The Right Amount Of Computer Time

In a country that settles each night in front of the television, it just seems strange that more and more people are finding the allure of the computer screen sometimes more important. There is no doubt that children do as their parents do. They enjoy exploring the vast world of the Internet. They are excited to get that new computer game. But, how much time in front of the computer screen is the right amount of time?

There is no doubt going to be a number of people that come out and say that children are spending far too much time in front of the computer. They may end up telling us that their eyes will go back or something. Regardless of what they will say, we know now that it is important to limit the amount of time children use the computer. We know this because we know that it just makes sense that children who play on the computer too much loose the physical aspects of life along with the elements of pretend play that actually teach them quite a bit.

As parents, it is up to us to limit what the child is doing. It is up to us to provide for them something worthwhile to do while they are on the web as well. In this, we mean that you, Mom or Dad, need to commit to knowing which games they are playing and which websites they plan to visit. Here's a great way to limit what they are actually doing.

Instead of allowing them to surf and end up on some bad website out there, go ahead and download a game or two for them. Games that are available on the web are fun, but when the parent gets to do the picking, they can be fun and educational at the same time. Does your child need math help? Then go ahead and give them a fun math game that teaches what they need in an easy to get along with manner. This can be done for a number of subjects like spelling, science, history and language. By giving them a computer game like these, they can make their computer time, well, worth it in your eyes.

You would be surprised by how many parents simply say, "Yes, you can play on the internet." Many of them do not know what their child is doing let alone know that he or she is playing an educational game! Yeah right! Most kids are going to find and play a game that interests them with flashing colors and graphics. That doesn't mean that they won't like games that don't provide this element. But, the websites they tend to visit are full of advertisements that lure them in. Your job is to point them in the right direction.

So, back to our question; how much is the right amount of time for computer time for your child? Well, inside that question is the word, "your" and that means that it is at your discretion that you should consider their need. Balance their day with physical, emotional, pretend and all those other important educational elements then add in a little time for computer play. Believe it or not, they are building skills that they will need later in life too.

by: Steve Hall

How to Write a Resume for Your First Job

How to Write a Resume for Your First Job

by: Laura Adams

Writing a resume for your first job requires patience, attention to detail, and a little creativity. All job seekers need a strong resume if they want to compete for the best jobs. But while seasoned professionals can rely on their experience to generate initial interest from prospective employers, individuals hitting the job market for the first time do not have such a luxury. New professionals, therefore, need to work even harder to sell themselves to managers.

To start your resume, you will need to select a resume format. A functional resume is usually the best choice for a new professional, since it allows you to present your qualifications by functional skills as opposed to purely chronological job order. Since your work history will be brief, if not non-existent, you want to place the emphasis on your skills and knowledge.

Layout of a Functional Resume:

The layout you select for your resume should attract attention and create interest, but not detract from your overall presentation. Use of capitalization, bold lettering, underlining, indentations, different fonts, and white space can add variety to your resume and emphasize important information. The layout should be consistent throughout the individual sections of the resume, be visually appealing, and be easy for the reader to follow.

A functional resume has several parts, which are typically included in this order:

• Name and Contact Information
• Objective Statement
• Education
• Key Skills and Qualifications
• Work Experience
• Additional parts may include a section for Awards and Honors or References.
• Name and Contact Information

You should include your name, full address, telephone number with area code, and email address (if applicable) at the very top of your resume. If you are currently residing at a temporary address, such as a student’s college address, you may include it in addition to your permanent address depending on the circumstances.

Objective Statement

If you choose to include an objective statement, it should be a concise and meaningful statement that describes your career goals in detail. An objective can include your goals in regards to your desired position title, industry, level of responsibility, and desired utilized skills. The elements included in your objective should be reinforced and supported throughout your resume and your cover letter.

A major mistake that many new professionals make is that they use a generalized objective statement. This is due to the fact that many men and women new to the workforce may not necessarily know what they are seeking in a position. They fear that by limiting the scope of the objective, that they are knocking themselves out of the running for positions that do not neatly match their objective – positions that they might otherwise be interesting in pursuing.

While this is true in some cases, it is advisable to either keep your objective focused and narrow, or completely leave it off your resume. A weak, unfocused objective in effect says nothing and will actually detract from your overall presentation.

Education

If you have a college degree, you should position the Education section near the top of your resume before your Key Skills and Qualifications. If you do not have a degree, the Education section should follow your Key Skills and Qualifications.

Your highest level of education achieved, whether you completed the program or not, should be the first listed in this section. All other schools you attended should follow.

For each individual school, list the following:

Name of the school

Dates you attended or graduated

Degrees earned (or degree program you were in, if not completed)

Major and minor subject areas

You may also list any honors, awards, Dean's list commendations, and GPAs if they will enhance this section of your resume. Any certifications or completed training courses that that are relevant to the position you are seeking should also be included.

Newer graduates can include a list of completed courses that are directly relevant to the type of position you are seeking. For example, a newly graduated Accounting major may want to highlight her course in Financial Accounting, Management Accounting, and Tax Accounting.

You should only include high school information if you do not have a college degree or if you achieved high commendation in some area that reinforces your career objectives.

Key Skills and Qualifications

This is the most critical section of a functional resume. The Skills section of your resume should highlight any relevant skills that might not otherwise be disclosed on your resume. This section will be highly individualized to both the person and the position they are seeking.

