Today's Parent | Parenting Resources… Articles, Advice, Help & Tips

Whether you’re worried about social networks, texting, apps, video games, online privacy or other growing areas of high-tech concern, it bears remembering: Keeping kids safe in today’s online and always-connected world requires a multi-pronged approach. As with any form of technology, the most effective strategies are proactive. Educate yourself on new innovations and teach kids positive computing habits, and they’ll be better equipped to make good decisions when they encounter questionable content – an inevitability every parent must be prepared to accept.

Kids as young as two are now being exposed to tablet PCs and smartphones, changing the fundamental family dynamic. But technology and digital citizenship aren’t being adequately taught in schools, and increasingly harried parents are finding themselves stretched thinner by work and life than ever, making it tougher to gain these insights at home.

The following practical tips for keeping children safe without causing your schedule to short-circuit, are shared from “The Modern Parent’s Guide” high-tech parenting series (free to download at www.parentsguidebooks.com),

Online Safety Tips for Kids and Parents

• Homework is for parents too: Always study, research and go-hands on with new technologies to make more informed decisions.

• If time’s tight, get a crash course on new offerings, trends and features by visiting popular product review sites or searching for online tutorials, e.g. “How to Turn Off iPhone Purchases.”

• Besides employing kid-friendly software, apps and web filters, educate children on online dangers and encourage them to speak up when questionable content or situations are encountered.

• Use the parental controls built into popular entertainment devices, video game consoles and operating systems, and password-protect your settings – but don’t employ easily guessable choices like birthdays and anniversaries.

• Activate privacy features built into popular social networks to limit strangers’ access to personal status updates, photos and videos.

• Confine screens to common household areas such as playrooms and dens, so usage and play habits can be monitored.

• Establish predetermined times when usage of high-tech devices is permitted or banned (e.g. during dinner), and always shut screens off at least one hour before bedtime.

• Create and enforce house rules: Experts recommend no more than 60-120 minutes of screen time daily, balanced with other low-tech activities. Some families add or subtract time as a reward or punishment for children’s behavior.

• If you’re worried about children’s online interactions, use programs’ and devices’ built-in features to turn off Internet connectivity, disenable digital purchases and restrict interactions to pre-approved friend lists.

• Talk about safe online spending, and if you allow kids to make purchases, consider restricting these abilities to prepaid cards. Read More

Being able to read well is more important than ever for young adults to achieve economic success. But more than 60 percent of middle and high school students score below “proficient” in reading achievement, according to a December 2011 report by the Alliance for Excellent Education.

Teen literacy is a huge problem in the United States – its 15-year-olds rank 14th among developed nations in reading – behind Poland, Estonia and Iceland. (South Korea, Finland and Canada rank 1st, 2nd and 3rd.)

Kids need strong reading skills if they hope to graduate from high school AND they really need to plan for college – 59 percent of U.S. jobs today require some postsecondary education, compared to 28 percent in 1973.

The best thing parents can do to help boost their 12- to 18-year-olds’ literacy is to get them reading – anything.

She offers these suggestions:

• Buy them comic books. Boys persistently lag behind girls in reading, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. If your son isn’t a reader, try getting him hooked on comic books. Stephen King started off reading comics, ‘Tales from the Crypt.’ Hey, if it was good enough for him …! From comic books, they may move into graphic novels, a popular young adult genre. As long as they’re reading, they’re building comprehension skills and vocabulary, so it needn’t be “War and Peace.”

• Look for book-to-film novels. Chances are, if it was a great movie, they saw it, and that’s often enough to get a non-reader curious. This is another especially good hook for boys.

• Tune into what they’re interested in. What kinds of video games do they play? Some popular games have spawned novels, including Halo, EverQuest, ElfQuest and Gears of War. Even gaming guides, which players read to unlock new clues to advancing in the game, can motivate a teen to crack a book.

