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Showing posts from January, 2025

Healthy Eating Habits In Children

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  Healthy eating habits in children are essential for their growth, development, maturity, and overall wellbeing. Teaching children healthy eating habits enables them to establish a strong foundation for a lifetime of wellness and optimal health. Here are some tips to promote healthy eating habits in children: 1. Parents and caregivers should show good examples to their children. Children often imitate their parents' eating habits; so parents and caregivers should model healthy eating habits for their children to emulate. 2. Expose your children to a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats.  3. Teach the children not to engage in overfeeding in order to avoid cases like constipation. They should stop eating once they feel full. 4. A positive atmosphere should be created for meals by turning off all screens, engaging in conversations, and conflicts. Note that meal time is not the right time to correct anybody who committed one offence o...

Mental Health In Children, Teenagers, and Adolescents

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    Mental health in children, teenagers, and adolescents refers to their emotional, psychological, and social wellbeing, including their ability to cope with challenges, form healthy relationships, and develop resilience. As the foundation for lifelong wellbeing, promoting mental health in children, teenagers, and adolescents is crucial for empowering them to survive in an increasingly complex and competitive world. To properly understand the mental health in children, teenagers, and adolescents, consider the following milestones:  1. Children (4-12 years old): * The common mental issues facing children of this age bracket are anxiety, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD). What are the meanings of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and oppositional defiant disorder? What are their characteristics? Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by symptoms of inattent...

Immunizations And Vaccinations For Kids

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 Immunizations and vaccinations are crucial for protecting children from serious and potentially life-threatening diseases. Find below typical vaccinations schedule for kids:  1. Newborn vaccines: * Hepatitis B (HepB) within 24 hours of birth * RSV antibody within one week of birth (if the child is born during RSV season) 2.  2 Month vaccines: * HepB (dose two) * Rotavirus (dose one) * Diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis (DTaP)  (dose one) * Haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib) (dose one) * Pneumococcal conjugate (PCV) (dose one) * Inactivated poliovirus (IPV) (dose one) 3. 4 Month vaccines:  * Rotavirus (dose two) * DTaP (dose two) * HiB (dose two) * PCV (dose two) * IPV (dose two) 4. 6 Month vaccines: * HepB (dose three) * Rotavirus (dose three) * DTaP (dose three) * HiB (dose three) * PCV (dose three) * COVID-19 vaccine 5. 12 Month vaccines: * Measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) (dose one) * Hepatitis A (HepA) (dose one) * PCV (dose four) 6. 15 Month v...

How To Encourage Your Child To Love Learning

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 Fostering a love for learning in your child is one of the greatest legacies you can bequeath to your child. This is because it has a profound impact on that child's academic pursuits, personal growth, and overall wellbeing. It sets up that child for a lifetime of curiosity, creativity, and exploration. Find below some useful tips to foster a love for learning in your child: 1. Parents and caregivers should model a love for learning. According to Albert Bandura's Social Learning Theory, Lev Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory, and John B. Watson and B. F. Skinner's Behaviorist Theory, children learn by observing and imitating their parents and caregivers. They learn through conditioning, interactions with environments and cultures, reinforcement and punishment. Since children mimic their parents and caregivers behaviours, it behooves them to model a love for learning so that the children can emulate them. 2. Parents and caregivers are advised to make learning fun by incorpo...

Raising Happy Children: The Science Of Positive Parenting

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          The practice of raising a happy children involves a combination of strategies which foster a supportive and encouraging environment. Find below some evidence-based tips from the science of positive parenting:  1. Parents and caregivers should always recognize their children's emotions, helping them develop emotional intelligence and positive self-image. 2. Parents and caregivers should foster a growth mindset into their children. Encourage them to see challenges as opportunities for growth and expansion, promoting resilience and love for learning. 3. Parents and caregivers should praise children for every good behaviour to encourage them to produce more positive habits. 4. They should spend quality time with their children, engaging in activities which they enjoy, to strengthen their bond and create lasting memories. 5. According to Albert Bandura's Social Learning Theory, children learn by observing and imitating their parents and caregivers. The...

Importance Of Outdoor Play For Children

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  Outdoor play is critically important for children's health, wellbeing, and overall development. Physical outdoor play has many benefits: from strengthening and developing the brains to helping children learn and deal with stress and adversity. It is very bad for a child to pass through childhood stage without adequate outdoor play. When children play, they learn how to explore, invent, discover, create, and collaborate with others. Those skills imbibed when they are young help them as they make friends and learn how to live in the world in future as adults. Studies have shown that sports and physical activity strengthens kids' bodies and develops the brains, helping them learn and stay focused on studies. The American Academy of Paediatrics  (AAP) even recommended that doctors prescribe physical exercises for their patients. When times are tough, active play also helps children deal with adversity. The pleasure of connections children tap into when playing together or with a...

