You are currently browsing the monthly archive for January, 2009.
Water safety is of extreme importance at this time of the year. More children die from drowning in South Africa than vehicle accidents, statistics report approximately 3 children die daily from drowning and more than 2 per week in pools at home. So this should make it severely obvious as to how important water safety is. Water is the silent killer and it can happen in front of your eyes in as little as 30 seconds, children playing underwater games in the pool, or running around the pool, swimming in a river or ocean after lunch, a strong current, that’s as little as it can take, I personally drowned at age 2 and had to be given CPR by my mother ( this is one of the reasons I am so vigilant about first aid) So what can you do to protect your child?
Well to start off with no child under the age of 14 should be alone or even with peers in and around a pool, river, ocean or any body of water for that matter, not even children who are thoroughly competent swimmers. A small child can drown in only 4 cms of water so even the bathroom or a bucket can be fatal for our little ones. I urge parents, make sure that your child knows the dangers and never goes near water without you.
At home ensure to limit access to the pool and bathrooms, install a pool net and make sure that you have a pool alarm ( visit www.kindersafe.co.za or www.4akid.co.za , both pages are also accessible from our moms link directory on Sitters4U.co.za). Another thing one should be aware of , which a lot of parents do not think about, is warm water, I call it “warn water” and it is the most dangerous, drowning area, a jacuzzi, a bath, anywhere with hot water. Think about it, the hotter the water, the faster your heart rate and the greater the need for oxygen to the brain. In warm water it is easy to pass out, and drowning is far more damaging, you will be less likely to perform a successful Cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR ( even if you are able to do CPR, the child will have irreparable brain trama and damage not to mention the rest of body). So always be with your children near water. Don’t swim after eating, and teach your children the dangers, talking to your child could save his or her life, even if they are the strongest swimmers they are not safe if you are not watching them.
Have a happy, safe, water fun filled summer folks! Till next time..
Bianca
Its been a long holiday and finally the big day has arrived! Across the Western Cape learners returned to school and many are now enjoying their first day!
For my daughter it was a momentous occasion. Looking adorable in her uniform, dress hanging way below the knees I have never seen anything so cute! Having finished Gr.1 at a Montessori environment last year and in fact having always been in that environment, we finally took a leap of faith to mainstream! I have always been a great fan of the Montessori system and it has done my daughter the world of good! The way they are allowed to decide what to learn and the mixed age group of her last class ( Gr.1, 2 and 3) has allowed her to develop to a point where she is the one reading me the bedtime stories, not bad for a 7 year old.However there comes a time when you really need to take a look at your child’s needs and how they are developing in order to decide what type of school system is going to work for them. The options vary from Public to Private, from Montessori to Waldorf, so knowing what the school offers is of the utmost importance!
With my daughter, although she progressed rapidly academically speaking, she is fiercely independent, social and loves sport and while her acedmic and independence needs were being met with Montessori, the rest of her her needs were just not being met by the 18 children in her class and lack of sport… it was time to move on!
The point I am trying to make here is that different schools and learning systems suit different children. Some children like my daughter need the discipline, large numbers of children and sport to thrive, whilst others may well prefer the small social circle and artistic and creative approach. So when you see that a school isn’t working for your child, ask yourself why, from your child’s perspective, what needs are not being met? If you find the answer to be the style of teaching or the classroom set up or the activities offered, look around for a school that will suit your child’s needs a bit more. Each child is an individual and not all systems work will work for your child. So take your time, make an informed decision and reap the benefits!I wish all the new and old learners the best for 2009!
PS. If you are looking for information on the different schools and teaching styles available in SA take a look at these websites:
http://www.privateschooling.co.za/
http://www.saprivateschools.co.za/
A few days ago I posted the article ” Ringing in 2009″!
One of the things I mentioned was personal goals, well yesterday I attended the most amazing aerobic kick boxing class… yes like everyone I know I have vowed to loose some weight. I have been doing aikido for some time now, which is martial art based on the Samurai’s art and originating from Japan. I decided though, that if I was to really put up a fight against the weight gain from Christmas, New years and all of last years over indulgences ( I am sure most moms will relate), I was going to have to do something drastic and I have found it!
What a pleasure, I have honestly never had so much fun! Aerobic Kickboxing, otherwise known as Taebo, is amazing. Its an action packed hour of movement and a little bit of an overkill when it comes to sweat, but thats a good thing so who is complaining? I was surprised to find most participants are moms that need to make the best of their dedicated exercise time. There are a tonne of dojos and sports clubs that offer these courses and I would highly recommend it if you want an action packed workout and a way to loose pounds quickly! Seriously, I am already seeing the effect!
