How to Find Valuable Educational Toys with the Best Price

Have you ever found difficulties in finding toys for your children? Do you know the important aspects of appropriate toys for them? What you will see below are some helpful advice to help you find the best for your little ones.

Children learn through toys and play about colors, shapes, sounds, and numbers. It helps them develop their eye-hand coordination and manual dexterity, helping them later on to compare their experience and use their imagination to talk.

It is difficult to judge a toy for its effectiveness in teaching children and some toys that look helpful in their boxes lose their potential when they are taken out.

Nevertheless, learning how to recognize the play value of a toy is a skill that can be acquired over time. One thing to understand is that the child should be given a toy geared towards his or her age group, as it is not sensible to think that advanced toys would help the child's learning to grow faster.

- Toys should not promote a single thought or concept; instead, they should promote creativity and thinking skills. Toys based on a single concept, such as a math toy normally is not played with and it is better to roll the dice and let the child add the numbers towards a certain goal as it is fun as well as educational.

- Toys should cater to individual developmental skills such as miniature replicas of household products for toddlers to gain an understanding of how things function.

- Toys that can be played in a number of ways serve as great educational tools. For example, blocks will never disappear simply because they provide the toddler understandings of gravity by helping them build and knock down towers, while enhancing creativity in older children who build castles out of them to create their own worlds.

- Toys should be checked for durability and safety before being bought. Durability is extremely important so that the toy is played with and remains helpful in developmental skills.

- Children tend to clamor for the latest toys that might not serve any educational purpose, like trend figures that can be played only in their specific roles and cannot be expanded towards thinking that is more creative. Instead of breaking your child's heart by not buying them their favorite action figure, it is better to buy them a jigsaw of the figure or playing cards, games, and books too.

- A toy is good if it is fun for the child to play with. Buying toys that can be played in a number of ways would be a wise decision to invest in as they would be played with for a long period of time and would give the maximum learning experience to the child.

The basic principles of toy selection include the following:

- Suitable Design: For the correct age group with the best concept, colors, and materials, with concise and crystal clear instructions.

- Quality: The quality of workmanship and relation of materials used with colors and shapes define it.

- Durability: It is of the utmost importance as children can break even the best of the toys.

- Safety: Protection is vital for the children from toys with splintered edges, flammability, and the use of toxic materials.

- Educational: By providing instructions so that the parents can explain the use of the toy to the child in simple terms.

- Creative: To help the child develop their imagination, you must be able to use the toy in alternate ways by creating new games, and play with it.

- Cost: It should be another factor that should be considered since similar toys may have a major cost difference.

- Play Value: So that the toys are long lasting and the child enjoys playing with it for as long as possible, each time giving the child newer developmental skills and encouraging the child to play again and again with newer insights into the way things work.

- Quality vs. Quantity: Too many toys could overwhelm the child and hamper the child's creative development, as the child may not be able to concentrate on a single toy for long enough, hence rendering the toys useless. The whole purpose of giving the child a toy is to develop the creative thinking and skills and not give the idea that more toys mean more happiness.

Following the above guidelines would ensure the promotion of the purpose of learning through play by helping your child's developmental skills to improve with time no matter what age your child is.

Good Homeschooling Materials Are the Key to Successful Homeschooling

Homeschooling, as it is considered in developed countries, is an alternative to enrolling children in private or public schools. For parents who do not approve of materials, educational environment, teachers, or similar other school related things homeschooling might seem as if it is a good fit for children. Although the children are the ones who would be benefiting, the parents would be in charge of teaching them.

This idea intimidates many parents who either do not think they will be able to make the commitment because of work or because they have no confidence in their abilities to be good teachers.

Where these are valid concerns they might also be seen as excuses. If a parent wants to see that their child receives the best education and they are not satisfied with their child's development, they should consider homeschooling. Parents can make learning fun for children. There is a burgeoning community of homeschoolers and educators for support.

