Get More Iron Into Your Child's Diet

In a previous post, I talked about how important iron is to mathematical achievement and I gave some healthy food options that contain iron. These included beef liver, spinach, and potatoes to name a few. Another way to get iron into your children's diet is by giving them cereal. Sure cereal isn't usually the healthiest food there is, but it does contain iron most of the time. Read the labels, and with all of the choices, I'm sure you can come up with a selection that both you and your child feel good about.

Importance of Nutrition In School Performance

I read in a Prevention article earlier this year that there was a study done that said iron deficiency in girls can cause them to do 2x as poorly as their peers in math. While we are urged to give our children the important nutrients they need for optimal health, this research suggests that nutrients are key to perform well in school, too.

The findings of this study prove that food is essential to a successfully functioning brain. What this means is that as parents we can't just sit back and allow our children to stuff whatever they feel like into their mouths. We must be proactive in getting them to ingest the vital nutrients that run their bodies optimally.

To get my kids to eat food that they may not find appeasing at first, I offer a smaller amount of it than foods I know they like and I tell them so. I tell them to eat what they don't like first because it is so good for their bodies. I have not only employed this tactic with my children, but I continue to use it on myself. It is the method I used to get the kids to eat beets, brussel sprouts, and brocolli, which they now love. I have learned to like yogurt and cottage chees and tolerate beets.

So much of getting our kids to eat different dishes is about exposing the dishes to them. How will a child eat what she hasn't seen?

But more than just exposing the children to the dishes is nudging them to actually taste them. If this means bribing your child, at least at first, I say OK. For every bite of something I want him to eat, he gets two bites of something he chooses. Let's be realistic. He's probably having what he chooses anyway. This way, he's also having something nutritious.

School aged children need anywhere from 8 to 15 milligrams of iron per day in their diets FROM FOOD, not supplements. Foods that contain iron are beef liver, spinach, lima beans, lentils, potatoes with skin, organic beef and chicken, and avocado. Incorporate these foods whenever possible with other foods such as salads and casseroles to get your children to secretly eat them.

Getting enough iron in their diets is just one way to help your child achieve in math. To view a 38 page book of strategies on how to help your child achieve in math, go to http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com.

How Your Presence at Extracurricular Activities Improves Math Skills

In a previous post I discussed the importance of being present in your child's school. While having a presence in the school is important, it is also important to be seen on the sidelines of the activities in which your child participates.

Many times students perform better academically when they know that someone is interested in them outside of school. They want to be supported for the activities that participate in outside of school, too. For this reason, I frequented many football games of the students that I taught, even though I don't know a thing about football. My students responded favorably by trying harder and doing better when they knew that I was interested in them outside of the classroom. So, too, will your child.

Take an interest in what interests her outside of school if possible. If you are just uninterested (like I was with football) go to the events and support her anyway. This will show her that you are there for her no matter what because you are willing to give up your own interests for hers. She in turn, will be willing to do something that she may not be totally comfortable with doing because it is important to you--like studying 5 or 10 minutes more or spending less time talking on the phone.

There are many ways that you can help your child achieve in math, without picking up a pencil. For a 38 page book of strategies on how to help your child achieve in math go to http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com.

Don't Give Up Your Kids To The System, The School System That Is!

As my two kids were having a private conversation I heard, "Give up your kids?" in an incredulous tone from my 6 year old daughter. That started me to thinking of how many people unknowingly give up their kids to an educational system that may or may not work for them.

As a parent, it is your responsibility to make sure that your children get everything they need. Not just the bare necessities of food, shelter, and clothing but the more meaningful attributes that they will take with them for the remainder of their lives. These include love, first and foremost, security, and yes, education.

So why do so many parents enroll their children in school and expect the system to do the rest? Have we not learned that the system fails at least as many as it helps? The scary truth is that in order for your children to be successful in obtaining a good education, YOU will have to delve deep and determine what a good education is and help them get it.

