Ways to Keep Your Child's Brain Sharp

Parents, especially young age moms, are always on the lookout for some effective ways to keep their child’s brain active and sharp. It is a ‘need of the hour’ article because children today are getting excessively exposed to technologies and networks and it becomes mandatory for parents to find creative ways to engage their child’s brain. There is really not any specific secret formula for sharpening the children’s brain, but we can arrive at certain possible options which could work in a better way. There are several brain-stimulating activities that boost the mind of the kids, and they all work wonder during the first ten years of birth.

Bid bye to gadgets

When talking about stimulating brains, in the first place the technology and the gadgets have to be removed away so that the brain gets free. Naturally, only after evacuating the insignificant things off their mind, we can fill it with constructive choices. This may sound ambiguous to many parents, but it is indeed possible to pull off gadgets from their children, at least to a great extent, if not completely.
The only thing to ensure is to get children engaged in activities that amuse them more than what gadgets do to them. It may be a big deal for parents to find such activities, but it is obligatory to sharpen the brain. Well, focusing on soft skill activities and origami can help to build a strong concentration as well as a mental focus for the growing children. For instance, you can explore Origami Way so as to get some exciting origami diagrams for your kids.

Brian sharpening Foods

In addition to giving amusing activities for kids to sharpen their brain, it is significant to ensure that parents are giving right foods to their children. Though emphasised n number of times elsewhere, this still needs a repeated mention that says no to junk foods, as they make kids brain blunt and health at high risk. Healthy food options such as eggs, nuts and seeds, fruits, milk and yoghurt certainly help to keep the child’s brain sharper.

Good news for the children and parents is that even dark chocolates help to keep the kids’ brain active. Even some natural herbs help in activating the brain cells in young children, which can be taken under proper medical guidance.

Sports activate brain cells

Sports activities such as swimming, karate and brain gym programs profoundly help in activating the kid’s brain and to maintain a good mental and physical health. Outdoor activities are highly reduced these days, but it really helps the children to be energetic all day long. Sports also helps in good appetite and sound sleep for the children, which indirectly gives good mental health for the growing kids. Highly physically active kids seem to be sharper in academics also.

Reading sharpens brain

Reading is such a blessing for children to keep their brain and their emotions active and sharper. Parents must inculcate the habit of reading in children at a very young age and make it a practice at home. Reading is entirely different from academics, which many children today do not understand. The more the kids’ read, the more, the wiser they become. Every parent has a great responsibility in bringing the culture of reading in their children. This is such a great treat for kids’ brain.

Everything is simple and easily implementable, however high patience and perseverance is required to execute a new habit in children.

Random Tid Bits

1. Isaak and I got our first head cold in the school year. My head feels fuzzy - like bees are flying around in it, and I'm stuffy. Isaak has been snotty big time, has no appetite, and feels feverish at night.
   
   I can tell fall is on it's way, plus school started, which is all breeding ground for sickness.


2. I figured out what I want to do for the big blow up project this year. Every year I find an image, or shoot my own image. My boss prints it out on the large format printer. I cut it up in squares, or rectangles. Then each student gets a square from each poster to recreate larger. I don't tell them what it is. They don't get to see it until the end when it's hung up. This year I had a hard time deciding. This year I didn't use my own photos. I found images that were so great by the Illustrator Tom Whalen. I love his work. The images below belong to Tom Whalen. When my students do a little piece they are not recreating the whole thing, nor are they selling the work.
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. I got the book Wonder By R.J. Palacio for Mica to read. Normally he reads the books I pick out with kind of an annoyed look. Like he's thinking, Geez Mom! Let me pick out my own books! This one I kept seeing displayed at Barnes and Noble, and the library. He can't put the book down. Travis once said, "Ok you're not doing the tasks you ask us to do! Stop reading!" I know...every parent wishes that they had this problem. If you're looking for a good book to read...Wonder might be it.
   
   
    
4. Isaak watched The Boxcar Children movie at school. He came home, and was super excited to read the 1 The Boxcar Children book that he has. Maybe I'll have to check out more of those. Typically he's not one that likes to read.


5. I printed out a coupon for Michael's. It's a 50% off one. I feel the need to use it. What would you buy at a craft store?

Random Tid Bits

1. School will be starting up soonish. Last week I scheduled a routine procedure for the first day of class. I don't teach on Monday, I'm all ready for the week of class, and my driver AKA Travis has the day off. I put in my time off request, and it was a problem.
   
   Every year on the first day of class I sit in my office, and do virtually nothing for the buzz of the week. I'm working way in advance. I don't take a lot of sick days. I'm pretty sure I gave my computer an eye roll when I read that it wasn't approved. 


