"15 WAYS FOR A WONDERFUL 2015"

LAST DAY OF 2014!!

Rather than looking back - let's move into 2015 with new ideas to add into life.

1. Smile as you shower for a HAPPIER you. You could smile whenever you turn on the water - flushing the toilet, turning on the washing machine or dishwasher, bathing the kids, rinsing fruit and veggies... - A happened-on idea.

2. Put your ear rings on before your makeup. WOW, glam you! You probably look good enough to skip the makeup. - A happened-on idea.

3. Find "five things to be thankful for" each day, NAME them in your mind. - A family practice during the morning walk.

4. LOOK at the moon and stars in the night sky and spot the satellites as they pass by overhead. - My Mum's evening practice.

5. Begin and end every day with a glass of WATER. - Charlotte Mason.

6. Take 5 SLOW DEEP breaths while you drive or ride on public transport each day. - The sign on the wall at North Shore Hospital.

7. Put the washing on LAST thing at night and hang it out early morning. - Don Aslett.

8. Close your eyes and listen for a few minutes to the birds singing or cicadas chirping... It actually takes practice to LISTEN to them. - A happened-on idea.

9. Choose to think on and remember THE GOOD and not make mental lists of wrongs against you. - "Love keeps no record of wrongs." 1 Corinthians 13:5.

10. Become a learner of something you know nothing about. A lot is written about the benefits an adult brings to learning something new, but great things develop within an adults to be back in the beginner/LEARNER SEAT. - A handed-on idea from my sister, Pip.

11. Always be in the process of reading a physical book, so that new ideas are given for you to CONTEMPLATE. - Charlotte Mason.

12. Get the daily TOUGH things done at the start of the day. - My Mum.

13. Send a daily message to encourage or BRIGHTEN someone who is unwell, in difficult times or worrying. - My sister Jules' practice.

14. Develop a CREATIVE space in your week to garden, do art, knit, sew... so you design and decide. - Edith Schaeffer.

15. Take a walk and get 15mins of SUN every day. - Charlotte Mason.

THISWEEKWITHTHEKIDS ~ Pick out what works for YOU and add your own ideas to it. This way you are choosing to be refreshed by small things as you keep living, minimising complaining or the decision to give up.

HAPPY NEW YEAR. 

Cathy

"A GOOD MEMORIES CHRISTMAS"

As we are now into the 2 week count-down until Christmas, there is an awareness in our family of the need to get the Christmas tree and decorations up and organise the family Christmas meals and gifts. But everyone at this stage is mesmerised by work deadlines before the Christmas shut-down, moving house, bidding on a house auction and frantically looking for summer jobs... The year's demands and strains will be sticking with us right through into the Christmas season!
In December 2010, I put up a post about the high incidence of difficulties, troubles, disagreements, arguments and bust-ups occurring at Christmas when the family gets together. Today we tend to come into the Christmas season from wild busyness and pressure.
Family Christmas can be the place where some want to tell of their year's successes or of their disappointments, but the essence of Christmas gatherings is CONNECTION. How can you move everyone's attention from their stress realities to a position where we are brought back into relationship with one another, so peace and goodwill towards each other is promoted??
There are lots of ways this togetherness can be brought about. Here is one simple suggestion ~ 
Ask everyone to bring a photo of one happy memory to the family gathering which they can briefly talk about. It could be a photo from childhood or something wonderful, thrilling or an encouraging and happy moment in 2014. 
Many times over the years in our household when someone is in the midst of trouble, tragedy, stress and unhappiness, a pile of old family photos sitting on the bookcase being thumbed through, has started a new conversation, given a mental holiday, brought laughter  leading to a different mindset.
THISWEEKWITHTHEKIDS ~ Whether your 2014 has had some tough times or not, try including a Good Memories Meal into your Christmas season to reorientate, refocus and develop improved family connection.
Cathy

"ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT SUMMER SUNSCREEN - YET??"

With the continuing stormy, windy, rainy, hail, thunder, lightning and snow weather here in New Zealand, it is very hard to believe summer is meant to be arriving in less than 2 weeks!
So before the hot sunshine comes, have a read of 7 questions about sunscreen. 

