Using Arts and Crafts to help your child develop

Children are inherently curious and children naturally love art, painting, drawing , making music etc!! Arts and crafts provides a way for a child to create something unique which gives a child a positive, constructive way for them to express themselves and their thoughts. Physiologically, the human brain consists of 2 parts, the left and the right hemisphere. The left brain is used in logical thinking and analytical processes. This is typically what is trained in school work that consists of math, reading and science. The right brain is used in emotional perception, intuition and creativity. This is touched upon in schools but I believe we need to act on a childs creative development from babies as these skills will also be important to how they live their lives!

Arts and crafts are a great developmental tool for children: its fun and educational. Children can partake in groups to build confidence and social intergration. But they are also valued for their self expression and for their personal and unique masterpieces. Arts and crafts for children offers personal satisfaction and a child will feel proud of themselves for what they have solely achieved. At the same time as having great fun.

It is important that children understand it is ok to be unique, that we are all different , we all have different skills and unique talents. Providing this self belief and individuality appreciation at am early age will avoid the risk of getting a low self esteem, and will allow children to enjoy and explore themselves and their talents without the need to feel they must be the same as their friends or siblings!

Crafts offer new exciting experiences and sensations as well as improving fine motory skill. By controlling brushes, crayons, sculpting clay, building blocks etc a child will learn how to use their small muscles in their fingertips for example.

With arts and crafts the object is fun, mess, play and free personal expression. Your little ones will make unique masterpieces that they will be proud of, it is important that the masterpieces are valued and displayed in order to infuse their confidence. All children who make something personal and unique that is treasured will love their individuality and will be happy to try new things, explore more things and develop from strength to strength as a result. A child who has low self esteem will not take risks and will not reach their full potential nor live a happy,healthy life that a child deserves.

As well as offering children escapism , leaving the real world and entering a fun creative free creative world, it is also improving their coordination and manual dexterity. With lots of different crafts and tools many new skills and experiences can be tried.By taking part in arts and crafts a child will also improve and develop their concentration skills and perseverance. Both of which are useful skills to take into school and adult working environments. Pateince and an understanding that sometimes putting in the extra effort, extra time for the harder crafts will pay off.

The benefits of arts and crafts are:

· Creativity skills are important as it is through creativity children learn their uniqueness and express their feelings.

· Creative arts develop children’s fine motory skills

· Arts and Crafts offer new experiences and sensations

· Arts and crafts can be interactive and social if done in groups. A creative environment is a happy one for children.

· Arts and crafts allow for personal self expression and being valued and appreciated for their unique masterpeices

· Creativity builds confidence for unique personal expression

· Arts and crafts is a great source of quality time with parents, siblings

· Creative arts are fun and educational

· Arts and Crafts builds confidence and self esteem

· Arts and Crafts offer the chance to make choices and build decision making skills

· Creative arts allows children expresses their emotions

· Arts and crafts sessions are great escapism for children from the real world into a creative world

· Arts and Crafts improve coordination and manual dexterity

· The creative arts improve and nurture concentration skills and perseverance

· Arts and crafts teach patience and that to get excellent results it could take harder work and time

Tips to make the arts a part of your childs development:

• Always make arts and crafts supply available and accessible to your child - paper, pencil, crayons, etc.

• Celebrate your child’s artwork – hang their drawings on the wall or save it in a folder. That way, your child feels that their creation is important.

• Read books – Ask the librarian at your school or public library to suggest books about the arts. ( a great book to build self esteem and confidence is The Magic Sunglasses. www.themagicsunglasses.com )

• Notice the arts all around you – take your family to museums, creative days, toddler groups etc. Notice the art even in the parks, subways, and open spaces. Start a conversation about what you see.

• Enjoy the arts at home – share your artistic skills and interests with your children. Find out what your kids love about the art and crafts.

• If your kid shows great interest or talent in certain arts and crafts nurture their esteem

• If possible, remind your kid’s school authorities about the importance of art in her education.

World Book Day. Encouraging childrens love for books - yippie!!

Its March the 1st today , which can only mean one thing... pinch punch with rabbits , no? Its WORLD BOOK DAY!! Which is a huge "like" for me as its encouraging children to enjoy reading with lots of fun included. Most children today went to school dressed as their favourite characters from their favourite literature. The fantastic Netmums were on hand for help with what children could dress up as. http://www.netmums.com/coffeehouse/home-life-8/seasonal-chat-arts-crafts-99/537886-quick-easy-costume-ideas-book-week.html

So today parents , schools and libraries have helped in the battle of getting our children reading , to get children to put down the computer games and the tap tapping of keyboards and to pick up a book that will be fun and educational! EDUTAINMENT!! After all how great are books? Theyre portable, help childrens literacy, language knowledge ,and not a empty battery that needs charging in sight!! We are all very tied up in technology . I am one of them - i'm all for updating a status or two, "liking" my favourite tv programmes etc, but I also know the importance of book reading for adults and more importantly for our children and their education!

