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The Real World Starts Early: Turn Your Education Into Experience by Craig Middleton shows how healthy competition and challenges push people to achieve more in school, life, and work. When you push yourself to best your prior achievements, your future continually develops, progresses, and never stalls. You will continue to gain new real-world experiences if you develop the habit of maximizing opportunities early in your education. This is a message we need to share with our children.

High school sets the stage.

• Today’s high school students have moved past traditional models. Now they can have flexible schedules with online classes and save money on education through advanced placement (AP) courses, effectively starting their college career in high school. Some American teenagers can even experience internships and part-time jobs with experimental “night school” high schools cropping up.
• These contemporary approaches give students a head start to the real world, where time management and financial accountability exist without school bells and teachers as motivators. More common options help teenagers leap into mature mindsets earlier.
• College prep classes, or the most rigorous academic track their schools offer, indicate students won’t stop at a diploma but will pursue future plans.

• College entrance exam prep courses are an investment in more numerous college choices and should result in higher test scores many employers review for young hires.

• Extracurricular activities, including sports, train students in teamwork and group mindset that professional full-time work depends on.

• Volunteer work, like tutoring, pushes young people to apply their knowledge and strengths beyond themselves as they grow into their careers.

Work yourself into the real world

• After education, part-time work should be the next early valuable introduction to reality. Summer and after school jobs can pay for educational expenses, give exposure to careers and build a starter resume. From the moment you sign your new hire agreement or fill out a W2 form online, you will feel steps closer to independence past student life.
• Apply early. Research hiring processes and visit potential employers ahead of dates you can start. In spring, actively begin your search for summer work.

• Have references. Teachers, principals, and counselors can best connect your strengths for a job to your performance and commitment to education. They may also be the best resources to learn about internship programs and highly meaningful work.

• Keep perspective. Take advice from future and current employers seriously. The real world is full of rejection, so consider applications and interviews practice even if no job offers arrive.

• Finish gracefully. Education and first jobs are the foundations for recommendations you will need for more education and better jobs. Avoid missing hours, arrive on time and keep working until you give proper notice to leave for your next opportunity.

Further your education for a purpose.

• You must have substance behind your diploma, certificate, and degree collection. Good grades are adequate goals to start high school, but in the real world, achievement must create tangible results. In fact, high grades can be false indicators of capabilities since more teachers inflate them out of pressure to validate stressed students.
• Whether you are deciding on a college major or plotting a return back to school, retain personal mission and purpose in all you do. Aim for more than money as a driving force.
• Mentor younger students and professionals in programs you completed successfully.
 Volunteer somewhere related to your dream career or current field.

• Connect with fellow alumni for a strong future network.
 Share your time when others need your advice or recommendations.
• Plans to further your education and gain experience in the real world can start at any time, but the sooner the better. That way, you will be practiced in a seamless transition to more complicated stages and changes when they arrive.

Craig Middleton

• Craig is a New York City-based retired business consultant, who is an expert in education and cultural trends. He has a Masters of Business Administration and a Masters in Education from St. Johns and loves sharing his knowledge on the side through his writing. If you have any questions or comments you can direct them to Craig at craigmiddleton18@gmail.com.

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Introduction

• Learning should be a lifelong thing. It should also be something you encourage outside of traditional education. When you send your child away each morning to school, you might think that learning stops when they close the doors for the day or when homework is done. But the truth is, your child should be constantly learning throughout the day. Children always need to be stimulated for proper brain development. That means that from the time your child comes home from school to their bedtime, they should be learning something, whether it’s a simple rule or an important concept. This will not only keep him or her brain working, but it’ll also make them more eager to learn while they sit in a classroom.

1. Help Your Child Discover Interests and Passions

• Expose your child to different experiences so that she can discover what she enjoys doing. Taking her to places like museums, theatrical performances, zoos, etc. will give her a variety of experiences she can choose from and learn from. You can also take your child to your local library to check out books on a variety of topics. He can pick out books he’s interested in, which can help him discover his passions. This can also help determine what he chooses as a career path down the road.

2. Share Your Passions

• You can also share your own interests with your kids. Sharing what you enjoy doing will spark curiosity, dedication and creativity in your children. It will also show them skills that are specific to your interests. You can talk to your kids about a new recipe you want to try, interesting articles you came across, or funny experiences you’ve had throughout your life. This process encourages learning. While not in a traditional classroom setting, sharing your passions and experiences with your children can help them develop a desire to learn. As they take in new information from a person they trust and look up to, they’ll be more open to learning experiences at school.

3. Provide Hands-On Experiences

• Hands-on experiences are great for solidifying a concept and bringing it to life. They also make learning a lot more enjoyable because they involve activities that keep children busy and engaged. For example, if your child is taking a class in earth science, take him outdoors to collect rocks. Or if she’s learning about aquatic animals at school, take her to the aquarium. These experiences will make learning an adventure for your child and make her more willing to take in and retain new information in class.