1. What is the history of sunscreen?

The ancient Egyptians considered lighter skin to be attractive, making potions to prevent sunburn. Some of the ingredients they used are in our sunscreens today.

A pharmacist in South Africa produced the first sunburn cream as we know it, in the early 1930’s.

The founder of L’Oreal refined this preparation, making the first sunscreen in 1936.

In 1938 an Austrian Piz Buin chemist came up with the sun protective factor, SPF. SPF is “a standard for measuring the effectiveness of sunscreen when applied at an even rate of 2milligrams per square centimeter.” His original cream had a SPF of 2.

After more experimenting, in the 1980’s, the company Coppertone developed their first UVA/UVB sunscreen.

Research continues with ideas of developing a sunscreen pill…!!!?

2. How does sunscreen work and what are the benefits of using one?

A sunscreen is a protective layer which has inorganic chemicals that reflect the sunlight, and organic molecules that absorb the UV rays releasing it as heat, hence preventing or minimizing the amount of UV rays getting through to the skin.

UV rays consist of UVA and UVB

–      UVB are shorter in wavelength so don’t penetrate deeply into the skin. These rays are the main cause of sunburn and skin cancer and cause damage to DNA. The SPF factor in a sunscreen only protects a person from the UVB rays.

–      UVA are longer in wavelength, penetrating to deeper levels of the skin, they are linked to the cause premature aging of the skin. Only sunscreens that carry the words “broad spectrum” will  protect from UVA rays.

Australian research at Queensland Institute of Medical Research in Brisbane in 2013, found regular sunscreen application helped to counter the premature aging of skin. Researchers however did say that as well as the lack of sunscreen use, there are other factors that contribute to premature skin aging and skin cancer, such as smoking, sun exposure history, skin colour and wearing sun protective clothing including hats – these conditions are not prevented by the use of sunscreen alone.

3. Are there any concerns about sunscreens?

Babies of 6 months and younger should not use sunscreen at all because of its chemical ingredients. It is best to keep babies in this age group in the shade or indoors during the hottest time of the day, 10am – 4pm.

“One of the main constituents of sunscreen is the ZnO particles. ZnO nanoparticles are sought out for UV-filter applications thanks to their inherent optoelectronic properties and are, therefore, broadly used today in cosmetics and polymers. Preliminary toxicological data, however, point out that they can induce significant DNA damage and genotoxicity due to their Zn2+ ion leaching. It has become important for the nanotechnology industry, to devise scalable, safer-by-design approaches to minimize the ZnO nanoparticle dissolution and toxicity without altering their desired optoelectronic properties.” “In our center we developed a safer formulation concept to mitigate toxicity by encapsulating the materials in a thin layer of Silica.” Feb 2014.

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nano/2014/02/14/research-at-the-hsph-nanocenter-revolutionize-sunscreens/

4. What is the correct way to put sunscreen on?

* Apply before going outside

* Some say use a shot glass full of sunscreen as a quantity guide to cover your body, however bodies are different in size. Professor Leffell of Yale School of Medicine says, “use enough to evenly cover the skin and massage it in, and be systematic about it. There’s no such thing as using too much.”

* Reapply 2 hourly, more often after swimming or heavy sweating. The skin literally uses it up. Apply and wait a few minutes to give time to be absorbed before swimming, otherwise you simply wash it all off.

5. What do different SPF scores mean?

 “Products with a higher SPF allow fewer of the photons that produce sunburn to strike the skin. In simple terms, you can view an SPF 10 sunscreen as allowing 10 out of every 100 photons to reach the skin and an SPF 20 product as allowing only 5 out of every 100 photons to reach the skin.” http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-does-sunscreen-protec/

A product with SPF 30+ will block out 96% of sunburn from UVB rays.

A product with SPF 60 or more will only very slightly increase that protection. There is no product that can give 100% protection.

Specialists therefore warn of the need to never trust in sunscreen alone, but add wearing a wide brimmed hat, sunglasses, tightly woven fabrics or clothing that absorbs UVA and UVB rays and avoid being out in direct sun for long from 10am – 4pm. Stay in the shade.

