Today’s Motherhood

Website: www.skylace.com.sg

Email: skylace@singnet.com.sg

Address & Contact No.:

Yishun:
• Blk 846 Yishun Ring Road, #02-3631, Singapore 760846
Tel: 67581971 Fax: 67586727

Find out more about Skylace Language School in Today’s Motherhood.

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Win Sacred Tea - Leading Nursing Tea for breastfeeding mums this Mother’s Day (proudly sponsored by Origins Jamu Massage)

This Sacred Tea Giveaway Contest is closed. Thank you.

5 lucky winners will win a pack each of Sacred Nursing Tea worth a total of $150. Simply read this post and answer 2 questions (please see details below)

Sacred Tea for Nursing Mothers is an 100% Certified organic herbal formula, exclusively formulated with specific ingredients proven to not only successfully increase milk supply within hours of use, but also to protect both mom and baby’s digestive systems from common stomach upset, indigestion, constipation and gas.

Benefits

• Made with 100% certified natural organic ingredients
• Safe to Mother and Baby
• An Alternative solution to conventional drugs
• Great tasting, Super Concentrate
• Helps reduces colic in the baby

**Tested and proven by professionals and hundreds of mummies in the world**

To take part in this Mother’s Day Contest, simply answer 2 questions below and fill up the forms below.

Contest ends 19 May 2010. Prizes are sponsored by Origins Jamu Massage - Specialist in Jamu Postnatal Massage.

This Sacred Tea Giveaway Contest is closed. Thank you.

Terms and Conditions Apply

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Innoform Media & Today’s Motherhood Mother’s Day Giveaway Contest

3 sets of Motherhood DVDs and Hachiko Limited Edition bags to be given away. Simply fulfill these simple conditions

a. Sign up Today’s Motherhood mailing list below

b. Like InnoForm Media Singapore Fan Page comment “Today’s Motherhood” under this Motherhood DVD Picture

Contest ends 9 May 2010. So Hurry.

The above contest is proudly brought to you by Innoform Media and Today’s Motherhood

P.S. Names will be tallied for both Today’s Motherhood mailing list and Innoform Media Singapore fans page

Wishing all mothers a very Happy Mother’s Day in advance!

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If you have been on your feet all day (running after baby/ies or pounding the pavement in your high heels) and your muscles are calling out for some tender, loving attention from you, try these pilates exercises below for less tense, good-as-new, happy feet again.

Throughout these movements, do ensure that your spine is lifted and your shoulders are rolling back and down towards your hips. Lift up and out of your back as you keep your abdominal muscles contracted (engaged).

1. Foot Muscle Stretcher

Sit forward and on the edge of your chair with your legs hip-distance apart and at 90-degree angles. Place a dish towel on the floor in front of your toes. Keep your heels touching the floor throughout as you stretch your toes over the towel and begin by curling your toes to roll the towel and gather it up. When you have the entire towel in a roll (scroll), reverse the exercise by unrolling the towel until it is flat in front of you again. Remember to breathe!

2. Foot-ankle Muscle Lengthener

Sit on the floor as you stretch your legs straight out in front of you. Point both of your feet as strongly as possible, then flex them back as far as you can. Imagine pressing your toes to the touch-screen button and then using your heels to do the same. Do this a few timeswhile breathing calmly and deeply.

3. Calf Strengthener

Standing tall on your feet, heels together, toes apart. Contract your abdominal muscles as you inhale and slowly rise up to your toes. Ensure that your heels are glued together. Press your inner thighs together to engage your buttocks and backs of legs even more. Hold for a count of 3 as you remain in tip-toe position. You may lightly touch the back of chair or wall for support. Exhale as you slowly lower yourself back down to the floor. Complete 5 sets.

These helpful tips are brought to you by Ms Claudel Kuek, Director of PowerMoves Pilates in the Park.

This article was first published in Today’s Motherhood Magazine Apr / May 10 issue Page 24

These days children as young as 18 months go to school, and many subsequently have absolutely crammed schedules. However, the irony is that the number of children requiring special help by age 6 or 7 is increasing. With the current methods of instruction, are we teaching more, and are our children learning less?

Research on child language development reveals that all normal children acquire a vocabulary of a few thousand words by age 4.

They also learn how to put words into conventional phrases and sentences, use a very specialised grammar, and acquire intonation, gesture, rules of eye contact, body posture and the ability to interrupt, all without formal teaching.

Interestingly, children manage this by simply observing and overhearing how language is used.

Teaching Methodologies

Many of today’s instructional programmes stray from the way children actually learn.
Some lay stress on repetition and habitual learning, while others require the mastery of one unit before going on to another.

The curriculum may also not cater to slower learners, who do not perform well in standardised tests that come at regular intervals.

Although contemporary linguists recommend a ‘meaning-based’ approach, many language learning activities today are content-based rather than usage in real-life situations.

The current obsession with ‘fun learning’ often assumes that learning will be tedious and difficult unless it is made entertaining for the students. However, the fact is that most children learn things not because they are fun, but because they are practical.

For example, children learn to read so that they may be able to read signs or enjoy a favourite storybook. Having fun while learning is simply an added bonus.

Actual learning does not require much effort. The stress and strain that children experience come more from trying to learn, but then failing to do so.

Constructive Instruction

The most important thing is to have a positive attitude. If we expect a child to have reading problems, the tasks we set would be geared towards this. In turn, these tasks may not be challenging enough for the child to outgrow any perceived problem.

