By Esther Chum

Many children struggle with Math in school. They find the ideas hard to understand and the word problems confusing. Math is actually an easy subject to ace because each problem has only one correct answer. And there are many ways of arriving at the correct answer.

Once your child understands the main concept in Math, he or she will not struggle with Math anymore. When we think of Math we think of numbers, counting, adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing. The underlying rule of these Mathematical operations is repeated patterns.

In kindergarten, Math lessons start with learning to recognize numbers and to count. They also include identifying different shapes and looking for patterns.

When a preschooler first learns to recite the numbers: 1, 2, 3... and so on, they have no idea of the meaning of these numbers. When you ask them to count, they just reel off the numbers without caring about the quantity of the items they are counting. It takes time for them to realize that counting is actually a repeated pattern of 'one more'.

Here is another pattern that is very useful. To help your child understand numbers bigger than ten, it would be very helpful to see the numbers as groups of tens with leftover singles or ones. For example, fifteen is made up of one group of ten and five singles or ones; twenty-two is made up of two groups of tens and two singles or ones. Teach them this when they learn to count money.

When your child understands this, it becomes much easier for him or her to add numbers mentally. For example, fifteen and twenty-two added together would result in three groups of ten and seven ones to give thirty-seven. Use actual items when adding this way so your child can see and feel the items instead of trying to understand abstract written symbols.

Another pattern to note when doing addition is when two numbers are added together, the answer is always bigger than either of the numbers. This is a useful guide for children who are careless in their work. They can check their own working by seeing whether the answer is bigger or smaller than it should be.

Other patterns would involve Math terms like 'greater than', 'smaller than', 'increase' and 'decrease'. If one number is greater than another, it means that the first number is bigger than the second. When your child understands this, he or she will be able to answer questions like '34 is 10 greater than what number?'

With this new understanding of Math, your child will no longer struggle with Math. What are the patterns you notice?

Esther Chum loves writing and helping kids with their school work. Get more tips about teaching Math to your child from her blog http://www.kidstudyguide.com/

By Stephen Russell-Lacy

Judging by the popularity of the American fantasy television series Ghost Whisperer, many people would like to believe in death survival even if they haven't made a jump of faith. Some are willing to talk privately about having felt a presence, heard a voice, or seen a ghost of a loved one and sometimes it is a child ghost that appears. This kind of thing seems more likely to be experienced by the recently bereaved.

So, if we all survive death what happens to children after they die?

Thelma Wexler lost her 3-year-old son, Benjamin, when he drowned in Perkiomen Creek USA. Wexler, who lives near Collegeville, believes that Benjamin communicates with her and other family members by leaving feathers in different places. One time at Kmart, Delia, Wexler's 3-year-old daughter, pulled apart a display of basketballs and found a feather sitting behind it. In the diner where her husband, Mitchell, works, a customer found a feather that had somehow become deep-fried. During a recent golf game, Mitchell followed a ball that had gone into the rough and found it sitting on top of a feather. Since Benjamin's death, Wexler has acquired enough feathers to fill a grocery bag.

You might wonder whether there is anything in this. Or is it all just selective attention paid to certain objects based on wish-fulfillment?

Grant Schnarr's brother Bruce died at age 2, six years before Grant was born. At a meeting in Bryn Athyn when age 40 Grant recalled moments when he felt Bruce's presence. "It's something between a mental process and a vision," he said, describing incidents others might regard as paranormal, such as a television or stereo turning on suddenly, or a vision of Bruce appearing in a hallway or a bathroom.

I believe this sort of testimony is more difficult to dismiss unless we believe we are being deliberately hoodwinked.

Jordyn Morrison-Clason is a medium. She says that when she connects with the spirit of an infant or child who has crossed over, it is always being held or accompanied by a "guardian being". These are said to be beings of pure light and love and they are protectors who radiate light, peace and comfort.

Swedenborg's book Heaven and Hell reports on his prolonged extraordinary experiences of what he calls 'the spiritual world'. It is interesting to read what he has to say in his own words. For him all angels were once born like us in the physical dimension of life.