Moisturizers and makeup foundations often have SPF in them. Foundation with SPF does not give sufficient protection as it fades through the day and when applying you put less quantity of foundation on your face than the quantity of sunscreen you would apply.

Moisturizers with SPF however do give effective sun protection.

6. Are there benefits from being in the sun?

In just a few decades we have gone from promoting summer sun worship to sun dread over the summertime.

But sun on the skin does have benefits – it relaxes, eases off depression and mind anxiety. It lifts our emotions. Going out into the sun promotes outdoor sport, real play for children and gardening, which are all essential contributors for our wellbeing.

It is questionable if the level of vitamin D deprived people today was as high a few decades ago. Being in the sun is a natural and the best way to receive vitamin D. Getting 10 to 15 minutes of sunlight on your face, arms, back, or legs without sunscreen a few times a week is enough to generate your body’s vitamin D needs for a week.

7. Do sunscreens last forever?

The active ingredients in sunscreens do deteriorate over time, becoming less effective, so check the expiry dates of the sunscreens in you cupboard.

To be available and handy for use sunscreens are often stored in the car glove box or boot all year round. This exposes them to extreme high temperatures, which also may result in their effectiveness being compromised.

Cathy

"ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT SUMMER INSECT REPELLENT - YET??"

As summer approaches here in New Zealand, we will soon be sorting through the cupboard for the insect repellent.

How much do you know about insect repellents? Here’s 5 Q&A to help.

    1.  WHAT DO INSECT REPELLENTS DO?

Get rid of bugs. But depending on the active ingredient in an insect repellent, it can mask our body scent, which usually attracts insects to us – confusing them, or it can paralyze insects – killing them.

    2. WHAT DO THE DIFFERENT ACTIVE INGREDIENTS IN INSECT REPELLENTS DO?

I'm looking at the 4 most common active ingredients used in insect repellents - DEET, Picaridin, Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus and Essential Oils.

* DEET or Diethyl Toluamide ~ 

Studies suggest that DEET products are the most effective at keeping insects away. A NZ pharmacist in October this year questioned the safety of DEET products sold in NZ, saying some products are 80% DEET. In the US the max concentration allowed is 30% in adult and 10% in child insect repellents. The WHO recommends a max of 40%. “Deet is a solvent that has also been proven to melt some plastics and textiles - a problem for those venturing into the bush or working outdoors in garments that contain Gore-Tex, or carrying packs and equipment that could be damaged by the products.” “Deet is a neuro-toxin, which means it has the potential to affect your brain and nervous system.” says the pharmacist George Batchelor.

Labels carry warnings such as - can be dangerous especially to children if used in large amounts on skin, clothes, bedding or for long periods of time or repeatedly, not to be used on children under 6 years, wash hands after use.

DEET products usually give up to 6hours protection.

Product eg.s – Autan, Aerogard Tropical Strength, RID, Repel Tropical Insect Repellent, Bushman Insect Repellent.

* Picaridin ~

Studies suggest Picaridin is the second most effective active ingredient to rid us of insects.

Safe to use when used as directed.

Labels carry warnings such as – suitable for children 12months and older, wash hands after use.

Picaridin products usually give 4hours protection.

Product eg,s – OFF! Family Care, Aerogard Odourless Protection, Skin Technology Picaridin Insect Repellent.

* Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus or p-Menthane-diol (PMD) ~

This is a natural oil extracted from lemon scented eucalyptus leaves and twigs in Australia.

Studies suggest that Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus products are as effective as Picaridin products. It is the only natural product authorities recommend to repel insects.

Safe to use if following the directions.

Labels carry warnings such as – avoid eye contact, should not be used on children under 12months.

Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus products may need to be applied more regularly than chemical repellents.

Product eg.s – SAFE Natural Insect Repellent, Repel Lemon Eucalyptus, Just Herbal Insect Repellent, PURE FIJI Insect repellent.

