Author: Johnny Fields

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How to Communicate With Parents Effectively

Being a teacher means that you have to deal with parents quite a lot in your line of work, this means that when it comes to a child’s education, you need to be able to support children’s wellbeing in school as well as understand parents perspectives on their child’s education.

You may be the expert in your field, but when it comes to parent-teacher communication you have to be able to allow an open and honest conversation that benefits them as well as you.

Effective communication with parents as well as respectful communication is always going to be an important goal when it comes to discussing their children’s learning as well as any difficult or sensitive issues that could be affecting a child’s progress.

Today, we will discuss some tips on how to communicate effectively with parents as well as show why parental involvement is important.

Why is Effective Communication With Parents Essential?

When you were a child yourself, did you go to parent and teacher evenings/school events to discuss your school work and discuss your behavior in class?

You may not have been paying much attention, but these are important times for both the parents and the teachers.

Trust and understanding are built when effective communication is used, and when the two come together it can help the child’s learning and provide them with the necessary support and tools to aid them throughout their years in school.

You can forge positive partnerships with parents, and encourage parents to take their own interest in their child’s learning and offer them your help during school time.

Always Show Respect

As mentioned before, you may be the expert in your field with years of teaching under your belt, but these parents know their children and they deal with them day in and day out, so you have to respect parents input and try and see what they are saying from their side to work out a positive end goal.

As a teacher, you should be respecting –

  • Religious and cultural background
  • Parenting arrangements – blended families, single parents, LGBTQIA+ parents, and working parents
  • Gender diversity
  • Pronouns
  • Language
  • Challenges in the home

If you show respect and help parents feel safe to talk to you, then you can promote an environment that will help children thrive.

How to Communicate With Parents Effectively

You can see why effective communication is essential between parents and teachers, so now you need to know how to put this into action when you are dealing with parents.

Doing this correctly can help you raise concerns with parents and address concerns without there being any serious pushback or issues as you have shown them that you are willing to listen and understand from their point of view too.

Practice Active Listening

Listening before you respond is a part of effective communication. With listening you can learn more about your students as well as the parents which can help you put a picture together of what situation they are in and how they are being affected.

You can hear the parent’s perspective of their own children which can help you determine what is happening at home that is fueling the children’s responses in the classroom.

Some Ways That You Can Show Active Listening

When you are talking to parents, show them that you are listening by nodding your head and making the right noises. If you sit there in silence they are not going to know if you have actually listened to them which can make them feel like talking to you is a lost cause.

Even if you do not agree with what they are saying, you have to put yourself in their shoes and see why they may be saying what they are.

Let them finish speaking and do not interrupt them, even if you have something to say hold it in until they are finished, and if you are worried you’ll forget it, write it down so you can bring it back up with them, this will show that you are taking an interest.

Once they have finished talking, ask them some questions to better understand what they mean instead of opting for questions that will only prompt a yes or no.

Ask them for details of what they are worried about or how they think their child is acting.

Take a Problem-Solving Approach With Parents

If you have had to contact parents in the past about their child’s behavior which has meant that they need to come in, then you need to show them that you want to solve this issue properly and that you are not just raising it for them to deal with at home.

You need to work together to attack the issue from all angles, so that means you can do this in a proactive and effective manner.

  • Identify the problem at hand.
  • Give parents accurate information on what has happened.
  • Talk over some solutions.
  • Decide jointly on what should be done and how it can be implemented.
  • Put it into action.
  • Keep them updated on your end either by booking another meeting or through digital communication.

Doing this will be able to help greatly and stop challenging behaviour from escalating and causing further problems in class and around the school.

Be Positive and Friendly Around Them

You may be dealing with kids on a big scale for 6-8 hours a day (sometimes more with after-school clubs), but they have them from the moment they wake up and at weekends. They also have jobs and their own issues which they may not have much support with.

When you deal with them you need to show that you are on their side and you want to positively work with them so that they don’t have to worry about their kids being in school and having difficulties.