First, identify the key skills relevant to the type of position you are seeking. Some examples of key skills include customer relations, graphic design, marketing, leadership, and computer technology skills. It may be necessary to develop several different versions of your resume so that you are able effectively market yourself to a variety of jobs.

Next, rank the key skills in order of importance – you want the most important skill to appear at the top of your skills list. Then, under each of these key skill categories, include any information about yourself that demonstrates how you possess this skill. You can draw from any work experience, volunteer experience, schooling, extracurricular activities, or any other area as appropriate. As with the key skills themselves, rank this in order of importance so that the most relevant examples appear first.

Examples of key skills with supporting documentation are as follows:

• Research
• Designed questionnaire to assess customer needs
• Identified sample population to be included in the study
• Drafted analysis plan
• Prepared survey results report and presented the results to the study team
• Marketing and Distribution
• Developed layout and organization of merchandise for a 25-page giftware catalog
• Maintained accurate, up-to-date computer records of merchandise inventory, suppliers, customers, and shipping vendors.
• Handled all facets of order receipt, processing, and fulfillment

Work Experience

Since you are new to the workforce, employers do not expect you to have much in terms of work experience. This section should be very brief. You should not provide any details of your responsibilities and accomplishments in this section (these should have been included under Key Skills and Qualifications). Instead, simply list your job title, the name of the employer, the location of the position, and your dates of employment.

Other Optional Sections:

Honors and Awards:

List any career, academic, leadership or athletic honors you have received. Academic awards may alternatively be listed under the Education section of the resume.

References:

You may include a statement declaring “References Available upon Request” if you need to fill space on your resume. Otherwise you should list references in a separate document. References should typically only be provided when requested or once it is clear that the competition for a position is narrowing. Do not include specific reference names or contact information on your resume.

Other Categories:

If there is additional information that you feel is important to include butt does not fit into any of these categories, you can create custom categories. Examples of custom categories may include Background, Professional Activities, and Recitals/Art Shows.

Wisdom to Chew On

Wisdom to Chew On

by: Cathy Warschaw

As a high school senior, you are probably looking forward to graduating, but have you given much thought to what lies beyond that? Well now is the time to take action in order to get ahead of the competition.

Many experts are reporting that the competitive nature of the job market continues to grow and is forcing job seekers to develop an extra edge to stand apart from the crowd. What will your edge be?

Dental office management is a rapidly growing field that offers a strong potential for career growth. Many people, however, will begin their dental office careers as a receptionist or other front desk worker because they lack the skills necessary to jump right in as an office manager.

Office managers enjoy not only higher salaries, but also greater responsibility and independence than front desk workers. They are the team leaders that keep the office running smoothly with their organizational and communication skills.

You may now be asking yourself, “What can I do to get the edge I need to reach office management?” The answer is simple -- don’t delay in learning the skills today that open the doors of tomorrow.

Develop skills right now such as: dental terminology, interpersonal communication, appointment scheduling, and insurance processing, just to name a few. These are the kinds of capabilities that employers in dental office management are searching for in potential employees.

Study in a dental office management program right from the comfort of your own home. In a very short time, you will gain a valuable education that will place you teeth and gums above the competition.

After all, you used to believe that visiting the dentist was painful; well now you realize that it doesn’t have to be anymore.

"Changing Lives...One Career at a Time."

Tips For Successful Homeschooling

Tips For Successful Homeschooling

by: Desmond Edwins

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.

Making Science Less Abstract for Preschoolers

A simple experiment that can help preschoolers discover and enjoy the wonders of science.

Most childcare businesses supervise children for more than three hours a day, five days a week. Such long hours in care can have a serious impact on a child’s growth and development. Businesses that offer educational curriculums help children grow academically and help prepare them for school. Science plays an important role in the learning process and should also be included as part of the curriculum. Science encourages preschoolers to ask questions, make predictions, and find answers to some fascinating questions. Here is an interesting experiment that can help teach science to preschoolers. We came across ideas for this experiment on PBS Kids Website (www.pbskids.org). We tried it ourselves, at Young Achievers Inc., and it was an extreme success.

First, we had circle time with the kids and recited some classic nursery rhymes. One of the nursery rhymes was the age-old rhyme, Little Miss Muffet. After singing in our circle we asked the kids some questions about Little Miss Muffet. We discovered that they knew what Little Miss Muffet sat on, what she ate, and what frightened her. We then posed a thought-provoking question to the preschoolers. “Can the curds be separated from Miss Muffet’s curds and whey?” The children responded with interesting answers. Their answers became our scientific hypotheses. We documented all responses in large text on our chalkboard so that the children can see and value their predictions. We then headed to the kitchen "laboratory" to see whose prediction was true.

We had the kids sit at the table and measure the milk and vinegar portions for the experiment. They counted how many cups of milk were needed and how many tablespoons of vinegar to add. It was now time to blast the mixture into the microwave for two minutes. We recommend that an adult perform this part of the experiment to avoid placing children in harms way. After two minutes, the mixture was ready to be taken out of the microwave. We allowed it to cool for several minutes and then the children compared two samples of the mixture before and after it was placed in the microwave. They observed that the mixture was lumpier after being heated in the microwave. The children then strained the mixture by using kitchen towels. What remained was a white, rubbery substance - the curds. They were excited. They saw first-hand what Miss Muffet ate. Then they discovered through experimentation that curds can be separated from Miss Muffet’s curds and whey.

