2018 Back to School Guide

2018 Back to School Guide Essential School Supplies Cyberbullying

Quick Hair Styles & Avoiding Lice Coping with Back to School Costs

Freezing & Meal Plan Tips

Back to School Checklist Make getting ready for School easier with our Back to School Checklist

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EnviroChill Chiller bags Large insulated bags to keep snacks and lunch cool until required. Two patterns Stripes & Apple Blossom, or 4 plain colours in the large size – Black, Aqua, Red & Green.

30 x 32 x 16cm RRP: Large $15.99 Available from: www.envirotrend.com.au

FunBites Reignite your kids’ love of lunch with these clever food cutters.

FunBites turn fruit, sandwiches, cheese, meat and slices into delightful and irresistible works of foodie art. Great for picky eaters.

Remember, cute food = edible food.RRP: $14.95 Available from: www.minihippo.com.au/shop

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Cheeki Stainless Steel Lunch boxes Premium stainless steel lunchboxes are BPA free, robust and dishwasher friendly. All three sizes have leak-proof seals and flip-up clips means easy for small hands to open and close.

RRP from $32.95 www.cheeki.net.au Yumbox Award-winning Yumbox combines traditional Japanese bento compartments with a slick and chic European design aesthetic, using childfriendly construction and BPA-free, food-safe materials. New colours, sizes and tray configurations have been released for the 2018 school year as well as Yumbox ice packs and insulated pouches.RRP: Various sizes, from $26.95. www.minihippo.com.au/shop

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See our School Lunch Box Comparison Reviews

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5 Easy Healthy Kids Snacks Kids love snacks and variety. Below are 5 recipes (designed by nutritionist and busy mum of 2, Cinzia Cozzolino) that are guaranteed to be are delicious, filling AND nutrition packed!

Carrot and Celery Sticks with Hummus Hummus recipe: Ingredients: 1 tin chickpeas ½ cup tahini Ÿ cup extra virgin olive oil 1 lemon (juiced) 2 cloves garlic Method: 1.

Add all the ingredients into a food processor big bowl 2.

Blend using the food processor or hand stick blender 3.

Add salt/pepper to taste 4.

Store in a container for later use to be served with carrot & celery sticks

Healthy pikelets Ingredients: 1 1/2 cup self raising flour 1 tbs baking powder 1 tsp apple cider vinegar 1 tbs maple syrup 1 ripe banana 1 cup rice milk Method: 1. In a bowl mash banana, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar and rice milk together 2. Sift in your flour and baking powder together and combine til smooth 3. Heat a pan on medium, drizzle olive oil and pour in a small amount of pancake batter 4. When it starts to bubble, flip over and fry until golden 5. Allow to cool, then freeze in a container for later use

Date and Apricot Bliss Balls Ingredients: A handful of pitted dates 1 cup dried apricots 1 cup rolled oats 1 tbs chia seeds 1 tbs coconut oil 1 tsp vanilla essence

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Method: 1.

Place ingredients into your food processor and blend 2.

When combined, form into balls 3.

Store in a container in the fridge for later use

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No bake muesli Bars Ingredients: 1 cup cranberries 1 ½ cups rolled oats ¼ cup maple syrup 3/4 cup tahini Method: 1.

Line a baking tray with baking paper 2.

In a bowl mix maple syrup and tahini 3.

Add in cranberries and oats 4.

Mix until well combined 5.

Pour into tray and flatten out evenly 6.

Refrigerate for 1 hour then slice into bars 7.

Store in a container in fridge for later use

Blueberry muffins Ingredients: 1 ½ cups self raising flavour ½ cup maple syrup ¾ cup soy milk ¼ cup olive oil ¼ cup chia seeds 1 cup blueberries Pinch of salt

Method: 1.

Preheat oven to 200°C and line a muffin tray 2.

In a bowl mix flour, maple syrup, soy milk and olive oil and chia seeds 3.

When well combined mix in the blueberries 4.

Pour into muffin tray and bake for 15 minutes or until golden 5.

Store in a container in your freezer for later use Recipes provided by nutritionist Cinzia Cozzolino, Founder of Smoothie Bombs and Nutrition Darling. www.nutritiondarling.com

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How to freeze food head of time for lunchboxes and meal prep When asking Julie Goodwin what her best tip is for making time-saving lunches for kids, she has just one word, “freezing”.

