and book indexing before ISBN coding still holds memories. But the highlight of the trip was on the way back. A quick detour to the engineering company next to the school had us enthralled. Our teacher commenced to yank out strands of our hair to play a maths game. The slight tear reaction – a little biology, psychology and more than likely now socially illegal the process produced the samples he was after. Using a micrometer the engineering manager measured the thickness of each strand in thousands of an inch – pre metric days. We queued delightedly to suffer the anguish of the hair tug and record the result. Back in class, the realisation that black hair was on average thicker than blonde. An educational game with a lasting memory, it happened 50 years ago.

Turning a trip out with mum and dad into an educational game is both great fun and mutually rewarding. The practical investigation and the relative knowledge gained help significantly back in class. The fact that the experience was gained outside the classroom provides a strong memory tag association when it comes to exams. What better way to appreciate the scope to the planetary system than look at the physical size of the Jodrell Bank telescope needed to study its detail? Marvel at engineering feats such the Thames barrier and question what could happen if it wasn't there, or see history in operation at the Beamish working museum. Whilst teachers need further encouragement, and time, to take the lead role wherever they can, the time spent in school only amounts to 195 days per year. The remaining 170 days, or using a little maths game; 47 percent of the total year are weekends and school holidays. Parents take note.

About the Author
The learning time in a classroom is limited. Operational constraints can reduce the core teaching time to around 30 per cent of the lesson length, but outside the class children see the practical reference point to their learning

How To Teach A Child To Read?

When it comes to teaching children how to read, not all parents will be heads on with the job. Some parents may feel that they are not capable enough to imbibe reading skills in their children as they have never taught anyone before. However, in order to teach kids to read, all a person needs is the ability to read himself. If that is in place, the next step is to follow some effective strategies on how to teach a child to read. Given below are some of the most useful tips on how to make a child improve his reading comprehension.


Photo: billfrymire.com

Tips on How To Teach A Child To Read

Is the Child Ready to Read?
Before moving on to learn how to teach a child to read and write, the most important thing to consider is whether your child is ready for it? Usually, by the time children attain the age of two, they are ready to read. But this is not a hard and fast rule as every child is different. Some children are known to have started developing an inclination towards reading as late as four or five years. A good way to know whether your child is ready for learning to read is to observe him. Do you find him flipping through the pages of a book? Or does he feel enthusiastic when you teach him letters. If answer to both these questions are in the affirmative, you may proceed further to teach him how to read.



Read Aloud to Him
One of the most effective tips on how to teach a child to read better is to read to him yourself. Sit with your child and take a story book or any other children's book. Read the words aloud and keep your finger on the words as you read them. The child will see the printed words and will try to associate them with their sounds. Also, seeing you read will arouse his interest in the activity himself and inculcate the reading habit in him.

Familiarize him with Letter Sounds
When children are learning the language, in order to form words, they join the letter sounds. So, an effective teaching strategy to teach a child how to read is to emphasize on the letter sounds more rather than on the letter names. For example, if you see a dog, point out him to the child saying, "d d d d dog" or "t t t t tree" and likewise for all letters. Another thing to keep in mind while teaching him letter sounds is to teach him one letter per day. Children take their own sweet time to learn new things so do not confuse your child by teaching him two-three letters in a single day.

Combine Reading and Writing
Researches have shown that if the children are taught reading and writing side by side, it makes it easier for them to read. When the children combine seeing, writing and reading, the letters and words get etched in their memory. So, along with reading, teach your child how to write as well.

Make it Fun and Creative
Teaching kids to read should be fun so that they do not feel any kind of stress while doing that. A good way to do this is to teach a child to read with children's books. These books come with stories which concentrate on a single letter sound. There are lots of pictures of the words used in these story books. Read out these story books to your children and emphasize on the letter sounds. The pictures and the format of the stories go a long way in helping children read. Some other creative ways to make reading fun are to sing the letters and words to children and to make flashcards with letters written boldly on them and then combining these to ask children to guess the word.

Other Strategies
Initially, when you set out teaching letters to your child, concentrate on the lower case letters, for the simple reason that capital letters form only a small percentage of letters used in writing English. So, for developing a child's reading skills, lower case letters are the key. Secondly, do not lay much importance to grammar in the initial phases. Give the child time to know the letters and the words. Do not interrupt his flow by correcting his grammar every now and then. Lastly, if you search the Internet you will find a list of "Dolch words". These four hundred words are more than enough to make a child learn how to read. So, initially teach the Dolch words to your child and then move on to the others.

These are some useful tips on how to teach a child to read. When it comes to teaching children to do anything, the key lies in practice. The same holds true for reading as well. So, another of the effective teaching strategies is to initially practice the letter sounds with him and then move onto the sight words. Practice reading various kinds of children's books with him. Be patient and give him time to learn and absorb every new letter or word. With constant practice and time, he will eventually learn how to read fluently.

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About the Author
When it comes to teaching children how to read, not all parents will be heads on with the job. Some parents may feel that they are not capable enough to imbibe reading skills in their children as they have never taught anyone before. However, in order to teach kids to read

Homeschooling Tutors Give Traditional Students Much More Than Homework Help

An educator who provides tutoring for both homeschooling students and traditional students is of great benefit to parents and their children. When working with an educator or “tutor” who has experience in tutoring homeschooling students, a parent knows that his or her child will receive not just homework help but also a review or re-teaching of the class material when necessary.


Photo: peopleslawschoolaustin.com

In the past, here in the U.S., and even presently in certain countries like England, the concept of tutoring has been slightly different than what we may be used to. Classes are often instructed by tutors, who have expertise in that particular subject area. In the past in the U.S., students of all ages often received one-on-one classes with a teacher or a tutor. The concept of homeschooling today is similar to this.

However, more and more, parents whose children are attending traditional schools are realizing that for at least some classes, their children require additional help that a teacher may not be able to provide, often because their time must be divided amongst all of their students.

Even if a teacher only has thirty or forty students in a given year, it is still difficult to provide additional help and tutoring for each student who requires it. Unfortunately, students can find themselves struggling to “get through” a subject while still not fully comprehending the material, only to find that aspects of that material appear in later courses. As a result, the problems accumulate until the student is lost, not because he or she is incapable of grasping the new concepts but simply because he has not mastered the previous ones.

Math, for example, is a cumulative subject. A student cannot just aspire to “get through,” a math class, because the concepts he learns in Basic Math, Pre-algebra and Algebra will definitely follow him into Algebra II, Precalculus, Calculus, and even on the SAT, ACT, and college entrance exams. And if a student has not mastered many grammar rules over the years, he or she will often find themselves struggling when writing an English essay or history paper.

If a student is struggling in a certain subject area, parents should not rely on a tutor who may have some experience in that area to help their child. The tutor may be able to provide a little homework help occasionally but will most likely also only help to cover the symptoms of the problem rather than help the child identify concepts from previous subjects that they may have missed.

A tutor who specializes in tutoring homeschooling students will have the expertise in that subject to teach the child the subject material, and if the tutor is excellent, he or she will also re-teach and review material from past school years whenever necessary.