Don’t blame them for their child’s behavior, it could come from anywhere and just because they act that way does not mean it is due to the parent.

Talk About Your Concerns Respectively

If their child is showing a lot of troubling behavior, you need to address this in a respectful manner without laying blame at their feet.

If it is an issue that has only happened once, then you may not need to tell the parents, but, if it starts to happen consistently, then you will need to inform them as it could be disrupting or upsetting the other children in the class.

Prepare to have difficult discussions that may touch on some sore areas, this is bound to happen and you do need to talk about it if you think it could be the cause. Ask them what they think about the issue and why they think their child is acting that way in school.

Focus on Strategies

Talk with them about strategies on how this can be dealt with at home and in class. Ask them for their input and let them know that you want them to be a part of what happens with their child on school grounds as you don’t want them to think you are stepping out of line by taking the reigns.

Let Them Know When Something Good Happens

If their child has been great in class either with their work or helping other students, then it is a good idea to let parents know so that they are getting good feedback as well.

Parents are on edge when they get called into the school to discuss their child’s behavior, so letting them know about the good things that their child has done can help them feel better about the situation and stop them from feeling worried.

Your Expectations Need to be Realistic

You can’t expect every child to have the same output, so your expectations for each child under your care need to be realistic to match their strengths.

Talk with parents about what you expect and then discuss with them what they specifically expect from their children as well so you can both meet in the middle.

Conclusion

Now that you know how to communicate effectively with parents, this should stand you in better stead when you need to discuss with them their child’s education and behavior.

It is not easy being a teacher, but as long as you are doing everything you can to show up for your students and include parents as much as possible, you will have an impact in the classroom and on individuals.

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Communication Strategies for Parents with ADHD Kids

Parents of ADHD kids need to communicate in a way their child will understand. Some kids will talk in big sentences like adults, but when parents pause to start thinking about how to respond, they stop listening. For ADHD kids, parents need to listen for longer and emphasize keywords when listening.

Although it may be hard for some parents to accept, ADHD does not go away overnight, so there is no quick fix for their kids. To learn what to do when your child exhibits signs of ADHD, take a look at this list:

Establish expectations

Communication strategies can be challenging for parents of children with ADHD. These children often have difficulty listening, paying attention, and focusing on instructions and directions. While some parents use verbal and nonverbal cues, others find it helpful to make expectations clear. Developing clear communication strategies, including setting expectations, will help your child listen and respond appropriately.

Give feedback

Parents of kids with ADHD will make mistakes, but they are often unaware of how their actions impact on their kids. They may say something unintentionally that hurts a child’s feelings. Instead of admitting their error, they focus on punishment, resulting in more confusion. And instead of focusing on the behavior, they want to stop; they focus on everything the child does that the child wants to avoid.

Accept responsibility

So even if you have ADHD, you cannot blame your kids for inherited ADHD; rather, take responsibility for your parenting and use certain communication strategies to manage household stress, avoid parenting burnout, and increase kids’ motivation.

Develop your own communication style

Developing your own communication style is crucial, especially for parents of children with ADHD who may face challenges in effectively communicating with their kids. While it’s a common misconception that ADHD children cannot pay attention or express their needs, implementing communication strategies is vital to ensure these children receive the support they require. If you find that your child is struggling to communicate effectively, seeking help from experts at CASRF or similar foundations dedicated to helping children improve their communication skills can be beneficial. These experts can provide guidance and support tailored to your child’s needs, assisting both you and your child in developing effective communication strategies.

Use simple language

Imagine you are a teacher. The parents that show up to parent-teacher conferences for their children often are frustrated with their ADHD child’s behavior in the classroom. Yet those same parents are often frustrated at home as well. You observe this often, from your child’s behavior to the parent-teacher conferences, to the way parents interact with their child while at home. What you may not see is the language used by the parents that shows up in the classroom. A simple turn of phrase can have an enormous impact.

