A fresh approach to Springtime family activities

Winter doesn’t necessarily mean snow and ice for everyone. But it often does leave us in the doldrums once the holiday season ends. Then Spring comes along, cheery and bright, to lift us right out of that slump. Now is the perfect time to start planning some fun Springtime family activities to celebrate the change of season.

Birthday parties for kids are supposed to be a time for fun. Unfortunately, because of expectations that are unrealistic, they are often a time for stress, both the emotional and financial kind.

The computer can be a valuable educational and entertainment asset in your home – especially if you have children. However, it is important to set limits on the amount of time your kids spend on the computer starting at a young age. Without computer time limits for kids, you risk your children developing an addiction to the Internet and time-consuming computer games.

In fact, according to a 2009 study by Pangea Media and YPulse, by the young age of 8, an astounding three out of four children say that they would rather give up the television than access to the Internet. Furthermore, the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that too much time on the computer and other forms of media outlets can lead to obesity and attention disorders. So how can you limit screen time without being over-restrictive?

Parenting tips for families on how to deal with sibling rivalry have made significant advances since the recommended action was to smack the closest — or slowest — child while loudly demanding that they all “Cut It Out!” The term sibling rivalry refers to brothers and or sisters, or both, competing for parental attention and affection. This competition is acted out between the children as fighting and arguments or teasing. At one time, a sibling’s fight with his or her rival was seen as an unsophisticated means of expressing jealousy over their incorrect assumptions regarding the parental attention their sibling rival received. However, English sibling expert, Judy Dunn, has demonstrated that babies as young as one year of age are acutely aware of parental attention given to — or withheld from — another sibling. Not surprisingly, the more parental attention and affection are unequally distributed among siblings, the more sibling rivalry, fighting and turmoil are reported.

College Admission Tests
The ACT and SAT tests are two separately administered college admissions tests required by the vast majority of US four-year colleges and universities. Of the two, the SAT is the most widely required, taken and utilized by admissions committees to determine an applicant’s eligibility for admission. Some schools allow either test to be submitted for consideration and students applying to these institutions are advised to take both tests and submit the better grade to their colleges of choice.