Investment Policies Or Options Or Instruments Suited For Your Kid’s Quality Educatoinal Planning And Bright Future Available In The Market - Pure or Direct Equity (Stocks), Mutual Funds, Commodities

Most people mistake financial planning for the child to mean transferring capital in the child's name. This is neither necessary nor enough. Our child is still a child and he or she doesn't have the capacity to make proper financial decisions. So it is we who must make these on his or her behalf by making optimal use of the instruments at our disposal. In fact, it is prudent practice to invest the funds in our own name, earmarking the capital for the child, as and when he or she may need it in future. Only bear in mind that, the money is our child’s money. If we invest it well, it our child who will benefit. Investing for a child is no different than investing for our self.  

One should try to maintain a good mix of liquidity & flexibility. Ensure a good asset spread, which provides adequate safety and growth. For a medium risk person, a spread of 40:60 or 60:40 in debt to equity is acceptable. Here are some equity or hybrid type instruments, where one need to be very careful while selecting the scheme. There is little bit of risk involved while handling these instruments.

              

           

Pure or Direct Equity (Stocks): This is an option used by knowledgeable investors. The advice here is not to enter into stock market by your own. Also, never, never, listen to anyone's tips. That's a sure fire way of losing money.  The procedure to invest in Equities is by keep on investing and accumulating good quality stocks with long-term track record and with a very good growth opportunities in smaller quantities over a period of time. Do a thorough study of the stock picked and keep an ear open to any kind of news about the stock. It has been proven that equity investments have outperformed any other asset class. However, it comes with associated risks. 

The basic risk in investing direct equity being the investor getting carried away and start buying stocks with short term focus or on hot tips. The investor should be clearly focused and should buy only with long term focus and only growth and quality stocks and irrespective of whatever happens to the market should not get carried away.

Mutual Funds: Also known as diversified equity funds .These are the extremely flexible instruments that offer the optimum mix of return, risk, liquidity and tax-efficiency.  There is a disciplined approach, the Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) , where  one can invest as little as Rs 1,000 monthly and the investment would be automatically done on our behalf.  One should carefully choose a basket of schemes, which should be a combination of debt and equity investments. More of equity means more risk.

There are enough mutual fund schemes available in the market to meet each and every need of an individual with a various risk appetites. One can invest the proposed 1 lakh between

A 40% in a safe mutual fund where the spread is more in the debt portion and risk grade is low

A 20% in a steady returning mutual fund where the spread is equal in both debt and equity portion and risk grade and return grade both are average.

A 40% in a high growth mutual fund where the spread is more in the equity portion and return grade is high.

Commodities: This is a traditional way followed by Indians for investment. These days, where commodity rates are touching highs and highs every day, especially gold and silver, this is one of the best way to invest. But bear in mind, investing in gold and silver does not mean buying ornaments. One has to go for Biscuits or Coins.

Here is just a guide that gives an overall picture of all the instruments available for the investment. A knowledge from books, net and experience. It is wise to consult professional financial adviser before making any investment.

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How To Overcome Shyness In Adolescence and Toddlers

Many parents feel confused and annoyed with this behavior of their child. They get embarrassed when their friend is asking the child something and the child fixes his gaze on the floor, puts his fingers into his mouth and does not respond at all ! These children may be very assertive and playful at home in the presence of everyday people, like parents and grandparents. But the moment they step out of their house or someone steps into their house, they kind of ‘freeze up’.

Here are few practical ways to encourage shy tots to come out of their shells.

Time and Patience: Don’t try to force the child into situations that are daunting for her. Take things slowly and applaud every step along the way. Some children simply develop these skills at different stages to others, and we may need to exercise some patience.

Manners and Behaviors:  Irrespective of how shy our child may be, there are some basic manners and behaviors that should be expected from our child, including the importance of being polite to others and responding in the appropriate manner to new people. If the toddler is scared of unstructured events then prepare the toddler for new experiences. Tell her where are we going, who will be there and what will happen.

Stranger Anxiety: If in a party, stay with her until she warms up and starts to enjoy herself. During quiet times at home with books and toys, teach her what to say and what to do in social settings. If with a stranger, get her little bit familiarized with the stranger. Resist the temptation to rush in the minute she calls or looks uncertain. Wave reassuringly and chatting to the person.

