theEducator Activities that provide information to students and parents
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Helping primary school students
Parents Guiding your teenager
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INDEPENDENCE FEATURE
Your Guide to Education
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How to decide on career field
December 2013
theeducator@alphamedia.co.zw
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100 Best Secondary Schools in Africa Celebrating 33 Years Of Independence
NewsDay will be running a special feature entitled "Proud to be Zimbabwean". The feature will be published on 17 April 2013, to mark 33 years of independence. We invite all corporations within the private and public sector, all non-governmental government departments and public bodies/offices, and all embassies representing their respective countries to St. organisations, George’s all College Zimbabwe place messages commemorating this occasion. “Proud to be Zimbabwean" will celebrate the power of courage and pride that we all share through the accomplishments of extraordinary individuals and organisations who have made Zimbabwe a symbol of resilience, hope and innovation.
There has been a marked rise of very good the methodology that was used in comsecondary schools all over the continent. piling the list. We are offering you an opportunity to schools advertise in this commemorative feature. BecauseIof the special nature of this feature, Alpha Whilst government within Afrishould state here that ranking high Holdings is offering up to 50% discount on all adverts as follows; full page normal price $1 420 you pay $710 and a half canMedia countries started off the best, followschools from diff erent countries across page normal price $710 you pay $355. If you wish to include a write-up with your advertisement this will be considered and will be of charge. For bookings Contact: much Landline: 04-755123 speak to Tania (0773 224 397),continent Lois (0774 329 315)is and always Loyola ingfreeindependence, hasandchanged. the going to be diffi202 251). For(0775the most part, private schools (we cult as different countries follow different consider missionary schools as private) curriculums and take part in completely outperform government schools. In ad- different regional assessments. dition, international schools have taken •The author selected the list of schools Africa by storm. Below is the list of 100 that have historical prominence at a nabest secondary schools. tional and regional level. That is the reason most schools that featured on the The Ranking Methodology list are also quite old, some started well Expectedly the rankings of the “100 Best before their corresponding countries Secondary Schools in Africa” were met became independent. This is especialwith displeasure from most of the people ly the case for most public secondary/ who left their comments on the article. high schools. Here, it is important to note Most people emailed the editor regarding that not all schools take part in region-
51. American International School of Johannesburg South Africa 52. Victoria Park High School South Africa 53. Methodist Boys High School Sierra Leone 54. Harare International School Zimbabwe 55. Methodist Girls High School Sierra Leone 56. Lenana School Kenya 57. St. Andrew’s High School Malawi 58. Benoni High School South Africa 59. Waddilove High School Zimbabwe 60. Roedean School South Africa 61. Wykeham Collegiate Independent School for Girls South Africa 62. Lycee Francais du Caire Egypt 63. Christian Brothers’ College Bulawayo Zimbabwe 64. Kamuzu Academy Malawi 65. Mount Pleasant High School Zimbabwe 66. Mfantsipim School Ghana 67. Chisipite Senior School Zimbabwe 68. Gayaza High School Uganda 69. Kutama College Zimbabwe 70. Wheelus High School Libya 71. Michaelhouse School South Africa 72. Westville Boys’ High School South Africa 73. Namilyango College Uganda 74. Government College Umuahia Nigeria 75. Muir College South Africa
26. Wynberg Boys High School South Africa 27. Pretoria Boys High School South Africa 28. Lycée Français de Tananarive Madagascar 29. Mauritius College of the Air Mauritius 30. International School Moshi Tanzania 31. Le Collège Mermoz Ivory Coast 32. Strathmore School Kenya 33. Parktown Boys’ High School South Africa 34. International School of Tanganyika Tanzania 35. Holy Child School Ghana 36. Christ The King College Onitsha Nigeria 37. Graeme College South Africa 38. Jeppe High School for Boys South Africa 39. Alliance High School Kenya 40. Hillcrest School Jos Nigeria 41. Kingswood College South Africa 42. Hamilton High School Zimbabwe 43. Lincoln International School Uganda 44. Lycée Victor Hugo Morocco 45. Alexandra High School South Africa 46. École Normale Supérieure Guinea 47. Ghana International School Ghana 48. Arundel School Zimbabwe 49. Rondebosch Boys’ High School South Africa 50. Starehe Boys’ Centre Kenya
1. Grey College South Africa 2. Rift Valley Academy Kenya 3. King Edward VII School South Africa 4. Hilton College South Africa 5. St. George’s College Zimbabwe 6. Prince Edward School Zimbabwe 7. International School of Kenya Kenya 8. Accra Academy Ghana 9. Lycée Lamine Guèye Senegal 10. Adisadel College Ghana 11. St John’s College Houghton South Africa 12. Maritzburg College South Africa 13. Lycée Guebre Mariam Ethiopia 14. Selborne College South Africa 15. St Alban’s College South Africa 16. Lycée Lyautey Morocco 17. Durban High School South Africa 18. Grey High School South Africa 19. St Andrew`s College South Africa 20. Gateway High School Zimbabwe 21. Glenwood High School South Africa 22. Rainbow International School Uganda 23. Lycée Moulay Youssef Morocco 24. Kearsney College South Africa 25. St. James High School Zimbabwe