The children dyed the curds different colors using food coloring and made their own rubbery type of play dough. They loved touching the curds and feeling its texture. Some children even shaped the curds into cool looking dinosaurs and flowers with our help. At the end of the day the children were enlightened and had a great appreciation for science. They were all proud to show their parents what they had done. They were truly young scientists!

If you would like to try this with children at your childcare business we recommend the experiment for children ages 3 and up. The following materials are needed:

3 cups of Skim Milk

2 tablespoons of white vinegar

Microwave-safe bowl for mixing and heating

Kitchen towels for straining

by: Nicole Brekelbaum

Leadership Tips For Students

Today’s youth are living with an explosion of technological advances especially in the area of the internet, mobile applications and multi-player gaming. This increases the need for proper supervision and mentoring as they may be overwhelmed by the sheer overload of activities and information.

How is leadership relevant for them? Are they able to see beyond their examinations and their leisure activities?

Leadership values are crucial life-skills for students because they enable students to be able to manage their career-progression and financial independence when they mature. The accessibility of updated information is not a problem; however, there must be a leadership quotient for a student to make a decision and act on this information.

Here are some tips for educators:

A school’s achievement will have an indelible mark for students, especially in the area of school loyalty and branding. However, it is how the school reacts to unplanned events like losing in a sports competition that it is supposed to win easily, provides leadership insights to students. Leadership values are not only relevant for periods of success but also help a student go through times of adversity.

The interaction time for students and their teachers can be greater than with their own parents. This does not diminish the importance of parental guidance but at the same time puts a lot of responsibility for teachers to impart leadership principles. Students are very observant about how their teachers motivate them and put the extra effort to make their lessons more interesting. This is leadership at work.

Teachers have to ensure that leadership case-studies are relevant to the student’s understanding. It is absurd to get a leadership case-study from a business journal and expect the student to be “wowed’ by how a CEO had turned the financial fortune of an MNC or how a Military General won a battle with under-strength military force. These macro examples can be adapted to the daily experience like how students can organize a charity drive to raise monies for their school building fund.

Students should be encouraged to voice their opinion about how to take charge of global issues. This is important as leadership is within the context of an ever-changing global landscape, not in an air-conditioned class-room. A relevant class activity is how countries that were badly devastated by the tsunami disaster can put up a global warning system.

Following from the point above, students must complement their current affairs knowledge with good persuasive and presentation skills. They have to be convincing enough to lead the rest of the team members. This entails the blending of multi-media presentation tools with a lot of background research. However, with the usefulness of the search engine, a student’s research time can be drastically shortened.

All great leaders are supported by a world-class team. Leaders must have good people-skills and be able to bring out the best from the individuals in the team. These skills take years to be developed and it is important that every student is given a specific leadership task to fulfill.

by: Colin Ong TS

The New SAT

The New SAT

by: Chris Davis

The SAT may be the most important test a student will ever take. When it comes to determining college admissions and awarding scholarships, no single exam is more important. It has recently undergone some major changes, and every college-bound student must pay close attention to the new format.

Partly because of criticism that the old SAT failed as a indicator of college success, the College Board (the makers of the test) have recast the assessment instead as a measure of achievement and college preparation. Its new name, the SAT Reasoning Test, reflects its new emphasis on critical thinking skills needed for college. The changes go far beyond the name. Overall, students are likely to find the new version more challenging than the old.

The new SAT is 3 hours and 45 minutes long and is divided into three parts: Critical Reading, Math, and Writing. Each section contains important revisions from the old version. In the Reading section, the much hated analogy questions have been removed. Instead, students will answer critical thinking questions on a series of passages, ranging in length from sentences to long passages. The Math section now includes Algebra II level problems, in addition to geometry and many other high school level problems. The College Board says that this is to keep pace with the ever more sophisticated high school curriculums, but many students are likely to be unprepared for such advanced work. The multiple choice section and the student response questions of the old version have not been removed. The Writing section will cover grammar usage as well as essay writing skills. Students are allowed 25 minutes for the essay. This may be one of the more worrisome changes for students. Anyone hoping to bluff their way through this part of the test will be disappointed. Two graders will read each essay, and judge it on how well the student’s thesis is developed and supported. Certainly, the addition of the essay makes the SAT a better measure of the skills needed for college level work, but this is a skill that many students just do not pick up from the standard English class.

Clearly, the changes to the SAT make additional preparation, beyond regular course work, a necessity. The simple test taking techniques taught in so many tradition prep courses will no longer be adequate. Smart students will seek out prep courses that also offer tutoring on weak subjects, stress the fundamentals of writing good essays, and provide opportunities to take practice tests multiple times.

7 Safety Tips For School Kids

Travelling to and from school is often not very safe. However, there are some simple rules that can help to make the school journeys safer, ensuring peace of mind for both children and parents.

1. Waiting for the school bus in the mornings, while traffic is at it busiest, requires a degree of commonsense. Try to have a safe place for children to wait at away from the street and heavy traffic.

2. Don't let children move close to the school bus until it has come to a complete stop and the driver has signalled that it is safe to board.

3. At the end of the school day when children leave the bus, instruct your child to move away from the vehicle at least a dozen large strides to a point where the driver can clearly see them. This helps the driver and keeps the child safe as well.

