Childhood | Information and Document Management

Internet Safety and Your Children

Talk to your children about internet safety before they get online and give recurring reminders after that point. Some basic things to consider bringing up:

Learning to Let Go: De- Cluttering Your Computer

The day after I graduation from college I deleted every writing assignment I ever had to do. I deleted all my assignments with a demented happiness, elated to watched every meaningless writing assignment I had been forced to write disappear from my life forever. Nowhere in the demented flurry of deletions did I pause to think that writing jobs would want samples of my work as part of the application process. Realizing this sure made me wish I had not been so trigger happy with the delete button. While I have to admit there were many assignments that I no longer needed, it would have been wise to search through the documents to determine which ones those were.

De-cluttering your computer is a great thing. It helps your computer run faster and it will make your life that much easier. But it is important to know what should be dispensed with and what you need to keep.

Like any college student, I had assignments that dated back to my pre-requiset classes. Looking back, I am not sure why I still had those assignments four years later. It is important to realize that some documents will never be used again and it is ok to delete them. Letting go of documents can be hard. However, like with clothes, if you have not worn something in a year, get rid of it.

The documents that you should keep are works that you are particularly proud of. Keep works that show what you are capable of. In the future, you may want to include these documents in a graduate program application or use them to get a dream job. Also keep work that you feel strongly about. It may never win an award but it makes you remember something. It is also good to keep things that are a work in process. You never know when inspiration will strike.

Filed Under: Childhood, Information Management Tagged With: Business, Colleges and Universities, Education, Work in process, Writers Resources

Use Software for Download to Document Childhood Memories

: Image via Wikipedia

Since the first photo in 1826, people have used pictures to document important events and memories. Scrapbooking became a way for people to highlight those memories in an attractive setup that freed pictures from the box in the closet.

Digital cameras further added to a reduction in the amount of pictures lying around a house; however, they elevated scrapbooking to a new level: online scrapbooking. Today, you can make a digital scrapbook to preserve childhood memories. As an added perk, you can even send your scrapbook electronically to friends and family.

If you want to display your digital photos, consider using scrapbook software for download. With programs, such as My Memories Suite, even beginners can scrap like pros in just a few short minutes. Scrapbook software programs usually have the following features:

~ A drag-and-drop option to place photos on the scrapbooking page.

~ Basic photo editing tools, such as crop or rotate.

~ Word art and digital embellishments to create visually appealing pages.

Even people who love to scrapbook with actual photos enjoy the benefits of online scrapbooking programs. The online program reduces the cost of scrapbooking, making it more affordable as a hobby. You can reuse templates, papers, and embellishments without having to run out to a craft store. If you purchase additional scrapbooking items, you can add them to your online collection to use repeatedly.

Some software for download comes with a trial version, so you can test out the features before you commit to a purchase. If you like what you see, it’s easy to install the full version. If you want to keep searching, you can use the trial version until you find something better.

When you take advantage of scrapbooking, whether online or off, you can use your creativity and personality to make a legacy you can pass on to your children once they get older and begin having children of their own.

Filed Under: Childhood, General, Health, Lifestyle Tagged With: Arts, Crafts, Digital, Digital photography, How-To Sites, scrapbook, Shopping, Supplies

Types of Internet Businesses

: Image by rogercarr via Flickr

Many people today are looking to build their own businesses. Sometimes they want to because they are a parent who wants to stay home with their children. Other times, it may be a desire to be their own boss that drives someone to want to own a business. It may even be just a way to bring in some extra cash, while working another job. No matter the reasoning behind it, many people are starting to look toward starting an online business.

If you already have a business that can be promoted online, you’ll want to set up a website to do this. For example, many photographers, artists and graphic designers are now promoting themselves and their businesses on the Internet. This helps bring in more customers, and therefore, more money.

You can also start from scratch. If you want to sell a product, first you’ll need to decide on a product that you’re comfortable with — then find a supplier that carries that product. If you make your own items to sell, this is easy to do. Many people today who do crafts successfully sell their products online. Even if you want to sell a product you don’t make, finding a supplier is generally not difficult. Another route you can go with an online business is to be an affiliate marketer. To do this, you would want to search for the top affiliate programs and try to work with them. You will need a website to do affiliate marketing, but often even a blog will work just fine, especially to start off with.