al assessments. Yet, not a single school was eliminated for lack of regional accomplishments. Schools that were very good at national level, yet lacked regional presence were also considered given that they did not have any regional assessments to partake. • The author then went over the list of a few hundred schools selecting the schools that continued to lead at a national and regional level especially in the past few years when there has been national and regional rankings for secondary/high schools. It is also important to state that countries have different rakings and they rank different criteria which made it difficult to harmonize the list. •In addition to how the different schools have performed at a national level, schools whose students win prestigious scholarships and fellowships at a national and international level earned points above those that did not. On this, some schools had an advantage over others in that the data was readily available on their own websites or their Wikipedia pages. International schools are a case in point. •And success of individuals did not translate into success of the school that that particular individual attended. For instance, Koffi Annan was not enough to have Mfantsipim School (Ghana) on the list. Performance of a school is much more than what one individual had done.
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76. Wesley Girls High School Ghana 77. Alexander Sinton High School South Africa 78. Lycée Faidherbe Senegal 79. Royal College Port Louis Mauritius 80. Lycée La Fontaine Niger 81. Lycée Lyautey de Casablanca Morocco 82. Settlers High School South Africa 83. Nyeri High School Kenya 84. Pinetown Boys’ High School South Africa 85. Kings’ College Lagos Nigeria 86. Lycée Français Liberté Mali 87. Paarl Boys’ High School South Africa 88. St. Paul’s College Namibia 89. Tafari Makonnen School Ethiopia 90. Wynberg Girls’ High School South Africa 91. Bingham Academy Ethiopia 92. Port Shepstone High School South Africa 93. Clapham High School South Africa 94. Hillcrest Secondary School Kenya 95. South African College School South Africa 96. Lycée Blaise Diagne Senegal 97. St Mary’s Diocesan School for Girls South Africa 98. Townsend High School Zimbabwe 99. St.Gregory’s College Nigeria 100. St. Patrick School Zimbabwe
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Mfantsipim School (Ghana) has done much more than nurturing a UN Secretary General. • The article mentioned, “Most of these schools are old, with tremendous wealth of history. The performance of such schools did take consistency into consideration to eliminate the quick rise and quick fall cases. In addition, great schools such as the African Leadership Academy have yet to prove themselves over years. Only time will tell whether they will remain at the highest level they are at.” •Some readers may disagree with the way we construct our rankings methodology. Let us know if we missed an important component below in comments. While we should always celebrate success of private enterprise and involvement of the private sector in education, it is important to ask the question; “Is the high performance of private schools at the cost of public schools?” This is an important question since the majority of the continent lack the means to pay for the skyrocketing costs of private institutions and choose instead to rely on public schools notwithstanding the fact that each African deserves good quality education. While I do not believe that a cap on secondary school fees will help, I stand convinced that African governments need to spend more on secondary school education. The African Economist
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December 2013 theEducator
Activities that provide information to students and parents Primary school students want to know what high school is going to be like, and they and their parents need to know about and understand high school programs and procedures (Phelan, Yu, & Davidson, 1994). In particular, parents need to be actively involved in the decisions their seventh-graders are asked to make about classes they will take and understand the long-term effects of the course decisions (Paulson, 1994). Some of the ways students can learn about high school include visiting the high school, perhaps to “shadow” a high school student; attending a presentation by a high school student or panel of students and discussing high school regulations and procedures with Form 1 teachers and counselors. Parent’s Involvement The importance of parents being involved in their young adolescent students’ transition from primary to high school can hardly be overestimated. When parents are involved in their student’s transition to high school, they tend to stay involved in their child’s school experiences (Mac Iver, 1990); and when parents are involved in their child’s high school experiences, students have higher achievement (Linver & Silverberg, 1997; Paulson, 1994), are better adjusted (Hartos & Power, 1997), and are less likely to drop out of school (Horn & West, 1992). Parent involvement in the transition process to high school can be encouraged through a variety of activities. Parents
may be invited to participate in a conference (preferably at the primary school) with their child and the high school counselor to discuss course work and schedules, visit the high school with their child spend a day at the high school to help them understand what their child’s life will be like, and help design and facilitate some of the articulation activities for
students. In planning activities for parents, high school educators will want to remember that parents of students who are already in high school are an excellent resource for other parents and may also help to encourage new parents to be more involved in school activities. At the primary school level, teachers and administrators can inform parents about
transition activities and encourage them to participate. Perhaps more importantly, they can work to keep parents involved in their child’s education and school activities during the primary school years so that they are comfortable “coming to school” and confident that their involvement makes a difference in their child’s academic success.
