Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Not all children can learn in the same way: Kids with ADHD need movements



Children with attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) are always being told to sit still and concentrate, but new research has revealed that they actually need to move in order to learn. Forcing them to stay still is counterproductive.

In fact, small movements such as fidgeting, squirming, leg-swinging, foot-tapping and chair-scuffling may be vital to remembering information and working out complex tasks. The new research contradicts the long-term guidelines for how to deal with children with ADHD, and suggests that incorporating things such as activity balls or treadmill desks to the classroom could help certain students perform better.

Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Tips To Help A Toddler With A Speech Delay


For the purpose of this article, a toddler refers to children between the ages of 18 and 30 months (give or take a few months).  However, many of the following tips will work for other age groups as well.
Before geting into the tips, we need to make sure you understand the difference between speech and language, as many people will say “my toddler has a speech delay” when they actually are referring to a language delay.  So here is a very brief overview to show you the differences between speech and language development:

Tuesday, June 7, 2016

Screaming, Grounding and Spanking: Does old-fashioned discipline work?



The knee-jerk reaction when our kids misbehave is often to do exactly what we got as kids. The question is, do these old-school discipline tools stand the test of time?
“Parenting can be trying and difficult at times, and moms and dads find themselves behaving or considering behavior they would not have resorted to in normal circumstances,” explains Adelle Cadieux, Psy.D., a pediatric psychologist at Spectrum Health’s Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital in Grand Rapids, MI.

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

9 Things You Should Never Say to Your Child



Positive Reinforcement: Learn what phrases to banish from your vocabulary and how to talk so your kids will really listen.
I was trying to do two things at once—cook (in the kitchen) while deciphering some paperwork (in the next room). I'd been interrupted a thousand times with requests for snacks, shrieks over spilled paint water, questions about what squirrels like to eat, and arguments over whether clouds could be blue and flowers could be green. And did I mention that a ruptured disk in my back was throbbing even worse than my head?
Still, nothing can excuse my behavior that afternoon.