ann kent

The Most Beautiful Nursery For A Baby Girl

Is this not the loveliest nursery?  The image evokes calm, serenity, and innocence.  I love the colors, the beautiful silk window treatment, the scalloped shades and the classic mirror.  Traditional Home, October 2002.

  

Easter Dress-Olive Juice

I love, love, love the quaint designs in Olive Juice, the children's wear catologue.  Their clothing harkens back to a time when families lived in the same towns and celebrated holidays together; enjoyed Sunday picnics; or strolled the town after religious services.  For the past few years, I have tried to order my daughter's Easter dress from this catalogue but each time, alas, I have waited too long and my choice was "sold out"!  And so, this year, I have thought to order a bit earlier.  And, I was successful!  I chose this one at a very reasonable $65.  Yay!!!

Teaching Your Child The Multiplication Tables - A Little Tip

In my travels, I stumbled upon a little something that I wish someone had passed on to me.  I will share the secret with you.  By the end of fourth grade your child must learn his/her multiplication tables for in fifth grade, most classes progress to division and long division and if a child has not memorized the tables, he/she will have difficulty mastering division.  Here is a little tip to try if your child is struggling with memorizing those confounding tables:  Purchase Times Tables The Fun Way for $19.95 and Multiplication War for $2.95.

If your third, fourth, or fifth grader is just learning the facts, pick a fact to learn from the book and read the story associated with it with your child right before they go to sleep.  (I am told reading right before falling asleep is the best way to move something into memory.)  Do this for a week or two until your child is familiar with the number stories. 

At this point or if your child already has mastery of some of the facts, begin to play Multiplication War with him/her every day.  The game is easy and quick to play.   When your child is not able to answer a fact during the game, stop, and have the child read the story in the book associated with that fact aloud.  Make sure all of the young players listen and see the picture associated with the story.  Then progress.  Try to involve other children in the game and you will find that if they are learning their facts in school, the children will ask to play Multiplication War!  All children want to succeed in memorizing their tables and scoring well on their multiplication tests especially in front of their peers!

Continue to play the game everyday, stopping to go over the stories when children give a wrong answer and in a month or two your child will know the facts!  If you want to ensure that he/she retains the facts for the long term, just purchase a practice multiplication workbook from your local book store and have your child complete a worksheet every day!  Good luck!