• Read the same book your teen is reading. Book clubs are popular because people like talking to others who’ve read the same book. Your teen may not be ready for an evening of petit fours and grape juice while discussing the pacing of “Hunger Games,” but it can make for some interesting conversation on the way to soccer practice. And you can always nudge them along with comments like, “Oh, you haven’t gotten to that part yet? It’s really good!”

People tend to think their young adults aren’t reading if they’re not reading novels. But novels aren’t for everyone, and whether it’s a comic book or a gaming guide, all reading helps build comprehension skills and vocabulary.

Good magazines, with shorter articles suited for distractible adolescents, might include Sports Illustrated, People, Seventeen or Mad.

When you’re out shopping, think about what they’re interested in and pick up something just for them. Sometimes, it’s as simple as putting the right reading materials right into their hands.

Rhiannon Paille is an active advocate for youth literacy and an avid reader of young adult novels. Her first book, the non-fiction “Integrated Intuition: A Comprehensive Guide to Psychic Development,” remains a popular seller on amazon.com. Her new fantasy novel, “Flame of Surrender” (www.yafantasyauthor.com) targets young adults. Paille is the founder of the Canadian Metaphysical Foundation. She’s married and the mother of two children.

While regular visits to the dentist’s office for routine cleanings are important for dental health, taking care of your teeth and gums each day is paramount to keeping your mouth healthy. Here are some brushing-and-beyond tips to help prevent oral health problems down the road.

Preventative care is imperative. Basic hygiene practices can help maintain the health of your mouth. Remember to:

• Regularly brush with toothpaste, floss and visit your dentist. Brush at least twice a day.

• Purchase a brush with soft bristles and make sure to use light pressure while brushing so you don’t wear away tooth enamel. A great option is a battery-powered toothbrush like the ARM & HAMMER Spinbrush ProClean.

• Pay attention to your toothbrush. Does it need to be replaced? A good rule is to purchase a new toothbrush every three to four months.

• Speak with your dentist about best brushing and flossing practices, as well as the recommended number of visits to the dentist’s office each year. The number of necessary visits may vary depending on specific patient needs.

Preventing enamel loss. Consuming too many acidic foods or soft drinks, and a long list of other factors, can weaken enamel. Enamel loss can lead to cavities, tooth sensitivity, discoloration and other oral health problems. To help maintain your tooth enamel, try to avoid drinks such as soda and fruit juices, and foods such as those high in citric acid or sugar content whenever possible.

You can also look to products such as ARM & HAMMER Complete Care Enamel Strengthening Toothpaste, which is specially formulated with Fluoride and Liquid Calcium to help rebuild enamel. In addition, the baking soda within the toothpaste will help neutralize acids left behind by food and liquid.

When to call the dentist. Between dental visits, patients may experience symptoms of oral health problems. Make sure you call a doctor if you notice:

• Tooth pain

• Tooth decay or cavities

• Receding gum lines

• Bleeding of the gums

• Increased tooth sensitivity

• Discoloration of teeth

• Lumps on the lip or in the mouth or throat

To learn more about how to protect your teeth, visit www.myoralcare.com.

The campaigning begins around this time every year. (And no, we’re not talking about politicians.) They take over storefronts, go door-to-door, and post mouthwatering photos on Facebook, mounting a sales effort that no cookie-loving human can resist. You guessed it: It’s Girl Scout cookie time, otherwise known as the annual fundraiser during which parents of Girl Scouts make it a personal goal to outsell their competition…other parents of Girl Scouts.

And no, that isn’t a typo, just a bold declaration of reality. The truth is, sometimes parents miss out on teachable moments for their kids because it’s easier (and dare we say it, a source of personal satisfaction?) for them to take the reins.

I had always taken for granted that parents would be the real driving force behind most youngsters’ sales until I heard what a friend did with her six-year-old’s Girl Scout cookie campaign. Then I realized that this annual race for cookie orders could be a great opportunity for parents to teach their daughters the fundamentals of effective communication.

