Category: General

Read the blog to understand the role of playing games in a child’s life and how playing helps to build those essential life skills.  

Playing is one of the most enjoyable and natural ways to keep children engaged, happy and healthy.  

Play isn’t everything about games and doing fun, but it’s a crucial learning tool as well.  

Kids learn to interact, build teamwork, social skills and other critical life skills that play a key role in a child’s mental and physical well-being.  

What are the different types of play?

Types of Play: Get a perfect blend

Playing has its own significance in a child’s development, but you need to understand different types of play and how to inculcate those in your child’s play activities. 

• Object Play 

Sensory-motor skills get improved and boosted when a child plays and explores an object or a toy. She’s is on the pathway of becoming the little genius while she is experimenting with that thing. 

The abstract thinking cells become active while your child learns the properties of the thing such as banging on the floor to learn if the object is solid or fragile. 

• Physical Play 

Allowing the child to choose her own favorite play game and go for an unstructured play encourages her to take risks and gives a kick to her motor skills.  

• Role Plays 

Role-plays and imitations help a child to experiment with different roles and understand human psychology as well as behavior. 

The costumes, dress-ups help your child to unwind their creativity and boost communication and language skills. 

• Outdoor Play 

Outdoor play is equally important in your child’s life as it helps build skills such as spatial awareness and keeping one’s balance. 

Playing outdoor games such as badminton, soccer, cricket, etc boosts a child’s concentration power and focusing abilities. 

Play with your child and go for a perfect blend of all these four plays to ensure that your child is well nurtured. 

Playing helps children grow into innovative, curious, healthy and most importantly, happy individuals.  

Now, Let’s understand why playing is important for children?  

Importance of Playing  

Whether it’s structured or unstructured, playing is a critical aspect of a child’s upbringing that cannot be ignored for sure. 

1. Boosts Imagination & creativity 

Playing gives wings to a child’s creativity as they get lost in their own imaginary world. 

They brainstorm, make their own rules and find their way to the solution of the problem. They understand how to challenge those rules according to requirements. 

These qualities are critical for developing long-lasting relationships as well as navigating life. 

For example: While playing hide and seek, the hider plans out the best possible place to hide to make sure that it is not caught by the seeker.  

2. Fosters Cognitive Growth

Cognition is related to brain or mental development. 

Unstructured plays are best known for fostering great cognitive growth of the child. 

Unstructured play means a play that is not bounded by any activities or schedules by the adults or other elders. 

By giving full freedom to the child, this kind of play strengthens the brain’s neural connections in a positive way along with building the prefrontal cortex of the brain. 

This positively impacts the problem-solving skills, analyzing and thinking abilities of the child. 

3. Building Emotional Quotient 

Just like when adults are overwhelmed, they indulge themselves in various activities such as gyming, karaoke singing etc to ground themselves back to normal life. 

Kids are no less. It’s just the thing that they need more playtime. 

Inculcating a habit of daily playing helps the children to understand and manage their stress, fears and anxiety. Also, how to stay in happy spirits always.  

4. Role in language building 

It has been seen that curious minds tend to concentrate better on studies. It’s the play that triggers the curiosity levels! 

A child may have learned the words by listening to parents but the language structure and other communication skills are mainly improved by playing with friends or family.   

Even if the kids can’t speak properly, they tend to converse back and forth while playing to keep their point. 

Teaching children in a fun-filled environment makes them learn quickly and in a way that it lasts forever.   

5. Encourages Independence 

At home, children are spoon-fed or instructed about their daily activities such as what to eat, how to eat, what to do etc. 

On the other hand, they have full power and authority when they play. They can set their own rules, directions and be the stakeholders. 

Here the roles reverse. Children take the charge and become leaders while adults follow them. 

6. Promotes physical & mental well being 

Whether children realize it or not, they have a very strong desire for physical play as their bodies are wired to be active. 

They just want to play anything that keeps them moving. Playing promotes physical fitness and keeps their body healthy. 

Apart from this, physical fitness results in better bone density which in turn makes the skeletal system robust.  

A fresh mind resides in a fresh body. Playing not only refreshes children but is also responsible for good cardiovascular health.  

Role of Playing in developing important skills  

Let’s have a look at some of the important life skills that get imbibed when a child plays. 

• Emotional Skills 

Children can create their own imaginary, dreamy world which enables them to connect with every character in the real or fictional world in their own way.  

Playing helps the children to: 

• Learn and express in a better way. 
• Work over their emotions such as anger, anxiety and fear. 
• Take risks & stay confident 
• Take ownership & responsibility
• Practice understanding and empathy 
• Ability of self-perception 
• Social Skills

Group dynamism is better understood when the children play in a group. Collaborating, compromising and teamwork can only be learned through playing.  

Through play, children learn to develop social skills such as: 

• Recognition  
• Respond to feelings such as affection, conflict resolution, compromise etc. 
• Understand the importance of obeying rules. 
• Relationship building & teamwork.  
• Expressing themselves
• Pursue self-discipline
• Cognitive Skills

Worried about the grasping power of your child?  

Make her involve in all the four types of play mentioned above and feel the difference. 

Studies have proved that kids have dramatically shown improvement in their cognitive skills if they are playing frequently.  

Playing helps to boost the child’s cognitive skills such as: 

• Sharpen their planning and creative skills 
• Improved Understanding abilities  
• Quick attention spans 
• Better reasoning score and recall skills 
• Improved critical and analytical thinking abilities 
• Communication Skills  

Playing is the best way to make the child learn the facial expressions and body language of the opponent.  

• Children learn to do the conversation based on their opinions. 
• Improve their vocabulary 
• Learn possible ways to end a game
  
• Understanding the other person
• Real-time thinking, better reactions
  
• Physical Skills

While an active lifestyle is important for our health, kids are no less.  

Physical work enables the kids to use their natural store of energy which is a must for great eating and sleeping habits.  

Studies have shown that active kids tend to be great learners and graspers, while vice versa leads to a sedentary lifestyle even in their adolescence.  

Physical Skills that are honed: 

• Coordination abilities  
• Gross and fine motor skills
• Stamina
• Balance
• Agility

Examples: riding a bicycle, running or skipping are some good examples of games. 