* Essentail Oils

Essential oils such as Citronella, Lavender, Peppermint, Camphor, Cinnamon… are used in repellents. There is controversy about their effectiveness as active ingredients in insect repellents, and studies rank them behind Oil of Eucalyptus and Picaridin repellents.

The concentration of essential oils put into repellents is low, making them safe repellents for people, but be aware that cats and dogs are different and some essential oils repel animals.

Use these repellents as directed on the label. You will need to apply them more regularly than chemical repellents.

Essential oils themselves in concentrated form should never be used ‘topical’, or directly onto the skin of children under 2 years of age.

Product eg.s – Cancer Society Insect Repellent, Gardener Insect Repellent, Kiwiherb Herbal Insect Repellent, Badger Anti Bug Balm, PURE FIJI Lemongrass Insect Repellent,, Goodbye Sandfly.

    3. HOW DO YOU APPLY INSECT REPELLENT?

* For best results don’t apply like perfume with a squirt here and there, instead apply insect repellent in a thin covering on all exposed skin. Creams and liquids can be applied thinly making them a better choice than sprays.

* Opinions differ as to if you only apply insect repellent to skin or if it is effective to also apply to clothes.

* Never apply over cuts, wounds or irritated skin.

* Never apply to eyes, mouth, nostrils and use sparingly around ears.

* Never spray directly onto the face, rather spray onto your hands first, then apply to face.

* If using spray repellent only use it outdoors to avoid inhaling.

* Never allow children to handle insect repellent. Apply onto your hands, not theirs, then apply onto child’s body, the reason being that children often put their hands into their eyes, mouth and nose.

* Again use just enough quantity to cover the area as a heavy application will not give better or longer protection.

* ALWAYS wash hands after applying insect repellent. Use soap and water. This is particularly important when repellents are use repeatedly or on consecutive days.

* Remember swimming and heavy perspiring will reduce the amount of protection an insect repellent will give.

    4. WHAT DOES A HIGH PERCENT OF ACTIVE INGREDIENT IN AN INSECT REPELLENT MEAN?

The stronger the repellent or the active ingredient in an insect repellent, the longer you are protected from insects. It does not men that more mosquitoes will be killed.

    5. ARE THERE ALTERNATIVE PRECAUTIONS I CAN USE TO GET RID OF INSECTS?

* Avoid wearing brightly coloured clothes which can attract insects.

* Avoid sweetly scented perfumes, moisturizers, soaps… which attract insects.

* Wear long pants and long sleeves at dusk when insects are most active.

* Opinions differ as to the safety of using insect repellent if you’re pregnant or breast feeding so check your brand with your trusted pharmacist or doctor.

* Opinions differ as to the reliability or safety of make your own insect repellents. If you are interested to try –

http://chemistry.about.com/od/healthbeautyprojects/a/naturalinsectrepellent.htm

http://wellnessmama.com/2565/homemade-bug-spray/

* Get rid of stagnant water around your home, in ponds, roof guttering, bird bath, in large leafy plants, puddles or water features with still water….
* Plant insect repelling plants in your garden especially near outdoor leisure areas or child play areas. Geranium, marigold, basil, lavender, lemon balm, lemon thyme, ageratum, garlic, rosemary….

THISWEEKWITHTHEKIDS ~ before summer and insects really hit hard, check what you have in your cupboard and have been using for insect repellent. Do some reading and thinking about what you want to do from here on.

Cathy

"ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT SUMMER READING - YET??"

Only 1 month away till SUMMER here in New Zealand - a bit hard to believe with our weather patterns - but here are some suggestions if you are in the mood for collecting up some summer reading material for when holiday weather arrives.
Thank you Laura Howard for this ~

Below are some interesting NZ books that have popped up recently in various emails I've received… most are just out, while Civilisation and The Luminaries were published 2013. I am always fascinated that despite the apparent death of the book, little New Zealand still manages to publish so many wonderful and varied titles! If you are like me, you might be pleasantly surprised to see the range of NZ books on offer – both fiction and non fiction, for adults and kids. Two years ago I joined a book group that only reads contemporary NZ books (usually published within the last year). I was worried there would be little choice and the standard would be below that of my usual diet of international books, but I'm pleased to have been so wrong in my assumptions! You can keep in touch with new NZ books through Auckland writers and readers festival emails, Parsons Library Supply emails, the NZ Book Council website, and ask at your local library – staff often love a good chat about NZ books. Enjoy!  

