Some Educational Activities in Toronto During the Winter Break

It’s the holidays! School’s out and your children need something to do. Here are some fun educational activities you and your child can do in Toronto during the winter break.

1. Royal Ontario Museum (ROM)
Located minutes away from the Subway, this museum is fun, interactive, and educational. You can spend hours exploring the various exhibits (especially the new dinosaurs exhibits, it’s pretty awesome). This place is great for all ages and there is nothing better than watching your child eyes light up as they see the different exhibits. Plus, entering after 4:30 pm means you get 50% off admission!

2. Ontario Science Centre
Yep, another museum! Sorry, but they’re just so much educational fun. For myself, the highlight at the Ontario Science Centre is the IMAX theater. The dome shape really creates an immersive experience and is always amazing to watch. While a little out of the way for myself, the Ontario Science Centre amazing IMAX theater make it worth the trip. Oh and the rest of the museum is fun and interesting too. But anyways, trust me, you haven’t experienced IMAX or any movie until you’ve been to IMAX at the Ontario Science Centre.

3. Cavalcade of Lights
Gain some art education with this exclusive Toronto event. The lights that line downtown really bring the city to life and are a great demonstration of the power of art. Also if you want to throw in some physical education to the experience, go have a skate on the ice rink at Nathan Phillips Square. It’s always a fun family bonding experience. Plus it’s free (unless you’re renting skates), and how can you go wrong with a free activity?

There, three days used on three fun activities. Hope that helps keep you and your family busy for the rest of the winter break!

Happy Holidays,
David

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Dealing with the Sandy Hook Elementary Tragedy

Hi everyone. After a few weeks off, it’s good to be back to blogs every Tuesday. 

Today’s blog is going to be very different. As you probably already know, we experienced a tragedy on Friday when a gunner broke into Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, and murdered 26 children and educators in cold blood. 

As an educator and parent, this massacre really hit home. It was an unfathomable situation, and I wish my deepest condolences to the victim’s families. No one should have to deal with what the families are dealing with right now. 

For the rest of us, lets remember the victims, and not the perpetrator. Lets remember educators like Victoria Soto, who hid her students and lied to the gunman so she would be the only one shot. Victoria is a shining example of selflessness and  can truly be called a hero. In fact, all the educators of Sandy Hooks who lost their lives showed their unbreakable dedication as teachers and are all heroes. 

Luckily, my sentiment is echoed with the media during their coverage of the event. They continue to focus their attention on the victims, and have spend minimal air time on the actual killer. I believe this is the right way to handle this situation because the perpetrator does not deserve to have their face and name glorified in the media. Hopefully history will forget the killer, and remember the victims and heroes of the tragedy at Sandy Hooks Elementary.

So what do you think? How should the media handle situations like massacre at Sandy Hooks Elementary? Comment below.

That’s all for now, and tonight hold your family close and tell them you love them, because you just never know what may happen.

All the best,

David

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Bullying Month: Is Your Child a Bully?

Wait! Don’t close the page! I know you can’t believe it would be true, your child would never be a bully. This a natural reaction, and I’m not saying you’re wrong. But just listen to some tell tale signs to reinsure that your initial reaction is right. You’re still here? Great! Let’s begin.

1.Acts Aggressively and Blame Others
What’s your child’s reaction when you ask them to stop doing something wrong? Do they listen? Do they continue their action? Or do they blame someone else? If they continue to act wrong and aggressive (physically or verbally) towards you or other people, or can’t take responsibility for their actions, they might be a bully. In my experience, bullies are naturally very aggressive people and act aggressively all the time, whether it be in or out of school. So it is not crazy to see them acting aggressively towards you or someone else at home.

As for blaming others and not taking responsibility, this is simply related to empathy. Bullies often don’t know they are hurting other people because they might lack the maturity that is needed to be empathetic. Don’t worry if this is the case, empathy can be learned, and most bullies eventually become empathetic!

2. Friends
Are their friends loud and aggressive? Are they mean to other children? Your child might be doing the same thing. Why? Well a common reason might be your child sees these kids as popular, and sadly, sometimes a child will do anything for popularity (if your child sees popularity as important this is most likely the reason). Anyways, whatever the reason, looking at how your child’s friends act is a good indication of how your child acts.

3. New Stuff
Did your spot your child with a fancy new gadget or/and money? How did they get that? The myth of bullies taking other children’s lunch money is really not that far off. To simply put it, part of bullying is taking things from the child you are bullying. Whether it be lunch money or a new iPod, if your child mysteriously has new toys they might have bullied a child for it. So be alert, and look out for new toys or extra cash that’s in your child’s possession.