• Academic Skills

Playing games is the new normal towards learning.  

Most of the schools and upcoming educational institutes don’t follow the old methods of rote learning but encourage the child to learn the concepts with fun games. 

 It creates a long-lasting impact on the child’s memory and makes him/her grasp the fundamentals by understanding how things are actually working. 

Involving playing in academics: 

• Makes learning fun
• The child doesn’t feel overburdened
• Better recalling and understanding abilities
• Builds quick grasping power
• Life skills

Children don’t know their limits, but definitely keep on striving to explore them.  

As the game plays involve challenges and risks, the kids get to know their limits. They learn that it’s never too late. 

By learning the importance of failures, they get to know the importance of taking risks and how to implement the same skills in real life.    

The biggest thing that they learn is to “Fall and then, Rise!”.  

Side effects of not playing 

We, all know that all work and no play will turn a child into a dull one. 

Playing games indoors as well as outdoors helps to shape the personality of your child. 

Be it emotionally, physically or mentally, playing helps your child to keep the negative vibes at bay and indulge in pure positivity through games.    

Children that are not into playing whether structured, unstructured or indoor/outdoor are susceptible to having long and negative impacts on their cognitive development as well as physical health. 

According to research, kids that do not play pose a higher risk of having behavioral, attitude and attention problems. 

Such kids face issues in creative thinking and lack skills that help them to succeed in their careers or workplace. 

It has been witnessed many times that lack of play results in an unstable EQ that can disrupt a child’s life by bringing in stress, anxiety and apprehensions. 

 Bottom Line

Playing is priceless and precious and should be encouraged. 

Participate in the craziness with your children. Play, run, dance and sing along with your children.   

You are just not making memories but securing the future of your child. 

Stay tuned to our blogs for more inspirational and educational articles.  Don’t forget to share it with your friends as well!
After all, sharing is caring! 

“Skills grasped through gaming help the child to sail better in the sea of future!” 

Playing and gaming are critical components of a child’s development as they contribute to their social, physical, cognitive, and emotional well-being. 

Gaming means any learning activity that helps the child learn through active engagement, play and fun. 

Involving the kids into game learning from an early stage helps them to engage and interact with the real world in a better way.  

Gaming helps a child to conquer their fears, explore a new world that they can master and develop new competencies to face future challenges.  

Playing offers a tremendous opportunity for parents as well as teachers to engage with the kids and make them learn in a fun-filled way.  

The skills learned through games are long-lasting and get deeply engraved in a child’s mind. The child learns new skills without realizing it. 

Have a look at some remarkably interesting insights on how gaming helps students to learn.  

·        Motivation 

By inculcating games in classroom teaching, students are motivated to participate, learn more and pay attention to the tasks assigned.  

Games help the child to understand the importance of ownership and responsibility.   

·        Early Learning 

Even simple games such as board games help young children to identify colors, develop hand-eye coordination, count spaces and have the dexterity to move things around. 

Children learn to stay patient as they need to wait for their turn and follow the rules of the game.  

Some games such as chess, encourage cognitive and healthy brain development. These strategy games boost the development of the frontal lobes of the brain.  

It is these frontal lobes that help in the execution of functional skills such as organizing things, planning, and making good decisions.  

·        Sharpen your child’s focus 

When games are played without interruption at a stretch, it helps strengthen a child’s attention span.  

To work on your child’s focusing abilities, parents or teachers need to sit through the game without grabbing one’s phone or asking Alexa to play a song. 

In this world of digital distractions, having a great focus is a blessing. 

Also, while playing games children are required to pay attention to detail and keep a check on all the moves made by the opponent.  

As the game proceeds, the child needs to be more alert and attentive if he/she wants to win the game. 

This attentiveness gained by playing games helps the students to stay focused in every activity, be it academic or non-academic. 

·        Teamwork 

Games are an excellent way to teach the importance of teamwork and other meta-messages about life.  

Gaming encourages the kids to team up with kids of different age groups and work together to turn the game in their favor.  

It may happen that students may become over-competitive in the class, from the academic point of view.  

Encouraging them to play games is an excellent way to control their behavior and maintain decorum between their peers.  

While playing games, teams are made. Students play together to win against their opponents.  

They strategize, plan, and support each other to make things work during these gaming activities.  

·        Games soothe anxiety 

As most of the games are structured and come with a set of playing rules, they offer an excellent way to strengthen interpersonal skills between peers. 

The kid understands how much to expect from the co-players and learns how to make a comeback in a game. 

Alongside this, delivering a page of text or answering questions on a worksheet can turn out to be daunting and stressful for some children. 

This process may negatively impact their productivity and perception, even though they are good at that. 

Games turn out to be an amazing way for the kids to demonstrate their skills, knowledge and understanding of a topic.  

When the kids are less stressed, they gain a positive perception of the learning environment and show an exemplary performance of their own capabilities and learning.  

·        Team Spirit 

The children learn to accept defeat and work harder to achieve the same goal next time. 

Encouraging the child to play by rules helps the children to build their coping skills and resilience gets promoted.  

·        Class Cooperation 

Games played in the classroom are the perfect exercise for team-building activities.  

It increases class cooperation, and the child learns how to listen to others, build respect and play fairly.  

Whether students are playing in small groups, or the entire class is playing against the teacher, they must work together in a team to turn the game in their favor.  

·        Strategy Simulator 

Games require strategy and planning, be it indoor or outdoor.  

When a child applies its working memory to devise various strategies and their outcomes, mental cognition is boosted.  

So, when the brain is stimulated for an answer, the problem-solving skills of the child are enhanced and improved dramatically.  

It is a great workout for the brain.  

·        Peer Positivity 

Even when academic concepts are explained with the help of games, both teaching and learning are facilitated. 

This helps to build an aura of positivity around the lesson and the child learns how the concepts are applied in the real world. 

Apart from that, it encourages the children to participate in the activities undertaken and attain a positive attitude towards new learning.  

These games impact the memory positively and enhance their learning capabilities by providing an excellent overall experience.  