The next time your Girl Scout brings home order forms, don’t sell the cookies for her. Instead, look at the sales campaign as an opportunity to help her develop connecting and relationship-building skills that will serve her well throughout her life, long after her cookie-peddling days are over. And keep in mind that the benefits I’m talking about aren’t limited to Girl Scouts and cookies, either—they apply to any fundraising campaign that any child might participate in.

Here are six important lessons you can teach your daughter thanks to Girl Scout cookies:

Master the art of the sale. First, make sure your daughter understands all the products she’s selling. In this case, just know the names of each cookie and a little bit about them, as well as the price of each. Of course, there are different age ranges of Girl Scouts, so if your daughter is very young, it’s okay to supervise and help her as she makes her pitch. You’ll notice that she’ll get better and better at making the sale every year!

Help your child practice an elevator speech during which she describes her favorite cookie to a potential buyer, then quiz her on the other types of cookies she’s selling. Then teach her the basics of taking orders, like making change, collecting contact info, etc. Knowing how to pitch her product and wrap up a sale will be a huge boost to her self-confidence. And customers will be impressed by her initiative, too!

Face-to-face connections provide the best results. One Girl Scout parent posted a photo of her adorable kid holding a box of Girl Scout cookies on Facebook and simply collected all her daughter’s cookie orders that way. But when you take this path, your child misses out on learning how to really connect with people in person.

No matter how all-encompassing technology becomes, I believe that all of life’s key interactions—personal and business—will continue to happen face-to-face. Your daughter is in a great position to develop her communication skills, because most people love talking with kids, so her interactions with potential customers will be positive. This will give her a chance to get to know her neighbors and work on her face-to-face communication skills.

Understanding the mission is key. People tend to do their best work when they are driven by a purpose that is bigger than themselves. And that applies to kids, too! Teach your Girl Scout that she isn’t just selling cookies for the sake of selling cookies. It’s to support the Girl Scout mission.

Explain to your Girl Scout that selling cookies helps to make it possible for her troop to do all of the activities she enjoys. Make sure she understands where the money from the cookies goes, and that she can explain this to potential customers. Perhaps she could share her favorite things to do with her troop!

Phone skills still matter. It’s not always possible to make every sales pitch face-to-face. But instead of going the social media route, put your daughter on the phone. This is a great opportunity to help her fine-tune her phone skills and manners. Read More

I was on my run the other day and stopped at the park to get some water. While there I sat on a bench and drank my water, I closed my eyes and listened. The happiest sounds in the world are listening to kids as they play: their little voices, screams, imagination, and bargaining with their parents for more time to play. Also, what I heard were a lot of “Mommy, was that good?” or “Daddy, see me?” “Did you see that throw?” Mommy and Daddy both responded, affirming the good job or the throw their child had naturally thrown.

You don’t have to go to the park to hear all of this praise and affirmation that is exchanged between parents and their children. Sometimes, you have to question if it has gone overboard? Are we raising a generation of kids who expect praise for doing nothing?

The overabundance of praise is cultural and society influenced. It wasn’t done as much when I was a kid, or if it was, I don’t remember it happening in my family. Eastern cultures believe too much praise causes kids to grow up to be self-serving lazy adults with big egos. They may have something there. More and more young people don’t seem to have as strong a work ethic as their parents and grandparents had. They also seem incensed when their boss tells them they have to work for their pay. These are the same kids who grew up getting an allowance just for their existence. The whole idea behind an allowance is to teach a child to manage their money and to instill the concept of working (doing their chores and being supervised by parents) to earn spending money. Like praise, parents are giving it away for free.

Is praise bad for kids? Not really…if it’s done appropriately. For example, research has shown that praising a small toddler for having good manners actually does produce more polite teens. More inappropriate praise is when you praise your child, the little league pitcher, for throwing a good pitch. It’s a natural gift for them, and you shouldn’t praise gifts or natural talents. Praising your superstar little leaguer for being compassionate to another player for a job not well done will be wiser for that child’s future development of having good sportsmanship.