As a result of this type of tutoring, the student begins improving in his or her current class, and the confidence that he or she may have lacked in that subject area over the years will most certainly increase. The student finds that he is not just working with a tutor to “get through,” but he begins realizing that he truly has the ability to excel in this subject.

Good homeschooling tutors realize that their job in working with parents is not to just provide homework help during their sessions. It is to both help the student understand the material fully and teach as necessary during the session while also providing homework help.

Parents whose children attend traditional schools quickly realize the benefits they receive from a tutor who will provide the same high-level of tutoring that homeschooling students receive.

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About the Author
An educator who provides tutoring for both homeschooling students and traditional students is of great benefit to parents and their children. When working with an educator or “tutor” who has experience in tutoring homeschooling students

Shopping for books around the world- Some good news for collectors

If you're a book lover, a collector or an author looking for references which seem to only stay on the shelves for a few seconds in recent times, the global book market is your chance to avoid the frustration. Even if you're looking for special book printing editions or large print books, the world's booksellers can help.


Photo: uitdragerij

Global shopping basics

The best way of finding a book is to start by searching online. Strangely, even Amazon can help with your search, because they'll tell you whether the book is easy to find, and a rough price range. Amazon itself has a few drawbacks for collectors, because they're basically an aggregator of sales, and tracking back to a seller can be an ordeal, often not worth it. Information tends to be lacking, and unless the seller is a professional bookseller, you probably won't find out much about the edition, the condition of the book, or even which printing it is. Making inquiries can be a time consuming or frustrating experience.



The best online booksellers also have brilliant search engines and good databases. If it's ever been printed, someone will know how to find it. You can also find specialist booksellers, which is particularly useful for those looking for technical, military, and historical materials.

Specialist booksellers

This is where the global expert booksellers get involved. The big US site Abbey Books is a good example as a general hunting ground, and the sellers are all reliable dealers. If you get in contact with them, they'll answer promptly. They'll also provide all the information you could possibly need. They speak the language of the collector, understand the enthusiasm of the book lover, and can follow the logic of the author.

Far more importantly, many of the global booksellers are specialists. They know how to find the books you want, particularly the out of print classics the big publishers are so ready to take off their lists. The huge advantage of online book hunting is that you can track down people who are genuine experts, with instant access to inventories Amazon and retailers simply don't have.

These are the people you need on your side when hunting for your books. Some of them are truly excellent, and will check information for you and also check the condition of any books they find. They're so good that even their newsletters are worth reading.

Special editions

If you're looking for special editions, it's a good idea to have a few booksellers keeping an eye on what's available. The special editions tend to disappear when collectors find them, and you've got your work cut out for you if you don't get some help. The booksellers are also a good set of indicators of degrees of difficulty in finding a particular book.

If you've got three booksellers saying they can't find something, you'll need a Plan B to get it. Booksellers will suggest any options they can think of, if they can't help. Whatever you're looking for, start with the experts.

Top Ten Homeschooling Programs

Looking for the most appropriate homeschool programs for your child? Choosing the best homeschooling program for your child is important for the reason that it will greatly influence the foundation of academic, emotional, spiritual and practical skills growth of a child. Therefore, it is advisable for parent to choose only the best and most appropriate homeschooling program or curriculum for their child.


Photo: milfordmontessori.com

Types of Homeschooling Programs:
Deciding on a home school program is dependent on the core values that you want to teach your child. You may also include spiritual belief or choose non religious programs in your child homeschool curriculum. Such programs consist of Christian or secular homeschool programs.
Besides the spiritual aspect of education, the learning levels of your child is also important. Preschoolers’ homeschool programs evolve around discovery and basic learning skills and ABCs.

As for middle schools and high school kids, homeschool program focuses on academics, spiritual, physical education and more. The methods are different in each levels of homeschooling education. What to look for in a good homeschool program Parents should be wise in choosing the best homeschool program for their child.

There are various things to consider on deciding for the best program.
First is the homeschool program’s quality. Assess if the curriculum they use is world class, cutting edge and uses state of the art education resources.

Second, is the availability of the homeschool curriculum. Is it available 24/7?
Third, check if the curriculum that they’re offering is State accredited. Are they giving out diploma to graduating students?

Fourth, consider your child’s learning styles and your homeschool core values, philosophy and methodologies as well.

Finally, be certain that the lessons in the program can also be utilized for self teaching. This will permit the child to practice dependency. Choose a program that is innovative to make to encourage learning retention.

According to several credited homeschool websites, the following are the best in the field.

1. Saxon – part of Harcourt Archieve. Saxon’s Homeschool curriculum edge is on the basic subjects such as Math, phonics and early learning. 2. Center for Living – they provide homeschooling materials to public, private and parochial schools. 3. Curriculum Associates- their material is centered to Reading, language and mathematics. They also offer test preparation , study skills and assessment exams. 4. Bridgeway Academy – provides extensive homeschool programs from kindergarten to high school. They also have biblical world – view curriculum. 5. iQ Academy – award winning, tuition free curriculum for grades 6-12, innovative education approach. 6. ACE Lighthouse Christian Academy- self instructional, educational assistance and accredited diploma 7. Citizens’s High School- accredited high school completion program. 8. Global Student Network – cost effective comprehensive online curriculum. 9. Keywtone National High School – accredited, national private school for middle and HS students who want a flexible and customized education. 10. K12 – easy to use, comprehensive and customizable.

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About the Author
Looking for the most appropriate homeschool programs for your child? Choosing the best homeschooling program for your child is important for the reason that it will greatly influence the foundation of academic, emotional, spiritual

Home Schooling ABC 's Classes

For those of you who do not know what home schooling classes are they teach you the parent how to home school your child or children. Home schooling can be beneficial to both the parents and the children who are home schooled.


Photo: mia3mom

Home schooling ABC's classes teaches the parent how to teach their children. This is done threw a twenty-six week set of step by step classes. The classes cover everything a parent could possibly encounter being a parent/ teacher of a home school student.

The home schooling ABC's Classes also teach the parents how to spot a trouble area or even learning disabilities. This way the parents can adjust their teaching methods to better, help the child to learn the subjects being, taught.

The home schooling classes explain how to keep the learning and lesson plans interesting and even how to take and enjoy field trips together with the home schooled student. This is a great bonus to have when home schooling a child.

Eleven bonuses are, included in the home schooling ABC's classes and these are wonderful teaching aids for parents. However, the best benefit of the home schooling classes is the low price. Just $10.00 per month is all it costs for all of the valuable information you will gain from these classes.

There is enough information in these classes to get a home schooling parent threw the first two years of home schooling and after that you will be a pro at home schooling your child or children.

These classes teach you how to teach one student or your entire family all at one time plus much, much more valuable information is included into these amazing classes. Everything a parent could possibly need to know is gone over and discussed in these classes.

One of the reasons why these classes are so, great is because the classes were, developed by a family who has been home schooling their own children for the past several years. This family has seen and been threw it all and they pass their knowledge onto you as a new home schooling parent. The Johnson's help many different families' with home schooling issues daily and they can help you as well.

With these classes, you will learn how to identify problems in learning and difficult areas of learning. The classes also teach you what to do in this kind of situation. The classes teach you how to make home schooling fun and exciting for both you and the students. All of this amazing information is included into the classes. All your to use to home school your children.

