Archive for the ‘Guest Posts’ Category

Supporting Your Child’s Education During COVID-19 by Emily Graham offers advice from a parent to other parents facing the challenge of helping their kids do some or all of their learning at home. Like her, you can learn to take advantage of the fact that when kids are learning a home, the parents can better understand what their students are learning and are in a better position to help them learn.

Introduction

• The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed many parents into double duty as at-home and online teachers — which, in some ways, provided a front-row seat to watching their children’s educational progress. If you’ve noticed your child struggling in particular areas or you want to supplement their education with a little extra help, there are myriad ways to do this in a fun and meaningful way. Dr. Doug Green is a seasoned practitioner who provides educational advice to education professionals and parents about how to ensure kids become lifelong learners.

How Does Your Child Learn?

• Not all people digest information in the same way. According to Scholastic Parent, some kids are visual learners, while others are linguistic, musical, or spatial learners. Your child may even be an experiential learner who absorbs and retains information by doing things rather than being shown techniques. Understanding how your child connects with content and information can help you find beneficial ways to help them engage, study, and develop fundamental skills and knowledge.

Talk to Your Child’s Teacher

• Your child’s teacher is an exceptional resource when it comes to helping you supplement his or her education. Stay in regular contact, and ask where your child is struggling and where he or she is excelling. Ask for recommendations for additional resources, like websites, reading materials, and study groups. Become familiar with what your child is studying in school, and look for ways to build on concepts outside the classroom. According to the Parent Institute, your child’s teacher is your partner — find ways to work together as a team

Promote Learning in Disguise

• As humans, we all learn new things every single day, often without even recognizing it. Once you’re familiar with what your child is studying, integrate
  elements into everyday life. For example, if your preschool-aged child is learning to sort things by size, ask your child to line things up on a pantry shelf from smallest to largest when you’re putting away groceries. If your high-schooler is in a current events class, ask them to talk to you about what they read in the news, how they feel about it, and what it means to them in terms of the state of our society. Not only do these approaches support and reinforce learning, they also allow you to engage with your children on a new level.

Make Learning Fun

• It’s no secret kids love their screens, but you can use that to your advantage. You can find numerous online educational games and books that have likely been made into movies or programs your child enjoys. Look for the crossover and discuss the differences and similarities. This is yet another way to meet kids where they are — via material and mediums they’re already drawn to. These activities can be family affairs, and older kids can help younger ones, as well.

Ask Questions

• Another way to help your kids learn is to ask them questions. What do you think about that? What do you think that means? What did you like best about the book? What was your least favorite part of that program? Why? You will be amazed at the insights you get into your child’s learning style and outlook. This is also a way to share your perspectives, impart values, and not simply help “teach” a subject, but also ingrain concepts and convey problem-solving and comprehension skills that will help your kids throughout their lives.

Ask for Help

• If you or your child needs a little extra professional help navigating certain subjects or the current learning environment, there are numerous resources to tap into. Consider hiring a tutor, either online or in person. If your child has special needs of any type, ask about the creation of an IEP or individual education plan that meets his or her specific challenges. For kids with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), staying focused, especially in a home-schooling environment, can be a challenge, but there are ways to help them adapt and thrive. For example, some studies show that listening to music can help kids with ADHD focus better. Kids’ education is of paramount importance to both parents and educators. For insights, tips, and best practices, consider Dr. Doug Green’s services.

Emily Graham

• Emily is the creator of Mighty Moms. She believes being a mom is one of the hardest jobs around and wanted to create a support system for moms from all walks of life. On her site, she offers a wide range of info tailored for busy moms — from how to reduce stress to creative ways to spend time together as a family. She lives in Tucson, AZ, and can be reached by email at emilygraham@mightymoms.net.

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Image Source: Pexels

Teaching kids how to be safe online can feel like a full-time job for parents and educators. Worrying about things like cyberbullying, predators, and scammers is one thing. But, it’s just as important to teach kids how to identify online health misinformation.

Even adults are guilty of occasionally believing medical information online that isn’t true. When was the last time you Googled your symptoms for something and believed the first thing you read? Teaching kids how to identify that misinformation early on can make a big difference in how they view their well-being and the type of information they take seriously.