Tasks and exercises should be changed regularly to see which suits the child better, and labelling children who fail to read or write by a certain age should be avoided.

Instead of assuming that these under-achievers may have defective brains, it may be wise to first look at their instructional programmes to see if they are meaningful and/or interesting enough for these youngsters.

Children can be introduced to graded readers which complement specifically designed phonics instruction. Usually such children benefit significantly from a multi-sensory teaching approach.

Assisting Under-Achievers

For those low achievers who lack the ‘prior knowledge’ to help them understand a book or a passage, both teachers and parents should be working together.

It is necessary to increase the child’s exposure to more everyday language, plus provide more opportunities to build vocabulary in a natural and relaxed setting.

Such young students can benefit greatly from story-telling sessions, where the teacher (or parent) reads a story while the children listen.

These children should be encouraged to speak up when they can predict what will happen next, to talk about the story afterwards with one another and their parent/teacher, and to even act out some of the dialogue.

The Learning Process

Actual learning does not require much effort. The stress and strain that children experience come more from trying to learn, but then failing to do so.

When true learning occurs, it mostly goes unnoticed. An indication that learning has taken place is when children demonstrate that they know something that they didn’t know before.

The old saying, “If you give someone a fish, you feed him for a day, but if you teach him how to fish, you feed him for a lifetime” holds true. Good teachers will ensure that learning makes sense to their children.

They also try to create the right learning environment. One good way is to guide pupils to use language, both spoken and written in a non-threatening environment.

Useful activities range from decorating paper plates and writing jokes and riddles, to writing and telling stories and producing newsletters or journals. Children can also be given the opportunity to write freely and imaginatively by themselves.

Overall, we should be beacons of light available for consultation, rather than drill instructors waiting to pounce on every little mistake made.

This parenting book giveaway is closed. Thank you.

Education Technologies is giving away free parenting book “Read to Me - Raising Kids Who Love to Read” by Bernice E Cullinan worth S$25.90

To take part in this contest, simply answer a simple question below.

The book covers the following topics:

• How to raise a Reader
• Why reading to your read matters
• How to get started
• Tips for the busy Parents
• Different methods of reading apply to different age of children from preschool to 12 year old

Benefits of this Book

A. Make the most of the early years of your child

B. Develop the habit of reading and a love of learning in your child

C. Utilize the amount of time your child spends at home more productively

D. Prepare your child for an increasingly competitive world.

To get this Parenting Guidebook, simply answer the question below

This parenting book giveaway is closed. Thank you.

Contest ends 17 May 2010

Selected winners of the book will be contacted by Education Technologies

Parents will have the chance to view their Total Development program at the same time the book is delivered.

*Terms and Conditions Apply

Most people buy into the idea that one person can’t possibly have an impact on the environment.

I hope you are not one of those people! When reading this article, we want to inspire a conviction that the power to bring about change is yours, through actions as simple as replacing light bulbs, adjusting the thermostat, carrying your own shopping bag and the way you choose to clean your home. Green cleaning, using environmentally safe cleaning products, is to protect health without harming the environment.

Cleaning is a NECCESSITY not a LUXURY, with lots of environmental impact. You have an opportunity to reverse that impact by being mindful of the environment when making decisions of how your home is cleaned. Try these Green Cleaning tips for the home:

• Use green cleaning products. As the health and environmental impacts of conventional cleaning products become more thoroughly understood, alternatives are becoming available. They clean just as well as their toxic peers and many of these products are non-toxic, biodegradable, and made from renewable resources (not petroleum). You can buy a green home cleaning kit online at www.greencleaners.asia and have it delivered straight to your door!
• Use microfiber cloths and mops. It pick up more finer dust particles to improve your indoor air and are also machine washable, so can be reused many more times than traditional cloths or wasting paper towels/tissue.
• Dispose of toxic cleaners carefully. When replacing your cleaning products, don’t just throw the old ones in the trash. If they’re too toxic for your home, they won’t be good for the drain or the landfill either. Read the instructions of disposal on the packaging. If you are still unsure, contact the NEA and ask how to dispose of the products safely.
• Clean your indoor air. Keep windows open as much as possible. This allows fresh air in and toxins out. Instead of using standard air fresheners, try boiling cinammon, cloves or any other herbs you like. Buy some indoor plants to help filter your interior air, particularly broad green leaf plants.
• Invest in a box of Baking Soda, to:

- Clear a clogged drain: Mix ½ cup of baking soda with ½ cup of white vinegar (careful as when you add the vinegar, it may bubble over). Pour down drain followed by 2 cups of boiling water.

- Deodorize your carpet or rug: Lightly sprinkle baking soda over your carpet. Let it settle for ½ an hour and then vacuum.

- Deodorize your dishwasher: Simply sprinkle ½ cup of baking soda on the bottom of your dishwasher before running a cycle.

- Deodorize your fridge: Place an open box in your fridge overnight and this will absorb the odours.

• Be careful with anti bacterial cleaners. The antibacterial and antimicrobial ‘cleaners’ that many people think are necessary, especially during this H1N1 outbreak, don’t clean hands better than soap and water, and also add to the risk of breeding “super germs” bacteria that survive the chemical onslaught and have resistant offspring.
• Employ Green Cleaners service! Take the stress of housework and choosing eco friendly brands away and leave yourself time for the more important things in life, by having a regular visit form Green Cleaners’ professional staff.