Getting Along: It may be better (especially between the ages of 15 months and two years) to concentrate on one-on-one sessions with another suitable toddler before trying groups. Toddlers often love and respond well to older children (around six years and up) who are more predictable and patient but are still children. Spending time with an older child if one is available gives them a positive experience to build on.

Want to know reasons for this behavior........................ click here

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Tried-and-True Tips For Parenting Your Baby In A Natural Way

Every parent tries his/her best to raise the new baby as naturally as possible. Every parents strives to give their child a pollution free, tension free life. But what does that mean? Do we ban all the synthetic fabrics from our house? Or move to a self-sustaining farm in the countryside? Relax…. A natural lifestyle does not have to be an all-or-nothing endeavor. We could improve our baby’s health and well-being just by following couple of simple, easy to follow tips.

Here are four key areas to focus on for a pregnant lady and a new mom.

• Food: In early stages, food plays a very important role in our little ones development. As each and every organ of baby is so tender, even a small mistake in choosing food might leave a life long impression on organs. We all know that pesticides can harm developing brain cells, even in small amounts. If you are ever going to make an effort to eat healthy, now is the time. Pregnant and nursing moms should try to make as much of their diet organic as possible. We should at buy the Dirty Dozen organically. Cherries, imported grapes, apples, spinach, potatoes, cauliflower, are few food items which have more pesticides than any others. Products that are ok to buy non-organically includes eggplant, onion, frozen sweet peas, frozen sweet corn, avocado, watermelon, mangos, papaya, Bananas, Kiwi, Pineapples. For a baby nothing likes breast milk. You can’t get any more organic. If there is some problem with breast feeding, and you want to go for formula expressed breast milk to feed your baby, make sure to choose BPA-free bottles. This is a chemical found in many plastic containers, including baby bottles, pacifiers and tethers. This chemical might disturb the hormonal system in an infant. So double check labels and make sure anything the baby frequently puts her mouth on is BPA-free.

                                   

Baby............

• Air: The air in our house may not seem dirty. But it is. Thank to fumes from harsh cleaning products, increasing industrial and motor vehicle pollution output. Something we can’t control by ourselves. But primarily in and around our house, we can skip harsh chemical cleaners, just don’t allow anyone to smoke in the house. The best all-around defense against harmful fumes is the simplest: Bring the outdoors in. open the windows whenever you can. With a baby less than 12 months, don’t worry about pollen and other outdoor allergens. Studies have shown that if kids visit a farm, even once, during their first year of life, they are much less likely to develop allergies, Plants are another inexpensive way to remove air pollution at home. Another way is to use natural cleansers. Vinegar, Hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, lemon are few organic cleansers which kill household bacteria and viruses and can be used where and when needed.
• Skin: We need to be very care full while selecting the creams and lotions what we buy for ourselves when pregnant or while nursing or for the baby’s delicate skin. Many moisturizers and sunscreens contain chemical preservatives which might ultimately cause breast cancer. Chemical additives can also cause skin irritation and allergic reactions. Avoid sun screens which use chemical is the main ingredient. Instead look for ones that rely on minerals such as zinc and titanium. Avoid moisturizers that list “fragrance” on the label.
• Germs: Most new parents honestly worry too much about germs. In general they are harm less. At home there is no need to run after baby sterilizing every thing he wants to touch, Of course, be careful any time the bay is around sick children such as at doctor’s office or child –care center. Old-fashioned hand washing is still the best, is the most natural defense for us and our baby.

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Depression in Children and Adolescents : Overview, Causes, Symptoms and Diagnosis of Depression in Children

Many parents think that depression is a result of “bad parenting”. But it is not a complete truth. It is just a illness that just needs careful evaluation. Parents can help the child come out of this. Being a parent of a depressed child is not easy. It is heartbreaking and scary situation to see your loved one go through this little known illness. It consumes all our time, energy and thoughts and upon that there’s the guilt… “May be I could have done something differently”. These days this illness can be found in children as young as 6 years.

The reason for depression could be divorce, changing school, some medical illness, depart of a really close person it could be friend or relative. Or sometimes it could be for no reason at all.

Saad...............

