Parents' News 07 November 2002
 In
the news this week...
...it's going to be Barbie in stockings - rather
than Barbie in a stocking - this Christmas. Plus exercise and dyslexia,
the trouble with snoring, and the 'Power Nap Club'.
Trouble in snore
Children who snore in their sleep are more likely
to face learning problems, according to a new study in the USA. Sleep
researchers at the University of Arizona claim that snoring loudly could
be an indication of problems such as enlarged tonsils, adenoids, tongue
or even sleep apnoea.
The first study to link snoring to school performance
says that 25% of children who snore loudly were identified as having learning
problems by both parents and teachers as opposed to just 9% of children
who never snored. Many researchers also think that sleep problems can
be linked to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Is there a
snorer in your family? See our discussion! And find out more about
ADHD online - Attention Deficit Hyperactivity
Disorder, how to help a toddler
with ADHD, and the connection between hyperactivity
and diet.
Latest expert's answers
Elizabeth Cook is here help with your queries
about homework, university application, pre-school, SATs, GCSEs, A-levels,
and anything else to do with your child's education. Elizabeth has worked
as a primary school teacher, and then as a deputy head for many years.
Elizabeth is now a university lecturer involved in preparing students
to become Foundation stage (3-to-5 yr-olds) and Primary School teachers.
A diagnosis of 'Special
Educational Needs' can be upsetting for parents. Find out what
'special needs' are, and the support available to help children overcome
these difficulties.
Does under-stimulation lead to disruptive behaviour
at school? And how can you encourage a bored
teen to take an interest in academic work?
How much homework
should a Year 09 student be doing? Raisingkids.co.uk's Education expert
solves the Mystery of the Vanishing Homework Assignments.
Sleep safe
Experts at Glasgow's Royal Hospital for
Sick Children believe there may be a link between the bacteria in used
mattresses and cot deaths. A 4-year study found that routine use of an
infant mattress previously used by another child was significantly associated
with increased risk of sudden death syndrome (SIDS), especially if the
mattress was from another home. Find out the facts
about cot death fears.
Hello (x-rated) Dolly!
If you have a little girl of, say, 4, 5
or 6 years old, it is quite likely that she is going through, or has gone
through, a Barbie phase. Nothing wrong with that, but a glance at Barbie's
latest incarnation might cause your eyebrows to lift a bit. Available
from US toy company FAO Schwartz's website is the latest 'lingerie Barbie'.
She is dressed in black stockings, black suspenders, black stillettos,
a black 'merry widow bustier' and see-through black 'peekaboo peignoir'
(don't ask).
Here's a quote from the product-description on
the site: 'Barbie doll exudes a flirtatious attitude in her heavenly merry
widow bustier...' The doll retails at $45 and is recommended for 14 and
over. But how many 14-year-olds have you seen playing with Barbie?
It seems reasonable to ask who this doll is really
aimed at, and whether the pressures on children to become sexually aware
before they even hit puberty have taken another step forward. FAO Schwarz's
site states that the company has been 'entertaining children of all ages
for 139 years'. This Barbie certainly seems more suitable for male 'children'
of 18 and over.
What do you think? Start a discussion!
Got a 4-9-year-old who wants everything she sees?
Find out how to explain money doesn't
grow on trees.
Dream on...
Are your children stressed out by the relentless
pressure of academic life? The Americans, first as always, have come up
with an answer - the after-school sleeping club. Forget sport, TV, hanging
out and other traditional teenage relaxation pursuits - pupils at Greenwich
High School in Connecticut are meeting in a classroom after school to
have a kip. The 'Power Nap Club' has its own Latin motto, 'Veni, Vidi,
Dormivi' (I came, I saw, I slept) and 20 hardworking pupils now attend
regularly for a restorative post-school doze.
Here at Raisingkids we propose that this is the
best idea to come out of America since Mickey Mouse and should not only
be adopted by all UK schools, but introduced for all hardworking parents!
Bedtime blues - Establishing good
sleeping habits in school children.
Everything you need to know about infant
sleep.
Teenage boyfriend/girlfriend
sleepovers - should you say yes?
Adopting a political stance
Who would have thought that an issue like
adoption would split the Conservative party and leave their leader, Ian
Duncan Smith, fighting for his political life? Eight Tory MPs rebelled
on Monday and voted with the Government to support adoption by unmarried
(including gay) couples.
Are you unmarried and trying to adopt? Or perhaps
you are married with adopted children - what do you think? Join our Discussion!
And what about 'internet adoptions'?
Better late than never...
The average age of first-time mothers in
New Zealand has risen from just under 25 in the 1970s to slightly over
30 today. And a Brisbane University study in Australia found 82% of women
were prepared to wait until the age of 35 before having their first child
- with a third saying they would wait till they were over 40.
But declining birth rates in the Antipodes have
prompted calls from the Fertility Society of Australia for greater education
in schools about the risks of delaying motherhood until almost 40.
The first year
of life? What to expect.
Second time around? How to prepare
your toddler for the new arrival.
Exercising the mind
British scientists have given their backing to
a new exercise-based treatment for dyslexia. 36 dyslexic children aged
between 7 and 10 took part in a study involving physical exercises such
as throwing beanbags and performing manual tasks on one leg. Half the
children performed the daily exercises for six months and half didn't.
Those who took part showed major improvements
in many areas including verbal fluency, reading, writing and comprehension
scores in SATS. The number with reading difficulties dropped from 78%
to 56% and writing skills the yearly rate of improvement was 17 times
what was expected. The exercises are designed to stimulate a part of the
brain called the cerebellum which is involved in coordinating movement
- the theory is that cerebellar defects could affect eye-tracking ability
and hence lead to reading problems.
Exeter University's David Reynolds (who has been
highly critical of unproven dyslexia treatments in the past) and colleague
Rod Nicholson of Sheffield University say 'The results do suggest that
the exercise treatment was effective in the controversial role of improving
cognitive skills and literacy performance.'
You're in the army now
Inevitably schools hold massive amounts of personal
and confidential information on their pupils. But British parents wouldn't
expect to be doorstepped by Armed Services recruiters as a result. Things
are different in the land of the 'free.' A new law in America forces schools
to pass on contact information to the military or lose all public funding.
Consequently, many military recruiters are pursuing students with mailshots,
phone calls and personal visits - even if pupils and parents object. 'The
only thing that will get us to stop contacting the family is if they call
their congressman,' says Major Johannes Paraan, head U.S. Army recruiter
for Vermont and northeastern New York. "Or maybe if the kid died, we'll
take them off our list."
Is it right to give 'weapons'
as toys? Our members discuss the issue.
Does university work?
Fewer than half of university students think that
university is an adequate preparation for working life, according to a
survey by Milkround.com. 67% of the 1,026 students surveyed were of the
view that it is the job of universities to ease young people into the
harsh world of work, but opinion varied between universities - students
and Oxford and Cambridge, for instance, were more likely to see education
as an end in itself, and students from the London School of Economics
perhaps predictably were least likely to agree.
Find out more about teens
and employment, teaching teens to manage
money, and preparing for university.
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