It’s all so confusing for parents. One doctor tells you to praise your kids; your parents may tell you not to. You may have grown up with parents who never praised, so you are determined that your children will be praised. The problem is over praise from your kids’ point of view can make them feel one of two things:  (A) That you feel sorry for them and think they need praise because they are a loser, or (B) That you aren’t really engaged with them because you are praising them for something they already know and they are tuning you out.

Here are a few suggestions or guidelines that will help you re-consider before you praise.

1. Be careful praising them for what comes naturally. If you praise your kids for an A in math that comes naturally, your child may end up taking fewer risks and be less willing to fail a new challenge. They will worry you won’t praise them for effort. This can cause anxious, hesitant kids.

2. Be careful praising the kid for what they love to do. This leads to a kid who thinks they must love what they do in order to do it. These kids may grow up thinking life shouldn’t be this hard and are easily defeated when challenged.

3. Using comparisons with other children is going to backfire in your praise. Telling your child that they are better, stronger, or more attractive than someone else makes a child grow up to think in a win/lose mindset and they become very competitive. These children may not seek to understand others; they will seek to win an argument, win a position, or win a relationship. Don’t forget, no matter whom you know or how high you go, getting along with others can make or break you. Teaching your children to be compassionate and polite is more important and more highly correlated to their future happiness and success than promoting comparisons and competitiveness.

4. Praising your child for their attractiveness should be used with caution. As a parent, it is easy to get caught in the trap of telling your child how beautiful or handsome they are. When a child is praised for looks they know one thing…that the person who praised them values looks. Media’s focus on beauty, along with societal norms of impressing sexuality on to children puts additional pressure on children to “look pretty.” Your daughter may begin to think at a very young age that she cannot leave the house without her hair and clothes just perfect.

Encouragement and modest praise when your child is discouraged with their tedious practice schedule to learn a skill or overcome a challenge will help build your child’s self-esteem more than telling them how pretty they are.

When praising, keep in mind the child’s age and developmental level. If you praise a teen insincerely, they may think you are trying to manipulate them, whereas a toddler may need to hear frequently they did good work, or you liked the colors they chose. Kids naturally will begin building their own internal confidence if they face a challenge and work well with it. Constantly telling them how great they are makes them take less risks and less likely to try the very challenges that will help build their self-esteem.

Praise is powerful…use it wisely.

Mary Jo Rapini, MEd, LPC, is a licensed psychotherapist and co-author with Janine J. Sherman, of “Start Talking: A Girl’s Guide for You and Your Mom About Health, Sex or Whatever.” Read more about the book at www.StartTalkingBook.com and more about Rapini at www.maryjorapini.com.

With the ongoing drawdown of service members from Afghanistan, military families are preparing for the return of loved ones. The homecoming of a service member can be very exciting, but it is also a significant transition that affects the entire family – especially children.

Fortunately, military families don’t have to face this transition alone. The Real Warriors Campaign (www.realwarriors.net) offers support for families throughout the deployment cycle. The campaign, an initiative of the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE), promotes the processes of building resilience, facilitating recovery and supporting reintegration for returning service members, veterans and their families.

With tips from the Real Warriors Campaign, families can prepare for the excitement and potential challenges of a parent’s return home.

Communicate: Prior to a homecoming, it is important for parents or caregivers to communicate with their children and remind them that, just as they have grown and changed during the course of a deployment, it is likely that their parent has also had new experiences. By talking about some of these changes before the reunion, families can reduce the anxieties of a homecoming.

Real Warriors Campaign volunteer Sheri Hall experienced the challenges of reintegration firsthand when her husband, Army Maj. Jeff Hall, returned from his second deployment. She advises military families to communicate as openly as possible. “Encourage children to be vocal – to tell their families what’s bothering them,” Hall said. As children open up, be prepared for a range of emotions. It is important for parents to remain calm and understanding while listening to their children’s concerns.

