Family Day celebrations goes publicly - Divya Bhaskar

Divya Baskar - 30/9/2010 : Shanti Juniors celebrated  " FAMILY DAY" at Shanti Asiatic School with full enthusiasm  ................................

Shanti Juniors Family Day Celebration: Zooooommmm in view

Shanti Juniors - FAMILY DAY CELEBRATION Zoom In view of the article which was carried out in Ahmedabad Mirror - 30/9/2010

Family Day celebrations in NEWS - Ahmedabad Mirrior

Ahmedabad Mirror - 30/9/2010 : Carried an article about Shanti Juniors and how they celebrated " FAMILY DAY" at Shanti Asiatic School................................

Total development for your child's success in School & Life...!

·         Make the most of the early years  of your child

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

·         Utilize the free time your child has more productively

·         Prepare your child for an increasingly competitive world

·         Raise a happy and well- rounded  and successful individual

Coping With Holiday Hustle and Bustle

Families can better cope with the hustle and bustle of the holidays by following a few simple tips.

Keep routines as normal as possible and concentrate on important activities to reduce holiday stress. Routines are important for children, so try to maintain normal meal and bedtime schedules even during holiday vacations., Children may feel upset, grouchy or anxious during this busy time. Don't expect children to always be happy and appreciative.Having a quiet time is also a good idea during the holidays. Play soft music, read stories or take a stroll to bring down your child's activity level. Setting a "whisper hour," a time when everyone in the house must whisper, is a way to reduce noise and add mystery to the season. Parents should select activities most important to the family. By letting go of the less important ones, the festive mood won't be hindered, but stress may be eased. It's also a good idea to schedule activities over several days so the excitement isn't overwhelming -- for the children or for the parents. Make several short shopping trips instead of one long trip. Children have short attention spans and little endurance.

Here are some additional ways to deal with holiday stress:

Concentrate on people instead of objects. For example, it's more important to have fun making cookies than to have beautiful cookies.

Prepare children for holiday visits by sharing photos of family members. Discuss who the people are and who the children will see.

Plan celebrations during children's best coping time of the day.

Touch people. A loving touch can have the opposite effect of stress because it calms people both physically and emotionally.

Limit sugar, salt, caffeine during holiday meals and snacks. They may result in the same symptoms as stress.

Have children help prepare for celebrations by setting the table, cutting out cookies, picking up toys, and designing and coloring placemats.

By letting children be part of the festivities, the family emphasizes shared joys and responsibilities during their holiday celebration.

How Can We Provide Safe Playgrounds?

What Makes a Playground Unsafe?

Each year hospital emergency rooms treat an estimated 200,000 children who have been injured in playground accidents. About 60 percent of these injuries are caused by children falling from playground equipment onto a hard and unyielding surface such as asphalt, concrete, or even the ground. Most playground injuries are caused by preventable hazards. These hazards include:

Inadequate fall zones under and spaces between playground equipment. The area under and around equipment should be covered with a minimum of 12 inches of protective, resilient surfacing material (such as wood chips, mulch, or rubber), extending a minimum of 6 feet in all directions. Fall zones around swings should extend twice the height of the swing hanger in front of and behind the swings. Swings should not be attached to play systems. There should be a minimum of 12 feet between play structures.

Absence of guard rails. Elevated surfaces such as platforms, ramps, and bridgeways should have guard rails to prevent accidental falls.

Dangerous protrusions and entanglements. Objects such as nails, screws, bolts, pipe ends, and sharp or pointed hardware can impale or cut children. Hooks or parts that catch strings and clothing can cause strangulation. Open S hooks allow swing seats to slip off their chains and can cause children to fall.

Hazardous entrapment areas. Openings between posts, ladder rungs, deck levels, or entryways are fine for foot-first entry, but they can also entrap children's heads. Ideally, openings on playground equipment should measure less than 3 inches or more than 9 inches.

