The best way to help young kids understand math concepts isn’t by standing in front of a white board and rattling off multiplication facts. Rather, it’s by letting them see math in action. Board games are a great way for little learners to get a grasp on skills such as pattern recognition, spatial reasoning, problem solving and visual perception. Here are some of the best board games for kids under 8 that encourage mathematical thinking, according to math educators and parents.
Note: The ages listed are from the game creators. Kids can often start playing earlier if they show interest, or you can make modifications to games such as playing on teams, playing cards face up or eliminating the time component.
View the list of games and brief explanation here.
The Human Capital Project, a global effort to accelerate more and better investments in people for greater equity and economic growth. Why should countries invest in human capital? Can early health care and education prepare children to succeed and prosper as adults in a rapidly changing world? What are the barriers to nurturing human capital and how can countries overcome them? Find out why the World Bank, countries, and partners are coming together to try to close the massive human capital gap in the world today.
Read more about the Human Capital Project and view an interactive map here.
On Sunday March 13, The Guardian newspaper published a frightening article about gun control in the US and how Jamie Gilt, who has built a thriving web presence on the argument that guns are perfectly safe around kids, was shot by her young child.
From the article in The Guardian:
Growing up here myself didn’t prepare me for how distinctly, viscerally frightening it would be to raise children in a gun-obsessed nation. My step-daughters go to school in a borderline-rural suburb, whereas I was educated in central Seattle. They already know of at least one friend-of-a-friend who was killed in a school shooting. Many of their friends’ parents are gun owners. Not only that, but, over the past few decades, the National Rifle Association has been aggressively and successfully rolling back firearm restrictions, making gun ownership as quick and easy for anyone’s irresponsible, drunk cousin as their meticulous, gun-safety-trained dad. When we send our kids to friends’ houses for sleepovers, it sometimes feels like a leap of faith.
And I’m supposed to believe that frightened Syrian refugees – or whomever becomes the next rightwing scapegoat du jour – are the real threat to my children? I’m supposed to be afraid of sharks? Heavy metal music? Violent video games? Horse meat in my hamburger patties? Teenagers pouring vodka up their butts?
States with more guns have more gun deaths. Keeping a gun in your house increases your chances of accidental death by shooting, but does not make you safer. A woman’s chance of being murdered by an abusive partner increases fivefold if the partner has access to a gun. “Good guys with guns” are a fantasy. How much longer will we keep participating in this great collective lie that deadly weapons keep us safe?
**** Read the complete article on The Guardian newspaper here. ****
I’ve finally published all my puzzle ebooks, picture ebooks for children, fiction and nonfiction ebooks in PDF. Brother, did that take a while. Sheesh!
All my picture ebooks for children have an Appendix with large black and white graphics of characters in each story so you can print them out for coloring by your child or yourself.
All puzzle PDF’s have solutions in the back to save you paper so you only have to print out the puzzle or puzzles you want and check your solution with mine.
Both my cookbooks contain a large amount of information on herbs and spices.
Here is just a very small selection of the almost 40 PDF’s now available:
What the heck is Gumroad? Gumroad is located in California and is an ecommerce replacement for PayPal.
I chose Gumroad rather than PayPal for my PDF’s because I saw a number of famous artists and non-profits using Gumroad. While nowhere near as famous as any of them I could still use the same ecommerce system and bypass PayPal.
Why buy direct through Gumroad? Your ebook is personalized with your name, contains no DRM, uses HTTPS like your bank or credit union for safe and secure transactions, they don’t store your credit card information and so your privacy is protected, and besides that each sale earns me a couple of extra pennies because Gumroad fees are lower than PayPal and Smashwords.
It takes a few seconds to load the Gumroad site as there is close to 40 covers to render. I’ve found scrolling down to bottom of page a couple of times seems to help speed up the process.
All 40 or so PDF’s are available at my famous low prices at Gumroad here. Take a peek. It only takes a second or two.
Brian Whitlock, who was sent to jail for beating his dog and leaving him for dead in a dumpster in 2012, has been charged with the second-degree murder of his mother in the Dunbar area of Vancouver, BC, according to this CBC news report.