I am constantly horrified by facts and figures about our children not even owning books and how low literacy levels are in the UK compared to other countries and I believe it is the states duty to teach good literacy, parents should take hold of their responsibilities for this issue also!! But thats why I love World Book Day... It brings parents, schools , libraries and children in over 100 countries altogether . It brings everyone together to CELEBRATE!

World Book Day is definitely a great way to inspire children and encourage reading, so we should celebrate it!

A celebration of authors, illustrators and literature. A celebration of books and reading ! “The main aim of World Book Day in the UK and Ireland is to encourage children to explore the pleasures of books and reading by providing them with the opportunity to have a book of their own.” http://www.worldbookday.com/about/

Lots is happening on World Book Day. Half a million children in 21 countries have the chance to join top childrens authors to celebrate the day by a live stream being broadcasted into thousands of schools worldwide. Jaqueline Wilson and Eoin Colfer are said to be involved.

Other activities invloved are in WBD are:

The Biggest Book Show on Earth:
A huge event at the South Bank involving nearly 1,000 children and 15 authors and illustrators will be broadcast to schools, nurseries, bookshops and libraries around the country.

WBD App:
Will launch in February 2012 and a teen event will take place at the Apple Store in Covent Garden, London, and streamed on iTunes.

Storytelling Superstars:
A nationwide search to find the country's best storyteller. Julia Donaldson will be the ambassador and head judge for the competition and discussions are ongoing with a national media partner.

WBD Ambassadors:
Peter Andre has already been confirmed by WBD and it is seeking other ambassadors including sports figures and journalists to pre-promote WBD and drive up awareness of the campaign.

Big Fiction Finds:
WBD is working with Netmums to pre-promote WBD into Netmums' community, using £1 WBD authors on the website and Q&As with authors including Jacqueline Wilson.

Blue Peter:
Discussions are under way to dedicate a "Blue Peter" programme to WBD with features around the day, alongside the announcement of the Blue Peter Book Award winner on WBD.

500 Words:
Radio 2's Chris Evans will launch a 500-Word Short Story Competition in January, which will be promoted to schools and libraries.

For more information please view the website http://www.worldbookday.com/about/

Happy Reading : )

For more inspiration for your children try www.themagicsunglasses.com - well worth a visit!
Written by Kaley Herrick ,researcher of child development related to the creative arts.

Can the inspirational Gok Wan help our children without the support of the government?