Many people are satisfied with the way children are educated in the twenty-first century. This may be because many children do excel in the current system. Wherever there are success stories there are also the not so successful ones and the stories where children dislike school but go anyway because schooling is compulsory. For these children, homeschooling might be the best option.

There are many choices for homeschooling materials out there to help your child succeed. Homeschooling materials can be found on websites that act as online communities for homeschoolers and their students. Whether the teacher wants to use a curriculum or not, they are available at: educator supply stores, county and state offices of education, encyclopedia companies, homeschooling suppliers, teacher college libraries, and Internet Databases. One of the popular resources that is available for homeschoolers is the Home Education Magazine.

Education Definition and Its Importance

Education is also known by many other names such as learning, teaching, and schooling. The term is derived from the Latin word 'educatio' ('a bringing', 'a rearing', 'a bringing up') which is related to other Latin words 'educo' ('I train', I educate'), the homonym 'educo' ('I raise up', 'I take out', 'I erect', 'I lead forth'), and 'duco' ('I lead, I conduct'). Generally, education is the act or experience which affects the formation of one's character, mind, and physical ability. Technically, the term refers to the process by which society intentionally transmits accumulated values, skills, as well as knowledge from the older generation to the younger. Essentially, education covers all instructions and discipline which are aimed at correcting the temper, enlightening the understanding, forming manners and habits, and giving useful skills for children in order to be used in their future.

The process of education includes three major aspects - instruction (learning facilitation delivered by a teacher or tutor), teaching (the action done by the teacher or tutor as an instructor to deliver the learning materials to the students), and learning (an action done by those who are taught to receive knowledge, abilities, or skills that may be useful in the future).

A school can be seen as a place where we learn about life before we jump into the real world. School prepares students to deal with various problems in life. However, nowadays you can still find education systems that put emphasis on the importance of memorizing facts and figures, as well as achieving good grades. Instead of eliciting the learner's appetite for knowledge, these things will only discourage them. Children who are stuffed with facts are figures have the tendency to become passive individuals who are less motivated to think, ask questions, and throw new ideas.

To encourage students to learn more and more new things, educators must provide them with new ideas and new ways of thinking. Besides the conventional textbooks, children should be introduced new education materials from their surroundings as well as from the internet. There are thousands of learning methods and materials available out there. If you are a parent, encourage your child to find the best way of learning, that way education will be a fun activity instead of a boring one. A good method should encourage children to think, not follow a lesson. The combination of learning and practice (or action) will encourage the children to make mistakes and learn from them. Nobody is perfect and it is not a crime to make a mistake. With the right approach, instead of being embarrassed of making some errors and mistakes, children will wisely learn from them and eventually become better individuals with better understanding about themselves and how things work.

Instead of bombarding children with repetitions of learning materials, education will be more effective if students are given the encouragement and chance to give their own opinions and arguments about even the simplest matter. While teaching materials are usually delivered orally, visual materials as well as observation are also very important.

PhD in Curriculum and Instruction For Better Education Materials and Methods

As any well-meaning teacher is aware, each student works at a speed which ticks according to his or her academic clock. Even in a class of supposedly smart students, everyone understands what is taught at varying rates and degrees. Hence, the skill in drawing up an effective curriculum is very often an art and science bundled together. With experience gained from many years of teaching and observing people, such a professional is best suited to pursue a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction to make an impact in the education system.

A PhD in this specialization revolves around much research on what and how best to teach people to comprehend, retain and pass on knowledge. Once this can be successfully accomplished, it also provides some guarantee that future generations benefit from what their predecessors have learnt and pass onto them. We often see present curriculum development and technology not in accordance with the times as students are thought based on what was evident eons back. Although it is important to reflect on history, it is just as crucial not to dwell on it. With little or no exposure to the present, there are no means to deal with the good and bad of today. It's likened to food without salt. Although it may give you nourishment, it is bland and not appetizing enough for a second helping.