If you wish to know, more or you are considering home schooling your child or children then you can simply click on the link provided here in this article to learn more. Start home schooling your child today and take advantage of the many benefits of home schooling.

About the Author
If you are interested in a revolutionary new way for stay-at-home moms to make money on the internet... Without getting involved in scams..this is the most important message you'll ever read. Find out why.

Coping with a brilliant child

If you've got a brilliant kid, you'll already be well aware of what a fantastic, magical experience it is. Some kids have been known to take apart and put back together cell phones- At age two. Some are very quiet, and will play peacefully until you notice they've created something dazzling. Getting your mind blown on an hourly basis is the usual result. Even toys can become a sort of "bassinet university".


Photo: drewnew

The brilliant kids need Mom and Dad as sounding boards, as much as parents. These kids are very highly focused, and they're limited by what they can access, as kids. You need to show them how to explore their areas of interest. You also need to make sure they can develop their skills naturally, without them getting derailed by too many external factors.

The fact is that talent and intelligence grow better on their own terms. Without the slightest need to push, a child can become an expert on any subject where their intellects are really engaged. You'll find you learn a lot. Talented people, of any age, are excellent teachers, and if you didn't know something about how to build a super computer or raise a giraffe, you'll find your six year old can explain it very clearly.

The needs of a brilliant child

What a really brilliant kid needs is information, and to be able to check their thinking properly. This is important, for skills development.

As a parent, you can contribute a lot, and you'll have a ball doing it:

Ask questions: Not "parent" questions, but adult questions. The child will react to any good question very well. Don't be too surprised if you get a better answer than you'd have given yourself.

For example, about a really great picture:

Don't ask: "Did you pick the colors yourself?", which is insulting, and proves you've missed the whole point of the picture. Ask an adult question instead "How did you decide which colors/what materials to use?"

The idea is that the kid examines their own thinking. You'll get a good answer, too, and you can expect some interesting ideas.


Photo: pedrosimoes7

When you know a brilliant kid is interested in something: Give them exposure to new things in that area, things they haven't seen before. This stimulates further development, saves time for the kid in finding these things for themselves, and allows them to make the associations between simple and advanced things in their areas of interest early. Check out online toys in that field, too, some are excellent.

Access to information: The truly brilliant kids pick things up with incredible speed. If you help them to learn to read and how to get information, and make sure they have the basics, they'll do the rest to a very large extent.

The shy brilliant kid: This type of child isn't some sort of sociopath. They're wary, probably with good reason, of the "kiddies" environment. It's too dumb for them. They can't really associate with these people on any meaningful level, and wouldn't, if they had a choice. Leaving them stuck in "dumb land" is what makes them antisocial later, and who could blame them?

Have fun, and enjoy every second.

How To Simplify Your Homeschool Curriculum

When you begin to homeschool, you are keen to go to curriculum fairs and search out the perfect homeschool curriculum for your family. When you have been homeschooling for a few years, you may discover that your first choices did not work out that well, and you are on the hunt again. Five or so years later, you may be bored and keen to re-think the homeschool curriculum and cater for your highschool students. Ten years later, you throw out so much of what you have bought and never used and keenly look to simplify your homeschool curriculum.


Photo: localwin.com

I am not sure if you subscribe to numerous homeschooling e-newsletters or ezines (perhaps you subscribe to mine!). I subscribe to a few to find out what homeschool curriculum is around and the see what other homeschoolers may be using. At times, I like to read reviews. However, as my email box is continually bombarded with new homeschool products and resources, I wonder if all the new products have helped our desire or vision for homeschooling. Are we more focussed on the task of homeschooling now with the
plethora of curriculum that is put before us or did those early veteran homeschoolers with limited resources capture the essence of homeschooling in a better way? Have we lost the vision?
Am I against homeschool curriculum? Absolutely not! I am very thankful to numerous publishers who have put time and thought into a product and are selling it to the homeschool market. Thankyou! It has made my task so much easier! However, I am concerned that some publishers are just viewing homeschooling as another market and we are steered into thinking that each child needs to have a textbook for each subject each year! Four children, eight subjects each year means literally 128 textbooks for every year of homeschooling. Most of these will be pricey and consumable.

"What are you doing for Language Arts?"
"DS has a Year 3 book for Spelling, Year 4 for grammar, Year 3 book for Literature Studies, Year 3 text for writing and Year 4 Book for Reading Comprehension. Yes, I am so glad that we can cater for his individual abilities!"

Is this the only way? Are you ready to simplify your homeschool curriculum and not fall into the marketing traps? How can that be done?

If you have spent any time on my website, you would know that I always refer to your educational and family goals. That is the first thing that you need to do now if you want to simplify your homeschool curriculum.
Decide on the big picture goals
Why are you homeschooling? For what purpose and to what end are you preparing and educating your children?
Let these answers drive the curriculum you choose to implement in your homeschool.
Decide why you want to teach a certain subject

Here you should pose questions to yourself which will help you formulate why you want to teach a certain subject.

This step can be quite simple. The most obvious answer as to why we want to teach reading, is, so that our children will read widely and understand what they read. True? How do we do that? Firstly, we set up an atmosphere that encourages reading. We read widely to them; We give them the tools so that they can read for themselves (phonics instruction when ready); We offer a range of quality reading resources - both fiction and non-fiction living books. We include reading in all subject areas and do not treat it as a separate subject, but instead, a skill to be developed in each subject.

The most obvious answer as to why we want to teach writing, is, so that our children can write appropriately for different audiences and in different situations. This includes writing notes, letters, essays, descriptive writing, fiction, non-fiction, responses, critical essays, essays of persuasion and more

So, how would we do that? Does it mean we need a consumable textbook for each grade level? Probably not! If we want to teach our children to write, they need to write! - all types of forms of writing, across the curriculum. Begin by teaching them correct letter formation, writing words, copying sentences, narrations, copying their own oral narrations, essay writing. I would encourage you to get a book which explains different writing forms. I like the Write Source books and have chosen a few age-appropriate teaching texts. These are non-consumable and are written directly to the child.

If you would like to work on writing skills, you could choose an excerpt of literature, discuss the grammar, spelling, sentence structure, word usage and use it as a basis for copywork, and modeling.

Spelling can flow directly from their own writing and an individual spelling list can be created from their incorrect spelling. Spelling in context is far more effective. However, if you would like a Spelling Program, choose one which spans across the ages and years.

If your goal for history teaching is that they memorize dates, you would look for a program that just focusses on memorization of facts, but if your goal is that they gain an understanding of the time period and understand it in the context of a Biblical Worldview, you would look for a curriculum that helps you to do that.

The answer you give for each subject area, will help you choose appropriate homeschool curriculum which has the same purpose in mind.

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About the Author
When you begin to homeschool, you are keen to go to curriculum fairs and search out the perfect homeschool curriculum for your family. When you have been homeschooling for a few years, you may discover that your first choices did not work out that well, and you are on the hunt again.

How Your Child Can Benefit From Reading?

