Time is just racing. The world is darting towards the future each day on a fast pace leaving us with very less time to enjoy quality moments with the family. Responsibilities and commitments have glued us to such an extent that we wait for the weekends to spend time with our family who resides in the same house.

It is the kids who get in that little bit of charm and add in a chirpy atmosphere to any mundane life of an adult. The naughtiness, their innocence and their cute gibberish accent brighten up the whole environment making our life complete and content. Gone are those days when children were feeling safe and secure with their grandmas and grandpas who were a part of the usual joint family setup. The houses used to be small with uncles and aunts around to take care of our needs when our parents were away. There used to be frequent family visitors who saw the kids grow up each day. Bringing up a child was not a private affair. The child grew up by itself mimicking and following the adults at home.

Lifestyle changes and changes in life

But as the times changed, changes have also affected the family structure. The grown-up children are not with their parents anymore, the families have split due to many reasons. Either settling outside for career compulsions or craving for personal space. The houses once small with more people have changed into bigger bungalows with 3 or 4 people in it. At such times children succumb to loneliness as nowadays not all mothers are housewives accompanying their kids at home. Women stand tall as an independent strong pillar of support system who equally manages the house with their spouses in all aspects – emotionally and financially. These are the times when the working couple has to literally “plan” for having a baby as having a child comes in with lots of responsibilities. Getting married takes away their singleton bliss letting them be answerable for each other. To complicate further, having a child is like an add-on responsibility of being answerable to each other and themselves about the credibility of being able to take care of their own flesh and blood in a civilized and sensible manner. This is where the “Day Care” comes into the picture.

Daycare is a place where children will be supervised and taken care of every day for a fixed time frame in a day. This is due to the absence of their parents who would be at their workplaces. Daycares are potentially considered as one of the safer and better options. The children are not just safe but also learn a lot many things by interacting with other children at the daycare. In this era where most of the parents consider a single child as their preference, daycares prove to be a silver lining where children get to mingle with many other kids of their age to loosen the burden of being a lonely child. Daycares also ensure a good disciplined, structured life for a child who learns many things inspite of their family being away from them who mostly influence the child’s behaviour.

Choosing a daycare is definitely a huge task. Not all good daycares could be considered the best and not that any daycare could be rejected based on one’s personal preference. There are various elements to be considered when choosing the right kind of daycare which matches the parents’ criteria and also provides a comfortable, homely environment for their little angels. Here are the few characteristics to be considered in a daycare that will, for sure get the best out of your tiny toddlers:

1. Committed responsible adults: The ages of children at daycare ranges from as young as 6 months old to 10 years old children. The commitment given to dedicate time, energy and care to such a young bunch is not an easy task. This requires only well trained, highly skilled and reliable sane adults who consider this as their humble duty and not as a job for the money they will be getting paid for. Reliability is the prime element to be considered as this is the prime location where the preliminary stage of early learning happens.
2. Security and safety: When you are checking for the location, best suited is the one which has been baby proofed. The digital era makes us think further by demanding accessibility to CCTV cameras which should be put at all places of the daycare. A vigilant security system that does not allow any suspicious people or strangers inside is also equally important.
3. Interaction with children: Check for the caretakers on how they interact with the child. Do they sit down with them to talk or play with them in a comfortable manner? How do they feed them and how well can they train them? All these things have to be observed while visiting prospective daycare.
4. Hygiene and sanitized: Children are so sensitive that they yield to many infections and diseases that could be transmitted easily through the air. Poor hygiene is also one of the main reasons. Make sure that the toys, chairs and the splash pools are cleaned on a timely basis. A clean, healthy and tidy dining area will help the kids to learn eating habits with the lesser worry of getting a stomach infection.
5. Check out for references: Reliable sources are one of the strongest kinds of media which help us more than our personal research. Going by the gut still remains as a personal choice but going by experience is a safer bet. Talk to fellow parents nearby your area; know more about some nearby places. Suggestions by new parents always come handy than Google Reviews!
6. Welcome change with open arms: Trends do change and so does the practices. They are a number of evolutions happening the way daycares are shaping up themselves. Take a deep breath and accept the change. Never be judgemental. Don’t be a nagging parent who is ready for an argument or always sees differences in the day care’s discipline. Look at your child; see whether he/she is comfortable. If yes, then there is very less of what you should be worrying about. Kid happy, you happy.