"As soon as children are reawakened (which happens immediately after their death), they are taken to heaven and given to female angels who had loved children tenderly during their physical lives and had loved God as well. Since in this world they had loved all children with a kind of maternal tenderness, they accept these new ones as their own, and the children love them as their mothers as though this were inborn in them. Each such angel has as many children as her spiritual maternal nature wants."

Swedenborg says that little children who die are just as much little children in the other life, having a like infantile mind, a like innocence in ignorance, and a like tenderness in all things. He reports that from their angel-carers those children who died in infancy learn to speak. All their feelings come from their innocence.

"I have in fact been allowed to see children clothed most becomingly, with garlands of flowers around their chests glowing with the most charming and heavenly colors, and similar ones around their slender arms. Once I was even allowed to see some children with their nurses, in the company of some young women in a paradisal garden - not a garden of trees, but one with vaulted arches of something like laurels making the most intricate doorways with paths offering access inward - and the children themselves dressed with like beauty."

In what sounds to the modern ear like good quality public-broadcast tv designed for children, Swedenborg reports the spirit children were engaged for example by watching plays suited to their minds through which they were led into awareness of what is true and affection for what is good.

Swedenborg mentions other spirits who tried to lead them, or compel them to speak. "But this was resisted as often as attempted, and the (little children)... were, as it were, indignant that others should think to rule them and compel them to speak. I observed their resistance as often as the attempt was made....This, I was informed, was their temptation, that they might be kept in a constant repugnance towards those who might wish to lead and rule them, and might be initiated into the habit of regarding the Lord alone as he that is to lead...from whom they are to think and speak; thus they grow up."

We are told the children grow in stature and clear thinking into young men and women and having gained wisdom themselves become angels. Also that they remain with that appearance forever.

Copyright 2012 Stephen Russell-Lacy

As a clinical psychologist, Stephen Russell-Lacy has specialised in cognitive-behavioural psychotherapy, working for many years with adults suffering distress and disturbance.

He edits Spiritual Questions a free eZine that explores links between spiritual philosophy and the comments and questions of spiritual seekers. You can share your views and find out more about making sense of life.

His book Heart, Head and Hands draws links between the psycho-spiritual teachings of the eighteenth century spiritual philosopher Emanuel Swedenborg and current ideas in therapy and psychology.

By Stephen P Flanagan

It can be tempting to turn on the television or pop in a movie to keep your kids occupied when the weather turns rainy. While these options have their place, it can be more fun to plan some indoor activities.

Old fashioned board games are always fun and don't need electricity or internet access which can be unreliable in stormy weather.

Have a treasure hunt with your children. Draw a treasure map for each child and instruct the children to go to a spare room while you hide the treasures. Once the treasures are hidden, they can follow their treasure map until they find their prize. It's a good idea to keep new inexpensive toys handy, but the children will have fun looking for just about anything.

Let the kids help you bake cookies. Older children can follow a simple recipe under your supervision, while younger children can use the cookie cutter and help decorate the cookies using sprinkles or sugar.

Turn lunch time into fun time by creating an indoor picnic. Lay a beach towel on the floor of any room, preferably close to a window for the outdoor effect, and set up a picnic lunch. The children will enjoy the novelty.

It's always fun to draw pictures, and you can add to the fun by helping the children create frames for their pictures and allowing them to find the ideal spot to hang their creations.

I Spy is a great indoor game. Have one person describe something in the room, and let everyone take turns guessing what the object is until someone guesses correctly. The person who guesses correctly gets to describe the next object.

Memory games are popular at baby showers and can also be fun on a rainy day. Place several items on a tray and cover them with a towel. Uncover the tray and let everyone look at the items for about one minute. Cover the tray again and have everyone write a list of the items. The person who remembers the most items wins.

Don't forget to remind your children to wash their hands regularly whether they are at home or away. A bottle of hand sanitizer is always handy when you don't have access to water and soap. Maintaining good hand hygiene is important, especially during the rainy season when everyone is confined indoors. A good rule to teach them is to recite the alphabet song while they are washing their hands. This will help them clean their hands thoroughly.

