Arfelia's Site

Arfelia's Site: Arfelia's Site: Financial Aid Options For Adults Who Want To Continue Their Education

2007-10-29T06:06:00.000+07:00

Arfelia's Site: Arfelia's Site: Financial Aid Options For Adults Who Want To Continue Their Education

Arfelia's Site: Financial Aid Options For Adults Who Want To Continue Their Education

2007-10-29T06:04:00.000+07:00

Arfelia's Site: Financial Aid Options For Adults Who Want To Continue Their Education

Facing Your Fears as an Adult Returning to School

2007-10-28T20:16:00.000+07:00

In case you hadn't noticed, career colleges aren't just for learning a vocational trade anymore. Nowadays, career colleges can help you obtain a Bachelor's, Master's, or even Doctorate Degree in just about any field of study, or they can even help you simply brush up on skills you might already have on your way to earning a certification or Associate's Degree. So while some career schools might still specialize in vocational trades like auto body repair, masonry or hair styling, the majority of today's career colleges are designed to help working professionals meet their career objectives.

Prompted by an inviting and growing selection of career and online colleges, more adults are returning to school than ever before. Whether you're seeking to advance your current career and education, break into a whole new field, or just enjoy studying something you've always wanted to, going back to school can be enjoyable and rewarding.

And yet, many potential students who could clearly benefit from enrollment at a career college are hesitant to do so. The reason? In too many cases, they are being held back by nothing other than their own fear.

The First Step is Admitting It

Let's begin by getting everything out on the table. Some reservations commonly heard from working adults who are considering a return to college include the concerns that :

They won't fit in It's too expensive There isn't enough time in the day It will take forever to complete a degree Employers won't view the degree (or certification) as credible The coursework won't be valuable or useful.

In reality, just about any student who has attended a career college--whether online or on-campus--will tell you that there really isn't anything to fear in a return to school. While they may have once had the same fears as you do now, they learned very quickly that those fears were actually unwarranted.

By taking each fear one by one, we can begin to understand what these current students now know and how glad they are that they didn't let their fears hold them back.

I'm Afraid I Won't Fit In

It is common for a person in their thirties or forties to worry that they'll stick out like a sore thumb in a classroom filled with "kids" from the ages of 18 to 25. However, recent information from the Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Education states that adult students are the fastest growing educational demographic, revealing that 40% of college students are now 25 or older. Further information from the National Center for Education Statistics points out that students age 35 and older rose from 823,00 in 1970 to nearly 3 million by 2001.

If you're still worried about fitting in to the classroom as an adult, a few facts that might help allay your concerns include :

With online learning, you'll be working on a more individual basis and won't have to worry about 'standing out' in a physical classroom; Many colleges, traditional or otherwise, have seen a spike in their 'older' students, and it's likely you won't be the tiny minority that you expect; and Many older adults actually find it rejuvenating and refreshing to be in a classroom environment with a younger group that is eager to learn.
In case you hadn't noticed, career colleges aren't just for learning a vocational trade anymore. Nowadays, career colleges can help you obtain a Bachelor's, Master's, or even Doctorate Degree in just about any field of study, or they can even help you simply brush up on skills you might already have on your way to earning a certification or Associate's Degree. So while some career schools might still specialize in vocational trades like auto body repair, masonry or hair styling, the majority of today's career colleges are designed to help working professionals meet their career objectives.
Prompted by an inviting and growing selection of career and online colleges, more adults are returning to school than ever before. Whether you're seeking to advance your current career and education, break into a whole new field, or just enjoy studying something you've always wanted to, going back to school can be enjoyable and rewarding.
And yet, many potential students who could clearly benefit from enrollment at a career college are hesitant to do so. The reason? In too many cases, they are being held back by nothing other than their own fear.
The First Step is Admitting It
Let's begin by getting everything out on the table. Some reservations commonly heard from working adults who are considering a return to college include the concerns that:
They won't fit in It's too expensive There isn't enough time in the day It will take forever to complete a degree Employers won't view the degree (or certification) as credible The coursework won't be valuable or useful
In reality, just about any student who has attended a career college--whether online or on-campus--will tell you that there really isn't anything to fear in a return to school. While they may have once had the same fears as you do now, they learned very quickly that those fears were actually unwarranted.
By taking each fear one by one, we can begin to understand what these current students now know and how glad they are that they didn't let their fears hold them back.
I'm Afraid I Won't Fit In
It is common for a person in their thirties or forties to worry that they'll stick out like a sore thumb in a classroom filled with "kids" from the ages of 18 to 25. However, recent information from the Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Education states that adult students are the fastest growing educational demographic, revealing that 40% of college students are now 25 or older. Further information from the National Center for Education Statistics points out that students age 35 and older rose from 823,00 in 1970 to nearly 3 million by 2001.
If you're still worried about fitting in to the classroom as an adult, a few facts that might help allay your concerns include:
With online learning, you'll be working on a more individual basis and won't have to worry about 'standing out' in a physical classroom; Many colleges, traditional or otherwise, have seen a spike in their 'older' students, and it's likely you won't be the tiny minority that you expect; and Many older adults actually find it rejuvenating and refreshing to be in a classroom environment with a younger group that is eager to learn.
I'm Afraid It Will Be Too Expensive
Tuition?books?it all adds up. And many potential students get scared off by the investment it requires to earn their degree. But the key to overcoming this fear is to consider it as just that: an investment in your future. Think long term instead of short term. In almost every case, the career advancement you will get after earning your degree will easily make up for the upfront costs of attending school. Besides, many career colleges--especially those online--may be more affordable than you realize. Do your homework and weigh the long-term benefits before deciding not to enroll in a school for this reason.
I'm Afraid It Will Take Up Too Much Time
For the busy working adult, the notion of taking on any additional endeavors can be downright stifling. It's not always easy balancing work with personal life, and adding school on top of all your other responsibilities might seem virtually impossible.
And yet, it's not. You'd be amazed at how much extra time you can squeeze into a day. Sure, there will be some sacrifices you'll have to make, but if you just try watching a little less television, say, or letting your friends know that you won't be able to make that barbecue next weekend, you'll be amazed at how much time you can free up. Just remember to keep your eye on the prize, and your sacrifices will all seem worthwhile.
One good option for students who might have a hard time committing to a schedule is to enroll in online courses that are "asynchronous." The asynchronous learning model works a bit like email in that you can access the coursework, instructor's lessons and classmates comments at your convenience, then respond whenever you are able. There are no set classes for you to attend, no specific schedules that might conflict with the rest of your day, and, because you'll be taking classes online, no commute time for you to worry about.
I'm Afraid It Will Take Forever To Complete My Degree
Traditionally, a Bachelor's Degree takes up to four years to complete, a Master's Degree requires at least two years, and a Doctorate Degree can take up to eight years or more. That's all fine and good for someone who can dedicate themselves to being a full time student, but for those who can only commit to part-time status, those timelines might appear too far off the horizon.
But the facts of the matter are that most degree programs at today's career colleges are based on accelerated learning, meaning that most degrees take less time to complete than traditional learning environments. Coursework is based on shorter semesters--typically five weeks--and delivering a quality education as rapidly as possible without sacrificing the student's ability to learn and absorb the material. In some cases you can even earn your degree is less than a year!
I'm Afraid That Employers Won't Take My Degree Seriously
Because their degree won't be coming from some top-name university like Harvard or Yale, some would-be students decide that it's not worth getting a degree from a school that employer's won't view as credible.
In reality, however, most employers today do view degrees from career colleges as not only credible, but oftentimes on par with their more traditional counterparts. It wasn't that long ago that many HR professional may have viewed career colleges--particularly online career colleges--as carrying less weight than traditional colleges, but as the online education space evolves and faculty members and curriculums at online schools catches up with those at traditional schools, more and more HR executives are realizing the validity of degrees earned online or through career colleges. In fact, to some, an online degree represents a certain career ambition, technological prowess and commitment to seeing something through to the end on behalf of the applicant.
I'm Afraid I Won't Learn Anything New Or Valuable
Many potential students are fearful of the fact that their trouble to go out and earn their degree might be all for naught--that the classes won't teach them anything they hadn't learned already in their professional experiences.
As anyone who has ever taken so much as a single class at a career college or online school will tell you, however, this perception couldn't be further from the truth. Classes at any accredited university are taught by qualified experts with lots of experience in their chosen field, while you will also be surrounded by classmates who bring their own, unique experiences to share. Whether the "classroom" is physical or virtual, you will learn more than you ever imagined from those around you.
Another point to consider is that most career colleges are centered around a team learning approach, in which students learn not only from their instructors, but from other students as well. With this approach, you'll engage in dialogues with other students who have much to share from their own work experiences, and you'll gain valuable lessons that you can take back and immediately apply to your own work.
Why Make The Move?
In today's modern learning environment, with numerous career and online schools focused entirely on their educational needs, adults have nothing to fear in a return to school - and so much to gain. Here are some of the main reasons more adults than ever are going back to school:
Career advancement or transition. If you're not currently working at the job of your dreams, nothing can change that faster than a more advanced degree and additional expertise.
To complete a degree from years ago. Plenty of first-time college students leave before they earn a degree, and a return to college is a supremely satisfying way to take care of that unfinished business.
To set an example for their children. What better way to encourage your growing children to pursue a college education than getting one of your own?
To fully prepare for running their own business. Whether you're interested in opening a B&B or your own accounting firm, the perfect college program is available online or on-campus.
Returning to school is a big step, but it shouldn't be an overwhelming one. For those who plan the move properly and take aim on getting all they can out of life, it can be the best decision they ever make.

Tuition?books?it all adds up. And many potential students get scared off by the investment it requires to earn their degree. But the key to overcoming this fear is to consider it as just that: an investment in your future. Think long term instead of short term. In almost every case, the career advancement you will get after earning your degree will easily make up for the upfront costs of attending school. Besides, many career colleges--especially those online--may be more affordable than you realize. Do your homework and weigh the long-term benefits before deciding not to enroll in a school for this reason.
I'm Afraid It Will Take Up Too Much Time
For the busy working adult, the notion of taking on any additional endeavors can be downright stifling. It's not always easy balancing work with personal life, and adding school on top of all your other responsibilities might seem virtually impossible.
And yet, it's not. You'd be amazed at how much extra time you can squeeze into a day. Sure, there will be some sacrifices you'll have to make, but if you just try watching a little less television, say, or letting your friends know that you won't be able to make that barbecue next weekend, you'll be amazed at how much time you can free up. Just remember to keep your eye on the prize, and your sacrifices will all seem worthwhile.
One good option for students who might have a hard time committing to a schedule is to enroll in online courses that are "asynchronous." The asynchronous learning model works a bit like email in that you can access the coursework, instructor's lessons and classmates comments at your convenience, then respond whenever you are able. There are no set classes for you to attend, no specific schedules that might conflict with the rest of your day, and, because you'll be taking classes online, no commute time for you to worry about.
I'm Afraid It Will Take Forever To Complete My Degree
Traditionally, a Bachelor's Degree takes up to four years to complete, a Master's Degree requires at least two years, and a Doctorate Degree can take up to eight years or more. That's all fine and good for someone who can dedicate themselves to being a full time student, but for those who can only commit to part-time status, those timelines might appear too far off the horizon.
But the facts of the matter are that most degree programs at today's career colleges are based on accelerated learning, meaning that most degrees take less time to complete than traditional learning environments. Coursework is based on shorter semesters--typically five weeks--and delivering a quality education as rapidly as possible without sacrificing the student's ability to learn and absorb the material. In some cases you can even earn your degree is less than a year!
I'm Afraid That Employers Won't Take My Degree Seriously
Because their degree won't be coming from some top-name university like Harvard or Yale, some would-be students decide that it's not worth getting a degree from a school that employer's won't view as credible.
In reality, however, most employers today do view degrees from career colleges as not only credible, but oftentimes on par with their more traditional counterparts. It wasn't that long ago that many HR professional may have viewed career colleges--particularly online career colleges--as carrying less weight than traditional colleges, but as the online education space evolves and faculty members and curriculums at online schools catches up with those at traditional schools, more and more HR executives are realizing the validity of degrees earned online or through career colleges. In fact, to some, an online degree represents a certain career ambition, technological prowess and commitment to seeing something through to the end on behalf of the applicant.
I'm Afraid I Won't Learn Anything New Or Valuable
Many potential students are fearful of the fact that their trouble to go out and earn their degree might be all for naught--that the classes won't teach them anything they hadn't learned already in their professional experiences.
As anyone who has ever taken so much as a single class at a career college or online school will tell you, however, this perception couldn't be further from the truth. Classes at any accredited university are taught by qualified experts with lots of experience in their chosen field, while you will also be surrounded by classmates who bring their own, unique experiences to share. Whether the "classroom" is physical or virtual, you will learn more than you ever imagined from those around you.
Another point to consider is that most career colleges are centered around a team learning approach, in which students learn not only from their instructors, but from other students as well. With this approach, you'll engage in dialogues with other students who have much to share from their own work experiences, and you'll gain valuable lessons that you can take back and immediately apply to your own work.
Why Make The Move?
In today's modern learning environment, with numerous career and online schools focused entirely on their educational needs, adults have nothing to fear in a return to school - and so much to gain. Here are some of the main reasons more adults than ever are going back to school:
Career advancement or transition. If you're not currently working at the job of your dreams, nothing can change that faster than a more advanced degree and additional expertise.
To complete a degree from years ago. Plenty of first-time college students leave before they earn a degree, and a return to college is a supremely satisfying way to take care of that unfinished business.
To set an example for their children. What better way to encourage your growing children to pursue a college education than getting one of your own?
To fully prepare for running their own business. Whether you're interested in opening a B&B or your own accounting firm, the perfect college program is available online or on-campus.
Returning to school is a big step, but it shouldn't be an overwhelming one. For those who plan the move properly and take aim on getting all they can out of life, it can be the best decision they ever make.

Financial Aid Options For Adults Who Want To Continue Their Education

2007-10-28T20:13:00.000+07:00

Approximately 90 million adults in the United States are now enrolled in some kind of training or educational program. Four out of every ten college students are over twenty-five years of age. Another 800,000 take the General Educational Development (GED) test every year to earn high school diplomas. Adult education and re-training is a big trend!

Some of the pressure to get more education is coming from a job market that demands up-to-date skills, especially in technology. The workers with the best and most current skills are in the most demand and earn higher salaries. A college degree often opens the door for a better job or promotion. The United States Bureau of Census estimates that a college degree is worth about $1.2 million over the course of a person's career.

Colleges have adapted to the growing market of returning adult students by changing the way they offer their courses. Many big-name universities now offer their most popular degree programs, such as the Masters of Business Administration, in classes that meet evenings and weekends. Others are providing a combination of weekend, evening and online courses to accommodate the schedules of busy professionals.

One of the biggest trends of all is the emergence of the online university. Tens of thousands of adults are now earning "online" college degrees. They can log into a chat room and discuss assignments with other students and their professionals. They can study online whenever it's convenient. Many of these online schools do not follow formal semester schedules and thus can allow students to take classes whenever they want to start.

Adult students, sometimes called "re-entry students," can qualify for traditional government financial aid if they are enrolled at least half-time. This usually means that they must be taking two full-credit courses at once. Their schools must have the proper accreditations to participate in Title IV programs in order for them to be eligible for aid.

If a re-entry student is taking enough credits to qualify at a Title IV school, he or she then goes through the traditional financial aid process. The first step is to fill out a FAFSA, an abbreviation that means Free Application for Federal Student Aid. You can download a FAFSA and instructions at http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/ english/fafsa.jsp. Students need to fill this out to qualify for programs.

If a student demonstrates financial need, he or she may qualify for government grants, which do not have to be paid back. The Perkins Loan program, also for low-income students, provides loans at very low interest rates that are paid back over a period of ten years beginning nine months after graduation.

College students who are enrolled at least half-time and who can maintain a C average may apply for government loans, also at low interest rates and long payback periods. Sometimes you will owe the money directly to the government. In other cases, a student will have a loan from a private lender who acts as a middleman.

Re-entry students should always contact their financial aid officer at the college of their choice. Their counselor can help them with their FAFAs and other forms, as well as find them a bank to loan them money through a government program.

A good knowledgeable financial aid officer will help students find private scholarship money, too. Although the majority of scholarships are for undergraduates in traditional campus programs, there are over 1800 for re-entry students over twenty-five years of age. While there are private scholarship search companies, most students should be able to do this task themselves for free on the Internet or through their financial aid office.

If you are now serving or have served in the military, you should ask your college financial aid officer about military benefits for continuing education.

Sometimes employers will pay for continuing adult education. Many employers just want an employee to pick up a certain course to enhance job performance in one area. Other employers will pay for the completion of college degrees and even advanced degrees.

Some universities try to pressure students into enrolling before the students know how much financial aid they will receive per semester. To avoid this problem, you can go online and plug in your FAFSA numbers to get a rough estimate of your financial aid package. Your financial aid officer can help you get this estimate before you sign up for tuition payments.

It is also important to understand your school's refund policy. Some students enroll and find out that they cannot carry a half-load of college work plus their professional and family responsibilities. Then they find out their schools will not refund their tuition money either in whole or in part, and that they will have a problem getting out of their federal loans. Investigate all these areas before you sign up for any continuing education program.

Online education and the challenge of motivation

2007-10-28T20:11:00.000+07:00

Getting an online education is both a very thrilling proposition and a challenging one as well. It is quite exciting to learn through a very new and non-traditional form of education and it offers a set of new challenges that would compel individuals to really immerse themselves in what they are doing.

Unfortunately, even with an educational format as new as online education, the same old problems that plague students would usually crop up. The most common difficulty a student encounters is losing the motivation to continue studying. This feeling is further exacerbated by the unique environment that a student must contend with in an online education course. Being alone with no real classmates to act as real-time sounding boards and given the free rein to handle your time it becomes a challenge to really get into the groove of studying. Since online education classes are a new education format, it also does not possess many of the known support systems that we can find inside a traditional school structure. These support systems are what helps keep students motivated. The lack of social interaction can also be a significant contributing factor for online education students easily losing the motivation to study.

Losing motivation is quite difficult because it could become difficult to stay focused on what needs to be done. Losing the impetus to study will make it very difficult to prepare for exams or tests, complete assignments and finish projects. Motivation is what drives a person to study through the boredom, the tedium and the difficulties. Without motivation, the whole purpose of taking online education classes loses meaning. It would be just so easy to quit and stop taking the classes at the risk of losing the tuition paid for the online classes.

For those who may be worried that they may lose their motivation, the good news is that it can be restored or reinforced. Below are some tips given by many education experts as a way of keeping motivated.

* One way to stay motivated is to identify a goal and work towards its attainment. Try to focus on small goals that can be easily fulfilled. You can mark off a calendar with daily and weekly goals that you are required to accomplish. As you fulfill each goal cross it out with a pen. This process helps you build up your pride in your accomplishments.

* Try to talk to other people about what you are learning in your online classes. This process is usually done with your classmates in a traditional school system but because of the nature of online education, you really do not have classmates in the traditional sense. What you can do is talk to family members and friends about what you have learned in your online classes. One other thing you can do is to try to arrange a chat with your instructor so that you can have some time to discuss the subjects and/or curriculum with him.

* Try to be active in forums related to your course or classes. Even though there are no real physical ways of meeting fellow students in an online course most educational institutions that offer online education provide chatrooms or forums where you can chat with other people taking the same courses. These chatrooms or forums provide ample opportunity for different kinds of interactions with fellow students. You can use it to get to know other students personally and if you find one that lives near you, then you can probably arrange to meet with them regularly to discuss your subjects. You can set up online study groups that other students who taking the same course can use.

5 Reasons Why You Should Learn a Foreign Language

2007-10-28T20:10:00.000+07:00

During the modern age, with globalization at its height, knowing one or two secondary languages has become more than a simple feat of high class and intelligence but also a strict requirement in many occasions. Whether it’s for professional, social or personal reasons, learning at least one foreign language is a must for anyone that wants to keep his or her head up high in today’s society. Let’s take a focused look on 5 of the main reasons that should turn you towards learning a foreign language.

1. Professional Requirement

This is probably the main reason for which one would learn a foreign language. Many professions require the knowledge of at least one or two foreign languages, depending on the field of the job. Most jobs may ask that you know an international language such as English, French, Spanish or German or a business-specific language such as Chinese, Japanese, Russian and so forth. If you’re a native English speaker you may have it a bit easier, since English is the main international language (and one that is present the most often in job descriptions) but knowing a secondary might also prove vital.

2. Social Bonus

Yes, knowing a foreign language (or more) is definitely a social bonus. There’s definitely a steep hill to climb between being presented as someone that doesn’t know any foreign language whatsoever against being presented as a polyglot. Another case when knowing a foreign language can be literally a social blessing is when meeting a foreigner whose language you can speak. They’ll be extremely impressed by your ability to talk with them through their own native tongue, although you’re on home grounds and this fact can single handedly create a great impression around you. If the foreigner happens to be part of a business meeting, this impression can turn to a successful business partnership, bringing you both professional and social satisfactions.

3. Family Communication

It’s often the case where a couple formed out of persons of diverse nationalities understand each other through a commonly known international language such as English. However, they’ll soon want to start learning the other person’s mother tongue, not only for a better communication, but also out of respect for them.