Keep plenty of warming

Communication is a skill that parents learn as they raise their children. But parents of kids with ADHD have an additional challenge. In addition to the typical challenges of parenting, parents with ADHD often face unique challenges when it comes to communication with their kids. If this sounds like you, it can be helpful to understand how ADHD affects communication and how you might adapt your communication strategies to the situation.

Parents who have ADHD kids cannot always control their behaviors, but they can control how they communicate with their kids. While you cannot change your child’s ADHD diagnosis, you can learn how to communicate with them more effectively.

If you have a child or teenager who has ADHD, you know how challenging their behavior can be to deal with. While ADHD gives kids the attention span of a squirrel on a sugar high, it can also cause kids to act out in ways that make parents want to pull their hair out. Many parents seek guidance and coaching to help them deal with the behaviors of their ADHD children, and many ADHD coaches speak about strategies that parents can use to help their kids behave better.

Many parents struggle to get their kids with ADHD to engage in healthy behaviors. These kids may be hyperactive and impulsive, making it difficult for them to complete schoolwork or follow directions. While kids with ADHD usually outgrow these behaviors by puberty, some kids will struggle with these behaviors into adulthood. As a parent, you are likely looking for ways to help your child. One idea is to use strategies similar to those used with adults with ADHD.

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The Best How-To Projects To Keep Inside This Holiday Season

The holidays are coming up and it’s time to get your home in order so that you’ll be able to enjoy the season and spend more time enjoying it with family and friends. If you’re looking for some fun DIY projects to keep inside this year, then here is a list of some of our favorites from different categories like decorating, cooking, crafts, and even cleaning!

Ideas For Holiday Diy Projects

Looking for some DIY holiday projects to keep you busy this season? Check out these easy and fun ideas!

  1. Hang ornaments on the roof: This is a great way to use up some of your extra Christmas decorations, and it’s an easy project that can be done in minutes. All you need are a few sturdy branches or a piece of wire fencing, and some ornaments. Once you have your ornaments assembled, tie them off to the branches with simple string or yarn ties.
  2. Make gingerbread houses: This is another classic DIY project that can be brought to life with a little bit of creativity. You’ll need some basic ingredients (flour, sugar, butter, eggs), as well as some baking supplies like pans and cups. Follow these simple steps to create your own gingerbread house: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large bowl, combine together the flour, sugar, butter, and eggs. Stir in enough water until you have a thick mixture resembling pancake batter. Pour the batter into one or more baking pans(you may want to make several batches), and bake for about 30-40 minutes, until the cake is firm to the touch and golden brown on top. Let cool before frosting!

Ideas For A Halloween Diy Project

Looking for a fun and festive activity to do during Halloween? Consider creating your own DIY project! Here are some ideas for how-to projects that can be enjoyed by all:

  • Make a haunted house out of cardboard boxes: Start by gathering any old cardboard boxes you have lying around. Cut them into suitable shapes (such as a house, witches’ cauldron, or devil’s tower) and decorate them with artificial blood, fake spiders, and other spooky elements. Hang the boxes from tree branches or hooks inside an indoor space like a garage or basement. Let your guests explore and try to guess which room is which!
  • Create a creepy clown garden: This project is perfect for kids who love to be scared! Begin by collecting colorful containers (potting soil can also work well), styrofoam balls, and construction paper clowns. Cut out eyes and mouths from the construction paper Clowns, then glue them onto the containers. Add small rocks or water droplets to the clowns for added effect. Hang the clowns up in trees or near windows to create a delightful scare zone during trick-or-treating hours!

Ideas For A Christmas Tree

This Christmas, why not add a touch of festive fun with one of these easy and affordable how-to projects? Whether you’re looking to DIY a traditional tree or create something new and innovative, these projects will have you up and decorating in no time.