Manuka: The Biography of an Extraordinary Honey by Cliff Van Eaton

$34.99 PB. 240 pages. ISBN 9781775591634

One Girl, One Dream by Laura Dekker

$29.99 PB. 336 pages. ISBN 9781775540458

An autobiographical account of the youngest ever solo circumnavigation of the Earth. Aged just 14, New Zealand-born Laura Dekker defied the authorities and braved the open oceans to realise her dream of becoming the youngest ever sailor to circumnavigate the Earth. When she finished the journey she was still only 16, the youngest ever person to achieve this feat.

Tell You What: Great New Zealand Nonfiction, 2015 edited by Susanna Andrew & Jolisa Gracewood  DUE OUT NOVEMBER 2014

$29.99 PB. 130 x 198mm. 180 pages. ISBN 9781869408244

‘ Real, live stories, written to last’. Mountains, family secrets, cannibal snails, births, deaths, marriages…includes writing by Steve Braunias, Lara Strongman, Eleanor Catton, Tina Makereti, and others.

Civilisation: twenty places on the edge of the world by Steve Braunias

Our book group had the pleasure of meeting Steve and hearing some of his stories of his travels around NZ, as he researched and wrote this book. An irreverent, humorous, at times sad and touching picture of small town NZ, and some incredible characters he met along the way.

The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton

Don’t be put off by the size of this incredible Man Booker prize winning novel! You won’t have read anything like it. Outstanding.

My new zealand 123 book. Te Papa Press, due out 2015

ISBN: 9780987668875

This and the below book look like they will be wonderful reads to enjoy with your preschooler.

My new zealand colours book. Te Papa Press, due out 2015

ISBN: 9780987668899

"21 YEAR OLDS can COMMUNICATE"

Last night one of our daughters had her 21st birthday party here at home. She had made digital invitations and decorations and together we had planned the food weeks ago. I had shopped for the food last week and she had taken her dad down to the supermarket one evening to help haul the drinks off the shelves into the trolley to the car then home.
Saturday was an all-out cook day for her and me while her dad and a brother helped another sister move house. 
Amazingly decorations were hung, the place cleaned up and with suitable clothing on, we welcomed the first guests. I realised half-way through the night I hadn't cleaned my teeth all day and had not put on makeup - agh- but really there was no time and more important things needed one's attention.
The whole evening was wonderful in every way. But the surprise for me was that so many wanted to speak at the speech time, after the speech time, driving home after the party via text, and throughout  today - to articulate their thanks, respect and love for the birthday girl. This was from an age group that we think of as being technology obsessed, therefore verbally and relationally impaired. Here was a display of the opposite, a wish to verbalise well thought out honest and heart spoken comment.
THISWEEKWITHTHEKIDS ~ I'm again reminded of the need to tell my kids, regardless of age, how much I appreciate them, naming the reasons I am thankful that they are mine.
Cathy 

"LAST WEEK I STARTED MY PARENTING BUSINESS ON-LINE"

This is the beautiful photo I have used as the background for my website for my parenting business. 
It's a track I have walked for over 18 years that leads from the road along the Tutukaka Coast down to the spectacular little beach at Whale Bay. It's a gentle sloping walk to go down to the beach and a demanding return journey. 
I first walked it when I was 8 months pregnant, along with my husband and 5 kids aged less than 2 1/2 up to 12years. That was the first year we camped at Woolleys Bay in Mr Woolley's front farm paddock, February 1996. We have gone back virtually every year since.
This track has lots of memories for me
- it's where one of our boys fell off the edge and slid down the sheer cliff about 50mt grabbing onto scrub as he went, bleating out my name.
- it's close-by to where one of our girls was proposed to by her  husband - she's now days away from giving birth to her second child.
- it's where I first read the text from my Mum telling me she had killed a snake in her kitchen the evening before by spraying fly spray in its face then pounding it till dead with her meat mallet - she was 88!
- it's where conversations about the unknown of the coming year have taken place with our kids, as they have gone to school for the first time at age 16.
- it's where we have stopped most years, climbed down the slope to the lookout and taken family photographs.
- it's where I have been lost in thought about a whole manner of things - thinking about the past, thinking about the future. It's a pretty and picturesque track to walk to get lost on.
In three months time we will be there again, having the same conversations with my last son about starting school, taking another family photo - hard to get everyone there at the same time these days, and lots of thinking for me as my home schooling career will be finished and new routines opening up.
You are welcome to have a look at my website ~
A WAY TO PARENT - www.awaytoparent.com
Cathy

