Storybox or Beano?
Over the last week I’ve been working through a “Beano Replacement” book for my 4 year old son called “Storybox” and I have to say I’ve been pleasantly surprised.
The book is rather educational with little facts that his sponge like brain absorbed with relative ease.
If he’s learning something while being well behaved I guess that’s a bonus! 
I’d say that I prefer the Beano, but it seems that my tastes differ from my son as he really likes the book!
I guess I’ll have to persuade the ball and chain to get the next Storybox issue when it’s out (she can still keep getting the Beano for me!).
SATs results generate further questions!
The BBC news site today is reposrting that more questions are being raised over SATs and the quality of their marketing.
Problems are emerging as schools get back pupils’ scripts after delays at the test contractor, ETS.
Some schools have been getting scripts back unmarked and in some cases pupils who took the tests are officially recorded as having been absent.
Schools Minister Jim Knight says Lord Sutherland’s inquiry will seek to answer all the questions raised.
One primary school head teacher is so upset she has released examples of pupils’ marked English tests.
Janis Burdin, of Moss Side Primary School, in Leyland, Lancashire, described the marking as “abysmal” and “erratic”.
The National Union of Teachers called for the Sutherland Inquiry to consider the whether the results were valid or whether they should be annulled.
Acting general secretary Christine Blower said: “I urge the Secretary of State to add a further criterion to his enquiry; that of deciding whether a subject’s tests at each Key Stage are reliable or whether their reliability has been contaminated.”
Head of the NASUWT teaching union Chris Keates said it was vital that all the issues surrounding the administration of this year’s Sats were considered as part of the inquiry.
The mystery of pupils being marked absent when they were not may be down to the online system ETS uses to track pupils’ marks.
What the marker has to complete online for each script
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Before markers can begin work they have to go through what is known as “script verification”.
This involves accessing a register of pupils who took the tests. On it, they have to indicate whether they have received a paper for each pupil.
If they had not the pupil was flagged as being absent.
Head teacher Ian Miles of Wybers Wood Junior School in Grimbsy, Lincolnshire, found that more than a third of his pupils were shown online as having been absent, or with missing scripts.
This was despite the fact that the school had received back all their scripts properly marked.
ETS Europe has said there is more than one possible explanation for such problems.
The situation might also arise if the school had not correctly completed the register in the first place.
It accepts however that the common factor though is the computerised registration and mark capture system being used this year for the first time.
Almost all the Key Stage 2 results were supposed to have been published online for schools to access on Tuesday – a week after they should have been available.
It is still unclear when all the Key Stage 3 (14-year-olds’) test results will be available, with English being a particular problem because it is more time-consuming to mark than the other tests, in maths and science.
The ETS results website is next due to be updated on Friday 18 July, then again on Tuesday 22 July.
The Conservatives called for government to drop ETS in time for next year’s exams.
Shadow schools secretary Michael Gove said: “Every day brings new evidence of their serial incompetence. Ministers must act now to ensure next year’s exams are run properly.”
Parental leave ‘needs more flexibility’!
Women may find that laws regarding maternity leave are damaging their career prospects, according to an article on the BBC News website.
Under current legislation, a women can take up to 52 weeks off work after having a child, with statutory maternity pay for up to 39 weeks, while fathers are entitled to one or two weeks paternity leave.
Nicole Brewer, chief executive of the equalities and human rights commission, said that some employers disregard job applications from women of a child-bearing age.
She said there should be more emphasis placed on shared parental leave, to even out the responsibility of taking time off work for a new baby.
“There’s been a very welcome increase in maternity leave, but we think the focus should be on letting parents decide who takes parental leave after the first six months,” explained Ms Brewer to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
Brendan Barber of the union body the TUC added that extending flexible working rights to parents and the option to transfer maternity leave to fathers could help the situation.
Research by the equal opportunities commission found that 5% of women who tell their employer they are pregnant feel under pressure to leave their job.
It seems only fair that the workload of a newborn infant be balanced out between the parent, and employers should start to recognise this….
Discuss…
Is Technology Bad For Children?
I just saw a post on the CNN website that I think raises a vailid issue and that is the long term effects of technology on the younger generations…. 30 years ago computers were only just emerging so no-one knows if the control pads have an adverse effect on the hands dexterity in later life.
the article refers to an american woman’s children.