4. Personal Satisfaction

Learning a foreign language is one of the highest intellectual goals that one could have, on a personal scale. Think about a difficult puzzle, or math problem that takes months if not years of constant studying in order to be solved. The process of solving it may be a hard, arduous one but the yell of joy at the end is well worth it. It’s the same case with learning a foreign language: the learning process is not easy and you’ll have many small issues and problems to tackle along the way. You’ll have to focus on various aspects of the problem, such as spelling, grammar, reading, pronunciation and so forth. If you keep the problem in sight however and if you don’t lose interest in it, the chances of solving it are extremely high and the intellectual fulfillment that you get at the end is incomparable to anything else.

5. Keeping Your Mind Healthy

It’s been scientifically proven that by learning a new language, the process stimulates your brain in such a way that it will make you more keen on understanding and learning other subjects, including “real” disciplines such as math, physics, chemistry and so forth. Learning a new language requires the memorizing and understanding of several thousand new words and concepts, which offers your brain a good training for future occasions where memorizing is a must. After studying a foreign language you’ll have better results with studying for exams, with information assimilation and generally, with keeping your mind healthy and “active” even at older ages.

Adult Learning Theory

2007-10-28T20:05:00.000+07:00

It goes without saying that nowadays we are all confronted with an environment of continuous change and speedy shifts. Technology has altered the very nature of business and this had greatly influenced the employment market. Jobs requiring expertise and technical skills are growing in nearly every sector of the economy. The continuous change in what employees need to know and be able to handle suggests that learning, training and education will occur over the length of a career and, in fact, a lifetime. In light of this, adults have had to become life-long learners by consistently challenging themselves to pursue learning opportunities.

Thus, a large and growing segment of the education industry more so for the post graduate courses are made of "non-traditional" students. These are working adults who are interested in enhancing their job skills, retooling for new positions and careers, and pursuing other customized learning experiences. With the changing trend in the employment market, higher learning institutions are experiencing increased demand for a larger variety of rapid paced educational resource options for the adult learning community.

However, one of the greatest challenges faced by higher learning institutions is identifying instructional or delivery methods that enhance adult learning process. Thus the objective of any higher learning institutions should be to provide and establish learning objectives which are attainable by students and to use the appropriate instructional method in order that these objectives be met. This paper will explore the opportunities available for working adults to further their studies and also identify the instructional methods in delivering lessons.

Education helps in the development of the human mind, and it increases the powers of observations, analysis, integration, understanding, decision making, and adjustment to new situations. In other words, education is concerned with increasing one's knowledge and understanding the total environment. Among the major research areas of learning are the self-directed learning, critical reflection, experiential learning and learning to learn.

The first, self-directed learning is one that uses past experience as a resource base for learning, fitting new knowledge into current work and personal life situations. This brings with it real-life problem- solving and time-management advantages for the time-conscious student. The second, known as critical reflection, Brookfield observes it as the psychological development of an adult. This would relate to a host of constructs such as embedded logic, dialectical thinking, working intelligence, reflective judgment, post-formal reasoning and epistemic cognition which explain how adults come to think contextually and critically. As for experiential learning introduced by Liademan, the emphasis is on the experience of the working adult. Adult education is therefore a continuing process of evaluating experience, which is central to the concept of andragogy that has evolved to describe adult education. The fourth; learning to learn, is about the ability of adults seen in a range of different situations and through a range of different styles. Both the concepts of epistemic cognition and reflective judgment were introduced in this process of learning to learn.

The pedagogical model of instruction is the foremost instructional method used in delivering lessons. This mode of teaching is also known as the traditional or teacher-directed approach. Knowles, mentions that pedagogy is derived from the Greek word "paid" meaning child plus "agogos", meaning leading. Thus, pedagogy has been defined as the art and science of teaching children. The traditional teaching in this context is teacher centered instruction in which teachers do most of the talking and instructing while students do a lot of passive listening and memorizing. This type of teaching is best characterized by the phrase; the teacher is the sage on the stage. Teachers define terms, give directions, explain problems, answer questions, and otherwise present information to students.

In contrast, non-traditional teaching is student instruction in which teachers have a very different role, one best characterized by the phrase; the teacher is the guide on the side. Knowles, carried out extensive research into adult education and highlighted the problems of inappropriate learning for mature age students. He revived the use of the term "andragogy" and defined it as the "art and science of helping adult learn". The emphasis in andragogy is that the teacher takes the role of facilitator rather than teacher, and allows student to realize his or her own potential. In such an environment, students do lots of investigating, exploring, solving, discussing and explaining to their peers and teacher. As a result of researches by Brookfield and Knowles, adult learning is now strongly identified with personal growth and social change. This point is particularly relevant for adult students who return to tertiary education at postgraduate level to prepare themselves for senior positions within their professional communities. However the andragogy model asserts that five issues be considered and addressed in formal learning. They include: (1) letting learners know why something is important to learn, (2) showing learners how to direct themselves through information, and (3) relating the topic to the learners' experiences. In addition, (4) people will not learn until they are ready and motivated to learn. Often this (5) requires helping them overcome inhibitions, behaviors, and beliefs about learning.
Adult Learning Pursuits The traditional educational model was well suited to the industrial age society where individuals had rigidly defined roles in which carrying out certain actions under certain circumstances would generally yield the desired results. However, the information age has replaced the relative predictability of the industrial age with an increase of uncertainty that will require greater levels of flexibility and adaptability in order to survive and thrive. Education would need to change from being a process of conditioning to one of empowerment. Learning would need to change from being a homogenous commodity to a customized experience tailored to the needs and characteristics of the individual. In this aspect, the executive MBA (EMBA) which is also known as the non-traditional MBA would appeal to the working adults who wish to continue their studies. The EMBA programs are delivered via the non-traditional educational model, which is related to the andragogy learning concepts. These programs are also designed specifically for the middle or upper level managers with some working experience. However, this perception no longer holds true as more working adults from different executive levels are enrolling for these MBA programs. The wide acceptance for this is because of its customer-suited packaged which offers greater flexibility to better serve the needs of students, particularly the working adults.

Non-traditional Format Prospects The education industry has been profoundly affected by the emergence of communication and information technologies which provide opportunities for learning programs to deliver in ways that better serve the needs of students, particularly working adults and non-traditional students. Conventional service patterns are becoming obsolete as a growing number of education providers use interactive video, Internet and other distance-learning technologies to reach students. However, a point to note is that technology does not determine learning outcomes as it is merely a tool used to support new ways of delivery; non-traditional systems. It is therefore clearly seen that the traditional lecture format used in higher learning institutions has greatly changed with the integration of technology. In light of modern research and technology, the traditional format use is limited. The educational literatures do suggest a number of new educational delivery systems that could be used to improve teaching methods both in terms of learning outcomes and the efficiency with which these outcomes are achieved. With the integration of new educational delivery, the teaching format is transformed to meet the new competitive trends that are found to be more prevalent in post-graduate courses.

With this brief explanation on the evolution of the education system, we will look at the advantages as well as the disadvantages faced by students (with particular attention to working adults) enrolled in courses that are offered via the non traditional format. Time and location are the main barriers that hinder working adults' from continuing their studies. Due to their commitment to work, they are usually hard-pressed for time. Many of them do not have specific available time blocks which they can reserve or allocate for their studies. They also do not want to travel long distance in order to attend classes. Here, distance learning via the online mode provides learning opportunities that free students from the constraints of time and distance while increasing their flexibility in accessing courses. At the same time, working adults prefer self-paced and self-directed learning opportunities delivered by these web-based teaching that meets their needs. On-line or web-based MBA programs also offer the potential of delivering a personalized learning experience to individual learners. People have different strengths and weaknesses and learn in different ways. In a classroom setting, the same experience is delivered to every student. In a non-traditional learning environment, a unique learning experience may be presented based upon individual characteristics and performance. These would improve their overall level of comprehension and commitment to study. The non-traditional learning environment such as e-learning, online and video conferencing is never static, but reflects the dynamism of the working adult communities. The technology used in the delivery system provides near-instantaneous access to vast qualities of information and learning materials at a low cost (Internet charges). The dialogue of the online classroom stimulates the learning environment in which students interact with each other to expand their ideas via electronic forums and communication tools such as learning group discussions, bulletin boards, Internet relay chat, E-mail, etc. The e-learning module is also a social activity and learners tap the learning network to verbalize their thoughts. The technological advantages of online classrooms promote active group learning through technology-mediated dialogues. In addition, the somewhat impersonal online medium promotes greater student reflections. According to Cordell, online learning provides; greater cognitive development, critical thinking skills to challenge assumptions, exploration to further professional practice, empowerment of professionals to heighten personal responsibilities towards creating social change, and discovery of new knowledge. The ability to meet people, to forge professional networks and personal friendships around the world is one advantage that simply cannot be found in a traditional class. Time and distance aside, distance learning students discover the valuable benefit of online learning which is supported by a world wide network that far surpass that of the somewhat limited interpersonal relationships of a traditional face-to-face classroom.

Theories of learning that undergrad much of adult and tertiary education also calls for a different emphasis, one that is more learner-centered and one that depends on contextualized learning opportunities. Under the more traditional teaching-learning paradigm, such goals have not always been easily achieved. The emergence of some of the new technologies, particularly the Internet and the Worldwide Web which is actively used in the non-traditional teaching system, supports the use of these more collaborative contextualized approaches. Thus, the benefits of the use of non-traditional format in providing opportunities for working adults to continue their studies can be summarized as: instantaneous material access; convenience; improved learning retention; real world application; practicality, flexibility and learning consistency; timely information for career-active students; minimal disruption of family and work life responsibilities; elimination of time and geographical constraints and increased peer interaction.

As with any medium, there are disadvantages. By its nature, distance education relies heavily on the individual students' ability to manage and control their personal and situational circumstances to be successful. In fact, excellent time management skills are mandatory in online courses as most of the students have a full time job. The structure of a traditional class is not present in an online class and sometimes distance learning students fall behind in their work because there is no requirement to 'attend class'. In distance education, the learners (especially those using online and web programs) are usually isolated despite a wide network of friends and peers through Internet interaction. The motivational factors arising from the contact or competition with other students is absent. These students also lack the immediate support of a teacher who is present to motivate, and if necessary, to give attention to actual needs and difficulties that surface during studies. Therefore, academic achievement co-relates with more positive internal beliefs, which relates to the competitiveness and motivations to learn and excel.
Apart from the human factor, technology plays an important part in information and communication flow. At present, limited bandwidth (the capacity of communication links) and slow modems hamper the delivery of sound, video and graphics, although technology is advancing. Reliance on learner initiative can be a drawback for those who prefer more structure. Learner success also depends on technical skills in computer operations and Internet navigation, as well as the ability to cope with technical difficulties. Information overload is also an issue; the volume of E-mail messages to read, to reflect on and to respond to can be overwhelming while the proliferation of data bases and websites demands for information management skills. Access to the Internet is still a problem for some rural areas.

Society is moving into a new era. An era of rapid change and inherent unpredictability are driven by ongoing advancement in information and communication technology. This new era will impact upon every aspect of society. Individuals of the information age will need different kinds of skills compared to those that serve them in the industrial age. They will need to be managers of their own destiny. They will need to find relevant information from the morass of freely available data. They will need to interpret and evaluate their findings. They will need to adapt to every changing condition. And they will need to learn throughout their lives.

Traditional Behaviorist approaches to education will no longer be sufficient in the information age. Education will need to adopt Constructivism principles to empower learners through an individualized and active learning experience. However, constantly improving technology can provide for exciting new ways of delivering such learning. In conclusion, for working adults who are eager to engage in the advantages and stimulation of an active adult learning environment, distance learning education programs, like the executive MBA, is highly appropriate.

It Is Never To Late To Learn

2007-10-28T20:03:00.000+07:00

There are people who do not pursue college education during their early days. For those who do, some of them do not continue with graduate education immediately after completing their first degree. These people have several reasons for not pursuing their studies at that time.

Firstly, they may lack the financial support for their study. Secondly, they may not be able to meet the entrance criteria set by the college. Thirdly, they may lack the interest to study. Fourthly, they may not be able to find their desired course in any of the colleges. Hence, they started looking for a job with whatever qualification they have, eventually found a job and began to work.

After working for some time, some of these people start to show interest in pursuing their education to a higher level-something that they did not do previously. They are keen to pick up where they had left off. There are several compelling reasons why they want to do this.

Firstly, they now have the financial capability to take up the course. After working for a period of time, they could have saved a substantial sum of money and want to invest in their education. Secondly, their learning ability could have improved and they have succeeded in meeting the entrance requirement set by the college. Some people excel in their studies later. Thirdly, they could have developed interest in a particular subject during their course of work or personal encounters. Sometimes, certain encounters in our life may uncover our deep rooted passion or interest in a certain subject and we want to further our knowledge in that area.

Fourthly, these people could have been promoted to a higher position after working in the industry for a period of time and they need to acquire more knowledge in the field they are working. When a person is given a higher position, the demand for knowledge in a certain subject also increases. Hence, he or she needs to learn more about that subject in order to perform his or her duties efficiently. For example, if an engineer is promoted to be a chief engineer, he or she should increase his or her engineering knowledge. Perhaps, in another case, if an engineer is promoted to be the head of the engineering department, he or she should learn more about management skills. In either case, the person has to acquire more knowledge in order to perform the new responsibilities well.

Is it too late for these people to learn again? The answer is no. It is never too late for them to learn as long as they have the means and the opportunity to do so. If they are interested to learn, and have the money and time to do so, they should take the chance to learn.

As long as they can apply the new knowledge, they should go forth and take up a course. They should not deprive themselves from enjoying the benefits of learning. Moreover, with so many distance learning programs available, they can study without having to quit their jobs. Many colleges provide distance learning programs for various disciplines specifically for working adults who want to study but do not wish to leave their jobs.
Distance learning programs provide people the flexibility and freedom to study at any place and any time. These programs are gaining more popularity and credibility. Some research studies have shown that distance learning education can be as effective as campus-based education and distance students can perform as well as or better than campus-based students.

Are you keen to further your education? If you are, then there is no reason why you should not proceed to take up a course and learn. At any point of your life, it is always not too late to study a course and gain additional knowledge. Besides, with distance education, learning is made possible now for those who want to study as well as continue working. You can carry on with whatever you are doing and learn at your own pace and at any place. Furthermore, with so many courses available, you will definitely be able to find the course you want to study. You can get a free catalogue and find out more about the courses that interest you at Distance Learning Degree.

Adult Learning Disabilities

2007-10-28T19:59:00.000+07:00

You have to deal with a number of issues if you have a learning disability, even if that disability was diagnosed in the childhood. The issues will be different and many more in adulthood than they were in your childhood years. Hence you will have to find new ways to cope with these challenges and issues posed by the learning disability.

Most children plan on marrying, having children, and being a productive member of their society. If you have a learning disability, you will have to incorporate it into your life-plan. You will need to learn ways of handling the milestones in your life and still deal with your disability. You can lead a successful life with a little by taking some small steps.

Learning disabilities come in many forms, but usually affect how a person thinks, talks, hears, reads and writes. These problems impact how you process thoughts and perform tasks such as mathematics. Since we use these skills everyday, you will have to find ways of coping with daily tasks.

It can be extremely difficult to be an adult with a learning disability. Other adults expect you to have the same skill sets that they do and may become angry and frustrated when they have to repeatedly explain something to you. They don't realize that you need extra time to make sense of certain things. You may even drop out of classes you're taking because others don't understand your needs. Doing this will most likely jeopardize your career plans.

You need to find the balance between having a disability and changing your goals. You do need to know your limitations but at the same time there is no reason for you not to live a full and happy life. You should be able to enjoy relationships and being a parent, even with your learning disability.

Being a parent with learning disability can be tough and stressing. To reduce the stress of being a disability parent, you can do a number of things like take care of your time and manage it properly.

One of the many tricks that you can implement so that you don't forget important family information is to have a calendar prominently displayed in the kitchen or other room in your home. Keep track of dates and times when you and your children need to be somewhere. This way you have a constant visual reminder to refer to so that you don't miss appointments and pick up times.

Keep your home as organized as possible so that when you need to find something it will be in a permanent location inside your home. This ensures that you don't spend unnecessary time searching for something that you need since this can often lead to your frustration and anger.
Remember that it is very important to remain calm and patient even when things are not going the way you may want them to. Everyone, even those who don't have a learning disability will have moments that are frustrating and trying. Do not blame everything that goes wrong on your learning disability.

Who Home Schools Their Children and Why?

2007-10-28T08:25:00.000+07:00

I am a tutor broker, I match private tutors with children of all ages. I have been in the tutoring business for eight years. Home school tutoring is extremely popular and accounts for almost 20% of my business, compared to only 3% eight years ago. Here are my observations, from an educational consultant point of view :

1) THE LOCAL PUBLIC SCHOOL IS TOO CROWDED

Many of my clients choose not to send their children to their neighborhood school because class size frequently exceeds thirty kids. The parents want their child to have a more individualized approach to education which can only be met in the home environment, often coupled with private tutors to assist with the instruction.

2) THE PARENT WANTS TO CONTROL THE CURRICULUM

Many, but not all, home school curriculums are Christian-based. For many families, this is important because they want their children to study religion and bible verses beginning in first grade. Public schools are obviously very secular and religion is sometimes not offered at all, even as an elective in middle or high school. There are several excellent curriculums offered today that relate religion to every subject, even math!

3) PARENTS WHO HAVE THREE OR MORE CHILDREN FREQUENTLY CHOOSE TO HOME SCHOOL

Usually it is the mom who is in charge of the children?s education. When there are several kids in the family, some of them toddlers, it makes more sense from a time perspective to home school the older ones. This allows mom to be home and tend to the different educational needs of all of her children. My observation is that education is truly a ?family affair.? The older kids help the younger ones and there is a high level of respect for each other. There seems to be much less sibling rivalry in families who home school every child; they all support each other.

4) THE SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT IN PUBLIC OR PRIVATE SCHOOL CAN BE UNPREDICTABLE AND NOT ACCEPTABLE TO PARENTS

My home school clients are involved in a variety of social activities sponsored by home school support groups. There is an entire network of home school families who regularly get together to enrich their children?s lives beyond school work in a controlled, safe environment. They plan field trips to local museums and many other educational venues. A group of parents are the chaperones and they ensure their children are experiencing a high quality of stimulating extra curricular activities of their choice that relates to what their children are studying at the current time.

Home schooling a child is not easy. Many states have complicated laws that need to be followed in order to home school. It is important for parents to thoroughly understand the laws and choose an accredited home school curriculum to assure their child?s education will be recognized by an accredited university should the student continue their education beyond high school.

More and more home school curricula is online with a virtual counselor and/or teacher so students can submit assignments and exams online and get feedback and grades immediately. Reading, writing, math, history, science are always offered and required but so are a variety of electives. Home schooling is not boring and the choices are overwhelming, especially as the internet is frequently used to find a program that meets the parents? objectives for their children.

Home schooled kids are no longer outcasts or considered ?weird.? Due to the increasing amount of active home school organizations, communities have formed within neighborhoods across the country comprised of home schooled children that participate on the same sports teams, music lessons and more. These children have a network of social outlets which provides an excellent balance in their lives.

Creating, Maintaining And Presenting A Homeschool Portfolio

2007-10-28T08:14:00.000+07:00

Many school districts now require homeschoolers to present portfolios showing their student's progress in an organized fashion. This is actually a very convenient method of recording whenever it is done properly. Here are some ideas on how to create, maintain, and present your homeschool portfolio for a successful assessment, evaluation and review.

First of all, it is important to have a firm grasp on precisely what a homeschool portfolio is. Basically, a homeschool portfolio is a collection of materials that are used in order to showcase what your child has learned over the course of the "school year." This is important because numerous states require an annual assessment of homeschooled students either via testing or the presentation of a portfolio. While it may seem that keeping a portfolio is only good in so far as you need to comply with the law. This is not the case however. Portfolios can also help parents and their children to record their progress and achievements. This becomes even more important once a child has reached high school and needs a diploma.

Now that we understand the importance of a portfolio, it is also important to understand that there is no right or wrong way in which to create a portfolio. It is up to the parent and/or child what materials the portfolio will contain. However, it is a good idea to choose a variety of material in order to reflect what the child has learned, experienced and accomplished throughout the year. Some items that should be included in your portfolio are: Suggested items to include are:

(1.) A journal which contains notes about activities and the progress that has been made.

(2.) A list of resources (ie books, computer software, games, toys and outside classes).

(3.) Samples of the child's work (ie samples of creative writing and drawings, text book or workbook pages, and if possible you may include audio or video tapes of your child singing, playing a musical instrument, reading aloud, or taking part in a a dramatic performance - pictures will also sometimes work well in place of audio or video tapes).

(4.) Photos of field trips, artwork, projects and family life.

(5.) Brochures and booklets from field trips and other activities.

(6.) A list of books that the child has read including both the title and the author.

(7.) A list of your goals for the year.

