Parenting and Learning Issues

The start of a new school year is always filled with many beginnings, including the beginning of the relationship with your child’s teacher. A positive relationship can reap many benefits for you and your child, creating a constructive learning environment where your young student can thrive. Developing a good relationship begins even before the first day of school, as you prepare your child - and yourself – for what lies ahead. Here are 10 constructive ways to build a positive relationship with your child’s teacher this year.

This TED Talk focuses on the parent-teacher relationship.

Make Initial Contact

It is important to make contact with your child’s teacher either before the school year begins or shortly after it has started. Some of the issues to cover with a teacher during this initial contact include:

• Health issues
• Family issues
• Learning style
• Behavior issues

By alerting your child’s teacher to these important factors at the beginning of the year, it allows that teacher to support your child in the best way possible throughout the year.

This video gives helpful tips on how to establish a productive relationship with your child's teacher that will benefit you, the children, and the teachers.

Offer Support

Let your child’s teacher know up front that you are on her side when it comes to how she

The start of a school year can be an exciting time for kids as new teachers and friends broaden their world in many positive ways. However, the presence of a bully in that world can transform what should be a constructive learning environment into a scary place for kids. With many disturbing reports of suicides recently as a result of bullying, it is important for parents to acknowledge the potential for bullying and take steps toward prevention or dealing with a situation that already exists. Fortunately, there are many positive actions parents can take to protect their children from bullying.

Types of Bullying

The Mayo Clinic lists a number of different types of bullying children might experience today, including the following:

• Physical Bullying – hitting, kicking or other types of aggressive physical behavior
• Verbal Bullying – incessant teasing, name calling, spreading rumors or racial slurs
• Cyber Bullying – tormenting another child through cell phones or the Internet

Children may be bullied through just one of these channels, or a combination. The dangers of cyber bullying are particularly pronounced, since this type of bullying can invade the privacy and safety of the home environment. While bullying that is done at school can be left there at the end of the school day, cyber bullying can become incessant. Psychologists believe that is one of the reasons why cyber bullying has resulted in

Once the flurry of back-to-school time has settled, many parents face the challenge of keeping their kids in homework mode. Homework battles are a common issue during the school year, and some parents and students have more difficulty with this academic necessity than others. Since homework is here to stay for most students, it can be very beneficial for parents to learn how to help their children make the most of their homework time. While we shared 10 helpful homework tips before, here are 10 more homework strategies that help students make the grade.

Make Sure Their "Office" is Well Stocked

Think about what work environment is most productive for you. Is it a quiet place, free of distractions and stocked with all the supplies you need right at hand? For a child, homework is their "work," You can duplicate the same productive features for your child's office. Typically, children need a quiet, well-lit place to tackle homework assignments, where all their supplies are within arm’s reach. This area can be in the child’s bedroom, family office, or kitchen corner if that works best. Supply a desk light, paper, writing utensils, and any other supplies your child needs regularly.

Establish a Schedule

Homework is done best when it is completed at the same time of day whenever possible. Your family should set aside a specific time frame for homework assignments, with ample time for students to complete their work. For

Homeschooling allows parents the freedom to instruct their children at home; however, sometimes, finding good lesson plans, ideas, and resources can be challenging. Check out these helpful sites to collect ideas and information about developing effective lesson plans for your children!

General Information on Lesson Plans

• BBC Schools provides a variety of educational materials that parents can adapt to use in their home school classroom. Lesson plans are included in this exceptional resource.
• Considering Methods and Styles of Homeschooling provides parents with information about how to determine their child's learning style. Understanding your child's learning style will help parents create effective and meaningful lesson plans.
• Free Homeschool Curriculum helps parents understand different types of free curricula, as well as how to assess if they should use the curriculum with their children. This is a helpful article for parents who are new to homeschooling.
• Homeschool Weekly Lesson Planner, a resource provided by Donna Young, provides homeschooling parents with printable templates for creating lesson plans.
• Free Homeschool Curriculum is an article that will help parents determine if a free curriculum is appropriate and valuable to use when homeschooling their children.
• What is a Lesson Plan?, an article from Let's Homeschool, provides parents with an understanding of what a lesson plan is and how to assess if a lesson plan is effective.

Grade School

• Dig In!, a lesson from BBC Schools, provides parents with a number of resources for teaching their children about farming

High school students have many options in extracurricular activities today, allowing them to explore a wide range of interests. For students who want to move beyond the basic theatre productions, school newspaper, and high school athletics, there is another choice available at a growing number of schools today – atheist clubs. These organizations of self-proclaimed free-thinking students have been cropping up at high schools from coast to coast, thanks in part to the rising number of religious clubs that have also been making their way into classrooms today.

The Rise of Atheist Clubs

According to the Huffington Post, the increase in atheist clubs is being fueled in part by an organization known as the Secular Student Alliance. This group is responsible for placing more than 300 college-based clubs into schools nationwide for free-thinking students, and it is now moving into the high school realm.

This video reports on an atheist group's activities.

The director of the high school program for Secular Student Alliance, JT Eberhard, told the Huffington Post that he would like to see the rise in both atheist and other religious clubs inspire a dialogue between all students. In addition, Eberhard said, “I also hope it will let the atheist students know that you can be an atheist and it’s okay.”

At the start of the 2011-2012 school year, there were approximately one dozen clubs established at