"SCHOOL-AGED CHILDREN UNABLE TO SPEAK PROPERLY, FUTURE LEARNING AFFECTED"

"Fewer children starting school can speak in sentences, prompting an investigation by education chiefs. ..Schools around the country have noted a decline in the spoken language abilities of new entrants from all backgrounds.. School leaders and a specialist in linguistics suspect the problem could be down to children using gadgets too often and parents not talking to them enough. 
The ability of youngsters to express themselves in the classroom is essential to their cognitive development and future learning. ..
New starters could have the spoken-language ability of 2- or 3-year-olds, and even those whom teachers viewed as "average" often came in at levels below a 5-year-old. ..
Julie Cowan, deputy principal at Willowbank School in Auckland, believed there were many causes:'Maybe the fact that children are spending more time on devices and watching television is part of it. Talking as a parent, you are so busy and you have to get to work and drop the kids off.. we spend a lot of time talking at our kids, not necessarily talking with them.'..
Dr Jannie van Hees of the University of Auckland completed her doctoral study on oral language in the classroom for 5-and 6-year-olds. .. 'Children are spending too much time in front of the digital devices and hurrying from one place to the other. It is simple, free and easy to have conversations with your children. But increasingly, I think, families aren't...You can't take for granted, just because you are educated parents, that you talk effectively with children.
The best growing linguistic time...is just those simple times of doing plain things with children but doing lots of conversational exchanges.'"
Nicholas Jones: NZ Pupils Struggling to Speak. Weekend Herald. The New Zealand Herald. Saturday September 6, 2014.

"He may have been dubbed 'the master evangelist of the digital age', but even the late Steve Jobs worried about the effect technology has on children.
While he persuaded millions that Apple's chic but pricey gadgets were a must-buy,..he prevented his own children from using iPads and limited their access to the internet generally.
..the Jobs' children would instead sit around a long dinner table in the kitchen and actually talk to one another. ...
Walter Isaacson, the author of the biography called simply Steve Jobs, told him later that 'every evening Steve made a point of having dinner at the big long table in their kitchen, discussing books and history and a variety of things.'...
Chris Anderson, ex-editor of technology magazine Wired, who has five children aged 6 to 17, agreed with the Jobs family approach.
'My kids accuse me and my wife of being fascists and openly concerned about tech, and they say that none of their friends have the same rules' ..'That's because we have seen the dangers of technology first-hand. I don't want to see that happen to my kids.'"
Ian Johnston: Apple Guru Kept His Kids Away from iPads. Weekend Herald. The New Zealand Herald. Saturday September 13, 2014.

More newspaper excerpts this week, sounding an alarm for parents to take stock of home life. 
Again, over use or inappropriate use of technology is being painted as the cause that is thwarting children's development.
THISWEEKWITHTHEKIDS ~ no matter if your child is 5 or 17years old, how is their speaking ability? Are they relaxed in speech and involve themselves voluntarily in conversations (I don't mean  arguments and criticisms)? If your answer is an honest 'yes', then they are  obviously doing well and you can assume that their technology use is appropriate. If you are unsure or they are not communicating, are recluse.. then the suggestion has been given for you to intentionally start today to talk with your child and not at them, during the simple, plain times of the day. You could also take up the Jobs' example at the mealtime table. 
If you know right now that this is a problem at your house, you are the only people who can change the situation, so you need to make a plan, or there will be no change.
Cathy

"IS IT BETTER FOR A CHILD TO HAND WRITE OR TYPE?"

