US low score on world motherhood rankings: charity

AFP/File – A woman pushes a baby carriage through a park. The United States has scored poorly on a campaign group's …

Tue May 4, 4:58 am ET

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The United States has scored poorly on a campaign group's list of the best countries in which to be a mother, managing only 28th place, and bettered by many smaller and poorer countries.

Norway topped the latest Save the Children "Mothers Index", followed by a string of other developed nations, while Afghanistan came in at the bottom of the table, below several African states.

But the US showing put it behind countries such as the Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania; and eastern and central European states such as Croatia and Slovenia.

Even debt-plagued Greece came in four places higher at 24.

One factor that dragged the US ranking down was its maternal mortality rate, which at one in 4,800 is one of the highest in the developed world, said the report.

"A woman in the Unites States is more than five times as likely as a woman in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece or Italy to die from pregnancy-related causes in her lifetime and her risk of maternal death is nearly 10-fold that of a woman in Ireland," the report said.

It also scored poorly on under-five mortality, its rate of eight per 1,000 births putting it on a par with Slovakia and Montenegro.

"At this rate, a child in the US is more than twice as likely as a child in Finland, Iceland, Sweden or Singapore to die before his or her fifth birthday," the report noted.

Only 61 percent of children were enrolled in preschool, which on this indicator made it the seventh-lowest country in the developed world, it said.

And it added: "The United States has the least generous maternity leave policy -- both in terms of duration and percent of wages paid -- of any wealthy nation."

Norway headed the list of developed countries at the top of the list of best places to be a mother, followed by Australia, Iceland, Canada, Sweden, Denmark, New Zealand, Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.

At the bottom was Afghanistan, followed by Niger, Chad, Guinea-Bissau, Yemen, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Sudan, Eritrea and Equatorial Guinea.

"While the situation in the United States needs to improve, mothers in the developing world are facing far greater risks to their own health and that of their children," said Save the Children's Mary Beth Powers.

"The shortage of skilled birth attendants and challenges in accessing birth control means that women in countries at the bottom of the list face the most pregnancies and the most risky birth situations, resulting in newborn and maternal deaths," she added.

Save the Children compiled the index after analyzing a range of factors affecting the health and well-being of women and children, including access to health care, education and economic opportunities.

Thus Norway came top because women there are paid well, access to contraception is easy and the country has one of the generous most maternity leave policies in the world.

Afghanistan however came last because of its high levels of infant mortality and the fact that it had the lowest female life expectancy and the worst rate of primary education for females in the world.

The report recommended more funding for women's and girls' education and better access to maternal and child health care, particularly in the developing world.

In the United States and other industrialised nations, it called on governments and communities to work together to improve education and health for disadvantaged mothers and children.

Wash. lawmakers settle on K-12 reforms

State lawmakers passed a bundle of major education reforms Thursday, including a plan that should help the state compete for the Obama administration's $4.35 billion Race to the Top program.

The education bills were the last major measures approved by the Democrat-led House and Senate on the final day of the 60-day regular session. They will be returning Monday for a special session to finish work on the state budget, but lawmakers were trumpeted the education agenda as a significant step forward.

"We accomplished a lot of education reform here today," said House Speaker Frank Chopp, D-Seattle, who called the bills "a tremendous effort that really came together at the end."

The Race to the Top program calls on states to commit to at least some things on a list of reforms, such as improving teacher evaluation, agreeing to national education standards and fixing the lowest performing schools.

Washington is hoping to draw some money in the second round of Race to the Top financing, with an application due in June.

"At the current time, we have very little chance of getting a grant from the Race to the Top program," said Rep. Pat Sullivan, D-Covington. "But hopefully, with these changes to our system, we will be in a much better position to compete with other states."

The bill passed Thursday allows the state to intervene in schools that are failing - a step that has been left at the local level until now. It also changes the way principals and teachers are evaluated, bumps automatic tenure rights to 3 years instead of 2 years for many teachers, and paves the way for nonprofit organizations to issue teacher certifications.

Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire, who pushed hard for legislators to approve the reforms, praised the work Thursday night. "It required a lot of work and patience, and it paid off," she said.