4. Make Learning Fun

• To some kids, learning can be a bore, especially if it’s one of their least favorite subjects. Did you know that you can turn the dullest subjects into a learning adventure? Songs, academic games, scavenger hunts and creative activities like art projects, music or writing are all great ways to make learning a fun and enjoyable experience for kids. Many teachers are doing this as well, so if you’re doing it at home, you’re providing your kids with double the fun and double the learning.

5. Promote Reading

• Being a lifelong learner isn’t about learning specific concepts, lessons and hard skills like negotiation training. It’s more about the soft skills you gain from certain experiences. Reading, for example, helps children develop the ability to ask questions, test hypotheses and learn other points of view. Regardless of the subject, reading helps kids perfect these skills and more.
• This means that you should keep a ton of books in your home to teach your child to love learning. Keep engaging and immersive stories on hand to keep your kids interested and eager to dive in.
• Many kids don’t enjoy learning, especially if it involves sitting in a classroom all day. What matters is how you encourage learning at home and away from the classroom. Your child will thank you for it later.

Craig Middleton

• Craig is a New York City-based retired business consultant, who is an expert in education and cultural trends. He has a Masters of Business Administration and a Masters in Education from St. Johns and loves sharing his knowledge on the side through his writing. If you have any questions or comments you can direct them to Craig at craigmiddleton18@gmail.com.

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Embrace Learning-Based Games for Children by Craig Middleton will give parents and teachers some idea about how to use games in a developmentally appropriate manner. If you aren’t playing word and number games with your kids it may be time to start. Thanks, Craig.

Introduction

• Games are often considered as a fun tool to distract a child or something to play on a rainy day, however, games can also offer a wonderful benefit to children. Through many stages of childhood, kids can play games to enhance their development, build skills and also have a great time. While these vary by age group, there are games for almost every age, so consider these as you look to game options for your students or children.

Memory Games<

• Games that test a child’s memory and allow them to practice are a wonderful tool as their young minds grow. For young children, this can begin with recognizing, memorizing and simple matching of a few variations of shapes and colors or animals that are flipped to conceal the card. This game can provide children with the opportunity to practice their short-term memory and work to build that muscle. With memory games, it is important to utilize age-appropriate tasks. By offering a toddler a memory game involving many options and choices, you may find yourself with a frustrated, melting down child, as this is developmentally beyond their means. As children age, using the same game with increased variations and options can increase the level of difficulty and challenge them further. This may include subjects of art, locations and people to add additional obstacles to navigate.

Language and Letter Games

• Letters are introduced to children at very young ages, however, discerning their properties and understanding how letters go together will come at a much later developmental stage. Age-appropriate language games that involve the use of letters can be a fun way to embrace learning and supplement their education at home. Whether you are choosing a game that matches one letter to reflect the first letter of a corresponding picture for a young child or using letter gram games to utilize your kiddo’s vocabulary, there are limitless options. The importance of choosing games that can support the development of language, letters and words can be influential and helpful as your child gets older. Additionally, by gamifying language, you find yourself making learning fun and enjoyable while supporting their development.

Math and Number-Based Games

• Just as learning language skills can be influential in a child’s life, so can be learning numbers and math. Not everyone associates the concept of fun and enjoyment with math and numbers, as these tend to be analytically based concepts. However, by offering an entertaining outlet, we can teach them that the analytical areas can be just as fun. Many games offer children the ability to practice math skills and number-based tasks. For younger children, this may be adding simple numbers to understand the scoring system of a game and for older children, they may be able to practice logical reasoning and numbers with a game like sudoku. For all of these options, children find themselves practicing the use of numbers and reasoning, benefiting their education and building skills while playing and enjoying the landscape that is educational games.

Social Skills

• Developing social skills is a pivotal component of a child’s progression and can be essential as they grow older. Many games, including some of those listed above, can offer the practice of social skills, whether that be sharing, taking turns, offering explanations or any other variety of human interaction. By providing children with the opportunity to engage with others and learn various social skills, we can engage them in a practice that will be increasingly influential as they age. While many games focus on the sole purpose of establishing and putting social skills into practice, countless games offer these same benefits just by the nature of being a game.
• While the importance of games can often be quickly looked over, it is important to acknowledge the influential nature of games on learning. Not all games will offer children the same benefit, but there are opportunities to enhance their learning experience and enjoy some entertainment all at once.

Craig Middleton

• Craig is a New York City-based retired business consultant, who is an expert in education and cultural trends. He has a Masters of Business Administration and a Masters in Education from St. Johns and loves sharing his knowledge on the side through his writing. If you have any questions or comments you can direct them to Craig at craigmiddleton18@gmail.com.

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