Be Patient: Military families experience a natural adjustment period after deployment, during which children may experience excitement, as well as nervousness and anxiety. Families can ease concerns by taking time to get to know each other and routines again. Maj. Hall advises returning service members to be open to change during this transition. “Returning from deployment can be challenging. It’s important to be patient and remember some things may have changed while you were gone. Take time to get to know your family again,” Maj. Hall says.

Anticipate Change: During the course of a deployment, new family schedules and routines may have developed. For returning parents, it is important to remain open and flexible and learn the family’s new dynamic. It is also important for the entire family to help the returning service member adjust to changes that have occurred.

Homecomings are an important time for all military families, and communication, patience and flexibility help pave the way for a positive transition to reconnect with loved ones. For more tools, tips and resources for military families, visit the Real Warriors Campaign online at www.realwarriors.net or contact the DCoE Outreach Center to talk with trained health resource consultants for assistance 24/7 by calling 866-966-1020. More information and resources are also available at the DCoE website at www.dcoe.health.mil.

While poison ivy is around all year long, it really flourishes in the spring and summer months because the plant is growing well and people spend more time outside, increasing the rate of exposure.  Poison ivy can be found not only in wooded areas, but also quite often in your own yard.

The majority of people have some sensitivity or allergy to poison ivy. If you have a history of allergies, you may be even more sensitive.  The rash from poison ivy is caused by oil from the plant.  While simple contact with poison ivy may lead to contamination with this oil, the exposure noticeably increases when the leaves and stems are crushed, for instance when clearing an area of weeds.

This highly irritant oil causes an allergic type of contact dermatitis, and the very itchy rash typically begins about a day after the skin comes into contact with the oil.  If you know you have been exposed to poison ivy, it is important to wash your exposed skin with soap and water – several times – to prevent the oil from starting the allergic reaction.  Also, if you suspect you have touched poison ivy, you should not rub your eyes or other sensitive parts of the body (such as when using the restroom) before you have washed several times.  The oil on your fingers can easily be transferred to another site and start the allergic reaction.  The rash caused by this allergic reaction can take up to 4-6 weeks to subside!

Sometimes, you don’t need to directly handle the poison ivy plant for it to cause an allergic response. First, never burn poison ivy.  While the fire consumes the plant, the oil is carried on the smoke and can contaminate any surface it contacts.  As the oil can be potent for up to five years, you can be exposed to it without ever seeing it!  Smoke laden with poison ivy can also be quite dangerous.  If it is inhaled into the lung in a person who is very allergic, the resulting allergic response can cause very serious respiratory inflammation and distress.  Secondly, if a lawnmower runs over a patch of poison ivy, it will cut up and spew the oil over a wide area – not a good idea!

Once the allergic reaction has been started, the body’s response system takes over and there is nothing you can do to stop it.  The rash will appear and the itching will start.  At that point, treatment is directed toward making sure the oil has been washed off all parts of the body and controlling the itching with over the counter anti-itch medications and lotions.  If the reaction is severe, such as extensive areas of the body covered with rash or swollen eyes, you should seek medical attention.  The doctor may prescribe steroids, which will not stop the allergic reaction, but will reduce its effect.

Charles A. Welborn, MD, MPH, FAAP, FACEP, Medical Director, After Hours Pediatrics Urgent Care

March is National Nutrition Month and a great time for parents around the country to take stock of what they are doing with their children nutritionally. Most of us have some room for improvement, even if we do live in busy times that sometimes call for desperate fast food measures. The good news is that there are some simple things parents can do to help boost their children’s nutritional intake, the better to help keep them healthy, as well as lay the foundation for a healthy nutrition future.

Parents have many food choices today when it comes to feeding their children. Walk through the store or drive down the road, and the options are there in abundance. But many parents are beginning to seek out the healthy option today, which is wonderful.

