Ask a parent or a grandparent what they did for fun when they were kids. Compare their answers to the ones you’d get from today’s kids. You will probably find that you get very different answers, with a lot more indoor activities, and definitely more screen time. A lot of children are growing up in urban environments and aren’t moving enough. Without being exposed to the great outdoors, your kids are missing out. Playing outside, from sports to classic play, is an important way to get kids to develop movement skills. Many parents struggle with getting their kids outdoors and away from their screens. Here are some ideas to get them outside.  Image - free for commercial use Tell your mids that it’s ok (and fun) to wet, messy, and…

Being a foster parent is always going to be challenging. The children you look after will come from a variety of backgrounds and they will have been through different things to have put them in the foster care system. Understanding this and being kind, caring, and compassionate is crucial. However, what would happen if the child you needed to take care of was autistic? How would that change things? Of course, you would still want to care for them in the same way, but this might not be possible; children with autism may need a different kind of care, depending on their individual needs. Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Pexels.com Foster parents who go on to foster autistic children will need specialist training, and ideally, they will need experience of…