If you know of any other dojos offering classes in your area, let us know so we can share the secret! If you know of any other forms of exercise that have really helped you, we would love to hear about it and share it with our readers! Happy Achy Muscles…;-)
Potty Training,those two words tend to conjure up visions of mess and nightmares for many moms and child carers alike. Admittedly tough and taking into account that each child learns at different speeds, there really is no need for fuss and it can actually a very rewarding process for both the child and you! A personal friend of mine was asking for advice on potty training, I had much to say on the matter, and decided I had to put together an article for everyone who is little stuck on it. So here are some tips and tricks to make the de-nappy process easier for all involved.
The first question is how do you know when a child is ready for potty training?
The first step is to ensure the child’s eating and sleeping patterns are regular. This means, an established healthy meal pattern and sleeping pattern (now that’s another 2 articles that will be coming out of the woodwork later this year)
Second thing, and as you go along you will understand why it is important, if a child can say yes and no and understand basic language, he or she is probably ready to start training. Children over the age of 1 ½ years old may start training already.
Another factor to watch for is that naturally a child will start to have a dry nappy for longer periods as they get older.
Tips for Training
- Start by ensuring the child knows where everybody else goes to the toilet. For 2 weeks this is all you will be doing in preparation of toilet training. Using positive reinforcement ask, “where does mommy go potty?” “Does daddy use the potty?”. Take them to the toilet with you so they understand you are never wearing a nappy. Make connection to everyone the child knows and cares for ie mommy, daddy, granny, uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters, etc. Give praise to the right answers and gently correct any wrong answers. Then ask where the child goes to the toilet. The point here is to subtlety coax the child to discover for him or herself that wearing a nappy is not the norm. The child will soon realise that the potty is something he/she is missing out on.
- A good trick to enlist is to purchase of a doll that can drink water, wears a nappy and can pee. Sounds strange, I know but this works. Play with the doll, make the doll the child’s baby to look after. Children love to role play and this is a great game. She/He must help the baby remember to go to the potty cause otherwise it will make the baby feel uncomfortable. The child needs to give the doll the bottle to drink and then get the nappy off and help the baby pee on the doll’s potty. This will assist the child to famaliarise him/herself with the routine of going to the potty.
- Take the child on a shopping trip to buy the child’s first sets of proper underwear and potty. It should be a big thing. Choose at least 20 ordinary pairs and then find a pack of 3 that has the child’s favorite characters on them. Tell the child that those pairs are for when he/ she can make it to the potty for 3 days in a row with out any mistakes to make this fair in the child’s mind, tell the child that you would like to help her make sure that these beautiful ones don’t get ruined. This will help motivate her positively to get to the potty as much as possible.
- The next thing to incorporate, is regular visits to the potty or a toilet with a child safety mechanism and step in place (visit www.4akid.co.za to see their product line). At least once, 10 minutes after every liquid consumption of 100ml or more and at least once every 30 minutes take a trip to the potty or child safe toilet and have the child sit on it even if he or she doesn’t feel the need to pee. At this age children don’t have a lot of muscle control over the bladder and you are teaching the child a skill and control over something new, which if pointed out in a subtle and careful way will encourage the child to want to go to the toilet and develop better muscle control .
- Do not use training nappies, except at bedtimes and nap times, let the child wear normal underwear as much as possible.
- Expect mistakes! This is part of the learning process, and that process may carry on for sometime. Even a long time after he or she has been trained, mistakes will happen.
- Always take a trip to the potty or child safe toilet before bedtimes and nap times this is imperative.
- Keep a potty close to the child’s bed so should she wake up and need to go she does not need to worry about going a distance to find the potty. This will give a sense of achievement if the child manages to wake up and reach the potty in time.
- When no mishaps have happened for three days the child will be day trained and when the sleeping nappy( training nappy) has been dry for three days the child can be considered sleep trained.
- Praise should be given when the child gets it right assisted or by herself. When he or she makes a mistake let them know it is ok, run a small bath wash her and distract the child with toys. Then a little later ask again “where do I go to the toilet?” “ Where does mom go?” etc. Positive reinforcement is key to get this right.
These routines should be continued until the potty is no longer an issue for the child and it appears as a natural pattern without too much encouragement.
For Other fun potty training tips visit www.babiesonline.co.za