4. Instruct your child to keep a close eye on all traffic near to the school bus. The law has some special protection measures for school buses, but car drivers are only human, and they can and often do make mistakes.

5. If your child walks to school, make sure he or she wears reflective material. Aim to make them as visible to as possible to all drivers. This will help to avoid accidents.

6. If a child rides a bike to school, instruct them to walk the bike through intersections, observe all traffic light signals, and be wearing reflective material. They should also be with a friend if possible as one can help to look out for the other.

7. If you take your own child to school in your car, always have older children in a seat with a safety belt on, younger children in a booster seat with a safety belt on, and very small children in special safety seats, all seated in the back with only you, the driver, in the front.

by: Janet Booth

The Challenge Of Learning The Chinese Language

The Challenge Of Learning The Chinese Language

by: John Davison

Chinese is a language, or a group of languages, spoken by 1.3 billion people worldwide. If you believe Chinese to be one language, rather than a grouping, it is the single most commonly spoken language on the planet. It is spoken in countries like China, Taiwan Singapore, and Malaysia. If you are interested in learning Chinese, it can be intimidating and challenging. But learning Chinese can also be rewarding, and knowing it can have benefits for your career, and help to improve your travels to Asia.

If you decide to learn the Chinese language, there a number of ways you can go about doing so. As a college student, you can study Mandarin Chinese and earn a degree in it. Earning a college degree in Chinese will provide you with a solid knowledge of formal, or Mandarin, Chinese. You will also be proficient in reading and writing the alphabet, which is a standard alphabet throughout the Chinese-speaking world. If you are established in your career, and find it necessary to learn Chinese for business dealings and /or business-associated travel, you can enroll in an accelerated Chinese language course online, or by purchasing audiotapes that teach quick techniques, which will help you to rapidly learn how to speak basic Mandarin Chinese. Learning to speak Chinese this way is convenient if you need to learn it before an important business trip. There are several learning centers that provide accelerated online programs in Chinese, and many lesson on tape available for purchase.

If you are a student majoring of minoring in Chinese, or if you are a tourist with a desire to travel to Asia, an ideal way to learn the Chinese language is through participation in an immersion program. By doing this, you will not only learn how to speak Chinese, but you will learn about and experience Chinese culture. By studying Chinese in a city like Beijing, where the language is natively spoken, you will become part of the life and culture, and you will find learning to speak the Chinese language is much easier than you thought. Since it is a total immersion into the Chinese world, you will learn all conversational and idiomatic styles of the language. You will interact everyday with people who are native speakers of Chinese, and who can’t or won’t speak English with you. You will be taken on guided tours of the famous landmarks, as well as the everyday places. You will grow to understand and recognize the value of the ancient Chinese culture: the history, the art, the architecture, the food, and the people. You will attend courses in which you will learn the complex Chinese alphabet, how to read it, and how to write it as well. Learning the Chinese language by attending an immersion program is an ideal way to go.

If you are fluent in the Chinese language, not only could it help you if are established in a career, but it could also open doors to new careers for you. For example, you could take a job as a foreign language translator, where you would be responsible for translating websites, training documents, and other important business documents, while helping to bridge the communication gap between two very different cultures. You might also consider a career as a teacher if English as a second language. You have the opportunity to relocate to a Chinese-speaking nation, and teach the English language to Chinese students. Being fluent in Chinese will definitely make your relocation less stressful.

Learning how to speak, read, and write the Chinese language has many advantages. It gives you the potential to enhance you career by working and/or traveling abroad, or you would have opportunities to embark on new careers as a translator or a teacher. If you plan to travel to Asia, learning Chinese will make your journeys less stressful and more enjoyable. Taking the time to learning the Chinese language will open your eyes to a new and often misunderstood culture, and is an achievement that can be personally and professionally fulfilling.

Four Learning Styles

Four Learning Styles

by: Jean Morgan

There are four learning styles that most people fit in to. Visual/verbal, tactile/kinesthetic, visual/non verbal and auditory/verbal. These four learning styles will help you to understand and process any information given to you. Once you know which style you fall in to, you can begin learning the best ways for you to study.

The visual/verbal learning style means that you learn the best from viewing information both visually and in a written format. It works best for you when your instructor uses the blackboard or an overhead projector. If the most important parts of a lecture are put into a bulletin format or used in an outline, you will find it much easier to follow along. Textbook information and class notes will be a great way for you to study and when you're trying to retain information or remember something, you often can "see" it or picture it in your mind.

Of the four learning styles, the visual/verbal person will want to use color coding to help them retain information from books or notes. Highlighters and different colored pens are a great way for this learner to absorb information. Summarizing important information from your notes or textbook is another good way for you to retain what you have learned. This person might also try flashcards, diagrams, illustrations and print-outs to aid in studying.

The second of the four learning styles is visual/non verbal. This person learns best when they are presented with pictures or visual aids. Instructors who incorporate film, videos, maps or diagrams will hold the attention of the visual/verbal learner. You may not find study groups helpful and would prefer to work in a quiet room. If you're trying to remember something, you might picture it in your mind. These learners often tend to be very artistic.

To aid in your retention of information, the visual/non verbal learner should try using flashcards that have important information on them. Illustrating them with pictures and symbols is another good way to help the information to be retained as well as using highlighters and pens.

