the year of the tiger!

Hello everyone!It is Anusha again.
I'm only posting this after Chinese New Year due to being outstation and also not having internet connection for awhile.My sincere apologies.
Today I'll be posting about the most exciting celebration for me this year so far.
No.. it is not New Year's or Valentines, BUT...It's Chinese New Year!!!I may not be a Chinese but I sure know how to celebrate their New Years!

Then again, what is the point of celebrating when you don't know anything about the occasion?
So here are some interesting information on Chinese New Year that will be beneficial for your children.

CHINESE NEW YEAR

A celebration that is celebrated once a year. One of the most interesting things about this festival is that there is no fixed date. Every year, the date will be changed but it is usually around late January to early February. The Chinese New Year starts on a New Moon and ends on a full moon 15 days later. What a unique festival!15 days long! This year, it is the year of the Tiger.

During this festival, the married will give the singles "ang pao". The singles include children to adults who are not married. On the eve, the whole family will get together to have their family reunion. Everyone will be dressed up in red and in their traditional costumes such as the cheong sam for girls and samfu for boys.

That is a simple and interesting information for your children.You can prolong the lesson by asking them how they spent their Chinese New Year or what is their opinion on this festival.You are sure to get some interesting answers from those amazingly creative minds.

As an art lesson, you can teach them how to make a dragon toy. It will be in a form of a puppet.
The materials needed are:

Colored paper

Scissors

Crayons or markers

Glue, tape

2 wooden barbecue skewers (or 2 straws or disposable chopsticks)

Optional glitter, feathers

Steps:

1. Draw the head and the tail of a dragon on a piece of paper.

2.Cut the head and the tail out and decorate with bright colours.

3.Fold a piece of paper in half the long way. Cut along the folded line, making two long rectangles.

4.Fold each piece of paper up like an accordion. Glue or tape the two pieces together, forming one long piece that will be the animal's body.

5.Glue or tape one end of the body to the head. Glue or tape the other end of the body to the tail.

6.Tape one skewer (or straw) to the head and the other skewer (or straw) onto the tail.

You now have a dragon that can dance for Chinese New Year!

Your Dragon will end up looking something like this.Be creative and have fun!

autistic chilldren

Hie everyone!
Today I'm gonna tell you something about autistic children. Well to be honest, I've never seen an autistic child until this year. Last year where I was working in a different place, there are a few hyperactive children, and the teachers there claim the children as they are autistic. Well is not right for us teachers to judge a child whether are they special or not. Everything is based on doubt but without any confirmation. To confirm whether your child is special, just go to the doctor and there you get your confirmation.

This year I'm the head teacher of the class in my sunday school. Well I'm teaching the youngest class there which is 6 years old. The class has been started for 5 weeks. On the 3rd week of the class, there is a new student came into my class and the parents told me and my co-teachers that he is autistic. That was the first time I face an autistic child, and to be honest, he is really hard to control. So me and my co-teachers have discussed among each other and we make sure that one of us will have to stay with him all the time. I really do not know how to handle him, but I will just have to make sure that he is safety and can be able to sit in the class.

Here are some information about autistic children. This will help the parents or any teachers that has autistic child with them. Autism is a developmental disorder affecting children from birth or the early months of life. It results in delay in, and deviance from, the normal patterns of development. These occur in three areas of behaviour:

• Social relationships and interactions
• Language and communication
• Activities and interests

Autism is probably present from birth, or very soon after, its nature means that the specific disorders of developmental progression will not necessarily be apparent for many months or even years.Relationships, communication and activities are immature in all young babies. It is only when they become more sophisticated that delays and deviations from the usual may be evident. Diagnosis is complicated by the variations found in the mental ability of children with autism. About two-thirds have additional learning difficulties and their unusual behaviour patterns may be ascribed to an overall developmental delay. Conversely, autism may be overlooked in children with average and above-average mental ability. Any odd behaviours or abnormalities in development, especially in very young children, may be dismissed as mild or transient.

So far the cause of autism still remains unknown, but most likely hypothesis is damage to the brain, perhaps prenatally, though this has not been conclusively proved. Therefore, the factors responsible may include:

• Genetic or chromosomal abnormality
• Viral agents
• Metabolic disorders
• Immune intolerance
• Prenatal anoxia

Those are the basic information, to know more detail about autistic child please click HERE

How do you identify children with autism?

Varying widely, signs and symptoms in children with autism typically include:

• Impaired communication skills.
• Difficulty making eye contact.
• Repetitive behaviors and activities such as arm flapping, head banging, or twirling an object over and over.
• Rigid behavior and difficulty with change and transitions.
• Narrow range of interests and activities.

Well I believe that no parent is ever prepared to hear that a child is anything other than happy and healthy, and a diagnosis of autism can be particularly frightening. You may be unsure about how to best help your child. You may be confused by conflicting treatment advice. Or you may have been told that autism is an incurable, lifelong condition, leaving you concerned that nothing you do will make a difference.

While it is true that autism is not something a person simply "grows out of," there are many treatments that can help children learn new skills and overcome a wide variety of developmental challenges. From free government services to in-home behavioral therapy and school-based programs, assistance is available to meet your child's special needs. With the right treatment plan, and a lot of love and support, your child can learn, grow, and thrive.

As the parent of a child with autism or related developmental delays, the best thing you can do is to get your kid in treatment right away. Don't wait to see if your child will catch up later or outgrow the problem. Don't even wait for an official diagnosis. The earlier children with autism spectrum disorders get help, the greater their chance of treatment success. Early intervention is the most effective way to speed up your child's development and reduce the symptoms of autism.

Here's a table for parents to help an autistic child

*click on image to have a larger view*

You may click HERE to know more about choosing treatments for autistic child

As for teachers who are facing problems in handling autism children here are some useful links as your guide.
http://ezinearticles.com/?Some-Ideas-For-Teaching-Autistic-Children&id=643363
http://www.mugsy.org/pmh.htm

I hope these help you
Thanks for reading

Cheers,
Kelly