Tonight at tea the comment was made that handwritten information  has many benefits over typed. My son had popped in for dinner, and on seeing his book diary on the table I had asked if he intended to buy a 2015 diary or just use his phone next year. He said he loved to write in a book diary, and that he had been told by his acting teacher that handwriting had many benefits over typing. I checked online(typing), and found this thought provoking article ~ 

"Psych 101 was about to start, and Pam Mueller had forgotten her laptop at home. This meant more than lost Facebook time. A psychology grad student at Princeton, Mueller was one of the class teaching assistants. It was important she have good notes on the lecture. Normally she used her laptop to take notes, but, without it, she’d have to rely on a more traditional approach. 

So she put pen to paper—and found something surprising. 

Class just seemed better. “I felt like I had gotten so much more out of the lecture that day,” she said. So she shared the story with Daniel Oppenheimer, the professor teaching the class.

“‘I had a similar experience in a faculty meeting the other day,’” Mueller remembers him saying. “And we both sort of had that intuition that there might be something different about writing stuff down.”

It turns out there is.

A new study—conducted by Mueller and Oppenheimer—finds that people remember lectures better when they’ve taken handwritten notes, rather than typed ones. 

What's more, knowing how and why typed notes can be bad doesn't seem to improve their quality. Even if you warn laptop-notetakers ahead of time, it doesn't make a difference. For some tasks, it seems, handwriting’s just better.

The study comes at a ripe time for questions about laptop use in class. Educators still debate whether to allow students to bring their laptops into the classroom. And while researchers have found that laptop use during class-time tends to be distracting—not only do laptop-using students not perform as well academically, but also they’re less happy with their education—Mueller and Oppenheimer’s research seems to be the first quantitative attempt to compare laptops disconnected from the Internet with plain-old pencil and paper.

The study was conducted in three parts. At the beginning of each, students watched video of a lecture or a TED talk, and took notes on it either longhand or on laptops. 

Students watched the video, completed difficult mental tasks for 30 minutes, then took a quiz on the content. In this group, longhand-notetakers outperformed laptop-notetakers on the quiz. Analysis of student notes showed that laptop-notetakers tended to transcribe a lot of the speaker’s words verbatim. Mueller and Oppenheimer suspected that this was because those who typed notes were inclined to transcribe lectures, rather than process them. This makes sense: If you can type quickly enough, word-for-word transcription is possible, whereas writing by hand usually rules out capturing every word.

So students in the second group were given a warning. Before the laptop-users watched the lecture or took any notes on it, the study administrator told some of them:

People who take class notes on laptops when they expect to be tested on the material later tend to transcribe what they’re hearing without thinking about it much. Please try not to do this as you take notes today. Take notes in your own words and don’t just write down word-for-word what the speaker is saying.

The warning seemed to have no effect. The quiz showed that longhand-notetakers still remembered lecture content better than laptop-notetakers. And analyzing the notes that laptop-using students took, the two authors admit: “The instruction to not take verbatim notes was completely ineffective at reducing verbatim content.”

The final group of students took the quiz a full week after watching a recorded lecture. Some of these students were allowed to study their notes for 10 minutes before taking the quiz. In this last group, longhand-notetakers who had time to study outperformed everyone else. Longhand-notetakers of any sort, in fact, did better on the quiz than laptop-notetakers.

What’s more, if someone took verbatim notes on their laptop, then studying seemed more likely to hinder their performance on the quiz. 

In other words, taking notes on a laptop seems to lead to verbatim notes, which make it tough to study well. And you can’t successfully warn someone to keep them from taking verbatim notes if they’re using a laptop.

“We don’t write longhand as fast as we type these days, but people who were typing just tended to transcribe large parts of lecture content verbatim,” Mueller told me. “The people who were taking notes on the laptops don’t have to be judicious in what they write down.”

She thinks this might be the key to their findings: Take notes by hand, and you have to process information as well as write it down. That initial selectivity leads to long-term comprehension.