By being a professional in the teaching or curriculum field, equipping yourself with a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction allows you to delve deeper into mapping an effective curriculum according to target student group. As part of your PhD research, you will cover and identify suitable methods of instruction and assessment for said curriculum. You then seek balance between the cognitive and behavioral approaches. Theories of learning by thought as compared to behavior are to be handled accordingly. Putting in layman's terms, sometimes you see to learn and other times, you learn to see.

This PhD program encompasses a wide spectrum of curriculum levels and areas. Specialization can be in the study of the curriculum development and technology itself or by disciplines such as languages, sciences, mathematics. They may focus from elementary to middle school to tertiary levels, or even concentrate on adult teaching or special education. Whichever it may be, there are various areas for one who is interested to improve the current curriculum to produce a wiser generation with practical capabilities.

Cautions About Buying Online Educational Materials

When the Internet first materialized from the ether and teachers discovered its potential as a research and educational tool, it became a teacher responsibility to educate students on the "Good, Bad, and the Ugly" of the Internet. Even today, students still have difficulty discerning fact from just plain garbage on the Internet. They still believe that everything they read there is TRUE. Now I am discovering that many adults have the same trouble. My biggest concern with this is in the area of educational materials.

In the real world, most people still feel that teachers should be held to a higher standard and that schools should be "doing right" by their child. Parents are quick to complain if something goes wrong. Teachers today have to be fingerprinted and go through extensive background checks--even teachers who have had perfect records for 30 years.

At the same time, parents are buying "educational materials" from the Internet with just the assumption that these materials are appropriate for their child and are correct. Parents are also reading articles and looking at websites and accepting that what they are reading is fact without doing any research of the topic or checking into the background of the author.

I recently read an article about becoming a psychologist. Since I have a degree in Psychology, I was interested in what the author had to say. I was shocked to see him write that you can become a psychologist with a 2-year Associates degree. This is simply NOT TRUE! His article ended with a link to a site pushing Psychology programs. It was not his site-he had misread some of the information from the site-and he is not a Psychologist himself. I suspect he has no Psychology training at all.

I read a large number of tutoring articles all written by the same person. He had terrible grammar and spelling (he needed a tutor) and some of his articles contained information that was inaccurate. Surprise! Every article ended with a link to an online tutoring site.

I don't have trouble with the concept of using articles to drive traffic to a site to sell products like eBooks on how to get you ex back or how to market an online business or search engine optimization. You, the buyer, realize these sites and/or authors have a vested interest in getting you to buy their product. The important issue is that if you get taken for a ride, only YOU suffer the consequences.

This is not the case for educational materials being purchased by parents for their children. If parents buy materials that are not produced by educators, are not based on sound educational practices, or are actually bad materials, it is the CHILD who will suffer the consequences. What you do to yourself is your business, but what you do to a child is everyone's business. Online educational sites and materials need to be held to that higher standard. Parents need to know that the producers of these materials are "up to date" with their knowledge and can be trusted.

A few years ago, when the home-schooling movement began to grow quickly, there was an increased demand for materials they could use. The Internet is now "littered" with sites trying to make a buck off this demand. Typical worksheets are easy, quick, and cheap to produce. But just because someone can type two columns of addition problems doesn't make the worksheet good for your child. Current science is showing us that worksheets are contrary to the way the brain learns. I have found virtually no websites offering worksheets that are actually good for children. Many sites don't show examples of their material so you don't even know what you will be getting.

Writing and Editing Help for ESL Authors

Scientific and academic publishing have long been fueled by the publish-or-perish maxim. Researchers across the globe, particularly those for who English is not the first language (ESL, or English-as-a-second-language authors), face intense publication pressures. There are two main reasons why publishing research findings internationally is considered important. First, the sharing of scientific research finds is critical to the development of science. Second, publishing papers increases the academic and professional credibility of the researcher, as a trusted contributor to research in his or her field. Thus, the pressure on researchers to get published or be accepted for publication is immense and has led to an exponential increase in annual research output.

However, the biggest challenge ESL author's face is that of writing manuscripts that reflect the language standards expected by the international research community. Journals are becoming increasingly stringent with manuscript screening and poor English can in fact prevent a paper from being considered for publication or delay the publication process.