·        Decision-making skills  

When the children are allowed to play on their own or go undirected, it allows them to understand the importance of working in groups, resolving conflicts, negotiations and learning some self-advocacy skills. 

When the children are given full control of the play, they practice good decision-making skills, understand their passion and area of interest, and understand how to move at their own pace.  

What will happen if children do not play games?  

Gaming and learning go hand in hand. 

You need to inculcate gaming in your child’s academic and daily routine for her overall development, physically, mentally, and emotionally. 

Games not only enable them to explore the world but also help them to understand the importance of having alternatives, backups alongside developing other important skills.  

When gaming is ignored or not included, the child may become an academic topper but will lack the things that will help her to sustain the pressures of the real world and secure his feet in the world. 

Let us dive deep and understand what will happen kids are not into gaming, whether indoor or outdoor. 

·        Creativity hampers 

Creativity is necessary for everyone’s life as it encourages and helps a child to solve problems and handle different situations in a brilliant way. 

When children play, they create their own world that significantly boosts their innovative powers. 

Lack of play inevitably hinders the child’s ability to think and come up with unique solutions. Thereby, making him/her lack the originality of thoughts. 

·        Lack of independence  

Uninterrupted and unstructured gameplay helps the children to stop relying on adults (parents/teachers) and develop a sense of autonomy.  

They understand the problem by themselves and try to find the solution without being spoon-fed.  

Games act as the foundation and building blocks for this independence and autonomy power. 

The absence of game playing makes the kid introvert, dependent and insecure as she lacks the decision-making capabilities. 

·        Shyness 

Children not having exposure to gaming are shy and turn insecure over the course of time.  

They are not sure about their decision and doubt everything.  

Children who are not given space to take their own decision or who are intervened by their parents, turn out be shy.  

It is important to understand that parents should give their children the full authority to play, release their energy, discover their talent, and unleash their potential.  

Experimenting and game playing give wings to their thought process and make them achieve whatever they are set out to do. 

·        Lack of social skills  

It has been seen that gaming helps children to relate to people and helps in blooming strong social skills.  

No gaming or gameplay-based learning makes the kids introvert who stay self-centered and are not interested in mingling with people. 

Social skills can only be acquired through early childhood stages and are very crucial for a successful future.  

·        Immature Emotional Quotient 

Playing board games, card games, or any other creative games, help the children to project their emotions without any hesitation and limitation.  

It is extremely critical for the development of EQ as it aids in healthy visualizations of the situation as well as overcoming obstacles and fears with full determination and confidence.  

As the children become independent and powerful, this boosts their emotional stability.  

·        Poor Behaviour 

Playing games is an ideal way for kids to release their stress, anxiety, and tension.  

When the kids do not play games, they switch to other modes to release their stress and tension. 

This is one of the prime reasons for the kids that turns them frustrated and result in poor behaviour.  

Games are an indispensable part of a child’s life.  

They are fun and motivate the children to conquer the harsh realities of the real world with ease.  

Game-based learning boosts children’s cognitive skills as well as other social skills and is a great stress reliever.  

Stay tuned with us to discover some tips that help in the perfect upbringing of your child. 

Keep sharing!  

“What you eat not only feeds your body but is indeed fuel your hungry mind too. Unfold some effective healthy eating tips for your teens and turn them super genius.” 

Are your kids really ready for the GCSE?  

Famous Nutrition Consultant Claudine Ryan explains that a strong memory completely depends on the vitality and health o your brain. 

In the last blog, we discussed memorizing techniques but these techniques result in vain if your teen is not following good eating habits.  

While glucose is the main energy source for the body and brain, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients help in the optimal functioning of the brain.   

As your teenager steps into adolescence, good nutrition is equally important at this age as well. The body is rapidly changing and growing and requires good food to sustain its development. 

This blog throws light on the importance of good nutrition for teens, which nutrients and food are important and some healthy eating tips for your teen to study effectively.  

Role of Healthy Diet/Nutrition for Teens  

As teens are growing, it is very important to make them aware of good eating habits so that they can make more responsible decisions for their health and body.  

Importance of right nutrition in teens  

• More energy is required as the kids are stepping into puberty.  

• Healthy eating habits ensure proper nutrients are supplied to their growing needs and appetite.  
• Supports body growth and improves cognitive abilities.   
• A healthy breakfast ensures that they stay hydrated throughout the day. 
• Boosts mood, reduces absenteeism 
• A healthy brain leads to a great memory. Thereby, improving academic performance.  

Which nutrients are important? 

According to British Nutrition Foundation (BNF), some important nutrients that are important for improved brain functionality in teens are: 

• Proteins 

Proteins play a crucial role in building and repairing our tissues and cells. They are also known as bodybuilding foods and form a major component of the bone, hair, organs, nails and muscle.  

• Iron 

In today’s times of COVID, one needs to have strong immunity and what’s better than Iron. This mineral provides energy for body growth and is essential for focus and the strong immune system of the body. 

• Vitamin D 

Vitamin D is essential to keep bones and teeth healthy. It helps bind calcium to the bones and protects your teens against various infections and diseases. 

• Calcium  

This mineral works along with Vitamin D to ensure healthy teeth and bones. Calcium plays an important role in muscle movements, brain health and improves cardiovascular functionality.  

• Fibers 

Though not that nutritious, fibers are vital to your teens’ bowel movement and keeping the gut healthy.  

Apart from these, there are several vitamins and minerals that aid in better brain functioning as well as mental and physical health of your teens. 

• Riboflavin (vitamin B2) 
• Vitamin A 
• Vitamin C 
• Vitamin B6 & B12 
• Niacin 
• Thiamin  
• Copper, magnesium and iodine 
• Phosphorous 

Deficiency of any of these could lead to serious health problems.  

Healthy eating tips for the teens to study effectively 

1. Don’t skip breakfast 

Studies have proved that students who are well-fed and have had their breakfast tend to perform better than those who skip it. 

If you want your teen to have better concentration, memory and retention power, make sure to feed her with a healthy breakfast.  

2. Snack in between 

Global dietitians and nutritionists encourage the teens to refuel themselves after every 3-4 hours to ensure the right energy and blood sugar levels.  