While this may seem quite overwhelming, you'd honestly be surprised at how easily you can accomplish this when you start preparing your portfolio at the beginning of the year. Simply use a three ring binder and add paper for your journaling. Start off by listing a few of your goals for the year and what resources you'll be using to achieve those goals (these can be modified throughout the year as needed). Then begin collecting samples of work, organizing them by subject, and punching holes in them to place them in your binder. Always have at least a throw away camera at hand so that you can take pictures of anything that you'd like that your child does (ie reading, playing, dancing). You'll also want to take pictures at field trips as well as pictures of your child's projects and creations. These pictures can either be placed in a photo album or if you're feeling really craftsy you could organize them into a scrapbook. You'll also want to make sure to hold onto any brochures or other paper items that you collect while on an educational outing. These can be easily placed in clear see-through sheet protectors. This is also a good time to begin accumulating a list of books that are being read.

Once you have put together the beginnings of your portfolio, don't stop there. Regular maintenance (I suggest weekly as it will help you to write your lesson plans for the following week) should include regular journal entries and an ongoing collection of work samples, photos and whatever else you wish to include. Some school districts will require a quarterly assessment throughout your homeschool year. This is a time for parents and children to reflect upon their progress and accomplishments from the previous months. Yet, even if your school district doesn't require a quarterly review, you won't want to wait until the end of the year to scramble and race to put together a portfolio that your school district will approve of. Neither you nor your child deserve having to go through the unneeded stress of having to sort through all of the material that has been collected throughout the year.

When it is time for review you may choose to remove some of the materials from your portfolio. You will find that some of these things simply do not properly reflect what you've accomplished throughout the year. If/when you decide to weed through your portfolio, you need to remember that the purpose of the review is to provide a general overview of the homeschool year, demonstrate that the child is engaged in homeschooling and that progress is being made.

The portfolio review can be exciting since it provides both parents and children with a time to talk about what they've been doing at home. When discussing this with your child, you may find it helpful to write down a summary of the items that you wish to highlight during your year before the review. For instance, if your child learned to read or master a skill you may wish to point this out to the reviewer. Of course, you should never view your portfolio review as a time for you to be judged or ridiculed. It is a time to listen, learn and support from your reviewer. Your child does not need to be present during this time. However, if your child wants a chance to "brag" about their accomplishments and progress to other homeschoolers, then this review is a perfect opportunity for them to do so.

Tips For Successful Homeschooling

2007-10-28T08:11:00.000+07:00

There are many reasons why parents choose to homeschool their kids. For many it is because they want to add religious content to their children’s learning experience.

Making the decision to home school is usually a very difficult not and it is not one to be taken lightly. It is a personal decision that no one can make for you, but maybe I can help in the thought process by providing you with a comprehensive guide to making the choice to homeschool your kids a successful one.

When making the homeschool decision, you must first consider these things:

1. Time commitment that is involved. Homeschooling has a tendency to take up a lot of time in your day. It involves more than just sitting down with books for a couple of hours. There are experiments and projects that have to be done, lessons to prepare, papers to grade, field trips, park days, music lessons, and the list just keeps on going. You can go online and search for some sample schedules that will help to give you an idea of a typical day.

2. Personal sacrifice. The homeschooling parent has very little personal time or time alone and away from their children. If a lot of care is not taken to set aside time for yourself, it is easy for the parent to feel overwhelmed. Basically, the parent and child are together 24 hours a day and this can get frustrating on both sides.

3. Financial problems can arise. Homeschooling can be accomplished with very little cost to you; however, it usually requires that the teaching parent will not be working out of the home. Some sacrifices will need to be made if the family is used to two incomes. Of course, if you are a single parent, this could pose an even bigger problem.

4. Time for socialization. More attention will need to be given to getting your children together with his/her peers. The best part of homeschooling is being able to have more control of the social contacts your child makes. However, the downside is that you must prepare your child yourself on how to socialize with other kids. Homeschooling has a tendency to make your child feel isolated.

5. Household organization is harder. Housework and laundry and other house work will still have to be done, but it probably won't get done first thing in the morning. If you are a neat freak, you might be in for a big surprise. Not only does housework need to be let go at times, but homeschooling creates messes and clutter on its own. You will have to get organized so that you can keep your home together.

6. Both parents must agree to it. It is important that both parents agree to homeschooling. It is very difficult for this to work if one of the parents is against it. If your spouse is against it at this time, try doing more research and talking to more people so that you can be absolutely certain it is something that both of you can agree upon. Otherwise, the chances for success are much smaller.

7. Your child has to be willing. A willing student is crucial to the success of homeschooling. Ultimately, the decision is the parents to make, but if your child is dead against it, you might have a very difficult time in teaching them. The fact of the matter is that an unwilling child can sabotage his/her own school efforts.

8. Know that it works one year at a time. It isn't a lifetime commitment and doesn’t have to become one. If you find that homeschooling just isn’t worth it, you can choose to go the regular route.

There is a lot more to homeschooling than to just do it. As a parent, you must know that your child’s education is the most important factor in his/her future. You need to be thoroughly prepared for all of the time and commitment that is involved. If you are thinking of choosing homeschooling for your child (ren), this guide will help to make it a successful transition.

Homeschool Children And Mass Society's Values

2007-10-28T08:10:00.000+07:00

How do homeschool children get exposed to values other than the commercial values of a mass society?

Schools may be able to prepare children to fit into the mass society or to help them find a set of values with which they could resist and reject the values of mass society. What this really means is that schools can teach children to believe what most people believe and to like what most people like. However, they cannot do both: prepare children to fit into mass society while helping them find a set of values with which they could resist and reject the values of mass society. Why? Because, if you stop to think about it, you will see that these 2 items actually cancel each other out. Usually this means that educators opt to believe that they, and they alone, hold out to the young a vision of higher things. They seem to believe that they spend the majority of their time and energy defending children from the corrupt values of the mass media and TV. They also seem to believe that without them children won't hear about good books, Shakespeare, and culture. To them, they (the educators) are the only ones who are thinking about what is good for our children while everyone else is simply trying to exploit them. However, if you look close enough, you'll see that most schools are far more concerned with having children accept the values of mass society rather than helping children resist them. It's actually become so ingrained within society to think that in order for children to to live reasonably happy, useful, and successful lives they have to be considerably like most other people.

In reality, the schools' efforts to sell children the higher culture seldom work because it is quite obvious that these educators value it so little themselves. Today's schools are filled with people who are obsessed with the media-inspired worship of dominance, luxury, and power. This anticulture has done great harm by fragmenting, degrading, and corrupting them. If the schools had a true and humane culture of their own, which they really understood, believed in, cared about, and lived by, then they would put up a stiff resistance which would be able to win at least some of the children over. Yet, since the culture of the school is only a pale and somewhat more timid and gentle version of the culture of the outside world, nothing changes. So, today's schools are not only unable to guide our children away from greed, envy, and violence, the schools cannot even protect them against each other. Instead, today's schools, regardless of affluence, are filled with children who are only interested in money, sex, and drugs. Where are the children who want to do something to make a better world?

I honestly don't think that we should be surprised that our children are most interested in those things which most interest their parents, and other adults. I also don't think that it's the school's fault either. Today's schools are finding themselves being attacked from all sides. They weren't the ones who invented these values. However, to the extent that the schools have tried to combat these values they've failed. Therefore, they cannot claim that they're teaching children to accept and also resist these dominant values of our commercial culture.

Public School vs. Homeschool Socialization

2007-10-28T08:08:00.000+07:00

Many public school parents often ask homeschool parents, "If children are taught at home, won't they miss the valuable socialization that takes place in school?" Truth be told, most homeschool parents feel that the public school's social life is enough of a reason for them to homeschool. This is because, in the majority of schools, the social life that takes place in public schools is mean-spirited, competitive, exclusive, status-seeking, snobbish, full of talk about who went to whose birthday party and who got what Christmas presents and who got how many Valentine cards and who is talking to so-and-so and who is not. This begins as early as first grade. You'll see classes divide into leaders (usually the popular kids), their bands of followers, and other outsiders who you can tell have been excluded from these groups for one reason or another. Many parents will even note that they haven't ever seen their children doing anything really mean or silly until their child(ren) went away to school.

Many homeschool parents have realized that their children already know most of what is being taught in school: how to be quiet, how to listen to children's stories, and how to sing. They have realized that their child(ren) want to learn about the adult world. Public schools restrict these children to a world which adults believed children wanted. This causes many children's enthusiasm to die an early death. Why? Because shame is one of the first lessons that children learn in school. Oftentimes this happens when children want to be "different" from those around them. These children want to be recognized as individuals. However, public schools shun this.

Another characteristic that is shunned in public schools is spontaneity. Why? Because it conflicts with the teacher's view of how children should act. When children learn this lesson, they also learn that lying is a valuable survival technique. They often discover that it's better to lye their way out of "trouble" than to stand up for themselves because of the dire consequences that they may face in that case.

Children are also taught, at an early age, not to question anything that happens in the school. Schools are very authoritative, leaving NO room for creativity or imagination. Instead, children are left standing in awe of the authoritarian system. This is why many homeschool parents compare public schools to jails. In public schools, even a child's ability to use the restroom is restricted to when and how the teacher feels the child should use the restroom. Then when a child has an accident they often are humiliated and even punished. These incidents of fear and humiliation are numerous in public schools.

If you have a timid child they will probably face a lot of bullying, especially as they grow older. They face physical as well as verbal taunting. Since children often sucumb to peer pressure, children will often join in with the group to bully the other children. While this may just seem like a prank to the children, it's really quite sadistic and even the most kindest child will find themselves drawn into participating in this taunting. These children will not stop until they themselves become the victim, even though they may feel empty and unhappy inside. The beginning and ending of this sadistic behavior can often only be traced to the public school system.

I'm sure by now that you can see the damage that public school socialization causes. Most children in public schools will openly admit that they don't see kindness. Instead, they say that they see meanness, name calling, hurt feelings, etc. This is because the social life of most schools and classrooms is mean-spirited, status-oriented, competitive, and snobbish. Even the majority of public school parents will admit that the social life at school is not kind, generous, supporting, democratic, friendly, loving, or good for children. Of course, most of these parents will also counter, "But that's what the children are going to meet in Real Life."

I say that this is untrue. Why? Because we tend to force children into "peer groups" which have many powerful and harmful effects. Peer pressure often leads children to try such things as smoking, drinking, and even drugs. In fact, we are hearing a lot more about drinking, drunkenness, and alcoholism among our youth today. We're also seeing a lot more youth smoking. While some states have tried to deal with this problem by raising the minimum age, it doesn't help. In fact, usually the problem only gets worse. These children will often admit that these things taste terrible but they do it because "all the other kids" are doing it, or soon will be, and they have to stay ahead of them, or at least not fall behind. These children are enslaved, even addicted, to their peer group. We might even go so far as to call them "peer group junkies." When parents make a fuss, these children are already master liars who know how to sneak around and do things behind their parents' backs.

Of course, these are just a few of the fringe benefits that public school children derive from their public school experience. What do we expect though? Public school children spend the majority of their time in groups of other people their own age. They have almost no contact with any adults except those who are watching them (ie teachers). This leads them to think and feel that what "all the other kids" are doing is the right, the best, the only thing to do. Is this what you want for your child(ren)?

Booster Shots.... For Homeschooling Parents

2007-10-28T08:06:00.000+07:00

No, we’re not talking about immunizations. We are talking about booster shots for those families that have homeschooled for so long, or so in depth that they have lost the joy of why they started this journey in the first place.

You may be one of those families that has been homeschooling for 9 years or so and now are on the home stretch, or you may be new to the journey and have gotten in over your head and wondered if this is the right choice. Any and all of us could use a Booster Shot at some point.

Here my top 10 ideas:

10. Field Trip! Just a short one or maybe even a day long adventure - your choice, but there is nothing like a field trip to break up the week and breath life into a student’s schedule.

9. Read Aloud! If you don’t already do this, it’s a good time to start when your battery is low. You can read to them, or they can take turns reading to you and each other. It’s a great way to bond and relax. Yes, even high school kids like this still!

8. School Outside! The weather is turning warmer in most parts of the country! Take the books, the art, the portable CD player and learn outside. Even better, just walk and study what is about to bloom and discuss the science of this blessing!

7. Combining 8 & 9! One booster for us, all the way up until mid high school, was to take a huge blanket out under the sun or shade tree and read. We would watch clouds, pet new baby chicks or kitties and just enjoy hearing a good story in the fresh air.

6. Year-round School Schedule! This SOUNDS awful to some people, but it doesn’t ‘t really mean school every single day! It means for each month of the year, you have school for 3 weeks and then one week off. These schedules can often be planned around holidays. If you and your student knew that every three weeks you both got a significant break, there is time to plan fun or just do NOTHING every month!

5. Find a Co-op! Many area support groups have some co-op learning classes. Often it will require that you volunteer a bit of your time once in a while, but the change of pace and learning surroundings can be invaluable to both you and all students involved!

4. Let the Student Plan - not You! One of my children wanted the freedom to plan her own Senior year completely. She chose an extra science and an extra social studies. She also planned every weeks’ work and is doing so that she can be finished WELL before her graduation ceremony date - by her 18th birthday! This has motivated her and also taught her accountability. It has also lightened my load to simply grading!

3. Let a Science Experiment ‘evolve’ into more! This was always one sure fire way for my kids to get a little giggly or off track - but boy it is memorable and it was worth the side track! Take the science experiment to any lengths your child’s questions or curiosity will let it go (but let’s be safe about it). Not only do they learn more by not having to fit into a science ‘box’ - but you will ignite the joy of learning again - and you will LOVE to see how their minds work when unhindered by steps preordained by someone else!

2. Talk with others! When you get the chance, ask other parents for ideas that may be inviting to your homeschool to use. You may also be surprised how your kids react when they find out what other kids do for their homeschool. My kids were actually pleasantly pleased when they heard the schedule and weight of some other homeschooled students their age. I became a ‘cool’ mom (for a little while anyway).

1. My number 1 favorite! Just take the day off (or the week) when you know you’ve all reached your limit! Bake a big ole batch of chocolate chip cookies, play with the pets, make a mess, don’t grade, don’t file and don’t worry. Mix this in with prayer and thanksgiving that you have the chance to be home with your kids and I’ll guarantee that an attitude of gratitude will renew that joy to your homeschool heart!

5 Homeschooling Mistakes That Are Easy To Make, And Easier To Avoid

2007-10-28T08:05:00.000+07:00

1. Setting the Bar Too Low

Research has shown that one of the greatest determining factors in a student’s performance is teacher expectation. This is no different for your homeschool student. You may think the world of your little angel, but every parent has their biases. Admit it. Maybe it has crossed your mind that while Bobby is a genius in math, he really struggles at reading. Perhaps Emma loves to read aloud, but she isn’t the best with numbers. Don’t feel bad, every parent has preconceived ideas about their child’s ability and you are no different. However, in order for your student to reach their full potential, it is imperative that you set aside any notions you have about their ability and go into every lesson knowing that they will succeed. When you expect the best, you get the best.

2. Teaching the Way YOU Liked to Learn

You may have heard from others, or experienced yourself, that certain types of teaching styles are more successful than others. I understand this firsthand. Those of us with a lesser ability to navigate the roads may need to look at a map to find our way. Other may not retain those directions until they have driven the route themselves. You might find that when you read something it doesn’t “stick”, but when you attend a lecture or have a friend explains it to you, everything becomes crystal clear. Everyone learns differently. Don’t expect that because you learned best when shown pictures, that the same is true for your child. Experiment with different styles of teaching and ask for your child’s input to help you figure out what works best for them.

3. Ignoring Classroom Management

-“I want the classroom to be a place where my child can explore and learn freely, I don’t want the rules to prevent them from exploring.”

-“I don’t need to go over the rules! My child is always well behaved.”

Parents think that because they have already established a discipline system in their home, with rules and consequences, that there is no need to come up with similar strategies for class time. Well they are wrong. Class time needs to be separated out from your regular at home activity. Rules and routines specific to the classroom need to be put in place so that it is clear for both the student and teacher what is acceptable during learning time. School rules and routines provide for maximum learning time, so don’t leave them out of your plans.

4. Teaching 1 Thing at a Time

When you plan your schedule for each day, do you break up your time by subject? Reading from 8-9, math from 9-10, etc. Of course you do, who doesn’t? This isn’t a bad way to schedule your time either, as long as you have a big picture in mind. Your child will be better able to retain all the subjects that you teach if they are interrelated. If you design units of study with a big picture or theme that applies to math, reading and science, they will retain more and have more fun in the process. For example: if you want your 7 year old to understand that animals have predictable lifecycles don’t just teach it during science time. Use books on the topic during reading. Teach multiplication using frog legs (5 frogs with 4 legs each…how many legs in all).

5. Teaching is Telling

This is a pretty basic mistake, but one that I still hear about all the time. Parents explain a something new to their student and don’t understand why it doesn’t “stick”. The simple answer is that teaching is not just telling. If you want to be a good teacher, as we all do, you need to learn a variety of ways to teach your child. There is hands-on learning, inquiry learning, visual aids, reciprocal teaching, and technology-based learning. I could go on and on with different ways of instructing that can improve your child’s learning, I have a great deal of training and experience in this area that I use on a daily basis in my own home, but the important thing is that you know that part of teaching is learning. You need to constantly be seeking out new techniques and tools to improve your skills. As you improve so will your child.

The Different Methods Of Home Schooling

2007-10-28T08:02:00.000+07:00

There are a variety of methods that can be applied in the area of homeschooling. The method you select will have an impact on the curriculum and style of teaching. The following are some of the most popular homeschooling methods.

The Charlotte Mason method is named after Charlotte Mason, who is known as the originator of the homeschooling movement. She herself was a homeschooler, and she wanted to establish a basic plan for a complete and effective homeschooling program. The Charlotte Mason method emphasizes poetry, fine arts, classical music, crafts, and classical literature. This method is designed to encourage an awareness of literature and involves reading to the child every day. The child is then asked to tell what he or she has heard. This starts at the age of six. By the age of ten, the child is expected to write narrations in a book. Mason encouraged the use of nature diaries as well. The child writes observations of nature in the book as well. This creates a sense of respect for the environment in the child. Mason thought that good behavior and character were critical for a child's complete personality development.

The Eclectic Homeschooling method is a combination of several techniques. Innovative parents rely on their own judgment to select topics that make up the curriculum for their own child. These parents are always looking for the best products they can find to help them meet the needs of their home schoolers. Many of the curricula in this method are improvised. This means that, while the basic curriculum is established, parents change it to adapt to the individual needs and interests of their children. The curriculum is generally established according to the temperament, learning style, and interests of the children. These programs typically include visits to libraries, factories, and museums.

John Holt, a public educator in Boston, developed the 'unschooling' method. Holt believed that children learn best when they learn at their own pace and are guided by their own interests. He wanted to 'unschool' the child by requiring parents to take their cues from the children. This approach has no set curriculum, schedules, or materials. It is the most unstructured of the homeschooling techniques.
The Montessori method had its start in Italy. It was found that children go through extremely sensitive periods in which they experience periods of intense concentration. In these phases, children will repeat an action until they receive some measure of self-satisfaction from it. This method relies on prepared environments to facilitate learning. All materials utilized in this method are meant to satisfy the child's interior desire for spiritual development. Materials for this method range from simple to complex, and they are relatively costly.

Whatever method is selected, the underlying concept is flexibility and a strong interest in the child's own desires. The key is to use children's desire for knowledge to further their education.

Homeschooling Becoming A Viable Alternative ?

2007-10-28T07:57:00.000+07:00

Last year alone, more than one million children in the United States choose homeschooling over traditional education. This stunting figure was released according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Homeschooling is a recent development in education. Not that long ago, it was considered too radical by many education experts. Nowadays, it is legalized in every state and more than 1 million children has undergone homeschooling and I suspect many more parents are seriously considering homeschooling.

The interesting thing was what prompted such a change? There have been many recent surveys to suggest that parents are getting impatient and fed up with our public schooling system. It is seen as being superficial with no real-life skills being applied and taught.

Parents are also concerned about the negative publicity often portrayed in news. Examples are school students taking drugs in schools, abusing fellow students physically and even students bringing guns and knifes to school. Parents are concerned about the negative peer influence these students cause to their child.

Homeschooling offers an opportunity to end all that and allows parents to bring up their children in a natural and loving environment. I believe homeschooling is especially important in the early years of a child's development (between three to twelve years old) as this is the period where they are prone to negative influences and peer pressure and cannot differentiate what is right and what is wrong. Homeschooling helps to protect them from such negative influences.

Another benefit of homeschooling is an inevitable bond between the child and the parents. The parents and the child spends more time together forming an unique bond. The bond gets stronger as time passes and later you will find that you can connect with your child better than you never thought before.

Parents can also have better control over the kind of moral and religious beliefs a child should have. Parents can impart their moral values and beliefs to their child easily since they spend more time together.

So what's stopping parents from adopting homeschooling? For one thing, homeschooling requires a lot of time and money. For most families, both parents needs to be working full-time to support the family. Most homeschooling families I know of is dependent in one parent for the income. The other parent has to devote full-time in homeschooling the child. Therefore in some cases, it is not possible to adopt homeschooling unless you are financially stable.

