STEM education can help your child develop strong analytic and observational skills. Even if your child does not become a STEM professional, engagement with these topics can foster a greater curiosity for the world and drive a passion for learning that can last a lifetime.

Here’s some more information about what topics and fields STEM education involves, and how you can foster a passion for STEM in your child.

What We Know About STEM

STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. This is a term that was coined by Judith Ramaley in 2001 to describe an area in which science is the main foundation. These subjects are extremely important when it comes to the growth and the economic development of a country. Unfortunately, when it comes to the achievements in the STEM areas, the United States has been behind several competing countries. When a country has a strong STEM foundation, it can open the door to growth and achievement.

STEM and Children

When it comes to STEM Education, young ones must be involved. Historically, the science field has been dominated by white men. In order to make a change in the field, parents have to invest time and energy in teaching their young children about science; this is specifically the case in girls and people of color. In reality, science can be enjoyable, educational, and rewarding. It all depends on the way that you choose to teach your children. You are about to read some helpful tips for teaching STEM subjects to children.

Science

The science part of STEM includes a host of different topics such as chemistry, geology, astronomy, and biology. When you expose your children to the sciences, they may decide to pursue a career in biology, agriculture, meteorology, zoology, or anything in the medical profession.

Start out by presenting different scientific topics to your kids in a fun way. On a starry night, take your kids outside and look up into the sky. Begin by teaching them the name of the constellations. Why not purchase a telescope as well? When it comes to chemistry, do something simple like teaching your child how to make a simple volcano. There are great YouTube videos that can help with that.

Technology

Children who are interested in technology might grow up to become software engineers, coders, computer programmers, or video game designers. Something as simple as playing a video game with your children can be a start. Next comes details about how video games are created. Reshma Saujani, the girls who code founder, has innovative lessons and books for girls when it comes to coding. She offers great resources to help your daughter to get even more interested in the fun aspects of coding.

Engineering

Children who are interested in engineering will go on to work as chemical engineers, mechanical engineers, or structural engineers who build roads, create medical equipment, and operate electrical systems. Engage your children by doing DIY engineering projects with them. Build fun things with your kids; you can use blocks, legos, or even just bottles. Teach your kids that figuring out how things are made can be fun.

Math

Engineers generally have a strong mathematics background, so make math enjoyable for your kids. Instead of making math one-dimensional, use toys, colors, pictures, and cards to teach the fun aspects of math. Your kids will be learning math in school, but it is not always taught in a way that is best for every young and creative mind. Start out with things that are simple and use game-based learning to help your children to see math as something that can be simple and enjoyable.

STEM In Your Family

For educators, motivating students to explore new areas of interest and eagerly accept new ways of learning is always a challenge. As a parent, you are the biggest influence on your children’s interests. Exposing children to a variety of different subjects will enable them to be consistent and curious learners. Delve into your child’s interests and present them with games, videos, and toys that are STEM-based. We need more variety in the STEM field, and it all starts with you.

Before the world went online, children worried about being bullied at school, on the playground, or in the park. However, today’s bullies have access to mobile phones, computers, gaming consoles, and other technology. This has led to the rise of cyberbullying, and this type of digital abuse can have far-reaching, devastating consequences.

Let’s take a closer look at it and how to prevent it from happening.

Tactics Of Cyberbullies

People who haven’t experienced cyberbullying might think it begins and ends with mean comments on the victim’s Facebook profile or nasty text messages. Those are a couple of tactics used by cyberbullies, but there are many more that can gravely affect a child’s psyche.

These are the most common ways in which bullies attack people online:

• Posting hateful, nasty comments about someone’s body, ethnicity, gender, religion, race, socio-economic background, or other characteristics online
• Posting embarrassing or hurtful comments about them online
• Posting or sending them threats of violence
• Posting comments or sending messages telling them to kill themselves
• Posting humiliating or mean photos or videos of or directed at the victim
• Creating a nasty fake profile, blog, or webpage about someone
• Creating fake profiles to gain personal information about the victim and then posting or sharing that information
• Creating fake profiles to spread false information about the victim
• Doxing victims by posting personal information such as their full name, contact details, home address, credit card number, social security, and more

As you can see from these tactics, cyberbullies use electronic devices such as mobile phones to harass, mock, or threaten people intentionally and repeatedly. Victims will agree that the effects can be as hurtful and damaging as face-to-face bullying on the playground, office environment, or anywhere else.  Bullying can even be a problem in college.