We all know how reading can benefit us both in our personal and business lives. When we read, we learn many things and we even have the opportunity to improve our communication skills although we may not be aware of it. We are exposed to the right usage of language and correct structure of sentences when we read that's why our communication skills are improved. Those who read for pleasure are benefiting from it though they may not be aware of it. For children, though, reading can be a very powerful tool. By having the entire family join a book club, the children can become interested in reading or in books. Kids can benefit from reading in three different ways.


Photo: John-Morgan

Firstly, those who grew up reading books have a higher chance of excelling in their studies and finding great jobs. But we're not talking about occasional readers or comic book readers who are mostly dealing with incorrect or informal usage of a language. We are referring to those who have the opportunity to develop a love for reading so that they actually pick a worthy book themselves and just start flipping the pages without an adult or elder telling them. We are talking about those whou would love to join book clubs or perhaps collect books by themselves. When children are able to develop this kind of habit, they can eventually master written word and eventually sharpen their intellectual abilities as well. There are of course other means to do this but reading is by far the most favored one.

The second is that those children who love reading can learn so many things from the books they choose to read. The subjects aren't limited. These books can include subject matters like those discussed in schools like biology, physics or chemistry. Even reading fiction has its benefits. Reading can open a child's mind to different possibilities about life. Although it would take an actual experience of things to be able to really learn from them, it cannot be denied that knowing about certain life situations ahead in fiction can make us think twice about possibly making such events happen in reality. When children read, they are exposed to different scenarios about life and somehow, when they have to go through such scenarios for real in their own lives, they will not completely new to the situation because somehow, he has gained insights from a good book that he has read.

Third, reading improves a child's writing ability. While it is easy to say that a speaker is a good one just by listening to his pronunciation and delivery, not all good speakers are good writers. There are good speakers but when it's time for them to write, they find it hard to construct good written sentences. But a person who is good in writing, is most probably, good in speaking as well. To improve a child's writing skills, it is important to expose him to the correct and formal usage of language through the published books that he reads. This way, the kid masters the language subconsciously which is, by the way, the best method for learning anything, whether not related to language.

Third, reading improves a child's writing ability. Although a speaker may be judged of how good he is by his diction and his delivery, always remember that good speakers sometimes may not be good writers. There are good speakers but when it's time for them to write, they find it hard to construct good written sentences. Those who are good in writing, however, are most of the time good in speaking. A child's writing skills can be improved by exposing him to correct and formal usage of language through reading published books. The child can eventually master the language subconsciously.

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About the Author
We all know how reading can benefit us both in our personal and business lives. When we read, we learn many things and we even have the opportunity to improve our communication skills although we may not be aware of it. We are exposed to the right usage of language and correct structure of sentences when we read that's why our communication skills are improved.

iPad iBooks: Making Reading Fun and Practical

Apple and software developers have been providing its users effective and helpful applications for their gadgets (iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad). One of the best applications or features Apple gadgets have is the eBook reader. This way, users are able to develop their literary knowledge and booklovers can boast their virtual bookshelf with the help of the iBook.


Photo: ohjasonj

The ipad ibooks application allows users to purchase any book available from the iBookstore. The app also allows users to create their own virtual bookshelf. The ipad ibooks works just like the iTunes only that it sorts out books. With the said app, readers can freely change the book's font for a better reading pleasure. Once you purchased a book from the iBookstore, it will automatically be added to your bookshelf. You can just pick a book that you would like to read from the list of the books shown in your bookshelf and customize the font and the lighting. With this kind of feature, you will be able to enhance your reading experience.

It takes a brilliant mind or a numerous number of brilliant minds to be able to come up with this idea. Though there is an earlier kind of application that works like this published by Amazon (the Kindle), Apple does not deny the fact that both applications are very helpful. However, due to Apple's advancements in technology, the iBook has a lot more to offer than just sorting out books and arranging them in a bookshelf. Some other features makes reading more fun and easy such as the dictionary feature wherein you just tap the word and highlight it and a search bar or a pop-out dictionary will appear containing a brief definition of the word.

The ipad ibooks has provided a revolutionary way of reading and storing books. It has been considered to be one of the best applications for the iPad that has been published. Its features are very impressive and amazing. However, since the application is just new in the market there are a lot of suggestions for improvements that have been raised by its users and experts that should be addressed by Apple and the software's developers. All in all, the application still deserves 5 stars for providing such wonderful features.

About the Author
Discover The Most Recommended Websites Online To Download Ipad Ibooks. Visit Ipad Ibooks At http://www.i-padibooks.com

Sustainability and design philosophy- reinventing the message

Designers are a strange breed. They're true believers in the power and values of their medium. They're also pack mules for often bitsy, pedantic work which involves attention to detail and structure on a scale few other people could approach. When another concept bumps into the design philosophy, it has an uphill battle proving its credentials to people who can literally take apart ideas as they read them. Sustainability, a blanket term for a process, has been picked up by designers very quickly. They appreciate the holistic approach in sustainability as much as they appreciate good injection moulding techniques.



Sustainability is in fact a design process by nature. The concept starts where good design starts, and source, and follows through to a clearly defined end product. That's textbook design best practice, and it's making a lot of sense to designers looking at product cost factors, life cycles, and the other parts of design few people even know exist.



For a while, it seemed as if sustainability's status as a buzzword was a major turnoff to professional designers. Buzzwords mean precisely nothing to designers, particularly when they come out of the mouths of politicians, lobbyists, and spin doctors. Fortunately, the practical values of sustainability struck a real chord with the top professionals.

The instant attractions were found in the designer's version of the supply chain, the extremely demanding product costing and design cycle number crunching which makes the difference between a competitive design and a nice try. Sustainability, and the ability to show a design product with far lower overheads and savings in production processes has turned out to be a real winning combination exactly where designers need winning combinations.

The link is in materials and materials quality. Designers don't like shoddy materials, and they don't want their names on the Easy Break – Kiddies Death Trap toys or the Certain Death Toaster. They naturally prefer to source materials where they can see clear quality values, because they know what happens if they don't. Sustainable materials produce a list of specifications which is now a benchmark for design standards.

If you want design value information down to the molecule, the sustainable materials have them. Even more usefully, the sustainable concept brings with it real critics who know what they're talking about and set meaningful standards on sustainable practices. Designers, who understand the materials process better than almost anyone else, have found a sort of soul mate in sustainability's primal demand for realistic performance.

Reinventing the message

Sustainability can help designers explain basic design principles to the world. Designers have been trying for years to establish the basic principles of design efficiency and quality in a world dominated by delusive point of transaction "savings" using dismal materials.

The message misses the cash register, unless you can show strong values from the production points. Sustainable product cycles can demonstrate all these values literally from the trees and reclaimed/recycled materials, right through production, sales, and recycling. Sustainability provides a spreadsheet as much as a philosophy.

Sustainability fits design philosophy and practice like good plastic moulding. The clients who understand sustainability in practice will understand design philosophy.



How To Teach Your Children To Read

You can start teaching your child the building blocks for reading before they ever step foot in a classroom. Once your child enters school, you can work with your child and their teachers to help aid the learning process. Teaching your child to read will involve dedication and patience.


