How to encourage healthy eating habits among children

Introduction:

Whether you have a toddler or a teen it is essential to develop healthy eating habits to encourage healthy growth. Sometimes, while growing up children may choose some unhealthy eating habits that may not seem serious at first but will cause a problem in the future. With the growing age of children, they may feel a little more hungry and also crave junk food. But as a parent, it is essential to develop healthy eating habits from the start. 

Children learn these habits by implementing them in their day-to-day life as well as watching their elders 

Importance of a healthy diet:

By providing your child with a healthy diet you ensure that their body is receiving all the essential vitamins and minerals they need for their growth and development. Poor nutrition during the growing years of your children may increase the risk of obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and coronary heart disease. Therefore it is extremely essential to know the importance of a healthy diet. 

Below are a few points that will help you develop healthy eating habits among children. 

Family Meal:

A family that eats together, stays together. A family meal is a comforting ritual for both parents and children. It builds a strong bond and also develops a good habit. Virtual learning, classes, playtime has occupied children and a good family meal can provide them a relaxing time to enjoy with their family over the dining table. Use this mealtime to connect with your child to know their interests and setbacks. 

Model the behaviour you want to see in them:

It is well said ‘Monkey see. Monkey Do!’. The best way to encourage healthy eating habits is to start eating healthy yourself. Children will imitate the right behaviour every day and will develop healthy habits. By eating right you will be sending the right message and educating them well!

With this also try to develop a positive perspective and educate them about overeating or respecting food that comes on their plate. 

Don’t bribe them to eat healthy:

Sometimes to finish everything on the plate parents bribe their child for dessert or any favorite item of their choice. Don’t try and control their food choice and get them to eat what you want them to eat. If they don’t enjoy it they won’t get any benefit from it!

Don’t forbid the food they like:

Perhaps your child is overweight. You could feel tempted to make some food completely off-limits, but “forbidden” foods are a draw for children, and they tend to overeat these foods whenever they get the chance. Instead, take a balanced approach by encouraging healthier treats and smaller portions of those treats. 

Conclusion:

Parents need not worry, in case if children acquire some wrong habits. We need to handhold them & educate them with the right knowledge, guidance, and support which will help overcome the wrong habits. Patience is the key if you really want them to learn something. 

At TAS, we ensure to focus on the holistic development of children and implant good habits in the right way so they can take them along in their future journey. Along with this, we keenly focus on their health and wellness. Being the best school in PCMC and the top school in Pune, we assure parents the best education for your child.

5 ways to improve your child’s memory

Introduction:

Memory along with creativity is considered an important part of building a solid foundation for learning, both in the classroom and in life. Having a great memory can help your child do better in school, perform well on tests, and will accompany them in the future as well. But sharp memory skills aren’t something that people are born with. These skills develop and improve the more they are used. Like any other skill, practice makes it perfect. 

Memory isn’t something you master in one day. To build memory, it is essential to make sure that your child is regularly working on his or her memory. Along with academics, it is also essential to know the importance of basic life skills that you can help your child with. 

Why is memory building so essential? 

A strong memory makes learning and understanding new things a lot easier. It helps children perform better at school and also enrich their experiences and build essential life skills.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic students, parents and teachers are struggling with virtual learning. Students have to deal with the stressful situation of attending classes online, which they are not used to. 

This makes it harder for them to understand and absorb a particular topic as students lack practical knowledge and experiment. Because of this your child might be lacking in studies and might not understand the concept easily.

Along with focusing on the best education for your child, it is also essential to look for the best ways to develop your child’s memory. Below are a few tips that will help parents in building their child’s memory. 

Colours:

Colours play a huge role in memory building, especially for younger children. It is also the reason why brands use bright colors because it catches attention easily. Making use of colours while teaching your children is another way to ensure that the information stays in their brains for a longer time. The use of colours helps in easy recall and is also found a great way in building memory. When studying it is recommended to get pens or markers of different colours to mark the different points as per their importance. You can also use sticky notes on the textbook which can be beneficial.

Ask your child to teach you:

It is said that if you have truly understood something it is easy to explain it to others. Use this trick with your children. When they learn some new topic, ask them to teach you or their younger sibling. This will make them sharper and will clear their doubts. It will also help them revise the concept over and over again which will help them memorize. 

Break information into smaller parts:

Learning one thing at a time will help your child understand the concept deeply and will also allow them to learn better. Start with small basics and later jump to the bigger topics. Organize the information with headings, lists, and colors to make it easier for your child to recall later. 