Minority Republicans had criticism for the program, but still offered some support for the changes.

"While I have some reservations on this in terms of its effect and its impact, I do believe it justifies us moving forward," said Rep. Skip Priest, R-Federal Way.

A second major bill builds on previous attempts to overhaul the way Washington pays for basic public education, which has a very strong mandate in the state constitution.

Reforms in the second bill include a new financing model for "prototypical" schools, phased-in smaller classes in kindergarten through 3rd grade by the 2015-16 school year, more state spending on maintenance and operations, and a new payment method for student transportation costs.

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A third bill establishes a voluntary early learning program for 3- and 4-year-olds in September 2011, calling for the program to be phased in over several years before eventually becoming an entitlement for all eligible children.

Democrats praised that bill as a major step toward boosting early education, but Republicans said the program sets up an expensive new program that state lawmakers don't yet have a certain way of financing.

How to Introduce Solid Foods to a Baby

Most babies are ready for solid food by six months of age.

Introducing solid food to your baby is a huge step. Take some time to make sure you and baby are prepared before beginning the process. Keep in mind that every child takes to solid foods differently, so don't push. Just relax and be sure to have the video camera ready to capture baby's first bites...

1.    Step 1
Assess your child's readiness for solid food. Most pediatricians recommend that parents wait to start solid foods until your baby is showing signs of readiness, which include good head control, increasing appetite and the loss of a reflex that causes young babies to put objects out of their mouths. Other signs of readiness for solid foods include grabbing at solid foods while another individual is eating, sitting up well and exhibiting chewing motions. The American Academy of Pediatrics says that babies do not anything besides formula or breast milk until they are 6 months of age. Be sure to talk to your doctor about when he recommends trying solid foods.

2.    Step 2
Start with rice cereal for baby's first feeding. Experts agree that rice cereal is easiest on baby's sensitive stomach. Mix breast milk or formula with the rice cereal, following the recipe on the box. The rice cereal should be mushy, but not runny. For the first feeding, don't worry about how much baby actually consumes. Just enjoy and take lots of pictures.

3.    Step 3
Start a schedule. Continue feeding your baby rice cereal at the same time for at least 5 days. This makes it part of his or her routine. It also allows baby's stomach to become accustomed to the cereal before you add any other types of food. Slowly increase the amount of food in her bowl. But again, don't worry too much about how much is actually eaten. Each child has a different appetite.

4.    Step 4
Add different foods. After you are certain that baby's body is handling the rice cereal well, start adding different foods. Most experts recommend moving on to oatmeal cereal before starting other baby foods. Then try adding vegetables or fruits to your baby's diet. You can add the fruit or vegetable to the rice cereal, or you can simply spoon it up alone. When you start a new food, wait five days before beginning another. If your baby has any food allergies, this will allow to easily determine the culprit of the allergic reaction. When it comes to adding foods, there no right or wrong way to proceed. Some experts advise parents to start with vegetables and then progress to fruits. Other experts say that parents should start with banana, because it tastes like breast milk. Ask your pediatrician for guidance regarding a schedule of foods to add.

5.    Step 5
Prepare your baby's food at home for savings and convenience. Instead of purchasing jarred sweet potato, just bake a sweet potato and stick it in the food processor. You can follow the same method with almost every fruit and vegetable. The link listed in the Resources section provides some great recipe ideas.

6.    Step 6
Be ready. Parents introducing solids can expect some changes in their baby's elimination habits. You might see harder, smelly stools. If your baby becomes constipated or seems to have painful gas, contact your pediatrician. He may recommend cutting back on certain foods.

Stop Spreading Those Germs!

Having many children in the same environment is an invitation for all types of germs to multiply. Why do children spread communicable diseases so easily? Most of the childhood diseases are spread by contact.

Babies, toddlers and preschoolers explore part of their world with their hands. They go from one object to another without ever questioning who went before them. Not only do they touch everything but many children get annoyed when asked to stop play-time to go and wash their hands.

By handwashing, diseases such as colds, chicken pox, conjunctivitis, hand-mouth-foot syndrome, are drastically reduced. Why you ask? All the germs will not be able to spread with the use of soap and water.

