Reading (baseball) Tools for Early Childhood Education

November 21st, 2008 admin Posted in education |

By Madeleine Fitzpatrick

For those who don’t know, it is easier to teach your child to read early on in his life (from the ages of zero to three), than later! Many experts suggest that by teaching your child to read before they begin formal education, they will find school-based education easier from the get-go as they will not have to learn reading skills at the same time that they have to comprehend curriculum material. So what options are available to parents who are interested in teaching their child to read early? Let’s look at a few.

TWEEDLEWINK

Tweedlewink is a set of DVD volumes, made for children ages 0-6. Borrowing from the theory that the right-brain-dominant nature of babies allows them to quickly absorb vast amounts of information, each lesson covers a broad spectrum of topics including vocabulary, phonics, whole words, poetry, early speed reading, and more. Relaxation music and soothing voices narrate each lesson and is designed to build rich neurological connections in your child’s mind during the early formative years.

The founder, Pamela Hickein, states that “Tweedlewink is the springboard from which our children can develop and grow as happy, healthy, compassionate and kind people who have equal amounts of IQ and EQ, intellect and creativity at their disposal”. Being DVD-based, this product is quite easy to use as you can simply put the disc in and play!

KidThing

A software program described by its creators as a “digital media player”, KidThing was founded by a group of parents who believed kids everywhere deserved better content in a safe learning environment. Their vision has resulted in a program with a very clean, simple aesthetic where games, stories and videos can all be played in the main window, with additional content available for purchase via their online store.

In Story mode the words light up as they are being spoken, and animations illustrate the story. Other features include content reminiscent of encyclopedic knowledge flash cards that teach your child about various topics in a casual and fun manner. I found the content and overall feel of the software to be absolutely adorable, but as a reading tool it may be more suited towards older children with a basic reading foundation as the animations and illustrations may distract babies and toddlers from learning to read.

LITTLE READER

Little Reader is a software program for children 4 months and up created by BrillKids, a company that aims to create fun, innovative and user-friendly products in the field of early childhood education. It integrates traditional flash card methods as well as multi-sensory techniques to promote early language recognition and efficient learning. Using a slideshow format, Little Reader combines words with pictures, sound effects, pronunciations and videos to enhance the learning experience. You can download hundreds of categories of words to supplement your library for free, and Little Reader also allows you to print out flashcards in two different flash card styles.

The program is highly flexible and customizable; allowing you to personalize and control what your child learns. However, I did find I needed some patience in learning how to use the program before I really appreciated its features.

Perhaps most surprising, however, is that all three products (or rather, their founders) suggest using their reading tools along with other methods, and not to simply look for the one true product. Children and babies have an immense capacity for stimulation, and having various tools at hand may well delight your little one! The important thing to remember is that as long as your child is learning, no matter what the tool, you are providing him with a foundation that he will have for the rest of his life. Happy teaching!

Little Reader is available for trial at absolutely no cost! Find out more about this flashcard reading software @ http://www.BrillKids.com.

Information Security Degree - High Demand - Great Salaries
By David Cassell

Do you know where your sensitive information is or more importantly who is responsible safeguarding it? In all likelihood your personal, sensitive information is sitting in various computer databases throughout the country.

In all types of organizations hopefully being guarded over by diligent and educated information security professionals. Their mission in life is to ensure that this information does not fall into the wrong hands.

As you may have ascertained, the work that information security specialist perform is critical to our economy, our businesses and our government. It is really a great time to get involved in this career.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, those who work in information security will see rapid job growth and greater demand for skilled technicians over a 10 years.

This trend will generate a greater demand for information security experts and lead to increases in earnings.

Furthermore, according to Payscale the current median salary for a computer security specialist is $70,943.00 annually. Salaries are expected to trend upwards in the foreseeable future.

The salary prospects are strong because unlike many IT jobs, outsourcing data integrity or information security work will likely remain ill advised.

This is due to the various limitations placed on those organizations whose business it is to have access to such sensitive information.

Education and training will of course remain vital to this industry. Those who have attained the proper credentials will not only be in the highest demand but also are expected to see the highest paying jobs.

If you are considering a degree in information security, try to begin with the end in mind. What level of degree do you wish to attain? An associate’s, bachelor’s or even a master’s degree?

An associate’s degree will likely impart a good amount of technical knowledge and allow for an entry level position to the graduate. Fortunately an associate’s degree can be acquired while working towards a bachelor’s degree.

A bachelor’s degree is generally considered the standard foundation from which a professional career is built and will of course open many more doors than what would be expected from a two year degree.

Finally, a graduate degree would best serve those who already have a healthy amount of industry experience. A graduate information security degree can also be beneficial to those seeking management positions or a career change.

In addition to earning a degree a student may also earn various vendor neutral certifications in information security.

Most notable are the Certified Information Systems Security Professional or the Systems Security Certified Practitioner offered by ISC.

The ISC is largely regarded as a standard in the industry. The Security certification offered by CompTIA is also be a good credential to attain.

There are of course specific certifications which are designed to capitalize on technologies provided for by vendors such as Symantec or Cisco Systems. Fortunately, some degree programs may require or at least provide training specific for these certifications.

Such degrees will look great on a resume and demonstrate that you are serious about your career. So seek out a stringent information security degree when you are evaluating your options.

The career prospects and competitive salaries are just icing on the cake. With terrorism and hacking on the rise, information security is one career where potential students can feel that there are making a difference.

If you want to seriously boost your salary and promotion prospects check out Select Courses where you’ll find all the free information you’ll need on distance education computer degrees and many other degrees in fast growing industries

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