“Do whatever you can for the whole week on the Sunday – use the time to bake and make sandwiches, then simply pop everything in the freezer,” she says. “That way on busy school mornings, you can just take whatever you need out of the freezer and pop in in the lunchbox.”

Here Julie gives her tips for freezing food ahead of time.

Lunch food:

Sandwiches So, sandwiches which are easy to prepare ahead and freeze are always a bit of a lifesaver. However, make sure that no filling such as a piece of rocket or ham is overhanging out of the sandwich. You want the bread to protect as much of the filling as possible. Wrap in plastic wrap and store. Good quality ham, rocket and aioli sandwiches freeze well. As does corned beef, mango chutney and Jarlsberg cheese.

Just pop them frozen into a lunchbox in the morning and they will thaw out by lunchtime.

Fritters and patties Allow the patties and fritters to cool down first.

Then arrange them in single layers between sheets of freezer paper. Store in an airtight container. They will separate easily. Patties are a great lunch option for kids because they’re tasty and you can include vegies like carrot, capsicum and peas in them.

Muffins, cakes and slices Wrap the slices, muffins and cake pieces individually in a double layer of plastic wrap, then once more in foil. Then store the slices together in a sealed plastic bag. Muffins – either savoury or sweet – are a good carb burst and a really tasty addition. I include a great recipe for Apple Crumble Muffins in my Weet-Bix eCookbook.

Freezer Storage Tips 8

Other stuff:

Packaged meat Always remove meat from its supermarket packaging as it’s designed to allow oxygen in to keep the colour of the meat bright. This can lead to freezer burn. Instead wrap individual portions in double layers of plastic wrap. With mince, place in sealed plastic bag and flatten to expel excess air.

Liquid based dishes Store in airtight containers and leave a gap of about 3cm at the top so the liquid can expand as it freezes.

Casseroles For dishes such as pasta bakes and meat casseroles cook in an overproof dish, cover with a double layer of plastic wrap, then a sheet of foil and freeze.

Don’t ever freeze these things:

Vegies with a high water content Vegetables such as carrots, celery, cucumber, lettuce and tomato should not be frozen individually as the water inside them will expand during freezing turning them to mush upon thawing.

Jam Forget the jam sandwiches – jam turns watery and runny when thawed and frozen, due to the sugar breaking down during freezing.

Certain dairy products Cream, milk and yoghurt should never be frozen as it will curdle when thawed.

For a great freezer-friendly recipe, and tasty lunch time treat try these samosa patties from my eCookbook. You can also place them on a lightly oiled oven tray and lightly oil top of patties. Bake in a moderate hot oven, 190°C, for 30 minutes turning half way through cooking time.

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Samosa patties Ingredients 4 Sanitarium Weet-Bix finely crushed 500g potato, peeled and chopped 500g sweet potato, peeled and chopped ¼ cup grated cheese ½ cup frozen peas and corn, steamed ¼ teaspoon curry powder ½ teaspoon salt 1 egg, lightly beaten 2 tablespoon oil Method 1 Place all potatoes in a saucepan an cover with water. Bring to boil then reduce heat and simmer until soft. Remove from stove, strain and mash.

2 Place in a large bowl mashed potato, cheese, peas and corn, curry powder, salt and egg. Mix well.

3 Form into tablespoon size patties and roll in crushed Weet-Bix. 4 Heat oil in frypan and cook potato patties until golden on both sides.

The former MasterChef winner and Star 104.5 radio host recently teamed up with Weet-Bix to devise a unique eCookbook of lunch box snacks – Julie Goodwin’s Weet-Bix Lunchbox Snacks Cookbook – which is free to download from https://www.weetbix.com.au/lunchbox/

Purple Rice Paper Rolls Ingredients ½ packet Vermicelli noodles Couple of drops of Purple grape Hopper natural food colouring 10 Rice paper sheets 1 cup Lettuce - shredded 1 cup baby spinach – shredded 1 cup carrot – julienned Left over roast chicken - shredded Method Follow vermicelli packet to cook. Drain vermicelli and add a few drops of food colouring, mix to colour all vermicelli evenly.