Sounds easy? It is. Time consuming? It is. Beneficial? It is. Well worth the effort.
Handwashing should be implemented many times during the day.
Before: Meals, playing with playdough, water table, rice table, or games where children will hold hands.

After: Meals, playing with playdough, water table, rice table, painting, doing any arts & crafts, after toileting, coughing, wiping runny noses and other bodily fluids such as blood, urine, and saliva, and after handling pets. For educators: as well as after using cleanng products or giving medication to a child.

How to teach children to wash their hands. It will be easier to teach children in a repetitious and fun way:

First - wet the hands. Second - put some soap. Third - scrub and make foam all over the hands- both sides and in-between fingers -let the children count up to ten while scrubbing. Fourth - rinse the soap away with running water. Fifth - dry hands with a paper towel.

After a few times, mix up the steps. They'll be quick to correct you and they'll show you the right steps. Make it fun and not a chore. Use this time to sing songs, recite rhymes or tell a short story.

Once you are finished rinsing your hands, let the water run an extra few seconds while you dry your hands with a paper towel, then use the paper towel to turn off the water. The germs get wiped off but none will get back on your hands. Door handles are another source for germs.

Reading To Your Child

"Read to your child" is a phrase often told to parents, but many of us don't have as much time as we'd like to do it. Parents often ask many questions about reading to their children, such as: How beneficial can reading to my child be? Can I develop my child's reading skills if I'm not a frequent reader? I'm the one reading the words, what does my child get out of reading? What books are appropriate for young children? How do I go about setting up a reading session? Here are some answers to these very important questions.

Benefits Reading to your child can be beneficial in more ways than one. Perhaps the most important benefit is the time you will spend together. You'll share a special moment by taking part in an activity that can be done almost any time and any place. Sitting on your lap, your child will have a sense of security. You'll get to know each other and deepen your relationship.

Reading can be compared to art: the more you draw, the better an artist you'll become. Likewise, the more you read, the better a reader you'll be. Your child will not criticize your reading skills. Even if you have a rocky start, with time, your reading skills will get better.
By reading the story aloud, your child will learn to follow a story from beginning to end. New vocabulary will be introduced. When there's more than one language spoken in the household, the child will develop his hearing to the language and be able to use the correct pronunciation. There's also picture identification and labeling various items in the book.
When the child follows the story line, letter recognition develops. Try adding an extra word in the story -- your child will tell you know that he's heard the difference. You'll also be enhancing your child's love of words. A child that is read to will grow up to be a reader. Reading is one of life's essential skills. Could you go a day without reading? Later on in your reading sessions, your child will associate the picture with the word and those pre-reading skills are golden.

What to Read Books, picture books and even homemade picture stories are inexpensive and are available from the supermarket, drugstore and even the dollar store. Borrowing books from the local library is a frugal way to read to your child and their supply is always renewing. Grandparents, aunts and other family members are often at a loss when it comes to birthdays and other gift-giving holidays. Suggest an age-appropriate book club or magazine subscription. There are many sites on the Internet available with children's stories.

The First Three Years

Do you know from the time your child is born until kindergarten, exactly what your baby will have learned? Do you know your baby is smarter than you? Your baby will have mastered how to walk, talk, eat alone, master toileting, make friends and will be able to ask questions and deduct answers.

In fact, children between the ages of zero-to-three learn more than in any other age bracket through daily interactions. This research was published in "The Scientist in the Crib: Minds, Brains and How Children Learn" (William Morrow, 1999). It was co-written by Alison Gopnik, a leading cognitive psychologist at the University of California, Berkeley; Andrew Meltzoff, a pioneer in infant psychology at the University of Washington, and Patricia K. Kuhl, a well-known figure on language development.

One of the first things your baby will learn is to get your attention. To get your attention either because he's hungry, has a soiled diaper or is tired -- your baby will cry.
"Roxanne will scream if she hurts herself. When she's tired she'll whine. She has a happy reaction when her mother enters the room," said Dennis, dad of eight-month-old Roxanne. "But when I get home from work - Roxanne is all ready to play. She won't let me look and anything else, she wants me all to herself."