2. I have a make-up class this week. Basically the student needs to make up time because he wasn't here enough during the class to full fill his credit hours. His been late twice. His problem of not being here is now my problem. He has to make up the time. In order to do that I have to stay later on Friday for him to do so. He didn't bring in his annual report from before, so I could look at it like he said he would. It was not my class before, so I have no clue what I'm helping him with. He has some kind of court date one of the days. I wish I could reach the students that struggle with life. 


3. Mica reads much of the time. Even on busy weekends he'll hand me a thick book and say, "I just finished reading this." I think it drives Travis nuts just because he'd like to see Mica outdoors more, or making something artistic.
   
   
   
   
   
   Isaak still struggles with wanting to read. He'll do it, but usually only if he's asked to. One day this week I spotted Isaak with a Lego book. I was so happy to see him reading on his own!
   
   
   
   
   
4. Last week I got a facebook message from an acquaintance inviting me to come over to his house. I don't know this guy very well. Hanging out with people I don't know very well out of my comfort zone. When I mentioned it to Travis he was like, "YES!" I do know the guy that invited us is an art collector. I just painted on 3 wooden dogs for a show that he was having awhile back. I had no clue if this event was ok to take children to. Then it dawned on me that my kids were in their leadership camp that night. This was a big yay because no kids showed up to his house. It would have been odd if I had brought the boys for sure. 











I loved the artwork that said, "too much art will kill you" just because it was everywhere. One I also liked a lot was tribal men attacking grocery carts. It cracked me up! 


5. Every once in awhile a miss understanding happens. That happened earlier this week. I hate when that happens. I agonize about it for days. I'm not one to let stuff go. I don't like the fact that I pissed someone off. Sometimes people view something so very differently. Quite frankly I don't share the views of a lot of people, but just roll with it. I think the world would be a pretty boring place if we all thought the same way.

Summer Activities

The boys have 2 weeks with no camps planned. To prevent them from saying, "I'm bored!" I've given them plenty to do. Each child has a backpack stocked with activity books, pencils, snacks, fiction and non fiction book, their kindles, and a portable DVD player with a few movies. They each have a schedule that includes brainwork like writing, math, reading comprehension, and just plain reading.

They read a fiction book one day, and a non-fiction, or something close to it the next.

Isaak now reads chapter books! Right now I'm pushing for Isaak to read The Magic Treehouse series. I want him to be excited about reading. Mica loved the series so much that we have most of the books. I'm also starting him off with the Who Was... series.

Mica's trying to get through A Series of Unfortunate Events. He's read all, but 3 this year. The movie is on hold at the library. Travis got him a children's book on government and another on economics. Exciting I know, but things he should learn about.

I pick the pages in their activity books, and go through how to do what they need to do. Mica has a reading comprehension workbook. I got it for Isaak, but it was too hard for him. Mica also has a standard workbook, and a history workbook. Isaak has math sheets his teacher gave to him, a critical and creative thinking workbook, and a standard workbook. I was finding that Isaak and Mica would just plain skip their work if they didn't understand the instructions. I happen to love the one below, but the boys think it's hard because it does make them think. That's one I go over.

I learned that Mica rushes through his work to play on his Kindle, which is supposed to be their end of the day activity. Travis started checking their work more carefully. That's when we found out that Mica was rushing. He'd give short answers instead of backing himself up. *Sounds like something my students would do. Isaak - the one I envisioned being the rusher actually wants to follow the schedule. Then he gets flustered because his big brother is playing away on his Kindle. I think part of that is their ages. Mica's entering the preteen years.

I also informed them that the whole summer isn't going to be like school.

The boys have outdoor time as part of their schedule. Mica basically needs to be kicked told to play outside. Isaak on the other hand loves to be outdoors.

What are some things you do/have done to keep your kids busy? My husband and I don't remember our parents giving us much we just loved playing. I played with Barbies and dolls, and read. My husband hung around outdoors for hours on end. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I feel like this generation seems like they need things to do, and get bored really easily. 

Reading

Isaak has always been a punk about reading. He likes to be read to, but didn't want to pick up a book to read himself. Last year he kept saying, "I can't read!" He'd flat out refuse. He'd pretend to not know words he knew. He was a real stinker about it. 

This year a retired teacher decided to start a non-profit to get kids reading. Each day a book is sent home with every kid in 2nd grade. The kid has to read it, answer questions about the reading, the parent signs that the kid read the book. The kid marks if the book was too hard, just right, or too easy. Isaak knows that this is something he has to do. He's been very good about doing it. 