Plan out a few small breaks in your timetable and grab a quick snack for instant energy.  

3. Low on sugar 

Foods containing a lot of sugar do provide you with instant energy levels but these are short-termed. After some time they will leave your teenager drained and fatigued. 

Rather than having soft drinks or other sugary stuff, prefer eating healthier options such as fruits, salads, nuts and low-fat yogurt to meet your energy needs. 

4. Stay Hydrated  

Dehydration is the biggest enemy of memory retention, concentration and brainpower.  

It’s very important to drink plenty of fluids every day and especially during exam times to ensure that your body is fully hydrated.  

A dehydrated body leads to a fatigued brain, constant headaches and lack of concentration. Make sure that your teen drinks at least 6-7 glasses of water every day.   

5. Avoid Caffeine 

Try going for decaffeinated coffee instead of a normal one.  

If you don’t have an option, then don’t drink more than 2 cups of coffee in a day.  

An excessive dosage of coffee results in irritability, sleeplessness, stress, anxiety and restlessness. These are the last things that you want for your teen while she is struggling to concentrate on her studies.    

6. Lose weight sensibly  

If your teenager is on diet, make sure that he/she is not starving or aiming for diets that offer quick solutions but are harmful.  

The best way to lose weight is by eating a healthy balanced diet and doing a regular physical workout.  

Which foods to eat and avoid? 

Foods to eat 

According to World Health Organization, teens need to consume a healthy diet that is rich in nutrient-dense food.  

This balanced diet involves replacing high-starchy foods with other healthy options such as fruits, vegetables and other fat-free or low-fat dairy products.   

According to a study, the recommended calorie intake for a normal teen should be around 45-65% carbohydrates, 25-35% of fats and 10-30% protein intake.  

Have a look at some healthy options for: 

Carbohydrate Rich food: Brown rice, whole-grain pasta and bread, fruits & vegetables.  

Proteins-rich food: seafood, beans, nuts, poultry, seeds, soy, meat etc. 

Fat rich foods:   Olives, seeds, nuts, yogurt, avocados, fatty fish  

Foods to avoid 

The nutritionists recommended not to avoid some particular foods completely but it important to limit their intakes such as fast & processed food, foods with excess salt or added sugars etc.  

Limit your intake for candies, cookies, chips & fries, cheeseburgers, fried chicken etc.   

Some additional tips for healthy eating for study and sports   

Eating Tips for studying   

Our brain definitely needs extra energy to cope with the growing demands of exam pressure, studies and body development needs.  

Check some additional tips that will help you manage your energy in a better way: 

• Eat-in small and frequent intervals. 
• Some quick-to-eat nutritious meals include peanut-butter sandwiches, frozen dinners, tuna/chicken salad sandwiches, breakfast cereal, baked beans, boiled eggs etc. 
• Replace your chips, lollies with some healthier snack options such as nuts, fresh fruits, veggie sticks, yogurt etc.  
• Don’t use caffeine to make your teen feel more awake. It may harm sleeping patterns. Rather, prefer for green tea or herbal tea. 
• Water is essential. Drink that in plenty. 
•  Alongside healthy eating, the physical workout is also essential as it improves your blood circulation and maintains the level of nutrients and oxygen flowing in the brain.    

Eating Tips for Sports & playing  

Along with eating healthy for studying, it’s important to eat well for your sporting needs as well.   

Here are a few food options that help boost your teen’s endurance and stamina. 

• Yogurt and fruits 
• Peanut butter sandwich and banana 
• Fruits and low-fat custard 
• English muffin with honey and peanut butter 
• Sushi rolls
• Oats muffins
• Low-fat muesli bar 

Top 8 foods for your brain  

Staying healthy helps your teen to perform exceptionally well in academics as well as to attain their educational goals. A healthy diet is important for the growth and development of the body but some foods work like magic for brain health. 

Let’s have a look at the top 8 of them.  

1. Citrus Fruits  

Citrus fruits such as grapes and oranges are rich in flavonoids that have the ability to promote learning and boost memory. In addition, they protect nerve cells from injury and mitigate the chances of any mental decline. 

2. Berries  

Berries such as strawberries, blackberries and blueberries are rich in compounds called anthocyanins. These compounds aid blood circulation towards the brain.  

Apart from protecting against inflammation, berries improve the signaling pathways and help in better neurotransmission and enhance mental performance.  

3. Cocoa & Dark chocolate  

Cocoa products especially dark chocolates are also loaded with flavonoids that boost memory and reaction time. 

4. Nuts  

Nuts contain Vitamin E, zinc, etc and other nutrients that improve your brain health and overall mental status. They are concentrated sources of proteins, healthy fats and fiber. 

Nuts keep your teen fuelled for many hours and are an excellent replacement for snacks. 

5. Eggs 

Eggs, nature’s multivitamins are rich in nutrients that are important for brain function.  

They have vitamin B12, selenium and choline that have proven to offer positive results for memory, cognition, coordination and boost your synapses.  

6. Avocados  

Avocados are a rich source of carotenoids that positively impacts your brain’s functionality as well as improve mental accuracy.   

7. Fish 

Fatty fish contain Omega-3S that contain brain-promoting nutrients like selenium and vitamin B-12.  

Regular intake of fish improves your memory, recalling power and better mental growth.  

8. Green, Orange and red vegetables 

Vegetables such as peppers, green leaves, carrots, etc have carotenoid pigments that boost mental performance.  

It deeply influences your teen’s cognitive power and mental abilities.  

Bottom Line  

Nutrition plays a key role in every stage of life, whether it’s a toddler or a kid stepping into adolescence.  

Having a great diet along with great eating habits is important when you’re studying exams or doing regular classes.  

Add the foods listed above to your teen’s diet to ace the mental power, overall health and excellent memory.  

Encourage your child to a balanced diet and healthy eating habits as that help him reinforce positive behaviors which will continue with him/her for life.   

Stay tuned with us to uncover more interesting insights on your teen’s education and upbringing.  

Physical activity is essential for improving overall health and cognitive abilities in a Child. Keep reading to know more.”