The other interesting phenomena is that more and more homeschooling support groups are cropping up in your neighbourhood. They help to guide and support each other. Some homeschooling support groups have even gone online. If you do decide to go homeschooling, find a homeschooling support group in your area.

Homeschooling (Home Education) And Teens : How To Survive !

2007-10-28T07:53:00.000+07:00

The teenage years can be quite a challenge, however you decide to educate your child. If your child has been home educated for at least a few years before reaching adolescence, then they will probably be accustomed to the lifestyle. If you are lucky, your teenager will also have learnt how to educate themselves with support from you and others and will be reasonably self-motivated and confident in their abilities. But what if that doesn’t happen or if, for whatever reason, you decide to withdraw your child from school once they reach their teenage years? Many parents who approach me when they are in this situation feel they are in crisis and that there are many obstacles to their ensuring a suitable education for their child. This article identifies some of those challenges and explores how to move from crisis to opportunity.

What are the challenges and opportunities?

Changing responsibilities

Deciding to home educate your teenager changes the way you handle your responsibility to ensure that they receive a suitable education. Rather than delegating a large part of that responsibility to a school, you are now directly in control of all of it. Or are you? How do you do that when your teenager knows exactly what they do or don’t want to learn and it bears no resemblance to your ideas of what constitutes “an education”? What about if your teenager doesn’t appear to want to engage with anything? Parents in the latter situation have told me that this seems to be a normal reaction to stress. Many teenagers go through this when they are first removed from school as they need time to de-stress and find themselves again. A few may react in the opposite way and study manically, because they feel they “ought to” and will need additional encouragement to take a break for a while.

If you find your teenager happily occupied but in activities that you do not consider to be “educational” then I believe this is another one of those opportunities for us to reassess our perspectives as parents. What is “education?” What constitutes a “suitable education” for our child? If you question your own assumptions on this then you may well find that your beliefs stem from how you yourself were educated. Many parents equate gaining an education with gaining qualifications and exam success. Do you still want to hold those beliefs now? How have your ideas changed with the benefit of your experiences as an adult?

From my experience with working with many parents, the key here is to reassess your role as parent/educator/facilitator and keep the communication between the two of you going. Educate yourselves on learning styles and methods and broaden your horizons beyond what was expected by the schooling system. Above all, remember this is team work. Between the two of you, you will find a way to proceed which suits you both.

Battle of wills

One of the challenges of living with a teenager can be that they seem to be programmed to rebel! It’s at this point in their childhood when just about all our values and beliefs as parents can be put in the spotlight and questioned by them. Discussions can become heated and personal and may lead to large amounts of stress for all concerned. This can be tough enough to deal with when our teenagers are attending school and being supervised by others for a large part of the week. Once we are home educating them, however, the thought of spending much more time around them can seem very daunting to say the least!

The opportunities that can arise from these situations are many. Perhaps we ourselves haven’t examined our behaviour traits, beliefs and values for a while and having them highlighted is proving painful! Reassessing how we lead our lives can be a very enlightening and fruitful endeavour and may well lead to some positive and useful changes.

Whilst many teenagers may not be adept at communicating with compassion and respect, these are qualities we can model for them, once we let go of our immediate reactions to being challenged. When we are consistent in this approach, our children will learn these more acceptable and wholesome behaviours from us and they are much more likely to do so by interacting with someone who models the behaviour than just by being told that’s how they should conduct themselves.

We can use these time to develop our listening skills. When teenagers feel they are being heard, they are more likely to feel loved and respected. We can view this as an opportunity to strengthen or re-establish a bond of trust with our child and encourage their self-confidence.

Emotional and Physical Growth

Of course, at the same time as your teenager is engaged in learning and studying, they are experiencing marked growth both physically and emotionally. Just about any book on the psychology of learning will emphasise that your emotional state is critical for you to learn effectively. This is something many of us will have experienced as adults. Our teenagers may not be sufficiently self-aware to acknowledge or understand all of their feelings and physical strengths and weaknesses. This is another opportunity for us to aid them with their self-awareness and to model it ourselves. By cultivating self-awareness and self-motivation in yourself and in them, you will help them to empower themselves.

Conclusion

The prospect of home educating a teenager can seem daunting and indeed there may be many challenges we are asked to face. The opportunities are the learning experiences embedded in those challenges. For those who choose to embrace those challenges, the rewards will be the emergence of a happy, self-confident and well-adjusted teenager, whatever!

Further Reading

Unqualified Education. A Guide to Learning at Home for 11-18 year olds.

The Teenage Liberation Handbook. Grace Llewellyn

Parent-Teen Breakthrough. The Relationship Approach. Mira Kirshenbaum and Charles Foster

Non-violent Communication. Marshall Rosenburg

Listening to our Children.

Free-Range Education and it’s Lessons for the Adults.

Starting Homeschooling in the Middle Grades

2007-10-28T07:47:00.000+07:00

I spent the first few years of my son's life reading a lot of books about parenting and quite a few about homeschooling. I remember thinking something along the lines of "it's great that people can do that with their children, but I don't know if I could." Especially since my son was an only child, I didn't feel that family, friends, and acquaintenances would be supportive of him spending so much time with only me. But I loved sharing books with him and teaching him new things, playing imaginative games and making up novel ways to learn. Always the dutiful mom wanting to do the right thing, however, I visited preschools, found a great Montessori school, and enrolled him. That worked fine and still left us more than enough time to learn together.

Fast forward a few years, though, and we found ourselves living in a different state, in a county with an overcrowded school system, with middle school rapidly approaching. I was already disappointed in the elementary school he was getting ready to leave, because despite his achievements and fine grades there, I saw gaps and deficiences in his learning that I could not easily help him repair with the very few hours left over to us at the end of each's day's classes and activities, especially when we both were tired. He was doing advanced grade mathematics and yet needed to use his fingers if I asked him to do a quick calculation at the supermarket. When he wrote anything longer than a phrase, he committed multiple spelling errors. And while he had hours of "creative" homework, his foundation in basic skills seemed shaky. What was really frightening to me is that his academic weaknesses seemed to grow after he had just spent two years in "gifted" classes and now he was scheduled for all six of his middle school classes to be "gifted" classes.

The middle school turned out to be even more overcrowded than the elementary school. Homework began to take up to five hours each evening, depriving my son of time for reading books of his own choice and threatening to leave him no time to attend his beloved weekly theatre group. It just didn't seem right, especially since he seemed to be learning more from the books he read on his own and was gaining incredible poise and speaking ability from participating in the theatre group. Seven weeks into middle school, after I had suggested it several times, he came home from school one day and basically said, "I don't want to go back there; I'll try your idea to homeschool".

We agreed to homeschool as a one-year experiment. I will admit the first weeks were rough on both of us. I lay awake at night wondering if I was ruining his life. He, on the other hand, was in the process of "deschooling", though at the time I had never heard the term and wondered why he didn't want to get off the couch and do all the fun learning things I had planned. He had seemed depressed in the middle school and now he still seemed depressed. But within three or four weeks, we found a homeschool support group that met weekly at a local park. I was able to talk to parents with experience in homeschooling, and he was able to see there were other kids like him and that he had a place to make new friends. A few weeks later, he told me he did not ever want to go back to that middle school, so that we would do this through eighth grade. Six months later, he took a homeschool coop class in algebra and met homeschooled high-schoolers. Then, he went a step beyond as far as I'd ever thought about, announcing he also wanted to homeschool high school.

So here we are today, on the threshold of eleventh grade. It's been an incredible journey and sometimes I am as amazed as anyone that it has worked fine. After the first year, it got much, much easier. We learned about one another's expectations, made compromises, and, in time, he became the self-motivated learner he had been as a pre-schooler all over again. While I did teach during those middle school years, I find for high school I am more the guidance counselor, the curriculum consultant, and the recordkeeper.

I'm writing this for all parents who were like me, daydreaming about homeschooling but wondering if they could really do it. I remember once during the summer after my son's fourth grade year thinking that he was one-third of the way to the end of high school and that there was SO much I wanted to tell him, teach him, share with him, and pass onto him in the eight years that were left, but that with school and social activities it seemed there would never be enough time. Well, let me tell you, without "real school", I've been able to do all that telling, teaching, and sharing in just the last five years....all of it. That feeling of not enough time has gone, replaced with the knowing that whatever the future brings, I've given him the experiences, the knowledge, and the foundation I wanted him to have. Seize the day!

A Mother's Reasons For Choosing Montessori

2007-10-28T07:43:00.000+07:00

This is the time of year when the parents of many preschoolers must decide where their child will attend school in the fall. I wanted to take this opportunity to share my experience with Montessori preschool education.

My son is completing his second year in a Montessori preschool program and attended from the age of 3 1/2.

I chose Montessori for several reasons. First, my son is a bright, inquisitive child who already had a sound grounding in recognition of his alphabet, numbers, shapes, and colors before he started preschool. I was worried that he might be bored in a more traditional preschool. Montessori's highly individual program means he is always challenged and interested. In addition, my son is a very active child and the Montessori program gives him lots of opportunity for free play outdoors and indoors as well as more freedom to move about, stand, or even lie on the ground while working on his lessons in the classroom.

In my opinion one of Montessori's great advantages is the fact that the child drives the educational experience. My son's interests and abilities determine his unique educational program and so his lessons may overlap but are not identical to those of his classmates. This makes him an eager and motivated student.

The education program offered by Montessori also includes many advantages. My son's experience includes the arts, math and science, language, and life skills. He regularly impresses our friends and family with his knowledge of science, sign language, and other areas not traditionally included in preschool programs.

I also like the fact that his classroom includes a wider range of ages so he has friends who are both younger and older. In addition, he really enjoys having regular contact with the elementary-age students who serve as both role models and friends.

Finally, as a parent, I cannot stress enough the benefits that a program like Montessori offers in terms of life skills. All students are expected to be responsible for their own personal hygiene as well as maintenance and cleaning of the classroom and food areas. While support is offered by adults and older children, even young children can learn to clean up after themselves. It has certainly had an impact on my son's willingness and ability to help out at home.

Recently I compared preschool experiences with a friend whose child is completing her second year in what most people consider to be the top preschool program in our community. We compared our children's skills to the checklist provided by our school district of 60 skills (including cognitive skills, listening and sequencing skills, language skills, fine motor skills, gross motor skills, and social/emotional skills) that will help children transition into kindergarten. My son has all 60 skills while her daughter lacked skills in each of the areas.

I recommend every parent at least consider Montessori for their child as it is a child-centered learning approach that can provide an excellent foundation for a child's future growth and learning.

BEBERAPA MITOS SEPUTAR PAGERANK

2007-10-28T07:37:00.000+07:00

Gunakan kata kunci Mitos Seputar Pagerank pada Google.

BEBERAPA MITOS SEPUTAR PAGERANK yang dikatakan salah oleh Mas Cosa tidak saya setujui, seperti yang lain juga tidak menyetujui.
Misalnya mengenai pagerank tidak mempengaruhi SERP di Google dan sering update tidak mempengaruhi pagerank.

Sering saya memakai beberapa kata kunci yang terdapat di blog Tukeran Link dan secara bersamaan juga terdapat di blog saya yang lain.
Tapi hasilnya sangat mencolok.
Blog Tukeran Link ini selalu mengungguli blog saya yang lain.
Karenanya saya yakin bahwa sering update juga berpengaruh terhadap pagerank.
Karena pagerank saya saat ini masih nol, maka setidaknya sering update ikut mempengaruhi SERP di Google.

Ah, mitos atau bukan, yang paling penting berusahalah mengelola blog dengan sebaik mungkin.

Link hari ini:
teiranho
luckyfx
Reviews Iklan
fa & me
AG. Syam
cassava
BangJo
liends
Blog IKlan
elektronika
budhie
memey
Gratis
iman brotoseno

budhie, PageRank saya masih nol. He he he....
Tapi saya yakin PageRank saya akan naik pada saatnya.

Converter Link

Program tukeran link

2007-10-28T07:34:00.001+07:00

Blue Mouse, Zetrys List, Gatzet on My Space, Blog Gatzet on MySpace, Blog Zetrys on MySpace

Zetrys at Multiply, My Blog at Friendster, Moneyresort, Gatzet Info, Vello Blog, Mediocre to the best, Birds Care Blog

Nice Template Blog, Prasojo, Daily Thoughts, Triproxy Blog, Gatzet Support System, Suara Insan

Genetika Evolusi, My Blogster, SEO Supporter Blog, Easy Diet Programs, Girls Gadget, Solar Powered Blog

Moleskine and Me, Zetrys Blog at Multiply, Blog Gatzet at multiply, Free Proxy at Triproxy, Zetrys Support System, Gatzet at multiply, t1t2p, Gatzet SEO

BackLink Is The King ?

2007-10-28T06:53:00.000+07:00

Mengapa saya memberi judul pada postingan ini dengan judul "Backlink is The King". Saya akan menerangkan bagaimana backlink sangat berarti khususnya dalam pencarian Google. Kita tahu dan banyak para pakar-pakar website seperti situs blog menomor satukan Content atau artikel, dengan artikel yang fresh tanpa adanya unsur duplikasi atau copy paste dari artikel orang lain itu bisa membuat suatu blog dengan cepat mendapatkan traffic. Menurut pendapat saya BackLink adalah yang nomor satu.

Mengapa demikian?.. Karena semakin BackLink kita di banyak web semakin bagus SERP kita di google dan khusus yang baru membuat blog ini sangat membantu sekali untuk meningkatkan rangking keyword-keyword pada suatu blog. Karena Google akan membaca berapa banyak link kita ada di situs lain dan itu berarti Google menganggap bahwa website atau blog kita itu sangat berguna dan direkomendasikan oleh situs yang link ke situs kita. Maka dari itu rajin-rajinlah submit URL blog kamu di blog oranglain, forum-forum dan lain-lain.

Jadi urutan agar web kita dikenal orang adalah:
1. Backlink
2. Fresh Content
3. Lakukan promosi

Kesimpulannya adalah semakin banyak backlink semakin tinggi rangking kita di pencarian Google. Bagaimana menurut kamu setuju tidak atas pendapat saya ini?

Pentingnya BackLink Bagi Blog Kamu

2007-10-28T06:44:00.001+07:00

Tips agar webmu terkenal dan banyak di baca orang lain salah satunya adalah memperbanyak backlink. Apakah Backlink itu?

Bakclink adalah link blogmu terdapat di blog atau web orang lain. Terus bagaimana caranya...?
Sebenarnya mudah saja, rajin-rajinlah kamu baca blog orang lain, kalo mau lebih baik lagi yang mempunyai pagerank bagus setelah itu masukan commentmu beserta url blogmu. Commentmu harus sesuai dengan artikel yang kamu baca. Ingat jangan melakukan SPAM itu melanggar etika para blogsphere.

Nah dijamin deh.. semakin banyak kamu backlink maka tahap demi tahap blogmu akan banyak yang membaca khususnya dalam pencarian Google keyword pada artikelmu akan mendapatkan rangking.

Selamat mencoba yah

Ayo Budayakan Tukeran Link Sesama Blogger!

2007-10-28T06:39:00.001+07:00

Agar blog kita terkenal dan mempunyai Pagerank bagus serta SERP yang bagus di Goggle. saya mengajak teman-teman yang mempunyai blog untuk saling tukeran link. Jika kamu telah memasukkan link saya di blog kamu, selanjutnya hubungi saya melalui shoutbox yang ada pada blog saya ini atau email ke : fitriulina@yahoo.com, secepatnya saya akan memasukkan link kamu di blog saya.

Perbanyak Backlink=PR bagus+ Top SERP di Google.

Mari Budayakan Link Exchange sesama Blogger.

Terima Kasih.

Tukeran Link Tingkatkan PageRank

2007-10-28T06:26:00.000+07:00

Ayo Budayakan Tukeran Link Sesama Blogger! demikian judul postingan kali ini. BackLink isThe King akan mampu mendongkrak PageRank kita pada search engine, demikian kira2 maksud dari postingan kali ini

Mengapa pagerank menjadi penting?

Jujur saja, saya mengenal dunia blog justru secara tak sengaja saat mencari artikel dengan memanfaatkan Google. Kebetulan artikel yang saya cari disajikan dalam blog seseorang.

Search engine semisal Google, Yahoo, Altavista dan banyak lainnya begitu akrab dengan kita. Maka alangkah berbahagianya seandainya saat seseorang mencari artikel tertentu maka situs atau blog kita berada pada halaman pertama hasil pencarian oleh seacrh engine. Dengan demikian sangat besar kemungkinan orang akan membuka situs/blog kita.

Kalau anda termasuk orang yang percaya bahwa dengan saling menukar link akan mampu meningkatkan pagerank anda, maka segera link blog ini dan tinggalkan pesan pada shoutbox. Saya akan backlink blog/situs anda.

Selanjutnya setiap hari kunjungan anda dengan meninggalkan pesan pada shoutbox, maka saya akan membuat link ke blog anda melalui postingan. Sehingga setiap hari anda berkunjung ke blog ini dan meninggalkan pesan pada shoutbox, maka sebanyak itu pula anda akan mendapat link dari postingan saya pada blog ini yang diberi label link hari ini.

Mungkin cara demikian dapat dikatakan sebagai Link Farm yang tergolong kedalam Spamdexing. Mungkin saja. Tapi setidaknya saya rela setiap hari untuk terus membuat link ke blog anda melalui postingan. Entah kapan akan berhenti. Mungkin saja saat sudah ada ribuan dimana akan sangat menguras waktu, tenaga dan pikiran karena cara ini saya lakukan secara manual.

Anda berminat tukeran link?

tukeran link

Convert Link

Kunjungan Balasan

2007-10-28T06:20:00.000+07:00

Anda tentu selalu Blogwalking, alias jalan2 berkunjung ke blog orang lain. Ada yang telah anda kenal sebelumnya, ada yang baru pertama kali Anda kunjungi.
Kadangkala hanya melihat2, kadangkala meninggalkan pesan atau komentar.
Kadangkala pula setelah meninggalkan pesan, berharap agar pemilik blog yang bersangkutan melakukan kunjungan balasan.
Dan ternyata….. tidak ada kunjungan balasan!!
Anda kecewa....??

Boleh jadi sesungguhnya Anda telah mendapat kunjungan balasan, akan tetapi sang pengunjung tidak sempat atau enggan untuk meninggalkan pesan pada shoutbox.
Karenanya sangat penting menambahkan fasilitas hit counter pada blog anda.

Akan tetapi jika setelah letih berkunjung pada puluhan blog namun hit counter tidak juga menunjukkan perkembangan, mungkin ada yang salah dalam kunjungan anda.

Kemungkinannya :

Pesan yang Anda tinggalkan tidak menarik

Bagi pemilik blog yang sudah saling tukar link dengan Anda, maka kalimat pendek seperti : “Hai…” // “Blogwalking” // “Jalan2 nih” //“Numpang lewat” boleh jadi cukup menyenangkan mereka. Karena itu sudah menjadi indikasi bahwa Anda tetap berusaha menjalin silaturrahmi sesama blogger. Akan tetapi jika kalimat2 pendek tersebut Anda tuliskan pada shoutbox yang baru pertama kali Anda kunjungi, maka semakin kecil kemungkinan mereka berminat.

Pesan juga bisa disiasati dengan menggunakan nama yang menarik. Misalnya Cewek Cakep, Pria Bijak, KawanKarib, Tebak Siapa Aku, Kiss Me, dan banyak pilihan lain.

Blog yang Anda kunjungi bukan blog yang aktif

Sebab tidak semua blogger mengelola blog-nya setiap hari. Ada yang 2 hari sekali, seminggu sekali, bahkan ada yang tidak tentu.
Lihat tanggal postingan terakhir, serta lihat tanggal pesan terbaru pada shoutbox. Pesan yang Anda tinggalkan membutuhkan waktu sekian hari baru akan diketahui dan direspon pemilik blog.

Blog yang Anda kunjungi sangat-sangat aktif

Bagi blog yang tenar, dimana setiap harinya menerima begitu banyak pesan pada shoutbox, maka jangan terlalu berharap banyak bahwa pesan Anda akan mengundang minat sang empunya blog. Waktu mereka telah sangat banyak tersita untuk membuat postingan yang bagus dan untuk tetap mempertahankan hubungan sesama jawara blogger.

Untuk blog2 tenar begini, akan lebih efektif bila Anda beradu opini dengan meninggalkan komentar pada postingan miliknya. Mungkin Sang Blogger Kawakan hanya membalas dengan menanggapi pada fasilitas komentar miliknya. Tetapi yakinlah bahwa itu bisa merupakan jembatan yang bagus untuk memperkenalkan blog Anda dan membuka peluang besar untuk mengajaknya saling tukar link. So, keuntungan yang Anda dapat lebih dari sekedar kunjungan balasan.

Convert Link

Tukar Link

2007-10-28T06:11:00.000+07:00

Aneh juga ya, judul postingannya? Tukar Link.
Bukankah nama blog saya udah mencerminkan Tukar Link?