  1. Make a garland: This project is super easy to do – all you need are some wire hangers and some colorful ribbon. Start by tying the ribbon around the hanger in a loop, then pull it tight so that the loops form a blimp-like shape. Repeat this process until your garland is as long or short as you’d like it to be.
  2. Make a DIY Christmas ornament: Not sure what to get your loved ones this year? Why not make them their own personalized ornament? This project is simple enough – all you need are some small pieces of wood (a chopstick, a pencil eraser, etc.), nails, and paint. Just paint each piece of wood different colors, then attach them together using nails and screws. You could even personalize it by adding embroidery or graphics!

Ideas For Repairs

As the holiday season rolls around, it’s important to give your home a check for any fixes or repairs it might need. You want everything to be comfy and stress-free for you and your guests. Take a look around for things like broken doors, holes in the walls, or windows that might need an intervention.

If you spot any such issues, don’t let them linger. Get them sorted out immediately. You can consider contacting a trusted company that tend to specialize in home repair services like ACE handyman in Andover, KS to help out with the repairs. So, a quick check of your home can make a world of difference during the holiday hustle and bustle.

Ideas For Cleaning

Before the holiday season begins, it’s essential to declutter and organize your home. This will not only create a more inviting space for guests but also make it easier to decorate for the holidays. Start by sorting through your belongings and getting rid of any items you no longer need or want. Donate or sell these items to make room for new things.

  1. Deep clean your kitchen appliances: With all the cooking and baking that happens during the holidays, it’s important to ensure that your appliances are in optimal condition. Start by cleaning your oven thoroughly, removing any baked-on grease or food residue. Next, clean your stovetop, paying special attention to the burners and knobs.
  2. Ensure your drains are unclogged: The last thing you’d want to deal with during the holiday season is a clogged sink or shower drain. To prevent any plumbing issues, take the time to ensure your drains are unclogged before the holiday festivities kick in. Use a mixture of baking soda and vinegar followed by hot water to break down any buildup. If homemade remedies aren’t effective, it might be a more serious drainage issue necessitating the intervention of professionals. Consider reaching out to experts found on pm247.co.uk/services/drainage/ or similar websites for assistance.
  3. Ensure your home is well-ventilated: The sudden activity around the holidays may result in a lot more waste and humidity inside the house. At this point, it’s important to ensure that the extra spaces in your home are well-maintained, to prevent mold formation due to increased heat from kitchen activities. If your home has crawl spaces, you could look up crawl space encapsulation in Tyrone, PA, or a similar service near you, to reduce the moisture levels in your home.
  4. Use DIY natural cleaners for carpets: Not only are these solutions effective, but they’re also safe for both your family and the environment. One popular DIY cleaner is a mixture of baking soda, vinegar, and essential oils. Simply sprinkle the mixture onto your carpet, let it sit for a few minutes, and then vacuum it up.

By following these cleaning tips, you’ll have a clean and organized home ready for the holiday season. Amidst all these tasks, have you inadvertently overlooked your doors or windows? If so, it might be worthwhile to avail the services of a door or Window Cleaning Denver (or wherever you are based). Their expertise can ensure that every nook and cranny of your door or window is thoroughly cleaned, leaving you with more time to focus on other festive preparations.

This holiday season, don’t forget to keep your home spick and span. Whether you’re working on a big project or just trying to get everything done in time for the holidays, these how-to projects are the perfect way to get started. From cleaning to decorating, there’s something for everyone on this list. And best of all, each one is easy enough that you can do it yourself! So go ahead – start planning your perfect holiday home now!

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How to Take Care of Elderly Relatives

Our parents or grandparents may live with us or even in our household. They may need help as they grow older. Being a good family member or friend may mean knowing how to care for our elderly relatives. Taking care of an elderly relative can be challenging, especially if we’ve known our relative all our lives.

Caring for elderly relatives can be rewarding but can also be frustrating and stressful as their physical and emotional needs increase and their independence decreases, which can be frustrating for some family members. It can be a challenge, but it doesn’t have to be. You can find plenty of tips on caring for the elderly on the internet, from people around you, or from experienced professionals in the nursing industry.