“I don’t think we’re gonna get more people to go back to notebooks necessarily,” Mueller said. “Tablets might be the best of both worlds—you have to choose what to write down, but then you have the electronic copy.” 

Incidentally, the two researchers might look at tablet use next. (They didn’t include them in this study.) But they have busy scientific dockets outside this work, as neither of them specialize in educational psychology. Mueller researches questions of law and morality, and Oppenheimer tends to focus on decision-making and the psychology of democracy.

But the two say they've appreciated their foray into note-taking research, which stemmed from a real-life problem. “I think,” Mueller said, “that’s where the best research comes from, because the questions resonate with other people.”"

TO REMEMBER A LECTURE BETTER TAKE NOTES BY HAND: Students Do Worse on Quizzes When They Use Keyboards in Class. Robinson Meyer. May 1 2014. http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/05/to-remember-a-lecture-better-take-notes-by-hand/361478/

THISWEEKWITHTHEKIDS ~ What will you do with this? Does it affect what your kids do at home or your attitude to the increasing move to have children work on laptops in class? It seems sensible to resurrect handwriting as a skill, once more.

Cathy

"FATHERS DAY - 2014"

        Hans Albert Einstein, Albert Einstein, Eduard "Tete" Einstein

“In 1915, aged thirty-six, Einstein was living in wartorn Berlin, while his estranged wife, Mileva, and their two sons, Hans Albert Einstein and Eduard “Tete” Einstein, lived in comparatively safe Vienna. On November 4 of that year, having just completed the two-page masterpiece that would catapult him into international celebrity and historical glory, his theory of general relativity, Einstein sent 11-year-old Hans Albert the following letter - ”

The Secret of Learning Anything: Albert Einstein’s Advice to His Son: Maria Popova  http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2013/06/14/einstein-letter-to-son/

My dear Albert,

Yesterday I received your dear letter and was very happy with it. I was already afraid you wouldn’t write to me at all any more. You told me when I was in Zurich, that it is awkward for you when I come to Zurich. Therefore I think it is better if we get together in a different place, where nobody will interfere with our comfort. I will in any case urge that each year we spend a whole month together, so that you see that you have a father who is fond of you and who loves you. You can also learn many good and beautiful things from me, something another cannot as easily offer you. What I have achieved through such a lot of strenuous work shall not only be there for strangers but especially for my own boys. These days I have completed one of the most beautiful works of my life, when you are bigger, I will tell you about it.

I am very pleased that you find joy with the piano. This and carpentry are in my opinion for your age the best pursuits, better even than school. Because those are things which fit a young person such as you very well. Mainly play the things on the piano which please you, even if the teacher does not assign those. That is the way to learn the most, that when you are doing something with such enjoyment that you don’t notice that the time passes. I am sometimes so wrapped up in my work that I forget about the noon meal. . . .

Be with Tete kissed by your

Papa.

Regards to Mama.

The idea of writing a letter to a child is incredibly rare these days, and possibly even more rare for a father to choose to write to his child. But as Albert Einstein's letter to his son, written nearly 100 years ago, indicates, things that are important and dear can be communicated meaningfully in written form. There are several hints that this letter gives us which are worth practicing ~

 * This father has heard his son's thoughts of the difficulty he feels when his father returns home 

 * In a gentle fatherly manner he suggests a better way to meet in future 

 * He persuasively speaks of the importance of time together so that he can prove his fondness and love for his son 

 * He wants to teach him "good and beautiful things" which only a father can pass on to his child 

 * He speaks of his intention in the future to share with his son what has been of deep interest to him in his work

 * Then he discusses the things that interest his son and we sense Albert knows his son's interests and gifting, and advises not for 'success' but from a basis of love

 * His farewell is affectionate, respectful of the whole family but still expressing high value for this son.

THISWEEKWITHTHEKIDS ~ with Fathers Day approaching this weekend, it would be great if the fathers took the opportunity to write to one child or a short note/email to all their children to communicate their fondness and interest in their own child's lives. 

HAVE A HAPPY FATHERS DAY !!!!!!!!!

Cathy