7 Memory Boosting Foods Moms should include in their Children’s Diets

Having a good memory is of utmost importance for everyone especially students whose performances in exams solely depends upon if they remember what they have studied. Putting in all the effort but still being unable to remember can be quite frustrating for students.

Take a look at the 7 foods which enhance one’s memory:

1)      Boiled egg: This nutritious food is not only a rich source of proteins and vitamins but also of an important nutrient called choline. Choline improves the brain functions and it especially betters the memory of a person. Other sources of Choline are wheat germ oil, spinach and beetroot.

2)      Fish: Fishes like Salmon are a rich source of Omega 3 fatty acid which boosts the performance of human brain. For those who do not like the taste of fish, fish oil capsules are also commonly available in market.

3)      Walnuts: Walnuts are rich in a special type of Omega-3 acid which helps the body age slower. Walnuts also protect the brain cells from radical damage.

4)      Brahmi – India has given the world many life-saving herbs and Brahmi is one of them. This famous ayurvedic medicine is known to boost the power of brain and sharpen memory.

5)      Turkey – This meat contains an amino acid called L-tyrosine which is used by the brain to create a chemical – dopamine - that is responsible for a person’s memory. Dopamine is also responsible for making a person alert. Other sources of L-tyrosine are chicken, cheese and almonds.

6)      Rosemary oil capsules – This magical herb has been used traditionally in various therapies to improve memory. It is widely used in cooking and spa treatments for mental relaxation.

7)      Gingko Biloba – Gingko increases blood circulation in the entire body, thereby supplying enough blood and oxygen to the brain and increases memory in a person. Gingko Biloba supplements are commonly available in all medical stores. Read more....

5 useful apps that will teach children to manage money efficiently

Learning to manage your own finances helps in more ways than one. Those who have made the effort to do so know that it isn’t an easy job. Like it’s said that it takes a while to cultivate good habits. This is one such habit, which takes quite some time to develop. Kids are too young to understand the value of using money wisely because they do not know how hard it is to earn money, but that doesn’t mean that as parents we should let them be careless about money-related matters. If money managing habits are cultivated at an early stage, it would benefit them immensely when they grow up. Also, as parents, you surely do not want them to learn things the hard way. Merely reproaching kids for frittering their allowances will not exactly teach them why they should spend wisely. 

Parents could read some simple money management articles (like this one) or books teach them to bargain with the local vendors and also, introduce them to the following apps which would help them immensely with money-related skills:

1)      Piggybot: This app is the digital and improved version of our old-school piggy bank. It helps kids manage their monthly pocket money by keeping a track of their expenses. This app is ideal for  6-10 year old kids. The only possible con of this app is that it is only available on Apple devices.

2)      Renegade Buggies: What better way to teach your kids how to save than making them play games related to the same?  This shopping game teaches kids how to make optimum use of their pocket money, save and investment. The app is ideal for kids of the age group 6 to 12 and one could download the app for free on any Android or Apple phone or tablet. 

3)      Green & trees: Unleash the Loot! : In this game kids have to use a limited budget to save their favourite animal. They have to buy food and other necessities for the animals for rescuing them. This game is suitable for kids of the age group 5 to 8 and is available for free download on iOS and Android devices.

4)      Celebrity Calamity: Kids are in-charge of managing the money of celebrities who love to waste money and live uber-luxuriously. Kids get to experience the repercussions of carelessly spending money through the game. This game is available for free download on iOS and Android devices. Kids as young as 6 and old as 14 can have fun playing this one.

5)      FamZoo: Parents create bank accounts to keep a track of their children’s spending and saving habits. The app helps parents to teach kids how to use their money responsibly. Kids over 12 years of age can use this app. FamZoo can be downloaded and installed for free on all iOS and Android devices.

Teaching kids the value of spending and saving wisely is only a touch away.

Reasons parents and teachers must consider replacing harsh words with motivating words

Words are powerful weapons. As much as we know the extent to which words can affect someone, we seldom think enough before we speak. Words are capable of building and destroying relationships. Children, particularly, can suffer an irreparable damage when someone targets them with harsh words.

Parents and teachers ought to use their words wisely or else they could damage the self-esteem of their children or students in their formative years.

Replace ‘you are not supposed to do….’ With ‘you can try doing …. Instead of ….’

Instead of saying ‘you are very selfish’ you should say ‘you must learn to share with others’

Instead of forcing them to do things by saying ‘you have to…’ you can try saying ‘I’d like it if you…’

‘you are careless’ you can say ‘ you need to be more careful’

Try requesting instead of being dictatorial with them.

Start being appreciative and praise them often for all the good things they do even if it’s just efforts: Kids love a little pat on their back once in a while. It encourages them to do better and also feel good about the praiseworthy qualities that they possess. Kids grow up to resent people who have undervalued and criticized them every now and then during their childhood. If parents think it’s necessary for their kids to know what they lack, shouldn’t they also know what they are good at?

Try praising your students/children often by saying things like:

You did an excellent job on your science project; you should participate in such tasks more often.

You are amazing at football

That’s a good score! I am sure next time you’d get even better scores.

“Thanks for helping me with the dishes”

Positive words and compliments will shape your kids to become more confident and motivated. So, replace all the harsh words with polite and kind words and watch the difference in your child’s attitude.Read more..

