Archive for the ‘College’ Category
Online Learning and Fitness
Friday, December 12th, 2008
Fitness is one aspect that online learners tend to miss. These are some ways to gain fitness.
Sanitize surfaces. To further reduce the spread of germs and infection in your home make it a practice to routinely wipe off common surfaces. This includes telephones, light switches, keyboards, and door handles. It only takes a matter of minutes and keeping disinfectant wipes around can be a helpful reminder. This is also a simple job to delegate to your children.
Eat healthy meals and snacks. Consuming healthy foods is important to fight disease, provide energy, and for the body’s systems to function properly. The food choices you make now can have lasting affects on your health. Don’t let your busy schedule prevent your from eating foods that benefit you in many ways.
Drink lots of water. The brain is made up of over 80 percent water and is essential to concentration and memory function. Get into the habit of filling a large water bottle and keep it with you wherever you go. Keeping one at your desk is a great reminder. Also take into consideration the way your routine varies from the weekdays to weekend. You may be in a great habit of drinking plenty of water at work, but then forget when you are at home on the weekend. Avoid feeling sluggish over the weekend by staying properly hydrated.
Stretch. The human body was created to move and change positions. Prolonged sitting in a chair will make you more fatigued, decrease your circulation, and leave you distracted by being uncomfortable. Simple stretching techniques you can do from your desk area can ease built-up tension in your body and reduce your chances of developing headaches.
Tags: College Tips, online classes, online learnersPosted in College Tips, distance learning, online courses | No Comments »
Health Tips for Distance Learners
Thursday, December 11th, 2008
Believe it or not, distance learners require health tips to achieve optimum performance in their studies. Below are some health tips that may be useful.
Schedule regular check-ups. Avoid waiting until you have annoying symptoms before visiting the doctor. Scheduling check-ups with your family physician, dentist, and chiropractor is an important step in preventing illness and injury.
Add vitamins to your diet. A busy schedule may leave you eating in a rush and making poor food choices. Now is a good time to get into the habit of taking vitamins and minerals to supplement your nutritional needs.
Medicate early. Uh oh, is a cold coming on? You know that feeling…the scratchy throat, plugged up nose and just all around feeling of being out of it. Act now and don’t wait for it to get worse. Try sucking on a zinc lozenge or some other stop-that-illness-in-its-tracks remedy like Airborne. You may be pleasantly surprised to find that you wake up feeling great and ready to tackle another day.
Hand wash regularly. Nothing wards off germs more than good hand washing with soap and water. Hand washing is the single, most effective way to stop the spread of germs and infections. Antibacterial gels can help in a pinch, but nothing beats scrubbing up and washing those germs down the drain.
To properly wash your hands:
- Wet your hands with warm, running water and apply liquid or clean bar soap. Lather well.
- Rub your hands vigorously together for at least 15 seconds.
- Scrub all surfaces, including the backs of your hands, wrists, between your fingers and under your fingernails.
- Rinse well.
- Dry your hands with a clean or disposable towel.
- Use a towel to turn off the faucet.
Posted in College Tips, Online College and University, distance learning, online courses, online education | No Comments »
Managing Children and Studies
Thursday, December 11th, 2008
It’s difficult enough balancing kids with housework, so the thought of successfully pursuing an online degree may seem impossible. However, taking online education courses can actually be quite manageable for parents. If you think that children are always in the way of your education troubles, think again. It’s all a matter of proper children management. There are actually many ways in which having children could help you achieve online degree success. One of them is assigning them important roles in the house. Not only will you be able to concentrate on your studies, you’ll get to cut yourself some home chore slack.
Plan a dinner and shopping list. Give your kids dinner duty and have them peruse a cookbook or kid-safe recipe Web site. Have them stick Post-it® notes on or print out favorite recipes. Then have them vote on one entrée, one side dish and one dessert. Next, have your kids read through the required ingredients for the winning recipes and make a grocery list for needed items. Plan a night to cook together as a family.
- Increase the Fun: Ask a restaurant for paper chef hats for your kids to wear. After the dinner is cooked, have your children “play restaurant” and serve you.
Free choice chore duty. Kids like exercising some control over their choices. Have them be “Inspectors” and walk around the house with a clipboard, noting chores that need to be done. Then, have your kids hold a meeting and each choose two chores. After they complete the chores, let them inspect each other’s performance.
Tags: online class, online degree, online educationPosted in College Tips, distance learning, online courses, online degree, online programs | No Comments »
Activities to Keep Kids Away While You Study
Thursday, December 11th, 2008
Getting one step ahead closer to your online degree is always a benefit of distance learning students. Here are some activities to keep kids away while you study.
Decorate a canvas pocket organizer. Pocketed canvas organizers that hang on doors can be a great way to harness those straying shoes, small toys or other items. Have your kids decide what the organizer will be used for and where it will hang. Then, give them fabric markers or paint to decorate the organizer using bedroom colors, favorite cartoon characters and anything else they can think of. After the organizer is thoroughly dry, have your kids place items in the pockets.
Holiday preparations and thank-you notes. Do birthday or holiday gifts need wrapping? Set out the supplies on the floor or table and put your children in charge of wrapping and decorating gifts. Remind them to stick nametags on the gifts! Recipients will love seeing that your kids did the wrapping all by themselves.
Trim and water plants. Kids will love being gardeners for a day. Show them how to use small clippers to trim bushes and snip off dead leaves and flowers. Have them put on bathing suits and use a hose or watering cans to water the garden. If your green thumb is the indoor variety, show kids how to water the plants in a controlled way. If you have plants with large, waxy leaves, have your kids”dust” off the leaves using damp paper towels.
Involve young children.Even young toddlers can grab a dust cloth and copy older siblings as they clean. Of course, everything including the dog may get dusted, but that’s okay. As long as your kids are focused and cooperative, they are getting the job done.
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Kids in Helping You Study
Thursday, December 11th, 2008
In addition to everyday tasks (dusting, sweeping, picking up toys), there are many fun and often forgotten jobs that will make your house sparkle and get you closer to earning an online degree. What are they exactly? Have your kids do the following chores while you are doing your school work:
Clean mirrors and windows. Cleaning windows and mirrors with a gentle spray cleaner such as Windex® is a fun way to keep kids busy. As long as the cleaner is nontoxic, kids can spray it independently and wipe smudged surfaces clean.
- Bonus tip: These cleaners can also be used to clean appliance surfaces, such as dishwashers and refrigerators.
- Increase the Fun: Buy markers specially made for writing on windows. Let your kids draw pictures on the windows and then clean them.
Organize the pantry. If your pantry houses old pasta, vintage gravy packets and an antique peanut butter jar, you’re not alone. But you can set your kids loose on tidying up this unruly space. First, make a simple sheet of instructions. Otherwise, your children will have a million unanswered questions when you’re trying to concentrate. The instructions can be as simple as:
- Take everything out of the pantry and put it on the kitchen table.
- Wipe out the pantry with a damp sponge.
- Throw away all open pasta packages that are nearly empty.
- Group the pantry items by type (soup, pasta, JELL-O®, etc.)
- Line up the items back on the shelves.
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