Kenapa saya beri judul demikian?
Ini karena saat saya Googling dengan keyword tersebut, dan mendapatkan salah satu postingan saya berada pada halaman kedua hasil pencarian.
Ternyata dalam postingan tertanggal 31 Mei 2007 dengan judul Kunjungan Balasan tersebut terdapat satu frase tukar link.
Meski demikian ada hal yang masih mengganjal di hati. Selain cuma berada di halaman kedua, hasil pencarian tersebut menuntun pengunjung ke halaman utama Tukeran Link, bukan langsung ke postingan yang dimaksud. Kecuali jika meng-klik tembolok.
Ini terjadi karena pada halaman utama (dibawah foto) juga terdapat frase Tukar Link.

Karenanya saya pun berhasrat untuk membandingkan hasil pencarian jika menjadikan frase tersebut sebagai judul postingan.

Sesaat setelah Googling dan menyimpan hasil pencarian, saya kembali ke halaman Tukeranlink.
Pada Shoutbox ada tautan yang menarik dari Ghozi. Saya pun membukanya dan masuk pada halaman Benarkah backlink dapat menambah pagerank suatu situs?

Wah, sangat menarik. Thank's buat Ghozi yang udah membuat postingan tersebut.
Meskipun tidak membahas panjang lebar dan lebih bersikap mengamati.

Seperti yang saya ungkapkan pada postingan pertama saya Tukeran Link Tingkatkan Pagerank, yang dilanjutkan dengan postingan BackLink is The King?
Dimana Backlink menempati urutan pertama agar web kita terkenal. Urutan setelahnya adalah Fresh Content dan Lakukan Promosi.

Bahkan dalam Ayo Budayakan tukeran Link Sesama Blogger! dikatakan bahwa
Perbanyak BackLink = PR bagus+ Top SERP di Google.

Sebagaimana yang telah terbuktikan, saya juga percaya bahwa backLink memang berpengaruh besar terhadap PageRank.
Meskipun saya tidak sepenuhnya setuju bahwa backlink menempati urutan teratas dalam optimasi search engine.
Saya kira Backlink tanpa hit gak akan berarti apa-apa.

Kesimpulannya:
Saling Tukar Link atau mendapat Backlink cuma salah satu komponen untuk mengatrol pagerank disamping komponen lain yang tak kalah penting yaitu content dan promosi berkesinambungan.

Convert Link

Tukar Link, sebagai Label & Title

2007-10-28T05:58:00.000+07:00

Saya selalu memakai Google dengan kata kunci “Tukar Link”.

Ternyata postingan saya dengan Title Tukar Link membawa perubahan berarti.
Atau mungkin malah Label-nya.
Sebab hasil pencarian menuntun kepada Label Tukar Link, dimana sampai dengan kemarin ada 2 postingan saya memakai label tersebut.

Dugaan saya, Google lebih memberi prioritas terhadap label dibandingkan title.
Mungkin saja ini hanya berlaku untuk blog saya, dimana postingan yang memakai label tersebut masih sangat sedikit.

Entahlah.
Bukankah kebanyakan dari kita masih meraba-raba mengenai cara kerja Mbah Google dan search engine lainnya?

Convert Link

Tukeran Link

2007-10-28T05:34:00.000+07:00

Ada yang kesulitan buat mencari blogger lain yang mau tukar link?
Kenapa gak memanfaatkan Google aja. Ketikkan kata kunci mau tukeran link. Sebab kebanyakan blogger yang membuka diri untuk tukar link atau link exchange menuliskan tawaran dengan kalimat pendek tersebut di blog miliknya. Ada juga yang membuat ajakan tukaran link / link exchange dengan kalimat Ayo Tukaran Link.

Gunakan kata kunci tukar link atau tukaran link juga bisa.

Sekarang saya lagi bertarung nih untuk kata kunci tukaran link. Makanya frase TUKARAN LINK mulai saya munculkan.

Sedikit2 kita yang sangat awam masalah SEO mulai bisa melihat kan, gimana Google bekerja?
Memang cakupan SEO sangat luas dan rumit.

Converter Link

Amazon Herb

2007-10-28T00:42:00.000+07:00

In this guide, Amazon Herb proponent Mike Adams (the Health Ranger) explores the three steps to success with the Amazon Herb Company. This report serves as an excellent instructional guide for people you're introducing to the business. A downloadable edition of this report is free of charge!!!

Download Here

Avian influenza

2007-10-28T00:41:00.000+07:00

Bird Flu or we know as Avian influenza strike asian and now europe. This ebook give you description of AI.As the World Health Organization is now urgently warning nations that 30% of the world's population could be infected with an outbreak of the bird flu virus, nations remain universally unprepared. No vaccines are being produced, no drugs can stop the virus, and hospitals stand to be overrun with infected patients. Are you safe? In this report, Adams discusses the threat of a global pandemic and offers down-to-earth solutions for protecting yourself using natural medicines and immune boosting strategies.

Download here

Free eBook about Back Pain Relief

2007-10-28T00:39:00.000+07:00

Back Pain make me very tortured.... After read this ebook I know what should to do."Sharing & Helping" Others is always a rewarding action which keeps our human spirit and soul a giving & caring attribute... I hope the information helps in some small way!

Download Here

Cure Disease & Health Problems

2007-10-28T00:37:00.001+07:00

I suggest you to read this free ebook on curing disease and health problems.
Free health ebook treats (overcome) so-called incurable diseases or any health problem and never worry again. Cure your cancer, AIDS, heart diseases, diabetes, asthma and other diseases merely by fasting, diet and changing blood pH.

Download Here

10 Success Strategies Every Dieter Should Know

2007-10-28T00:32:00.000+07:00

This eBook original from the author, I just compile it to pdf10 Success Strategies Every Dieter Should Know
1. Attaining and maintaining lean body mass is a lifetime commitment needing lifetime lifestyle strategies.

2. Ease on Down the Diet Road: Making gradual adjustments in food, exercise and supplementation works better for long-term weight-loss than drastic measures you cannot maintain.

3. Eat small frequent meals, well chewed, slowly eaten. Give thanks before meals. Put your fork, spoon, or food down between each bite.

4. Start eating early and try to get most of your calories in by 3-5 PM.

5. When hungry between meals, try 8 to 16 oz of water first. Green tea is likely even better. Perhaps add fiber (psyllium, oat bran, chitosan) to the water to "fill you up" and absorb fat and bile.

6. Eat vegetable-based clear soups and fish frequently.

7. Create "reward meals". The key to a long-term strategy of eating well is not having to be being perfect. Have some "planned cheating" or a "cheat allowance" built into your strategy.

8. Always start with a sensible, balanced nutrient dense nutrition strategy combined with exercise and supplements. Move to the more extreme and restricted strategies only as proved necessary. Then "cycle" or "sandwich" these more extreme strategies with a balanced nutrient dense wide variety strategy. This way you will not get "bored" with the more restrictive strategies, which are very difficult to maintain for long periods of time for most of us. Don't play the "all or nothin' " Yo-Yo diet game.

9. If obese, high sodium intake significantly increases death risk, regardless of blood pressure. So if you are obese be moderate in sodium from salt and additives.

10. Look in the mirror every day, preferably before or after showering, and tell the person in the mirror you love him/her. Regardless of your physical appearance, fatten up with self-love the real person inside!

Collect This

9 Simple Tips To Keeping Fit

2007-10-28T00:29:00.000+07:00

This article covers 9 SIMPLE ways to stay on track with your fitness plan. (You do have one, right?)These few tips alone *can* help you stay focused when the going get a little rough.Here they are. 9 tips for your fitness toolbox. Mix-n-match. Read one a day. Have fun!

Tip 1 - TUMMY TONER
Tip 2 - TRY A TRAINER
Tip 3 - PRACTICE YOUR POSTURE
Tip 4 - VARIETY
Tip 5 - ROUTINE
Tip 6 - WARMING UP & COOLING DOWN
Tip 7 - FOCUS
Tip 8 - KEEP A JOURNAL
Tip 9 - R&R Rest and relax

For More Detail..Download here

Chlorella and spirulina foods

2007-10-28T00:27:00.000+07:00

Here you can download free ebook about: Chlorella and spirulina.Chlorella and spirulina are truly the most outstanding food sources on planet Earth. In this special report, you'll learn about the astonishing health benefits and nutritional achievements of these two foods, and you'll see why you need to get these into your diet immediately.Downlad Here

Asbestos free eBook

2007-10-28T00:24:00.000+07:00

Actually this is just short description about asbestos. But little help for beginner
What is asbestos?
Asbestos is the name given to a group of naturally occurring minerals used in certain products, such as building materials and vehicle brakes, to resist heat and corrosion. Asbestos includes chrysotile, amosite, crocidolite, tremolite asbestos, anthophyllite asbestos, actinolite asbestos, and any of these materials that have been chemically treated and/or altered. What are the dangers of asbestos Are you being exposed to asbestos? What are the permissible exposure limits for asbestos? Are employers required to conduct exposure monitoring? Must employers create regulated areas? What compliance methods must employers use to control exposures? When are employers required to provide Are employers required to provide protective clothing for workers? Must employers provide hygiene facilities? you can read more after Download this file

101 tips for happy relationship

2007-10-28T00:23:00.000+07:00

This free ebook explain 101 ways or tips to make a happy relationship. I think its very useful. It tell you what should do with your relationship.Ok... this is the linkDownload Here

Montessori Distance Learning (Comprehensive Training for Teachers of the Young)

2007-10-27T19:06:00.000+07:00

Montessori distance learning courses are designed for continuing education in the field of child education. These programs help to develop excellent teaching credentials and provide extensive practical training in Montessori education. These days, most comprehensive distance learning programs are available for aspiring Montessori teachers worldwide.

Montessori distance learning programs include Montessori methodology and practice, five of the most important ideas in Montessori education, how to prepare the Montessori environment, how to prepare yourself as a Montessori caregiver, communicating with young children the Montessori way. Some programs also offer contemporary ideas to supplement Montessori methodology. The combination of the ideas past and present can truly enrich a child's educational and social experiences.

Montessori Education Overview

Distance education allows you the freedom of studying and submitting your course work at your own pace without disrupting your current job, leisure activities or family life. Comprehensive curriculum manuals support distance learning programs. Instructional materials and support systems like CD, DVDs and online access to educational video presentations guide you step-by-step through each and every lesson.

Generally, Montessori distance learning programs are divided into different levels. Infant or Toddler Program is for the children under 3 years of age. Pre-school or Kindergarten is for the children in 3 to 6 years age group. Elementary or Diploma program is designed for the children in the 6 to 9 years age bracket. These programs cover all the critical stages of development. Some institutions offer Elementary Montessori Environments programs for 9 to 12 years old children.

Institutions Offering Montessori Programs

Professional Career Development Institute is a nationally accredited distance learning school founded in 1987. They have enrolled over 1,200,000 students in the US and in 100 countries worldwide. They offer affordable, no-interest monthly tuition plans. They regularly update their course materials to reflect new technical advances and research.

The United Montessori Association offers a 9 to 12 month, comprehensive on-line Montessori Teacher Training Program. The Montessori teacher training program is an exclusive distance-learning email based program. Students receive the lesson responses in the form of Microsoft Word attachments. Teaching manuals, CDs and DVDs are mailed via the postal service and are inclusive in the tuition fees. Reference books required for reading assignments may be purchased separately and are not included in tuition fees.

Montessori Teacher Preparation of Washington offers four self-paced videotape courses covering all the levels of Montessori education.

Montessori distance learning programs provide a thorough understanding of the adult-child relationship as well as a complete knowledge of the physical layout and operation of a Montessori classroom.

Attention Parents: Do You Make These Ten Mistakes In Homeschooling? Free Report Reveals How To Avoid Them

2007-10-27T18:48:00.000+07:00

Everyone approaches homeschooling with a different perspective. Some approach it with fear and trepidation; others with excitement and enthusiasm; others feel backed into a corner with no other options; and still others look forward to homeschooling as a way to invest more into their children.

Examine each point carefully and look honestly at yourself and your teaching style. Not every mistake will apply to you—that will depend on your personality and approach—but all can easily occur without warning!

1.Over Scheduling

I will never forget my first year of homeschooling. My children were involved in art classes, gymnastics, classes at the zoo, science center classes, chorus, piano lessons, physical education classes, and community sports. On the one day per week that we did not have scheduled events, we would get together with fellow homeschooling families for field trips, writing classes (which I taught), and/or just for a fun time.

I have never been so frazzled in my life! We would cram in our studies in the morning, then load up the car to head out to our daily routine.

I can’t remember who burned out first—the kids or me, but I do know we burned out. Soon those creative moments of science experiments, creative writing fun, and history projects were a thing of the past and we became a slave to our activities schedule.

The key : limit yourself to one or two activities at a time and make schooling a priority. When you have more time to commit at home, schooling can become much more enjoyable!

2.Under Scheduling

Over scheduling can be a nightmare, but under-scheduling can also have its detriments. Kids need variety and opportunities to be with others their own age. There are so many learning opportunities out there !

Find what activities work for your family and take advantage of them. There are many opportunities out there through local museums, art schools, YMCAs, support groups, colleges, churches, and historical sites.

A great idea that worked for us was to get together with several other homeschooling families and plan out a year’s worth of field trips—one per month. We then assigned one to each parent to organize, picked the dates (which we all reserved), and looked forward to our once a month outing. On occasion, we would also get together at a local playground or state park for another day of fun or learning.

This smaller network allowed us to support each other on a more personal basis and to feel free to call on another when we needed encouragement or ideas.

3.Unrealistic Expectations

It is so easy to fall into the trap of unrealistic expectations. I have met many a homeschool Mom who was upset because her three-year old was not reading yet or because her sixth grade son was not succeeding in Algebra I. I have watched as families tackle huge projects trying to cram a whole year of World History into one quarter and plan a World History Fair to culminate the experience. These are the same parents and kids who are burned out by Christmas and struggling to make it through each day!

One the other hand, I have also seen families who decide to home school with no direction, no formal home school curriculum, and no real goals in mind.

Students will live up to your expectations and if none exist, they will quickly adapt and really enjoy themselves for a time. However, by Halloween, kids long for the structure of school and parents are thinking that the ghosts and ghouls knocking on their door look much more appealing than their bored and antsy children.

The individualized instruction that homeschooling provides opens up the door for students to master concepts much quicker than in a classroom full of distractions. However, it also makes it very easy to coast through the year without really accomplishing anything.The answer to this struggle is planning.

4. A Disorganized School Room

There is nothing more frustrating than the inability to put your fingers on what you need when you need it. This is especially true when you are trying to keep your children current with their schoolwork.

The inability to find a pencil, a working eraser, a textbook or workbook, dictionary, calculator . . . . you get the picture. These are all extremely frustrating and when piled up can make for a very difficult start to a day.

I recommend you commit an entire day at the beginning of the school year to organizing your home school room. Engage your children in the task—let them decide how to organize their supplies.

Store away your teacher’s guides and answer keys—preferably in a file drawer so they are always at your fingertips and organize the curriculum in a sequence that makes sense.

The more time you devote ahead of time to organizing, the less wasted time throughout the school year searching for items you know "are around here somewhere !"

5. Avoiding Breaks to Allow for a Shorter Day

This is a biggie! We all do it—it seems like such a wonderful thing to tell our kids. "Hey, if you can just get this all done this morning, we will have all afternoon with no school!" Guess what? Across the board, homeschooling kids are saying, "We’d rather have a break !"

Let me share some personal experiences. I am ashamed to say, I fell into this one very badly my first year of homeschooling. At the beginning of the school year, I was really good about taking breaks—even heading outside with my children to play baseball, catch, soccer, volleyball, tag . . . you name it. My favorite time for one of these breaks was when one of the kids was struggling, grumpy or looking tired, or when I found myself overwhelmed with the mess around me.

I would announce, "RECESS TIME!" and we would head outside for a good 20 minutes of fun. It never ceased to amaze me how easy it was to get back to a difficult task after a quick breather.

Suddenly, it was essential for my kids to finish up their work in the morning so we could have the afternoon free and breaks became a thing of the past.

I never realized just how frustrating this must have been for my kids until a recent homeschool graduate put it on her top ten list. Sure enough, my kids hated it! To them the tradeoff was not worth it. A "free" afternoon after a grueling morning was not of value to them.

To avoid this one : schedule regular breaks and take them whether you think you need them or not and be sure to spend at least one break enjoying your kids !

In the end a more relaxed longer day is better than a crammed short day any day !

6.Becoming a Slave to Your Home School Curriculum

Another big mistake I made my first year of homeschooling was to allow my curriculum to drive me. Even on days when it was obvious that my kids just weren’t getting it, I would push them to complete the assignments we had determined were appropriate for that day.

When I finally learned to back off, our homeschooling became much more effective. On days when my fifth grader just could not quite figure out how to reduce fractions to the lowest common denominator, we would take a break and move on to something else. Although in some cases, we did not even return to math that day, more often than not, we found that waiting until the evening when the hustle and bustle of the day was over worked much better! At that time, she could sit down and breeze through the math concepts that were impossible just a few hours earlier.

In some cases, you may need to abandon an entire course and try a different approach. Now, don’t be too quick to make this decision—too many of these decisions can be costly. Take the time to really evaluate whether it is the homeschool curriculum or your misuse of it that is causing the struggle.

Sometimes it just takes a fresh look or slowing down a little to make a course work better for you. But if you find that something just does not work, don’t be afraid to set it aside or pass it on to someone else.

On the other hand, don’t make the mistake of rushing your children through a study that they are passionate about! Take the time to allow them to pursue it further.

Bottom line : watch and learn from your kids and adapt as necessary. Don’t become a slave to your home school curriculum.

7.Doing it Alone

So many homeschooling Moms try to do it alone. Once the curriculum decisions have been made and the curriculum is in their hands, they begin the process of schooling . . . on their own.

Sometimes pride keeps them from asking for advice when things get tough; sometimes just the overwhelming task of schooling the children makes it difficult to seek out socialization opportunities; sometimes, it is the misperception that "That is the way it is for homeschoolers.

"This is a huge danger ! Irrevocably, Moms who try to do it alone become frustrated and very lonely. Do you find yourself keeping the telemarketer on the phone as long as you possibly can? Does your UPS man find it difficult to escape from your front door after delivering a package? YOU NEED SOCIALIZATION!

It is just as important for you as it is for your kids.

Socialization for a homeschooling Mom means a sounding board for ideas, advice from those who have been through it before, friendships that allow us to be ourselves, an easy way to share or access information and ideas, a terrific venue to pass on newly discovered educational events or opportunities . . . all absolutely necessary for Moms who are investing so much into their children.

Support groups, homeschool publications, seminars, homeschool conferences, memberships, classes . . . all of these are terrific ways for homeschooling families to socialize with other children and adults.

Don’t ignore this! This will make or break your homeschooling endeavors.

8.Super Mom Syndrome

This was probably the most difficult part of homeschooling for me. Days when my friends would say, "Walking into your home is like walking into an Ethan Allen Showroom" were long gone.

Trying to keep those same standards is like trying to rake leaves into a pile in the middle of a tornado.

Face it : your home will never be the same. Your meals will not always be healthy, your errands will not always be run, your bills may be late, and your bathrooms may not always sparkle.

But take a deep breath and remember :

1. You live in your house all day

2. Your kids are in your house all day

3. You school in your house

4. You use your walls as a display for charts, projects, lessons, maps, time lines, motivations, and more.

5. You do not have a large classroom to keep all of your studies in—books and educational materials will naturally take over your home.

6. You use your desk for more than paying bills, checking e-mail, and surfing the net.

If you are going to survive this homeschooling experience, you must learn to lower your standards !

9.Ignoring the Input of your Children

It is so easy to get so wrapped up in your plans and ideas that you forget to check with your children. This can be especially challenging for Moms who were teachers or who served in a managerial role. Part of the beauty of homeschooling is that it can be a two way street.

You set up the boundaries, then, allow your kids some freedom within those boundaries.

Your willingness to bounce ideas off of your kids and to really consider their input will mean so much to them . . . and you might be surprised at what they come up with !

10.Fear of the Internet

Let’s face it—the Internet can be dangerous! There is so much out there that we do not want our children to see and so many people out there we do not want them to meet!

However, there is also a wealth of information out there that is absolutely invaluable to any homeschooling program. From educational and interactive games, to live cam pictures of our solar system, the possibilities are endless.

And if you know where to go, you can tap into homeschool resources and instruction that will never run dry !

Homeschool And College Acceptance What Works And Doesn’t Work In Homeschooling

2007-10-27T18:35:00.000+07:00

How Homeschooling Parents Can Assure their Homeschooled Students Gain Acceptance into America’s Well-Known Colleges and Universities.

Homeschool and College Acceptance What Works and Doesn’t Work in Homeschooling.

How Homeschooling Parents Can Assure their Homeschooled Students Gain Acceptance into America’s Well-Known Colleges and Universities.

You’ve all heard the mixed reports about college acceptance of homeschooled children. Some say colleges will not accept homeschooled students; others say they desperately want them. But what is the truth? Can homeschooled students have their choice of colleges and universities or is it a struggle to find one that will accept them? You will find most colleges and universities "homeschool friendly" if you prepare your homeschool student in advance.

The following report will outline for you several strategies that homeschooling families must use in order to assure that their homeschooled students are sought out by the best colleges and universities in America. And it’s not just about taking tests and completing applications for college enrollment. It involves the home school courses you choose, your extra-curricular activities, your community involvement and much more to meet today’s college requirements!