This is where seeking help from professional English editing services can ensure that ESL authors are able to submit publication-ready manuscripts that are free from grammatical and language errors. A good online editing service provider ascertains that the manuscript meets the widely accepted standards for language quality as well as helps ESL authors improve their writing skills. Today, authors have access to a number of online English editing service providers that assist authors through various stages of the publication process.

To begin with academic editing services help ESL authors by conducting a thorough check for all grammatical and language issues. But different service providers offer different levels of editing - from basic proofreading to intensive structural assessment through developmental editing. Proofreading, basic language-focused editing, and intensive language and structural editing are the three most commonly available service offerings for ESL authors. Depending on their editorial requirements they can choose the service that suits their needs.

For example, an intensive editorial review can help ESL authors when:

• They are not sure whether they have followed all the conventions in writing an article for journal submission.
• They do not have much experience in writing articles for journal submission.
• They are open to making changes to the structure or content of their manuscripts.
• They are looking for extensive editing support at no additional charge after the first round of editing.

For most ESL authors who have significant experience in writing articles for journal submission, basic language editing is a cost-effective option. A basic language edit provides detailed sentence-level changes in order to make the English sound smooth and natural, while bringing out the meaning clearly. Proofreading ensures that the manuscript is free of glaring typographical, grammatical, or spelling errors.

Scientific manuscript editing and proofreading can also help eliminate other errors such as incorrect punctuation (e.g., with the use of commas and brackets to set off additional information within text), inaccurate symbols (e.g., using the numeral zero instead of the degree symbol), or inconsistent use of capitalization with section headings.

ESL researchers may have gained mastery over their field, but they may not be excellent writers. Seeking the assistance of an English editing service could help them improve the quality of their manuscripts. A good editor could make the crucial difference between publication and rejection (or delayed publication). I am admittedly a word addict, ever enthralled by the infinite potential of words to enable people to reach out, express, forge relationships, and build our own languages, histories, and futures. As a BELS-certified editor, I have helped authors develop effective, publication-ready manuscripts. And now, as a content writer at Editage - English Editing Service Provider, I thrive in the engaging universe of words to create compelling communication materials.

If it is Not Free, It is of No Value

A m

an was extremely poor. He had no job and no wealth. He became extremely frustrated with life and deiced to commit suicide. He went to a hill and decided to jump from there to end his life. When he was about to jump, a wise man stooped him from jumping. The poor man started crying and asked the wise man, "Why have you saved me. I have nothing. I don't want to live." "Who said, you have nothing.

You are a millionaire", said the wise man. The poor man looked surprised and said "You must be joking. I have nothing" The wise man gave an offer, "OK. Then I can make you a millionaire now." "How?" asked the poor man in disbelief. "I have a friend, who needs an eye. If you can give me one of your eyes, I can give you 100,000. You can still live as you have two eyes" The wise man suggested. The poor man thought for a while. Then hesitantly said that he couldn't give his eye. Then the wise man suggested to give him his Kidney, legs and other body parts for a price but the poor man refused to part with his limbs. Then the wise man calculated the price of different parts of his body and explained that if only his body parts are valued at many millions, how can he be poor. The poor man understood the value of him and decided to work hard. Gradually he became a millionaire due to his efforts.

Most of us are like the poor man as we feel that we are poor as we have very little wealth as compared to others. In the world of materialism, we have learned to value everything and every person in terms of money. A man is worth the money one has or capable to earn. So everyone try for higher salary and larger income to become valuable and important. Yet, all the money of this world can't buy the things which are really valuable to a human being. The most valuable things in life are those that still cost nothing.

Unfortunately, in the era of materialism, man has stopped valuing the things that are made available to him free. What is free? Anything that is not saleable is either not available or provided free. If anything is not saleable in the market, for a businessman, it has no value but for a man it is the most valuable thing as it is truly invaluable. The life can only be made beautiful and fulfilling from the things that are too valuable to be available for sale.