Fill large shallow plate with water and place 1 rice paper sheet into the water for 30 seconds.

Remove and place on damp clean tea towel. Add filling including coloured vermicelli to one end of rice paper. Roll ½ way, tuck in the sides and continuing rolling. Repeat to make more rice paper rolls.

Recipes from Krystal Preece. Krystal is the founder of Lunchbox Pals, a company she created after being unable to find healthy snacks for her girls lunches. With her family right by her side the company now delivers hundreds of snacks every month to families right across Australia.

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School Drink Bottles

Snack/Drink in the Box Drink in the Box refillable drink containers replace sugar-laden juice boxes with fruitinfused water. Snack in the Box containers save money and landfill by allowing parents to buy school snacks in bulk and simply re-pack them into these bright, fun, refillable gems.

RRP: Various sizes, from $16 Available from: www.minihippo.com.au/shop

See our School Drink Bottle Comparison Reviews

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ecococoon vacuum insulated drink bottles Our drink bottles are leak free, spill proof and keep beverages cold for 24 hours and hot for 12 hours.

A range of colours, sizes and illustrations are available. RRP: from $34.95 View our complete range at www.ecococoon.com.au

Cheeki Stainless Steel Water Bottles Stainless steel bottles are leak-proof and available insulated (cold for 36 hours!) or single walled.

Range of sizes and colours available to suit every child’s school day - for any age. RRP from $24.95 www.cheeki.net.au

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Zoku Stainless Steel Bottle The Vacuum Insulated Stainless Steel Bottle makes sure cold beverages stay that way for up to 30 hours and hot beverages maintain heat for up to 10 hours. Designed to take a hit, this double-walled bottle is made of heavy gauge 18/8 stainless steel, yet remains easy to carry with a removable paracord lanyard.

RRP: $39.95 Available from: www.zokuaustralia.com.au

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Water Bottle Tip: Add ice blocks or freeze your waterbottle in the hot summer months to keep the water cool for your kids

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Bags & Backpacks

Batman Sling Bag Stroll through the school yard with these dynamite sling bags, and be ready to save Gotham City after school from notorious villains and gangs. Just be sure to look out for The Joker and his friends! RRP: $9.99 Stockists: Australia Post

Batman Backpacks Jump in the Batmobile and race to school with these Batman backpacks. Don’t forget to pack your Batman costume in case your super powers are needed in the classroom!

RRP: $15 Stockists: Kmart

Batman Library Bag Pack your books in the Batcave before school with the Batman library bag. Perfect for when you need to make a quick getaway to ensure you’re in class before the school bell! RRP: $3.50 Stockists: Big W

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PAKitToMe Back packs Durable polyester backpack which folds back into its own pocket for easy storage. Features two drink bottle holders, front pocket and keychain. Small size available in the Hawaiian collection, large in the Stripes & Apple Blossom. RRP: Small $15.99 & Large $24.99 Available from: www.envirotrend.com.au

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Coping with Back to School Costs Back to School can be expensive and creates a difficult issue for many families. Our purses are still hurting from Christmas, the kids have been on school holidays with more money spent there… and now you need to get Back to School Supplies.

Here are out tips on coping with the Back to School Costs:

1.

Work out what you actually need.

Feel free to utilise our Back to School Checklist to determine what school supplies you actually need so that you cannot be swayed by children who want everything. Certain stationery items like glue sticks and HB pencils, blue and red pens and white out almost always need replacing; however, many coloured pencils simply could use a sharpening or going through the home supplies to create a full pencil case again. Check the length and fit of school uniforms, and check your current supplies of lunchboxes and drink bottles, to determine if you need replacement items. As a general rule of thumb, you will need at least 2 lunchboxes per child. Avoiding unnecessary purchases will help to reduce the costs.

2.

Start off on the right foot.

3.

Take advantage of Back to School Sales and Discount Shops

4.

Label like you love it!

5.