Photo: John-Morgan

Make reading an important part of your child’s life before they can even speak. Read to your child as they develop in the womb and when they are babies. When your child is ready, start to read out loud to them while they follow along by looking at the pictures. You can then start to point out words in the book to your child while you read their favorite stories.


Read your children books with rhymes as well. The rhymes are easy for your child to remember and as they grow older they can learn to recognize some of the words in their favorite rhymes.

Start to introduce your baby to the alphabet from a young age. When your baby is just a couple months old you can start singing the ABC’s song to them. Between twelve to eighteen months, your little one will start to sing parts of the song on their own. A few months after that, you can start showing them the letters of the alphabet on a chart as you sing through the tune.

Start to demonstrate the sounds made by each letter of the alphabet when your child reaches preschool age. Take your time teaching them all the sounds that the letters of the alphabet will make. After your child starts to comprehend the various sounds made my letters of the alphabet, you can start teaching some basic words. Take each letter of the alphabet and teach your child common words that start with that letter. Write out the words for your child to see. Search for these words in your child’s books to show them how the word is written. In time, your child will begin to recognize basic words. (Some examples of words you might want to start out with include: apple, bat, cat, dog and hat).

Teaching your child to write will also help to aid in the learning process for reading. Teach your child to write the letters of the alphabet first. You can buy practice books that start out by having children trace each letter before they try to write letters on their own. When your child has mastered the alphabet, they can begin learning to trace and write simple words such as: dog, cat, bat, ball and top.

When your child is ready to start trying to read a few words on their own, buy some basic books. The books should contain words that follow the basic rules of phonics. Words that deter from the average phonics rules will be difficult for your child to recognize at first until they learn to spot and identify these words.

As your child starts to work on reading and writing in school, be actively involved in the process. Help your child with their homework. If your child is struggling, talk to their teacher to learn further ways to help your child learn to read. Spend time reading with your children each night.

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About the Author
You can start teaching your child the building blocks for reading before they ever step foot in a classroom. Once your child enters school, you can work with your child and their teachers to help aid the learning process. Teaching your child to read will involve dedication and patience.

Benefits of Early Math Education

The benefits of early math education is a neglected topic. There are many initiatives in place to foster language and reading, while math has been overlooked. Part of the problem is that many of the people who go into the early education field are not fond of math themselves. The benefits of early math education are far reaching though and cannot be ignored.


Photo: Old Shoe Woman

Indicator of Future Success
Studies by the Society of Research in Child Development report that a child’s knowledge of number concepts when they enter school is a good indicator of future success. This information should encourage all parents and educators to introduce math at early ages.


Naturally Curious
Children are naturally curious. They are interested in just about everything, using this trait can allow for wide strides to be made in mastering number concepts at a very young age.

Build Confidence
Understanding numbers, shapes, colors, patterns and counting at a young age builds confidence. Knowing how to manage the items in their world creates a sense of ownership with their surroundings, as does learning the lingo. Being able to decipher the language of math and relate it to themselves is an important building block.

Capable
Children are capable of learning deeper math concepts than usually assumed. Given the opportunity to learn math skills at a young age builds necessary connections in their spatial awareness. Everything in math is both concrete and abstract, learning these concepts takes time to develop and mature. Early exposure allows the mind to process the skills needed to proceed.

Easily Incorporated
Luckily introducing math at a young age isn’t difficult. Chatting about putting one sock on each foot or asking them to hand each person at the table one napkin easily introduces the concept of one to one correspondence. Learning to count is one thing, learning how numbers relate to concrete items is another stage in their development.

Helps in Language Development
Activities to develop math skills, also promotes language and literacy skills. Increasing the vocabulary needed to process math helps children discuss their world. These skills are highly necessary when they start to read. Knowing numbers, shapes, “more than” and “less than” gives them a new way of telling and understanding stories.

Progressive
Math builds on a set of knowledge, each concept relating to skills the children already have. Progressively learning at an early age, can side step failures due to gaps in knowledge. Those gaps are what makes many children give up on math in later years.

Ideas to Introduce Math at an Early Age
Many of these activities need little to no preparation. Learning happens all day for a young child. Make the most of the in-between times, errands and daily chores. Incorporating math concepts is easy, but remember to keep the conversations light hearted and matter of fact. Forcing math is a good way to turn them off to learning.

Knowing Numbers
Count everyday things while you go about your day. Learning that numbers are symbols that stand for something concrete is a huge leap in knowledge. Counting becomes more than words to song.

Let them play with number magnets. Teach them the names while they are holding them up. Eventually ask them to show you a certain number. Writing numbers at a young age is more art than math, but it’s good for their fine motor skills. Squeeze in counting during their playtime; ask how many crayons they have or how many blocks are in their tower. With enough counting experience, children learn that five blocks are five blocks no matter how they are stacked. Play a game, like asking them to hop 4 times, or see if they can take 10 baby steps. This is fun and passes the time while waiting for an appointment.

Matching
Equal and not equal are important concepts in math. Have children help match socks, or coins. Play dominos, there are lots of preschool versions out that might be more fun than the traditional set.

Have them copy your facial expression
Make a block tower and have them copy it Play an easy game of concentration, use shapes and fewer cards to start

Classifying and Sorting
While matching concentrates on what is alike, sorting focuses on what is different. Have them sort their dolls according to size, or put their cars in groups according to color or type of vehicle.

Try sorting by their rules. Give them a pile of shells or buttons to sort and see what they come up with.

Play sorting games in the bathtub. See which toys float and which ones sink.
These skills are so basic to adults that it is easy to forget that we ever learned them. Developing these fundamental skills through play will help children progress much faster in both math and literacy.

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About the Author
The benefits of early math education is a neglected topic. There are many initiatives in place to foster language and reading, while math has been overlooked. Part of the problem is that many of the people who go into the early education field are not fond of math themselves.

Learning About Preschool

You have the option of putting your child in preschool or not, and the choice is thus up to you entirely in regards to whether you do or not, however if you are unsure whether you want to or not, then you should first learn more about the matter of preschool overall so that you can understand it and so that you will thus then be able to make a knowledgeable and assured decision.


Photo: cafemama

What is Preschool?
Preschool is basically a place which provides preschool education for very young children, and it is generally considered as being an included part of early childhood education; preschool in North America is generally provided in a variety of different settings, and it is also known by many as kindergarten.


In other words, it is a beginning group or class which is for children younger than 5 years old and which is organized in order to be able to provide educational experience under professionally qualified teachers in cooperation as well with parents during the school year or the years that immediately precede kindergarten before they enter elementary school.

Typically kindergarten settings such as this will focus primarily on that of the developing of early social skills, and this includes interpersonal interaction, which is an incredibly important skill for your child to learn at an early age, so that they do not become shy and so that they will hence be outgoing and socially adept as a person overall.

Although all of these programs are relatively the same for the most part, there are certain schools which have adopted specific and specialized methods of teaching, and so if you are interested in putting your child in preschool but would rather them in one of these schools, then you should know that you have that option.

It is a good idea to enroll your child in school as early as possible, however remember that it is not necessary, and so ultimately the decision is of course up to you. However, before you make any final decisions, you will want to make sure that you understand everything about the matter as a whole, and make yourself as knowledgeable on the topic as you possibly can.