The third of the four learning styles is tactile/kinesthetic. This learner enjoys "hands on" activities in the classroom. Any type of lab setting or field work will help this type of person to understand the information given. Instructor's that provide their students with demonstrations, presentations or student learning experiences will be helping the tactile/kinesthetic person learn.

Lectures might be hard for this person to sit through, and that's why it's important for them to sit in the front and take notes. Spelling shouldn't be a concern when you're writing notes and you should write down important words you here or draw pictures to depict them.

When you're studying, try incorporating action into it- read when you're on the exercise bike or walk back and forth while reciting information.

The last of the four learning styles is auditory/verbal. The auditory/verbal learner works best when information is given to them in an oral format. Lectures and group discussions work well for you and listening to audio tape information is a good idea too.

To study more efficiently, you might want to join a study group or find a person that you work with every day for a few hours on certain material. Read information out loud and tape record your lectures.

IELTS Mental Preparation

IELTS Mental Preparation

by: Simone Braverman

It seems like everyone is talking about the best way to prepare for IELTS. Do we need a study plan or not, how do we master the art of interview, what is a good IELTS essay, and so on. Well, aren’t we forgetting something? What about the mental aspect?

IELTS, like many other similar tests, requires psychological preparation not less (and may be even more) than good solid studying. As you read this, at least two questions must run through your mind - what kind of psychological preparation and what do we need it for.

In my opinion, anyone who is planning to take IELTS must know that there is a lot of pressure involved. For example, the fact that during the Listening Section the tape is played only once can be very intimidating, so if you’ve missed an answer – you’ve lost it forever, no second chances. Or trying to speak during the Interview for at least two minutes without looking at your watch can scare person as hell. It is also very easy to get depressed in the process of studying just from looking at list of tasks you need to know how to do quickly and accurately.

Being mentally prepared for IELTS does two things for you – it helps you study more effectively and lets you concentrate on the exam instead of your own fears. You can start this preparation by setting a realistic goal – an IELTS band score you need to get. Knowing your target score makes it easier for you to measure yourself – where you are now and what you must improve to get to the target. This way you know exactly how many answers out of 40 you may get wrong and still reach your goal.

When preparing for IELTS, the most important thing to realize is that time is the luxury that you don’t have. This is why strategies were developed to cope with this limitation, and one of them is – skip time-consuming questions. If it takes too long – give up, move on. Some people find it very hard to give up, due to pride, up-bringing or perfectionism and in the end they get hurt because of it. To make sure it doesn’t happen to you, train your mind to obey you in advance.

Another important aspect is to know your weaknesses. Very early in the process of studying you realize what you weakest points are when it comes to IELTS. The most natural thing to do is to devote more attention to those weak areas and not to get discouraged if you find some subject to be more difficult for you than another. Knowing what to expect from yourself makes it easier to control your actions and behavior. For example if you have a tendency to write long complicated sentences and you know about it – you will pay extra attention to this aspect.

And finally, a very common problem: procrastination. You already know that you absolutely have to pass IELTS, that this is the door to your dream but anyway – you can’t get yourself to start studying. The solution: commit to it! Set a deadline, start telling people you’re studying for IELTS, let everyone know. The shame of not living up to people’s expectations will push you towards you goal, which is to ace the IELTS and forget about it.

Developing Reading Skills In Your Child

A lot of teaching your child to read is first instilling in your child a desire to read. It’s so very important for the child to know that reading activities and learning to read is fun. Early on, for instance, if you haven’t yet, set aside an area of your home where your child can have their very own reading area and little person library. This will get most all your reading activities off to a great start. Having their own special place for reading activities will encourage the child to spend time reading.

Encourage them to begin to find their favorite spot within their area for their reading activities. Grab yourself a comfy chair and join them and you’ll be amazed how much your child will want go into their reading area and have you with them for a reading session. And an added bonus to the reading area is a great place and time for you to spend with your child reading to them and vise versa. Reading is nothing more than a practiced skill. Practicing being the operative word. Instilling good reading habits in your child early on with consistent and daily reading and practice sessions is laying the bricks to a solid learning foundation no matter what the subject matter.

Books from bookstores, garage sales, flea markets and such are a great way to begin building your child’s reading library content. Grab a cardboard box, and old milk crate or two and decorate them with your child so they can have their own library and take pride in how it looks and help them organize their reading materials. If you already have bookcases, then clear of one of the shelves and make that special place for your child’s books. It’s fun to do and your kids will have fun too. Build momentum early with how much fun reading and exploring books can be.

Also make good use of your public library. Teaching reading skills begins with developing in your child an interest and love for reading. As your child’s library grows along with their reading skill they will understand that books are important, enjoyable, and always filled with new things to learn.

A good reading activity can involve very little actual reading. Use picture books with very few or no words and ask your child to describe the picture or tell a story about what the picture is about. This will allow you to monitor the child’s vocabulary and the use of the words they have been learning. Don’t overlook the importance of vocabulary building along with building reading skills. A strong vocabulary goes well with understanding what you’re reading which, in turn, keeps the frustration level down, and the fun factor up.

Encouraging your child to verbalize to you a story or even a couple pages of something they have read about gives them great pride (while you listen for accuracy) and makes them feel like a reader! And when kids feel good about their reading skills they naturally strive to learn more.

by: Mary Joyce

Top 25 things Teens can do other than Sex

If Not SEX, then what?