Set a budget

One of the major expenses (at least for us…) is School and Sports Shoes. At the beginning of each school year we buy new school shoes. The cost of these add up quickly and with the children in their shoes for at least 6 hours a day, five days a week I need to ensure that I get shoes that will help their developing feet. I always visit a reputable kids shoe store that specialise in school shoes and correct fitting. We buy the shoes with enough space for growth throughout the year and generally we get through an entire year with this one pair of shoes. To help with this expense, it is good to visit a store that has a good loyalty program that rewards you for your purchases by offering decent discounts on the 6th pair or a similar program.

We set aside a day (it’s big and long…. but then its done :)) a week before school starts to do all the Back to School Shopping. Taking advantage of Back to School Sales and look at the Discount shops for certain items like glue, pencils and other stationery requirements. This will also help reduce costs.

It can be frustrating and painful, however labelling everything is a must and it is also a safeguard to ensure that you don’t lose items unnecessarily. Labelling clothing, school bags, books, lunchboxes and drink bottles is a must. Find a good quality label that doesn’t wear off quickly.

For the older children who want to choose their own items, set a budget for them on what you will give them to spend on their school supplies. This helps them learn a valuable monetary lesson along with an understanding of the importance of sticking to a budget and making decisions around this.

Let us know your additional tips on coping with Back to School Costs.

Cyberbullying As families prepare for the beginning of the school year they face the ongoing challenge of managing the digital lives of their children.

For kids, the online and offline world are "seamless" in providing an environment where communication, socialising, play, research and learning take place. But there’s a down side too.

We have come a long way from considering bullying as a rite of passage or just an unavoidable fact of life, but families are dealing with the complexities of a 21st-century version: cyberbullying. What makes this even more challenging for parents is that many children and teens are not even using the same language as them to describe negative and harmful online behaviour, referring to it as ‘drama’ rather than ‘bullying’.

When does teasing, spreading rumours or being mean ‘cross the line’?

Would you know if your child was being cyber bullied? 90% of parents are unaware that their child is being cyberbullied on social media platforms or on their mobile phones.

Bullying behaviour is when someone or a group intentionally hurt and harm others and keep doing it even when they have been asked to stop or when targets of this aggressive behaviour show or express their hurt. It is intentional, often anonymous and relentless.

For young people and parents alike, it can be difficult to determine when meanness becomes something more serious, like cyberbullying. It doesn’t take much for mean behaviour to escalate rapidly into a bullying scenario and the impact can be amplified by the 24/7 exposure to it.

Being ‘always on’ doesn’t help those being targeted who are unable to ‘shut down’ the harassment and home is no longer the safe haven it was in pre-digital times.

Positive human communication relies on empathy, and unfortunately this gets lost when there are screens between people. Not knowing whether a person is being sarcastic, serious, humorous, or rude can cause messages to be greatly misconstrued.

Emojis can only provide hints!

The Office of the eSafety Commissioner identifies the many ways bullying online [cyberbullying] can occur: • Abusive texts and emails • Hurtful messages, images or videos • Imitating others online • Excluding others online • Humiliating others online • Nasty online gossip and chat

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So, what can parents do?

In your family discussions about being safe and respectful online we recommend you talk ‘with’ your children not ‘at’ or ‘to’ them.

Talk about: • What cyberbullying looks and feels likes. Provide some examples and ask or child if they have others.

• Guidelines for how, when and where mobile phones, computers or tablet devices can be used.

• Talk about the abuse or mean behaviour to a trusted adult (parents, carer, teacher, school counsellor).

• Do not retaliate if you are being bullied.

• Block the bully and change your privacy settings.

• Report the abuse to the service and get others to as well.

• Collect the evidence—keep mobile phone messages, take screenshots and print emails or social networking conversations.

• Don’t share, comment or like any bullying posts. This could make it worse for the person being bullied.

• Remember you didn’t ask for this—nobody deserves to be bullied and you will get through this.

It is helpful for parents to use the LATE strategy: Listen Acknowledge it hurts Talk about options End with encouragement Parents often feel overwhelmed by the advice and tools to help them keep their children safe online. At Wangle Family Insites our approach is to educate and empower parents so that their engagement in the digital lives of their children is enhanced. Our Wangle Family Insites App is designed to keep parents informed by sending alerts to parents about internet threats such as harmful content, cyberbullying, excessive use and after-hours activity. If a parent receives a notification then advice is provided immediately about what this threat means, what to do and further resources.