Multi award winning UK TV presenter and highly acclaimed fashion stylist Gok Wan has “…made his mark by giving women the confidence to appreciate their bodies, whatever their size and encouraged women whatever their shape and size to strip for the nation!” http://www.gokwan.com/about-gok/
Most importantly, through his much loved programme How To Look Good Naked , he has inspired women to battle with low self esteem and to live happy healthy and confident lives. Gok Wan has successfully been the driving force for thousand of women all over the country to change their lives and feel amazing in their own natural bodies. We now have women who were unhappy , depressed , unhealthy, scared with deep emotional issues who now believe that we are all individual, we are all beautiful and we all deserve to feel confident with our natural bodies. For bringing this powerful message to the nation , Gok we salute you!! But now we plead that Gok Wan can be able to share this powerful and crucial message to our children!
Being such an amazing instituation Gok Wan was on this case, on the case to help children discover that they are beautiful, to appreciate their natural beauties. In fact in 2009 Gok Wan launched the campaign to get body confidence classes on the National Curriculum. With a huge achievement of 50,000 signatures it still wasn’t implemented. Thankfully Gok hasn’t given up and is re-launching his campaign. Gok Wan is planning to lobby MPs outside of Parliament to get body confidence taught on the national curriculum as part of the PSHE in all the schools. To date, Michael Gove - who is the new Minister for Education - won't see him! With such a great campaign we really should urge the government to back him. Gok Wan really is an inspiration, he has helped women everywhere , now’s the time to enable him to help our children. I think we can all relate to this Gok Wans statement "What I would say is, if you believe that you have ever looked in the mirror and you have never liked what you're looking at and if you've ever felt that you are not as beautiful as you could be, then back this campaign because everyone is very beautiful.” http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/interviews/a318397/gok-wan-goks-teens-the-naked-truth.html
Gok Wan calls this low self esteem and body conscious attitude in children today as a "body hatred epidemic" When asked who is to blame Gok replies
"I think the problem lies in so many different areas. It's so hard to pinpoint because if we could just find one area, we could probably do something about it. But I think it's a combination of the media - we need to be more positive about it, I think it's about education of families as well, education of schools as well. I think it's in every single direction. Body dysmorphia has been carried down over the years and now it's been passed to the next generation and we need to do something about it." http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/interviews/a318397/gok-wan-goks-teens-the-naked-truth.html
So the government , namely Michael Gove wouldnt listen, so Gok then progressed from the popular How to Look good Naked, to Gok’s Teens:The Naked Truth. Through which 12 teenagers lives are followed. In the words of Gok “ Gok's Teens: The Naked Truth is a three-part series for Channel 4 where I draw on my personal experience to help give teenagers the advice, confidence and self belief they need to tackle their issues and anxieties” http://www.gokwan.com/gok-on-tv/
Not only does Gok Wan spend time empowering women with his TV programmes, lobby Mps , inspire our teens he also has many other things to offer us,a few of which detailed below.
With his fabulous glasses collection in Specsavers, Gok Wan is banishing hiding behind your specs! Helping us spectacle wearers look and feel fantastic with his strong, sexy, glamorous range of glasses. Stating that your ‘outfit starts with your glasses’ this fashion stylist is helping us wear spectacles with confidence. http://www.specsavers.co.uk/gok-wan/
Then there’s Gok Wan Gorgeous Collection in Boots with his luxury bath range, helping women feel confident and able to indulge in making themselves feel and look great. The Boots website describes Goks products as “Flamboyant and sophisticated, the new Gorgeous by Gok range is packed with sassy, seductive products, designed to make every woman look and feel gorgeous.” We really do have a lot to be thankful for Mr Wan. http://www.boots.com/en/Gorgeous-by-Gok_1017072/
Gok Wans fabulous lingerie and shapewear collection, designed for Simply Yours, designed to make women feel sexy and confident without the crazy diet binges and drastic plastic surgery options. “I know how much you care about looking gorgeous and feeling even sexier and that's why I've designed this underwear range for Simply Yours that supports you, holds you in and oozes sex appeal. Finally! Support underwear you can flaunt!” Ok so underwear and lingerie isn’t the answer for children and teens but I’m sure Gok Wan has some great ideas and products in mind to help children use clothes and accessories to feel good so they don’t look to drastic other options like eating disorders etc. http://www.gokwan.com/get-gokked/
Then there’s Gok’s TU at Sainsbury range. Making fashion accessible to everyone. Even if they cannot afford designer clothes. In the mirror Gok Wan was quoted for saying “With these clothes, I want women to flirt, flaunt and celebrate their curves. I've spent the last few months working through every detail and believe we've delivered attainable and affordable design like never before. I want to make you feel confident, stylish and positive about your bodies, whatever your budget, size or shape”
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/07/20/how-40-gok-wan-dress-transformed-mirror-girl-ruki-sayid-s-figure-115875-23282658/ Gok Wan doesnt care for the elitism in the industry but does care about people and by making clothes accessible to everyone is great!

Look out for ‘Wan way of life’ and his pledge to give something back by encouraging a nation to shed their body conscious inhibitions because we must listen and encourage our children to have the same views. http://www.dare2mag.com/interview/2011/gok-wan/ With this amazing man influencing and caring for the UK women , to empower and inspire them with such an amazing success rate, we are mad to not allow him to drive his campaign to allow these powerful messages to be adapted for children !

Can Peter Andre help the nation fall in love with reading?

Peter Andre is a great ambassador for encouraging the nation to read. Back in December 2011 Pop singer Peter Andre urged the parents in the country to read a bedtime story to their children every night. He fronted the 2011 campaign with Boris Johnson to recruit volunteers to boost London Libraries , he supported the Evening Standard’s literacy campaign highlighting Londons reading crisis, he is also a children’s author himself. And now he is helping the nation ‘fall in love with reading’ through his Charitable campaign Galaxy Quick Reads.

Viv Bird, chief executive of Booktrust another reading charity, said: "It is good news that parents are spending more time reading to their children……But I think that parents are pretty busy people and the stress of daily life can get in the way of reading with a child. So we've got to keep reinforcing the message." So its great that celebrities in the spotlight are helping the cause.