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High pass rate at ASHE International!
Local and regional students have started benefiting from a partnership between Saddein Education Consultancy, Nilai University and Government of Western Australia Curriculum and Standards Authority (WACE) in delivering a world class curriculum at a huge savings. After noting some of the challenges faced by Zimbabwean students locally and those studying around the world, Saddein Education Consultancy (a well-known brand for foreign education placement services with an Alumnus of over 1500 students) opened an institution known as the African School of Higher Education (ASHE). ASHE International College is dedicated to education excellence and has opened a new door for local and regional students to explore a wide variety of study options. The Institution has brought in a new flair in Zimbabwean education that meets international and local standards. It has been said that variety is the spice of life and we agree with this, which is why ASHE has partnered with Nilai University and the Western Australia Council of Education to offer students the opportunity to start their program in Zimbabwe and complete their studies in over 200 prestigious institutions worldwide. “At ASHE we feel it is essential to have
an international feel both in our staff and students,” said Mr Tendai Tichafa, the Vice President of Administration at ASHE International College. He also said “we have quite a vibrant mix of students, with one being a graduate from Fulton Science Academy High School in Georgia, United States of America. The nature of our curriculum has attracted students from all over the world which is what has attracted our student from Georgia. Moreover, we have visiting lecturers from our partner institutions which enables our student to be prepared to meet with people from various places around the world and be able to relate to different cultures in their destination of choice”. The institution strives to produce a graduate that is internationally competitive therefore we have invested in state of the art equipment in our classes. The first group of students at ASHE have shown great zeal in learning the business environment in Zimbabwe. With a curriculum designed to be industry driven and relevant, the students have embarked on field visits to enable them to better understand the operations of various businesses in the country. The year has been successful, the institution has achieved a very high pass rate of over 90% in all programs. Students have started exercising transfer options with some going to the University of Sunderland, U.K, and others transferring directly to Nilai University, Malaysia. ASHE students are also equipped to be young business ambassadors as they can explore various business opportunities worldwide and bring these opportunities home. It is on record that the demand of tertiary education is on an increase and local institutions are failing to meet the demand,
hence we have seen an influx of foreign institutions promoting to study abroad. While we appreciate the effort to address this gap, ASHE is coming in to add value to the Zimbabwean education sector. Our well trained counselling staff assists students in different aspects of their learning including career guidance. Programs such as the Australian Matriculation Program commonly known as the Foundation program enable students to better choose the career they would like to enter into. Other programs available at ASHE include The American Credit Transfer (ACTP) program which is the first year of an American degree program, the International Year 1 program which is the first year of a Bachelor of Business Administration program, and the Diploma in Business Administration program. The Diploma in Business Administration brings convenience to the working adult as it has a flexible timetable that includes evening and weekend classes. “We strive to educate the nation therefore we want to provide the people with programs that are industry relevant, have a timetable that anyone and everyone can access and have a flexible payment plan to suit any pocket” said the Finance Director Mr Tonderai Tichafa. He also said that “we have seen great interest from working individuals for the Diploma in Business Administration program and we have therefore designed this program to suit their schedules”. The 2014 Academic intake at ASHE will see the introduction of two more exciting programs namely the ACCA program and the Cambridge International Examinations A’Level program. Under the ACCA program the institution will be offering
Foundation, Fundamentals and Professional modules, the program also has a flexible timetable which include evening classes. Under the Cambridge International Examinations A’Level program the institution will be offering Arts and Commercial subjects which include Accounting, Mathematics, Geography, Economics, Business Studies, English Literature, History, Divinity and Sociology. ASHE has stringent measures on the quality of programs therefore arrangements have been made that final exams and marking is done by our partner institutions. All our lecturers are qualified with a minimum of a Masters Degree and above and a good number of them have vast experienced having worked in some our best local Universities. ASHE is located in the tranquil and safe neighbourhood of Marlborough in Harare at the Agriculture House and tight security is in place to ensure that the students are safe. Among the list of transfer Universities are University of Brighton in the UK, University of Sunderland in the UK, University of Bangor in the UK, Edith Cowen University in Australia, University of South Australia, Monash University, Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, Lincoln University in New Zealand, University of Waterloo in Canada, University of Saskatchewan in Canada, Bemidji State University in the USA and Colorado State University also in the USA. ASHE International College is currently enrolling for the Jan/Feb 2014 intake and students can secure a place using their second term/ interim results. Scholarships and bursary discounts are available. For more information on ASHE International College contact us on 04-300081/ 309086 or email: enquiry@ashe.ac.zw.
