Typecast

Well established social skills will benefit your child throughout their life. These skills can help children to build up their confidence, form friendships at school and even help to open up future career opportunities. Some children are naturally very sociable, while others need a helping hand to build these invaluable skills. There are many ways in which parents can support their children in developing their social skills and Surbiton High School is here to help with the following advice… Starting conversations with new people can be difficult for some children. To help your child feel more confident about speaking to others, it can be useful to prepare a few conversation starters. These could include some really simple compliments or questions, such as 'I like your hair’ or 'what is your favourite sport?' School playgrounds are busy and loud with outdoor toys for kids and can often feel overwhelming to children. It can be helpful for quieter children if pare...

A teacher plays an important role in your child's life. Your son or daughter will spend each day with their teacher in the classroom, which can have an incredible impact on their enjoyment of school. For this reason it is extremely important for parents to get to know their child’s teacher and build a good relationship together. Good communication with your child's teacher is essential to your son or daughter’s academic success. The more information parents and teachers share with each other, the more your child will benefit. Here is some great advice from St Hilda’s School in Hertfordshire, on how to build a good relationship with your child’s teacher… As parents we want our children to make the most of their education and succeed at school. In order for this to happen it is essential to have regular contact with their teacher. ‘Parent Evenings’ are an ideal opportunity for parents and teachers to communicate. Parents can find out more about the subjects being taught in the...

Routines have endless benefits from helping us feel more in control of everything, and saving time to creating structure and breaking bad habits. Its nit a surprise that we all aim for that perfect school routine including the morning rush! But where do we start? Luckily for us, a private school in Somerset have provided us with some great tips and tricks to help us all establish a good school routine in time for the new year! Getting yourself and your family up, washed, dressed, fed and ready for the busy day ahead can seem like a mammoth task when your alarm is going off in the morning. The possibility of running late, leaving without breakfast or your children bickering with each other can make matters worse. If this leaves you feeling stressed or dreading getting out of bed follow this advice to try and make it a bit easier for you and your family in the mornings. Don’t leave it all till the morning There are a few things you can prepare in the evening to save those precious sho...

We have a tiny back yard and, even after seven years here, we still miss having a proper garden even though we are not very green-fingered.  We occasionally sit out there but it's not very inspiring or pretty.  It's always in need of a 'touch-up' because we are an end terrace so we get the brunt of the weather.  It's a hard space to do anything with because it is so narrow with no ebb and flow but it gets all of the afternoon and evening sun in the summer. We bought Builders sand & cement (£9.08) Masonry paint (15.98) 2 x filled hanging baskets and brackets (£13.96) Plants and compost for hanging baskets in the shed  (10.98) (and I promise, that is not a fix.  We just bought things we thought we would need and it added up to exactly £50 after a discount on the plants that was available on the day.) We already had additional paint hanging baskets best branded rolling trays   a wind ornament that Kev keeps telling me is a was...

I have a few things whizzing through my head at the moment that aren't really big enough for a full blog post so I may as well tip them out here. As soon as I click 'Publish Post' I'll either regret it or think of another 10 things to add. I was reading this article the other day which reminded me of my inability to remember on which side the petrol cap is on my car and it offered a little tip to help you remember. This little 'reminder' was disproved by the second half of the article but I still had a look to see if the arrow was in my car. IT IS! And in my husbands car. And in my colleagues car. I don't care... I'm amazed! I've decided to lose weight (again) but have no idea how to do this effectively whilst hunched over a computer all day at work and then no motivation at home in the evening. Plus, I like my one-night-a-week bottle of wine therapy on a Friday. I need a kick up the arse a.s.a.p. And why, when I have made the decision to l...

This year has been a frugal one as you may have guessed by my posts about coupons  (we need to do more clipping in this country, in my opinion) and my (very popular) money saving tips .  I'm also trying to use cashback websites more often these days too and save up my cashback amounts so I have a little bit of a windfall just before Christmas. Speaking of which, how are you budgeting for Christmas this year?  I'm trying to be careful and I'm sharing my purchases out between in-store bargains and online offers such as this website .  I'm a huge fan of money-off round-up sites which are really easy to use and they have loads of the big-name stores that you'll recognise. Argos, John Lewis and Boden are all registered on there.  Click here for some more suggestions. Another 'hot tip' from me at the moment is to become an expert on a website like AcceIntl.com  or have a search for online competitions.  I love finding giveaways on...

My 9 year old granddaughter is that in between "tween" stage where she still really likes toys but also wants to be a bit grown up when it comes to fashion and make-up. I found out that she's been learning about the environment at school and I've had all the lectures about using metal straws and having to be vigilant with my recycling so when I saw the Watadventure personalised book, I knew it would be a hit this Christmas. " From the Sewer to the Stars : The Rise of the WatAdventurers " is a personalisable eco-adventure book designed to empower children to save the planet - both in fiction and in real life.  Perfect for my little Greta Thunberg.  It's aimed at children aged 6 to 12 years old and you can personalise the book with their name and an avatar version of themselves on the front cover and throughout the book.  The book features two novels : "Saving Slime Town" and "Planet B".  It also incorporates ...

When I started running, I pulled on an old pair of joggers and a baggy t-shirt then picked up my fairly well-worn Reeboks and set off for the first session of the Couch To 5K group.   BIG MISTAKE!  Because I was wearing "my own clothes" I didn't look or feel the part. Also, when I first started looking for fitness clothes, it was a bit of a minefield - I wasn't sure what was best to buy. However, once I'd bought a proper pair of running shoes and specific garb that I would only use for running I felt much more invested in the whole activity.  Over the past few months I have bought a few more items of running clothes but I've ensured that they fit me properly and are comfy. I've also bought a new pair of running shoes recently which are slightly lighter and more fitted around my feet and work well with my best compression socks . As for the rest of it... have a look at my video where I show you what I actually wear. None of it was expens...