We all know that regular exercise is good for the physical health of your child, but it plays a significant role in brain-building as well as amps up the neurological abilities of the child.

Parents and educators must teach the importance of exercising to kids from an early age. As good habits formed in childhood tend to last forever in life. 

This article discusses how exercising boosts the thinking abilities and memory power of the child turning him into an academic genius.  

What happens in the brain and body when your child exercises? 

When we or our child exercise, the pumping rate of the heart increases which in turn accelerates the blood flow across the body as well as in the brain. Next,  

• Now the brain gets exposed to more nutrients as well as more oxygen levels. This results in angiogenesis i.e. blood vessels grow in the areas of the brain related to rational thinking. 

Oxygen saturation deeply impacts the physical, social and intellectual performance of the child. 

• Also, some proteins are also released in the brain that keeps the neurons (brain cells) healthy and further accelerate the growth of good neurons.  
  

• The stress hormones are dramatically dropped. Alongside, exercising accelerate the generation of information processing neurotransmitters such as norepinephrine and serotonin. 
  

• Regular exercising maybe for 10-15 minutes incredibly improves brain functions, synaptic machinery and dendritic branching which are very important for healthy cognitive development.  
  

According to research conducted by the University of Granada, Spain, it was found that children undergoing any form of physical activity had more volume of grey matter as compared to their peers in the brain’s temporal and frontal regions. 

It’s this grey matter that helps them to be a better learner and have excellent visual processing and motor skills.  

What do you mean by “regular exercise”? 

Experts recommend doing one hour of exercise every day to seal a sharp memory. 

Playing sports is the best way to do it. When you child plays a group sport in a team, it automatically builds self-confidence and other social traits. 

If your child doesn’t like to play sports, nothing to worry about. Make your child involved in other physical activities that require body movement.     

Dancing, aerobics, biking, swimming or even throwing a Frisbee are good forms of exercising.  

Benefits of exercise on Brain

Physical activity releases the feel-good chemicals “endorphins” that tremendously improve the energy levels, uplift mood and make your child stay charged up. 

Let’s have a look at some of the important benefits of exercising on the brain. 

• Improves Academic Performance  

Physical activities and exercise in any form help students to improve their mental and reasoning abilities. 

Studies have proven that physically active adolescents and children tend to score better in mathematics and reading as compared to students who don’t. 

The long-term and short-term memory is improved by big leaps the day the kids start doing physical activity. They started remembering things and attain phenomenal recalling abilities.   

Thereby, improving the overall grades.  

• Reduced anxiety 

When the children experience anxiety, to resolve this they tend to get involved in things that further trigger more anxiety. 

This results in a vicious cycle. 

Physical activity tends to break this cycle and channelizing the kid’s energy in the right direction. 

Exercising helps them win over their emotions and develop a sense of accomplishment.  

• Sharper memory  

The good chemicals “endorphins” not only alleviate the stress but also help a child to concentrate better. 

The analytical abilities are given a tremendous boost making it easier for a child to comprehend and solve any problem.   

The growth of new brain cells (neurons) is stimulated and keeps the mind fresh every time, thereby preventing age-related decline.  

• Better sleep 

Physical activity plays a very important role in regulating your child’s sleep patterns. 

You can encourage your child to go cycling in the morning if she isn’t willing to do the exercise. 

At night, you can go for some relaxing exercises such as gentle stretching or yoga to promote sleep wellness.  

• Higher self-esteem 

Fostering the good habit of inculcating physical activity in the daily routine of your child turns out to be an investment for life. 

The ROI is exceptional when it comes to mind, body and soul. 

Your child is able to access the sense of self-worth which in turns her stronger physically, emotionally and mentally. 

She would be able to enjoy even the smallest of success that she gets by achieving the milestones set for her physical activity.  

• More energy 

Physical activity directly improves the cardiac health of your child. 

The regular ups and downs in the heart rate offer more energy to the body along with increased stamina to do daily chores. 

It turns out to be a great way to stay energized.  

• Better resilience 

Over time, it may happen that your child may have to undergo various emotional and mental challenges. 

Exercising helps the children to sail the sea of emotions in a better way. 

Apart from that, exercise strengthens our immune system and makes it strong to deal with any kind of stress.   

• Improved relationships 

It may happen that a child may be feeling lonely and is unable to make friends due to hesitation. 

This impacts badly on the child’s social and mental behavior. Encouraging group play or physical activities helps the child to develop self-confidence as well as a sense of companionship and belonging. 

It helps to fight social anxiety which if go untreated may hinder in your child’s way of emotional stability and social pressure.    

• Concentration & Focus 

A child may feel distracted while studying in case she is surrounded by people or digital equipment like TVs, mobile phones etc. 

While doing exercise or physical workouts like playing games, enable a child to learn how to concentrate on their goal and achieve that.   

• Improved self-realization  

When a child dances, walks, runs, jumps etc, it makes her feel happy about what all things the body can do rather than just appearances. 

Knowing the importance of a healthy body act as a positive signal for the child and in turn, makes the child learn the significance of self-worth, self-esteem and self-confidence.  

How to overcome obstacles to exercise?

Taking the first step is always difficult.  

We understand that it’s always easier said than done. 

So, here are some barriers to exercise and how to overcome them easily.   

• Feeling Exhausted  

It may happen that the kid is feeling tired, stressed up or occasionally feel depressed. She may feel that working out may make her feel worse. 

Break the myth! 

Physical activity or doing a little exercise is a powerful energizer.  

Studies have proved that just a 5-minute walk can turn out to be a powerhouse of energy and charge you up for another 30 minutes walk! 

• Feeling hopeless 

If your kid is feeling hopeless or feels de-motivated, doing exercise is the best way to keep her/him mentally stable. 

You can make your child start slow such as short bursts of dancing, walking etc or other low-impact exercises and then slowly she will start enjoying. 

• Feeling bad 

Does your child feel bad about herself or her inabilities? 

Ask their friends to exercise with your child. Accomplishing even the smallest milestone will encourage them to do much better and gain body confidence.  