Here are 5 nutritional tips every parent should consider:

Limit the snacks. Children who fill up on a lot of calories from snacks eat less at meal times, and usually the snacks are not all that nutritious. Limit the calories that come from snacking, and offer snacks that are healthy, such as a sliced apple with peanut butter, or vegetables they can dip into hummus.

Eat more fruits and veggies. Fruits and vegetables offer a lot of vitamins and minerals, as well as antioxidants. In addition to including some in snacking, aim to make fruits and vegetables half of their plate at mealtime.

Watch the sugar. Added sugars fill kids up with empty calories or those that don’t offer any nutritive value. Pay attention to the amount of sugar that is in food and how much they are consuming. Ideally, children should not have more than 12 grams (3 teaspoons) of added sugar daily (added sugar being that which is not there naturally in such foods as fresh fruit). This goes for both food and beverages.

Avoid the clean plate club. Many parents try to get their children to clean their plate by eating all the food on it. Problem is, children are in tune with their body cues and tend to eat when they are hungry and stop when they are full. When parents make them eat everything on their plate, they teach them to ignore their hunger cues, which can potentially lead to obesity problems later on. Ideally, parents should start with small amounts of food on the plate, so it’s not so overwhelming.

Model healthy eating. One of the most important tools in getting kids to eat healthily is to model that behavior. Children who have parents who eat healthily tend to grow up eating in a more healthy way themselves.

At first, it may be a challenge to get kids on board with healthy eating. However, once you have been doing it a while, they will grow accustomed to it and it will become second nature. Whether at home, school, or on the go, people no longer have to compromise when it comes to making healthy food choices.

Jolly Backer, chief executive officer of Fresh Healthy Vending. Based in San Diego, Fresh Healthy Vending is a company that started in 2010 and is revolutionizing vending machines by filling them with healthy, natural food options. Dubbed the “future of vending,” they are leading the way in healthy food vending. Their machines offer 100-percent juices, fresh vegetables, fruits, smoothies, and yogurts. The Fresh Healthy Vending machines are franchised and are being placed in schools, offices and other locations throughout the country. To learn more about Fresh Healthy Vending, visit the website at www.freshvending.com.

When Megan Webber downloaded family photos off her digital camera, she found the usual problems that need touching up – some were too dark, some were a little grainy, and some needed a little red-eye removal. Some of the pictures of her 5-year-old son, Benjamin, had a golden glow in his left eye.

“Benjamin has always had a freckle in his left eye,” said Megan, “so I thought the flash was just a difference due to the coloring of his eye and ignored it – I even did red-eye correction to remove it from photos.” But when her sister noticed that same glow in some family vacation pictures she had taken, she gave Megan a concerned call.

“She said it was probably nothing. But she had seen on a television show that this could be a sign of a tumor in the eye and recommended I have him seen,” said Megan.

Benjamin’s pediatrician didn’t find anything, but he sent them to a specialist who urged them to come in right away. They were stunned to learn he was legally blind in his left eye.

“He’d never bumped into walls or rubbed his eyes – he’d even just passed the paddle eye test in the doctor’s office,” said Megan. “His left eye could not see a letter E the size of a full computer screen eight feet away.”

Scans of his eye showed a white mass, which had been causing the reflection in the photograph. After testing and a tense few days, they discovered that Benjamin had Coats’ Disease, a life-long disease that can damage the eye to the point where eye removal is necessary.

Fortunately, Benjamin’s problem was caught early enough for treatment.

“While Benjamin has had three eye surgeries, we were very lucky to have caught his disease in time,” said Megan. “Had it been more advanced Ben could have immediately lost his eye. We are so grateful to Dr. Tom Lee and the doctors at The Vision Center at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Without the work that they do so many families would not have access to the quality and caliber of care that is provided there.”

Benjamin is doing well, and is a happy, thriving first-grader. “He wears protective Nike shatterproof glasses which the other kids think are pretty cool,” said Megan. “The glasses are primarily to keep his unaffected eye safe, for without that eye he would be blind.”