With that in mind, let’s touch on why health misinformation is so rampant online, in the first place. Then, we’ll cover why that information can negatively impact the relationships kids have with their doctors and scientists, and what you can do to teach the children in your life how to clearly identify false health information. The strategies you put in place for them now can foster a healthier future.

Image Source Pixabay

A Mountain of Misinformation

Again, you’ve likely fallen victim to reading false medical information online at least once before finding out the truth. It’s not difficult to try to do effective research only to find that so much of what’s published online isn’t true – even if the information looks like it’s coming from a reputable source.

Why is that? Why does there seem to be so much health misinformation online, when people really just want to better understand their symptoms?

Unfortunately, a lot of it has to do with website popularity and even making money. Developers often go to great lengths to make their sites look like trustworthy sources. They might cite false statistics or quote professionals that don’t really exist. They’ll look like reputable news sources, and offer up information that isn’t based in reality. For every person that visits their website, clicks their links, or subscribes to their newsletters, they’re growing their audience and making more money.

Social media has made it even worse, allowing people to share these sites and stories with friends and family members. If your child sees a social media post about a specific health issue shared by a close relative, they’re likely to believe it’s true.

The Negative Impact of False Health Information

Health misinformation online is dangerous for everyone, but it can be especially problematic for young, impressionable minds. Not only can misinformation be somewhat frightening and confuse kids about what’s real and what’s not, but it can lead to a lack of faith in both healthcare professionals and scientists.

Nowadays, it’s not uncommon for patients to leave their doctors because of a lack of trust, or because they think their doctor has poor communication skills. By teaching kids to identify health misinformation online, you’ll also teach them how to improve their health literacy, which can bolster their relationships with doctors as they grow into adults. They’ll feel more comfortable opening up about their health concerns with their doctors, which can help when it comes to catching conditions early and learning more about how to adopt healthy lifestyles.

They’ll also feel more confident in their understanding of basic health principles. So, it’s less likely they’ll be swayed by false information that doesn’t line up with scientific facts. Fake websites, news, and social media posts aren’t going anyway. The more you educate today’s younger generations on how to spot and avoid those fake accounts, the easier it will be to stop that misinformation from spreading.

Image Source Pexels

How to Teach Kids to Spot Health Misinformation

The easiest way to teach kids to spot health misinformation online is to encourage them to surf like a scientist. It’s always important to make sure kids aren’t believing everything they read online, but that’s especially true when it comes to medical information. Some of the best ways to help them spot it include:

Reading past headlines
Avoiding promises that are “too good to be true”
Considering sources
Thinking twice before they share something

You should also teach them to know how to back up any information they find. If they see a specific statistic, treatment option, or medical issue, information about it should be readily available from official medical websites, and it should have research to back it up. Encourage students to use those platforms in their research, instead of just relying on the familiarity of social media platforms and influencers on YouTube. Influencers are often willing to do whatever it takes to gain subscribers and followers. Sometimes, that includes spreading misinformation – even if they aren’t doing it knowingly.

Using edtech to protect and inform your students is another great tool to put in their arsenals. Health apps from medical facilities, VR simulations, and specific technologies that teach kids more about science can all make it easier for them to combat false information, feel more confident in their healthcare professionals, and better prepare them for the future.

Amanda Winstead

Amanda is a freelance writer out of Portland, focusing on many topics, including educational technology. Along with writing, she enjoys traveling, reading, working out, and going to concerts. If you want to follow her writing journey or even just say hi, you can find her on Twitter @AmandaWinsteadd.

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Technology Today: the Virtual Big Brother by Vaishnavi Agrawal offers a warning of how one’s Internet activity can result in negative consequences for anyone intent on even minor mischief. Her Big Brother metaphor is as scary as it is accurate. The good news it that the Internet has allowed me to collaborate with someone on the other side of the world (India).

Vaishnavi Agrawal

• Vaishnavi loves pursuing excellence through writing and has a passion for technology. She has successfully managed and run personal technology magazines and websites. She currently writes for Intellipaat.Com a global training company that provides e-learning and professional certification training.