• Feeling pain  
  

Your kid may be suffering from a certain injury or disability which is creating problems in her exercising routine. Don’t ignore it. 

It’s better to consult with the doctor on how to divide the exercises into small yet effective chunks that help in the brain development of the child.    

Easy ways to involve your child in exercising  

You don’t need to book the clock to make your child do yoga or go cycling. 

If your child is hesitating in participating in physical activities, as parents or tutors you can do the following: 

• Involve in Home chores  

Involve your kid in and around the home chores. Get her to wash the dishes, sweep the patio or mow the lawn.  

These small activities have a bigger impact on their physical and mental well-being. 

• Prefer walking to nearby areas  

Having a doctor’s appointment nearby or going shopping in the corner street? Ask your child to either take a walk or prefer using a bicycle to go to nearby spaces.  

• Idolize yourself  

As parents, the children will copy you for sure. They’ll look up to you in whatever they do. So, jog around the soccer ground, play hide and seek or tagging, go canoeing, etc. This will definitely motivate the kids.  

• Get creative  

Make your child involved in an activity of their choice. Don’t restrict them to walking or cycling. 

Give them the freedom to go hiking, pick fruits at the orchard, join a martial arts class or do yoga. 

Make exercise a part of life that they enjoy! 

In a nutshell, let’s have a quick sneak peek into the cognitive and neurological benefits offered by exercises:  

• Improved emotional stability 
• Sharpen long-term and short-term memory 

• Decreased stress and social anxiety 
• Improved blood circulation and angiogenesis  
• Delayed ageing process  
• High levels of energy and good sleeping patterns 
• Concentration and focus 

• Mitigates neurological conditions  

Bottom Line  

Exercising positively impacts cognitive performance as well as thinking process both directly and indirectly. 

Physical activity not only helps in releasing the good hormones that are vital for the growth of brain cells or neurons but also aid in the growth of blood vessels in the brain. 

These are vital for the abundance and survival of neurons of the brain’s new cells. 

So, if you want your kid to stay in high spirits and get good grades, start teaching them the importance of physical activity and get them involved in these.    

For more such updates, stays tuned with us and explore the A-Z of the perfect upbringing of your child. 

Enrol with us and secure their future today!

Exam results can be nerve-wracking as children are under extreme mental pressure to meet the expectations set by parents and teachers.  

Though it’s normal to feel a little bit of stress or anxiousness before the exam but too much of it could be vulnerable for your kid’s mental health.  

Here’s what you can do to deal with your child’s anxiety before and after the results day.  

Before the exam

Here are a few tips that you should strive to follow before the result day that helps to keep your kids cool and relaxed. 

• Keep the child busy 

The free and spare time before the exam results may feel wonderful but it may tend to bring in some negativity. 

Empty brains think too much and you never know when negativity creeps in and positivity gets replaced. 

Children may keep on thinking about what they wrote in the exam or if they can get a replay button so that they can go back and redo the thing.  

Just encourage your child that whatever is done can’t be undone. Unnecessary worrying or concern would only harm their health and nothing else. 

It’s very important to stay positive and as parents, you need to keep a check on their thinking process as well.   

Sit with your child and plan things together such as some activities, best-out-of-waste, sports, walks, etc.  

Take your kids along with you and make them explore new things such as galleries, museums, parks, etc. You can also enroll them in some activity class such as skating, music or a daily walk can also suffice.  

And the best thing is to reassure your child that whatever he has done is the best of his capabilities and you are always proud of her/him.  

• Don’t set Unrealistic expectations  

It’s always better to keep a track of the thinking process of your child and understand his/her expectations. 

Make sure that your child doesn’t set unrealistic expectations that will further lead to disappointments. 

Every child cannot be the class topper. The child should understand academics is just one aspect of life and there are multiple to explore.   

• Proper planning on how to get the results 

Unlike kids, parents are also nervous and excited about the results of their children. But, it’s your child’s day. 

Make sure you spin the day around her/his needs. 

Find out how the child will be receiving results, whether by email, posts, phone or school website. Will she/he be going alone or you will accompany your child. 

Keep a note on timing. There is no point in waking your child early on the result’s day just to make him/her more anxious or worried. 

 Make sure to keep a backup plan in case things didn’t turn up the way as desired. 

It’s better to take an off that day so that you can be a part of their celebrations or whatever the course turns out to be.  

• Celebrate their hard work and not the outcome  

You may be tempted to plan a big bash to commemorate your kid’s success but you should always be prepared if things don’t turn up as expected. 

Your child may not want to join the party or face the people in case his grades are not up to the expectations. 

Celebrate the hard work and efforts he/she has put in. Don’t bother about the outcome.    

• Keep the plan B ready 

With plan B, we mean looking out for backup options and alternatives. 

We never plan for the worst but it’s always good to practice backup options as it helps to control the expectations.  

Planning things one step ahead would impact your kid positively and is indeed a constructive way to help your child lead an emotionally stable life.  

Make the child realize that good and bad things are a part of life. Failures that help us learn much better are indeed the stepping stones to success.  

If a child knows what to do irrespective of the outcome, he/she will know how to unfold the next chapter.  

Tips to deal your kids on the result day 

Let’s have a look at some tips to make your child survive the stress on exam day.  

• Be a team player  

Being the parent, you both are sailing on the same boat and thinking about good results. 

You may also be stressed or worried, but don’t let your kid feed on your anxiety. Support them and be a team player. 

Sometimes it becomes important to listen patiently rather than just throwing your emotions on the child. This will turn the situation even worse.    

Whatever be the results, keep them assured that you are proud of their hard work and the efforts they have put in.  

• Don’t panic! 

As the kids look up to you for every emotional need, you need to stay rock solid throughout the day. 

That counts not only for that day but even post that, over the weeks or days that follow. 

If you feel that your kid is showing symptoms of anxiety such as stomach aches, goose-bumps, troubled sleeping/eating, etc encourage her to spend some good time with friends. 

You can engage your child in some other activities that distract them from thinking about how the results. 

• It’s your child’s day 

Let your child decide whether he/she wants to go with you to get the results or with friends. Don’t force him/her. 