4 ways parents and teachers can make kids learn from their mistakes

To err is human and kids are no exception. In fact, in our formative years, we all have had a history of making small and big blunders. Most of the important things that we learn in our lives do not come easy. So, one must understand that making mistakes is only the first step to learning valuable lessons in life. A child shouldn’t be termed as a failure for making a mistake as it would deter him from even trying or participating in challenging tasks. Kids are reprimanded, beaten even for failing in exams. Such behavior is not suitable for the sensitive and impressionable minds of kids.

As elders, we can responsibly teach kids and encourage them that erring is an essential step to succeeding in life. There are many famous personalities – from Einstein to Bill Gates. Success and fame did not come easy to them. They continued to believe themselves against all odds which eventually helped them achieve what they wanted. Our well-intentions should reflect in the way we treat children. Instead of lashing out on them we should make it a point to keep encouraging them to keep trying and overcome all the obstacles that they face.

Take a look at the following simple measures parents and teachers can take to help kids cope with failure and learn from their mistakes:

1)    Do not be dramatic: One mistake is enough to blow a child’s morale and self-esteem. Teachers and parents will be at fault if they over-blew such incidences out of proportion and aggravate the damage.

2)   Figure the issue: Kids need support, they will not be able to figure out most things for themselves. Sit down and figure the problem. The only way one can fix problems is by first understanding them.

3)    Make them understand: Once you have understood the problem, talk to them about it in a serious but polite tone. You need to convince that for every problem there is a solution instead of making them regret their mistakes in a harsh way.

4)   Teach them to not give up: Initial setbacks do not count to be a permanent defeat. But resigning after failing is accepting defeat. Failure can make a person feel weak and deters him from undertaking new tasks.

As responsible grown-ups our job is to make our kids and students feel confident and motivated instead of filling their fragile minds with self-doubt and guilt.

What kinds of teachers do students like learning from?

Students come in all types but so do teachers, and there are many desirable qualities which students seek in their teachers. We all have had favourite teachers in our schools whom we admired and adored. We all know how important it was for us to impress them. The more we liked a teacher, the harder we strived to score well in his/her subject. If you think back on the qualities of the teacher you liked, you will notice that they all had one thing in common – they made classes enjoyable. It is, therefore, fair to say that for teachers to be popular among their students, they must project a positive and cheerful demeanor.

There are certain common traits most students like seeing in their teachers. Here are some of them:

1)    How well they present themselves - The first quality is undoubtedly how the teacher presents herself in the class. A teacher ought to be well-dressed. It would be difficult for anyone to take a clumsily dressed teacher seriously.

2)   Good sense of humor – It’s hard to dislike a person who has a knack of amusing people. Kids have a special proclivity towards teachers who have a funny side to them.

3)  Display strong mentorship skills – Even though ‘teaching’ is considered to be synonymous with ‘mentoring’, not all teachers can be taken to be mentors in the truest sense of the word. Real mentors know how to motivate and bring out the best in their students.

4)  Being kind and gentle – Intimidating students would naturally drive them to dislike the teacher which could possibly result in them taking less interest in the teacher’s subject. Pushing them around to get assignments done or admonishing them for failure would force them to dislike their teachers.

5)   Encouraging and caring – Young minds are impressionable and can be affected badly if they are belittled and scolded for every little mistake they make. A good teacher knows that it is normal to have weaknesses and that it is important to deal with them gently. Read more details for CBSE and ICSE tuition.

Tech-based Coaching – A savior for modern students

With everything around us getting digitalized – from shopping to consulting doctors – the education industry is not too far behind. It won’t be an exaggeration to say that the world today revolves around technology. In the recent years, there has been a boom in the number of children and parents opting for online tuitions. Online modes of learning typically use multi-modal resources and techniques which help students grasp the concepts faster and with ease. Technology-aided teaching bridges the gap between the coaches and students. The use of animated and interactive videos helps develop interest among the students thereby making them participate in the process of learning.

Online learning techniques equip the young minds with important 21^st century skills. Unnecessary rote learning and repetitive revision is a thing of the past for children who study using these contemporary options. Until a few years ago, study materials loaded with content made most students feel anxious even to start studying. Today’s technology-enabled teaching is capable of making the children understand and learn topics which are considered difficult by majority of them.  The teaching material used by leading e-coaching institutes predominantly makes use of attention-grabbing visuals and minimal text which makes the whole process of learning fun and hassle-free.

It’s no secret that cultivating interest among students is essential to get them to study, and until a student tries his best, he wouldn’t know what he is capable of achieving. Traditional teaching techniques were largely unable to address this major issue. But today, there are choices available. The modern education industry also understands the fact that no two students are alike, and it is only a waste of time and effort to have hundreds of students sit in a room under a roof with a teacher for studying. Leading tech-based learning brands provide customized and personalized learning options for a variety of students. Weaker students can take their own time to comprehend and learn the topics found challenging by them while the brighter ones could speed through the topics which come easier to them.

More than a bundle of homework assignments, if the students spend the time with their coaches learning the right way, they could save the homework time and invest themselves in their favourite hobby. After all, studying shouldn’t be made an overwhelming activity for the young minds.