Hereford & Worcester Issue 45 May/June 2017 FREE www.familiesonline.co.uk Education . Clubs and Classes . Children’s Parties . What’s On Really useful information for parents of 0-12 year olds in Hereford & Worcester Editor’s Letter Dear readers Discount With Super Camps Springtime! And soon it will be Summer... The march of the seasons Super Camps is offering 15% discount if you quote creates a rhythm for our busy lives, FAMILIES17 when booking in to one of their a kind of regular routine of annual activities or courses during the school holidays. events that runs from New Year Super Camps run daily and weekly activity camps through half term to Easter, via the which allow children to get the most out of their bank holidays to Summer and then holiday time. Programmes are filled with fun into the busy Autumn term and the run-up to Christmas. activities that will keep your children entertained Routine is important for all of us in managing our busy lives. But and have an 'Outstanding' Ofsted rating giving it is especially important for children - as we find out in two fea- children the best possible care. Prices start from tures in this issue. Establishing a regular routine for homework is £38 per day. www.supercamps.co.uk a key part of helping your child to learn. While fixing and keeping a regular bedtime is vital to ensuring that kids get enough sleep. All The Fun Of The Fair Find out more inside! Next issue: July/August Diane Clifford. Booking deadline: Editor, Friday 9 June Families Hereford & Worcester Tel: 01684 770566 Email: [email protected] Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook @FamiliesHW FamiliesHandW www.familiesonline.co.uk PART-TIME DISTRIBUTOR WANTED (Worcester) We are looking for a responsible person with a cheerful Run away to the circus at Worcestershire County Museum, polite manner to deliver Families Hereford & Worcester to Hartlebury Castle, on Bank Holiday Monday 29 May (11am – distribution points in Worcester. This job would suit a 4pm). Try your hand at circus skills including juggling, spinning parent with school age children or an active older person. plates and stilt walking with our circus professional Steve You will need to be available for a few days in the week Kaos. Children can also enjoy making a paper tiger and during school term time once every other month. A car is designing their own clown mask. Other fun and games will essential and a garage or other storage space is helpful. be happening throughout the day including an explorer trail around the museum where you can discover over 1000 To find out more call 01684 770566 or email years of history. The fun continues from Tuesday 30 May - [email protected] Thursday 1 June when children will be able to take part in fun Circus themed craft activities (10.30am – 4pm). All week Circulation: 22,000 copies of Families Hereford & Worcester are available through James Kitchen will be providing lunches, snacks and tasty nurseries, pre-schools, schools, libraries, soft treats too. Family entry is just £13 (Tues-Thurs activities are play centres, selected shops and other distribution points throughout the county. If Reach 44,000 local an extra £2 per child). For more details call 01299 250416 you would like free copies for your or visit www.museumsworcestershire.org.uk organisation or if you would like to subscribe readers. so you don’t miss an issue please contact us. Families Hereford & Worcester is part of Families Magazines Ltd a franchise company. Contact Diane on All franchised magazines in the group are independently owned and operated under 01684 770566 Put Your Best Foot Forward licence. Families® is a registered trademark of Families Magazines Ltd, Temple House, Regatta if you are Walk to School Week is 15 - 19 May. Join thousands of children Place, Marlow Road, Bourne End, Bucks SL8 across the country celebrating the benefits walking brings. We 5TD. The contents of Families Hereford & interested in Worcester are fully protected by copyright know that walking to school makes children feel healthier and and none of the editorial or photographic happier, while reducing congestion and pollution outside the matter may be reproduced in any form advertising in without prior consent of the publisher. We school gates. Yet less than half of primary school children take every care preparing this magazine but currently walk to school. Living Streets, who organise the annual the publishers and distributors cannot be Families held responsible for the claims of advertisers Hereford & Worcester event want to reverse this decline and see every child that can, nor for the accuracy of the contents nor for walk to school. For more information or to order a challenge any consequence.’ Print: The Manson Group, Reynolds House, 8 Porters Wood, Valley Road Magazine pack see: www.livingstreets.org.uk/what-we-do/projects/walk-to- Industrial Estate, St Albans. AL3 6PZ. Tel: school-week 01727 848 440. 2 Families Hereford & Worcester To advertise call: 01684 770566 May - June 2017 News & Views Dinosaur Mad Dinosaur mad youngsters will love the Step Through Time Dinosaur Experience at All Things Wild! near Evesham. Visitors can explore all about when these dinosaurs existed and get up close to the ever popular Tyrannosaurus Rex, Stegosaurus and Triceratops that remain ‘Frozen in time’. Photo credit: mcphersonstevens.com Adults and children can also ride the dino land train and learn lots in the Cheltenham Science Festival is on 6-11 June. A six-day extravaganza educational dino barn too! with over 200 events celebrating science and the arts. Free interactive zones for families with lots of hands-on activities on site Other attractions include animal and on the streets of Cheltenham will keep the kids occupied for encounters, a new soft play barn, go karts, hours.Tickets from £6. www.cheltenhamfestivals.com/science plus much more! For more information see: www.allthingswild.co.uk New App To Offer Counselling For Kids The NSPCC’s Childline service has just launched a new iPhone app to provide counselling for kids directly through their mobile phones. The ‘For Me’ app allows kids to access Childline’s online services, including 1-2-1 live chats with a counsellor, the ‘Ask Sam’ problem pages and entrance to their private ‘lockers’ – areas where they can write down their own personal thoughts and track their moods. It was invented by four teenagers who wanted to use technology to address the urgent need for support among young people. The App is free to download via iTunes and is designed for discreet usage. Read more at www.childline.org.uk The Baby Show Returns To Birmingham The Baby Show with MadeForMums, the UK’s leading pregnancy and parenting event will be returning to the NEC in Birmingham next month from 19 to 21May. The show is a great way to get hands-on with products and try before you buy. There will be over 200 exhibitors showcasing an array of baby essentials, including leading names such as Mothercare, Babies R Us, iCandy, Nuby, Baby Björn, Britax and Chiccos well as independent brands that you won’t find on the high street. Don’t miss the UK’s top baby experts sharing their top tips on birthing, breastfeeding and sleep. It’s a family friendly day out with free nappies at the Aldi Mamia Changing Area and free food in the Tommee Tippee Feeding Area. There’s also entertainment for the little ones at the Drive & Go with Peg Perego Area! Families Hereford & Worcester have teamed up with The Baby Show to offer readers a discount of 40% off - £11.95 (FRI)/£12.95 (SAT/SUN). Input the code FAMILIES2017 when buying tickets at www.thebabyshow.co.uk May - June 2017 To advertise call: 01684 770566 or email: [email protected] 3 Education Does Your Child Need A Tutor? Children are expected to find their school work challenging, as this drives them forward and helps them to learn. However, if the challenge is too great and the obstacles to learning seem too high, it can leave a child feeling demoralised and disinterested, and might even result in them falling behind their classmates. The same can happen when a child finds their work is not challenging enough - the lessons can become boring and the child can slip behind through a lack of effort. If you suspect that your child is having problems with school work for any reason, you might be wondering whether extra tuition and support could help. Understanding when your child may need a tutor Sometimes it can be easy to tell when tuition might help. If your child has a natural aptitude for a certain subject and performs above their expected level, they might enjoy being challenged by a private tutor who can concentrate on their own abilities. Similarly, if you know your child has particular educational needs, you may want to address those needs with added support from a personal tutor. However, it can sometimes be a little harder to tell when tuition would be of benefit to your child - especially if they seem to have coped well with schoolwork up until this point. Some children can become quiet and withdrawn, others can get elusive and defensive, and problems at school can even lead to disruptive and aggressive behaviour. Signs that your child may be having problems with their schoolwork: 1. A sustained fall in grades or performance. 2. Not talking about school and hiding report cards. 3. Anxiety and/or behavioural problems at home and at school. who is losing interest in their lessons, or who is hoping for 4.