Bottom line is, colleges want the best students out there. As screening processes become more and more intense, homeschooled students must learn to begin the college enrollment preparation process as young as middle school. Don’t wait till high school to prepare for the necessary college requirements.

The courses you select can make or break your admittance into the best colleges and universities.

Let’s face it. A homeschooled student with a transcript full of vocational or general academic courses will not stand a chance against a homeschooled student with college preparatory classes. Furthermore, a homeschool student who waits until tenth grade to begin college preparatory math and science courses is already a minimum of a year behind other college candidates.

Begin in Middle School.

If your student has the ability to handle higher-level math courses in middle school, by all means start them then. At the minimum, you should aim to provide Pre-Algebra in 8th grade in order that your student can move on to Algebra I in high school. However, avoid the temptation to push a student into higher-level math if he or she is not ready. This will only set up a student for struggle and/or failure in the future, which will not only affect a student’s overall picture, but also his confidence to continue.

Select Courses that Prepare your Homeschooled Student for the Rigors of College.

The courses you select in high school can not only make or break your college acceptance but can make or break a student’s ability to succeed in a college course. Not only do you want to select courses that fit in with a college preparatory course of study, but that are also accelerated enough to challenge your student at a higher level. Finding the easiest Algebra course you can find will not prepare your homeschool student for success in a college atmosphere. Choose wisely.

Bridgeway Academy offers a variety of high school courses from vocational to honors and Advanced Placement.

A good self-instructional course is ideal for your homeschooling program since it will require less expertise on the part of the parent and more independence on the part of your student. The ability to work independently is one of the greatest assets that homeschool students bring to a college or university.

Access a typical college preparatory course of study at Bridgeway Academy’s high school site.

Advanced Placement courses are also ideal for the homeschooling student. Advanced Placement (AP) courses not only give students the opportunity to pursue college-level studies while in high school but also to vamp up their college applications. There are currently thirty-four courses in 19 subject areas offered as AP courses. Scores on AP exams may help colleges predict which students are more likely to graduate on time and therefore cost the college less in student aid (and for that matter cost you less in college tuition costs).

Research conducted by the University of California, Berkeley, indicates that correlations exist between success in AP courses and success in college. Students who earn an AP exam grade of 3 or higher are more likely to complete a bachelor’s degree in four years than their peers. Since AP courses are becoming more and more important in the college screening process, I encourage you to pursue at least one AP course in your student’s high school career.

Extra-curricular Activities add to your marketability !

Another critical element to your home school program is your student’s extracurricular and volunteer activities. To a college counselor, these are an absolute must! And to your student, they are an incredibly valuable addition to his or her development as an individual.

Not only will these extras strengthen your home school student’s college applications, the skills learned from volunteer work, sports and other extracurricular activities are essential for enhancing social skills, building confidence and enriching your student’s life. Therefore, no matter what your student’s aspirations, I strongly recommend you engage him or her in extracurricular pursuits and volunteerism.

In that case of building your college applications; however, students should choose activities they enjoy and stick with them. College admission counselors aren’t interested in seeing students ‘do it all.’ Instead, they are looking for a commitment and passion for an activity outside of the classroom.

Keep track of all activities and awards and include them on your student résumés. Look for leadership opportunities and activities that will impact your community for the good. Find a contribution that will set you apart and allow your student to stand out. College admission counselors like to see students who are leaders. . .in and out of the classroom.

Applying early puts your name at the forefront!

One major disadvantage for homeschooling students is the fact that they do not have a guidance counselor breathing down their neck to get their college applications in the mail. Most colleges and universities have early admissions programs, which will allow your students to get ahead of the game of college applications. Take advantage of early admission deadlines! Better yet, get those applications in as early as possible—don’t wait until the due date to put them in the mail.

Many students find this to be a very intimidating process, however, since this is your opportunity to put your best foot forward, it is not something you want to wait until the last minute before beginning the college enrollment process.

Some basic Do’s and Don’ts that will help make your college application and acceptance process a success!

DO :

Read applications and directions carefully.

Make sure that everything that is supposed to be included is enclosed.

Fill out your own applications. Type the information yourself to avoid crucial mistakes.

Start with the simple applications and then progress to the more complex ones.

Make copies of applications, and practice filling one out before you complete the original.

Type or neatly print your answers, and then proofread the applications and essays several times for accuracy. Also ask someone else to proofread them for you.

If asked, describe how you can make a contribution to the schools to which you apply.

Be truthful, and do not exaggerate your accomplishments.

Keep a copy of all forms you submit to colleges.

Be thorough and on time.

DON’T :

Use correction fluid. If you type your application, use a correctable typewriter or the liftoff strips to correct mistakes. Better yet, fill out your application on line.

Write in script. If you don’t have access to a computer or typewriter, print neatly.

Leave blank spaces. Missing information may cause your application to be sent back or delayed while admission officers wait for complete information.

Be unclear. If the question calls for a specific answer, don’t try to dodge it by being vague.

Put it off

College is an exciting time that can be very rewarding! Preparing yourself early will keep you competitive, while acting proactively is essential to obtaining admission into the college or university of your choice!

Get a comprehensive blueprint to prepare your student for college or university acceptance. What Colleges and Universities Look For, see ADMISSION CRITERIA below.

Incredible college search engine that allows students to navigate 100’s of homeschool friendly colleges and universities all across the United States! These colleges and universities want your homeschooled student because they have invested advertising dollars to be listed at homeschoolfriendlycolleges.com, take a look!

Home School VS Public School

2007-10-27T18:32:00.000+07:00

"Each day, more than 1,200 young men and women give up on their high school education, and, in many cases, on themselves" - so says the AdCouncil. Each day, 1,200 young men and women are becoming a burden to society. In a report done in March of 2006 for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, it was found that one third of all Public High School students failed to graduate with less then 2 years to go. Nearly one half of those were blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans. Many students gave personal reasons for leaving school. A third (32 percent) said they had to get a job and make money; 26 percent said they became a parent; and 22 percent said they had to care for a family member. At the end of this article I will show you where to get the rest of this disturbing report.

I am not a fan of the public school system. Not with numbers like... the nationwide grand mean in reading for home schoolers was at the 79th percentile, and the 73rd percentile for language and math. This ranking means home school students performed better than approximately 77% of the sample population on whom the test was normed. Nearly 80% of home schooled children achieve individual scores above the national average and 54.7% of the 16,000 home schoolers achieved individual scores in the top quarter of the population, more than double the number of conventional school students who score in the top quarter.

Facts are facts, but commons sense dictates that the public schools just do not work. They keep throughing money at the problem, working on self esteem and incentives while passing out condoms. They took out morals and replaced it with acceptance. They took out accountability and replaced it with food stamps. That's what the government gives in return for your tax dollars. Not to mention the NEA. They are a force in Washington that would rival the IRS. Just mention the word 'school vouchers' and red flags go up while the race cards come down.

Point being that this great country does allow us a means to avoid the peer pressure filled, barb wire lined, police patrolling institutions we call public education. The number of home schools is rising every year, and with that are SAT test scores. The fact that nearly all home schools are Christian based is reason enough to go this route. But even if you took that out of the equation you would be left with flexible schedules, like going year round and taking a week off anytime you like. One on one training and tutoring, a nurturing environment as apposed to one that requires self defense as part of the curriculum.

It is easy to realize that the home school beats public school, and even private schools for that matter. One must consider the time it would take to pursue such a task though, along with the cost. I have found places that get the process rolling for a $75 Registration fee, $25 processing fee, and then $500 - $750 per child, depending on the number of children. These organizations will provide proper paperwork, curriculums, planners, schedules and support to keep it in line with all the various state laws that apply.

For those interested in many more statistics and getting further details on home schools, a good starting piont would be at http://www.wulliebull2.com/homeschool/ Included is a fun read call "The Teachers Interview", which will need no explanation.

Homeschooling The ADD / ADHD Child

2007-10-27T18:19:00.000+07:00

As homeschool parents, there are many options for teaching our children. I have found the variety out there to actually be overwhelming, but few resources actually meet my needs. My son is gifted, but has ADHD. As a clinician and a professor, I hated seeing him struggle in school. Each day he would tell me he had "Carnitors" (T-Rex's for the rest of us) in his tummy. After meeting with his teacher several times, it became clear that the school was unable/unwilling to meet his needs to my satisfaction. Kids with ADD/ADHD need a place with few distractions, short bursts of learning followed by physical activity, structure and learning materials tailored to how they learn and learning times scheduled around when they learn best.

After spending several months and several hours each day creating his lessons piece-meal, I found a couple of wonderful resources. The first is AOL at school : http://www.aolatschool.com/ There is an amazing amount of information, links to complete online textbooks and more. This is where I go when he finds a topic of interest and he wants to know more. (Remember when we had to get our parents to take us to the library?) One of the benefits here is that it is FREE! The textbooks range from kindergarten all the way through high school and cover most topics.

The second resource I found serves as the foundation for our homeschooling curriculum : http://www.time4learning.com/ Time4Learning provides a multimedia, interactive experience for kids covering all basic subject areas. For children with ADD/ADHD, you can break it down into snippets of 10 minute lessons. Additionally, many of the lessons combine subjects. That is, the "Language Arts" lessons are often on topics of health, science and history. This helps ease my mind considerably, because I can know he is learning educational material when he reads. (Many of the so called reading books from his public school were no more than See Spot Run). The other advantage with Time4Learning is that they set your child up at his/her grade level.

As I said, despite the ADHD, my son is gifted. He is set up to do 2nd grade work (he is in first grade), but he can progress as fast as he can and still master the material, or he can have easy/review days and do grade-level work. For parents, you can create an assignment book that links Time4Learning assignments to the skills they were supposed to learn. I use this to record his grades for the school board to review each year. I have found customer service to be very receptive to suggestions, they are regularly adding new features and their customer support is prompt and courteous.

A third resource is http://www.education-world.com/ This site has TONS of ideas, printable worksheets and activities. Since kids with ADD/ADHD have difficulty switching tasks, it is often preferable to have one "subject" per day and present it in a variety of formats (reading about it, watching a movie about it, applying it).

Other resources include :

Discovery School : http://school.discovery.com/

ABC Teach : http://www.abcteach.com/

FunBrain : http://www.funbrain.com/

SuperKids : http://www.superkids.com/

Everything4Kids : http://www.kapili.com/topiclist.html (This is geared to the older or advanced student)

KidsKnowIt: http://www.kidsknowit.com/

These last resources do not have a syllabus or curriculum, but they are FUN. For the child with ADD/ADHD this is especially important. Some days they are too stressed, tired or focused on something else to concentrate on "the basics." As long as this does not happen too often, it is fine to let your child do an off-topic educational activity that he or she is interested in. In our house it is usually wildlife (http://www.enature.com/), dinosaurs(KidsKnowIt) or space (NASA).

One suggestion is to set kid's profiles up with icons on their desktops to only the 5-10 sites they are supposed to go to. My children will often stay on the coputer for hours if they can. Children with ADD get overwhelmed if they have too many choices and things to look at. This helps limit their distractions.

Sean went from a child who would look at a page in a book and say "Far too many words" to a child who reads to me and asks "Was I reading fluently Mommy?" I have gotten the time back in my day to start working part-time again. Between these all of these resources most any child and/or homeschool family can find what they are looking for.

Overcoming The Problems Of Homeschooling As A Single Parent

2007-10-27T18:18:00.000+07:00

Homeschooling is not an easy option at the best of times but if you are a single parent then you may well be tempted to simply dismiss the idea as being impossible. Before you do so however you should know that there are literally thousands of single parents of both sexes homeschooling their children today and doing so very successfully.

For most single parents the biggest problem is simply one of finance because their primary goal has to be to get out and earn a living to support both themselves and their children. Surprisingly enough however the real problem is often not money but time.

We tend to think of homeschooling as being a full-time job along the lines of eight hours a day five days a week but in reality it is far from that. To begin with the normal public school day in most counties is just six hours and this includes such things as lunch breaks, breaks between classes and a lot of time spent sitting around doing nothing of any real value, bringing the true 'working' day probably down to no more than about four hours.

But that's not the end of it because you also need to figure in such things as weekends and school breaks, including the long summer holiday. Spread this out across the year and you will probably be amazed to find that your child is only studying for an average of about two hours a day.

Against this background it is easy to see that with the right time management it might well be possible to fit in both a job and homeschooling. You may still feel however that this is going to leave you with no time for anything else and feeling more than a little drained at the end of the day. Until you consider just what homeschooling entails.
The majority of homeschooling parents do not follow the tradition classroom teaching approach but center learning very much around the child and his or her strengths and weakness and likes and dislikes. And here we see one of the surprises for many homeschooling parents.
Children who are given the resources and guidance but otherwise left largely to pursue the subjects that they enjoy at their own pace will, in most cases, develop an enquiring mind and a love of learning which will allow them to study very effectively and very successfully on their own. They will of course need your help and you will have to check over the work and provide correction and on-going guidance, but this can often be done quite easily and quickly in the evening and at weekends. Above all, you will find that there is certainly no need to sit with the child while he or she is studying and the child can simply be left to get on with the necessary work.
If this seems a strange thing to say then believe me it's quite true. Many studies have shown that home schooled children are on the whole extremely responsible and adopt a very mature attitude towards learning.
But that of course this not the end of the story because the other thing that you need to consider is the fact that you don't have to tackle homeschooling on your own even if you are a single parent.
Many parents, single or otherwise, make use of tutoring services and, while this is a subject in itself and not something to get into in this article, tutoring services range widely from employing in-home tutors to using online Internet tutoring. Costs also vary widely but a tutor can often cost little more than day care and indeed can often be combined with day care.
Another option for many single parents is to elect to work at home. This could be as simple as running your own business out of your home or looking for a job that allows you to work at home. Many companies nowadays employ telesales or customer support staff who are able to do their job over the telephone from their own home. These options won't suit everybody of course, but they are an option worth considering.
And how about running your own Internet business? If you are starting from scratch then building an online business is not perhaps as easy or as fast as many people would have you believe and is certainly something that needs research in terms of both the investment required and the time that it would take to get up and running. Nevertheless, there are many thousands of people making a part or full-time living online.
Homeschooling undoubtedly presents its own special problems for single parents but as you can see from just the few examples given here there are ways to overcome these difficulties. In some cases it may be just a simple matter of organizing your time while in others you may need to consider tutoring or getting together with other homeschooling parents in your area to pool your time and resources. Whatever your particular problem though you will find that there is almost always a solution which will allow you as a single parent to give your children the homeschooling education that will set them on the right path for their future success.

Make the Healthcare Shortage Work for You

2007-10-27T18:15:00.000+07:00

By now, most Americans have heard about the growing healthcare shortage. As Baby Boomers start to retire, the demand for healthcare services is increasing at the exact time that the number of healthcare workers is decreasing. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the healthcare industry is the fastest-growing in the country. Right now the biggest shortfall is in the number of nurses; there are currently 200,000 unfilled registered nurse positions and by 2020 this gap is expected to reach one million. However, virtually all healthcare occupations have begun to experience shortages.

What most media reports don't mention, however, is that this shortfall represents a huge opportunity for people looking for a great career. In desperate bids to attract and retain healthcare employees, employers are offering much larger salaries than in the past, along with hiring bonuses, perks, benefits, and flexible schedules. The well-qualified healthcare job seeker has a serious advantage in this market. The opportunities are endless. You can pursue a rewarding career helping others and making the world a better place - and be sought after by great employers offering rising salaries and excellent job security at the same time.

Right now, one of the top priorities for hospitals, clinics, and the government is to increase the number of healthcare students. The federal government has even passed an initiative designed to help students get nursing degrees - check out the Nursing Reinvestment Act. However, there are a number of barriers that potential students confront . One is a shortage of nurse educators, which leads many qualified candidates to be turned down. Many potential healthcare students are also unable, for one reason or another, to attend traditional schools. Maybe you are already employed and looking for a career change. Maybe you are staying home with your kids and planning on entering a healthcare career when they go to school. Perhaps you live in a rural area, or an area that doesn't have very many educational options - these areas are often even more in need of healthcare professionals. Maybe you already work in healthcare and you know that continuing education will get you to a higher level.

One solution is to pursue healthcare education online. You can take courses to give yourself a competitive edge for entering a traditional program, or you can take the entire degree online. This allows busy adults to prepare for their career (or career change) according to their own schedules, at their own pace, and from wherever they happen to be. In addition, many online students use supervised internships in order to get the hands-on training they need. Learn about the options, learn about the careers, and get ready for those healthcare opportunities.

How to Train your Child in Perseverance

2007-10-27T18:10:00.000+07:00

Perseverance - persistence, endurance, stick-to-itiveness, staying power, dogged, diligence. What a list of great nouns found in Roget's Thesaurus.

I chose to write about Perseverance not only as a goal that I can see I need to work at in my life, but one which is so extremely important for us to pass on to our children. If I have difficulty in persevering when I am feeling a bit down, overwhelmed, or tired and give in so easily, and I am an adult, this is obviously a life-long trait which needs to be built into our character from an early age. Our culture does not encourage perseverance. As long as you are enjoying what you are doing, you are encouraged to keep going, but if you don't like the boss you can toss in the job, drop out of a course, and avoid the difficulties you might be facing.

Even in homeschooling, it is easy to give in to our children's whines :

"I don't want to play soccer anymore - it's too cold!"

"I hate music practice! I do not want to learn the piano anymore."

"Why do I have to learn spelling? It's so boring!"

And then as parents, we become confused. We hear a persuasive voice telling us to back out of our children's lives and let them decide where they are headed. Let them pursue their interests (as long or as short that may be), follow their hearts, develop the skills that they deem necessary to walk in their own way. The philosophy of today tells us that our children would be far better off, if we just left them alone.

So, how do we face this all? Do we strap them to their seats in front of endless books and meaningless worksheets, hoping to develop diligence? Of course not! At times, it is a difficult line to work out. Yes, I want to develop perseverance in my child. No! I don't want them to sit purposelessly behind a desk hoping that they will learn staying power.

So, how?

Firstly, I need to recognize that not all their education will be "fun." I am not about to apologize for that! Struggling through a maths problem, and conquering it, can give any child an enormous sense of satisfaction. If our children never struggle, they will miss out on the unique sense of achievement and accomplishment which follows a difficulty. Have you ever felt the satisfaction of a "good days work" after hard, physical labour? Well, our children should have opportunities to experience this as well - not only physical labour (which is also crucial), but mental labour as well.

Secondly, I need to take care that the work they do has purpose. Nobody likes slaving away at a meaningless task. Give your children real things to do - writing letters or lists; making a family newspaper; writing a website or web page; playing an instrument with other members in the family, in a band, in church or busking; maintaining a vegetable patch; finding out the best supermarket specials; playing a game until the end, even if they are losing; or even, being in charge of pairing socks in the household. I am not a fan of workbooks simply because I don't want to waste their time - as though we need to fill up their day !

Thirdly, I need to insist that they complete what they start. If they have signed up for a season with a soccer club, they need to show commitment and a team spirit, even if they are cold, tired or sick of losing. It takes perseverance for the parents too - we brought five children to soccer every Saturday this year. If they begin a vegie patch, they need to water and weed it through the season. Of course, there are some things that are passing phases and it doesn't matter if they tinker for a while with one idea and leave it for another. But, if responsibility comes with certain hobbies, it is important that our child learns to commit through the good and the bad times.

Don't you love that colloquialism: "stick-to-it-iveness."

Fourthly, I need to stand by them, being their coach and cheerleader. I need to urge them to face the difficulty and to encourage and reward them with praise for their efforts. We don't want to set an impossible goal for them to reach, but we do want them to rise to challenges which are set before them. This will develop strong qualities in them.

Fifthly, I need to be an example to my children. I need to show that the battle to give in, is just as real in my life. Children love to hear stories from our own experience, so we should share difficulties we have faced and how by God's grace, He has helped us, guided us and walked with us. We also need to show stick-to-it-iveness in our lives.

The danger of allowing our children to make all their choices, based on their whims at all times, is the same danger that you and I face. I would not mind going out for coffee with friends when life is messy and the house is in chaos; I may even think of sending them to school at times and enjoying six or more hours of quiet and peace; I would hide away in my study and write a website about homeschooling without doing "it"; I'd have more take-away meals and moan about not having the money to employ someone to iron my clothes; I wouldn't be quick to make a meal for a friend or provide hospitality for the new visitors at church. Yes, if I could make all my own choices depending on how my day is, I would be indulging my selfish tendencies and living life exactly on my own terms, avoiding all hardships. It may sound tempting - but it's not real and it isn't the way God wants us to live. He calls us to persevere.

Perseverance is a godly trait, which helps us to improve ourselves and bring benefit to others.

Considering Single Sex Education ?

2007-10-27T17:54:00.000+07:00

The current educational literature is replete with assertions of the benefits of single sex schooling. Medical doctors, psychologists and educational theorists have come to the conclusion, based on brain research, anecdotal evidence, and limited educational research, that single sex schooling has the potential to offer an optimal educational environment for both sexes. Among the proposed benefits are: increased student achievement, improved self-esteem, a reduction in discipline referrals, an increase in student attendance, an increase in the diversity of selection of courses in high school and in college, and an increase in the diversity of selection of non-traditional gender specific career choices.