Utilize all the senses:

Practical learning is always better because it particularly engages the students in a specific object. Try to utilize all the senses when learning something. Make use of sight, touch, and sound—read aloud, have a conversation, or use props while learning. This helps engage your child with the material more than one way and makes it easier for them to understand. Giving your child a chance to process information through sight, sound, touch, and movement, can achieve better memory retention and learn beyond textbooks.

Create mind maps:

A mind map is a graphical way to represent ideas and concepts. It is a visual thinking tool that helps structure information, analyze, comprehend, synthesize, recall and generate new ideas. Creating a mind map will help your child come up with various ideas and imagination of how they relate to the topic. Building connections between words and topics help children actively engage with the material and develop a deeper understanding, which is an important part of memory. 

This also helps in boosting a child’s imagination powers, helps them focus better, and improves their concentration level. Also, it makes learning more fun and engaging. 

Building memory does not depend on mugging; it is about creativity, perseverance, and understanding a concept in your way. We believe that every child has the power to learn and conquer their dreams and TAS is the foundation that will help your child master their goals. 

Conclusion:

The pandemic has caused a very stressful situation for all of us. While managing the household chores and work from home we understand how hard it must be to pay attention to your child while he/she is learning. 

Sometimes children take a lot of time to understand things and concepts which can be a bit challenging for parents to explain. All you need is some guidance and tips to help your child master the memory game. We at TAS believe that every child is born unique and we must appreciate, support, and understand them. We at TAS deliver the best experience, to make virtual learning fun and easier for children. With the best education system, TAS is also one of the top schools in Pune and the best school in PCMC. This is because of the support of the faculty and the trust of parents. We assure you of our best teaching practices through a balanced dynamic well planned and structured curriculum. Which will allow your child to conquer every possibility in the future with knowledge and confidence.

Monsoon and Child Care

Introduction:

Catching raindrops on your tongue, jumping over puddles, the adventure of wading in knee-deep water, and a few extra school holidays. This is what children wait for when the academic year begins with the onset of the monsoon. Nasty visitors like viral fevers, malaria, and infectious disease turn up every year along with the first showers.

This is alarming for children who have developing immunity. 

We have to be cautious about their health and wellness, provide a little extra dose of care to our children and prevent them from catching any infection. 

Below are few tips that will help you in taking care of your child during monsoon season:

Tips to Protect Child from Rainy Season/Monsoon Diseases

Eat and Drink Healthy:

During the rainy season, children’s digestive systems become prone to infections. To maintain a healthy diet, we should prevent them from eating any outside food. We should not give them raw vegetables and salads unless they are consumed at home where we can wash them well. 

To build immunity and to fight against airborne and water-borne diseases, we should give our children Vitamin C enriched food. 

Food items such as lukewarm milk, and chicken or vegetable soup provide some comfort to your child if s/he catches a cold. Give your child only boiled or purified water. Clean water consumption helps in cleansing the digestive system by flushing out harmful toxins. 

Clean and Dry Homes:

We must keep our house clean and dry to avoid attracting insects. Take some steps to clean damp walls as they attract mold and fungus, which can cause asthma and breathing trouble among children. Dirty footwear should be removed before entering the house. You can use antiseptic liquids mixed in water for cleaning floors. Make sure the interiors of your house remain dry.

Use appropriate clothes:

Apart from using a Raincoat or umbrellas, dress your child in loose clothes made of cotton. This will allow their skin to breathe in a humid atmosphere and they won’t feel suffocated. If the weather gets too cold add layers of warm clothes. With this, socks are essential for toddlers to protect them from coughs and colds.

Always be prepared:

Monsoons can be quite unpredictable, so always carry an umbrella and a raincoat for your child if you are planning to take them outside. Also, before stepping out do check the weather for the next few hours so you and your child don’t catch the rain in between. 

Rain dance:

Who doesn’t love enjoying the rain? We all do and so do our children. But, don’t allow your child to get wet in the first monsoon shower because it contains the presence of mild acid which will cause an extreme drop in the body temperature of your child and will expose them to diseases. 

However, if your child gets wet in the rain, make sure that the child gets bathed with hot water immediately after drenching in the rain. You can also add a few drops of antiseptic liquid to their water to kill off the germs. Also, feed them hot food like a cup of hot milk, or soup that will keep them warm from the inside. 