Technology tips for preschool parents

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There are times when we often think that ‘How I wish my child was not addicted to my phone’ or ‘How I wish my child would spend more time playing those board games like how we did.’. Children today are extremely inclined towards the electronic gadgets which are undoubtedly more attractive and colorful from either their toys or books. The vibrant multimedia in the games gives them a visual pleasure that takes their precious hours and gives them back strenuous eyes. No matter how much ever we try to keep them away from the phones, TV or the smart tabs, the more they are tempted to swipe those screen with their tiny fingers. Researchers have proved that mere 2 minutes of talking or activity with phone can cause severe damage to a child’s brain causing irreparable damage like tumors, disturbed brain activity and lack of average concentration during higher learning. The gadgets act like slow poison on the tender minds which restrain the production of Melatonin, the hormone that controls sleep/wake cycle or Circadian rhythm. World Health Organisation considers mobile phones as “Possible Human Carcinogen” which causes hazardous effects on health like brain tumor, Parkinson’s disease, heart and Alzheimer’s disease and even stroke.

When we parents wish to give our child just the best of the best, avoiding electronic gadgets could be seriously considered as a better option. But it all starts when we take help of our smart phones to feed the kids when they are babies, give them our phones to play games to shoo away their boredom and when we have some work to be completed and we consider the phone as a safe and better option for their pastime. The blame is definitely on the parents who unknowingly push their children into this dreadful pool of diversion.

Technology doesn’t always have bad effects. As the old folklore goes that “Too much Good can result in being bad” – anything or any practice must be well administered as to not exceeding its suggested limits. Phones and Tabs are one of the most cutting edge inventions of the century. These have eased many such difficulties which were beyond doable before. It is because of these smart gadgets, that we are leading a life of ease and amaze. So it is upto us to utilize these wonderful creations in a recommended limits to enjoy a life where science goes hand in hand with good health.

Here are some of the tips for all those parents of preschoolers to put these digital devices in to best use with their toddlers:

Search for alternatives:

Instead of gifting them with an E-Book reader, gift them your time to read out their favourite bedtime story. Take help of your parents i.e. the child’s grandparents to animate a fable or an old poem in an attractive way rather than always asking your child to let you finish your work. This method is much encouraging to the children to start becoming a book lover. Reading a hard copy of a book is much more satisfying than swiping away screens.

Attractive Activities:

Introduce your child to some really attractive children’s activity like building blocks, little mechanic kit or even a baking/kitchen set. These imaginary games will increase their creativity and helps in retention of knowledge in the long run. Fantasy games will gift your children with by-products of mental stress and digital addiction. But playing with skill toys with their friends teaches them the aspects of sharing, giving and understanding. The better interaction and a low key on being an introvert come as a bonus with these practices.

Make Rules:

It would be unfair to ask your child not to touch her tab at all when she sees all her friends talking about the latest games or some fun applications which are a buzz. The child may feel bit outdated when compared to the peers who wear a cap of Digital Swag and who are well informed about the latest digital trends. This is the time when you can ask your little one to make him/her understand the bad effects of these on their health. How can this be done? By making simple rules like ‘No using phone for more than 15 minutes’ or asking them to run in the ground for double the time they spend on tabs/phones. This will make them understand from a tender age and will definitely appreciate your concern one day.

Putting Technology For Better Use:

Tabs/phones are not bad. Just that the duration of which has to be monitored as everything good in this world will have its own set of bad attached to it. Spend time with your child and help them understand all those better things for which a phone or a tab could be used. Like learning phonetic syllables through videos, talking to the grandparents who stay away with life like video calling, listening to songs and rhymes which are fun to learn etc. It all depends on how we serve the platter.

Watch Yourself:

Asking your son to stop playing Temple Run when you are continuously binge playing Candy Crush? How unfair! Kids, especially the preschoolers follow and imitate the elders at home. It is extremely wrong to scold your child when you yourself succumb to the fun and charm of the gadgets. It is always advisable to follow what you preach when it comes to bringing up children. You reap what you sow, you see what you show. Be an idol for your child who would look up to you as an example. Dictating the child something which you never follow will confuse the children and later leads to the clash of views. Spend quality time with your children. Give them wings of faith and creativity to fly high in their imaginative world.

Constant spending time with your little wonders will also help you push out that urge in them to spend time with their virtual mates. The more you spend time the less attention they crave from you. Indulge your kids in some other activities and keep them busy the whole day. Once they are back from their school take them out and enroll them in some fun yet healthy activities like dance, swimming or chess classes which will keep them occupied and busy to even think about touching your phone lying next to them.

Studies say that kids from age 2 to 6 are so high on their grasping ability, that the traits, knowledge and the skill they learn during this span will remain with them till a lifetime or hold a major chunk of responsibility in shaping up the person who they would once they are grown-ups. Early learning should include some positive elements like better language abilities, effective logical thinking and improving motor skills. These will happen only by a proper parenting and a valuable adult supervision which includes less electronic inclination.

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