The Joy of Freedom

Freedom is one of the most valuable gift that a man has. Compared to our previous generations, we have considerable freedom. People have freedom of speech, thoughts, expression, to choose friend and chose a profession what they like. In the modern world, everyone is free as no one is owned by anyone. The parents, don't own the child and the Rulers don't own the ruled. We can choose to do whatever we wish. Imagine the people, who have all the wealth and power but no freedom. Or imagine a person who is lodged in jail and lost all his freedom. These people can pay anything to become free. Yet most fail to value the freedom as it is available to them free. Dick Cheney has rightly said

"It is easy to take liberty for granted, when you have never had it taken from you."

Health is Wealth

Many thousands years ago, Buddha said "Every human being is the author of his own health or disease". The same holds today. It cost nothing to be healthy. If only people are little careful about their food habits and keep themselves active, they can remain healthy. Billions of people, world over are healthy without spending a penny on medicine. Most of the people suffer illness, not due to lack of anything but due to overindulgence of things. Most people fail to value health unless they have lost it completely. People somehow, believe that if they have good money they can also buy health. A. J. Reb Materi said

"So many people spend their health gaining wealth, and then have to spend their wealth to regain their health."

However, a good health can be maintained free and the health bought with money harldy last. Yet few people appreciate good health as they get it free from nature.

The Magic of Love

Love is another gift that is available to all man free. People fail to value love because, it is available in plenty and spread everywhere. A person starts getting love of the parents and relatives from the very day when he is born. A child is loved by all, even strangers. Love is available free and unconditionally to most people as a rule. However, people don't value love because it is free and prefer to find love which is available at a price. So as an adult, they visit prostitutes, have extramarital affairs and pay heavy gifts to their girlfriends to get love while ignoring the love of the spouse, parents, relatives and children as it is available for free. Yet when they lose the free love give, they loose everything in life. A love that can be bought and sold in the market is just not love.

The Justice of Time

There may be wide disparity in the distribution of wealth in this world as per the laws made by the man, but God has been extremely fair in giving time to man. A multi-billionaire man does not live longer than an ordinary man. All wealth and medicines of the world, can't add years in the life of a person. We all have almost same time at our disposal in this world. However, most people don't value their time because it is free. They spent it for acquiring more wealth rather than enjoying what they have got. They don't realize that time can never come back. Once can never buy time which has gone. If people use their time properly, they can enjoy their life fully.

The Value of Friends

Charles Caleb Colton said "True friendship is like sound health; the value of it is seldom known until it be lost." How True? Yet how many people value friendship. They have all the time for making money but no time for friends unless they can get some benefit from them. People often make friends to do business, make money or become powerful. However, a true friendship is one that is free without any motive. If friendship comes with a price tag, it is useless and of little value.

The Cost of Happiness

Happiness is available to all man free. Even animals are happy without any possession. It cost nothing to feel happy. People can be happy even living in slums and earning less than a dollar a day. However, people try to buy happiness by spending huge sums of money and time. They visit different parts of the world, go to recreation and amusement parks, and earn a lot of money and power to make themselves happy. They treat happiness as a commodity that can be purchased from the market. Yet the more wealth one gets, the more one desires and in the process one fail to get happiness. It does not make you happy, if you get what you want. But if you are happy, you get what you want. In the words of Albert Schweitzer,

"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful."

Yet the true happiness comes free in this world. The more you distribute happiness, the more you will get happiness. So make others happy without any motive, and you will get happiness free for life. Happiness bought from money is value nothing, as it does not last.

Understand the Value of the Free Gifts

In the material era today, there is a tendency to put a price tag on everything. People believe that higher is the tag, the more valuable is the thing or person. However, good things in life are not for sale. So either you can consider it cheap as they are available for free or you can consider it invaluable as they can never be purchased. Either way, you are right. However, if you can value the free things even before losing them, you have got everything in your life and you have already become a wealthy and happy person.