You may also want to ask around and talk to your family and friends and see what they have done with their children, so that you can get firsthand opinions and then it will be easier to make your decision in the end of things.

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About the Author
You have the option of putting your child in preschool or not, and the choice is thus up to you entirely in regards to whether you do or not, however if you are unsure whether you want to or not, then you should first learn more about the matter of preschool overall so that you can understand it

Top 5 Pool Games For Kids

Teaching kids to swim is vital. Getting them comfortable in the water is the best way to turn them into fluent swimmers without them even noticing. For young kids, the best option is to turn it into a game. Crank up the pool cleaner, and start looking forward to some real fun in the pool.


Photo: mslaura

Water games safety basics
The safety factor, naturally, is the main issue for pool games. Depending on the age of the kid, physical maturity, and fitness, you can tailor pool games which are safe, confidence building and fun.

Factors to consider:
Age: Pool games are great for age 5 and up.
Physical maturity: Kids age differently. To play pool games they need to be able to stand in the shallow end with the upper body well out of the water.
Fitness: Energetic kids who can keep going all day are fine. Those who are less physically confident should be started on realistic levels of exercise in the pool.
Safety: Always make sure the games are well within the level of competence in the water of the child. It’s advisable not to mix kids with great differences in size and strength in the pool games. It’s not a fair contest.
Confidence: The “fear factor” in the water is good safety practice, because the kids who are wary of the water have very good survival instincts. They always play safe, and don’t take risks. As long as these kids are sure they’re OK, they’ll respond well and develop confidence in the water based on their own achievements.
Important:
1. Kids must always be under adult supervision in the pool.
2. Do not under any circumstances allow young kids to play in the pool without someone on site and ready to respond to an emergency.

Pool games

Balancing on an air mattress: This is incredible fun, and trying to stand on an air mattress is hilarious. Nobody wins, but they have a lot of fun losing. You’ll they forget about any difficulty swimming the minute they start having fun.
Note: The air mattress has to be in the middle shallow end of the pool, with no risk of anyone falling off and hitting the sides of the pool.
Races: For young kids, racing from one side to another at the shallow end is fun, safe and builds fitness rapidly. (Note: An adult should be standing between the kids and the deeper water for the races.)
Water polo: This game is for kids who are adequate swimmers, but need more stamina and agility in the water. You can make goals out of simple markers like floats in the water. Water polo can make excellent swimmers out of anyone, and you’ll find that kids will respond to the activity and join in the fun easily enough.
Note: No tackling! Ball chasing and passing only. The adult in charge should keep an eye on anyone looking tired.
Pool propaganda: To encourage some more unconscious water skills, after play, give the kids a treat with a heated pool to drift around in. Get your pool pump in shape, and prepare to put up with kids who refuse to come out of the water.

What Is Unschooling?

Unschooling goes by many different names such as "experience-based learning", "natural learning" and "independent learning". Ultimately unschooling is a form of homeschooling. Parents are responsible for their children and their children will not attend a traditional learning institution. However, with unschooling, children will not be taught through the use of textbooks, tests, workbooks or quizzes, but through their own life experiences.


Photo: califmom

In its most extreme form, unschooling is never making a child learn anything but what they choose to learn. For example, if a child chooses to spend his or her time reading fiction and watching television then this is how they will learn. Whatever they learn from these activities is all they are required to know with unschooling. If they never learn literature, mathematics or science it is said to be just fine. Children are supposed to pursue their interests and learn about those instead of being forced to learn specific subjects that they may not be interested in. Children are supposed to be allowed to express themselves and devote their learning time learning only what they desire to learn.



A major part of unschooling is allowing children to learn through doing real things. For example, learning to use a computer by simply doing it and not by reading a book or being taught to use it by a teacher. Supporters of unschooling feel that children who live in a supportive and trusting environment that are doing "real-life things" will be productive members of society with valuable knowledge and healthy mental development. Those who support unschooling feel that children naturally learn things such as how to read, write, count, perform basic mathematical functions (add, subtract, multiply and divide), think, discover the past (history) and think and wonder without the use of a school curriculum.

Those who support unschooling feel that not forcing a child to learn will make them more excited to learn. They feel that children who are not forced to follow a curriculum will learn faster then children following a strict learning curriculum. They feel that the lack of schedule in unschooling leads children to learn more because they have more desire to learn all throughout the day instead of just six to eight hours a day like they would in a traditional school.

Unschooling is built on the premise that children pursue knowledge by pursuing life. Adults need to trust in the inevitability that this natural process will provide their children with all the education that they need to be successful in life. However, this form of schooling does allow the leeway for parents to offer assistance when their children need it.

Those who support unschooling state that it is a legal form of education. It is said to be accepted by state departments of education. However, the children who are educated through unschooling will still need to take and make satisfactory marks on state required testing through all twelve years of school. It is unclear whether or not children who learn through unschooling ever receive a high school diploma or transcripts so this could make it difficult for those who wish to pursue a college education.

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About the Author
Unschooling goes by many different names such as "experience-based learning", "natural learning" and "independent learning". Ultimately unschooling is a form of homeschooling. Parents are responsible for their children and their children will not attend a traditional learning institution.

Play Tent Recommendations

A play tent can be a very fun and educational toy that will keep children busy for hours. Just like all toys, it is best to be sure you are buying the best tent for your child, and not simply the first thing you find. Most parents have gotten a toy or two for their children that they thought were fantastic, and it ended up sitting in the child's closet forever. Or the child loves it and it break in a week. Neither occurrence is very pleasant and both are overall wastes of money.


Photo: KRHamm

Here are some tips for you to consider when finding the perfect play tent:

• Child's interest
• Space available
• Where it will be used
• Tent quality
• Letting your child choose

Child's Interest
Your child may love the idea of a play tent, but may have a very specific style in mind. If you get a completely different style, your child may not even play with his tent at all. Or, if the gift is a surprise, try to find a tent with your child’s favorite theme or characters to ensure he will enjoy it. If your child loves cowboys, you can get a tent with a “on the range” theme. If he likes soldiers, you can get a tent with an army style. Playful and fancy designs for a little girl generally do well, or even princess castle style tents. Tunnel style tents are a great idea for very active children and can provide for all day fun.

Available Space
It's all well and good to have the perfect tent for your child, but where will it go? Will it be indoors in his or her room? The family area? When shopping for a tent, it may not look very big in the store, but remember they are pretty big toys. The best idea is to take measurements of the area you plan to have the play tent before you go shopping. You then can shop confidently and get a tent which is the proper size. This way your child can play with it whenever they like and you don’t have to set it up each and every time.

Where it will be used
Remember that most play tents can be used inside and outside, depending on their quality. If your child wants a tent which can be taken outside once in awhile, be sure to get a tent which is built for outdoors. Many state whether they are suitable for outdoor use or not. You will also probably want one which is water resistant, easy to clean, and easy to set up or move.

Consider quality
Buying an inexpensive play tent isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but be sure that lower cost does not mean lower quality. Inside tents which are well taken care of may have no problems even after a year of constant use. But a tent which is roughly played with, it is best to get one which is of higher quality and higher price if you don’t want to be buying a new one soon.