Eye Troubles:

Eye infections like a corneal ulcer, dry eye, and conjunctivitis are very common infections in this season. Stop your child from touching or rubbing his/her eye unnecessarily. Consult a pediatrician as soon as possible if you notice any redness in your child’s eyes. Rinse their eyes with cooled boiled water to bring them relief.

NO Mosquitoes:

Don’t let the stagnant water stay for too long in/near your house, that can be a breeding ground for mosquitoes.  

Don’t forget to use mosquito nets or mosquito repellent patches for your child. Avoid mosquito coils as these may trigger an allergic cough in your child. Don’t allow your child to play near waterlogged places and educate your child to maintain proper hygiene and wash/ sanitize their hands frequently.

Encourage your child to drink plenty of water:

A well-hydrated body is better equipped to fight off flu and cold. Drinking enough water helps in cleansing the system and flushes out toxins like germs and bacteria from your child’s body. To ward off water-borne diseases only drink water that is boiled, or filtered.

Conclusion:

Such small moments like playing in rain give beautiful memories that are cherished by children forever. These small experiences matter in their lives a lot! but with this, we should also be careful about their health and well-being. These are simple actions which when implemented can keep your child away from monsoon diseases. With these steps, make sure there is no hindrance to your child’s enjoyment.

How To Keep Your Child Active During Virtual Learning

Introduction: 

With many schools and workplaces closed due to the Coronavirus pandemic, many of us have found ourselves dealing with a new, and often very stressful family situation. As well as having to work from home and run a household, you’re likely also trying to keep your children on track with their virtual school work. 

All while enduring the restrictions of social distancing and even being cut off from the support of friends and loved ones, the strain can be unrelenting. Due to the constant virtual online classes, there has been a constant exposure to screen time with very little physical activity. In all this, the children have started losing their playtime. The constant exposure to screens is damaging the eyesight and the posture of children is also being affected. 

In such times parents need to take care of their child’s overall being and physical fitness. 

Benefits of Physical Activity:

Exercise is vital to keep your child healthy and fit. Physical activity helps build and maintain healthy bones, muscles, and joints. Children even sleep better.

Physical activity also boosts a child’s mental and behavioral health. It increases a child’s enthusiasm and optimism and boosts your child’s self-esteem, performance in school, develops attention while learning or doing any activity, and also encourages good behavior. It also helps in reducing anxiety, tension, and depression. Not just that it can also foster teamwork and friendship when it’s part of an organized sport.

Below are a few tips that will help your child keep active after the virtual learning session.

Emphasize fun:

Help your child to find the sport she/he enjoys. Once they start enjoying and loving the sport they will continue to play. 

Engage them in craftwork:

Art allows children to develop their creativity which is important throughout their lives. By doing something creative, you allow your child to express themselves and their feelings in the form of Art. It helps in fostering mental growth in children by providing opportunities for trying out new ideas, new ways of thinking, and problem-solving. 

Encourage them in spending their time with nature:

The social and physical environment in which children learn can make a difference in their academic success. Letting children spend time in a setting with natural elements or allowing them to feel the beauty of nature can build a calm, and fun personality.  And being outdoors can also enhance their peer-to-peer relationships and student/teacher relationships needed for learning, even for students who feel marginalized socially. 

Schedule break sessions:

Take long walks or bicycle rides with your child. Use these breaks to relax, stretch, play or teach them to meditate for a short while. This will help them calm their senses and relax from long online lectures. 

Motivate them to help in household chores:

Allowing your child to help in small household chores will teach them to respect the work other people do! and it will also give them a satisfying feeling after completing the given task. 

Have a small cooking session:

Try to bake or cook with children. It’ll help them in learning a new activity plus will build your bond even stronger than before. 

Encourage them to read books that are beyond the syllabus: 

Daily reading can build critical thinking skills and expand their knowledge. Open a conversation with your child about the book she/he is reading which will help them in building great communication skills and will also encourage them in putting forth their point in terms of group discussion in the future. 

Conclusion:

To keep your child healthy and active is something every parent wishes for. Try these tips to keep your child engaged in a meaningful activity that will not only keep them occupied but will also teach them something valuable. 

We all know how hard it has been for students, parents, and teachers, to manage the virtual learning session. We hope this will end soon but until then, with our well-constructed academics, our faculty are trying their best to make these sessions engaging, fun, and effective for children and focus on their holistic development.

We assure you our best teaching through a balanced and dynamic curriculum that will allow your child to conquer their dreams and explore their imagination.