If your child wants to drive, let him drive. Play some soothing music on the way to relax the stressed-up kid and never start a conversation that could lead to heated arguments.  

It’s better to keep all the “yes/no” or “what is” things to yourself.   

• Dealing with bad results
   

It may happen that the results aren’t as expected. So, what to do? 

The first thing that you as a parent need to do is to keep a check whether the child is not in a self-criticism mode.   

Make them understand that judging themselves negatively isn’t going to move the needle.  

It’s their hard work, determination and additional plans that will make a difference. Encourage them to learn from their mistakes and move on with a new spirit.  

• Look for an opportunity  

Unexpected results or bad events do bring a lot of opportunities along with them; your child should understand this fact. 

These failures let you know your kid’s weaknesses and help them get over them by changing or modifying their studying strategy.  

Tips to deal with anxiety after the exam results are declared 

A child needs care and support not only before and on the result day but even beyond that. 

• Qualitative Discussions on results 

Avoid such discussions completely.  

The child shouldn’t feel that he would be loved and taken care of only if they score well in academics or achieve a set target. 

Trust your kids and make them believe that you have faith in them no matter what.  

• Avoid Comparisons 

Comparisons demotivate the children. Even after the result has been declared neither you should draw comparison nor let the child compare herself to others. 

You should set realistic milestones and targets for the children that will help them gauge their performance accurately.  

• Performance comparison  

Don’t compare your child’s performance with another student or his/her friend. This may negatively impact your child’s mental health and make him believe that you don’t love him/her. 

Use the right metrics for performance comparison such as comparing with past performance, the effort put and where did things go wrong. 

This healthy way will help the child easily find the loopholes and will encourage them to perform better next time.  

• Support unconditionally 

Be it teachers or parents, it’s important to understand the child’s psychology and remain calm.  

Whether the grades are good or bad, they should be taken in high strides.  

Give the child full authority that he/she can come to you anytime and discuss the problems no matter what the performance is. 

As parents, you need to be assured that your child is emotionally stable and does not stress unhealthily or even worse, take a drastic step.     

• Don’t pigeonhole everything  

Don’t draw fine lines between success and failure. Failures shouldn’t be taken negatively. 

In fact, it’s the results that help them take better and more informed decisions.    

Motivate your children not to rush into making conclusions. It’s always better to open up with friends, peers, teachers or companions.    

Most of the teens believe that not getting sufficient ‘A’ grades would mean the end of the world or they wouldn’t be able to face their loved ones.  

Help them put things right as per their perspective. Understand them and teach them how to pursue the right path of positivity.  

Always make them believe that failure doesn’t mean the end of life, it’s the beginning of a new era.  

• Talk to your child  

It’s the emotional connection and sharing that help your child open up regarding what’s going on in their mind. 

They may be feeling guilty or may tend to harm themselves, discussing or conversing would help you understand their behavior and take suitable steps to overcome the situation on time.   

Don’t lose your control. Stay calm and relaxed.   

Last, but not least. 

A word for the parents 

There may be times when you feel an emotional outburst.  

Don’t be afraid to share your feelings with other parents. When you share, you’ll understand that every parent has the same story.  

Sharing and opening up helps you lift the burden of emotions. You never know, you may end up hearing great advice that works for you! 

So, stay calm and support your child. She needs you! 

For more interesting updates on parenting stay tuned with our blogs. 

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“Read the blog to unveil some 100% effective and tried & tested tips to improve memory of your teen.”

Memory is the building block of your teen’s learning whether it’s related to her curriculum or beyond. A great memory helps the teen to excel in academics and achieve better grades.

Today teens have many things to juggle at one time such as classwork, extracurricular, social life etc. Without a good memory, things will turn chaotic and disorganization ensues.

Having a sharp memory may not be god gifted for everyone. You need to train your memory to develop fast learning and recall skills.

Just like any other skill, practising regularly turns you perfect.

To make your child master the art of memory, you need to make and motivate your child to work on her memorization muscles.

Here are 100% tried and tested tips for improving the memory of your teen.

But, before that let’s understand a few reasons that impact the memory grasping power of your teens.

Reasons affecting your teens’ memorization power

·         Hormones

As your teenager steps into adolescence, a surge in brand-new hormones is witnessed. The brain may get over-stimulated with emotions that are hard to control.

Studies have proved that teens at this age are more focused towards gaining attention and recognition from others.

As the brain is evolving through these changes; planning, focusing and controlling behaviours can turn out to be a hit or miss and impact the memory.

·         Sleep patterns

For teens, doctors and psychologists recommend a sleep cycle of a minimum of 8-10 hours. Sleep is very critical and essential for the development of teens.

Placing other things above sleep could result in reduced concentration and high distraction rates. This further impacts the ability to remember things.

The bottom line is that a teen with sound sleeping habits gains an edge over her peer who is sleep deprived.

·         Multi-tasking

It’s always better to do one thing at a time as it will give better results and efficient performance.

Overloading the brain by doing multiple tasks at a time will divide the effort and the output may not be the same as expected.

Going for too many activities with too many instructions can be overwhelming for a teenager and they may tend to forget things that need to be done together.

·         Health Conditions

Your teenager may be suffering from certain illnesses such as thyroid, depression, dyslexia or ADHA.

Feeling that your teenager is forgetting too much (more than normal), it’s advised to visit your paediatrician. It may happen that he/she may be putting in the effort but the efforts are resulting in vain.

It’s the time when they need your support and encouragement. Shouting or fighting with them will turn things even more worse.

Be patient with them. Understand that forgetfulness is normal but memory capabilities are improved with proper techniques, skills and parent’s support.

Working with Memory

Short term memory is just like the RAM of your brain. It helps the teens to process and recall new information. This helps them to do the task at hand.

All this information is transferred to long-term memory. You can term this as the ROM of your brain. This memory plays a very important role in the development of a better and deeper understanding of the topic.

Memory is nothing organizing information in such a way that it can be easily recalled. A good working memory helps a teen to excel in every sphere of life.

• Effective reading and other math-related problems
• Easy puzzle and riddle-solving.
• Better chances of winning the game when you know the rules.
• Multi-step instructions can be easily completed.
• Understanding a problem in a better way.