Dangerous swing seats. Hard wood or metal swing seats can hit children passing too closely to or jumping off a swing. Heavy animal-type swings are particularly dangerous because they act as battering rams; bumpers attached to these swings do not reduce the risk of injury.

Other dangerous playground equipment. Equipment such as suspension bridges, merry-go-rounds, swinging gates, and seesaws (teeter-totters) may have moving parts that can pinch or crush children's fingers or other body parts.

Age-inappropriate equipment. It is important to ensure that playground equipment is appropriate to the age group using it. For example, equipment for children in preschool should have guard rails on elevated surfaces higher than 20 inches, and it should be separated from equipment for school-age children. Small children may not have the coordination and balance to climb on equipment designed for older children.

Inadequate supervision or lack of supervision. It is estimated that more than 40 percent of playground injuries are directly related to lack of proper supervision. Most children are unable to foresee danger.

Parents and school staff need to be alert to potential hazards.

How Can You Help Children Play Safely?

Proper supervision is essential to safe play. Parents and teachers should ensure that children observe the following rules:

Wear shoes, such as sneakers, that do not slide on wet surfaces. However, check for footwear rules at indoor play areas.

Do not play on slippery or wet equipment or force body parts through small spaces.

Do not play on hot metal surfaces, such as slides, that may cause third-degree burns.

Do not cross in front or behind moving swings.

Get off a seesaw only when your partner's feet are on the ground.

Do not push or pull others while playing on climbing equipment.

How Can an Unsafe Playground Be Made Safe?

If a playground is unsafe, it can be renovated by making these improvements:

Install a fall zone of appropriate materials that extends the correct distance in all directions under all equipment.

Modify unsafe equipment if it is economical; otherwise, unsafe equipment should be replaced.

Replace hard swing seats with softer ones and remove animal-type swings and multiple-occupancy glider swings.

Install guard or barrier walls on all elevated surfaces, close S hooks, and modify protrusions.

Space equipment appropriately and remove equipment with openings that can trap children's heads.

Remove hazards that children may trip over, such as exposed concrete footings, tree roots, stumps, or rocks; modify containment borders and abrupt changes in surface elevations.

Talk with contractors and equipment manufacturers to ensure that equipment complies with safety standards.

AGES & STAGES - INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES

Developmental milestones give a general idea about what to expect from children of different ages. However, there will always be differences between individual children. Some children begin to walk at 10 months, some at 15 months. Some toddle along quickly and smoothly, getting the "hang of it" right away. Others fall down a lot, hesitate, or even give up for a few days. Some children talk before they are 2, others talk very little before they are 3 or so. Some will always be quiet people. Some abilities become clear in one child, but may never be very strong in another.

Recognize the individual in the child and look for differences based on the following:

SENSE OF SECURITY

Some children need more consistency, more reassurance, and more confidence and trust-building than others. Insecurity sometimes can cause a child to withdraw or behave aggressively.

ACTIVITY LEVEL

Some children need more active play than others. They need the opportunity to move around, jump, run, and bounce many times throughout the day. Other children need more quiet time or more rest.

RESPONSE TO STIMULATION

Children are inherently different in their tolerance to noise, activity, visual stimulation, or changes in the environment. An environment that is sensitive to this need in children will provide interesting activities as well as a quiet place to get away from the action.

THINKING STYLE

Some children think quietly through possible solutions to a problem; others push in and try the first idea that occurs to them. Some children are interested in experimenting to find out how objects work; others choose to ask friends or adults for help.

Developmental guidelines should be used as a general rule of thumb. In your work with children, do not confuse earlier or faster development with better development. Early talking by a 1-year-old does not mean that the child will be a chatterbox or a brilliant conversationalist at age 10. Later talking may mean that a toddler is putting more energy into physical growth and motor exploration right now.

Development or the lack of it that falls outside the normal range may indicate a problem that requires attention. You may need to help parents recognize possible problems and special needs, such as poor vision or hearing. Familiarity with developmental norms and with community resources can assist you in helping parents seek professional advice about developmental questions.