25. Visit the Library
24. Go see a funny movie
23. (: Send a card to a friend :)
22. Play Monopoly
21. Write a letter to a family member
20. DaNcE!
19. ~ Take a trip ~
18. *Express Yourself in a Journal*
17. Read a book to a younger family member
16. : Go Bowling :
15. ^ Cook a gourmet meal ^
14. Drink some Water
13. Fix something that's broken
12. Help your parents with a chore
11. Volunteer in your community
10. Go Swimming
9. Bake a Cake
8. Sing your favorite song
7. Fix a creative sandwich
6.  Help a senior citizen with a task
5. Watch a cartoon
 4. ) Go Bicycling (
3. # Make a Hot Fudge Sundae #
2. Take a walk in the park
1. / Have a loving conversation /

by: Charlotte Williams

Types of Skin Lesions

What is a Lesion?

A Lesion is any abnormal tissue found on or in an organism, usually damaged by disease or trauma.

What are the Types of Lesions:

Primary Lesions:

1. Macule – skin color change without elevation.
2. Papule - is solid, raised spot on the skin that is less than 1 centimeter wide.
3. Plaque – raised, flat lesion form from merging papules or nodules.
4. Nodule – larger than papule. Raised solid Lesion extending deeper into the dermis.
5. Tumor – larger than a nodule. Elevated firm lesion that may or may not be easily demarcated.
6. Wheal (Hive) – fleeting skin elevation that is irregularly shaped because of edema.
7. Vesicle (Blister) – elevated, sharply defined lesion containing serous fluid.
8. Bulla (plural: Bullae) – large, elevated, fluid–filled lesion greater than 1cm.
9. Cyst – elevated, thick-walled lesion containing fluid or semisolid matter.
10. Pustule – elevated lesion less than 1cm containing purulent material.
    

Secondary Lesion:

1. Scale – dried fragments of sloughed epidermal cells, irregular in shape and in size and white, tan, yellow or silver in color.
2. Scar – mark left on the skin after healing. Replacement of destroyed tissue by fibrous tissue.
3. Crust – dried serum, sebum, blood or pus on skin surface producing a temporary barrier to environment.
4. Erosion – a moist, demarcated, depressed area due to loss of partial - or full thickness epidermis.
5. Ulcer – irregularly shaped, exudative, depressed lesion in which entire epidermis an upper layer of dermis are lost.
6. Excoriation – superficial, linear abrasion of epidermis.
7. Fissure – deep linear split through epidermis into dermis.
8. Atrophy – wasting of epidermis in which skin appears thin and transparent or of dermis in
   which there is a depressed area.

Barack Obama Speech to Kids Transcript

Here's the Prepared Remarks of President Barack Obama's Back to School Event speech on Arlington, Virginia, September 8, 2009 at 12 Noon Eastern and 11 Central Time.

Hello everyone – how’s everybody doing today? I’m here with students at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia. And we’ve got students tuning in from all across America, kindergarten through twelfth grade. I’m glad you all could join us today.

I know that for many of you, today is the first day of school. And for those of you in kindergarten, or starting middle or high school, it’s your first day in a new school, so it’s understandable if you’re a little nervous. I imagine there are some seniors out there who are feeling pretty good right now, with just one more year to go. And no matter what grade you’re in, some of you are probably wishing it were still summer, and you could’ve stayed in bed just a little longer this morning.

I know that feeling. When I was young, my family lived in Indonesia for a few years, and my mother didn’t have the money to send me where all the American kids went to school. So she decided to teach me extra lessons herself, Monday through Friday – at 4:30 in the morning.

Now I wasn’t too happy about getting up that early. A lot of times, I’d fall asleep right there at the kitchen table. But whenever I’d complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and say, "This is no picnic for me either, buster."

So I know some of you are still adjusting to being back at school. But I’m here today because I have something important to discuss with you. I’m here because I want to talk with you about your education and what’s expected of all of you in this new school year.

Now I’ve given a lot of speeches about education. And I’ve talked a lot about responsibility.

I’ve talked about your teachers’ responsibility for inspiring you, and pushing you to learn.

I’ve talked about your parents’ responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and get your homework done, and don’t spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with that Xbox.

I’ve talked a lot about your government’s responsibility for setting high standards, supporting teachers and principals, and turning around schools that aren’t working where students aren’t getting the opportunities they deserve.

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world – and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay attention to those teachers; listen to your parents, grandparents and other adults; and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.

And that’s what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education. I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself.

Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That’s the opportunity an education can provide.

Maybe you could be a good writer – maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper – but you might not know it until you write a paper for your English class. Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor – maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or a new medicine or vaccine – but you might not know it until you do a project for your science class. Maybe you could be a mayor or a Senator or a Supreme Court Justice, but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.

And no matter what you want to do with your life – I guarantee that you’ll need an education to do it. You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You’re going to need a good education for every single one of those careers. You can’t drop out of school and just drop into a good job. You’ve got to work for it and train for it and learn for it.

And this isn’t just important for your own life and your own future. What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country. What you’re learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future.

You’ll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment. You’ll need the insights and critical thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and homelessness, crime and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free. You’ll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy.

We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can help solve our most difficult problems. If you don’t do that – if you quit on school – you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country.

