Madhuram Musings - Parenting Podcast in Tamil

When it comes to screentime, the million dollar question is – How much is too much? In todays world of busy schedules, multiple devices at home and schools, easy access to entertainment, screentime has become a daily debate for parents. There are many guidelines that have been published on how much screentime is allowed for kids at different ages. But due to innumerable situations, it becomes difficult to do other things that might keep kids away from screens. And that seems to be the real issue. Empowering and educating kids on screentime usage, giving them options to do things non screen related is an ongoing endeavor for us in this digital age.

Listen in for an in depth conversation for agewise activities that can replace screen time, guidelines for how much screentime is okay and more in this episode.

Resources for screentime:

Mayoclinic – screen-time

WHO.int – Healthy child

Berkshire Montessori – Screentime Debate

Kidshealth.org – Screentime

Podcast Weblink: Madhuram Musings - Episode 014

As a part of the miniseries on Sleep, in this episode we talk about co-sleeping. While co-sleeping is very common in the cultures we were raised in, it is not encouraged in certain other cultures. Our hosts talk about both sides of the coin, on what has worked and what hasn’t when it comes to co-sleeping.

As a part of the miniseries on Sleeping, in this episode we talk about the sleep requirements and parenting challenges we face for various age groups of the child. We share our experiences – what worked for us and what did not.

Resources:

CDC – How much sleep

Webmd – How much sleep

Podcast Weblink - 012: Mini-Series | Sleep By Age

Please use the below timestamps to skip to the portion of the audio which you would want to listen to.

In today’s busy world, sleeping gets little to no attention in the parenting process. It takes a backseat, because  we take it for granted as a natural process which needs no regulation. Somewhere, it got ingrained, that if you stay up late and stay busy, you are considered an achiever. This is unfortunately the case even for school going kids,  where we as parents, sometimes, ask our children to stay up late to study, assuming that increases their productivity.

In our attempt to capture the basics of this vast topic, we are presenting a 3 part miniseries. In this episode, we discuss the importance of sleep and the overall tips to help our children sleep well. In the next two episodes, we talk about the sleep requirements by age, co-sleeping and the do’s & don’ts of sleeping.

Please share your comments, the struggles you face in setting a sleep routine for your kids and the tips you use in your family.

Educational Play Care - The Importance of Sleep

Restonic - Kids Need Sleep

Podcast Weblink: Madhuram Musings

Almost all of us got a taste of helping our kids with virtual learning in this COVID era. But, virtual school and Homeschooling, are very different systems of education. Homeschooling is where children are educated at home by their parents.

In this episode, we attempt to understand the vastness of Homeschooling. We are chatting with a mom, on why she chose Homeschooling for her kids, the effort it entails, some of the major syllabus options available, and the benefits & challenges of this education style.

Please feel free to add your comments and questions on Homeschooling on our comments section or send us your questions through the contact form and we will respond to your queries.

Resources:

HSLDA - Home School Legal Defense Association

TheHomeSchoolMom - HomeSchooling Styles

Famous Homeschoolers

Very Well Family - Best Online Homeschool Program

Podcast Weblink: https://madhurammusings.com/podcast/010/

Entrepreneurship like any other skill is better when taught early in a child’s life. Many entrepreneurs believe they could have learnt this skill when they were young and should be taught this skill in schools.While many parents are already teaching kids these essential life skills, you don’t often find these subjects taught in school. Learning these skills starts as early as when your child begins to walk (failing and trying again) and often emphasized through free play. Some important skills that entrepreneurship teaches kids includes, but is not limited to:

Resources:

How to teach entrepreneurship to your kids - Boss Club

Lemonade Day

Ted Talk - Cameron Herold - Let's raise kids to be entrepreneurs

Warrent Buffett's Secret Millionaires Club

Podcast Weblink: https://madhurammusings.com/podcast/009/

All of us give our children allowances at one stage or the other, in one way of the other. In this episode we touch upon the multiple ways we give allowance to our children and a high level view of financial literacy for children. It is sprinkled with our personal experiences, including experiences as we grew up. Please share some of your ideas, when it comes to giving allowance to kids, in the comments section.

Resources:

https://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/family-finance/articles/the-pros-and-cons-of-giving-your-kids-an-allowance

https://www.policygenius.com/blog/how-to-give-allowance/

https://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/family-finance/articles/the-pros-and-cons-of-giving-your-kids-an-allowance

https://www.thebalance.com/top-ways-to-teach-kids-about-money-2085626

https://www.thesimpledollar.com/financial-wellness/how-to-teach-kids-about-money-from-toddlers-to-teens/

Podcast Weblink: https://madhurammusings.com/podcast/008/

In the last episode we introduced you to the Habit loop by Charles Duhigg, to help us set good habits and break bad ones. The Habit loop ends with a reward. In this episode, we talk about what a reward could entail, some of the dos and don’ts to keep in mind while rewarding children, what worked for us and what did not, and more.

Resources:

https://habyts.com/51-reward-ideas-to-motivate-and-inspire-kids/

https://www.parents.com/toddlers-preschoolers/discipline/the-right-way-to-set-up-a-reward-system-for-kids/

https://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr301.shtml

Podcast weblink: https://madhurammusings.com/podcast/007/

Developing and breaking habits is a lesson to be learnt not just by kids, but by adults as well. Habit by definition is “ regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up”. This definition rings true to a lot of things we want our kids to learn in their lives.

As adults we realize on an everyday basis how certain childhood habits benefit us and do not serve us emotionally and physically. So it is pivotal to start young with the strong foundational habits we want our kids to form. So let’s talk about what habits are to be cultivated and how. We are introducing the Habit loop, a concept made popular by Charles Duhigg, in this episode. We have also shared some examples of how it worked for us, and sometimes did not. Please share your experiences on setting or breaking habits in kids, as that’s a continuous struggle for all of us.

Resources:

https://www.practicallyfunctional.com/teaching-good-habits-and-responsibility-for-kids/

https://www.educationalplaycare.com/blog/encourage-good-habits-in-children/

https://tinyhabitsacademy.com/start-young-10-time-tested-tips-for-teaching-tiny-habits-to-your-toddler/

https://madhurammusings.com/podcast/006/

A key step in raising responsible and independent children is assigning chores, and assigning them young. In this episode we will be sharing quick tips and tricks which we have gathered from our friends and those which we have used on our children. Not all have been a success, but let’s remember it’s a journey. Please share any of your funny incidents with your kids doing chores, in our comments section.

Resources:

https://www.froddo.com/10-steps-to-getting-the-kids-to-help-out-with-chores

https://www.parents.com/kids/responsibility/teaching/the-chore-challenge-teaching-kids-responsibility/

https://madhurammusings.com/podcast/005/