In the process of learning this, your baby is learning about human emotion. Your baby will know how to act to make you laugh and get your approval, and will discover things that get you mad just by observing your reaction.

"Just by making eye contact, Justin knows if he can continue what he's doing," said Caroline, mother of two-year-old Justin. "He will touch things I won't allow him to. I know that he knows he's not to touch them. He's trying to see if I changed my mind."
The way a three-year-old child sees information, registers it and learns from it, she is learning twice as fast as an adult will.

Ever heard the expression, "Children soak up information like a sponge"? Many children under three are exposed to a second language and never tell themselves they can't do it. They learn it by seeing, doing and trying.

The best way to enhance your baby's learning or give extra stimulation is simply by spending more time with your child. If you are working outside the home, make sure your child is in a high-quality child-care setting

Getting Baby to Nap in Crib

It's a common complaint among parents---you just can't get your baby to nap in his crib. Of course, he'll sleep everywhere else: the car, the baby swing, the bouncy seat, the car seat or in your arms. Getting baby to nap in his crib is an important part of teaching him how to self-settle and in creating healthy sleep habits. It's not always easy to do, but there are some ways to make the transition to crib napping a little easier...

Step 1
Begin putting your baby down to sleep in his crib or bassinet almost as soon as he is home from the hospital. It's tempting to let your baby nap in his carseat or bouncy seat, but both of them cradle your baby in a sleep position very different from the sleep position of the crib. Using the crib from very early on will help him to get used to it before he gets used to napping in any other manner.

Step 2
Swaddle your newborn baby before putting her down to nap in her crib. A crib is a large, open space and many babies feel more comfortable and secure all snuggled up in a smaller space. Adding a sleep positioner---a pillow or wedge which helps a baby stay on her side during sleep---can add to that feeling of security. Additionally, you can make the crib smaller by adding crib bumpers to the sides. Just make sure they're tightly secured, as loose crib bumpers can be a safety hazard.

Step 3
Settle your baby down for her nap while she's still awake. Waiting until she's already asleep doesn't give her a chance to learn to self-soothe. Initially, you will have to provide the soothing techniques, such as rubbing her back or stroking her hair, but as she gets a little older, if you slowly withdraw from soothing her to sleep, she will have learned how to do it on her own.

Step 4
Stick to a predictable nap schedule, keeping in mind that typically, the later in the afternoon a baby naps, the later she tends to be up at night. Choosing a morning and afternoon nap time can help a baby learn a healthier sleep pattern and learn to associate those times with crib sleeping. The first week or so may be a little difficult, because you are trying to change your baby's internal clock. Start slowly, changing the naptime by 15 to 30 minutes a day until you've adjusted it to the planned time.

Step 5
Pay attention to your baby's signals. Despite choosing a naptime, you may need to be a little flexible. If your baby shows signs of being tired before the scheduled nap time, you may have to amend your schedule to take advantage of the opportunity to put him in his crib. Likewise, if after 20 to 30 minutes, he's wide awake in his crib, don't continue a naptime power struggle---he may just not be sleepy yet.

Creating Learning Environments at Home

As a parent, you become immediately aware that you are your child's first teacher. Then it should not be surprising that your child's initial important learning environment is your home. Your home setting can be a comforting, warm cocoon where your child very naturally learns about love and trust while you snuggle together reading a book in bed. Or it can be a stimulating place in which he learns to satisfy his curiosity while sinking toys in the bathtub.
 
Even if you do not consciously invite your child to be a part of your daily routine at home, you will probably find him right next to you anyway. An activity that may not seem exciting to you may be fascinating to your child. For example, when I sat outside on the deck shucking corn for dinner, my toddler-aged grandchild eagerly joined me. He began to intensely pull down the green husks. He became most intrigued as he discovered the golden surprise inside each ear. And then just as quickly, he made a tickly beard with the cornsilk! His sensory-motor skill development and imagination became alive during this simple, shared project.

You serve as an influential role model for your child as she learns about her world. It is fun for her to imitate you and copy your daily activities while she gains new skills and practices some old ones. In this article, Earlychildhood NEWS shares ways to take familiar areas in your home and create similar miniature learning environments for your child. Some things are interesting to do together, or with a sibling, while other activities foster independent learning.
 