By C. J. Carter

Eight year olds driving? Fast?

Seriously, they do. At more than 100 drag strips around the country, kids from 8 to17 drag race. They do it in little half-scale dragsters that sit low to the ground, look like something from outer space and most often are painted with outrageous designs. More than 5,000 kids participate every year.

If you are like many people, when you think drag racing, you think about the movie "Grease" or about dangerous illegal street racing. Legal - and much safer - drag racing occurs at officially sanctioned drag strips where safety measures are paramount - which is not to say that drag racing is completely safe. lt's not. But legal drag racing leaves illegal street racing in the dust as far as safety goes.

Legal junior drag racing has a near perfect safety record. Rollovers do happen, and kids do get hurt, but not often, and sanctioning bodies require strict compliance to both manufacturing specifications for the race cars as well as to rules of racing.

Why would any parent consider letting their child get behind the wheel of a car and drive an eighth of a mile at speeds up to 85 mph? Well, says one former professional drag racer, "Kids are attracted to becoming mobile. There is a transition from tricycles and Hot Wheels to bicycles, first with training wheels and the big day when the training wheels come off. Most of us can remember wanting to be the fastest kid on the block. The notion of speed and winning comes early. By the time kids are around 7 years old, an interest in cars has begun. To think a kid could actually drive a fast car in competition would have to appeal to many children. When the drag racing sanctioning bodies introduced the category Junior Dragster, the door became wide open for kids to become interested in drag racing."

Though there has been no formal study, experts say there is quite a bit of anecdotal evidence that kids who have drag raced legally are better, safer drivers when they get their driver's licenses. They seem to have more respect for what can happen, observers say. And, many junior racers say that they feel safer on the track than on the road because when they are racing they are on the track with one other car, and, generally, they know where that other car is. On the road, there are many more variables.

One professional drag racer knows the perils of driving all too well. His two sons were killed in an automobile accident. As a result, he started an organization that teaches safe driving techniques to teenagers. Three thousand teens (and their parents) have gone through the school since 2008.

They learn about anti-lock brakes. There is a distraction course, a lane-change exercise, a wheel drop off exercise to teach the teens how to right their car if a tire drops off the shoulder of the road.

As for safety on the drag strip, this professional racer recommends the following for junior racers:

• When you're first starting, get another junior racer or a parent to come over and look at the car. They might notice, "Hey, the steering doesn't look that good or that tire doesn't look good."

• Before you race, be familiar with the car. "Sit in the car and visualize what you're going to be doing. OK, you're going to start the engine. You're going to roll through this water and spin the tires to clean them off a bit. Then you're going to stage the car and get used to how the brakes feel, how the throttle pedal feels. Visualize going down the track and what it will feel like. What are you going to do when you get to the end of the track? How do you get back to the pit area?"

Besides learning to race, this racer notes that junior racers learn about dealing with others. They learn about rules, following the rules. They might have to read the rule book and see how all of their equipment matches up to the rule book. He says there's a lot that can be learned from junior drag racing; maybe not just things that will help with drag racing, but with life in general.

By C.J. Carter

C.J. Carter is the author of "Junior Dragster Dreams: How Sam Found His Own Ride." ( http://juniordragsterdreams.com )

By Noah B Brown

Most people are hurting financially because the economy is so poor these days. People are cutting back on extras and entertainment, and have even had to cut back on other things. Living on a budget is hard enough, but when you throw children into the mix it can be downright difficult. These parenting tips can help parents and children live harmoniously and healthfully, even on a tight budget.

Cut Out the Fat

Most families spend money on unnecessary items at the grocery store. You can save money on spontaneous buys simply by making a grocery list. Check out the sales circulars and plan your meals in advance. Knowing what you will cook for the week will help you in making your list.

Both parents and children should be involved in the meal planning. This can be made into a game. Let the children look at the sales papers and find an inexpensive meal for the week. The kids will be pleased if they found a great deal, and he or she will be proud when the meal is served in the home. When parents and children work together for a specific goal, it greatly strengthens the child-parent relationship.

