How To Deal With Children on the Death of a Pet

Posted on | by KD Novelties

For many people, pets are more than just animals – they are members of the family. A pet is a great way to teach your child about unconditional love, and about responsibility depending on how old they are. Unfortunately, pets do not generally have lifespans as long as humans, and pets may also experience a number of different health problems or exposure to risks tha
t may eventually lead to their passing.

The potential for the death of a pet is no reason to shy away from getting a pet to begin with, though it is an important topic that parents should consider. As heartbreaking as the passing of a family member is, even if it’s a pet, the experience can help children grow emotionally by teaching them valuable life lessons about the fleeting nature of life. As parents, it may be helpful to know how to navigate this sort of situation, especially if this is a new experience for your child.

Breaking the Bad News
When it comes to any kind of sensitive topic, it is best to divulge the news in a private place where kids feel safe. Try to talk to them one-on-one but make sure that they are comfortable as well. This will help the realization easier, though it will not make it any less difficult.

Depending on how old your child is and what their maturity level is, you will need to gauge just how much information they need in order to understand the situation and to come to grips with the reality of the events as well.

If your pet was sick before passing away, you may want to discuss the possibility of death or moving on beforehand and painting topics like putting them to sleep, surgeries, treatments, and simply passing in their sleep in as good of a light as possible. Just as you would console someone about a person passing, giving the news gently can go a long way, and promising that your pet is in a better place now can certainly help.

If the pet’s passing was more sudden, then you can calmly explain what has happened. Being brief can help to ease the pain, without being too specific. But if they ask, which older children may typically do, then divulge more information as you see fit but respect their desire to understand the situation and their desire to know more, even if it is difficult for you as well.

It may be tempting to tell your child that their pet ran away or is lost somehow, but lying will only beget more questions and may instill them with a false hope that their pet may eventually come back. Lying to children will only make matters worse especially if they discover that you have lied, which can lead to many other emotions and can tarnish your trust.

Caring and Coping
Dealing with death is difficult, and people grieve in different ways. Depending on the nature of their pet’s death children may feel anything from sadness and loneliness to even anger and frustration, especially if it was an accident or their pet had to be euthanized. It’s important to let children know that these emotions are natural, and that it is important to work through them. Try to encourage them to share their emotions or let them out in other ways, such as writing in a journal or drawing a picture to help them work through it, if they would rather be alone. Make sure to tell them that it is OK if they don’t want to talk about what they’re feeling at first, but gently remind them that you will be there to listen when they are ready.

Parents are likely to feel upset over the loss of a pet as well, especially if it was a family pet like a cat or a dog. Showing your own emotions around your child can help them cope with their own emotions, and it can help you as well. It’s only natural to feel sad after losing a loved one, and showing your child how you work through your feelings can help them work through theirs, too.

Moving On
There are many ways in which parents can help children come to terms with the passing of a pet, and many ways in which they can heal themselves and as a family. Having a special ceremony or a burial may help provide you with some closure as well as an opportunity to say goodbye or make something commemorative for the lost pet. Other projects can help as well, such as drawing pictures, making scrapbooks or collecting memories.

For many children, grieving over a pet is much like experiencing the loss of a person, and as a result they may be more emotional and upset than they would be about a distant relative. For children, pets are friends, family, and part of their daily lives. Encourage them to talk about their pet with love and remembrance, and help them work through their emotions. It is difficult to experience loss, especially since it feels as if the pain will not go away. Your child will always have fond memories of their pet and in time, the pain will lessen, but the memories will always remain.

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Why Spelling Matters

Posted on | by KD Novelties

Making reading a regular habit can help to significantly improve reading comprehension and understanding, but so can other skills – spelling being one of them. Studies have shown that an understanding of the key elements of spelling, the sounds and letters used to make up a complete word, can result in better reading skills.

A study conducted by Catherine Snow in 2005 underlines how the relationship between letters and sounds can be better understood for spelling, as well as reading. According to Snow spelling and reading build and rely on the same mental representation of a word. Knowing the spelling of a word makes the representation of it sturdy and accessible for fluent reading. The study also found that the ability to read words by sight, versus sounding out letters, is a skill that requires the ability to match letters and letter combinations with sounds. Not all words are visually distinctive, especially words that are similarly spelled or contain the same letters and in different combinations. However, learning to spell can help support memory for sight-reading whole words, which can be used in both spelling and reading as a result.

Spelling can be difficult for some, but there are plenty of ways parents can encourage these skills, much like how they can encourage reading outside of books.

Break It Down Daily
Ask your children to read off road signs, cereal boxes, you name it – but have them sound out letters as well. Tracing words, drawing words, and familiarizing them with letters can help tremendously.  Listening skills also play a crucial part in daily activities such as asking your child “what letter does ‘bat’, end with? What letter does ‘sock’ begin with and so on. Playing these games can help your child’s ability to hear sounds in words.

Encourage Vocal Skills
Spelling and reading are both intrinsically tied to the sounds of letters and letter combinations. Encourage them to read aloud. Children need to use the language they will be writing. Having a conversation, telling stories, playing word games and even play-acting can help kids develop key vocal skills as well as improve their vocabulary.

Bring Writing into the Mix
Writing regularly can significantly help children spell, and read as well. Writing can help children get their thoughts down on paper and can help them sound out and express their thoughts and feelings. By creating a visual element, such as writing down letters and words, kids are more likely to develop key spelling and reading skills. Their penmanship, and their spelling, may not be perfect at first, but if it is a routine activity, they will grow more and more familiar with the act of writing, spelling, and communicating effectively.