Let your child choose
One great option is to allow your child to have a choice in their play tent. Of course a child may not think about everything discussed in this article, and may need a bit of assistance to pick a really great tent. But getting your child involved in the process can really do wonders when it comes to finding the perfect tent for them. Obviously, a child wont choose what he doesn’t like, so you are free of the guessing game. For children who are a bit older, you may want to try and explain things like size and quality. If not, you can chose several great options and let him choose among them.

It is worth it to be wise when purchasing a play tent, making sure your child is happy with your choice is also very important.

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About the Author
A play tent can be a very fun and educational toy that will keep children busy for hours. Just like all toys, it is best to be sure you are buying the best tent for your child, and not simply the first thing you find.

Choosing the best website for kids - a parents manual

Kids are more tech savvy because of our changed lifestyle. Most of the growing kids are quite familiar with cyber entertainment and online games are one of the main attractions of these cyber entertainments. Although there are lots of interactive and quality kids' site, parents should help the kids by picking the best suitable website for kids for his/her baby to suit and complement his requirement form online games.

The best Kids' site must be extremely user friendly, daily updated and ideally loaded with lots of quality online games playing which is not only fun but it will add some amounts of learning advantages with acquiring excellent gaming skill. Kidzter.com is one of such good website for kids and excellently maintained with bright colors, symphonic sound, decoration of animated characters, and loads of fun games where fun and learn are meticulously packed with each other. The bright color and ambience of this website helps kids to enjoy their gaming moments as most of the games are musical games in Kidzter.


There are lots of websites online from where the child can select his online game. Some games can be played with free online games sites, but there is big question about the authenticity of these websites and usefulness of the material in the games. Some of the free games are reported to have violent material which may not be supportive of healthy mentality of growing kids. In these aspects it is always better to surf websites by parents for choosing a game site which will help positively the development of kids. The parent may not have adequate time for surfing net and selecting a kids’ site out of thousands of option, they can blindly rely on Kidzter.com.

The advantage of kidzter is its colorful ambience and attractive get up. Once a kid is allowed to log in the website, the attractive feature will inspire him to explore the site by his own initiative and he will surely browse the site with pleasure in his own initiative and effort. The musical themes of this websites are enough attractive and the icon characters like Sean seal, Crystal Canary, Floyed Fox, Bartholomew Little bear play as musical personality.

The children who have special nose for rock band music will get immense interest in Kidzter. While paying this fun learning band, a music savvy kid will be able to improvise his music sense as well as will be able to upgrade his performance skill.

Apart from music there are other games and fun packed activities which is enthralling exciting for any kid; at the same time the games have clearing aim and that is the over all improvement of a child in all positive ways of development. The exceptionality of Kidzter is alike children of family, parents can also participate in the game shows offered by this website and a membership will be perfect for complete fun package for your entire family.

Take today the membership in Kidzter and start enjoying endlessly with family.

Source: Free Articles Directory Submission

About the Author
Kidztar, is the best place where your kids can get complete entertainment with several Free Online Games and other Free Games.

Phonics and Early Home Schooling

Phonics is actually a traditional method of teaching literacy skills, in all cultures. After what can only be described as a disastrous experiment in alternative methods of teaching in recent times, phonics is now generally acknowledged as a far superior system for both conventional and remedial reading education, including treatment for dyslexia and learning disorders. In English teaching, the phonics method is essential, and every good English school uses it.


Photo: earth2marsh

Home schooling and phonics
Phonics is a very adaptable, extremely reliable system for home schooling. The basic principles of sounds and letters can be used in any situation, and in every other subject, as well as English. This is a "go anywhere" type of teaching, and can be extremely effective in ensuring proper usage. For home schooling, these abilities are an important developmental tool across the spectrum of education assisting in all other areas of learning.


For young children, the essential phonics process of association of letters, sound and context are invaluable. This is an absolutely foolproof type of teaching, because any errors or mistakes are instantly obvious and easily corrected. Phonics also helps explain context and grammatical structure more efficiently, because the sounds are physical cues for these processes. It's also a great aid to spelling skills, providing a strong basis for reading development.

Vowel usage in particular can easily taught with simple examples using phonics. This is critical in English, because the vowels are the most highly articulated parts of the words. Correct usage acts as a good confidence booster, providing both fluency and accurate rendition of words. That encourages the learning process, and removes shyness when complex polysyllabic words are introduced.

Reading and literacy
For reading purposes, phonics provides confidence in verbal usage which eliminates obstacles to reading and comprehension. Phonics develops a strong range of skills in these areas which are highly structured. Children soon learn how words are put together, and can see for themselves the core meanings pf words and how the words are used. This also helps build grammar skills and reinforces proper use of context.

Literacy is a form of extended logic, applied to comprehension of texts. Acquiring ease of usage is a primary developmental requirement for literacy for children. Physiologically, the child’s brain "hard wires" itself for language use, and the acquired abilities are used as part of the development of literacy skills. This is the key to future learning abilities.

(If you've ever been astonished by a young child’s vocabulary, comprehension and excellent use of language, that’s a good example of how effective phonics teaching can be. Children usually learn well and quickly with the right teaching methods.)

Happy learning
For young home schoolers, phonics can also be a lot of fun. All parents know how much they learn from their children, and learning the language is no exception. Each new word is an achievement, and a pleasure. Adult language skills also get a workout, and it’s highly debatable who enjoys it more. This extremely positive environment is an added incentive for learning, rewarding, exciting, and full of new ideas to explore.

Online Musical games for kids

It is said that music is breathe of life, and listening music is good for health, brain, and brings tranquility of mind. Hence music mixed games is not only entertaining these are soothing for mind and also for the hyper active kids. The advantage of musical games is it can be played with family and friends and musical games are considered as total entertainment.


Photo: timlewisnm

Parents can enjoy the game with the musical background; the music works as a natural stimulator for them. For the growing kids the musical games stimulates the kids’ creativity and develops their skill for combining different musical instruments etc.


The children who cannot play also enjoy musical games as the rhythm provides great entertainment and fun for them and managing their hyper activity becomes easier for their parents. It is good pastime for them too with the child and playing musical games helps in early development of kid’s motor skill development as well. Children are in general fond of music and that is why music games are their first preference.

Although musical games are meant for fun and enjoyment but there is enough scope of learning and improvisation. There are musical games which are meant for the toddler babies; toddlers cannot peak well nor can they play the games by themselves. In these kids games some rhythm and rhymes are packed which may delight them and helps moms to recover the babies from their cranky and irritable moods.

For the growing kids musical games can be learn and fun together. Some musical games provide scope for the players to mix and create new sound by mixing different instrumental sounds. This is a wonderful opportunity for a child to create his musical number. However, the playing these creative musical games are very easy and all the instructions are available with the game itself. However, it is always recommended that one should check these intricate games from reliable kids’ website only to avoid online hassles.


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The ideal games for kids should be real fun mixed with some constructive objects and a clear and descent aim for the game. While playing the game the kid should be able balancing learning and entertainment together. This initial fun will teach him enjoying fun and learning together and it will make him/her more compatible for future competition.