Ban the Beggars

It is doubtful that there is a person around who has not been in a supermarket and experienced the shrieks of "But Mommy, PLEASE - I want it". It is not only annoying to the customers, but also embarrassing to the parent. This behavior is never acceptable, and certainly should not be rewarded.

Parents and children should sit down and talk about what the rules are while out shopping. Explain that you expect good behavior. It's alright to tell the kids that if they behave properly while shopping, they can get a treat after the shopping is finished. The kids should also be aware of the consequences for inappropriate behavior. Remember, child discipline is necessary for bad behavior, while offering a reward for good behavior.

Go Easy on the Electric

One of the easiest ways to save money is on electricity. Both parents and children can do this with little effort. There are numerous ways to cut down on electricity that can be fun for both parents and children.

Many budget-conscious families enjoy having an electric free Saturday. This is easy to do and really a lot of fun. The only real rule is that nothing that uses electricity can be used for the whole day. This opens up a world of great activities that parents and children would rarely try.

A lot of Dad's love barbequing, so only cook meals on the grill. It'll be lots of fun for the kids to see Dad getting all three meals cooked on the grill. Snacks such as S'Mores and toasted marshmallows can be made on the grill too. Most parents and children think food on the grill is awesome.

During the day, you can play board games, have races or just talk. These things will all improve the child-parent relationship. You can even go for a walk or plant a garden, as long as nothing the parents and children do requires electricity.

At night, you can play flashlight tag, hide-and-seek or simply tell stories by the glow of candles. This old-fashioned way of having fun will not only save money, but also makes the child-parent relationship stronger.

As with everything, you may want to have a penalty for using electricity. Even though an electricity-free Saturday is fun, you may want to resort to child discipline for violations of electric use. Many parents feel that using child discipline during a fun outing will harm the child-parent relationship. This is not true. It simply shows the child that rules must always be followed, and there will always be consequences for violating the rules.

By Mike R Miller

With all of the recent cutbacks in secondary education across the country one program that has taken a serious hit of late are health programs. These are comprehensive classes that cover everything from the human body and sex education to anti-alcohol and anti-drug messages.

The problem of high school education is grave and far too deep for me to solve. However, I have long been a proponent of high school classes being more geared to post-school life, especially in 11th and 12th grades. Judging from the last sentence you know that I think we must keep our health classes.

An even crazier idea is that there be two separate high school paths. As it stands now, it is a difficult balance because there is so much stress and pressure to get into college that those striving for higher education can't seem to take enough college-level academic courses, while playing three sports two instruments and holding class office. Where is there room for health and PE?

On the other side, for those with no expectations of college, they need to be better prepared to enter the work force. Things were much better when I was a kid. At least we had auto shop and home economics. Some high schools even had welding, plumbing and electrical classes. This group certainly does not need to take calculus or even chemistry and physics.

Our education system needs to get back to what's important. Academically, we need to teach them to read, write, basic mathematics and how expand upon what is written and said in a thoughtful way.

But so too must we educate them the most basic things all humans really need to survive. This is your high school health class. This should be more than a one semester elective, it needs to become a mandatory staple in every high school classroom in America.

It is not ironic that teens are actually at a perfect age to learn what is taught in health class. They need to learn about their bodies. They need to understand what they are going through. They need to try and come to some sort of possible grasp of what is going inside their rapidly-changing bodies.

Teens need not only learn, but feel the message about how their bodies respond to external and internal stimuli. Peer pressure is much-better handled with a health education class.

Now with hormones and peer pressure throw in the rebellious possibility of illegally drinking alcohol and taking illicit drugs. Health class addresses these very issues. An important part of health class is alcohol awareness class.

There is not one high school student, despite the path they may choose later in life, who cannot benefit from a high school health class, complete with a drug and alcohol class.

As a society we must continue to look outside the box at our children's education. We have to keep in sight of what is truly important. We must help them grow and mature so that they too can become responsible adults. Health and alcohol awareness classes are crucial to the future of our society.