A vision to help other children

Megan said that she doesn’t want any more parents to miss the signs of potentially life-threatening eye diseases.

“We are amazed that something so simple, just the glow in a photo, was all that was needed to spot this disease,” she said. “If there is a way through our family’s experience we are able to get the message out about the glow, we are anxious to do so. We’ve created a campaign to raise awareness.” The Know the Glow campaign is combining the efforts of concerned individuals, corporations and physicians who are pioneers in the field of pediatric diseases of the eye.

“I can’t tell you how many kids come in with advanced eye diseases; it’s a tragedy,” said Dr. Tom Lee, director of the Retina Institute in The Vision Center at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. “Parents don’t realize they are an important part of the diagnosis. They will see this sign before doctors will. Every child has had this screening process – all it takes is for parents to open up the photo album.”

The website, www.KnowTheGlow.org, has information on the diseases that can be indicated by the glow. “Had I known about the glow earlier, Dr. Lee could have saved more of Ben’s vision,” said Megan. “Knowing what it felt like to possibly face a fatal outcome and knowing that I ignored such a huge red flag that was right there in front of me, I don’t want another parent to have to suffer through that or another child to needlessly lose their sight or their eyes due to a lack of awareness of the glow!” Read More

Since March is considered National March Into Literacy Month, it is a great time to consider the issue and what we can do to help make improvements. According to the National Coalition for Literacy (NCL), roughly 93 million adults in the U.S. have basic and below-basic literacy skills. Further, around 40 million adults in the country only read or write at or below the 5th Grade level, while another 21 million Americans are not able to read at all.

We, as a nation, largely know that this issue needs to be addressed, not only so that we can stay competitive in a global marketplace, but so that we can also function on a higher level in our day-to-day lives. And the good news is that there are a variety of ways to address it or provide someone with the help they need.

There is clearly room for improvement, and the good news is that there are quite a few ways that people can work to improve overall literacy. But first, it is important to have a clear idea of what literacy is. According to the NCL, literacy is “using printed and written information to function in society, to achieve one’s goals, and to develop one’s knowledge and potential.”

Here are some tips for helping people to improve their literacy level:

Literacy council. Many communities have a literacy council that can provide resources, including tutoring. Contact them to see what type of help they can provide. They are also usually seeking volunteers to work with those who need help, so people with good literacy skills may want to pitch in and help.

Take a class. Adult education classes are offered in most communities, designed to help improve literacy skills. They can usually be found by contacting city recreation or education departments.

Work with a tutor. Getting one-on-one help can be quite effective. Tutors can often be provided through a literacy council or the public library, or found privately.

Visit the library. The library is a wonderful resource for improving literacy. Today’s libraries are usually stocked with educational materials in the form of books, games, and even classes, all of which can be helpful for improving skills.

Read daily. The best way to improve literacy skills is to make it a point to read daily. Even starting out with the most basic books to gather information and learn skills can be helpful.

Write books. For those who have a child in need of literacy assistance, consider writing personalized children’s books for them. This may get them interested in reading more.

As a nation, America ranks 49th out of 165 nations when it comes to the literacy rate. Making it a goal to help others improve their literacy in turns helps the nation do better.

Improving literacy skills can help people live more enriched lives. Today, the resources and tools are available for anyone who wants to make improvements.

Lulu.com is an ongoing supporter of literacy initiatives, having created the Lulu for Literacy program. Through the program, each Lulu team member is encouraged to donate their time to literacy causes and even receive one paid day off per year in order to volunteer their time promoting literacy. Each team member then blogs about their experience and posts it on the company blog.

Sarah Gilbert, director of sales at Lulu.com. Lulu.com, a self-publishing company that was founded in 2002, provides complete services to authors. Parents have the ability to publish their own children’s books through this service. Lulu.com’s self-publishing service is provided free, and authors retain all rights, as well as 80 percent of all profit from sales. To learn more about using Lulu.com’s publishing tools, log onto www.lulu.com/publish.