Time for Exams...

As examination season falls upon us, it is normal for many teenagers and students to feel stressed and under pressure - the pressure often inadvertently coming from the family. The BBC have produced tips on how parents can help children through the anxiety. It can be an equally anxious time for parents - this report indicates that it affects 24% of parents' own mental health. Positive Parenting Project founder, Anita, suggests that creating an environment that is conducive to learning and adopting a positive approach will go a long way in supporting children. There is a useful guide by Student Minds on helping control exam stress.

Childline have an innovative Art Box for expressing feelings and games to help students relax. Meditation is also becoming a popular form of relaxation. MindSpace have created various resources including one-minute podcasts on tackling various issues including anxiety - providing useful introductions to meditation and mindfulness.

Parenting

Interesting article by the Guardian looking at the countries where babies cry the most and least; sadly, Canada, Italy and the UK did not fare well; Denmark, on the other hand, were top of the table for the happiest babies. Coincidentally, the Danish regularly top the chart for being happiest people in the world too ... The question is why?

According to the authors of a new book, The Danish Way of Parenting, it is all down to a happy upbringing and the book contains plenty of practical suggestions; one example is an easy-to-remember acronym for 'Parent' - 'Play', 'Authenticity', 'Reframing', 'Empathy', 'No ultimatums' and 'Togetherness'. Danish policies are also geared toward supporting the family unit; the first year of a child's life is considered of utmost importance, so maternity and paternity leave is generous. There is an emphasis on free play and to accommodate this, school finishes at 2pm for children under the age of ten.

As the author reveals, to discover the way Danish children are nurtured, one has to look beyond parenting and to the very heart of Danish culture. 'Togetherness' or the concept of hygge is ingrained into the Danish psyche and is about making time for families to spend time together. No grand plans required - simply lighting some candles, playing games and singing are popular pastimes...

Men's Attitude to Fatherhood and Child Behaviour

The outcomes of a a new study which explores the influence that a father's attitude to parenting has on a child, have been discussed in the Guardian. Researchers have found that children whose fathers were more confident about being a parent and who were more emotionally positive about the role, were less likely to show behavioural difficulties by the ages of nine and eleven. The full research study, is available in BMJ Open.

Pre-school Autism Communication Trial

There has been a buzz about a new trial for a parenting education programme - the results of which are very promising. In a nutshell, the Pre-school Autism Communication Trial (PACT) trained parents of autistic children to communicate with them, without the use of drugs or medical intervention; parents were required to attend twice-weekly clinics and given daily exercises to practice over a period of six months. Significant improvements could be seen by the end of the first year with these improvements continuing into the longer term. Details of the trial can be found in this article.

Dr Jonathan Green of the Autism Science Foundation is interviewed below - 

view related videos here.

Attachment Parenting

A recent article in the Guardian discusses the increasing popularity of attachment parenting (AP) amongst parents. The author interviews a range of people, including those who don't fully agree with all the practices subscribed for AP, to help give a fuller picture on the subject.  

Although the idea is not a new one, it was given a formal title by William Sears in the 1980s; he wrote, 'The Baby Book' which became the first comprehensive manual for AP. Since then, interest in the philosophy has burgeoned and to offer coaching and support for parents and AP groups, Attachment Parenting UK was set up here, in the UK, in 2012.

Childcare

A Government report provides information on a survey of parents with children aged 0 to 14. It covers parents’ use of childcare and early years provision along with their views and experiences. This presentation looks at the 30 hours childcare offer and what it would mean for children and also aims to understand how providers see the child’s experience.

Party Policy Guide

Election Day is tomorrow and if you have been left feeling a little 'pledged-out' and perhaps none the wiser, then this might help - CYPNow have published a concise policy guide, which clearly sets out the proposals made by the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats on key issues for children, young people and families.

The guide covers 14 key areas: careers advice, child health, child poverty, children’s rights, crime and youth justice, early years and childcare, families and parenting, joint working, post-16 learning, public spending, safeguarding and care, schools, welfare, and youth services. 

Parental Engagement

 How can technology help teachers, parents and students connect and communicate? For those unaware of what’s out there, here’s a handy guide to the five best apps for engaging with parents.

New Publications

A number of new resources were recently unveiled at the 4Children Early Childhood Matters conference; these included the What to Expect, When? guide for parents. The Education Endowment Foundation published their Early Years Pupil Premium toolkit for providers to gain the maximum benefits from the EYPP. The Institute of Education launched the Sustained Shared Thinking and Emotional Well-being (SSTEW) scale, which is being used in the SEED study (Study of Early Education and Development); also made public at the Conference were 'Early Years Pupil Premium: call for evidence' case studies which identify and share good practice in meeting the needs of disadvantaged children and improving outcomes.

A paper has been produced on what British Values mean in the early years with examples given in practice. Lastly, the Department of Health has commissioned a document supporting early years practitioners and health visitors in delivering the two year old integrated review which will be rolling out from September of this year. 

Conference: 'Impact in Learning'

The fourth annual 'Impact in Learning' conference was recently held at McIntyre House. The conference, titled 'Engaging Parents to make an Outstanding Difference to Pupil Attainment', was attended by teachers, senior leaders, parent support workers and education advisers to promote the importance of getting parents involved in their children’s education. The University’s PGCE students were invited to gain an insight into current issues in the education sector. Read more about the event here.

Impact in Learning is an award-winning parental engagement strategy. It couples homework resources with workshops, to enable schools to raise attainment for pupils in a short period of time. Successful strategies include holding 'Inspire Workshops' for children and parents, where both parties gain a detailed understanding in key areas of study such as literacy, numeracy and writing skills.