Whitlock beat his two-year-old German Shepard, Captain, and left him for dead in a Kitsilano dumpster. Whitlock, then 26, got a 60-day jail sentence and a lifetime ban on owning animals after pleading guilty to animal cruelty in the high-profile case.
Whitlock’s mental health was cited as a factor in the animal cruelty case. Medical records indicated he had been diagnosed with, and was being treated for, psychosis and schizophrenia during the year leading up to his sentencing.
During Sunday morning Brian Whitlock was being taken into custody and charged later in the day with second degree murder.
Elizabeth (Liz) Summerfield, who had her husband’s dog killed during divorce proceedings, simply lied to everyone and got away with murder.
During the divorce she took her husband’s dog, whom she had stolen from the matrimonial home, and went to the South Burnaby Veterinary Hospital where she told the vets the Post Office had ordered the dog be put down for biting a postman.
That was a lie, which the Post Office confirmed in conversation with the husband and the husband’s lawyer. The veterinary clinic never asked for any proof of such an order from the post office and never contacted the Post Office to confirm the order. They simply took the money and killed the dog. Killed an innocent animal. Here is link to letter for BSPCA written by husband’s lawyer.
Why would a wife murder an innocent animal during a divorce she initiated? Money.
Liz had removed a vast amount of money from their joint account prior to filing for divorce. Her financial records were sought by the judge to determine where that money had gone.
Instead of obeying any of the many court orders demanding she turn over her financial transactions Liz simply lied to the veterinary hospital and had her husbands dog killed. Perhaps she killed her husband’s dog, Punzhu, in order to force her husband to agree to her divorce demands? Perhaps she felt murdering his dog would end the divorce court judge’s demands for her bank statements? Whatever her reason for killing Punzhu her husband quickly agreed to her divorce demands, fearing what Liz might do to his son.
Liz teaches children in the lower mainland of BC including Coquitlam, Port Moody, Vancouver, Whistler, Burnaby, Port Coquitlam, Richmond, Delta and Surrey, and at various art festivals and holidays during the year held in various cities and municipalities, art and art related classes including puppetry (she removed all the family puppetry related property worth tens of thousands of dollars prior to filing for divorce, not including an almost brand new top of the line Chevrolet Suburban she also removed prior to filing for divorce), heritage hat making, and other arts and crafts instruction and/or sale of arts and crafts.
Parents should confirm who is teaching their children at any open function, like a festival or art class or other venue where their children are placed in a situation of trust, just as a matter of precaution. Liz may be a good instructor, but shouldn’t a parent want to know about someone teaching their children?
The City of Vancouver hired a Hells Angel without too much – if any – background check. Would you want your child taught by someone without a background check of any kind?
Here are two things you can do to begin protecting your son or daughter when he/she/they are away from you and in the care of another:
Is the name of the instructor provided in any printed or online material? No? Why not? Who is going to be the instructor? Never leave your children in the care of someone you know nothing about.
Have you personally checked the Internet for any mention of the name? The Internet is a quick and simple way to check for information about someone who may come into contact with your children.
A British Columbia woman who teaches arts and crafts, puppetry, heritage hat making and other classes to children in Burnaby, Maple Ridge, Langley, Surrey, Vancouver, Whistler and other areas took an innocent family pet to a local vet and had it killed during a lengthy divorce.
The Rottweiler/German Shepard cross was killed during the time of the divorce proceedings when the woman refused to comply with multiple court orders to turn over financial records of the large amount of money she had removed from their joint account prior to filing for divorce..
The dog was just a few years old, hardly more than a youngster, and was adopted from a local dog pound by the now ex-husband. The woman, Liz Summerfield, had removed his dog from the family home and refused to disclose where she had taken the animal.
The actions of a woman who takes an innocent animal and hides it from its owner then lies and has it killed say something about the person.
As does the fact during the weeks of extensive questioning about the money she had removed prior to filing for divorce, Liz Summerfield refused to comply with multiple court orders to disclose what she had done with the vast amount of money missing.
Lying, refusing to comply with court orders, psychological abuse of not disclosing whereabouts of dog she stole, these all help paint a picture of the dog killer.