It is crucial that Adults find a love for reading to pass on the trait to their children. So the wonderful Peter Andre is again, on the case with the Quick Reads. Quick Reads are bite-size books that are written specifically to ignite a passion for reading. They're brilliant, bite sized books by big name authors and celebrities, Fast -paced and easy to read . They are available at bookshops, supermarkets, libraries and online they can also be purchased as eBooks, downloadable direct to your mobile phone, eReader or computer. Quick Reads have proven to ; improve new readers' confidence , increase morale at work and improve family life, as readers feel more able to help their children learn. http://www.quickreads.org.uk

Sue Southwood, Quick Reads Project Manager, said:
"Reading helps children to learn about the world around them. It promotes communication skills, enriches imagination and helps them do well in school. But roughly 1 in 6 adults in the UK struggle with reading and it's vital that we find ways to encourage them to improve their skills and give them the ability to read to their children. For adults, stronger literacy skills can also lead to a better quality of life in terms of improved self-confidence, involvement in the community and could even lead to a new or better job." http://www.quickreads.org.uk/news-and-media-centre/latest-news
http://www.quickreads.org.uk/news-and-media-centre/latest-news
Quick Reads ambassador Peter Andre, said:
"It's amazing to see the impact that improving your reading and writing skills can have on your earning potential not to mention your overall personal confidence and morale. Quick Reads are a great way to get yourself back into the habit of reading and to build up your confidence. Great stories, brilliantly written and easy-to-read, they've helped me fall in love with reading again after years of putting off picking up a book because of lack of time and feeling intimidated by large books."
http://www.niace.org.uk/news/eight-brand-new-quick-reads-launched
Peter Hughes, head of corporate responsibility at Pearson publishers, said: "A passion for reading is one of the greatest gifts we can give. Good reading skills are the basic cornerstone that helps all of us progress throughout our lives.” So lets hope Peter Andre and others can help the nation to fall in love with reading.

Making children happy

Children need to be supplied with as many positive and influential affirmations as possible to encourage them to be happy and live bright and meaningful lives, with endless opportunities. They can only be enticed to do so with help from the adults around them. Different forms of positive encouragements have been researched, especially for the cases where children do not necessarily have great role models at home.

Research has shown that children develop best through their own discovery and self-learning. For this reason when a child looses themselves in their imaginations – of course guided by a positive medium like a book , a film, a workshop, an activity – this is their best time for learning.
Through my studies I came across ‘The Magic Sunglasses project’ lead by the children’s author Auriel Blanche. Auriel Blanche successfully taps into many children’s spirits on a global scale, making them visualise desirable outcomes and make positive connections with their inner purpose. She does this through her skill of creative and innovative writing which engages children of all ages. Along with her interactive workshops and programs, The Magic Sunglasses, her acclaimed children’s fun fantasy book is a must read for all children in today’s society. Especially for those who are saddened with a low self esteem and those who seem unhappy. The meaning and purpose of The Magic Sunglasses - is fundamentally to motivate a child by imagination and creativity. Make-believe is important to intellectual development and mental health. It is an integral part of childhood, it is this that will inevitably make them happy.

The main character in the book, namely Samantha, is a character that a child with a lack of confidence can relate to. She too hasn’t fully discovered that she has a special value all her own. Throughout the story she finds a power that the reader will be inspired to find in themselves. The books motivation is to show we all have that special value, which we can use to help us live the lives we really want and to be happy. The magic sunglasses in their physical form mysteriously find their way to Samantha. They have wonderful powers which support her and show her what you can do if you really try! The important notion behind the story is that these possibilities are still achievable when she no longer has the glasses, as she forms her own abilities and the confidence to try. The results this book entails is seen in the readers improvement of personal motivation, their positivity for their own capabilities, their respect for their own special values and the optimisms for their own self worth. The main and key ethos being, helping children to live happy lives.

When a story actually transforms a child's life, bringing joy and happiness to them, you know the story is a winner. This touching, inspirational and heart-warming plot has repeatedly been transformed into optimistic true life stories for many children who have read it. From some of which, Auriel has been inundated with positive testimonials, rewarding reviews and written letters of compliments. Auriel invites children globally to explore their dreams, strive to their potential, to not limit themselves and independently enrich their own lives. With The Magic Sunglasses, they are free from objective restraints with encouragement to explore possibilities. As they read how another child (Samantha) plays and dreams they do the same. They too imagine themselves to be a superstar, singing to the adoring crowds. They too can pretend to be dressing up as a princess or a super hero. They too can imagine being able to eat as many sweets, cookies and ice cream as they like. They can also make play of their own nightmares of witches and goblin, and overcome them with confidence and ambition enthused throughout the book.