How? Many people have read or been told that children do better when parents are a part of their school lives. I concur. However, that doesn't mean that you must spend hours completing his math project so that he will get a good grade. While assisting with homework will help your child do better in school, there is another way that studies prove increases his achievement. Simply be a presence in his school. Go to the parent-teacher conferences, PTO nights, plays, and games. But more than that, help out around the school in various ways. Maybe you can donate some items for art, beautify the school grounds, assist a teacher by running some copies, answer the office phone, etc. The list is endless. Ask school personnel what you can do to help if you are unsure where to start.

What if you work?

You don't have to be in the school everyday or even every week for that matter. You can take a couple to four hours per semester to volunteer at your child's school during the day. Altogether, that's ONE day you will miss work for an entire year, and it's for a far better cause than watching a ball game! Imagine if 100 parents per school committed to spend 4 hours per semester in their children's schools. That's 400 hours, or 57 days per semester (based on a 7 hour school day) of extra, free workers in our schools, and 100 extra bodies making sure that our kids are safe!

For more strategies to help your child achieve in math, go to http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com for a 38 page book.

Learn While Exercising

A few days till Christmas. While it's easy to veg out in front of the TV and eat big, hearty meals, it's equally satisfying to get in a little bit of exercise.

If you don't see where you'll be able to get in a full fledged workout, that's OK. Do some situps during the commercials or some squats during a not-so-exciting part of the movie. As you exercise, ask your child to exercise with you. Then encourage her to share with you something that she's learned (or would like to learn) in math as she is exercising.

Some people learn best while being active, and even these relatively small tidbits of time can improve your child's math ability. Try to practice/exercise for 1-3 minutes at a time and work up to 10 minutes. As you and your child move some muscles, a bigger muscle will also be at work--the brain!

For a 38 page book of strategies to help your child improve in math, visit http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com.

Put Practice Into Play

The holiday break is upon us, and with it comes finding activities for the kids to do...besides watching TV. Consider setting aside a few minutes during each day for your child to practice basic (or advanced, depending on your child's level) math facts. Have him create a game like Jeopardy and play it against you, friends, and/or siblings. Of course, he probably knows the answers to all the questions since he made the game, but that doesn't make it any less fun!

Also, ask if the other people he'll be playing against wouldn't mind creating a game of their own. This will mean that your child has more practice and more fun.

Have your child write out important facts and time himself against himself. See how fast he can copy the facts the first time and record the information. Then have him do it a second time. Record that information. And so on. He should have a goal that he's working towards: i.e. "I'll copy these 20 facts down in 2 minutes." In this type of game, he competes with himself and it is just as fulfilling reaching your goal as it is winning a game when playing with someone else.

For a 38 page book filled with strategies, visit http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com.

How Effective Is Praise?

The subject of whether to praise or not has been (and probably will be) debated for years. As a strict disciplinarian both in and out of the classroom, I struggled with the idea of praising people for jobs that should be done anyway.

However, I decided to try it. The results were significant! My relationships grew stronger and my students did not hesitate to put forth even more effort.

Unlike the external symbols of well wishing, such as cards, gifts, money, etc, true praise penetrates the heart because it demonstrates that you care. People respond more favorably to genuine praise than to any other form of reward. So when I extended praises to my students and others in my life, I found that people responded more favorably to me and my requests, even if I asked something of them that they were reluctant to do.

I am convinced that we all want to hear those "warm fuzzies" sometimes, even when we scream that we don't. But genuine praise is much more than artificially inflating someone's ego. That, I won't do. Genuine praise declares that you have observed and appreciate another's efforts.

Even if you don't feel comfortable praising your child for her performance at this moment, find something else to praise her for--perhaps the effort that she's exuding or her perserverance. Take time to find some area where you can shower genuine praise on your child and others in your life. Try it daily for 5 weeks and see what happens.

Your relationships will grow stronger, barriers will be broken, and it will be easier to discuss other, perhaps more difficult things. You will see the person's resistance change to assistance. You will see an increased effort to please you, the praiser, and all around you things will seem easier, including tackling the subject of increased effort and better performance in math.

For more strategies that anyone can use to help their children achieve in math, visit http://HelpYourChildAchieveInMath.com for a 38 page e-book.