Single sex education is not a new concept. The first schools in this country were single sex educational environments. Males and females were educated separately based on traditional gender specific career paths common to American society. Males were usually educated privately and/or worked as apprentices in their future careers. Females were educated at home, learning the skills necessary for life as a successful wife. Eventually, schools became coed to keep up with the changing needs of society and, it was thought, that the female presence in the classroom might aid in calming the rowdy boys.

The emergence of secondary education developed as a result of the need for specialized professional training for males (doctors, lawyers, etc.). In the United States, Harvard was established in 1636, William and Mary in1693, Yale College in 1716, and the College of New Jersey at Princeton in 1746. Virginia Military Institute, the oldest military college in the United States was established in 1839, and the Citadel, the oldest South Carolina military college was established in 1842. All of these institutions were all-male educational institutions and all highly regarded today, though they have not remained single sex environments.

Secondary education for females was unheard of until the early 1800s, but spread rapidly once the concept began. Wesleyan College in Georgia, the first college in the world chartered to grant degrees to women opened its doors in 1836. Mary Sharp College (1853) in Tennessee and Elmira Female College (1855) in New York added to the developing list of all-female institutions of high learning.

Until recently single sex education has been an international, private or parochial educational endeavor. Public school single sex education was, in effect, outlawed by the implementation of title IX in 1972. This law made it illegal for individuals to be denied participation or benefits from any institution receiving federal financial assistance. Hence, single sex schools were given the choice of closing their doors or admitting both sexes.

In October 2006, President Bush signed legislation that made single sex education not only legal, but endorsed by the United States Department of Education as a potential strategy in increasing student achievement. Since that time educational theorists, researchers and educators have been investigating the claims associated with single sex education. Research from international, private and parochial arenas, research from medical experts on gender differences and anecdotal research has provided a knowledge base for the investigation. However, research within a public sector in this country is necessary and is currently underway to substantiate the beneficial claims associated with single sex education.

Dr. Leonard Sax, author of several books on single sex schooling and the president of the National Association for Single Sex Public Education (www.singlesexeducation.org) is spearheading a drive toward the implementation of single sex schooling across the United States. Dr. Sax, along with other prominent experts on the topic of single sex education has provided a substantial research knowledge base for the understanding of single sex schooling.
The state of South Carolina is leading the nation in the implementation of single sex schooling as a viable and effective teaching strategy to increase student achievement. David Chadwell, the head of the South Carolina State Department of Education Single Sex Education implementation effort, has provided resources, professional development and school based guidance for educators and administrator involved in the implementation of single sex schooling.

My research on single sex schooling is on going as I am working on my dissertation on single sex schooling and its impact on student achievement, attendance and discipline referrals. However, my personal experience in single sex education lends support to the theory that single sex schooling can be more beneficial than coeducational schooling to some individuals. I attended a single sex high school in Georgia just prior to the implementation of Title IX. Also, I am a 5th generation graduate of Wesleyan College, the first college established in this country to grant degrees to women.

I can think of no better environment for education than one in which individuals are not distracted by or concerned with the opposite sex, where individuals are encouraged to see no boundaries to what they can accomplish, and are valued equally by peers. Consider all research available—including anecdotal research, read articles available online or in text, visit single sex classes and then decide. Don’t simply dismiss single sex education as discriminatory or old-fashioned. You won’t believe what you’re missing.

Opt For The Correct Perm Rod While Going For Perming

2007-10-26T00:26:00.000+07:00

Want to give a new style to your healthy hair? Dreaming of those fashion curls to adore a new look? Here you are. When the world is busy looking for grey hair treatment, dandruff cure and hair loss treatment, there are many of us with beautiful and luscious hair and who want to give their hair a new style. Perming facilitates giving tight curls to the hair and a style that goes with your face. If you wish to go in for a hairstyle that would look better with a hint of curl, hair perms are here to help - create the hairstyle you wish, be it big natural curls or tight spiral curls.
The key to the perming process lies in the fact that perming solution is alkaline. When scientists talk to each other about alkaline solutions and acid solutions, they need a way of measuring alkalinity and acidity. The scale they use for their measurements is called the pH scale. The pH scale ranges from pH 1 to pH 14. All you need to remember is that acids have pH numbers less than 7. Alkalis have pH numbers greater than 7. The more acid the solution, the lower is the pH number; the more alkaline the solution, the greater the pH number. Hair responds to changes in pH. If a hair is placed in an alkaline solution it swells, and the scales of the cuticle lift. In a slightly acid solution, the scales lie smoothly and the hair is soft. In a strongly acid or alkaline solution, however, the keratin protein starts to break down, which may lead to hair loss.

During perming, chemicals are used to break and reform the disulfide bonds of the hair. Thereafter, the hair is washed and wrapped on a perm rod and waving lotion is applied with a base. As the lotion is alkaline (pH about 9), the scales of the cuticle open slightly, allowing the lotion to flow under the cuticle and into the cortex. The alkaline lotion reacts with the keratin of the cortex, breaking some of the disulphide cross-links within and between the protein chains. The solution creates a chemical action that softens the inner structure of the hair so that it can stretch to take any form.

The success of the entire process depends upon the right selection of the perm rod. Spiral and concave rods should be avoided in perming as spiral wrapped hair creates a looser curl while concave rods make it impossible to wrap the hair without peaking the ends. A straight or cylindrical type rod should ideally be used for the most natural wave pattern as it can be wrapped with the hair strands of the same width from the scalp to the ends. It prevents spiraling and bunching of the hair that may distort the wave pattern.

The hair molds around the shape of the perm rod. After a specified period of time, the hair is rinsed and a neutralizer is applied. It is the neutralizing solution that reforms the disulfide bonds of the hair and sets the new curls in the final stage. Utmost care should be taken during the final stage as failure to rinse and neutralize properly can lead to many problems, including scalp irritation, dandruff and damage to the structure of the hair shaft.

Discuss the style with your hairstylist before the perm procedure. The perm hairstyle must be chosen to suit your face shape. If you have a long face, the perm must be worked to ensure volume on the side but never on the top. Some women try out spiral curls with curling irons at home. Test curls must always be carried out before going for the process completely.

How To Use A Tanning Bed

2007-10-26T00:21:00.000+07:00

Tanning salons became a huge fad in the 80's, just after the invention of the tanning bed by Fredrich Wolff in the late 1970's. These days, tanning salons are not as fashionable as in the 80's, now that the threat of melanoma (aka skin cancer) has startled the largest part of devoted tanning supporters.

Tanning has a few popular uses nowadays :

Young adults want to attract the opposite sex
Preparing for the beach
Bodybuilders tanning for competitions
Heliotherapy for Seasonal Affective Disorder (or SAD)

Regardless of your motivation, you've decided that you want to give tanning a shot. It's time for you to understand how to use a tanning bed. Bear in mind that there are two fundamental types of full body tanners to choose from, tanning booths and beds. The choice of booth versus bed will likely be set by the selection offered at tanning salons near you. Check with the manager of your chosen tanning salon which of their packages will work best for your tanning goal.
Find out from them which tanning lotion will be best for your tanning goal as well. There are just as many varieties of tanning lotions as there are complexions and tanning goals.

Once you've bought your tanning package, the cashier will assign a tanning bed and room number.

Once you're in your room, secure and lock the door, and take off your clothes. You can keep the bare essentials on if you're worried about someone walking in on you or roasting your parts. Or if you're going for an even all-over tan, you will probably need to tan nude to avoid leaving tan lines.
How to use a tanning bed :

Apply tanning lotion on all of your skin, but not your face, since it can cause acne. Open the door of the tanning booth or lift the lid on the tanning bed, depending upon which one you're using.

Now, if you're using a tanning bed, you might want to position a pillow or towel under your head to make things more comfortable. You might also want to turn on your iPod and the fan. Things will get pretty warm when this things heat up.

If your hair is long, you'll want to fasten your hair up on top of your head with a hair tie. This will make sure that your hair doesn't get in the way of the tanning bed and make sure you don't end up with unusual tan lines on your face.

Next, most importantly, wear the goggles provided by the tanning salon during the entire time that the tanning bed/tanning booth is in operation. The UVA/UVB light from tanning lamps is so intense that it can cause cataracts if you're not wearing adequate eye protection. Closing your eyes is not enough. Your eyelids are so thin that the plenty of the energy will go right through them and still hurt your eyes.

At long last, turn on the tanning unit. You might have to press a "start" button or a timer to set, depending upon how your tanning salon works. If you're just starting tanning and are fairly pale, your first few visits should be from 6 to 10 minutes. After a while you can build up to as high as 30 minutes per session.

Bed or booth, the unit turns off when your time runs out, indicating that you've been bronzed to golden beauty. Open the lid or door, remove your sunclipse, and dry off the moisture with a towel. Dress yourself and get your stuff!

Remember to take your iPod with you as you leave. Don't shower for the rest of the day; soap's properties can work against your tan if used too soon after tanning. Now that you know how to use a tanning bed, you're good to go for a healthy, radiant tanning bed tan.

Thinking About A Breast Enhancement ?

2007-10-25T23:51:00.000+07:00

Many women today have considered the possibility of enhancing the size and shape of their bust with breast enhancement surgery. If you are thinking about going under the knife for a breast augmentation make sure you are well informed.

With breast enhancement surgery being attainable in the United States for over 40 years now, tons of women are considering them as a great choice for a drastic make over. Some women decide to have plastic surgery due to a lack in their self-esteem.

Before making a final decision about any surgery you have to set a meeting with a plastic surgeon. It is also needed to become familiar with all of the different options that may be accessible to them. Size is something that is personal to each person as an individual, doctors use the cubic centimeters to refer to the size to be able to avoid confusion. The Web is a great resource for not only finding forums on which to ask questions and speak to other people who have had this operation, but also to see before and after breast augmentation pictures. By taking this time to search your sources you will feel more positive about your final choice.

Just having a consultation does not guarantee you will be capable of getting the operation. Plastic surgeons are very careful about this, you can't just go in to any plastic surgeons office and set an appointment for the operation. The surgeon has to carefully evaluate the mental, physical and emotional state of each patient, to be certain they are doing it for the right reasons.

Look into everything you can before decided to get a breast augmentation in West Palm Beach. Plastic surgery is a life altering decision to ensure it improves your life you should think it though completely. Be sure to make the time to sit and ask yourself the important questions, research before you make your final decision. With all of this research you now have you will be much better equipped to decide with a doctor what is right for you personally.

Blinc Kiss Me Mascara

2007-10-25T23:27:00.000+07:00

If like me you have been searching for the perfect mascara for years without any luck, you are forever sceptical when a new mascara becomes available that claims to be the wonder cure. Blinc Kiss Me mascara claims to be the answer to all our Mascara problems but with a a relatively high starting price tag is it worth it? Well it certainty claims to do an awful lot more than all the other mascara's in the market place, just have a look at the list of Blinc Mascara claims below.

Forms water-resistant tubes around your lashes - Is not an oil-based paint - Cannot clump, flake, run or smudge - Adds volume and length - Fewer ingredients makes it lighter on lashes - Does not penetrate skin or lashes - Lasts longer without drying out in the bottle - Stays on when sweating, crying or rubbing your eyes - Leaves no tint or residue build up on lashes - Ideal for sensitive eyes and contact lens wearers - Does not require rubbing or makeup removers - Does not come off with oily skin - Tubes slide off lashes upon removal.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating so they say! So it had a test run on my try as I have not found a Mascara to date that will keep lashes on. Blinc Kiss Me Mascara apparent success is forming "Tubes" around the lashes instead of painting them, this supposedly stops them from running, smudging, clumping, or flaking. This review has been based on a two-week usage to give it a full and proper test run.

Because the formula in Blinc Kiss Me Mascara is not oil based, the application is a little different. Do NOT let the Blinc Mascara dry between coats, build the Blinc Mascara up to your desired lash length and volume before letting it dry. Blinc Kiss Me Mascara takes minutes to dry, so try to avoid blinking for a short while or you will smudge it (the only time you will be able to smudge it though!) and Viola - You have tubed your lashes, and what's more they look fuller and have a healthy shine.

The first day in the two week trial is a Sunday in June (play day with the kids). Blinc Kiss Me Mascara does not claim to be waterproof, just water resistant, but a thought of a trial run in the swimming pool could not be missed to test it's water resistance. The result? Well its not surprising that the face was full of tubes soon after being dunked by the Husband (little git) so waterproof it is not (water resistant test later).

After changing from my swim a fresh application was applied. Avoid using an oil-based cleanser beforehand. It was a nice summers day out, about 27°C (80°F) so perfect conditions to check this formula that incorporates Sunscreen. It is also suitable for contact lens wearers and sensitive eyes, My contacts were in so I was ready to go.

The remainder of the day was spent shopping and then to the in-laws to take the kids to the park, and then home. Looking in the mirror later on (Blinc Mascara had been on for approx 9 hours) and nothing! That's right nothing happened, Blinc Kiss Me Mascara had stayed where It was applied - on the lashes, it had well and truly lasted the day and passed with flying colours. The day ended with a shower and this Mascara had stayed put, just don't rub your eyes after getting them wet and you will be fine. After the first day I was suitably impressed that it had done what it said on the tin.

Monday was a typical workday, with one exception. there was no need to apply any more Mascara at lunchtime. To remove Blinc Kiss Me Mascara in the evening all that was needed is some warm water and your fingertips. Splash your eyes with warm water and gently rub your lashes between your gingers and those water resistant tubes will just come off in your hand.

The rest of the week went by with pretty much of the same routine till Friday. A office leaving party, so naturally us girls went to doll ourselves up before heading out, the only thing that did not need a touch up was the Blinc kiss me mascara. An evening in a restaurant and a night in the clubs and it was still going strong, no touch-ups required. Needless to say it was a very early morning getting home and a little worse for ware, as you can imagine I went to bed in full war paint. Woke up in the morning and aside from having a stinking headache the Kiss Me Mascara had stayed firm - no panda eyes, shame about the rest of the make up though! Very messy. Had the normal weekend routine with the same performance from the Blinc Mascara as the last weekend, the rest of the week was nothing out of the ordinary either, till Thursday. Was feeling a little under the weather Wednesday night and woke up to a full-blown cold Thursday morning, soldiering on though the workday though had a surprising result! The Blinc Kiss Me Mascara had smudged! Thinking back on it I may of got a little harsh and frequent with rubbing my eyes, the result was smudging, nothing major but it was in need of a touch up.

My final thoughts on the Blinc Kiss Me Mascara is it ticks all the right boxes, it may not be waterproof but who need waterproof when this water resistant beats them all hands down on a day to day basis. Blinc Kiss Me Mascara has proved that it is great lasting mascara that has the ability of lasting all day and night. The only limitation as far as I can see is that it is not waterproof, but in reality what mascara is truly waterproof? And why do you need a waterproof mascara when a water resistant mascara will do much more, while still being easy and quick to remove. This Blinc Kiss Me Mascara is a must for any make up bag.

How to Completely Makeover Your Image in 5 Easy Steps

2007-10-25T23:23:00.000+07:00

If you're like me, you sometimes get tired of looking at the same old face in the mirror. Not that your face is ugly or unappealing, it's just perhaps you want a change of facial scenery. And this is easily done without knives and needles. Matter of fact, you probably have all the ingredients you need to completely change the way you look lounging around your bathroom.

Step 1 : Re-arch your eyebrows

Your eyebrows are like the doorway to your face. This doorway can be sharply angled, or smoothly arched like Roman bridges. To change the entrance of your face, arch your eyebrows the opposite way your normally would. For example, if your have married the Lucile Ball curved brow look, go with a more square look as your would find with Meredith Vieira.
Next, to accentuate the change in the way your eyebrows look, adjust their thickness. If you typically keep your eyebrows racer thin, pencil in them in a little thicker. Alternately, if you keep an eyebrow puff going, trim back the brow a little.

Step 2 : Re-do your hair

The look of your hair comprises at least 20% of your silhouette. But to make a real change in how your hair looks, your have to do something completely out of character for yourself. Let's say you keep your hair straight as a pool stick normally. To completely transform your look, wash your hair with curl enhancing shampoo and set your hair in curlers to add obscene body to your coif.
Then again, if you're a regular Sherly Temple, bring some governance to your hair with a smoothing shampoo, and a flat hair iron.

Step 3 : Re-package your clothes

Like your hair, clothes command a great deal of attention, plus they comprise a fair 70% of your total image. If you really want to throw the world a monkey wrench in terms of who you are, wear the complete opposite of your normal attire. For example, if you are business suit type, wear Hawaiian beach attire. It your normally wear a jogging suite and flip flops, slip on some close fitting, but complimentary clothes coupled with sleek high heels, or flats. Whatever you do, choose clothes that are out of your comfort zone.

Step 4 : Re-discover your scent

The next way to alter your image will not appear obvious to everyone else who sees you, but it will to you. Keep this connection in mind: If you smell differently, you feel differently, you act differently and then you will look differently. The only reason people put on cologne or perfume is so that they can "feel" different or perhaps even "better".
So, try on a different fragrance and simultaneously try on a different feeling and new look. For instance, if you're in you late forties now, try on a fragrance that you used to wear as a teenager. Then let yourself experience the feelings that the old scent brings to mind. Or, if your don't even use a fragrance, go to a department store and sniff around until your find a fragrance that makes you feel different in a positive way and buy it, then use it.

Step 5 : Bring it all together

Now once you've done all of the four steps listed above, grace the new person looking back at you in the mirror. And now, prepare yourself for the most important final step. While looking to yourself straight in the eye, whisper, "I am a new and improved person, with a new and improved image." Congratulations on your new look.

New Look ! No-Surgery Apply Makeup Tips

2007-10-25T22:56:00.001+07:00

Want a new look? Everybody wants a new look...but who wants the PAIN and EXPENSE of plastic surgery? You can get the same results painlessly and instantly with a few of these Hollywood Makeup artist secrets!

Get A Smaller Nose : Apply taupe shadow on the sides of nose and under the bridge, then blend well to "shrink" a wide nose.

Get A Firmer Jawline And Neck : Brush taupe eye shadow along jawline and blend well to make fleshiness recede.

Erase Crow's-Feet : Dip a brush in some shimmering beige shadow and "paint" over crow's-feet. It "blurs" lines making them virtually disappear.

Get Bigger Breast : Dab highlighter on breasts, then sweep bronzer into the "v" and blend well. Shimmer brings the eye upward, creating a perky look, while the bronzer adds depth and a cup size.

Get Fuller Lips : Before applying lip gloss, coat lips with a waxy balm like Carmex. It gives them a layer of "padding" that makes them look fuller.

Manicure Stations And All About Them

2007-10-25T22:51:00.000+07:00

If and when you decide to open a nail salon?

A manicure station will probably be one of your most important tools you will need. The dictation of your entire theme is going to be your station. If you would like to have an up-market salon? Then it will be a top of the line manicure station that you will need to purchase, or! if you prefer the elegant feel, then maybe you would like to use antique furniture for your manicure station.

Also when ordering chairs, (which are very important for the comfort of your clients, and the height of your station) you will need to take extra care and attention when ordering them, you may choose leather or have them especially made, they could be high backed and elegant or antique, or you could choose theme but whatever you do choose the comfort is the most important of all.

But if you would prefer a salon that is a bit more basic for the mind of the client that is cost conscientious, then you may like to keep your nail station a bit more basic, as the tables basic appearance will affectively show that your prices are going to represent the absence of frills, and the basic lower cost tables will also allow you to save money, and savings could be pass on to your clients. Though I would highly recommend a lower cost table I would not recommend scrimping on the chairs.

Whatever decision that you decide to make on you station, there are some different, basic things that they will have in common, such as, the stations should be comfortable, also with comfortable seating, not only for the manicurist but also the client. A happy employee, will be a comfortable employee, as she will be sitting in that chair and station for many hours a day.
A comfortable employee is a happy employee. After all, she will be spending a lot of time at that manicure station, and if she is going to keep the clients coming back, she will need to be happy.
You will need also to keep supplies at your manicure station. At each station there should be a full set of manicure tools, this should include everything from emery boards to cuticle creams and lotions, to the actual polishes. The station should also have adequate storage for all of these necessary tools. There should also be enough drawers and shelves. Each station will need a counter top space for manicuring. Adequate lighting is also very important at each manicure station.

There should be a bowl for soaking the hands of the client; you may also have a wrist rest for the client. You can have a shared sink for all stations, or even the one in the restroom will do just fine. It is not necessary to have a separate sink for each manicure station. If you plan to have many stations in a nail only salon or just one manicure station in an all ready existing salon, space is very important and should be considered. The stations should have plenty of space between them and other beauty shop paraphernalia. Nothing is more uncomfortable or unattractive than a cramped space.