Additionally, caring for older people comes with many responsibilities, such as organizing their care, handling their finances, and helping with household chores. If you’re planning to care for an elderly relative, you’ll need to plan. For example, you’ll need to understand Medicare coverage and deductibles, and you’ll need to make room in your budget to pay for their personal care and incidental expenses.

Tips On How To Take Care Of Elderly Relatives

Accompany Them

Caring for elderly relatives can be tiring. They may not be able to do some of the activities they used to, have trouble remembering things, and can also become depressed. They may even be hesitant to visit doctors and healthcare centres. But with a little support and company, you can help them care for themselves. For instance, your grandmother might need to visit the dentist to get her teeth checked. But out of fear, she might completely disagree with the idea. Here is where you could suggest sedation dentistry thornton co, if that’s where you live, and reassure her by saying that you will be by her side during the entire process. It is important to understand things from their perspective, so talk to them. Learn to listen to their concerns and not try to fix everything. Try and offer solutions that they can look favourably upon.

Organize Personal Health Care

Caring for an older adult can be especially difficult if you have limited time to devote to caregiving. Caring for elderly loved ones is a rewarding yet demanding responsibility. For many, it’s one that they may take on later in life, and it can take a physical and emotional toll. Fortunately, there are ways to make the lives of your loved ones easier. One way is to reach out to companies or agencies that can help finding the right caregiver for your family member’s individual needs. Another way is to take them to a senior living facility where they can have round the clock care and be slightly more independent.

Physical Exercise

As time goes on, they may need help with personal care such as bathing, grooming, dressing, meal preparation, and eating. Furthermore, as they age, they may be more prone to accidents and serious injuries requiring hospitalization. Knowing how to care for elderly relatives through regular exercise can greatly improve the quality of life for their elderly relatives.

Keep Track Of The Medicine

Some seniors need medicine for medical conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure. As they age, their bodies develop certain health problems or conditions that could be more painful and harder to treat. Also, some medications lose their effectiveness because the body becomes tolerant of them and needs a higher dosage to produce the same effects.

Handle Their Finances

Elderly relatives are some of the most rewarding people in our lives, but they can also be some of the most challenging. As they get older, their ability to manage their finances can become limited, which can make taking care of them nearly impossible. Thankfully there are steps you can take now to help elderly relatives maintain their independence and manage their finances as effectively as possible during the twilight of their lives.

Making Living Arrangements

As individuals age, their mobility and cognitive skills may decline, impacting their overall lifestyle. Additionally, lacking assistance for daily activities can make it extremely challenging for them to lead a normal life. In such situations, it becomes your responsibility to take care of them. If living together isn’t feasible, hiring an in-home caregiver could be an option worth considering. Alternatively, exploring life at Carlton Senior Living can be a compelling choice. Such facilities offer opportunities to meet people with similar interests, fostering communication. Put simply, embracing these options can enhance their quality of life and provide the care and companionship they need in their golden years.

Visit them often

Visiting often can provide peace of mind, comfort, and companionship. By visiting them regularly, seniors are usually more socially engaged, which reduces their risk of depression. It’s also important to keep the elderly active since being sedentary can exacerbate health issues and reduce their independence.

Planning Ahead

By planning, you can help ease the burden on family members and increase the quality of life for elderly care recipients. By assigning duties to family members, you can ensure there’s just enough work to go around. For instance, if an elderly relative doesn’t have mobility limitations, she may be able to do some light cleaning around the house. If she has physical limitations, other family members can help remind her to take her medication. And for a family member with cognitive impairments, remind her to vacuum the floor, dust the furniture, and take out the garbage every day.

Importance Of Taking Care Of the Elderly

It can be hard, emotionally and physically, to care for an elderly relative or loved one. While family members often turn to family members for help, many will not even consider hiring a professional caregiver. But whether you hire a professional or not, you must still take care of yourself to keep the elderly loved one safe, healthy and happy.