No matter what type of business you’re looking to get into or why you’re striving to build your own business, doing it on the Internet is a great option. Many people are heading online to find businesses they want to work with; get yours out there to be seen!

Filed Under: Childhood, General, Health Tagged With: Affiliate marketing, Affiliate Programs, Business, Marketing, online business, Online Opportunities, Opportunities, Product (business)

Helping Kids Cope with Hard Times

Coping is a challenge for adults during uncertain times, so just imagine the unexpressed fears that can trouble a child’s mind when the grownups around them are stressed?

Kids are like sponges. They absorb everything around them, whether it’s an argument about money, a heated political disagreement between friends, a doom and gloom conversation they overhear about the environment, or a violent account of war they heard on the news. During times of turmoil, kids look to their mentors for reassurance things will be okay, so when the role models they rely on are emotional and upset, it’s doubly upsetting for them. They may not have the vocabulary to articulate their fears, but the physical symptoms can be obvious. A pre-schooler may regress to an old habit, such as thumb sucking, bedwetting, problems sleeping, loss of appetite, or fears of the dark. School-age children may have nightmares, be unusually clingy, aggressive, irritable, or have difficulty concentrating. An adolescent may demonstrate delinquent behavior or heightened states of agitation. In most cases, these are temporary behaviors, although some children may experience serious reactions over extended periods of time because of personal circumstances.

The best thing a caring adult can do is encourage children to express their fears, and listen, intently, when they do. Kids lack the long-range life experience to understand the cyclic ebb and flow of life’s ups and downs. Calmly reassure them that although times may be stressful now, over time, things will get better, “after all, they always have. Guide them back to memories of former times when they were stressed, and remind them of all the things they did to cope back then, all the things that worked, such as singing, playing games,or just taking a walk. Turn off the evening news, and avoid discussing upsetting topics within earshot of your kids.

Most importantly, do your best to manage your own anxiety. Convey that you’ll always be there for them. Sometimes, just spending quality time together as a family can be all a child needs to feel safe and secure at times when the world seems scary.

Filed Under: Childhood Tagged With: Child, Family, Thumb sucking

Rewinding your child’s inner clock.

: Image via Wikipedia

The long, lazy vacation days are winding down, but for kids, shifting into the back-to-school routine isn’t as easy as flipping the on-off switch. Research conducted by the National Sleep Foundation revealed that children and average of 14 days to reset their inner clocks. Without a reasonable period of adjustment to acclimate them into their fall routine, children can be groggy when they start their school day, and that can lead to poor performance in the classroom.

A better night’s sleep can be as simple as dressing your kids in loose-fitting pajamas. Muggy temperatures during sleep in late summer affect skin’s heat dispersion, interfering with the body’s natural cooling process. When core temperatures don’t drop, it inhibits production of melatonin, the hormone essential to sleep quality. Researchers advise refraining from tightly tucking in blankets, and dressing kids in roomy pajamas . Also, a bath before bed can promote a rise in melatonin levels because the body’s core temperature briefly rises, then falls after the skin has dried.

As little as 15 minutes of exposure to morning sunlight can help kids waken less groggy. The sun’s rays trigger a wake-up signal to the brain’s circadian clock, a signal so strong that the following morning, the subtle anticipation of sunlight can make waking up a lot easier. Encourage your children to head outside early upon waking. Try serving breakfast on the patio or in the back yard as those school days draw nearer. Your child will naturally roll out of bed 10 minutes earlier the next morning on her own without prodding, and minutes earlier on subsequent days that follow.

Experts suggest, rather than letting your kids wind down before bedtime with a DVD, encourage reading instead. The light from computer monitors and TV screens can over-stimulate the brain’s pineal and thalamus glands, which rule wakefulness. Electronic devices are best powered down at least an hour before bed. Reading helps induce sleep enhancing theta waves in the brain. Parents, as well as their kids, can benefit from these sleep tips, too, and who couldn’t use a more restful night’s sleep?

Filed Under: Childhood Tagged With: National Sleep Foundation, Sleep Disorders

Learning to Let Go: De- Cluttering Your Computer

Use Software for Download to Document Childhood Memories

Types of Internet Businesses

Helping Kids Cope with Hard Times

Rewinding your child’s inner clock.

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