Article provided by: Wangle Family Insites. An innovative new app which allows parents to keep their child safe without spying on their child’s device, or breaching their privacy and trust.

It enables parents to monitor device usage, capture the time spent on certain apps or gaming sites and notifies parents if an Internet threat that has been triggered, in real time. Unlike spyware, it doesn’t give access to specific content - which protects trust and encourages honest communication between parent and child. https://info.wanglefamilyinsites.com/cyber-safety-theessential-guide.

Other helpful links: Office of eSafety Commissioner https://goo.gl/CWSZ3Q Social Media Safety Centres https://goo.gl/5eLXjw Bully Stoppers https://goo.gl/GCQjMR .

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Click here for more Advice on Bullying & Cyber Bullying

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Stationery &

Pilot Pen Frixion Stamps - with 24 different motifs to choose from, these cute rubber stamps are a fun way to decorate your drawings, notes, or diary. RRP $2.99 Available from: Officeworks and other major retailers and stationery suppliers

Smiggle Squad Pop Out Pencil Case This is a pencil case that really pops in fun designs from the Smiggle Squad range.

Featuring two main compartments and a timetable insert, the Squad Pop Out Pencil Case also has a stack of awesome pop out functions including eraser and stationery drawers, mini calculator and a built-in sharpener! RRP $24.95 Available from: Smiggle stores nationally and www.Smiggle.com

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Smiggle Blend Calculator Hardtop Pencil Case You’re guaranteed to have extra fun in the classroom with the iconic Smiggle Hardtop Pencil Case with removable scented calculator.

As practical as ever - with double zip access, inner mesh compartments and pen slots.

RRP: $29.95 Available from: Smiggle stores nationally and www.Smiggle.com Pilot Pen Frixion Colors - erasable felt tip markers in a choice of ten fun colours.

Colour, draw, craft and create and if you make a mistake, rub it out and start again. RRP $2.49 Available from: Officeworks and other major retailers and stationery suppliers

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School Gear

SPLASHitToMe ArtSmock Lightweight, waterproof, made from the same fabric at the SPLASHitToMe raincoat. Simply wipe or wash clean. Three colours left, Size M (4-6) Size L 6+. Folds away into its pocket.

Clearance - was $19.99. Now: $12.99 Available from: www.envirotrend.com.au

Lace up Leather School Shoes With classic lace up design, Resistant to abrasion, Lightweight and flexible - whole shoe flex tested to 500,000 cycles RRP $14.99 Available from ALDI

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SPLASHitToMe Raincoat Lightweight, completely waterproof, made from high quality nylon. Folds away into its pocket to store back in the school bag. Four colours, sizes 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 & XS (adult) fits the 12-16 year group. RRP: $34.99 Available: www.envirotrend.com.au

ALDI School Jogger Premium Leather Velcro Joggers RRP $17.99 Available from: ALDI

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Danger Dolan is an Australian YouTube phenomenon, presenting intriguing, idiosyncratic facts in snappy countdown videos - and now, in an even snappier book!

It’s full of interesting and weird facts that tweens will love. They’ll be able to impress their friends with their new-found knowledge when they head back to school! RRP: $19.99 https://www.panmacmillan.com. au/9781925481310/ Guinness World Records: Science and Stuff Packed with spectacular superlatives, shocking stats, fantastic facts and fun figures, Science and Stuff celebrates the simple joy in finding things out. RRP: $22.99

everything in between simple and easy!

RRP: $49.95 - get 10% off by entering code MUMS10 Available from: www.mymemorybooks.com.au

ecococoon Chalk Pens ecococoon chalk pens are available in nine vibrant colours and can be used on any ecococoon bottle or cup. Design your creation then clean it off and create something new! RRP: $5.95 each View our complete range at www.ecococoon. com.au

https://www.panmacmillan.com. au/9781910561638/

Ginger Sports Birthday Party Make your next kids’ party HASSLE FREE! Book a Ginger Sport Birthday Party for your kiddo, and wow your guests with a party they’ll never forget. Phone or book online!

RRP: FROM $170 Find out more: https://www. gingersport.com.au/services/party/

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My School Yearbook School memories need never fade away with the My School Yearbook.

