How to Teach Children Honesty

It can be surprising, frustrating, and worrisome when your child first lies to you. It can also be really hard to know how to respond! Lying is actually a normal and necessary part of a child’s development. Though parents should teach their children to be honest from a young age, they shouldn’t be too concerned when their child begins to tell lies, because it’s a normal part of childhood that every child goes through.

Age Appropriate Chores for Children

Do you ever find yourself wondering what types of chores your child is capable of performing or how to help motivate them to do chores in the first place? Here are five helpful tips to consider.

Child Nutrition

As your children grow, their bodies and nutritional needs change! The rates their bodies are growing change, and this correlates to their hunger and nutritional needs. After about two years old, a slowing down in the rate of physical growth comes with a reduced appetite. Each child is different and needs different amounts of nutrients to keep them healthy. How much they need to eat also depends on their level of physical activity and their metabolic rate.

In the past few years, the number of overweight children has increased. The most recent data from 2016 states that 26% of children 2-5 years old were overweight and 14% were considered obese. Recent studies have found that if a child is overweight in preschool, chances are they are going to stay that way into adulthood. There are many factors that play into childhood obesity, but ultimately is does come down to diet and exercise.

5 Steps to Make the Perfect Playdough Elephant

Looking for a fun activity to do this weekend? Pull out some playdough and create some animals! Sometimes the best learning experiences happen when you don’t know you’re learning. Playdough is a great activity to help with shape recognition and sensory issues.

Childhood Injury Prevention Tips

About a year and a half ago, I was babysitting for some family friends when their two-year-old daughter fell from a bunk bed ladder and broke her leg. She was okay, but it was definitely a scary experience for both of us! I couldn’t get it out of my mind that I should have been watching her more carefully or that she shouldn’t have been in a room with a bunk bed. It was hard to get past those feelings of guilt, and I definitely wished there was a way that accident could have been prevented. After doing some research, I found a few easy steps parents can take to prevent injuries to their children both at home and in public places.