Category Archives: Parenting

Private or Public School: What’s Best for Your Child?

04/18/2019 R.C. Liley Leave a comment

As a parent there are so many important decisions to make, but one of the most important you’ll ever make is which school to send your child to. There are three main options when it comes to schooling in America; public school, private school and home school. Here, we run through some of the positive aspects of each option in order to help you make the right decision for your child.

Public School

The main benefit of public school is, of course, the fact that you do not have to pay for your children to attend. Not only is the schooling itself provided free of charge, so is the transport to and from school plus public schools usually have additional services such as after school clubs which are free to attend too. Due to being government funded, public school staff have to meet strict criteria and can therefore be relied upon to teach to a good standard. Public schools will also have to meet various other criteria such as having suitable alterations made in order to accommodate various disabilities.

In public schools, your child will be exposed to a wide variety of people from different backgrounds and cultures, rather than in private school where the fees often dictate that only the more privileged echelons of society are able to attend. Your instinct as a parent may be to create a perfect world for your child however, by exposing them to the real world and real people you could contribute towards their development into a well-rounded, compassionate individual.

Private School

Unlike public school, for your child to attend a private school you must pay fees. Fees vary between different schools, but they do generally require a significant income from parents. If you need help raising the funds to send you child to private school, you could always take a look at getting a loan from GoBear.com. However, due to the funds you are paying, you will often find that private schools have better facilities. Class sizes are smaller than in public schools so the teaching can be more focused, and your child is more likely to get one on one attention from their teachers. It is not always the case but attitudes towards learning from their peers are often more positive in private schools, which helps when it comes to your child being able to focus on their education.

Because the students in private schools are taken from a smaller pool, the curriculum does not have to be so widely inclusive of lots of different needs as it would in a public school. Therefore, the curriculum is often more challenging in private schools than public schools. However, due to the smaller class sizes, if you’re child is struggling their needs can easily be met. Although their peers will be less diverse, it can be nice for them to be around like-minded people. Overall, private schools provide one of the safest and most supportive school environments for your child. Find options around you with a simple online search for ‘private elementary schools jacksonville fl‘ or wherever you may live to see what might suit you and your child best.

Home School

If you’re worried that your child is going to suffer as a result of socializing with other children, you could opt for home schooling until they are old enough to handle the challenge. This is also a good option if you’re worried that your child will miss out due to the lack of individual attention in public schools, but you cannot afford to send them to private school. Home schooling does require a lot of time and effort from you as a parent, but you could always hire private tutors to help you.

There are lots of benefits to each type of schooling; the one on one attention they would get from home schooling, the safe, top-quality environment of a private school and the diverse, standard driven environment of a public school. Hopefully with this information you will be able to make a more informed choice on where to send you child. For more help with parenting challenges, take a look at going-dad.com.

Going Healthy, Health, Life, Parenting

How to Help Your Aging Parents Stay Healthy

04/13/2019 R.C. Liley Leave a comment

healthy, parents, aging, wellness, mom, dad — Image Credit: Pexels

Keeping fit and healthy can become a challenge as you age. When getting out of the house takes a lot longer than it used to and you simply can’t carry as much shopping or spend as much time in the kitchen, making healthy choices gets harder.

However, there are things you can do to help your parents continue to live a healthy lifestyle without having to spend a lot of time each week. Indeed, with just a few tweaks to your own lifestyle, you can keep everyone happy and healthy for years to come.

Home Care and Help

As we age, we all slow down a bit and things like caring for the household can fall by the wayside. Hiring a cleaner is a good way to ensure that the house stays relatively clean and tidy but you might also consider how you can help too.

FreedomCare could be something for you and your family to consider. Instead of paying someone else to go into your parent’s home to offer care and support, this company will pay you. This means that your parents will still get the help they need and you won’t have to sacrifice your job or spare time to help them.

Homemade Ready Meals

Home cooking is always the healthiest option as it rarely involves lots of additives to extend shelf life and is likely to include a lot more veg! Batch cooking is always the best way to make healthy meals and 2 extra portions is hardly going to add to your stress. All you need to do is cook as you would and then freeze the extras to take over at the weekend. Simple.

When you are cooking, you should consider foods that keep the joints strong as well as ensuring a varied diet to get all the vitamins and minerals. Encourage your parents to add their own veggies to different meals so that they can stay involved in choosing what to eat. Labeling each tupperware with clear reheating instructions will also really help.

Get Active Together

Staying active can be tough for elderly people, especially if they have trouble with mobility. However, with your help, you can get them out and about. Going for a walk on a nice day is a good place to start – just make sure that you go at their pace and you choose a nice flat route. Similarly, planning a day out is a nice idea. You can take a wheelchair so that they can sit down when they need a break and use the chair as a support while they walk.

Doing activities together will take a lot more time just because they tend to go slowly so don’t try to rush things. Make sure that you only need to do one or two things, or just go out for fun. Remember, the main point here is to spend quality time together. Enjoy talking and reminiscing with them and try to slow down too. It’ll probably do you some good!

Health, Life, Parenting

Bumps And Scrapes: First-Aid Tips For Young Children

04/11/2019 R.C. Liley Leave a comment

first-aid, kids, bandage, bruises, doctor — **Pixabay**

Children can be very accident-prone at times. They may slip over when they are playing outside or they could even bump into the furniture regularly when they are learning to walk. Most of the time, these bumps and scrapes are nothing to worry about as it’s all part of growing up. However, there might be times when you need to intervene and provide some basic first-aid for your child. Here are a few tips that will help you with that.

Try To Stick To Natural Remedies

There are a whole load of different creams, ointments, and lotions that you can buy in shops to use on children’s cuts, bruises, and rashes. But these can sometimes be made using quite strong chemicals and ingredients that can irritate sensitive skin. You might want to instead stick with some natural remedies. For instance, honey can be used to soothe a rash. If you apply some honey to the affected area and then cover it with some gauze, your child should stop complaining about how much it itches. Similarly, coconut oil and olive oil both have anti-inflammatory properties so can also be used on various childhood booboos.

Don’t Panic When Toddlers Tumble
When children are learning to walk, they will want to be on their feet all of the time. Unfortunately for them, though, they will be extremely unsteady and this could result in a lot of tumbles. There is usually no need to panic when your young one does fall down, though. After all, this is all part of learning to walk! They will usually try to get back up themselves, but might need your assistance. It might be worth to check for bumps on their head and to give them a quick once over to ensure that they are ok but, more often than not, they will be fine.

Don’t Delay When Taking Them To A&E

Of course, there might be times when things are more serious and they need medical attention from a professional. If you think that this is the case, you shouldn’t delay when getting them to A&E. It’s also worth pointing out that you will need a medical report from a doctor describing their injuries if someone else caused the accident and you are going to Gray and White Law or a similar law firm to find out about compensation. If your child’s injuries are very serious, you should call for an ambulance to get them to A&E as quickly as possible.

Always Praise Children For How Well They Cope

No matter what kind of bumps or scrapes your child goes through, you should always praise them for dealing with the situation so well. This will help them grow in confidence. If their injury looks a lot worse than what it actually is, you should also continually reassure them that everything is going to be ok and they don’t have anything to worry about.

Bumps and scrapes can sometimes be scary, but these tips will help you keep a level head!