Liz Summerfield took the family dog from where she had hidden it to the South Burnaby Veterinary Hospital and lied to the staff about the dog biting a post office person, saying she had been ordered by the post office to have the dog put down.
The post office never filed a complaint against the family pet, the South Burnaby Veterinary Hospital never checked with the post office to see if there was such an order, and the Hospital never checked with the registered owner of the family pet, the husband, who had been taking his dog to that Hospital since adopting him.
Liz Summerfield simply lied in order to have a family pet killed.
Liz teaches children in the lower mainland of BC. Parents should be aware of who is teaching their children.
Liz Summerfield, the originator of A Lantern Affair, making one of her signature Lotus Lanterns.Carré Heritage Square. (Screen captured; Tri-Cities Now)
Liz may be welcomed to teach children by various community centers in BC, invited to attend festivals and art camps to teach children, and parents may well want her to teach their children, moreover, even readers of this post may see nothing wrong with a woman who lies and kills an innocent animal teaching their children. I just feel that, as a public service to parents, they have the right to know something about the people who are teaching their children, and I suggest parents Google the names of anyone teaching or instructing their children as a precaution.
Some festivals or community centers offering activities for children don’t show who is teaching their children. Vancouver, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Haney, Maple Ridge, New Westminster, Burnaby, Richmond, Surrey, Langley, Whistler and other areas often hold activities for children during the year. As a precaution, parents should phone and ask who the instructor is and then check the Internet for any information which could be of interest to a parent.
Just last year B.C. Corrections issued a public notification after a pet-killer, described by a judge as a “psychopathic and narcissistic … sexual sadist,” was released from jail with plans to live in Vancouver.
The City of Vancouver hired a Hells Angel without too much – if any – background check. Would you want your child taught by someone without a background check of any kind?
Here is the link to the letter my lawyer wrote after she checked the facts about Liz Summerfield killing my dog during our divorce, during the time she refused numerous court orders to turn over bank records of what she had done with all the money she removed from our joint accounts.
11 of my 37 ebooks are now available on Flipkart in India with most priced at 68 Rupees, inclusive of tax, and 2 of the 11 ebooks are word puzzle ebooks.
India has approximately 127 million English speaking citizens, making it the second largest English speaking country in the world in 2007, and the aforementioned figure represents just 11% of the population of India at that time.
2 of my cookbooks, 2 of my puzzle magazines, 3 of my fictional works, and 4 of my picture ebooks for children are available on Flipkart as of today.
Click this link to view/purchase my 4-Letter Word Puzzles ebook available for 68 Rs.
Click this link to view/purchase my 5-Letter Word Puzzles ebook available for 68 Rs.
Click this link to view all my ebooks available on Flipkart.
Parents with young children should know who is teaching their children at local festivals, art classes, or other public events. But does a parent really know who their children are meeting?
For that matter, how much research on instructors do festival organizers, art class organizers, or other public bodies do before entrusting children to the people they’ve hired?
I believe parents have the right to know who is teaching their child or children, and believe parents should be clearly told by organizers who the instructors are. Far too many times I’ve seen events listed without the name of the instructor.
It would be best for all concerned if public event organizers advertised the names of instructors or participants at public events so parents know with whom their children are coming into contact.
For example, on May 10, 2013, the Lynn Valley Main Library and Village the Sea-to-Sky Heritage Fair was held. One of the events was Heritage Hat making. No name was given.
The person conducting the Heritage Hat making may be good at what he/she does, but what does a parent know about that person? How does a parent find out who is teaching their child or children if no names are given?
Would a parent feel any different about their child/children being taught Heritage Hat making if the person doing the instruction was a known dog-killer and liar?
Would a parent feel any different about the person teaching their child/children if a parent knew a letter to the BCSCPA warned them of a dog-killer who lied to veterinarian in order to have a family pet put down?
Perhaps such knowledge wouldn’t make a difference to a parent. Perhaps such knowledge wouldn’t make a difference to an event organized by a public body for something like the Sea-to-Sky Heritage Fair.