Her 13-year-old twins, James and Timothy, are avid gamers who own two Sony PlayStations, a Nintendo GameCube and a Microsoft Xbox. Physically, they’re fit however both boys can bend their thumbs all the way back to their forearms, and they constantly stretch and crack their knuckles with ease. For tasks like ringing a doorbell, dialing a phone number and changing the remote, they use their thumbs.
This may just be that they are double jointed or that the use of consoles has mentally trained their brains to make greater use of all of their digits.
Unfortunately, conclusive research on the subject of computer ergonomics for kids has been lacking. But researchers are concerned nonetheless.
“The exposure to ergonomic risk hazards for children is expected to be higher than it would be for adults because of the sheer amount of time that they’re on computers at home and at school,” said Ken Harwood, director of the practice department at the American Physical Therapy Association.
Some physical therapists and pediatricians are already citing cases of RSI in children as young as 8 years old. Kids complain of headaches, neck problems and backaches. And when pediatricians can’t identify the source, they’ll send the child to a physical therapist.
Now to be honest I’m not known for my tact and this to me seems to be an over reaction. When I was young we used to get injured from playing in the park… grazed knees etc. I don’t believe this is any different… if you spend enough time on an activity you are likely to get an injury associated with that activity.
What do you think????
Children and Sweeties
Sugar plays an important role in children’s food. After all it is a known source of carbohydrates.
Glucose is a universal energy source and one of appetite stimulators. At decrease of its level in blood a feeling of hunger appears. There are three basic directions of glucose use in an organism:
1. It is a “fuel” for work of all organs.
2. It is put by in liver cells and muscles.
3. It turns to fat when the quantity of its receipt is superfluous.
Sugar does not carry food value in itself, having thus high caloric content.
Love for sweets is put in a child at genetic level. The first food in a baby’s life is breast milk, which is sweet due to milk sugar — lactose. At artificial feeding a child receives lactose and maltose with formula. Feeding up introduction expands assortment of carbohydrates sources — fruit and vegetable juice, mashed potatoes, porridges, which completely cover requirements of a children’s organism for carbohydrates.
After 1 year parents can enter a small amount of table sugar to foods, and also sweets in allowance. For children from 1 year till 3 years the quantity of sugar makes 40 g a day, from 3 till 6 years — 50 g. You can start acquaintance to sweets with various mousses, cooked on a berry-fruit basis (from fresh and frozen berries and fruits). Then it is possible to try zephyr, fruit candy, and also various kinds of jams.
From 3-4 years (not earlier) it is possible to offer a grown up kid pies and cakes, which do not contain creams on a fatty basis, and low-fat grades of ice-cream. Quantity of sweets is regulated: from 1 year till 3 years — 10 g a day, and from 3 till 6 years — 15 g. Their use should not have a character of encouragement for a child and, of course, you should give them after a basic food intake or for a mid-morning snack.
Before 4-year age it is impossible to give children caramel and sugar candies, as there is a risk to choke. As to chocolate and cocoa, and also marshmallow in chocolate and so on, before three-year age it is better for a child not to face them . Chocolate contains a lot of fat and creates loading for stomach fermentative system and pancreas. If there are no contra-indications since three years it is possible to give a little white and a milk chocolate, and from 5-6 years — its other kinds.
Hope people found this informative. Check out Baby-Health.net as they have more info!
Making HouseWork Fun!
Recently I came across a post on a blog which detailed how kid’s often find fun in stuff that most adults find boring and have trialled it with some success!
Most parents try get their children into a daily routine for working and having fun together. (this also enables them to be subconsciously prepared for working life 
)
Most kids ages 3 and 7 are perfect to be big helpers although there is no age limit!! Even big kids like me can get in on the fun!
Stuff like folding their P.J.s, making breakfast and other morning chores can be done as group participation and gives children something to look forward to in the morning. It may be a bit more work for you but it will be worth it!
If you need to do some weeding and bush pruning get them involved. They’ll be excited to tell people about their accomplishments and share the stories of bugs, worms and bees they had encountered along the way.
Kids love to help and it enhances their sense of self-worth to be included in adult chores. The chore helper routine also keeps kids physically active and replaces sitting in front of the T.V. in the morning.
They are also learning skills they will need as adults and increasing their understanding of the world around them.
If you have any kids/chore stories please post a comment and say what your “chore story” is!