Motor Skill Development In Infants

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  Motor skill development in infants is a key aspect of their overall growth and development. There are two types of motor skills : 1. Gross motor skill:  The gross motor skills are to do wirh larger muscle groups and these include movements such as running, walking, jumping and others.  2. Fine motor skills:  These involve smaller muscle groups. They include movements such as grasping, holding, and manipulation of objects. The motor skill development milestones are:  1. 0-3 months old infants:  From zero to three months old, the infants can begin to lift their heads. They can also bring their hands to the middle of their bodies, especially the stomach region. They can hold light objects such as toys briefly. 2. 4-6 months old infants:  At this stage, the infants can roll over from their stomachs to their backs and vice versa. They can reach out for toys and other objects of interest and grab them. They can also sit up if supported by someone. 3. 7-9 m...

Importance Of Reading To Children

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  The practice of reading to children is one of the most effective ways of making children to love reading, promote cognitive development, and increase children's reading literary skills. These are some of the benefits of reading to children: 1. Vocabulary expansion:  Reading to children exposes new words, phrases, and language structures to them.  2. Improved comprehensions:  It is through the practice of reading to children that they understand complex ideas, concepts, stories, and characters. 3. It helps children develop problem-solving skills through exposure to different scenarios and solutions.  4. Reading to children improves their memory and concentration by making the children to focus and retain information. 5. It enhances critical thinking and reasoning skills, thereby encouraging the children to think critically about stories read, characters, and events. 6. Reading together as a team enhances a sense of closeness and intimacy among the children, par...

Science Education For Preschoolers

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  The role of science education in preschool cannot be overemphasized because it lays the foundation for future learning and development, while fostering curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking and reasoning skills in children. The key aspects of science education for preschoolers are as follows:  1. Science education is basically intended to teach children about exploration, discovery, and invention. Encourage the children to explore and discover their immediate environment and the natural world around them through hands-on activities and sensory experiences. 2. Use play-based learning approach to introduce scientific concepts (sorting, categorizing, and patterning) to the children. 3. Apply nature-based learning approach to teach children sciences. Take the children on nature walks, explore outdoor environments, and bring nature indoors to foster a show of appreciation to the natural world.  4. Conduct simple experiments such as making slime or creating a...

Mathematics Development In Young Children

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Mathematics (abbreviated to Maths) is one of the most important subjects that pupils and students in the primary and secondary schools, and universities, study.  The fundamental role of Maths in education cannot be overemphasized. That is why it is a compulsory subject in both primary and secondary schools, and in some courses in the universities, and tertiary institutions across the world. Maths development in young children is a critical foundation for future academic success and daily problem-solving skills. Unfortunately, millions of children (pupils and students) do not want to do anything with Maths. Neither do they even want to hear its name. To them, Maths is the kill-joy of education. Once they know that it is period for Maths lesson, they sigh and feel very grieved at the heart as if they do not want complete education! Education cannot be complete without the knowledge of Maths. Man cannot survive without oxygen in his lungs. Man cannot survive without food too. Maths is...

Brain Development In Early Childhood

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 Early childhood period is between the time of birth and five years of age. Brain development begins in the womb with the fetal formation till the age of five. This is a critical period in the development of a child. During this period, the brain grows and matures rapidly, thereby laying the foundation for future cognitive, emotional, and social development of a child. There are major factors which influence brain development. They are as follows: 1. Genetics:  Genetical factors contribute immensely to brain development, influencing the structure and functions of brain cells.  2. Environment:  Environmental factors can highly influence brain development. Factors such as nutrition, quality sleep patterns, and sensory experiences, contribute immensely to the brain development of a child. This invariably means that children under brain developmental stage should be well-fed by parents and caregivers for proper brain development. Irregular sleep patterns and sleep defici...

Learning Styles & Strategies For Kids

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 It is important that parents and teachers first understand the children they are teaching in order to know the most suitable teaching approach and tools to use in teaching them. The reason is because every child learns differently from the other. Understanding the peculiar learning style of a child helps parents and teachers tailor their approaches to meet the children's unique needs. Below are the general learning styles and strategies to support kids: Learners Styles:  1. Visual learners: These are the children who like to learn through images, pictures, videos, and observations.  2. Auditory learners:  These are the children who like to learn through sounds, music, and oral instructions. 3. Kinesthetic learners:  These are the kids who learn through hands-on approach. Kinesthetic children learn through doing with their hands, rather than just listening and watching or imitating or observing. They enjoy touching, feeling, and manipulating objects to understan...

Proper Parenting In The Digital Era

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  Proper parenting in the digital era succinctly refers to the intentional and informed guidance of children in their use of digital technologies, ensuring the children's emotional, physical, and psychological developments. Thorough parenting has not been an easy task right from the cradle of the ages. It is extremely tasking. It presents both benefits and challenges as well. The following are the benefits of digital technologies: 1. Access to information:  In this age of technology, the internet has provided enough information on parenting, child development tips, and inclusive education.  2. Connectivity:  All digital facilities are available to help parents and caregivers stay connected with their children, even when they are thousands of kilometres separated physically from one another. 3. Availability of learning resources:  Digital platforms have made available enough educational resources, including online courses, educational apps, and virtual field trip...