Many people think childhood is the happiest, worry free, tension free, don’t care stage of ones life. When we were small, this was the situation. But now, in this competitive world where every parent wants their child to be master in every thing, they don’t understand we are ruining their children’s happiest period of life. Depression is one such hard-to-diagnose condition, which is taking away happiness from their lives

Here are some symptoms of depression

• More than usual clingy behavior
• Crying at smallest provocation and throwing tantrums.
• Sleeping less or having night mares
• Eating less or low on energy
• Complaining of headaches, stomach ache or physical pain.
• Cranky mood the whole day
• Sad, bored, irritable or restless.
• Having trouble in concentrating
• Showing least interest in her once-loved activities

 Even the treatments for childhood depression are more complex than adults. Early diagnosis and treatment is the key for success.  If parents find any of the above symptoms in your child prolonged for more days, then first thing is take your child to her primary care physician.

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Health Tips For Children This Summer - Help Your Kids Beat the Summer Heat

As summer starts parents get stuck with a different set of problems for kids. In summer Kid’s digestive activity or what we call metabolism in the body slows down. Digestive problem could lead to many other health problems. Kids don’t eat food properly. Dehydration is anther problem. Here are some soothing ideas which we could try out. But it is always advised to consult a experienced pediatrician for any small problem in babies, even to follow the below given tips.

Milk Milk

Here are some tips to beat the heat in summer for kids starting with preschoolers and above

• Drink lot of water.
• Sufficient amount of sleep is must for kids, which keeps kids active and healthy.
• Reduce intake of food products which produce heat in our body. E.g. honey, wheat.
• Among fruits also, there are some fruits which produce heat in our body. E.g. Pineapple, Papaya, Mangoes. Reduce the intake of these kind of fruits.
• Fruits like Grapes, Orange,  Water Melon, Pomegranate can be consumed.
• Above mentioned fruit juice especially dates juice is very good for this season
• Apply oil to head, which cools down the heat in our body.
• It is ok to have more sweet products in summer.
• Milk and Butter is good. Ghee in small quantity increases metabolism.
• Jaggery is very good for summer. We can use more of jaggery in food preparation.
• Boiled rice or plain rice both are good.
• Soup increases digestive power. Vegetable soups can be taken.
• Liquid intake should be increased.
• Soft, light weight cotton cloths should be used.
• For very young kids, previous night soaked kishmish(dried grapes) can be given the next day morning.
• Ragi is very good for summer. Ragi recipes can be used for kids. E.g. Ragi porridge, Ragi chocolate, Ragi Dosa, Ragi mudde, Ragi roti etc.

Elders say that, in summer, energy of sun is to the highest and human body energy level is to the lowest. Parents should take extra care to towards kid’s health in this season.

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How to Relieve School Anxiety in Preschoolers

It is very important for a child to make his first exposure to school as happy and thrilling as possible. And off course the transition as easy as possible.  Here are some dos and don’ts for the same.

• Kids thrive on schedules and routines. Explain the about routine well in advance. Tell him, when he will get up in the morning, then he will brush his teeth, then he will have bath, then he will eat his breakfast, then how he will go to school by school bus or you will drop him, then what will be his classes like art class or music class, then how will he reach back home. This will help the child to be prepared for his classes.

I Am Going To School

• Don’t scare the child taking school name or teacher’s name. E.g. suppose some vacation or holidays are going on, child is not eating food properly then we might say, “If you don’t finish your lunch fast, I will send you to school”.  This creates fear about school in kids.
• Don’t bombard with the questions about school activities as soon as the child comes back from school. They might already be wanting for a change from school hours, and if we start asking questions they will become unhappy about it.
• Have some quite time or give good snack and then slowly let the child speak. Don’t ask questions like “how was the day today at school?” they are too young to answer this question. Ask questions like “What are the three things which you did at school excited you the most” or “which new game did you play today at school?”. Let the child speak up.
• Keep consistency while leaving the house and dropping the child to school. A fun cheerful goodbye while dropping and a big hug while picking up assures the child he would not be missing any thing by going to school.
• Don’t prolong the good bye. The longer you hang around, the harder it is for the child to let go and adjust.
• Never complain in front of the child. It is good to support child’s frustration. Set up a private meeting with the teacher, where child is not around. Try to work out a solution with the teacher separately. If child hears about the complaint, the frustration might get aggravated.
• If you get some negative feedback about your child from school, take it positively for the betterment of your child. Try to fix it taking help from teacher. Don’t keep on asking the child whether he is continuing the misbehavior . Child might start doing it intentionally just to give an answer to you.
• Inform the teacher if some thing is going on with the child, even if it is minor. If the child has not slept at night or papa just went on a business trip. This would help the teacher to accompany the child to over come that event.

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