Home Office
While you pay your bills, order clothes online from a catalog store, or call your dentist to make an appointment, encourage your child to practice his communication skills, such as reading, writing, listening, and speaking.
 
Online. Create a pretend computer with a shoebox. Cover the back of the box with clear contact paper so your child can add "words" or "graphics" to the "screen" with a wipe off crayon. Together, you can write letters and numbers on paper taped to the "keyboard" lid. Fine motor and language skills are sharpened as your child types answers to his email.
 
Phone fun. Poke holes in the bottom of two paper cups or tin cans (tape any sharp edges). Knot and pull the string tightly through the holes for designer phones for two. Hold one cup to an ear to listen while the other person talks in the other cup. Or create a hand held cell phone with a toilet paper roll and magic markers. To help your child make meaningful connections, create a personal phonebook with real or simple phone numbers (1, 2) and pictures of favorite people and places to call.
 
Box of bills. To help her learn to identify some numbers and letters and to create a print rich environment for your child, save your colorful junk mail. Add some old envelopes, scrap paper, markers and stickers for stamps so she can sit and write out her bills right next to you.

The Gym
While you grab some precious moments to exercise on your bike or treadmill, you are teaching your child at an early age the importance of keeping physically fit on a regular basis. Create a tiny exercise area for him to move his large muscles, too.
 
Jazz it up. Roll a towel up tightly and hold it together with rubber bands the long way and on each end. Encourage your child to see how many creative ways he can use this long snake to build his muscles: jump over it, lift it over his head, shake it in the air. Record some jazzy music for him to coordinate his jumps with the rhythm.
 
Pillow pile up. Pile several pillows on the floor for him to "dive" into or "crawl" around. See how many different ways she can think of to move around the pile. And this provides a great "cooling down" spot for you both to rest and snuggle after your workouts.
 
Soup-can lifts. If you use weights to tone up, try taping an appropriately weighted can over your child's sock (in case of a skin tape allergy). He can enjoy sitting and lifting his foot or leg while he or both of you count together. For silly fun, try taping on a little teddy bear or a maraca.

Dressing Room
Usually you feel rushed as you try to decide what you want to wear for the day. Provide stress-free opportunities for your child to become involved in decision-making, too, as she solves some dress-up problems of her own in a near-by corner.
 
Zip or rip. Offer your child a wonderful collection of old wallets, purses, and bags. Invite her to explore the cause and effect relationships of various closures while practicing her fine motor skills as her fingers zip zippers, snap snaps, rip open Velcro® fasteners, and button buttons.
 
Sock sort. Keep a handy basket of all those single socks you never know what to do with. Have your child play a classification game and sort by color, shape, size, texture, pattern, or owner.
 
Dress for the weather. Ask your child to dress his teddy bear in outgrown baby clothes. Besides gaining practice manipulating sleeves and pant legs over the proper body part, he can make meaningful decisions about weather concepts—a fuzzy hat keeps teddy warm on a snowy day.

Cooking Station
While you are working in the kitchen, safety (sharp knives, hot pots) is often an issue. Give your child his own safe working station—a metal tray on the table or a box of pans on the floor near the wall—so he can make inspired scientific and mathematical discoveries.
 
Spill and fill. For lots of fun with differently-sized measuring containers and spoons, put water or cornmeal in a dishpan. Have him observe which piles of cornmeal are the largest or which containers hold the most water. And to stretch his imagination, your child will also enjoy burying miniature figurines in the deep corn meal. These hands-on experiences help develop emergent mathematical understandings about volume and size.
 
Dry + Wet = Gush. Prompt your young scientist to add wet water to dry flour and salt in a bowl. Too much water? Gush! Not enough water? Crumbly stuff! Encourage him to slowly keep adding ingredients until he creates a wonderful ball of play dough to use with cookie cutters or bake. This discovery approach promotes an awareness of the characteristics of different properties.
 
Cook's choice. Cut colorful pictures of food out of magazines and advertisements. Use small pots, pans and a wooden spoon for your little chef to stir up a stew or birthday cake. Supply paper plates for him to dish out a special meal for daddy. You may wish to furnish a non-toxic glue stick so he can create some permanent food collages. Discuss his choice of foods: for example vegetables and healthy snacks.