Making storage of memories, awards, certificates and

Ginger Sports Inflatables You can hire Ginger Sport’s incredible Inflatable Soccer World from just $230. Great for parties and events. Add some WOW factor to your party! Phone or book online. Simples!

RRP: FROM $230 Available from: https://www.gingersport.com. au/services/inflatables/

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My Special Book About Me - The Story of My Life at School A treasured keepsake of everlasting memories of your children’s life at school. It contains a double-page spread for each year of school. The story of my life at school happens only once in a lifetime Ensure you capture every moment of this special time! RRP: $29.95 Available from: www.myspecialbookaboutme.com.au/

Sight Word Games to encourage learning

What you need to know about buying school shoes

The annual back to school period is a hectic time for parents and children. The long list of supplies and uniforms can go on forever, balancing this with your kid wanting the latest and greatest in everything, can add up to a fairly stressful few days. Adding in the need to buy schools can make the whole exercise one big headache.

Sophie McLellan, the owner and podiatrist at Little Big Feet and co-founder of Skobi School Shoes, Australia’s only line of school shoes designed by a paediatric podiatrist, discusses the tips and tricks parents should know when they are choosing their children’s school shoes!

Below is a list of things to know and tricks you should arm yourself with before entering the yearly battle to find the best school shoe for your kids: • Pick your stores wisely: There are hundreds of different stores you can choose from when purchasing your child’s next pair of school shoes. Don’t be fooled by the huge lines and sale prices though, you need to ensure the staff these stores employ are correctly trained to fit your children’s feet, don’t be afraid to ask the store manager if their staff get specific training to fit kids and if not, go somewhere else.

• Check the fit yourself: The best trick to see if your kid’s feet are too big or too small for the shoe size the fitting technician is suggesting is to take the inner sole out of the shoe and place the child’s foot on top of it. Make sure they’re standing when you measure and ensure there is around a thumbswidth before the longest toe hits the end and that no part of your child’s foot fall over the edge to avoid rubbing.

• Ask questions: There are some fundamental questions parents should ask the fitting technician when their kids are trying on school shoes. These include: does this shoe best fit my child’s everyday needs? What materials is this shoe made from? Selecting a shoe that is inappropriate to your child’s needs is a fundamental cause for excessive wear and tear. Similarly, as compared to most artificial leathers, full grain leathers are much more breathable, and wear nicely over time.

• Listen: If your child is complaining about tightness, rubbing or pain, it’s best to investigate what the cause is. The shoes may be too narrow or the wrong shape for their foot. Use the innersole method I mentioned above and ask the technician if there are more options your child can try on.

• Compromise: Does your child like the shoe you are going to buy them? If not, you may need to prepare yourself for the daily battle that will commence every time it comes to putting their school shoes on. A shoe that they love aesthetically and functionally, will always be happily worn.

Buying school shoes can be a trying process, as a podiatrist we see kids and parents come in to the clinic for a range of issues, however we have always found making the process fun and relatable the easiest way to get through it. As a parent you need to ensure you are placing your kid’s feet into a shoe that is the best option for them, especially since kids spend 80% of their day in them!

Author: Sophie is co-owner of Little Big Feet Podiatry, and co-founder of Skobi Shoes as well as being a mother, wife, sister and daughter! To ensure your kids feet are being correctly fitted and to have your questions answer by a podiatrist, head over to www.skobishoes.com.au

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Tips on storing and keeping your Childs School Artwork Once your child starts school, you can bet that you will start to become inundated with Artwork.

Throughout the year you will receive bits and pieces and then at the end of the year your child brings home a bucket load of artwork for you to admire and keep. A nice idea and you certainly don’t want to get rid of everything; you just can’t keep everything either.

Here are our tips on turning your children’s artwork into manageable everlasting memories: 1. Pick out the best/ most interesting pieces of Art. This is best done in conjunction with your child and offers the opportunity to find out more about what they did in class; to understand the picture (for the younger aged children) and also to get an idea of what is memorable to them. My children are sometimes so proud of pictures because they have mastered a skill they have been working on, that I wouldn’t have known about without talking to them.

2.