For younger kids you can write each of the words, and then have them trace it with a black crayon. Just make sure your child uses straight, not curved, lines when he outlines the word.

Get Creative
Applying study skills you may have used in college can help, too. Just as a university student may color-code their notes and post-its, using anything from highlighters and finger paints to cut-out construction paper and sidewalk chalk, you can help bring letters and spelling to life by making it a little more fun, and vibrant, too.

Old methods still work well such as purchasing letter magnets for the refrigerator and having them spell out words. Rhyming games are fun and help children to think and make similarities with letter sounds.  The idea here is to do it in daily bits and segments so that each time you do some sort of spelling lesson it becomes a game and children will love to learn.

4 Sleeping Problems Affecting Kids and How To Treat Them

Posted on | by KD Novelties

Adults aren’t the only people who suffer from stress, anxiety and not enough rest.  In many cases, all of these things could be linked, and it is something that parents should certainly look out for when it comes to monitoring their child’s sleeping patterns. There are plenty of things that can affect a kid’s quality of sleep, and these issues can have consequences. Lack of sleep is something that should be taken seriously, especially since it can lead to decreased concentration at school, a weakened immune system, an increased risk of obesity and weight-gain, moodiness, and much more.

Take a good look at your child’s sleeping patterns. Do they have any quirks or habits like snoring or sleep walking? Are they tired every morning and often fatigued during the day? Here are some of the biggest sleep issues that affect children of different ages, as well as what you can do to help rectify the problem.

Stress and Anxiety
Children are still learning, growing and becoming individuals, and there are plenty of hardships that come along with that. A child’s worries can range from present factors, like school stress, making friends or bullying, to real world what-ifs like the possibility of a fire or a burglar trying to break into your home.

Signs of stress and anxiety in children often involve staying awake despite their tiredness as well as a general restlessness when they do manage to get some sleep. Kids who worry or feel afraid may also ask for extra one-on-one time before bed or even ask to sleep with you before sleeping or during the night.

Working through stress is important, and as a parent it’s vital that you do not belittle their worries. Instead, try to help them channel their anxieties and worries in other ways. Encourage them to keep a journal. Writing can help kids empty their heads before bed, plus it helps them learn to work through their emotions and feelings. Also consider reading a book before bed, whether you read together or they read on their own, to help get their mind off things before drifting off to sleep.

Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a condition that affects a person’s intake of oxygen while they sleep. In children, sleep apnea is often caused by oversized tonsils, adenoids, or even chronic sinus infections that affect how well they breathe while they sleep. Sleep apnea often causes loud or excessive snoring, but it can also cause restless sleep and frequent waking in the middle of the night.

The only way to accurately diagnose sleep apnea is to visit a lab, but it’s important that parents pay attention to sleeping patterns in order to diagnose the issue. Treatment aims to help improve breathing and may involve tonsil removal, sinus medication, or other options.

Sedentary Screen Time
Just as with adults, kids who don’t move around much or spend too much time in front of a screen may suffer from a lack of fulfilling sleep as a result. Not getting enough exercise has many other side effects as most people are aware, but it can also affect how well you sleep. Plus, lack of sleep can contribute just as much to weight gain and risk for obesity as remaining relatively sedentary does. But no matter how active or inactive your day was, it’s important that children refrain from looking at any bright screens before bed – and the same goes for adults. Studies have shown that the stimulation inspired by watching TV, looking at your phone or playing on your tablet can interfere with quality of sleep. So many experts suggest planning at least an hour’s worth of screen-free time before bed. Make getting ready for bed a habit – such as turn off all devices, brush teeth and change into pajamas, and plan a screen-free activity, whether it is reading or simple conversation to help you, and your children, power down and get ready for a good night’s rest.

Sleepwalking
According to Karen Ballaban-Gil, MD, a pediatric neurologist at The Children’s Hospital at Montefiore in NYC says that 20-40% of school-age kids sleepwalk on occasion. This is usually caused by an incomplete sleep-stage transition, causing the brain to remain asleep while the body is capable of getting up and moving around. Sleepwalking can be dangerous, especially since kids are unaware of their actions and parents may not be around to monitor them.

When it comes to spotting sleepwalking, parents can usually see signs if they go to sleep later than their children normally do since sleepwalking often occurs during the first few hours of sleep. Sleepwalking also tends to run in families, so if you, your spouse, or anyone else in the family has been known to sleepwalk in the past, it is definitely something you should watch out for in your kids.
For the most part, kids will outgrow this tendency – but it is absolutely imperative that parents make sure they are aware of the situation and that they create safe spaces for their children in the event that they sleepwalk. Make sure their rooms are clean and that the floor is clear of any hazards. Put bars on windows, child-proof areas like the bathroom or kitchen, and make sure that you keep an eye on them or an ear out for them when you can. If you catch your child sleepwalking, gently guide them back to bed as much as you can. If it becomes a common occurrence, be sure to discuss it with your child’s pediatrician to look out for any underlying causes and other solutions.

Final Thoughts: Children need sleep, just like the rest of us. Without a good night’s rest, kids can suffer from a plethora of problems physically, mentally, at school, and in other aspects of their lives. Children ages 5-12 should generally get around 10-11 hours of sleep per night. Teenagers, on the other hand, generally need 8-10, but it is also important to pay attention to your child’s sleeping habits, needs and other behaviors. Sometimes, kids (and adults) may rest better when they sleep at certain times or for a specific number of hours. No matter what, it is important that kids get the recommended amount of sleep for the sake of their health and their overall well being.