Here are a few ways that help in better information organization and sharpen memory.

Tips to sharpen memory

Make your teen practice these skills that will help them to store information rightly in their brain so that it can be recalled within quick reflexes.

1.      Break information into smaller chunks

Remembering long forms of information is not easy. The best way to learn any new information is by breaking it into smaller chunks and then learning them in points.

For long answers, always break your answer into small headings, lists, bullet points etc for better comprehension. Memorizing can further be expedited by colour coding things.

For example: While doing periodic tables, learning all the element names may not be that easy. Use their pneumonic form and frame sentences.

To learn element names from atomic number 1 to 5: H (Hydrogen), He (Helium), Li (Lithium), Be (beryllium) and B (Boron).

Use these to make a sentence such as “Happy Hero Likes Beautiful Boats”, this accelerates your learning.

2.      Right Revision techniques

Rote learning techniques are always discouraged. It is always recommended to learn by understanding the fundamentals and focussing on the basics.

Experts have an opinion that the deeper you learn or process the information, the chances of remembering things are increased.

For example: It’s always better to write than to type. Thought it may be a time taking activity, but your brain will process the information in a better and faster way.

Another best way is to encourage your child to write in their own words. Just a small effort will make the new concepts get etched in your brain.

Even better, the parents should become students and ask your teen to teach you the concept that they’ve just learnt. Teaching anything will make your teens understand the nitty-gritty of the subject.

3.      Mind-mapping

Creating a mind-map allows your child to review, consolidate and engage with the topic in a connected and creative way.

Try to connect the things one after the other. This is indeed an efficient and effective approach to memorize and learn in a better way.

Help your child learn this strategy of mind mapping and connecting the information that makes things easy to remember and recall whenever necessary.

For example: How photosynthesis works? First, Make your teen learn the things that are important for photosynthesis. Make him/her visualize the entire concept.

This mind-mapping will make him/her not only understand the phenomenon properly but will get affixed there.

4.        Let your teen Speak out loud

Apart from making them practice writing, ask your teens to speak out the things loudly whatever they have learnt.

Speaking the things several times, whether it’s someone’s phone number or the revision test, will help to recall better.

Also, to enrich the vocabulary skills, encourage your adolescent to try using the new words in his/her daily conversations. This will help them to learn the correct pronunciation, meaning and he will not fumble for words ever.

5.      Encourage Questions

Understanding a subject is a very crucial step before things are memorized.

Value your teen’s questions. When they are asking questions, it means they are on a way to sound and deeper understanding of a subject.

Encourage them to ask questions. Listen to them and answer their queries very patiently. This is the foundation step towards developing problem-solving and analytical skills.

6.      Practice, Practice and Practice

Ditch your teen’s old habit of cramming. Cramming may work in junior classes but without a solid understanding of the basics, don’t expect your child to achieve heights or excel in academics.

Rather, plan out a proper timetable, make your teen follow that schedule strictly. Keeping space for revision and testing is a must to identify the gaps in your learning.

There is no point in testing yourself unless you aren’t learning from mistakes. Take time, identify your mistakes and learn where and why you went wrong.

Mistakes and failures help your memory to grasp things better and in the right way.

7.      Relate and associate

Well, there may be many relate and associate techniques that one can employ to learn and grasp better but relating with personal things make it last longer in your memory.

As you are already relating the thing with your existing memory, the new information is easily absorbed in your brain.

For example:  While learning any date, try to make your teen connect it with birthdays and anniversaries of people they already know.

The same stands true with names as well. Like if you meet someone named  “Emma”, try to connect with “Emma Watson” from Harry Potter.

8.      Proper Sleep

Our brain works double the power when we are refreshed.

It may be hard to get a good sound snooze during exams or during crunch times, good sleep is essential to retain mental alertness and top your performance metrics charts.

When we sleep, our brain does the processing and converts the short term memory to long term memory. This makes you better equipped to revise things as compared to the scenario when you go without sleep.

9.      Hard facts & flash cards

An old yet effective trick!

For memorizing hard facts such as in English, History and formulas in mathematics, get your teen acquainted with good old fashioned flash cards.

Reading over the notes, again and again, is definitely not the best learning strategy for your memory. Testing the information repeatedly makes it hardwired in your brain.

Use flashcards for that. Here you either your teen knows the answer or does not. No mid-way thing.

Well, help you teens make some of these during their regular classes.

So, they can practice and memorize the facts and become fully confident with their academics before exams and make them perfect over time.

10.  Get a study buddy

Encourage your teen for a group study or get a study buddy.

Make your teen explain what you have learnt or have been revising the whole day without looking at the book to her buddy. Teaching and learning with peers is more like reinforcing the knowledge and information gained.

This ability to talk or discuss with someone helps your child actively recall and understand the concepts in a polished way.

Here are some dos and don’ts that help in better memorization. Make your child follow these by heart for a great and sharp memory.

  Dos

• Employing visualization strategies make your child learn quickly as she would be able to paint a picture in their mind about what he/she has just learned.
• There are many online streaming platforms and educational websites that offer video-based learning which is a great step toward memory building.
• Try colour-coding the lists or use coloured sticky notes. Brain recognizes them quickly and helps in speedy learning.
• Relate and associate the leanings with your personal experiences.
• Stay stress-free and don’t panic.
• Make your child feel that you are always there for her support.

Don’ts

• Don’t overstress or overthink about the capabilities of your child.
• Don’t let distractions such as phones/mobiles impact their concentration levels.
• Don’t make them multitask. Make them learn to focus on one subject (task) at a time.
• Don’t discourage your teens from taking small breaks in between their study routines.
• Don’t scold or shout at your kid for forgetting things.

Inculcating the above-stated points in your teen’s daily routine will help them master the memorization strategies.

Provide them with a good learning environment that serves as the stepping stones of success for your teenager.

We are one of the pioneers of online education with wide industry experience. Make your teen learn the basics and clear her fundamentals with seasoned mentors/teachers that not only give help them achieve better grades but also give direction to your child’s career.

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