Decide what you want to do with them Depending upon your space and storage ability; there are a number of options to keep your child’s artwork: • You can keep the originals. I suggest keeping them in a waterproof storage box. You can put everything into one box or have a box for each child and keep adding to it each year. Boxes are ideal as they keep the dust out and can be stacked on top of each other.

• School Years Memory Books. Purchasing a School Years Memory Book is a great option to minimise the space required while effectively recording and keeping all their important school memories, artwork, photos and notes from the year including current friends and teachers. School Memory books offers a way to neatly keep the originals in a long-lasting option that your child can look back upon when they would like to.

• Digital Storage. Digital Storage of your pictures offers a great way to retain the memories without the bulk. Simply Photograph or Scan the artwork, putting the images into specially marked folders on your computer. You can then have them randomly appear on your screen as the screen saver and/or your child can view their masterpieces whenever they want.

• Create your own School Art Books.

Once you have digital copies of the artwork, you can create your very own ‘Coffee Table Art Book’ by uploading your photos to a Photobook service and printing a beautiful book out from it. You could do a Child’s Art Book encompassing each child’s work. Another idea would be to create a photobook that covers their artwork and key school highlights that year; making it a digital School Memory Book.

I hope these tips on turning your children’s artwork into manageable everlasting memories have helped and would love to know how you store your child’s artwork Lorraine Salvi

• Framing or Displaying key pieces through the house or their room is a lovely way to raise your child’s self-esteem and encourage their artistic ability. You can change the picture each year, or create a collage on a photo board in their room.

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Easy hairstyles for school in under 5 minutes Help your little girl look fabulous at school with these quick and easy hairstyles for school (or play). Each takes 5 minutes or less to do and all of these easy school hairstyles look great, will help keep lice out and ensure that their hair will not annoy them throughout the day.

Twists with Braid

1. Start by taking a section of hair (about 2-3 cms) on the right side of the head – mid way between the ears and forehead. Twist and then pin into place in line with the middle of the back of the head. Do the same for the left hand side. To make the pins more secure cris-cross them (or do two in different directions per twist) so that they are less likely to fall out.

2. Repeat this process with a section of hair just above the ears, twisting and pinning these pieces near the previous two.

3. Just below where the twists are pinned, split all the hair into three sections and braid the remainder of the hair into one plait. Do this by taking either the right section and putting it over the middle section, pulling the hair tight. Then take the left hand section and put it over the middle section (which was the right section). Keep repeating from side to side until you are at the end and secure with a hair band.

Inverted Pony

Pull half the hair into a loose pony tail. I use a Scunci Topsy Tail to quickly and easily invert the pony tail, however you can do the same by creating a hole just above the hair band and taking the end of the pony, pushing it through the hole and pulling it down all the way through the pony to create the inverted pony look.

Double Inverted pony

1. Pull half the hair into a loose pony tail. I use a Scunci Topsy Tail to quickly and easily invert the pony tail, however you can do the same by creating a hole just above the hair band and taking the end of the pony, pushing it through the hole and pulling it down all the way through the pony to create the inverted pony look.

2. Do the same a little lower down with the remaining hair and the original pony tail.

Curly Ponytail

1. Pull hair back into a pony tail. Using your curling iron (we used the VS Sassoon Fashion curl), curl the hair within the ponytail. And you’re Done!

2. You can then let out the ponytail for a style with quick curls

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Side Plait

1. Put the hair into a ponytail at the back of the head.

2. Pull the hair to the side where you want the plait to sit, and plait the pony tail all the way down. Finish with another hairband to secure and voila.

Multiple Ponies

1. Simple and basic hairstyle that adds a little more colour and fun to the basic ponytail!

2. Simply split the hair into a number of section and create mini ponytails.

3. Bring all the mini ponytails together and place in one large ponytail.

Tips for preventing Head Lice Don’t go near other kids! This would be the ultimate prevention measure, however if you are not stuck on an island in the middle of nowhere, it is rather futile apart from the fact that it would drive you insane. Instead make sure that if your children are near others at school or in childcare you tie their hair up.

This helps hinder the ability of the lice to get through the hair to the scalp.

