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Wednesday, August 8, 2001 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER C1 How to decide if its time to leave your child home alone after school ily accessib le. · S chedule hom ew ork, sn a c k in g an d TV w atching. · D iscu ss phone rules and w h e th e r your c hi l d m ay h av e frien d s to visit. · A rrange fo r back -u p h e lp fro m a tru ste d n e ig h b o u r or frien d in case o f em ergency. · D iscu ss w hat your c hi l d sh o u ld do if som eone k n ocks at the do o r o r telep h o n es. · Tell y o u r c h ild to lock the d o o r and call y o u to c h e c k in as soon as they are hom e. · C o n tin u e to m o nitor the arran g em en t. pro v en th a t stu d en ts do b e tter w hen they have a d e sig n a t ed, co n siste n t stu d y spot. "C reatin g a study spot can be as big o r as sm all o f a hom e im p ro v e m en t p ro je ct as you ch o o se to m ake it," says B ruce S huh, H om e H ardw are. "F rom a hom e office to a cozy nook in an u n d e ru tiliz ed p art o f the house, study spots share com m on elem en ts th at any d o -it-y o u rse lfe r can c re a te ." T he hom e im p ro v em en t ex p erts at H om e H ardw are offer the fo llo w in g tips: · W h eth er it's an unused alcove o r a co rn e r o f the living room , create a sense o f privacy by p h y sica lly sep aratin g the space fro m the re st o f the house. P aint w alls a soothing co lo u r and, if it's a heavy tra ffic spot, hang a curtain or b u ild a room divider. · Tell y o u r ch ild th at i t 's tim e to hit the books by p o si tio n in g the d esk o r w ork sp ace aw ay from d istrac tio n s, such as a te lev isio n or phone. · S u rro u n d the a rea w ith ac cessib le b o o k sh elv es to keep referen ce books and school su p p lies handy. If the spot y o u 've selected is too sm all fo r sh elv es, in v est in a ro llin g cart o r sto rag e ch est w ith ca ste rs th a t can be ea sily tucked away. · C h o o se a lam p th at p ro v id es eno u g h lig h t to read co m fo rtab ly w ith o u t strain in g . A g o o sen eck lig h t o r clam p -o n lam p o ffe rs d ire c t lig h t, w ith o u t th e c o m m itm e n t o f in sta llin g p erm an en t lig h tin g fix tu res. · H ang a w ipe board, b u lle tin b o ard or c h a lk b o a rd to trac k y o u r stu d e n t's p ro g ress and w rite in sp iratio n a l m es sages. H ang school c ertific ate s, a rtw o rk and ph o to s nearby. · N ev er u n d erestim ate the p ow er o f a com fy c h a ir o r soft flo o r cu sh io n to e n co u rag e y o u r c h ild to lin g er w ith a good book. V isit yo u r local H om e H ard w are and H om e B uilding C en tre stores fo r all y o u r h o m e re n o v a t ing, d e co r and do-ity o u rse lf needs. D eciding w h e th e r a c h ild is ready to stay hom e alone after sch o o l is to u g h fo r m ost p aren ts. By law, m ost p ro v in ces in C an ad a re q u ire th a t c h ild re n age 10 and under be su p erv ised at all tim es by an a d u lt. B ut only one factor. P aren ts n eed to a sse ss th e ir c h ild 's lev el o f m aturity b efore m ak in g th is step. Is y o u r c h ild c o n fid en t, independent an d re sp o n sib le ? If you feel y o u r ch ild is ready to be hom e alo n e, it's im p o rta n t to p lan c a re fu lly for his or her safety, and to en su re the tim e sp en t is quality time. · Practice lo c k in g and u n lo c k in g d o o rs w ith y o u r child. E x ce rp te d from "D oes T his Ri ng A B ell" , an a fte r school p aren t reso u rce guide p ro d u ced by B oys and G irls C lubs o f C an ad a in p artn ersh ip w ith Sears C anada. T his free guide co n tain s adv ice about age is a fte r school pro g ram s, c h ild care, and tips fo r parents w hose ch ild re n are hom e alone. T he guide is av ailab le th ro u g h local B oys and G irls C lu b s, Sears d ep artm en t, o u tlet and fu rn itu re and ap p li ances stores and at w w w .b g ccan .co m . · M ake su re y o u r ch ild kn o w s w h ere the F irst A id kit is. R eview F irst A id and fire safety rules. · Prepare an em erg en cy p o w er b la c k o u t k it w ith fla sh light and b a tte ry o p erated radio. · Post em erg en cy telep h o n e n u m b ers w here they are eas- Creating a study spot f o r your favourite student S ep tem b er is b ac k -to -sc h o o l tim e and like m ost p aren ts, you d o n 't like to see school b ag s d ro pped at the do o r and ho m ew o rk co m p le ted in fro n t o f the telev isio n . W hy not create a study spot fo r y o u r fav o u rite stu d en t? I t's been CRAZY LEGS 11% OFF - N e w s C anada Accessories make for plenty of after-school fun August. Thinking