BC Parent News
BC Parent News
BC Parent News
Reading Time: 7 minutes Music education has numerous benefits for students, including establishing stronger social skills, increased confidence, and improved academics due to involved brain function. With all of these benefits and more stemming from music, there is no doubt that you should include music education within your child’s online studies. Here are some easy ways to be sure to keep music education incorporated in virtual learning.
Reading Time: 5 minutes features parents look for when they turn to the private system include a specific educational approach, such as Montessori or Waldorf; a particular religious or cultural setting; a strong academic setting or a program for children who are gifted; the ability to accommodate special needs; the flexibility to accommodate special scheduling required by art, music or sports training.
Reading Time: 4 minutes We're excited to have a new BC Parent profile with a twist. Rather than just one parent, we got to connect with two! Eric Horgan and Tara Hungerford are two loving, sensitive and creative Vancouverites. This husband and wife team are television writers/directors and creators of The Gumboot Kids programs, which airs in 180 countries including on CBC Kids in Canada and Amazon Prime in the USA. They’ve also published 6 Gumboot Kids Nature Mystery storybooks for kids ages 3-7 years old with book #7 and #8 available in bookstores in now (October) -- Books are available at Vancouver Kidsbooks.
Reading Time: 3 minutes t’s been a challenging two years for many families, and there has been an increase in and mental health disorders in children and adults as they navigate an entirely unknown way of life. Prior to the pandemic, 1 in 5 Canadians experienced a mental health disorder or anxiety this has only been exacerbated by the pandemic. As someone who has experienced anxiety for most of her life, I recognize the importance of offering my children support and skills to help them cope with mental health.
Reading Time: 5 minutes There have also been notable increases in eating disorders in boys, particularly in athletes. It is estimated that 1 in 3 individuals diagnosed with an eating disorder is male. This percentage may actually be much higher as eating disorders in boys & men can present differently than girls and their behaviours may be seen as normal (or even healthy) by adults in their life. Consequently eating disorders in boys and men are often underdiagnosed.
Reading Time: 2 minutes Burnaby with her tight-knit family of four. Her husband, herself, her 12-year-old daughter, Megan, and her 10-year-old son, Owen. She bravely launched a business during COVID with a new business partner, her daughter. Together this mother and daughter team run a DIY Craft Kit business called Wood + Stencil Co, and she also does contracting in project management and fundraising.
Reading Time: 5 minutes The pandemic has disrupted our lives in many ways. As a result, many parents, teachers, and students can’t wait to get back to “normal” school. Many that fall into this camp discuss the lack of community along with the lack of face-to-face interactions with teachers and peer groups when not learning in person. However other parents, teachers, and students fall into another camp. This group likes digital learning models because students can go at their own pace and set their own times for study. Learning online allows for more personalized learning and time for experiences and projects.
Reading Time: 2 minutes Have you heard of Milan? No, not the city - the adorable boy from Vancouver. If you haven't seen him yet, you can check him out on his mom's Instagram account Milans Mama_. Milan gets to go on amazing adventures with his mom Aiyna and today we are interviewing her to get to know this Vancouver mama a little better.
Reading Time: 8 minutes Research by the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) last year noted a significant impact on students from remote learning, including interrupted learning, increased child stress, decreased connection, increased loneliness, and mental and emotional health effects. Children need to be learning in person and participating in extracurricular activities is another important necessity.
Reading Time: 2 minutes We're excited to include Beverly Phan on this week's Parent Profile. Beverly makes Vancouver her home with her partner and 3 lovely children. She loves finding delicious food and fun adventures for her family to take part in. She believes "everything is better when experienced as a family" and we couldn't agree more. An empowering presence on Instagram, Beverly shares great eats and fun places to visit in the BC area. Looking at her page always makes me hungry!
Reading Time: 5 minutes My family and I had the pleasure of visiting WildPlay on Monday. I have to admit the experience was beyond wild - it was absolutely exhilarating! I'm a little bit of an adrenaline junky. I've been paragliding, skydiving, cliff jumping, and the experience at WildPlay was thrilling. Let me tell you why...
Reading Time: 8 minutes A busy life and a bustling household can make it tough to keep clutter under control. While some disorganization in your home is simply a sign of living a normal life, being surrounded by clutter can cause feelings of anxiety and inhibit productivity and creativity. If you want to transform your home — and your life — now is a great time to get organized. These tips and tricks will help you create a tidy home so you can enjoy your space stress-free.
Reading Time: 3 minutes Have you had the opportunity to see Bobs & Lolo live? They're a BC music staple producing songs that children of all ages love to dance and sing along to. I've had the pleasure of seeing Bobs and Lolo live at a number of events and my favourite song is one of their new ones "Run Salmon Run"! In today's BC Parent Profile we have an interview with Robyn Elizabeth Hardy. Born and raised in Lantzville BC on Vancouver Island, she's been living in North Vancouver for over 10 years now.
Reading Time: 5 minutes I am sure we have all heard of learning through play, or that play is the work of children. But what does that really mean? What exactly are they learning? Isn’t play supposed to be child directed? If so, how can we support that learning? When you start to think about what learning through play really means, it can easily start to feel overwhelming; but with a basic understanding of what can happen during play, you can quickly begin to see that learning with your own two eyes. There are many different ways children play, and in this article, I will focus on the dramatic play, where children take on different roles and act them out.
Reading Time: 5 minutes Did you know, many people live their daily lives without enough iron in their system, and perhaps they don’t even know it? Having low ferritin (protein that stores iron) levels is fairly common, in fact, studies have shown that up to 25% of the world’s population suffers from low iron and that up to 8% of Canadian women have low iron stores.
Reading Time: 5 minutes Whether your kids were in-person, virtual or homeschool learning this year, once summer begins, their regular schedule typically goes out the window! Entertaining kids becomes part of your full time job and, let’s face it – it’s tough.
Reading Time: 3 minutes This week's "BC Parent Profile" is with Rebecca Coleman, a Vancouver-Based food blogger, author, teacher, and mother. She loves nothing more than baking for her friends and family. “Baking is my love language,” she jokes. “But more and more of my friends and family are identifying food allergies, or choosing a more plant-based diet.” Her second book, Vegan Baking Made Easy, 60 Foolproof, Plant-Based Recipes, is being published by Rockridge Press August 10, 2021 and is available for pre-order now.
Reading Time: 5 minutes Summer gets really busy for many families with lots of activities like day-camps, time at the pool or beach, and road trips. These activities leave kids especially hungry and asking for extra snacks, and it can be hard to keep up with their appetites! Here are some healthier snack ideas.