Don’t share combs, hats or other head equipment. Teach your children not to share hair brushes, hats or similar objects with their friends. For those with children attending school or childcare, ensure you always have a spare hat in the car so that if/when they forget their hat, you do not need to borrow the office hat.

Keep a vigil. Check your child’s hair from time to time, especially if you notice that they are scratching or complain of an itchy head or neck. Look out for nits (little bown or white eggs the size of a pin prick), lice, red spots on the scalp or rash like bumps on the neck. If you spot these, quarantine and treat your child immediately. At the same time, check other children within your family to see if they are infected and need treatment.

Make friends with Tea Tree Oil. Although I cannot bring myself to do this yet, many mums at the school spray their child’s hair everyday

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(after tying it up) with water that has some Tea Tree Oil in it.

Apparently the lice do not like this at all. You could also add Lavender Oil. Dirty = lice free. Lice do not like dirty hair and while I cannot bring myself not to wash my children’s hair, I now only wash it every 3-4 days so that it is not always sparkly clean.

Style it Up. As a busy mum, this is not something I have the ability to offer my children on a daily basis, however hairspray and gel are good barriers in preventing lice. So if you have the time to style your child’s hair, this method could work well for you.

Teach your children not to rub heads. It seems strange, but children do not have the same personal space understanding as adults and will often put their heads together when playing or talking, so teaching them not to ‘rub heads’ is a good idea.

Those are my tips for preventing head lice.

Have you had to deal with lice outbreaks? What tips could you share with our mums?

Article from Lorraine Salvi

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Why Volunteer at your Child’s School?

I had always dreamed of being involved at my child’s school when they attended, however since starting Kindy this year I have to admit that the constant calls for parental help and involvement is overwhelming. Add that to a busy schedule of working, mothering and keeping house and no wonder it is a struggle for schools to get parents to volunteer.

Being involved in your child’s school can be rewarding and offers a number of positive kickbacks for their schooling. Over the next few articles we will discuss the number of benefits gained from volunteering and the ways that you can be involved in your child’s school regardless of whether you work full time or not.

Benefits for Parents: Learning more about your child. Being involved in their school activities can help you to learn more about your child, to better understand what they do, watch them interact with their classmates and get to know the other children around them.

Bonding with their teacher. Being involved in their school activities provides you with the opportunity to bond with your child’s teacher in a non-obtrusive way. This can provide invaluable feedback and information on your child as well as give you the opportunity to ask any questions or provide feedback.

Bonding with other parents. Developing relationships with other school parents is a great way to learn about what is happening at school (many mouths paint a better overall picture) as well as helping you develop friendships which could potentially help your child in forming friendships as well as possibly helping steer the direction of their friendships.

It can also be handy to have a mum or two

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that you can turn to for help if you are running late, have an important meeting or just need a hand with school drop off, pick up or play dates during the holidays.

Improving the relationship with your child.

Knowing more about the children in their class, their classroom learning’s and understanding how/what they do better, helps you when trying to communicate with them. You can construct your questions better, giving you a greater opportunity to talk and learn more from your child about their school life.

Improve/learn new skills. Volunteering at your school can help you learn new skills or improve existing skills, both of which will benefit you when returning to the work or on your current CV.

Benefits for your Child: Helping teachers teach more effectively.

Helping your class teacher with mundane tasks (sharpening pencils, sorting permission slips, etc.) frees up their time allowing them to spend more time with the students, educating.

Children learn better. Being involved in your child’s education can help boost their confidence at school and it can also help you reinforce their class learning’s at home in a more effective manner as you understand what they are doing

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and how the teachers teach them.

Volunteering for in-class activities can provide you with the opportunity to identify/understand potential learning issues that you may be concerned about.

Children enjoy school more. Children whose parents volunteer at their school tend to enjoy school more and show a higher level of involvement. The notion of their mum visiting school makes their day more exciting and enjoyable. It also reinforces that you care about their education and the importance of it.

Improve the school environment for your child. Volunteering can help your school raise valuable funds, which in turn provides your child with better facilities, learning tools and opportunities.

If you volunteer for your school, what benefits have you noticed? If you are keen to volunteer but don’t feel that you have the time or ability, take a look at our post on the different ways you can volunteer either in or out of school time and with/without contact with other mums/students.

Article from Lorraine Salvi

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