Maybe this year the Sea-to-Sky Heritage Fair organizers didn’t hire a known dog-killer and liar named Liz Summerfield, who also teaches puppetry, puppet making, papier mache, and other arts related crafts around BC, for this Heritage Hat making session. But how would a parent know if an organization doesn’t advertise who the instructors are?
I urge all parents to contact event organizers and ask them who is teaching their children if the instructors name is not known. I also urge parents to google an instructors name before allowing your children to attend public events.
It is only with full disclosure, of instructors or participants, by the organizers of an event that a parent can make a decision as to who to entrust their child or children.
Several weeks ago local police contacted me regarding the articles I had written on my blog about my ex-wife who had my dog killed during the time the courts were hounding her for financial records concerning the large amount of money she removed from our joint account just prior to our divorce.
The police contacted me by email containing one sentence; “Could you please contact me, I need to speak with you regarding the postings that you have made that are directed towards Elizabeth SUMMERFIELD.”
I replied immediately asking what I could do for them. But after I sent the reply I thought, “This is likely a legal matter so the police should contact my lawyer.” (It never dawned on me right away that the police contacting me might be of some legal matter, so how bright am I?)
I then sent a second email stating, “Upon further consideration of your email please direct all further communication through my lawyer XXXXX regarding any legal matter and he will advise me.”
The police sent me a couple of more emails during the following days containing the exact same sentence as the first email.
I sent the officer an email stating, “On XXX, 2012, I replied to your email and requested you direct your communication on this matter to my lawyer, XXXXX.
On that same date I contacted XXXX regarding your email and its contents. Please direct your communications on this matter to XXXX.”
That stopped the emails from the police.
But what I find disconcerting for bloggers, particularly bloggers living in Canada, is that the police wasted time contacting someone who had broken no law, for the police would have surely done more than just want to talk to me if I had broken a law.
The articles I wrote were honest, truthful, and were done with the public’s interest at heart, for I strongly believe that parents should know who is teaching their children at art classes or at a workshop or a festival event.
Liz teaches children classes or workshops about papier mache, lantern making, puppetry, puppet making, and various arts and crafts related instructions in Port Moody, Coquitlam, Vancouver, Surrey, Whistler, New Westminster, and many other areas in the lower mainland of BC.
Some art groups, like Place des Arts in Coquitlam which is holding “Light up the Square: A Lantern Affair” this Christmas season, don’t always list who is instructing children, and so it is up to parents to verify who is teaching their child.
Particularly if the person teaching their child or children had deliberately lied to a vet in order to have an innocent animal killed during a period in the divorce proceedings in which that person had repeatedly refused to comply with multiple court requests to provide financial information on what she had done with all the money she removed from a joint account, just prior to her husband receiving the divorce papers.
Here is a link to the letter my divorce lawyer wrote to the BCSPCA after verifying the facts of the death of my dog.
Would you want your child attending a workshop given by a dog killer, thief, and a liar?
See Place des Arts dog killer articles here, here, and here. BCSPCA letter here.
Place Maillardville supports a known liar and dog killer:
Place Maillardville hosts a free lantern workshop, from 1 to 3 p.m., with guest artist Liz Summerfield. The lanterns will be used in a ceremony, Light up the Square – a Lantern Affair – on Saturday, Dec. 3 from 4: 30 to 7: 30 p.m. This is a registered program (no drop-ins). To register, call 604-933-6166 or drop by Place Maillardville at 1200 Cartier Ave. in Coquitlam.
Liz may be welcomed by various community centers, festivals and art camps to teach children, and parents may well want her to teach their children, moreover, even readers of this post may see nothing wrong with a woman who lies and kills an innocent animal teaching their children. I just feel that, as a public service to parents, they have the right to know something about the people who are teaching their children and I suggest parents Google the names of those teaching or instructing their children as a precaution.
Stop cruelty to animals. Support your local animal rights organization. No family pet needs to die for the personal profit of anyone.
I’ve published two new ebooks for children. Both contain color pictures as well as large black and white pictures, which can be printed out for children to color, at the end of the ebook.