By Todd Leavitt

Providing growing children with play sets is one of the best ways in which you can encourage their development. Outdoor play sets, in particular, are wonderful for enhancing almost every aspect of a child's growth and development. By setting up such and encouraging your children to play on it, you can ensure that they are getting the physical activity they need as well as important opportunities for socialization and learning. Play sets are probably a lot different from when you were a child, however, so it is important to understand the different types available, and how they can help your children have fun and grow as people at the same time.

Basic sets are very similar to what you may remember from growing up. It is possible to purchase a high-quality wooden set with a slide and swings for your children that will give them hours of fun. On the other hand, extremely elaborate sets are also available. These play palaces typically feature a slide and swings, but they also can include bridges, climbing walls, playhouse structures, tire swings, monkey bars, and many more features. Customization is possible in most cases, as well, if you are looking to design the ideal play apparatus for your children.

One thing to remember is that bigger, more elaborate play set is more conducive to higher numbers of children playing on them. The last thing you want is for any child to feel left out, which is why you should obtain one that is big enough for your family, as well as the occasional group of neighborhood friends. By offering a play set with numerous available activities, you can be sure that your children and their friends have enough to do without leaving anyone out of the mix. However, you should also encourage sharing and playing well together. This means that you will want to install one that offers adequate room, but also allows for children to play collaboratively.

Once you have decided upon your needs in terms of available activities and overall size, you should decide what type of material should be used in the sets construction. If possible, you should invest in a wooden type made from strong and durable wood like cedar. Cedar ones can be costly, but the investment is well worth the amount of fun that will be had. Also, wooden outdoor play sets are the toughest and safest available. If you are one of those parents who is preoccupied with safety concerns, they can offer you peace of mind.

There are many options available when it comes to purchasing a play set for your children. Outdoor play sets are very popular and they offer numerous opportunities for play and development. By installing such a set, your children and their friends can enjoy years of fun and rewarding play. Be sure to do your research before buying so that you can install the perfect one for your children and your property.

By Todd Leavitt

The simple act of sitting on a swing and gliding to and fro is enlivening, exciting and surprisingly enriching. In fact, wooden play sets that incorporate a variety of activities can provide children with numerous benefits, ranging from health improvements to dramatic increases in self-confidence. Backyard play sets encourage children to be active, healthy and engaged.

The safe, durable features of these play equipment ensure that kids can experiment with their different physical strengths and abilities while remaining free of danger. Whether using wooden ladders or climbing rope ladders to navigate the various levels of backyard play sets, kids will be using the entirety of their muscles, developing spatial awareness and learning to use caution as they move forward with courage.

Slides are certainly exciting to shoot down, whether sitting on your bottom or lying on your stomach or back. Most wooden play sets, however, feature slides that provide enough traction for upwards climbing. Younger children love using their thigh muscles and firm hand grips to oppose the forces of gravity. Even as they feel as though they are breaking all the rules when climbing up the slide rather than sliding down it, theses are increasing their motor skills, coordination, balance and abdominal strength. Outdoor play is one of the best forms of physical exercise a child can get and active kids are able to avoid childhood obesity and other health issues that can arise from a sedentary lifestyle.

More importantly, the best wooden play sets can be a veritable blank canvas for the imagination. Children can make of them anything they choose, whether pretending to be isolated princesses in far away castles or valiant knights defending their forts. These structures provide the ideal activities for stimulating the brain and keeping children entertained. Many parents will be surprised to discover that the one-time cost of purchasing them is often comparable to purchasing the newest gaming system with included accessories and several games. Best of all, backyard play sets are far easier to maintain and will retain their value for years to come.

For parents, wooden play sets present a number of benefits. This is a great, cost-effective way to ensure that kids live active, healthy lives without constantly having to walk or ride to the park. While enjoying public recreational facilities can certainly be fun, there is always the stress and hassle of keeping a close eye on the children, resolving sharing issues among other kids that are present and more. With the right outdoor amenities in place, parents can enjoy a good book or simply take advantage of the peaceful, stress-free time that the structure provides.

Kids that have the opportunity to grow up with wooden play sets are generally more adventurous than those who spend much of their childhoods in front of the television. Using a familiar obstacle course these kids are able to slowly build their coordination and confidence to superior levels. The continued use of imagination in play helps to promote the development of good dispositions and easy contentment.