I was on the library's website and Isaak said, "Mom I have that book in my classroom. I've read some of it. It's a chapter book." I put it on hold, along with another book in the series. Marvin Redpost is the series. This proves that everyone has different taste; Mica said, "I tried reading those books, and could not get into them." Isaak couldn't get into the Magic Tree House series that Mica loved so much. Maybe Isaak will give the series a shot when he gets more confident in his reading.

Here he was on Saturday morning:

Here' he was when Dad was in Subway getting us sandwiches: 

What book series got you into reading? American Girls started when I was a kid. I got into them big time. Now they are so very commercial, which makes me a little sad.

School Night

Last week first and second graders met up at school with their families. They had puzzles to put together. I know Isaak likes games better, so we took UNO. The school provided popcorn and water as well.

The kid above is Isaak's first and best friend. I played a round of UNO with them, then had to go my own way to talk to the teachers about the curriculum, and what's expected of the students. 

Apparently they should be reading at least at an H level. I asked Isaak what level he tested at. He said, "Level L." We'll see if he's right at conference time. The boy likes to pretend to not be a very good reader. I think he reads better than he lets on. 

It is nice there is a guy that was a teacher. He has a non-profit organization that works with kids on reading. Each day a book is sent home. The child reads the book, has to answer questions about the book, and marks if the book was just right, too easy, or too hard. This has gotten Isaak to read. He sees it as homework, and does it each day without being asked. :)

I asked the teachers if they'd send home extra math pages from their math book at the end of the year. They said, "Oh we go through them all." That's a good thing. 

Spelling words are each week. I've been trying out different ways to get Isaak to study those. We throw a ball back and forth spelling out the words, I say them and he writes them, I say them and he spells them out loud, and he looks at them. He likes crossword puzzles, so I may put together a crossword puzzle with his spelling words. 

Do you have any ideas on making homework time more fun, and less of a drag? Not that it should be "fun" all the time. Changing things up every so often makes learning fun.

Reading

Isaak still not in love with reading. He's so much the same as Mica, yet so very different. 

I found a few tricks that work for Isaak:

• Hold a bookmark, or paper under the lines of type. Then he won't forget where he's at. 

• As much as he wants to read picture books, I have to push him to move on. With picture books he guesses the words based on the pictures. He insisted that chapter books were too hard for him. I had him read an easier chapter book, and he read it better than the most of his picture books.

The book he started reading:

 

Do you have any tips to get kids to read?

Reading Nooks

I wish we had room in our house for a reading nook. I've thought about putting one under the downstairs steps - after we get it refinished.

The Land of Nod is giving away a $1,500 gift card to get supplies for your own Reading Nook, and books from their site.

Part of what I love is that it's only 1 entry. There is no like 50 FB pages, and follow 50 Twitter pages to enter.

Here are some Reading Nook ideas from my Pinterest Kid Spaces Board.

Take an old crib, make it into a toddler bed, and re-purpose it to be a seat for a reading space.

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An old crib mattress looks cozy!

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An old crib could be transformed into a desk to.

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Plastic rain gutters can be used to hold books.

This is one of those broken links. If you know where it came from, I'd be happy to add a source.

An old cable spool as a Book Nook.

This is one of those broken links. If you know where it came from, I'd be happy to add a source.

Take the under part of your steps and transform it into a kid's space. They can use it for a Reading Nook, play space, or tornado shelter.

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A fun space that can be for read, or take the cushions off and it can be used for writing.

This is one of those broken links. If you know where it came from, I'd be happy to add a source.

Make a Reading Nook out of old wood pallets.

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Turn a tepee into a Reading Nook.

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 Instead of a family tree, have a book tree.

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This is one of those broken links. If you know where it came from, I'd be happy to add a source.

What are your ideas for a Reading Nook? Do you have space for one?

Disclaimer: The Land of Nod did not ask me to post this. I just posted about it because it looks fun. I did not get anything in exchange for this post.

What Famous Person Would You Want to Know About?

Mica reads and reads. He gets one book read on the way from the library to home. He reads fiction, and nonfiction. Sometimes he's picky, while other times he's not.

He's read a lot about presidents. I'm not sure why, but he's had an interest in past presidents. Presidents were and are one of my least favorite interests. 

We've moved on to Ben Franklin, Harriet Tubman, Anne Frank, George Washington Carver, Johnny Appleseed,  Betsy Ross, Amelia Earhart and more. He's read a few books on Steve Spielberg. He loves movie history, and Spielberg is his favorite director.