You may view a free sample of any of my ebooks by visiting Smashwords. (Link opens in new window)
A Christmas Tree For Santa is another of my color picture ebooks for children. This story is about Forest Ranger ‘Ranger Rick’, who decides to take a Christmas tree to Santa because there are no trees at the North Pole. On the way, Ranger Rick runs into a thieving moose, a friendly polar bear, a vacationing penguin, Santa’s helpers, and Santa. This colorful picture book for children 2-7 also has large, black and white pictures in the Appendix for printing & coloring. This story is an adaptation of a puppet show I wrote many years ago.
You may download a free sample of “A Christmas Tree For Santa”, or purchase it for $0.99, from Smashwords here.
“Icky Foods Make Me Sick”is a colorful, picture coloring book is about a very young girl named Susie Snorz, who is very fussy about what she eats. Susie, who can’t stand to see her baby brother enjoy anything, gets really mad one day because her baby brother is enjoying something she thought would be icky. She learns new things can be good. Appendix contains large black and white pictures for coloring. Suits 2-5 year old.
You may download a free sample of “Icky Foods Make Me Sick”, or purchase it for $0.99, from Smashwords here.
Liz Summerfield, who lied to the South Burnaby Vet hospital in order to have my dog killed during the time the divorce judge was hounding her for bank records, is teaching children arts and crafts.
Liz sometimes works at the Place d’es Arts or other community arts locations, and is an instructor at “ARTrageous ART for Kids””
*New* ARTrageous ART for Kids
Age: 6 – 11yrs
ARTrageous Spring camp fun for kids. In this art camp you will spend your morning with artist Lisa Lake exploring art in different mediums and set the stage and actually make a backdrop for the afternoon fun where you will join artist Liz Summerfield with her ARTrageous puppets and create your own outrageous character’s. Please bring a snack and lunch.
Instructor: Lisa Lake & Liz Summerfield
Location: Craft Studio; The ACT
Fee: $175/5
M-F Mar 21-25 9:30 am-3:00 pm #152548
Liz may be welcomed by various community centers, festivals and art camps to teach children, and parents may well want her to teach their children, moreover, even readers of this post may see nothing wrong with a woman who lies and kills an innocent animal teaching their children. I just feel that, as a public service to parents, they have the right to know something about the people who are teaching their children and I suggest parents Google the names of those teaching or instructing their children as a precaution.
Here is the link to the letter my lawyer wrote after she checked the facts about Liz Summerfield killing my dog and Liz’s lying.
Place Des Arts info:
Papier Mâché Puppets
Create your very own zany puppet characters. You’ll make the head of these rod puppets using papier mâché and form the body and hands from fabrics and felt.
Instructor: Liz Summerfield
Monday March 21 – Friday March 25
“Final Decree. A Dead Dog Divorce.” is based in part upon my divorce and is a story of a thieving wife whose lies were exposed by a cunning female lawyer. Available at all online retailers including Barnes & Noble, Kobo/Chapters Indigo, Apple, Sony, select libraries, Flipkart in India, and other retailers.
I’ve added an easy word search puzzle for children to my online puzzles collection. This word search puzzle has 6 words and is for children in grade 1.
The puzzle has the option for printing as text or as a PDF file.
What makes a good instructor? What makes a bad instructor? Is it attitude? Is it ability?
What do parents need to know about instructors their child or children meet?
Would a woman who lied to a veterinarian in order to have an animal killed be the kind of person you want teaching your child or children?
Liz Summerfield is presenting a lantern workshop at Place Des Arts in Coquitlam on November 21. Many years ago during our divorce she took my dog to the South Burnaby Veterinary Clinic and had him killed.
This isn’t a book about financial bubbles bursting, or housing bubbles busting. This picture ebook fable, for children aged 2 to 5 years old or just young at heart, tells the tale of a young girl named Glorybee Toebiter who loves to brag to everyone about how great she is at blowing bubblegum bubbles.
Nobody likes a show-off, and the kids around Glorybee take great pleasure when her bragging blows up in her face with dire consequences.
On sale now for $0.99 at Amazon/Kindle, Apple, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, Sony, Diesel, Kobo, and other popular online stores.