As you may already know, taking care of elderly relatives can be a difficult task. However, it is not impossible, especially for a person who wants to do it. Most of them are having a difficult time doing their daily routines, and they need good support and regular assistance. If relatives are willing to help and care for their parents, they will definitely support their parents.

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Top 10 Best Ethereum Wallets

It’s no surprise to anyone in the cryptocurrency world that Ethereum is on the rise. Ethereum has become popular in part due to its growing adoption by enterprises and developers, as well as its ability to use smart contracts.

Securing an Ethereum wallet is one of the first steps you need to take before you jump in and purchase digital currency. Now that Ethereum has been out for some time, there are quite a few wallet options to choose from. Finding the right Ethereum wallet to suit your needs can be difficult, so we’ve outlined the top 10 Ethereum wallets so you can start mining Ether today.

Ledger Nano S

Ledger is a leading manufacturer of cryptocurrency wallets and hardware security tokens (HSTs). They use state-of-the-art security protocols, which allow for storing cryptocurrency in the safest way possible.

Trezor

Well, the Trezor wallet is the best Ethereum wallet. It is powered by the Bitcoin-QT engine and can run Ethereum applications. The wallet can be used securely and privately and is recommended.

MyEtherWallet

Introducing MyEtherWallet, the world’s most popular Ethereum wallet, which allows you to safely store, send, and receive Ether and ERC-20 tokens. It is 100% open-source and completely free. The interface requires no registration or login and is completely un-hosted, meaning you are not entrusting your private keys to third parties. MyEtherWallet is also the only wallet that offers private keys encrypted with the secure open-source script algorithm by default.

Mist

Mist is an open-source mobile wallet app for storing cryptocurrencies. The interface for Mist is clean and easy to navigate, and the app is available for both Android and iOS. With Mist, users can store Ethereum, Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dash, Dogecoin, Nem, and Arc.

imToken

imToken is an application launcher, wallet, and exchange all in one. It provides users with a secure, convenient, and fast way to store, send and trade Ethereum tokens. imToken can exchange ETH, ERC20 tokens, and ERC721 collectibles.

Coinbase Wallet

The Coinbase Wallet is one of the best Ethereum wallets on the market. It offers all of the security features that you would expect from an Ethereum wallet, along with easy login and access to the cryptocurrency market. The Coinbase Wallet can be used to keep your Ethereum safe and secure, with enhanced security measures and automatic backups.

Jaxx

Jaxx is an all-in-one cryptocurrency wallet. It supports dozens of currencies, including (but not limited to) Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin. Jaxx not only lets you store your favorite coins and tokens, but it also lets you purchase more directly from within the app, thus avoiding the hassle of having to access a separate exchange to use your credit card. Jaxx supports password protection, multiple seed words, and hardware wallets for added security. Best of all, it is free so you can download it right now.

Cryptonator

Cryptonator is a robust Ethereum wallet that’s available as a browser extension, desktop client, and web-based browser. The extension uses Web3.js and MetaMask to enable direct interaction with the Ethereum network via your Chrome browser. Cryptonator has an intuitive interface that makes configuring it easy, and it even has built-in default token support.

MetaMask

This open-source browser extension makes it easy to manage multiple Ethereum accounts beyond the main account. One little bonus is that you don’t even need to interact with the Ethereum blockchain if you don’t want to and can use MetaMask to store funds securely and privately.

Rainbow Wallet

Rainbow Wallet is a multi-asset wallet where you can store and trade multiple cryptocurrencies. It is the most secure, user-friendly, and user-friendly Ethereum wallet. It is also free, making it a good option for beginners.

Get Your Best Ethereum Wallet

Ethereum is a blockchain-based digital currency that is one of the cryptocurrencies. The currency has gained popularity in a couple of years. The currency has been supported by major banks, financial institutions, and companies. However, to use Ethereum, you need first to understand how digital currency works.

Investing in cryptocurrency requires an online wallet to store your cryptocurrency. This wallet can be online or on your smartphone—but which one should you choose? Both options have their pros and cons, and where you choose depends mostly on your own needs and preferences.