Cyberbullying – The Characteristics

Cyberbullying differs from bullying that happens in person, and the tactics that cyberbullies use have certain characteristics.

These are a few of those characteristics:

Anonymity – Cyberbullying often is anonymous. Bullies hide behind fake profiles, which makes it more challenging to put a stop to them. Not knowing who is behind the abusive behavior can also make it more terrifying for victims.

Difficult to detect – It’s easier for parents to detect physical bullying. For example, mom or dad would notice if Johnny or Bailey came home from school with a black eye or a ripped shirt. It’s far more difficult to detect that a child is receiving threats online if they don’t say anything about it to their parents.

Cyberbullying is ongoing – The persistence of this type of harassment is a major factor. Rather than being limited to school hours, bullies can use their phones or other devices to attack or harass victims at any time of the day or night.

Attacks can be permanent – If others share posts made by cyberbullies, or if online content goes undeleted, their attacks can be permanent. Some social media platforms may delete abusive content if reported, but it can be impossible to track everything shared. Once something has been posted online, it’s difficult to delete it completely.

Cyberbullying can be far-reaching – Due to the nature of the internet and social media platforms, cyberbullying has a much bigger audience than bullying that happens face-to-face. Nasty posts made about someone online can reach thousands of people around the world in a few minutes.

Cyberbullying Has Serious Effects

According to UNICEF, victims of cyberbullying often feel as though there is no escape. Whether they are at home, school, or anywhere else, they know that the bully can strike at any moment. The constant threat of attack can have serious consequences.

Cyberbullying can cause stress-related physical problems such as tension headaches, stomach aches or stomach upsets, and sleep loss. It can also have an emotional impact by making the victims feel ashamed about the things they enjoy. And it can cause mental anguish by making victims feel angry, embarrassed, stupid, or upset.

Some victims of cyberbullying have been made to feel so ashamed, embarrassed, and upset that they’ve never spoken out. Of course, the bullying did not stop. It got so bad that the victims took their own lives in some situations because they could not deal with it any longer.

Parents and children need to understand that, as terrible as cyberbullying can be, it’s not the end of the road for the victim. They can regain their peace of mind and confidence again. This takes time and possibly counseling, but recovery is possible.

Cyberbullying Prevention Tips For Young People

Arguments between people happen from time to time, and they’re normal. However, if someone is repeatedly nasty to you for no fault of your own, it’s bullying. Don’t blame yourself for it, because no one deserves to be bullied.

Save the evidence of bullying. Whether the cyberbully sends text messages, posts on Facebook, or leaves nasty comments on Instagram, save the messages, download the videos, or take screenshots of the posts. Evidence may help authorities take action if you have to proceed with a bullying lawsuit to end the harassment.

Do not retaliate. Your upset or angry response may add fuel to the fire. If bullies know they’re getting to you, they’re likely to continue. If you know the bully’s identity, don’t retaliate in vengeance because that will turn you into a bully too. Instead, save the evidence and seek help.

Tell someone you trust. Even if it seems difficult or embarrassing, telling a parent, relative, friend, or teacher what’s happening can be one of the best things you can do for yourself.

Cyberbullying Prevention Tips For Parents

Follow or befriend your child on social media. This way, you can keep an eye on what they’re doing and what others are saying in response to them.

Educate your child. Tell them about not accepting friend requests from strangers, and warn against posting personal information and compromising photos online.

Learn About Parental Control Apps that are designed to monitor and prevent cyberbullying before traditional signs become visible.

Be proactive. If you see cyberbullying taking place, report the posts – even if your child is not the victim – join the fight against cyberbullying.