Now I know it’s not always easy to do well in school. I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.

I get it. I know what that’s like. My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mother who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn’t always able to give us things the other kids had. There were times when I missed having a father in my life. There were times when I was lonely and felt like I didn’t fit in.

So I wasn’t always as focused as I should have been. I did some things I’m not proud of, and got in more trouble than I should have. And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse.

But I was fortunate. I got a lot of second chances and had the opportunity to go to college, and law school, and follow my dreams. My wife, our First Lady Michelle Obama, has a similar story. Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn’t have much. But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.

Some of you might not have those advantages. Maybe you don’t have adults in your life who give you the support that you need. Maybe someone in your family has lost their job, and there’s not enough money to go around. Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don’t feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren’t right.

But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life – what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home – that’s no excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude. That’s no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school. That’s no excuse for not trying.

Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up. No one’s written your destiny for you. Here in America, you write your own destiny. You make your own future.

That’s what young people like you are doing every day, all across America.

Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas. Jazmin didn’t speak English when she first started school. Hardly anyone in her hometown went to college, and neither of her parents had gone either. But she worked hard, earned good grades, got a scholarship to Brown University, and is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to being Dr. Jazmin Perez.

I’m thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who’s fought brain cancer since he was three. He’s endured all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer – hundreds of extra hours – to do his schoolwork. But he never fell behind, and he’s headed to college this fall.

And then there’s Shantell Steve, from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois. Even when bouncing from foster home to foster home in the toughest neighborhoods, she managed to get a job at a local health center; start a program to keep young people out of gangs; and she’s on track to graduate high school with honors and go on to college.

Jazmin, Andoni and Shantell aren’t any different from any of you. They faced challenges in their lives just like you do. But they refused to give up. They chose to take responsibility for their education and set goals for themselves. And I expect all of you to do the same.

That’s why today, I’m calling on each of you to set your own goals for your education – and to do everything you can to meet them. Your goal can be something as simple as doing all your homework, paying attention in class, or spending time each day reading a book. Maybe you’ll decide to get involved in an extracurricular activity, or volunteer in your community. Maybe you’ll decide to stand up for kids who are being teased or bullied because of who they are or how they look, because you believe, like I do, that all kids deserve a safe environment to study and learn. Maybe you’ll decide to take better care of yourself so you can be more ready to learn. And along those lines, I hope you’ll all wash your hands a lot, and stay home from school when you don’t feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter.

Whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it. I want you to really work at it.

I know that sometimes, you get the sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work -- that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things.

But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won’t love every subject you study. You won’t click with every teacher. Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right this minute. And you won’t necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.

That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures. JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was rejected twelve times before it was finally published. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career. But he once said, "I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures define you – you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time. If you get in trouble, that doesn’t mean you’re a troublemaker, it means you need to try harder to behave. If you get a bad grade, that doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it just means you need to spend more time studying.

No one’s born being good at things, you become good at things through hard work. You’re not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport. You don’t hit every note the first time you sing a song. You’ve got to practice. It’s the same with your schoolwork. You might have to do a math problem a few times before you get it right, or read something a few times before you understand it, or do a few drafts of a paper before it’s good enough to hand in.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and to learn something new. So find an adult you trust – a parent, grandparent or teacher; a coach or counselor – and ask them to help you stay on track to meet your goals.

And even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you – don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.

The story of America isn’t about people who quit when things got tough. It’s about people who kept going, who tried harder, who loved their country too much to do anything less than their best.

It’s the story of students who sat where you sit 250 years ago, and went on to wage a revolution and found this nation. Students who sat where you sit 75 years ago who overcame a Depression and won a world war; who fought for civil rights and put a man on the moon. Students who sat where you sit 20 years ago who founded Google, Twitter and Facebook and changed the way we communicate with each other.

So today, I want to ask you, what’s your contribution going to be? What problems are you going to solve? What discoveries will you make? What will a president who comes here in twenty or fifty or one hundred years say about what all of you did for this country?

Your families, your teachers, and I are doing everything we can to make sure you have the education you need to answer these questions. I’m working hard to fix up your classrooms and get you the books, equipment and computers you need to learn. But you’ve got to do your part too. So I expect you to get serious this year. I expect you to put your best effort into everything you do. I expect great things from each of you. So don’t let us down – don’t let your family or your country or yourself down.

Make us all proud. I know you can do it.

Thank you, God bless you, and God bless America.

[Source]

3 Components of Data Communications System

The 3 Components of Data Communications System

1. TRANSMITTER - Can be any circuit or electronic device designed to send electronically encoded data to another location. Can also be called the Source.
2. TRANSMISSION PATH or CHANNEL - A path or link through which information passes between two devices.
3. RECEIVER - could be any device designed to receive any conveyed message from the Transmitter or the Source. Receiver is also known as the Sink.

The Universal Seven-Part Circuit of Data Communications System.

Good Listening in Class

It is important for you to be a good listener in class. Much of what you will have to learn will be presented verbally by your teachers. Just hearing what your teachers say is not the same as listening to what they say. Listening is a cognitive act that requires you to pay attention and think about and mentally process what you hear.

Here are some things you should do to be a good listener in class.

* Be Cognitively Ready to Listen When You Come to Class. Make sure you complete all assigned work and readings. Review your notes from previous class sessions. Think about what you know about the topic that will be covered in class that day.