Caring for Your Digital Fingerprints

• For last couple of years, it has often been suggested that you should not lie about yourself or your intentions online. You are not only leaving digital fingerprints on your device, but also on the device of every individual involved in the conversation. This also includes a number of other servers on the Internet. Considering the immorality of lying, one may argue that this particular advancement is not for the good. Under the veil of recreation, you may see information pertaining to a particular individual in immense quantity, which is more often than not voluntarily broadcasted. This means that we must consider the fact that our digital existence can supersede our organic one in many ways.
• For many of us, our digital lives make us seem better looking, more popular, better qualified, have a better profession and even a better lifestyle. This can make one wonder if it’s possible to fathom the relevance of this relatively redundant activity. I see that it is not just a matter of tangibility, but also of concentration and focus. Now the amount of time and energy that is dedicated to creating, maintaining, and sustaining a digital life eats away at the basic necessity of doing the same for the real one.

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Teen Driving Basics: What Your New Driver Should Know About Car Maintenance by Mark Conor offers excellent advice for parents who are preparing a child to assume the responsibilities of driving a car. While Mark started this effort due to his son’s ADHD condition, this advice is good for parents of all children. Thanks Mark.

Introduction

• Getting a driver’s license is a right of passage for almost every teenager and many cannot wait to hit the road once they have passed the written and road tests. Parents have a lot to consider when it comes to letting their newly-licensed teens drive, and teaching them car maintenance basics should be near the top of the list.

Evaluate whether your teen with ADHD is truly ready to drive

• There are plenty of steps to take before handing over the keys and letting your teen hit the road unsupervised. For teenagers with ADHD, this list of steps may be a bit lengthier. The Learning Disabilities Association of America points out that the executive function challenges that come with ADHD can make driving safely particularly difficult, but that doesn’t mean that these teenagers can’t be successful behind the wheel.
• Parents should evaluate their teen’s ability to handle the basics of driving as well as their ability to maintain focus and make safe decisions on the road. Some teens with ADHD do better when they wait until they are a bit older to start driving, and CNN details that maintaining a regular medication schedule can help too. If a teen is too impulsive or inattentive to keep up with driving and maintenance basics, it would probably be wise to have them wait a while.

Teach teens the basics of vehicle maintenance

• Parents may want to create a written checklist or list in the notes on a smartphone to help their teen with ADHD keep track of car maintenance basics. A “pre-flight” checklist of items to review before hitting the road can be helpful and teens should walk through this list every time they get behind the wheel.
• She Knows suggests some basics regarding maintenance that teens should follow when they begin driving. For example, it is important to keep an eye on the gauges, including the gas level, temperature gauge, oil light, low coolant light, and check engine light. New drivers should get in the habit of getting an oil change regularly and they should also learn how to check the air in the tires and basic fluid levels under the hood. For other teen-friendly maintenance projects, see this list.

Walk through changing tires and managing blowouts

• Your Mechanic suggests that parents take the lessons regarding car maintence a step further. For example, teaching a teen to change a tire can come in quite handy. It is important to teach teens, especially those with ADHD, this process slowly and patiently, having them do the steps alongside you if possible.
• It may be wise to teach teens how to handle emergency situations like having a tire blowout while driving. Many people, including plenty of adults, panic at a time like this and cause additional damage or even injuries. When a blowout happens, it’s important to stay calm, hold on firmly to the steering wheel, and let the vehicle slow without using the brakes and get to the side of the road.

Prepare your teen for issues while on the road

• Jumping the battery is another car care basic that can come in handy for teenagers. InMotion includes this on their list of what teens should know about auto care and most adult drivers know that a dead battery is a common car-related issue. Jumping a battery isn’t difficult, but it’s a process that should be carefully explained to teens, especially those with ADHD who have challenges with focusing.
• There is a lot for teenagers to learn about car safety, driving rules, and maintenance before they hit the road, and this can be overwhelming for teens with ADHD. Parents should take things slowly and it can be helpful to create written checklists or a checklist to put on a teen’s phone to make it easy to remember what needs to be done. It may seem like a lot of work upfront, but preparing your teen with maintenance basics and an overall appreciation for a vehicle will serve them well as they hit the road and face challenges in the driving days ahead.

Mark Conor

• Mark created DriveSafely after his son, who has ADHD, started driving. He hopes the site will encourage teens and adults to make good decisions behind the wheel.

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