Cyberbullying is one of the downsides of the digital age. Victims need all the support they can get, while bullies need to learn that good people will not accept their vile behavior.

Video games are often considered to be a bad “parasite” for children. People myth video games as a source of distractions that take children away from their studies and real life. While playing video games for an extreme amount of time could result in the said consequences, managed gaming sessions help kids be mentally stable.

Various pieces of research have concluded that video games let the human brain divert away from stressful circumstances and reduce anxiety. During a tough time, a person has to feel the sense of mastery, confidence and being in charge, while also breaking the thoughtful contact with the cause of the stress. Video games, strangely, have a mixture of exactly the right ingredients to deal with stress.

There are different types of anxiety disorders that your kids can suffer from. Panic disorder, Separation Anxiety or Social Anxiety, and others might make your children go through a hard time. But games can help them escape the unnecessary stress and the burden on their little brains. Developing an ideal schedule incorporating gaming sessions can help your kid deal with that stress.

Finding the right games to relieve stress

While gaming can relieve stress, it can also cause stress if the wrong games are played. Many games today are too competitive to play and the children might get frustrated if they keep losing a level of the game repeatedly.

As mentioned above, gaming relieves stress by putting the player at a stage where he feels in control. If he keeps losing a stage, again and again, the sense of being in control starts to wear off.

To ensure your kid doesn’t suffer from such type of stress, make sure he doesn’t play games that are unnecessarily hard and competitive. Casual games which relax the brain cells are the ideal fit for children.

Exposure to brain stimulation

Children’s minds are designed to absorb new information rapidly. That’s why the early years of a child’s life are the best to teach him life ethics and morals. If their brain doesn’t get enough stimulation and activity regularly, they might start to lose out on their creativity and brain capability.

Games are a great way to ensure your kid gets the necessary level of regular brain simulation. While physical activity is crucial for a healthy body, games are important for a sound mind.

Video games also let the children explore and express their emotions. When they’re trying to get through a level of a game, they’re developing problem-solving techniques. When they fail, they develop the notion of trying, again and again, until they succeed. When they do succeed, the children get the sense of joy and happiness that the brain releases after it’s accomplished a goal.

Keeping gaming sessions in check

Too much of a good thing often turns out to be bad; the same rule applies to video games. Where controlled gaming sessions have many positive impacts on children’s brains, playing games for an extended period might result in mental, as well as physical health concerns.

To begin with, longer-than-usual gaming sessions can produce strain on the eyes. The children might find it difficult to relax their eyes, stay calm, and sleep peacefully. Regular exposure to this strain can weaken the eyesight — which is a terrible, long-term problem.

A creative way to spend time

Children have plenty of time at home. While playing games 24/7 isn’t what I suggest, maintained gaming sessions can help children pass their time and avoid boredom.

Boredom often leads to unnecessary thoughts and worries about difficult circumstances that could result in anxiety and stress. During hard times, we want to stay away from boredom, and giving away an hour of our daily routine to gaming helps well.

Unlocking desired games with residential proxies

Not all games are created equal. You want to make sure your child only plays games that are relaxing and relieve stress. When you find such a game locked due to geographical barriers, you can unlock and access it by using residential proxies.  These proxies also offer a way of protecting your privacy preventing your data from getting stolen while playing games online.  They can also improve browsing speed.

Conclusion

Games are a great way for children to relieve stress and fight anxiety in tough times. They provide the necessary mental stimulation to children’s brains and boost their creativity. However, gaming sessions must be kept in check and shouldn’t exceed a set period.

Read about additional calming strategies for anxious children.

Keeping your kids entertained is not an easy task, especially with the limited movement we have had recently. There are however many ways to keep your children entertained while supporting their development, and these can take place at home.

If you’re fresh out of ideas, here are 5 ways in which you can keep your kids entertained at home while creating fun activities for the whole family!