I don't always get the Who Was... and Who Is... series. It's just the easiest series to put on hold for him. Otherwise I have to dig for info on if it's a book for adults or kids. That series is a little too easy for him, but we pick up harder books to.

I just put Who Was Gandhi? and Who Was Sitting Bull? on hold for him.

Who would you like to learn about, and why? It can be someone from the past, or someone that lives now.

Reading...Reading...Reading

Mica's a bookworm. He reads and reads. If he doesn't have a book in his hands, it's a Lego magazine. He also plays with Legos. 

I remember when he was just a little tike he'd sit and let me read to him. I had books memorized; we read so much. Reading, and movies are the ways to keep Mica still, and relaxed. Otherwise he was in constant movement. With movies he now reads the credits, and the case. He knows information about those actors. He'll tell you his favorite director is Steven Spielberg.

Weekly, or every other week we go to the library's website, and put books and movies on hold.

Last Thursday I picked up 5 books, and Return of the Jedi.

Dad said, "It will take him more than a month to get through A Wrinkle in Time!" It was very thick. Mica looked at that book, and had a look of determination in his eyes. I could tell he wanted to read that book! He was into A Wrinkle in Time when we saw it at The Rose Theater last month.

He had A Wrinkle in Time and 3 Ninja Meerkats books read by Friday night! Half of The Indian in the Cupboard was read to. He finished that one Saturday morning.

We returned all those books, and Mica put 2 of the sequels on hold for The Indian in the Cupboard and 2 more Ninja Meerkats, I added How to Eat Fried Worms, Tails of the Fourth Grade Nothing, and a few Ricky Ricotta's Mighty Robot books. Plus we added 2001, A Space Odyssey and Clue. I'll have to preview the movies to make sure they are ok for the boys to watch. They love playing Clue, so I thought maybe they'd enjoy the movie.

What about you folks...was reading your thing when you were younger? What were your favorite books around 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade? I want to keep Mica's mind active. Maybe he'll check out what you loved to read. 

Isaak is a little slower in the reading department.

Not slow as in he can't do it; more like he doesn't want to do it. It's like pull teeth to get him to read. It's funny though...on his report card his effort in reading was "O" for outstanding. 

Right now he likes reading Dr. Seuss books. Everything rhymes. He thinks they are funny. He's not very observant to words that he gets wrong over and over again. He just keeps getting that or those word(s) wrong instead of looking at it, and trying to get it/them right from that point on. He reads for Dad the best, but I remember to ask him more. Mica gets frustrated with Isaak when Isaak reads to him. Isaak doesn't want to try certain words, and wants Mica to tell him words that rhyme with the words he doesn't know. Mica's like, "Just sound the word out already!" I have Isaak read to Mica in the car sometimes.

I know Isaak's better at reading than he let's on. He'll hit big words, and sometimes just blurts them out like they are no big deal to say.

Barnes and Noble Rocks

My kids love library's and bookstores. It's such a shame that thing are going digital. There's just something about the smell of a book.

We took them to Barnes and Noble for a story time. I know Mica's getting a little old for story time. I think it's important that older kids have story time to.

Isaak always loves having his big brother at his side.

There was only 3 kids - including mine that joined in their superhero story time. That's kind of sad. They go through the work of making a poster, putting the poster up, posting it on their site, printing color sheets, and getting someone to read the book. All for 3 kids. I know a lot is done on a corporate level, but still.

Maybe it's because they don't have all the bells and whistles that other free events have. They could give a book away in a drawing.

Anyhow...

The boys enjoyed it.

While they listened we shopped.

We got Mica 3 comic books from 2 series: Amulet and Bone. I was finding it difficult that some comic books are way too easy, while others have adult content in them. Mica needed something in the middle. A nice lady that works there pointed me towards these 2 series. They are perfect. I ordered the first book in the Amulet series - as they didn't have it. He got the 1st Amulet book and the 1st Bone book for his birthday. The 2nd Amulet book is being held for Christmas time. I'll probably ask Aunt Angela to get him the 2nd Bone book for Christmas as well.

I was never into comic books. Mica is. It's too early to tell if Isaak is. He's not into reading very much unless we read to him. We'll soon find out.

Did you, or do you like comic books?

By the way sign up for Barnes and Noble's free birthday club - ask them about it. They send a coupon for a free dessert every time it's one of your kid's birthdays. This is the 2nd year we've enjoyed a sweet treat.

WW: Reading Time {Linky}

The boys have been for the most part nice to each other this summer.

Please enter this low entry giveaway if you have the time: Raw Organic Unfiltered Shea Butter. Open to the US. It is seriously better than any lotion, or oil I have ever felt on my skin, or hair.