4. In Trouble at School
Does it seem like your child spends more time in detention and the principle office than in class? Are they often in trouble?  If this is the case, there’s a reason for them always being in trouble! One of those reasons might be bullying. I’m not saying it's always bullying but it's a common reason for a child to get in trouble. To find out why they in trouble go talk to a teacher or the principle.

What if you don’t get a call from the school to tell you your child is in trouble? Or your child doesn't say anything? If this is the case, see if your child comes home from class at sporadic times each day. If they do, it could be a good sign of your child getting in trouble. Why is that? Well it could mean your child was in detention one day, but not in detention another day. Simple right?

Okay, that’s it. So what now? I think you should see if your child is following any of these signs. Than tune in next week to see what actions I think you can do to stop your child from bullying.

Thanks for reading,
David

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Bullying Month: Spot the Signs Your Child is Being Bullied

 
Communication is the key to spotting bullying. However, sometimes your child does not tell you they are being bullied, and you need to figure out some signs of abuse. Here are some of those signs.

1. Your child has few friends
Forming connections with people through friendships is an important, social part of school. If your child fails to make friends, and just seems like a social outcast, they could be being bullied. While there is not a set number of friends a child should have, it is important for each parent to see how sociable their child is. If the amount of friends your child associates themselves with suddenly drops, bullying could be the cause.

2.  Changes in Mood
Your child was always the active, high spirited, and joyful child. Suddenly their demeanor has completed changed--they are distort and have low confidence. What has happened? This can be a clear sign that your child is being bullied, and that bullying is affecting their mood. Distort or jumpy behaviour is connect to their constant state of alert and abuse. Also, Low confidence is connected to the child abused, specifically vocal abuse. Vocal abuse causes this feeling that a child’s opinion is useless, and that feeling of uselessness leads to low confidence.

3. Can’t Sleep and Stomach and Head Aches
    Bullying may take a physical toll on a child’s body. It can cause head and stomach aches and insomnia. This physical pain is terrible for a children’s physical health. Mentally, it is often used as an excuse for children to get out of going to school because they fear facing a bully.  Fear can also lead to poor school performance.

4. Unexplained Bruises and Cuts on their Body
Probably the most glaring and quintessential sign that your child is being bullied, is unexplained bruises and cuts on their body. Obviously this is a sign that someone is most likely hurting your child. Often a response to this abuse is denial, and child might say it was an accident. It very well could be, but if these bruises and cuts continue to appear, it is time to take action.

How do you spot these bruises and cuts? For younger children, you can look during baths or when they getting changed. For older children and teenagers, you can look for places on their skin not covered in clothes. Sadly, it is much harder to spot bruises and cuts on older children and teenagers.

It goes without saying that this list does not cover every sign that your child is being bullied. However, it does cover many of the common indications of bullying. If your child is experiencing any of these signs, I ask you take action. In two weeks I’ll talk about ways to take action. 

Until Next Time,
David

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Bullying Month: Prevent Cyberbullying: Do These Four Things

As a way to connect our October theme of technology to our November theme of bullying, I’ve decided to focus my first blog on cyberbullying. Cyberbullying, or online bullying, evolved with the invention of the internet. Due to the anonymity and the wide access to the internet it makes it easier for bullies to abuse their victims. In hopes of helping stop this disturbing trend, I’ve created a list of ways to prevent your child from being a victim of cyberbullying.

1.  Learn the technology While it might be silly to write about not knowing how to use the internet on the internet. It seems important to point out that there is no way you can relate and help your child if you don’t understand how computers, phones, the internet, and other technology works. That means you should use the technology on a frequent basis. If you don’t know how to use it, ask your child or take a course to learn the technology. Trust me it is beneficially in helping protect your child and make other aspects of your life easier.

2. Parental Control Software

After you learn the technology install parental control software. Parental control software helps you stop your child from accessing certain websites. While a somewhat flawed system, parental control software does help your child avoid websites that might lead them to being bullied. However, it is not enough to just install a parental control software.

3. Communication is Key!
As well as installing parental control software, you must talk to your child about what they are doing online. Ask them about sites they are visiting, interactions online, and anything else that is going on. Sometimes just asking really can make the difference in getting your child to stay silent or speak out about online bullying.
 
4.  Get your child’s passwords
Cyberbullying often happens on Facebook, and other websites that require a password to access them. In order to learn more about the bullying you need to gain access to the post on these websites. That means you need to get your child’s passwords. Instead of telling them to give you the passwords, ask for it and promise that you will only use it in case of emergency. I can’t stress the importance of only using your child’s password in case of emergency. If you use it to just look at their account, it will destroy the trust between the two of you. If you child does not trust you, they will probably not trust to talk to you about them being bullied.