Cutting Your Own Hair (With Your Eyes Closed)

2007-10-25T22:50:00.000+07:00

There's a little history to this one.
For years I've cut both of my daughter's hair.
Then, a few years back we watched this video entitled Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken. In this story the young lady, the heroine of the movie, abruptly cuts her own hair and then runs away to join the circus.
Fast forward a few years and my eldest daughter comes over and announces she has cut her own hair.
It didn't look so bad!
Around the same time I had taken to shaving in the shower with a steam free mirror.
And then one day I went to get a haircut and the barber was closed, and I really wanted a haircut.
Then it hit me. I'd cut my own hair. I stood before the mirror and started clipping, but I couldn't see the back very well.
The steam free mirror didn't work very well so I had taken to shaving with my eyes closed in the shower and it worked quite well as I could feel the stubble I had missed with my fingers
Then it occurred to me.
Why not cut my hair in the shower with my eyes closed.
I laughed to myself, but I thought, what the heck, I'll give it a try.
In the hallway in our small apartment hangs a sign which states Try Another Way.
So into the shower I went.
I wet my hair, shook it, and then let my fingers seek out the longer strands of hair, and clipped them off.
My fingers really knew what they were doing. They seemed to instinctively know what to do and where to go by feel. I worked slowly and carefully, and it only took about 5 or 10 minutes.
But, I thought, this is going to be a mess when I get out.
But it wasn't.
It was pretty good.
I shaved the back of my neck and brushed my hair and let it dry.
By the time it dried and I brushed it again, it not only looked pretty good, but darn good.
I honestly couldn't believe how well it turned out.
There were a couple of long strands that I clipped with the aide of the mirror, and as the days went on I'd see a stray strand here or there and trim it, but not much really.
Then the true test came.
My daughters' were coming over. I'd ask them, without telling them I'd done it myself, how it looked.
But, before I could ask they said, "Nice haircut dad. You didn't get it cut as short as you usually do. It looks nice."
I had passed the test.
Do I always cut my own hair? No, but it's nice to know that I can do it in a pinch.

Reduce Cellulite Naturally (10 Tips To Help You Get Rid Of Stubborn Cellulite)

2007-10-25T22:46:00.000+07:00

Cellulite is dimpled appearance of the skin that most women have on their buttocks, back of the legs, thighs and arms. The cellulite is very hard to treat. When fatty cells starts accumulating underneath the skin, orange peel skin will appear in those body region. This occurs mostly because of unhealthy diets, poor circulation, hormonal changes and lack of exercise.

Cellulite can start developing in young ages, regardless of their race or weight. People who do not have weight problem, exercise on a regular basis, eat healthy food, even like healthy top athletes can still have cellulite. But cellulite affects men less than women because men have thicker dermis and epidermis tissue layers in the buttocks and thighs. Furthermore, variations in hormones between men and women explain this skin structure deviation. What can you do about your cellulite?

Here are 10 tips in minimizing your stubborn cellulite :

1. Eating in a healthy manner will maintain your healthy weight. Taking less calories or low fat diet is a good start.

2. Drink a lot of water daily as the skin reflects the internal state of health and nutrition.

3. Massage can help you to relax and remove the build up of fat deposition. Get regular massage and you will begin to see a difference.

4. Some types of cardiovascular exercise such as swimming, jogging and walking can help you burn excessive calories that make you fat. This will also improve your blood circulation.

5. Many spas offer different types of treatments for the affected body region. This will help to break down the fatty deposits and increase circulation. 6. Remove dead skin by using a skin brush will promote the formation of new healthy skin.

7. Aromatherapy Oil Bend may help you to eliminate cellulite by massaging the affected areas of you body after bath or exercise.

8. Take nutrients and vitamins regularly as this may help you to increase the growth of connective tissues which will prevent fat to appear on your skin.

9. Cellulite cream allows you reduce in those problem zones. You can rid yourself those unwanted bumps and lumps.

10. You can try herbal treatments to enhance the micro circulation in the dermis zone.
Natural ways are the best way to get rid of cellulite deposits from your body. Choose healthy lifestyle will prevent the cellulite from recurring in the body. Avoid taking processed and refined food that contain sugar, excess fat and salt. Add extra vegetables, fruits, beans and whole grain in your food intake. Perhaps this is the best solution to your cellulite problem.

Foot Care

2007-10-25T22:41:00.000+07:00

Feet are the lowest part of body. They have hard functions such as carry the body weight and move our bodies to everywhere we want. Many problems may occur with foot such as corns, callousness, blister, heel pain, tinea, warts, odor or cracked heel. This article will help you to know how to take care yours feet and how to relief some feet problems.

Weekly care for feet

1. Soak your feet in warm water about 10-15 minutes at least once a week. It is helpful for blood circulation of feet, feet relaxation and decrease tenderness after long walking or running.

2. Cut the nails to suitable length, should be not too short because you may have a problem of ingrow toe.

3. For protection callousness (dead cell under the foot), you have to fine your feet especially, heel gently once a week.

4. Scrub your feet with foot products about 10-15 minutes. And mask or massage around with foot moisturizer.

5. Spray your feet with deo foot spray for protection the bad odour.
Foot odour

At your foot, there are about 250,000 of sweat glands. Foot odour occurs from bacteria and sweat glands reaction. Especially, if you wear moist shoes or stuffy shoes that can not open to the air and evaporate the sweat. To avoid this problem you have to change your shoes for everyday, clean and expose to the sun. They can protect bacterial growth. If you have to wear the socks, they should be made from the nice materials that easy to ventilate the air. Foot powder or absorbent may be helpful for dry yours feet and absorb moisture. Foot spray is need for everyday if you still have the problem.

Foot Tinea

Foot tinea is a kind of fungus infection. Primary causes are moisture feet and walking with no shoe at the public places such as swimming pool. The signs and symptoms are heavy itchy around the foot and may have skin lesion together. To protect from Foot Tinea, you have to dry the foot after shower, change the socks or stocking everyday and clean the foot. To cure foot tinea, you have to consult the pharmacist or doctor. Normally, antifungal tablets and antifungal cream are the first choice for treatment guideline. But it takes long time for a treatment course of foot tinea. Moreover, you can use powder or absorbent together with course for fast healing and protection the recurrent.

Cracked Heels

Cracked heel causes from heavy body weight or hard walking and running for long time. It makes the owner of feet painful, difficult to movement and unpleasant looking. To heel the cracked is not difficult; apply the cracked heel cream on the affect area 2-3 times a day until it gets better. Normally, not more than 7 days if you used the quality cream. Lactic acid, Salicylic acid and urea are the active ingredients of cracked heel cream. Triclosan should be added in the cream for inhibit the bacterial infection.

How to buy a new pair of shoes

The best time for buying a pair of shoes is in the afternoon. Our feet will be longer than in the morning about 5-10 millimeters. The shoes should be suit to the feet size and nice feeling after walking. You have to should the new pair of shoes with yourself because the same size in different brand may be not equivalent and the feeling after wearing is not same in each pair of shoes.

The Implements of a Manicure

2007-10-25T21:23:00.000+07:00

The tools that are needed to give a manicure can be many. Whether being a manicurist, or doing a manicure at home, the needs and supplies can also be as endless as you want them to be. If you are thinking of becoming an actual manicurist, the very first thing that you will need to do is training, as a license is required to get started with this skill, (Thankfully) and to know that the manicurist who is using some sharp and pointed tools on your hands and feet are actually certified, and has gained her license to do so.

It has never ceased to amaze me, to how many people actually get pedicures and manicures on a regular basis. This I must admit can be a very welcoming treat, but unfortunately for me, it hardly ever makes it to my diary.

When it did, as a treat from a friend for my birthday in January, what I did notice was the actual amount of supplies that were needed to complete these tasks, there were two very nice leather pedicure stations each with its own little spa tub at the bottom of each, this was were clients feet could be soaked, next to these tubs were foot stools for the manicurist to sit, then next to this was a four draw wicker basket that had everything from blades to creams to polishes, other tools used were toe and finger nail clippers, boards of different thickness and roughness, there were a large selection of shapers, buffers and scrubbers, she must of used all of them. A relaxing foot and leg massage was given after the shaping and cleaning and applying a soothing moisturising cream which felt great, that great that I could've stayed there for another hour easily.

Now my soothed feet were ready for their polish to be applied, the manicurist put what she called toe separators between my toes while she painted them and when she had finished she gave me little flip flops to wear home, these were so the polish would dry without getting smudged by wearing my own shoes. Feet and toes completed, now it was time for my manicure, I was shown to another station solely for manicures.

This station was even more equipped than the pedicure station, there was a dryer that you put your feet under and it also helped in the drying process of the polish so it didn't smudge' This process was similar to the previous, the soaking of the cuticles for easy trimming, the filing, shaping, buffing and polishing, and then of course the little dryer to finish and complete my birthday treat.

The Anatomy of Hair

2007-10-25T21:16:00.000+07:00

There is a lot more to the structure and function of hair than meets the eye. Hair helps transmit sensory information and is a huge part of our general appearance. There is hair on all the major visible surfaces of the body, and hair is the only body structure that is completely renewable without scarring.

The Origin of Hair

A developing fetus has all of its hair follicles formed by the 22nd week of development. At that time, there are roughly 5 million hair follicles; one million of those are on the head and 100,000 are on the scalp. This is the largest number of hair follicles you will ever have as follicles are never added during our lifetime. As the size of they body increases as we get older, the density of the hair follicles on the skin decreases.

The Structure of Hair

Hair has two separate structures: the follicle in the skin and the shaft.
The follicle is a stocking-like structure that contains several layers. At the base of the follicle is a projection called a papilla that contains capillaries that feed the cells. The living part of the hair is the bottom part of the papilla called the bulb. This is the only part fed by the capillaries. The cells in the bulb divide every 23-72 hours, faster than any other cells in the human body.
The follicle is surrounded by two sheaths, an inner and outer sheath, that protect and mold the growing hair shaft. The inner sheath follows the hair shaft and ends below the opening of a sebaceous gland (oil gland). The outer sheath continues all the way up the gland. A muscle called an erector pili muscles attaches below the gland to a fibrous layer around the outer sheath. When this muscle contracts, it causes the hair to stand up.
The sebaceous gland is important because it produces sebum, which acts as a natural conditioner for the hair. Sebum production decreases in women as they age; it decreases in men, also, but not quite as much.
The hair shaft is made up of dead, hard protein called keratin in three layers. The inner layer is called the medulla. The next layer is the cortex, and the third (and outer) layer is the cuticle. Most hair conditioning products attempt to affect the cuticle. Also, there are pigment cells that are distributed throughout the cortex and medulla giving the hair its color.

Hair Growth

Hair on the scalp grows approximately a half inch per month. Unlike other mammals, hair growth and loss in humans is random and not seasonal or cyclical. At any given time, a random number of hairs will be in various stages of growth and shedding. The three stages of growth are catagen, telogen and anagen.
The catagen phase is a transitional stage and 3% of all hair is in this phase at any given time. This phase lasts for 2-3 weeks, and during this time, hair growth stops and the outer root sheath shrinks and attaches to the root of the hair. This is the formation of what is known as club hair.
The telogen phase is the resting phase and accounts for 10-15% of all hairs. Telogen lasts about 100 days for hair on the scalp and much longer for hairs on the eyebrow, eyelash, arm and leg. During the telogen phase, the hair follicle is completely at rest and the club hair is completely formed. Pulling out a hair in this phase will reveal a solid, hard, dry white material at the root. Typically, 25-100 telogen phase hairs are shed each day.
The anagen phase is the active phase of the hair, and in this phase, the cells in the root of the hair are dividing rapidly. A new hair is formed and pushes the club hair up the follicle and eventually out. Some people have difficulty growing their hair beyond a certain length because they have a short active phase of growth.

Hair Shape

The amount of natural curl hair has is determined by its cross-sectional shape. Hair that is most similar to a circle is straight, and hair that is flattened and elliptical is curly or kinky. The cross-sectional shape also determines the amount of shine that hair has. Straighter hair is typically shinier because sebum from the sebaceous gland can travel down the hair more easily. The curlier the hair, the more difficulty the sebum has traveling down the hair; curlier hair may seem drier and duller than straight hair.

Say Goodbye To Cellulite With Body Wraps And Kits

2007-10-25T20:32:00.000+07:00

Cellulite is a big problem for most of the women in the world; actually the majority of people in the world suffer from those horrible dimples that resemble "cottage cheese" on thighs, hips and buttocks. Cellulite is a multi-billion dollar industry. Everything from bathing suit cover-ups to surgeries, exercise programs and homemade remedies are available for a price. These don't include the lotions, potions, detoxifying tonics, and creams that are used on a daily basis by millions. Companies producing these treatments spend untold amounts of money trying to find an answer to the cosmetic problems associated with cellulite. All these companies advertise that they have the cure for cellulite.

Cellulite Body Wraps

Cellulite body wraps and kits are readily available as another cure for cellulite. These products can be enjoyed in the privacy of your home. With just one wrap they can eliminate inches and cottage cheese dimples from your body. Although the cure is only temporary sometimes for the big occasion, it is all we need to reduce inches and be cottage cheese free. The body wraps and kits are cost effective and give great results for a short time. The companies that produce or distribute the kits claim that the wraps melt the "water logged fatty tissues" associated with cellulite.

Dead Sea Mud

If you don't want to spend a lot of money but still want to feel good about your body, then you could consider a Dead Sea Mud cellulite body wrap and kit. A typical kit contains the following:

-4 pounds of sea mud

-Two 200 foot roles of body plastic wrap.

-An application brush

-Two sets of application gloves

-One sponge for skin brushing

-One progress chart. Too know how well the application worked

-One cellulite diet program

-Complete instructions so that you can perform the wrap in the privacy of your own home.

This particular kit is good for 40 applications and representative of most cellulite body wraps and kits.

The Dead Sea Mud can be traced back to over 3 million years ago from the Dead Sea. Numerous minerals including magnesium, sodium, potassium, bromides and sulfates, amongst many more are all part of the Dead Sea. They are much more prevalent in the Dead Sea than any body of water in the world, including the oceans. As far back as the Roman Empire, people have raved about the healing, rejuvenating and beautifying powers of the ancient mud. The Roman Elite called it "Black Gold" because of its rejuvenating powers. Tourists from around the world enjoy the special powers of the Dead Sea. Check it out next time you are in a beauty spa.
Read how many products have been enriched with Dead Sea Mud. Take notice of the number of times the beauticians refer to it. The mud is free from chemical preservatives. The "thermal" sensation on the skin is an effect of the natural mineral content. A Dead Sea Mud body wrap will tone and firm the skin after only two applications. It draws out impurities. It also minimizes the appearance of pores on your skin, leaving you smoother and softer with a more even skin tone.

Mineral MakeUp (Tips on Applying Mineral MakeUp For Best Appearance)

2007-10-25T20:30:00.000+07:00

By now you mush have seen the infomercials and seen the mineral make up ads in all the beauty magazines. Chances are you have tried mineral make up whether it's the powder foundation, eye shadow or blush. Here are some specific tips on the optimal ways to apply mineral make up to your face to maximize the effect.

First a bit of history of mineral makeup and what makes it different from other make up. Unlike regular foundations which rely on chemicals such as sodium laurel sulfate and other bases, mineral make up is usually composed of pure minerals. Because of this it has less chance of irritating sensitive skin and clogging pores and it also creates a natural look as if you are not wearing make up at all. The downside to mineral makeup is that it can be a bit messy in the bathroom as the powder is somewhat hard to manage.

Tip #1 : Pay attention to the weather and the season when applying your mineral make up. In summer time it's best to use less make up as skin tends to get more oily and even mineral makeup can sometimes clog the pores. In summer months go with lighter colors to reflect the weather. During winter it's ok to use deeper, richer colors so that your skin will have a certain "warmth" to it.

Tip #2 : Use a makeup brush that you are comfortable with for the type of mineral make up you are applying. For example for mineral foundation a kabuki brush, which is a shorter and wider brush is ideal because it prevents the powder from going everywhere. If you are applying liquid mineral foundation it's best to use the tips of your fingers instead of a brush. For eye shadows you need a fluff brush which is a thinner and longer brush that will focus the shadow on the areas you need.

Tip #3 : If you have oily skin avoid the liquid mineral foundations and go for the powder. For oily skin you will want to make sure the makeup does not contain the ingredient "mica" which can make oily skin look even more shiny. For dry skin a liquid mineral foundation is preferable since it is a bit richer and provides better coverage than just mineral powder foundation. If you have sensitive skin be sure to talk to a dermatologist about what make up is right for you, but generally the mineral powder makeup is the way to go.

Tip #4 : You can also mix mineral make up with your daily moisturizing cream to create a foundation with some color in it. There are tinted moisturizers on the market already, but this way you are in control of exactly how much color you add to your foundation.
It's important to know how to wear mineral make up for your skin type and based on the weather to make the most of your appearance.

Is Your Hair Suffering From Too Much Summer Sunshine? Proper Hair Treatment is Essential

2007-10-25T20:07:00.000+07:00

If your hair is bleached or highlighted your hair, or you lazed for hours in the pool, fall is the perfect time of the year to nurse your tresses back to health. Start now and your hair will be shiny and healthy just in time for those holiday parties!

The health of your hair depends mainly on how you treat it and the products you use. Ask your hairdresser about your hair type. Whether it is dry, oily or normal, choose the right shampoo for your hair. Avoid the common mistake of using shampoos and conditioners that are too harsh or too nourishing for your hair type. For instance, if your hair is oily, make sure your shampoo is designed for oily hair. If you have dry hair, look for a more hydrating and nourishing formula to give it the extra moisture it craves.

Apply shampoo like the Pureology shampoo from Drugstore.com on damp hair with light massaging motions. Applying shampoo twice should be enough to cleanse and nourish your hair; otherwise you run the risk of drying your hair out. If the formula is too harsh it can strip your hair of its essential oils. Always make sure you rinse out the shampoo thoroughly.

Hair Care Tips:

• Apply a hair mask, or hot oil like Alberto VO5 Hot Oil Hair Treatment from Drugstore.com for a longer time than your normal conditioner to nourish and condition your hair once or twice a week. It's essential for every hair type, especially for those with colored or chemically treated hair. Leave the mask on for at least 10-15 minutes.

• Avoid 2 in 1 products which don't have enough nourishment.

• Don't use too many nourishing or styling products - creams, gels, foams, mousses, sprays because they can lead to dandruff and itchy scalp.

• Avoid using products containing silicone if you hair is oily or too thin. These types of products can weight your hair down and take the luster out of your locks.

• Silicon based products are appropriate for dry and chemically treated hair. Try Pureology Nanoworks Condition Revitalisant from Drugstore.com - where you get 17% BondRewards!
Where do you buy your hair products? Consider ordering them online at Drugstore.com where you get 17%, free-shipping on all purchases over $50, avoid the local drugstore and get everything you need once a month. Save money on gas, save money on the best products, choose from multiple salon products (large inventory) and get Savings Bonds when you buy your every-day necessities.

Hair Regrowth (Separating The Fact From The Fiction)

2007-10-25T17:33:00.001+07:00

Hair loss is a problem that most people have to cope with at one point in their lives or another. For some it only manifests late in life, while others seem to have it crop up inconveniently early on. Unfortunately, the number of cases of early to mid life hair loss is steadily increasing these days, and people have begun to turn in desperation to various hair regrowth solutions to try and stave off a problem that they see as belonging only to "older folks". Not all of these solutions actually work however, so you should be careful which treatment method you look into.
The most common treatment method that most people in America are trying these days is to use scalp medication. This commonly takes two forms, either ingested medication or hair-growth shampoo solutions. In the case of ingested medication, hair recovery is often a hit and miss success, with about half of the users seeing mild regrowth or at least a cessation of hair loss. Since genetics and lifestyle both play a large part in hair loss, however, it doesn't work for everyone.
Hair growth shampoo solutions likewise vary in effectiveness. For the most part, however, hair treatment shampoos actually don't promote the regrowth of hair over bald spots, but instead increase the hair growth rate of the remaining hair strands. Shampoos are therefore more effective for mild cases of hair loss, whereas people with larger bald spots would be better off seeking oral medications. On a rather bizarre related note, some people actually discovered that some forms of herbal horse-hair shampoos used by professional horse breeders worked on humans too, and actually promoted hair regrowth over balding areas.
If medication doesn't work, the only other form of hair regrowth commonly used and accepted these days is to go for scalp surgery. The most widely accepted and proven type of hair surgery is transplanting. This basically involves taking hair from one patch of the scalp then grafting them into the bald patches. This technique used to make people think that they would look "artificial". However, modern hair grafting and transplanting techniques have evolved to a point where transplanted hair looks perfectly normal except on extremely close inspection. Some doctors also opt to use synthetic hair in case the patient doesn't have enough remaining hair for a good transplant. These synthetic strands still look enough like the genuine thing to be visually acceptable, though their texture feels tougher than real hair.
The second surgery method is newer and more radical, and is still in it's experimental stages. It involves actually transplanting entire patches of scalp to bald spots. This method is theoretically a better long run solution because the transplanted scalp patch actually allows natural hair growth on the bald spot. However, since the techniques have yet to be refined you might not want to go for this method yet.
Lastly, one effective treatment method often overlooked by most people is lifestyle alteration therapy. This is ONLY effective in cases where hair loss is caused by non-genetic factors like stress, bad diet, and constant exposure to harmful chemicals. By going through a change in lifestyle to remove the things which triggered hair loss in the first place, this actually not only stops hair loss but can even cause the bald patches to grow back naturally. However, IF the cause is genetic (aka your dad went bald early too) then this method will not work for you.