By Poh Weng Sin

Just like adults, kids love riding on 4 wheelers too. It provides the ultimate off-road experience to your child for a fun and entertaining activity without having to buy fuel operated vehicles that the kids may not be ready to handle.

There are various reasons to purchase one of these exciting toys for your kids. With the popularity of these four wheelers on the rise, there are even electric four wheelers that are very famous among the younger generation. Four wheelers are also commonly known as ATVs, which is the short formed for all-terrain vehicle. These practically make great gifts to your child while providing them practical ATV riding exposure that can be really exciting for the young age. These 4 wheelers are safe and age appropriate for kids, as they travel at low speeds and therefore do not impose any dangers to the young riders. Fuel operated 4 wheelers are way too large and too fast for the kids as opposed to the smaller electronic types.

4 wheelers will give children and youths alike the chance to improve on their motor dexterity when they are young. Kids who often ride on 4 wheelers have better developed motor skills to get them ready in the future to control a normal and larger ATV. Not only will it benefit the child to use an ATV when they are older, a lot of other vehicle type has similar techniques required to operate that they may easily have control over with such a skill. These 4 wheelers for kids now come in lots of cool designs to choose from. It ranges from the most popular cartoon characters to cool monster trucks designs to attract children of any age. Apart from that, you can also easily find these 4 wheelers that resemble any other vehicle types such as monster trucks, cars, bikes and so much more. This ensures that every kid manages to find a 4 wheelers to suit their preference.

Besides increasing their motor skills for better comprehension in the future, these 4 wheelers are also a great way to keep children occupied and also keeping them proactive. Kids who often spend time with outdoor activities such as riding 4 wheelers are usually healthier and are able to socialize and interact better using fun and games. Of course, it is also vital for the parents to provide appropriate supervision and guidance to their child when handling their electric four wheelers to avoid any unfortunate events from occurring.

All in all, four wheelers are a great solution to get your kids out in the air to have some fun while reaping some useful benefits from it too.

By Todd Leavitt

Wood swing sets and playground sets can be an excellent choice for parents who want to encourage their children to play outside and get exercise. There are many design options available to those who consider these products, and they can range in size as well. Playground sets can provide hours of fun for children of all ages, and most sets today are built with safety and long-term durability in mind.

Outdoor play equipment is a great way to get children interested in playing outside. The more time they spend outside getting exercise, the less likely they will be to become obese. Getting fresh air can even help to boost a person's mood, and having a fun place to play right in the backyard can make it easier for children to get much needed outside time.

Even a basic, two or three seat swing set can be a great addition to a family's backyard. Other families may choose to add a slide or two to their playground set, or maybe a tire swing or trapeze. Smaller sets can still be fun, and because they are meant to last, they might even be there for the grand kids to play on!

For those who believe that bigger is better, playground sets can get very large and elaborate. Some come with rock walls, racing wheels, and monkey bars. While bigger sets cost more, they can also accommodate more children. Big families and families that frequently babysit other children may be interested in a larger set for their backyard. Also, a bigger set means more to explore and play with, and children will be less likely to get bored with their play equipment.

Some parents may balk at the thought of installing their own wood swing sets or playground sets. This is not a good reason to avoid buying this equipment. Many of today's models are relatively simple to install, and come with easy to follow assembly guides. Depending on where you buy your set, you may be able to get an employee from the company to install it for free, or at low-cost. If that option is not available to you, many companies may be able to direct you to an installer in your area that can help assemble your product.

Having a playground in your own backyard can be a great experience for children, especially those who live far from a park. It can also be a big convenience to parents who may not have the time to take their children to the park regularly. Sending children, even older ones, to play at a park alone can be very dangerous these days, and even children who are accompanied by a parent can face greater dangers at a public park than they would at home. Children who have their own playground will be able to enjoy it almost everyday, and they will surely store up many great memories that will stay with them forever.

Looking for quality wood swing sets and playground sets? KidsGottaPlay.com has been providing safe, quality, creative, and exciting play equipment for families to enjoy.