Math, Education and Parenting Blog

How You and Your Children Can Avoid People’s Biggest Regret in Life

February 26, 2016 by James Rheine.

Regret is a very heavy word, and sometimes, it can affect both young and old. Most of the time, regret starts out when we’re children. When we fail to do the things we want to, it can affect us as we grow older.

I remember when I practically skipped out on one fateful Lacrosse try-out when I was in high school. If I pursued it, I might have gotten a college scholarship.

That’s a good example of regret that stems from childhood. But how can you, as parents, help your children avoid making faulty decisions that will eventually turn to regret in the future?

Is It OK To Spank A Misbehaving Child Once In A While?

February 25, 2016 by James Rheine.

I’ve never been a fan of spanking or any form of corporal punishment, but it doesn’t mean that I abhor them completely. Parents today argue as to whether or not spanking a child can be good or bad for them in the long run, and quite frankly, the argument has become cyclical without relying so much on various child development theories and existing psychological theories.

So is it okay to spank a misbehaving child once in a while?

Does More Recess Mean Better Students?

February 11, 2016 by James Rheine.

When I was a child, I used to be so excited for recess. This is mostly because I couldn’t wait to chow down on my favourite snacks prepared by my mother. As I grew older, I realized that recess was more than just a quick time to grab a bite to eat.

Recess had a lot more to offer back when I was young, but I wasn’t able to fully realize it then.

How To Help My Child Control Anger – What Works and What Doesn’t

February 8, 2016 by James Rheine.

There’s always that one experience when a child lashes out. Oftentimes, parents deal with an angry child the wrong way. Combined with miscommunication and the child’s incapability to properly deal with anger, the emotions can become intense in a short period of time.

You see, anger is like mercury on a thermometer. You cannot let the anger of your child go unchecked, otherwise the emotion can increase from simple frustration to full-blown rage and bitterness. Let’s face it. There’s just no definitive way to anger-proof your children, but you can teach them how to control their temper.

In all of my years working as a counsellor, I have not been able to give parents a fool-proof plan for anger. All I have been able to provide is a guide of sorts that will allow them to not only help their child control anger, but also help them develop the coping skills to avert and avoid anger.

What Happens if I Reward my Child with Food?

December 11, 2015 by James Rheine.

I am a firm believer of motivation and its benefits for raising your children the right way, but right off the bat, allow me to throw in this tidbit: we’re all different parents and we all raise our children the way we want them to grow up.

I like motivation. I like the way they can be used to drive your children to do something. Sometimes, I like to offer incentives to my children if they do something – like get good grades or do chores. However, I don’t do it as much as I want because I don’t want my children to grow up with the QUID PRO QUO mentality – I scratch your back and you scratch mine.

Rewarding your child with something, like food, can be positive but it can also be detrimental to their development and progress.

What do I mean by this?

How Useful are Educational Video Games?

December 3, 2015 by James Rheine.

educational video games medium for children

Educational video games are big business. After all, you’re combining education and video games and it makes for a big break to market to both parents and children.

The question is, do they actually work? There hasn’t been that much research done to really answer that question, especially when it comes to games designed for children.

One small survey reported that kids who played educational video games were less likely to suffer from attention problems at school, in contrast to kids who played more violent or arcade-like video games.

But can educational video games offer more?

Should I Allow my Child to Use Social Media?

November 13, 2015 by James Rheine.

Children and teens find it easy to create and information online by means of social media sites. Sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram can be accessible via their computers, tablets, and even mobile phones. They can also upload their audio and video files via websites like YouTube and Spotify.

With these social media sites, children and teens are given the opportunity to be creative and to stay connected with their friends, but with this gift, they have also become exposed to the dangers that accompany the use of these websites.

The social media landscape changes more quickly than you can change your shirt. In this article, I will go over the basic definition of social media, the functions of popular social media sites being patronized by children and teens alike, and most importantly, the risks that come with these sites.

How To Protect Your Child’s Brain Health (and Yours…)

November 12, 2015 by James Rheine.

We used to believe that once our bodies reach physical maturity, the brain no longer generates new brain tissue and because the brain no longer heals itself, we would eventually suffer dementia by the time we reach old age.

Thankfully, the belief that our brains are static organs has been proven wrong. The brain is one dynamic organ with the continuous capacity to regenerate new tissue. In other words, our brain continually heals over time.

How To Talk About Loss With Your Child

November 3, 2015 by James Rheine.

Death is a very sensitive topic and will affect your family at some point, and it’s a subject that few parents know how to talk about with their children.

When do you know that you’ve explained too much?

When do you know that you’ve answered too little?

A lot of parents are always looking for advice on how to talk about death with their little ones – especially after the passing of a loved one.

Even if a family has not experienced loss, the presence of ghosts, tombstones, and specters during Halloween celebrations can often trigger a child’s curiosity for the afterlife.

With that said, here’s how you can talk about loss with your child.