How Harmful Is Caffeine For Our Children?

It seems the minute we become conscious about our health we ask ourselves an endless list of questions. Is this good for me? How much should I have? Is it safe for my children? The effect caffeine has on us is one of them. We often hear that caffeine is something we should avoid. How true are these sayings or are they just that -- sayings?

"Caffeine is a mehtylated xanthine, and as such, has chemical properties similar to Thophylline -- a common asthma medication," says Dr David L. Fay MD, Family Physician at Christie Clinic Association in Champaign, IL "It is a central nervous system stimulant. It causes increased heart activity, and relaxes the bronchial smooth muscles."

The most common source of caffeine is found in coffee. A cup of coffee (6 ounces) will contain 115 milligrams of caffeine whereas most sodas will have half that amount in a 12-ounce serving. Chocolate has relatively little comparatively at 6-20 milligrams per ounce. Hot cocoa has less than 10milligrams per 10 ounce cup.

"The per capita consumption of caffeine in the U.S. is about 200 milligrams daily. " says Dr Fay. According to Health and Welfare Canada's report 'Caffeine and You. It's Your Health Fact Sheet', 1993, it recommends that adults should limit their total caffeine amount to 400-450 milligrams of caffeine a day. Children should limit their dose to more than half that amount. This is not a limit strictly from coffee but all caffeine from sodas and chocolate, too.

"Side effects [from caffeine] include restlessness, insomnia, seizures, vomiting, diarrhea, tachycardia and other dysrhythmias." says Dr Fay. "It can worsen a number of conditions, such as gastroesophageal reflux, fibrocystic breast disease, and cardiac problems.
In many studies, caffeine has been eliminated as the cause of fibrocystic breast disease, cancer and heart disease yet it can aggravate the situation.

When withdrawing from caffeine, you may experience severe headaches. Should you want or need to cut your caffeine consumption, to avoid nasty side-effects it is best to gradually reduce your intake.

In terms of its effect on children, a meta-analysis revealed little evidence that theophylline and caffeine were associated with significant adverse effects on cognition or behavior. Your child will need to have a cup of coffee or two soda cans a day to go over the recommended amount.

Even if your child reaches these amounts or more, in a short period of time there's no documented proof of the severity or the harm done from the caffeine. Should this concern you then be safer in the soda category, and give your children clear sodas contain no caffeine. That would be a better alternative.

Tongue Twisters in the Classroom

Do you remember this tongue twister?

If you want to buy, buy
If you don't want to buy,
Bye-bye!

Many of us do. You're probably asking yourself, where do tongue twisters fit into early childhood education? Good question and here's the answer.

Tongue twisters are great for young children. A short and simple sentence (or just 2-3 words) using the same letter or phonetic sound that gets distorted the more and the faster you say it. It's funny! It's fun! It's free!

Children love to repeat what we tell them. Here's a chance for them to repeat and re-repeat. Start them with a short tongue twister for example: TOY BOAT.

Pretty easy to say 'toy boat'. Say it once and have the children repeat it. Now say it twice and let them repeat. Now say it three times without speeding up the words. Just saying 'toy boat, toy boat, toy boat' at a normal pace is a challenge in itself. Once they get it, ask them to speed it up. They'll love it. They're practicing their words and pronunciation. They'll want to do it over and over again.

For short tongue twisters you can have pictures available to help children connect with the object and labeling. Use tongue twisters according to your theme or subject of the week/month.

After introducing a few tongue twisters ask children try to come up with their own. Even if they can't read and don't know their letters, they're discovering sounds and isn't that what language is all about?

Around four or five years old children love to recite. You can then start giving them short 2-3 lines like "If you want to buy…" Then they are not only practicing their words and pronunciation but their developing memory skills as well.

Here you'll find some of my favorite tongue twisters. I wish I could give credit where credit is due but I have no know source of who wrote these tongue twisters.

Greek grapes.                   Aluminum linoleum.
Toy phone.                       Three free throws.
Quick kiss.                        Kitty caught the kitten in the kitchen.