A child with this negative attitude will never achieve resolutions without an assisted positive view point. It is important that a child can understand that any problem is temporary and can be resolved if you just try. With these positive qualities a child can be happy and motivated to live life with confidence and enjoyment. When a child sits down with a book, they are in a comfortable environment, in an imaginative place away from the negative aspects of life. This is the most perfect time to inspire upbeat outlooks and encourage the use of optimism.
I find Auriel Blanche to be an extremely influential writer and The Magic Sunglasses should be in every family household. We hope she will be inspiring and empowering children for years to come.

To explore many more interesting projects as well as the other amazing inspirations The Magic Sunglasses holds, all you need to do is click on the link – http://www.themagicsunglasses.com/ Please encourage any children you know to read this book or visit the website. We can then help many other children to trust their own abilities, to respect others, to believe in themselves and create a humble, happy and positive world to live in.
For more information and up and coming events, workshops and book signings – Please go to http://www.themagicsunglasses.com

Empowering Children to Value Themselves

Victorian values state that “..Children should be seen and not heard...” During this time a child’s life would be determined by their parents or guardians. Hopefully parents will share a more contemporary view on this and help to empower their children to value themselves and to live confident and happy lives.

By obtaining a strong relationship with themselves they will equip themselves with abilities and positivity to try. They will then evolve into helping each other which will inevitably result in a connection and empowerment of children globally. Children process information from the world around them much differently than adults, they have distinct needs for managing the effects of stress and trauma but with a highly developed sense of consciousness for their feelings, they will then be able to manage fear, anger, anxiety and any other circumstances trying to cause effect to their wellbeing.

With a healthy sense of individuality, children will be able to help themselves and help others with respect, sensitivity and empathy, resulting in the connectivity of children worldwide.

So the main quest for adults is to help children learn valuable life skills early, which will mean that they will be better able to deal with challenging situations when they are older. Thus nurturing their own strives for personal life enrichment.

Empowerment is a key ingredient in maximizing children's potential in academic achievement, social success, and personal happiness. This is obviously an arduous process; it is not instantly going to be achieved. It is important that many methods combine together to reach the desired result. There are many innovative forms of empowerment methods available.

The empowerment of children to find their true values is a statement , which was the inspiration behind the motivation for The Magic Sunglasses Project. This project was initiated by the children's Story Book ‘ The Magic Sunglasses' written by Auriel Blanche.(also known as Angela Buck) When this inspirational writer first wrote the book it was to stress her ideal for promoting the ethos of creating a worldwide community of children who have learnt how to value themselves and to use their potential, to live personally successful lives and contribute to the success of others. She does this effectively through her skill of creative and innovative writing which engages children of all ages. Since the book Auriel Blanche has developed what is now known as The Magic Sunglasses Project. Through which she successfully taps into many children's spirits on a global scale, making them visualize desirable outcomes and make positive connections with their inner purpose.

By promoting understanding of diversity and respect for others, Auriel Blanche also works on developments of inner self through imagination and visualisation. Her main focus is on self awareness, new possibilities and problem resolution. Other areas of intent are environmental appreciation, conflict management, awareness of others, global awareness and education of current events.

She believes that it is imperative that children know that their opinion matters and that they can offer something positive to others. By connecting with themselves children can find answers to their own problems and others. With this new found power children can then see a dream and strive to reach it with positivity and a pro active attitude.

Hopefully with the help of other influential parents – Auriel Blanche can help develop a world where children are not just seen and not heard. Where children can be empowered to strive for great things, appreciate their own self worth and be motivated to help others. Self sufficiency in children at an early age will certainly help the population develop with positivity and the will to try.

Auriel Blanche wishes to develop her project further afield. So that children all over the world are connected and empowered. She hopes that one day we will live in a world where a child in a village stricken with poverty in Africa can be helped by a child far away, living in a completely different world but with knowledge and confidence to understand and help. A great incentive for us to all help and get involved. Please view the website : http://www.themagicsunglasses.com/

Exciting News! The Magic Sunglasses is now available on Kindle

Buy Now! The Magic Sunglasses is now available at The Kindle Store. For your Magic Sunglasses book on Kindle visit Amazon today.

This book will give your child the gift of empowerment for life. Helping children discover their own true self and gain belief and excitement to develop their skills and live funfilled , successful lives. This book tackles low self esteem and encourages children to have confidence in themselves and have respect for others and themselves.

Also available is a parent pack and workshop for homes and schools to develop and pro-long learning .

To find out more from the Author Auriel Blaanche and to see the journey of The Magic Sunglasses Project, please see www.themagicsunglasses.com