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December 2013 theEducator
How to decide on a career field
Deciding on a career may seem daunting but it is easier when you give yourself a lot of options and time to consider it. Although the idea of a “job for life” is fast becoming a thing of the past, the field of work which you choose is important because it will determine where you will
spend a good deal of your working life and will also define how many opportunities you will have to branch out using your basic skills set. So, choose wisely and select a field that encompasses as many of your talents as possible, to allow you to the greatest freedom and leeway
for shifting around a field doing different jobs with a good set of basic skills, along with a good dose of solid confidence in your worth and abilities. 1.Begin by determining what you like to do. A lot of people look to others to determine their career paths: teachers, parents, neighbours and peers. Think about people you respect and what they do for work. Take time to map out your wants and to match your skills with skills that are actively sought within certain fields of work. This will involve a fair bit of research work but it is well worth it. 2. Identify the skills you use when you’re doing the thing(s) you enjoy. Look at the things you are good at doing already. These will give you a very good indication of what you are likely to enjoy doing by way of a career. For instance, perhaps you like adding up numbers. Already this simple but important enjoyment opens up a very broad field of work for you that encompasses such possible jobs (accounting, statistics, actual science,
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teaching etc.) Once you have identified a potential field, you are then ready to match your skills. 3. Think of fields broadly. A field of work is far more than a single job. It is an area in which many jobs or trades are possible and you should be able to consider your training and interests in terms of looking for a career path that will give you a shot at at least five related types of jobs that are available within that field. For instance, if you learn engineering, you might consider being an engineer out in the field (such as civil engineering), a manager of a site, an office manager, a trainer of engineering skills and a consultant in engineering. Or, if you study law, you may want to be a lawyer in a large law firm, a lawyer in a non-profit organization, a team leader in an office of any type (even non-law), a manager of a company or a writer of corporate compliance manuals. Realize that the breadth of the field will be determined in part by the training you receive and also by your own personal, up-todate “skills set”, as well as your willingness to try new things and to be retrained. 4. Consider cross-field work. When working out what you would like to be and what you will need to study to get to this point, give consideration to the possibilities involved in crossing fields; for instance, many teachers are good with word skills and hence make excellent editors and publishers. Think outside the square your title bestows (or will bestow) upon you. 5. Learn as much as possible about the qualifications required for fields that interest you. Library, Internet and direct contact research will be required here. It is also helpful to ask your school, local community services, university etc. for assistance in career choices and development. Your thorough research will help you to determine quickly which areas you want to study in, as well as the depth of study required. Dig deep and look at third and fourth year subject/skills training requirements as well, so that you don’t find any nasty surprises awaiting you, such as additional time or harder skills that do not match your interests or abilities. 6.Find people who work in the field and learn from them. Once you have worked out which specific jobs interest you, speak to those already working in these areas. This will enable you to hear their suggestions and to ask them what they like and dislike about the field in which they work. Sometimes you may even have an opportunity to do some work experience with a place that interests you, to help you to “get a feel” for the work involved. 7.Evaluate your choice of field according to your own perceptions and the information you have gathered. Assess the comments you’ve received, weigh these up with your research work and add in your own feelings about your potential career path. This is now the time to decide whether this career continues to appeal to you. Do not forget to include the type of lifestyle you would like in the balancing equation. If you make enormous compromises as to the type of lifestyle that you ultimately want, you may be unhappy and live to regret this. As such, it is wise to try and combine your career choice with a lifestyle balance, with minor or short-term compromises rather than major, long-term ones. 8.Sign up for an educational or training program in the career of your choice. While studying, do not neglect to take advantage of networking opportunities and chances to work in your career field either as a volunteer or in short-term paid positions. These opportunities will give you the best possible feel for the work and the types of people in the field that you will be working with. It will help you to filter out any unneeded areas of study or to take on additional subjects and skills training that may be of possible use and could help to extend your horizons. 9. Keep positive. When you are finally trained and ready to find that dream career, the most important thing is to maintain a positive outlook about your life and to be ready for change, difference and shifts in your comfort zones. This is the real world and it moves rapidly; it is important to keep up with changes and to take a positive approach by making opportunities out of challenges. However, always keep what is unique about you because at the end of the day, that is the special something many employers are looking for while they choose from many skilled and educated workers available to them.
