A Chemistry Kit For Christmas?

A generation ago all the kids had chemistry sets. Today they're thought to be too dangerous by most parents.

Not to worry though, MAKE has released The Chemistry gift guide.

A New Way To Pick Baby's Name

Via Lifehacker: What a Lovely Name Helps You Select a Name by Traits

A web site that allows you to select traits by tags then presents you with a list of possible names.

See: What A Lovely Name

What A Lovely Name is our website for helping you find the perfect name for your baby. You can browse by tradition, or personality trait, or even check out what celebrities are naming their children (these can be names to choose or to avoid as you see fit).

Once you’ve found some names you like you can share them with friends. You can even create custom logos for each name you like and order products featuring the baby’s name and logo as gifts. (You can also order merchandise with your name on it. It’s not just for babies!)

Whether you are researching names for your upcoming newborn, or ordering personalized mugs we hope you enjoy What a Lovely Name.

Treating Rabies

This would be a worse case scenario, but there is a way to treat a child who has contracted rabies.

See: Brazilian boy recovers from rabies thanks to ‘Milwaukee protocol'

*On a personal note, my pediatrician from Lima, OH, Dr. C. John Stechschulte, treated a 6 year old boy in the first verified recovery from rabies. See:
Recovery from rabies. A case report.

A Free Range Kid

Here is an inspiring story about a 12 yr old boy who was encouraged by his parents to go out alone and get some dinner. What the boy did with his freedom and encouragement is the rest of the story.

See: Everyone's a Critic...

The Best Way To Study

Once again it is shown that cramming does not work.

See: Researchers report on the smart way to study

The results suggest, Pashler said, the optimal amount of time over which learning should take place depends upon how long the information needs to be retained: "If you want to remember information for just a week, it is probably best if study sessions are spaced out over a day or two. On the other hand, if you want to remember information for a year, it is best for learning to be spaced out over about a month."

Extrapolating from the results, he added, "it seems plausible that whenever the goal is for someone to remember information over a lifetime, it is probably best for them to be re-exposed to it over a number of years."

"The results imply," said Pashler, "that instruction that packs a lot of learning into a short period is likely to be extremely inefficient, at least for remembering factual information."

Fever In An Infant

The NYT has an article on dealing with fever in little ones: If a Baby Has a Fever, Treatment All Depends

Nowadays, anyone under 1 month old who develops any fever still tends to end up in the hospital. For babies older than 3 months, we now use our clinical judgment: if they appear well, we might order a blood or urine test, but they can go home, as long as we stay in touch with the parents.

Between 1 and 3 months is still a gray zone. And in this case, there were a few other subtle shades of gray, notably the fussiness and reluctance to nurse: after all, an infant with a serious infection has a limited repertory of signals to say, “Hey, Mom, something’s wrong.”

Cory Doctorow Loves The PeaPod

Here's an unsolicited thumbs-up review for the PeaPod travel bed at BoingBoing: PeaPod pop-up portable kid-bed -- tensegrity for your toddler

Kids Need Playtime

From the "experts get paid for this?" department; apparently playing is good for kids. Shocking, I know.

See MSNBC: Experts: Lack of playtime is hurting children

Blaming The Weather

See US News: Autumn Babies More Prone to Asthma

Babies born in autumn -- about four months before the peak of winter virus season -- have almost a 30 percent increased risk of asthma compared to babies born at other times of the year, reports a study in the first December issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

Babies In The Buggy

While I believe children are coddled too often I think infants and toddlers need more attention than they are normally given.

New research supports the idea of letting infants look at their parent's face while in a stroller.

See: Babies stressed by forward-facing buggies

How To Motivate The Kids

The 'parenting expert' says NOT to reward kids as a means of motivation. Whatever, all I know is if I have to offer a little chocolate or ice cream desert to my two year old in order for her to eat the semblence of a balanced dinner I am going to do it.

See the NYT: Does Rewarding Children Backfire?

“Talk less, ask more.”

Autistic Kids And Service Dogs

I remember being blown away the first time I saw a story on how a dog can impact a child with autism. Seeing how helpful a service dog can be to a child you have to wonder why this would be prohibited? The NYT has a story on a problem a family had getting approval for a service dog - Dogs and Autism.

And they provide links to organizations helping match service dogs to autistic children:

Autism Service Dogs Of America

4 Paws for Ability Assistance Dogs

When To Make The First Visit To The Dentist?

Via PhysOrg: Dentist: Get children's teeth examined starting in toddler years

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends that children see a dentist by their first birthday.