Kids’ websites for games are always updated at regular basis and almost all sites are spam free, especially those are with subscription sites. On the other hand websites containing free games are found most often contagious. Therefore it is always important that children should play on quality and spam free websites.

There are some direct and indirect advantages of playing online games for the kids. There are musical educational games available where the child can learn to draw, to color, matching for pictures, properly identifying picture and associated shapes, learning about effect and cause and great improvement of their game skill. The pre-school musical games helps the small kids to learn rhymes, learning ABC etc. learning for citing time, learning first hand knowledge about spellings etc.

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The best place for your Kidz, to get entertained with special attraction of the Rockabyes and several other free games options only at Kidztar.

Teaching and Learning Methods for Post Graduate Programs in UK Universities

Postgraduate courses in general are aimed for students willing to give their 110% to the study of their personal choice. Before opting to study abroad for your post graduation in UK MBA Universities, engineering universities in UK or even a PG in UK Biotechnology, be forewarned that abroad studying for post graduation is not for the fainthearted. Besides having to give their all and some more to the course, students will also have to deal with the extra stress of supporting themselves. This means, they will have to manage a part time job as well as the hectic schedule of their course.


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MBA in UK are a particularly intensive and challenging form of taught postgraduate course. Students are expected to work through a large amount of material, complete business projects and assignments and give regular presentations.


UK postgraduate programmes are intensive and students should be prepared for a busy workload. There will be classes to attend, a great deal of independent reading and/or experimental work to be done between classes, written assignments to be submitted on a regular basis and a substantial dissertation to write.

One of the most stimulating aspects of a taught programme of this kind is the opportunity to interact one-on-one with fellow students and the best professors and guides in the subject. You get the chance to share and compare ideas with other students on the course there by expanding your horizon and forging lifelong professional contacts for your future. There are abundant opportunities to work with other students in this way.

Programmes will usually have a number of compulsory courses and a pool of optional courses from which students can choose to suit their interests. Most Master’s degrees also provide training in research methodology and the opportunity to undertake a sustained piece of writing.


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As a general rule, students on Master’s or Diploma programmes will be required to undertake a great deal of work on their own initiative. The difference between undergraduate and most taught postgraduate study is that the academic staff focus more on providing the framework for students to pursue their own interests, although they will always be available to give assistance. Indeed, especially in smaller programmes, the relationship between the academic staff and the students can be quite close. The onus is completely on the student to undertake their post graduation to the highest level of achievement and gain as much knowledge in the process as they can.

A huge amount of time, money and effort is involved in pursuing any post graduate degree. It calls for complete dedication and hard work for many years and many small and big disappointments lie in the path. There are no guarantees that any new research you might take up in the process will always be successful. Thus be very sure of yourself and the support from your academics and family, even consult some study abroad consultants before making your final decision; for once it’s made, there’s no looking back!
For more information visit www.topukuniversities.com

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Top UK Universities give full assistance to students who plan to do their MBA in UK. We have gained the good will and reputation of being the best career advisors to students and guiding them to the best engineering universities in UK. Many students have benefitted out of our ideal services and even achieved UK scholarships. For more information visit www.topukuniversities.com

Homeschooling Program Basic That Work

Reading, writing and arithmetic form the core studies that compose the basic curriculum for school grades one through 12. This basic curriculum is the same whether public, private and home schooling. The major differences between the three types of schooling are that a public and private school setting is the delivering of education to children in a social setting and facilitated by professional instructor.


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Homeschooling courses are taught to a child, and usually, within the confines of the family's home under the teaching supervision of a parent. Obviously, it is the desire of parents to provide the best education available for their children. Coupled with this desire is to control the educational environment as much as possible. Those controls include the provision of a safe environment and an education that reflects the values and beliefs of the child's parents.


These are two reasons why so many parents today have chosen to enroll their children in a home school course program to meet the educational needs of their kid. There are four basic types of a home school course program that you can choose from. It includes home schooling through the Internet, computer software, videotape instruction and from textbooks.

That factor is based on choosing the program that best suits the learning style of your kid. Each of these type of a home school course is acceptable and should be selected by keeping one overriding factor in mind. For example, some kid are very visual in their learning process. Therefore, you may wish to consider the videotape instruction which is more appropriate.

If your child enjoys working at the computer then perhaps the best home school course program to enroll in is through the Internet. With home schooling becoming more popular, it is important to consult with the various levels of government that oversee the education of child. It is important that your home school course meets the educational guidelines as imposed by those governments.

Length Of Study In Home School

Because any home school course is facilitated by a parent or legal guardian of the child, the pace at which the children learn is completely up to the parent. However, there must be steady progress in the child's educational process. If you choose to access the classroom materials via the Internet, often the Internet provider will grant to a license of up to 365 days for completion of that particular program course or curriculum.

Testing In Home School

In addition, many of the governments require that children enrolled in a home school course be tested to assess the learning being gained by the child. Some of this testing is required to be done on a yearly basis while some states require that testing be done every other year, it depends.

Often, the test is administered by the parent teacher and can be submitted in accordance with the rules and regulations surrounding the home schooling. This will help you to evaluate the curriculum as well as the progress you and your child are making in hid study. Even if this is not a requirement in the area where you live, it is often a good idea to have your child tested on a yearly basis.

Child's Training Based From The Bible

How the education of the child should be left in the parents' hands. The principles and reasons for a Christian home-school is influenced by the child's training based from the Bible. As seen in all Christian homeschooling, parents teach the word of the Lord, to prepare their children for appropriate Christian wisdom, direction and values essential in their everyday life as well as when they reach adulthood.


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This aspect of teaching is not found in curriculum of the public schools. Christian homeschooling are distinct for each family. Some accurately design their home to look like a "school", complete with textbooks, desks, flag salute, and yes, recess. Others make homeschooling a way of life, choosing not so much in utilizing workbooks, required texts and schedules.


Here, both children and parents learn through life experiences; teaching, learning and studying is part of their everyday routine instead of a closely controlled classroom setting. Whatever is each family's homeschooling setup, their objective is all alike, that of giving their children important information while at the same time imparting in them.

How to become critical thinkers and independent individuals that are aware and conscious of the choices they make. Families that homeschooling adjust its setting to fit both their philosophies and lifestyle. There is no wrong or right way to shape and construct an environment for their home Christian school.

Christian families make the most of all the limitless resources accessible, using the Bible, literature, home economics, nature and every living thing as their principal basis of education, constantly integrating teachings from the Bible in each subject matter.


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Christian homeschooling allow the parents to impart God's Word to their child. It is an environment of spiritual and moral reinforcement through which kids are being trained seriously in the Word of God, mainly to act and think as Christians. Typically, the curriculum in a Christian homeschooling spends a meaningful and substantial time in the study of the Bible, wherein the focus is God's scripture.

Christians choose to home educate their children primarily because of their faith that God's plan is revealed through parents raising and educating their own children. In fact, Christians firmly acknowledge that it is the way of the Bible; there is no other educational system than this.

The Bible pages support by instruction, example and principle, a course that resembles closely home education. Christians actually accept that God did not even suggest schools to be attended by His people, that schools were a product of man.