of back-to-school time. However you c h o o s e to s a y it, a f t e r the s u m m e r of v i d e o game based movies like " T o m b Raider" and " Final F a n t a s y ," i t 's no s u r p r i s e t h a t m a n y s t u d e n t s f i n d it d i f f i c u l t to g iv e up the care free days of s u m m e r for h o u r s in the classroom and evenings spent doing homework. Well, s c h o o l d o e s n 't h a v e to m e a n the e n d o f fun a nd " g a m e r 's p a r adise." Students just need to b a l a n c e w orkfilled days with much-deserved after school fun. W hat b e t t e r w a y is t h e r e to reward students after a long, hard day than with exciting elec tronic handheld games that allow t h e m to e n j o y a littl e r e l a x a t i o n t i m e in the evening hours after h o m e w o r k is c o m p l e t ed and dinner is cleared from the table. Of course, the d e v o t e d g a m e r will be interested in the newest and coolest video game acces s o rie s to e n h a n c e his or her p la y e x p e r i ence. For example, the W orm L ig h t and Worm Light Plus, developed by Nyko T e c h n o lo g ie s Inc., are som e of the top-rated products for Game B oy® C o lo r and are a m ust-have for v iew ing the a c t i o n in lo w light or while t r a v e l ing over the w ee kend. This year, the c o m pany has introduced an entirely new design using its patented lighting t e c h n o l o g y to a d d an " out of this w o r ld " touch to electronic handheld excitement. The U.F.O. Light was developed specially for N intendo Game Boy® Advance, and features a unique sw a n -lik e d esign and interchangeable light ing h e a d s in a v a rie ty o f c o l o r s . T h e u n i t is lightweight and r e q u i r e s no b a t t e r i e s -- perfect for gam ers on the go. U sed with N y k o 's c a r a d a p t e r , young scholars are guaranteed plenty of a c t i o n as t h e y 'r e f e r ried to and from school or e x tr a c u r r ic ular activities. For students who naturally like to shake things up, the Shock n' Rock is a n o t h e r g i f t i d e a . It is a four-in-one product that includes adjustable rumble, amplified stereo speakers, ten-hour rechargeable battery for con tin u o u s play, and AC adapter/charger and a co m fo rt grip. For a group-play experience, the PowerLink Plus m ulti-player cable allow s players to link up to four Game Boy® Advance sys t e m s t o g e t h e r to p la y with com patible soft ware. The durable cable can also be used to c o n n e c t to o t h e r Game Boy® acces sories for plenty of a fter-sc h o o l fun. L ooking for more gift ideas? Nyko b e c a m e the first vid eo game accessory com p a n y to be lic e n s e d by a major motion picture studio, when Universal Studios a p p r o v e d the m a n u facture of video game a c c e s s o r i e s b a s e d on the summer smash "Jurassic Park 3." Encourage students to play r e s p o n s ib ly . M any schools frown u p o n v i d e o g a m e s in the classroom, so make sure your chil dren u n d e rsta n d that handheld play must take place only after school hours. Nyko p ro d u cts are available at electronic, soft w are, chain and toy stores across the country. Or, visit www.nyko.com for other cool products and ordering inform a tion. E n c o u r a g e Y o u r C h ild R ea d A N ew sp a p er To Fashion for Dance, Skating, Gymnastics & Fitness Shoes for Ballet, Tap, Jazz We owe our children the greatest education we can give them , and encouraging them to read a newspa per is an im portant part o f that edu cation. O pen a door o f entertain m ent, w onder and knowledge for your children by encouraging them to begin a practice they will enjoy for the rest o f their lives. 10% O f f TM * Sale Runs Aug 7/01 - Sept. 1/01 excluding sale items and Irish shoes & socks HOURS: Mon. - T hurs. 12:30-8 Fri. 12:30-6; Sat. 10-4 T // he O a k v il l e B 208 Wvecroft Rd. #202 eaver (between D o rvul & Kerr) till s t a r t s itif/i 844-4415 Dr. M aria Montessori started the first Montessori classroom in 1907. Today there arc thousands o f Montessori schools around the world. Find o u t w hat Willowglen School can ofier your child. --------------------- - i Now A c c e p t i n g A p p l ic a t io n s f o r S e p t e m b e r 2 0 0 1 Before and After School Care Catered Lunch Program « Pre-School - Grade 3 French, Music, Computers AMI Certified Teachers Small Class Sizes Individualized Instruction New Large Playground Start your child on the path to excellence with a quality Montessori education. WidowgCen W Willowglen Montessori School 2690 Westoak Trails Blvd. Oakville L6M 3T3 (N orth o f U pper Middle Rd.; West o fT h ird Line) ( 905)338-7207 www. willowglenschool.com