* Be Emotionally Ready to Listen When You Come to Class. Your attitude is important. Make a conscious choice to find the topic useful and interesting. Be committed to learning all that you can.

* Listen with a Purpose. Identify what you expect and hope to learn from the class session. Listen for these things as your teacher talks.

* Listen with an Open Mind. Be receptive to what your teacher says. It is good to question what is said as long as you remain open to points of view other than your own.

* Be Attentive. Focus on what your teacher is saying. Try not to daydream and let your mind wander to other things. It helps to sit in the front and center of the class, and to maintain eye contact with your teacher.

* Good Listening In Class, Ear Listening Be an Active Listener. You can think faster than your teacher can speak. Use this to your advantage by evaluating what is being said and trying to anticipate what will be said next. Take good written notes about what your teacher says. While you can think faster than your teacher can speak, you cannot write faster than your teacher can speak. Taking notes requires you to make decisions about what to write, and you have to be an active listener to do this.

* Meet the Challenge. Don't give up and stop listening when you find the information being presented difficult to understand. Listen even more carefully at these times and work hard to understand what is being said. Don't be reluctant to ask questions.

* Triumph Over the Environment. The classroom may too noisy, too hot, too cold, too bright, or too dark. Don't give in to these inconveniences. Stay focused on the big picture - LEARNING.

[Source]

The RQWQCQ Strategy for Solving Math Word Problems

RQWQCQ is a good strategy to use when solving math word problems. Each of the letters in RQWQCQ stands for a step in the strategy.

Read

Read the entire problem to learn what it is about. You may find it helpful to read the problem out loud, form a picture of the problem in your mind, or draw a picture of the problem.

Question

Find the question to be answered in the problem. Often the question is directly stated. When it is not stated, you will have to identify the question to be answered.

Write

Write the facts you need to answer the question. It is helpful to cross out any facts presented in the problem that are not needed to answer the question. Sometimes, all of facts presented in the problem are needed to answer the question.

Question

Ask yourself "What computations must I do to answer the question?"

Compute

Set up the problem on paper and do the computations. Check your computations for accuracy and make any needed corrections. Once you have done this, circle your answer.

Question

Look at your answer and ask yourself: "Is my answer possible?" You may find that your answer is not possible because it does not fit with the facts presented in the problem. When this happens, go back through the steps of RQWQCQ until you arrive at an answer that is possible.

Use RQWQCQ to help you correctly solve math word problems.

[Source]

U. S. Presidential Trivia Questions and Answers

President trivia questions and answers.

What U.S. president's State of the Union address lasted a record 81 minutes?

A: Bill Clinton's.

What U.S. president was born William Jefferson Blythe IV?

A: Bill Clinton.

What 1970's president openly discussed his battle with hemorrhoids?

A: Jimmy Carter.  

What U.S. president had the shortest life?

A: John F. Kennedy.

What former president was on an African hunting trip when his enemy J. P. Morgan quipped: "Let every lion do his duty"?

A: Theodore Roosevelt.

What conspirator in the Lincoln assassination was pardoned for saving the lives of prison guards during a yellow fever epidemic?

A: Dr. Samuel Mudd.

What president opined: "Once you get into this great stream of history you can't get out"?

A: Richard Nixon.

Who was the first president to utter "We shall overcome" before a joint session of Congress?

A: Lyndon B. Johnson. 

What future president was the only U.S. senator from a Confederate state to remain in Congress after secession?

A: Andrew Jackson.

What president's mug graces a $100,000 bill?

A: Woodrow Wilson.

What future U.S. president received the last rites of the Catholic Church after an infection following spinal surgery in 1954?

A: John F. Kennedy.

What war saw James Madison become the first U.S. president to command a military unit during his term in office?

A: The war of 1812.

What document did President Andrew Johnson want a copy of placed under his head upon his burial?

A: The U.S. Constitution.

Who was the first daughter of a U.S. president to pose nude for a Playboy video?

A: Patti Davis.

How many U.S. states are named after a president?

A: One.

Who is the only president to have survived two assassination attempts by women?

A: Gerald Ford.

What portly U.S. president was the first to be a golf nut?

A: William Howard Taft.

What future president's Texas classmates ran a shot of a jackass under his yearbook photo?

A: Lyndon B. Johnson's.

What day does the U.S. president traditionally deliver a weekly radio address?

A: Saturday.

What horse-loving future president cheated on an eye exam to join the cavalry reserves in the 1930's?

A: Ronald Regan.

What U.S. president threw out the most Opening Day baseballs?

A: Franklin D. Roosevelt.

What card game did Dwight D. Eisenhower play fanatically while planning for D-Day?

A: Bridge.

What White House lawyer first revealed the existence of an "enemies list" and "hush money" at the Watergate hearings?

A: John Dean.

What date saw FDR sign the U.S. declaration of war against Japan?

A: December 8, 1941.

What U.S. president installed solar panels on the White House roof?

A: Jimmy Carter.

What First Lady of the 1980s was shocked to find "a tremendous rat" swimming with her in the White House Pool?

A: Barbara Bush.

What future anchor was the only female reporter to tag along with Richard Nixon on his historic trip to China?

A: Barbara Walters.

Who revealed that the U.S. had a hydrogen bomb in his last State of the Union speech?

A: Harry S. Truman

[Source]