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Helping primary school students make the transition Young adolescents entering high school look forward to having more choices and making new and more friends; however, they also are concerned about being picked on and teased by older students, having harder work, making lower grades, and getting lost in a larger, unfamiliar school (Mizelle, 1995; Phelan, Yu, & Davidson, 1994). As young adolescents make the transition into high school, many experience a decline in grades and attendance (Barone, Aguirre-Deandreis, & Trickett, 1991); they view themselves more negatively and experience an increased need for friendships (Hertzog et al., 1996). For primary school students, including those who have been labeled “gifted” or “high-achieving,” the transition into high school can be an unpleasant expe-
ing, taught them more about strategies for learning on their own, and provided them a more challenging curriculum, their transition to high school would have been eased. Similarly, at Sunrise Middle School in inner-city Philadelphia, Oates and her colleagues (1998) found that students who participated in a Community for Learning Program (CFL) were more successful in their transition into high school than students who had not participated in the CFL program. Key components of the CFL program were support and training for teachers, a learning management system designed to help primary school students develop a sense of responsibility for their own learning and behavior, and an emphasis on community and family involvement.
rience (Phelan, Yu, & Davidson, 1994). Research has found, however, that when primary school students took part in a high school transition program with several diverse articulation activities, fewer students faced major transition challenges (Mac Iver, 1990). Furthermore, middle school principals indicated that they expected fewer of their students to drop out when the school provided supportive advisory group activities or responsive remediation programs (Mac Iver & Epstein, 1991). This Digest discusses how educators can ease students’ transition into high school by providing challenging and supportive primary school environments and by designing transition programs that address the needs of students and their parents and that facilitate communication between primary school and high school educators. Primary School Environment Providing young adolescents with activities that relate directly to their transition into high school certainly is important; however, providing young adolescents with a challenging and supportive primary school experience is an equally important factor in their making a successful transition into high school (Belcher & Hatley, 1994; Mizelle, 1995; Oates, Flores,
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& Weishew, 1998). For example, Mizelle (1995) found that students who stayed together with the same teachers through to seventh grade and experienced more hands-on, life-related learning activities, integrated instruction, and cooperative learning groups were more successful in their transition to high school than were students from the same school who had a more traditional primary school experience. Students also indicated that if their primary school teachers had held students more responsible for their learn-
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Parents guiding your teenager Parents want their children to do well in high school but sometimes it is a challenge to figure out how to support them. High school is a time when parent involvement is critical but often not present. Following are some hints on how to help your teen get the most out of high school. Help your child show up at school with a good attitude and ready to learn Studies indicate that showing up is important but not sufficient for school success. Physical and mental states are important factors in getting the most from school. • Keep tabs on school attendance. Check attendance reports. If you suspect a problem, immediately call the school. Do not encourage your child to skip school for special trips or activities not related to school such as a family vacation or an outing with friends. That makes school seem less important than having fun. • Make sure your teen gets plenty of sleep. Recent studies show that teenagers need nine or more hours of sleep nightly and that students earning As and Bs generally are getting to bed earlier than students with lower grades. • Don’t accept the “I’m never gonna use this after high school” excuse for not working hard in a particular class. For example, algebra may not be everybody’s favourite subject, but studies show that courses like algebra
are critically important in college acceptance decisions and achievement. • If you have a senior, beware of “senior slump.” Recent reports indicate that students may consider the last year of high school a waste of time. However, students who waste their senior year are often unprepared for college-level work even if they took challenging courses during their earlier high school years. • Help organize time and materials. Just because students are in high school does not guarantee they are all prepared to do high school work, especially longterm projects, on their own.