1. Arts & Crafts

Arts and crafts are a fantastic way to keep your kids entertained while also developing essential skills. When children paint, it improves their dexterity as they are being mobile and using their muscles. Particularly in infants, development occurs both mentally and physically as the actions stimulate their brain.

Using painting by numbers techniques is fantastic for older children. The smaller sections require additional focus and dexterity, honing their fine motor skills. It is also a fantastic way to get them to unwind and remove themselves from technology, connecting with reality.

There is a large scope for painting with kids as the limitations of their work are that of their imagination. It’s important to encourage the use of different materials, textures, and tools to let creativity take over. Encouraging this level of creative freedom is essential when it comes to neurological development.

2. Sound & Music

Music is a sensory experience, much like taste, touch, and sight. If you have the willpower to endure the noise, music is a fantastic tool to support children’s development. It’s important to expose children to music for several beneficial reasons, all of which develop cognitive function and support learning.

For younger children, listening to music is significant in helping them distinguish sounds and noises. As they then listen to lyrics, they hear familiar sounds which they can distinguish into letters and words. The repetition of hearing sounds through speech, through music and books, will solidify their learning and understanding as they grow.

Music should be created, not just listened to. When your kids are older, it’s important to introduce them to instruments. These include a piano, drums, guitar, or even their own voice. Playing with instruments is a way to unleash creativity and you can support the children with making their music. You never know, this hobby may turn into a passion and you could have the next musical star on your hands!

3. Puzzles

There are many levels of puzzles, from basic to advanced. Toddlers and young children are often exposed to simplistic puzzles in the form of putting a few pieces back together. These toys are fantastic for several reasons, they teach children to recognize shapes, hone their concentration and cognitive skills, and give them a sense of satisfaction when they are complete.

Puzzles are a fantastic way to keep children entertained as they get older as well. With the range of puzzles available, you are sure to find one on a subject that interests and intrigues your kids. From Star Wars to Bratz, Harry Potter to Fortnite, it’s a fantastic way to entertain them in a simple way.

The best part is, you can incorporate incentives into the process of puzzle making, in the form of a reward for finishing. When your children become advanced, you can purchase increasingly intricate puzzles, to keep them continually entertained.

4. Create a TV Show

If your kids love watching TV, a great idea is to get them to create their TV show. If you have an old cardboard box lying around or a spare sheet to create a curtain, you’ve just made them a stage to showcase their creativity.

Acting and drama are classic ways to support children with communication skills, boost their confidence, and get them to think outside the box. If your children have been watching TV shows, the chances are that they are familiar with the concept of acting and will have an idea of what to say and how to say it. This is particularly fun if you have multiple children, as they can all get involved!

So where do you start? You may want to give them some prompts if this their first time coming up with an idea. Here are some questions:

• What is your TV show called?
• Where is it set?
• Who is the main character?
• Who are the other characters?
• What would the characters wear?
• What would the characters say?

There are of course so many more questions you could ask to get their mind going but these are a great start. Also, don’t be afraid to get involved! Having your children explain and give direction is a great way to support their communicative skills as they have to explain what they mean. Most children love the shift in power with them being able to tell you how it’s done!

Instead of TV, if your child likes to write or is interested in how websites work, check out our 21 blog post ideas for kids who want to create their first blog.

5. Time Capsule

A great way to entertain your children is to introduce the idea of a time capsule. If your children aren’t sure what a time capsule is, this is a good starting point to get them to do some research. On the other hand, if they’ve learned about it at school, it’s a good way to support their understanding through mirroring the activities at home.

The premise of a time capsule is to give your future self a snapshot of life in the past. The idea is to include significant events and personal experiences from the present so that you can reflect on these in the future. The concept is a great way to get your kids thinking about the world around them and reflecting on what they think is important.

When you create the capsule with your children, some tips are:

• Get the whole family involved
• Include a newspaper from the day
• Have each person write an explanation for what they have chosen
• Choose a date in the future to open it and stick to it

Time capsules are a great way to not only entertain your kids but the whole family. It’s a fantastic way to see what everyone thinks about the present and there is time to reflect on what you think the future will look like.

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