Hopefully these tips will help your child to stop being bullied online. That’s all for now, but I’m wondering what subjects do you want to be covered during bullying month?

Thanks for reading,
David

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Trick-r-treat Tips!

Boo! Halloween is just around the corner! This is a special night to dress up, and go door to door trick-r-treating. Learning how to trick-r-treat properly is important to ensure you and your child stay safe. While this might not be 100% education based, as a Father, I feel like it is important to pass along some trick-r-treating tips I’ve learned.

1. Plan your route!
With interactive maps, such as Google maps, at your fingertips, it is imperative to figure out and show your child the route you are taking. This will ensure that you won’t get lost, and you child will know exactly how long you guys will be out trick-r-treating. Ensuring that your child knows how long you will be out for, will help stop a temper tantrum at the end of the night.

2. Keep Your Eyes on the Prize!
Trick-r-treating can be busy! With so many children and parents walking house to house, you might lose sight of your child. I’m sure you know as a parent, not knowing where your child is, can be a terrible feeling. In order to not drive yourself crazy with stress, always have a visual on your child. Also, knowing the details of their costume can make it easier to pick them out in a crowd. Even if the child is too young, don’t hesitate to walk up to the door with them. However, it can be a very maturing experience for a child to walk up to a door by themselves. You have be the judge if they’re ready.

3. Afraid of Trick-r-treating house to house?
If you are really afraid to go trick-r-treating house, there are many community centers and religious institutions that plan events for children to go trick-treating in one location. This will be a way to avoid strangers, and shrink the travel time. Google to find out if your community center or religious institution is holding there own trick-r-treat sessions!

4. Check the Candy
We all have heard the razor blade in the apple horror story. Even though it is unlikely to happen, there can problem with the candy you child got for Halloween. In order to keep your child safe, only allow them to eat closed candy, and if there is a rip or it looks like it has been tampered with, don’t let your child eat it! If you have any doubt about the candy, play it on the safe side and don’t give your child it!

These are just four tips that I’ve learned about trick-r-treating! Have any other tips? Leave them in the comment section below! Anyways, hope these tips help, and everyone have a spooky Halloween!

David

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Technology Month: There's an App for that!: The best educational Apps

Applications or Apps are becoming one of the best ways to get new programs for our electronic devices. Many of these programs are great educational tools to help children in a variety of subjects. Here are some Apps for your Apple IOS devices (I.e. iPhone, iPad, iPod) that I personally think are great tools to help your child succeed.

The Elements: A visual exploration
Appropriate Grades: High School (9-12)
Price: $6.99
Learning the periodic table can be difficult, and some students need help to visualize where each element is placed. The Elements: a visual exploration allows students to see and interact with the periodic table and it’s elements. Which will bring the visual table to life, and help tactile and audible learners figure it out.

iStudiez Pro
Appropriate Grades: Middle (6-8) and High school (9-12)
Price: $0.99
A school day is crazy! Parents and students have a thousand activities to do in a day, and it sometimes can be hard to keep everything organized. iStudiez Pro is a great tool that allows you to organize in one place, all your assignments, class times, deadlines and many other dizzying activities. Which will lead your child down the path to success because it allows them to stay organized and on top of their studies.

Number Line
Appropriate Grades: Elementary school (1-5)
Price: Free!
Sometimes your child will do anything to keep playing instead of learning arithmetic. Number Line combines the two by turning addition, subtraction, multiplication, and dividing into a fun and addicting game. The App is perfect to spice up math, which is an important, but sometimes dry subject. Oh, and how can you go wrong with a free App?

History: Maps of the World
Appropriate Grades: Elementary (1-5), Middle (6-8) and High school (9-12)
Price: Free!
History: Maps of the World is an App that allows for it’s users to observe world maps from all across history. It breaches both Geography and History, and is similar to The Elements: A visual exploration, because it take a visual medium, and make it easier for other learning styles understand the material.    

StoryKit
Appropriate Grades: Pre-school/kindergarden and Elementary School (1-5)
Price: Free!
Storykit makes writing fun, and allows kids to make their own stories with pictures and texts. It gets students to continue to write, and by writing more, they will become better writers. It also has the added artistic benefit of improving the users drawing skills. With the App making your child a better writer and drawer, it is definitely worth the download.


That’s all for now, and I hope you enjoyed the first blog in October’s Technology Month,
David

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