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• Help your teen keep an assignment calendar with dates for long-term projects as well as daily homework. Review the calendar at the beginning of the week to plan how time will be used and make allowances for other activities such as sports and clubs. • Help your teen divide long-term assignments into smaller tasks and develop a timeline for when tasks should be finished in order to have the entire assignment completed on time. • Make sure there is a place for quiet study away from the television and telephone along with a place to keep school materials, including materials necessary for long-term assignments. Take an interest Studies show that parent involvement drops dramatically as students move from preschool into primary and high school. Yet given the complexities of today’s high schools, this is a time when many students are most in need of parental support and involvement.
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December 2013 theEducator
Ten things teachers wish parents would do Research indicates that students with a desire to learn will excel if encouragement is meted out within the context of their learning environments that convey to parents the teachers class rules and expectations for student success. Students, as a rule, require immediate feedback in order for classroom instruction to be effective. Parents, in the same way, should be involved with the process of education on a continual basis and keep an eye on how their child is performing at school.
school rules, discipline, or goals. 7. Use pressure positively. Parents should encourage children to do their best, but they should not apply too much pressure by setting unattainable goals or by involving them in too many activities. 8. Call teachers early if there is a problem (not wait for teachers to call them), so there is still time to improve the situation. 9. Accept their responsibility as parents and not expect the school and teachers to take over this job. For example, parents should make it their responsibility to teach children basic discipline at home rather than to leave this task to teachers. 10. View drinking by underage youth and excessive partying as a serious matter, not a joke. Drinking, partying, and staying out late take a toll on students’ classroom performance. While parents are concerned about drug abuse, many fail to recognize that alcohol is the drug most frequently abused by youngsters as well as adults.
1. Be involved in their children’s education. Parents’ involvement helps students learn, improves schools, and makes teachers’ jobs easier. 2. Provide resources at home for reading and learning. Parents should have books and magazines for their children and read to or with their children each day. 3. Set a good example. Parents should show their children that they believe reading is both enjoyable and useful. They shouldn’t spend all their time in front of the TV either.
4. Encourage children to do their best in school. Parents must indicate that they believe education is important and that they want their children to do the best they possibly can at school. 5. Emphasize academics. Too many par-
ents get caught up in athletics and preparing their children for the world of work, when academics should be their first concern. 6. Support school rules and goals. Parents should take care not to undermine
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December 2013 theEducator
How to keep your kids occupied Do you have something important to do, but you can’t do it because your kids are bored and want something to do? Unfortunately, although some children can usually keep themselves occupied, most need something to do every second. • Give them some games. Games that the kids won’t need much help withare best. Try not to use difficult games like Monopoly, unless there is an older child who can help the younger ones. Try to keep them from playing video games, though you may have to let them if they still won’t leave you alone. Card games are good, too.
• Get them exercising. Have an older child take them walking or biking. If you have a trampoline and have boys let them light wrestle, like one of them pretends to punch but doesn’t and the other one laughs. • Ask an older child to read to the younger children, or to help them do a jigsaw or a puzzle. • If you have young children, they will usually be happy doing crafts or arts, for example, paper chains. Only let them do things that you trust them to do alone, or have an older child help them and watch
over them if you can’t be in the same room at all times. • If they are quite young, give them some colouring books or paper and provide them with lots of felt tip pens or crayons and let them draw or colour. Be sure to stick any of their creations to the fridge or a wall afterwards to show them that you are proud of what they have done. • Use music. They could play Musical Statues, where they dance until the music stops. Get an older child to put on some music and operate the radio/CD player. or you could just put on some music and
let them dance. If you have girls, tell them to make up a dance routine that they can perform to you when you have finished cleaning or doing whatever you have to do. • If you don’t mind them getting things messy, let them do some painting. This could be painting pictures or finger painting. Once you have time to spend with them, tell them that you are sorry that you didn’t have time to play with them today, and that you will take them somewhere special tomorrow.
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