Do you have children that complain about writing assignments? Last summer, I discovered (again) that giving my children a purpose for writing increases their motivation and willingness to fulfill their assignments. It is also a fantastic way to teach the process of writing format through publishing.

I have three children, and each are published authors despite their tender ages. When he was eight, my son wrote a jungle book to teach younger children their ABCs. He painstakingly researched each plant and animal in the jungle for a full year before he was ready to complete his Jungle ABC book. Using a writing style checklist (part of the Excellence in Writing program) helped him to write an effective paragraph for each plant and animal he chose.

Given his age, it was unrealistic to force him to work on his book every day. It was an ongoing project that he worked on regularly, and completed at the beginning of June. However, he remained motivated through the entire year, an amazing feat for one so young.

He was highly motivated for a couple of reasons. First, he chose the topic of jungles himself so he was quite interested in the topic from the beginning. Secondly, the idea of making money from his writing project and publishing a book was exciting. This project gave him a purpose for writing. Not every writing project will end in a money-making project, but each writing assignment should have a purpose.

Other purposes for writing assignments may include sending a letter to a friend or relative, entering a writing contest, writing a letter to the newspaper editor, writing a summary of your science fair project, sharing a story about an event in your life, writing a ministry letter, or a myriad of other purposes. Do your children have a purpose for their writing?

Once your child has a purpose for writing, he needs to put his ideas down on paper in a thoughtful, cohesive manner. There are many writing programs on the market, but best source I have found to teach your child “how” to write is Excellence in Writing. This course deals with the “hows” of writing instead of “what” to write about.

Use the process of writing format through publishing to add purpose to your child’s writing assignments. Remember, writing assignments don’t have to be about writing - they can, and should, be about a range of topics, preferably based on topics which you and your child are studying at the time. Writing is a skill, one that can be applied to any number of topics. Help your child to write with purpose by asking them to write on many topics, from dragons to trigonometry, summer vacations to science fairs. It makes all the difference in the world!

What parent doesn’t dread the whole back to school time of year? This annual gauntlet seems to be pure torture for all involved, from the parents vying for the best spot in the checkout line to the tired, whiny kids being dragged from store to store in search of the perfect notebook. That’s why more and more parents are opting to do their back to school shopping online these days!

The Real Cost of Back to School

There are several areas that you spend money on while doing the back to school shopping. A huge part of it is the actual supplies, but you may not realize all the hidden costs that really add up.

- Eating out. Most back to school shopping days take more than a few hours and you end up eating at a fast food joint, which can get expensive if you are buying kid?s meals for everyone. - Gas. With gas prices so high these days, it?s definitely a consideration and you waste more gas sitting in traffic and driving around parking lots than you do on the freeway. - Treats. Let?s face it, no one expects their kids to be perfect for hours of trudging through stores collecting all the school supplies, so little things like chocolate bars and toy cars tend to become part of the trip. - Extras. Maybe there?s a super sale on socks that you realize you could get . . . even though they aren’t on your list. Or maybe your toddler just screamed too loud and you ended up buying that Tonka dump truck . . . most shopping trips end with extra items in the cart. - Broken items. This doesn’t always happen, but when you have frustrated mothers and hyper kids . . . things happen. Especially in crowded stores. So you may end up paying for an item that your child accidentally knocked off a shelf and broke, adding to the cost of the day.

Add to this the amount of energy you waste running from store to store, chasing kids and trying to maintain some semblance of calm when the clerk ignores you for the millionth time and you have a true nightmare.

Shopping Online for School Supplies

All this tension, time and money can be eliminated with one simple tool . . . your computer. By shopping online for your school supplies, you?ll be able to buy when you have some free time, even after the kids are in bed! This eliminates the whining and fussing of hot, tired kids. You?ll also save quite a bit of money by doing your back to school shopping online, especially if you take a few minutes to join a rewards program or to look for coupon codes to bring the prices down a bit.

There’s no commute time or even any need to get dressed, if you don’t want to. The savings in time and money are huge when you opt to do your shopping online. And chances are you?ll find even better prices on retail websites than you would in the actual physical store! Once you’ve ordered your products and back to school supplies, you just need to sit back and relax, they?ll be delivered right to you and before school starts! It’s really the best way to do your back to school shopping, since it requires minimal effort and you get even better results. Not to mention, there?s no need to take the kids to the crowded mall and waste gas looking for a place to park!

Being a video-game thoroughbred, Nintendo was always going to come out tops over its most formidable competitors Microsoft (Xbox) and Sony (PS). It admittedly took a while but with a stroke of genius in the Wii, it was finally mission accomplished. So just what exactly is the gem that is found in Wii?

Needless to say, the video game industry is highly lucrative and everybody wants a bite of the pie. To occupy pole position, the Nintendo Wii had to be top-notch as a lifestyle item. It is multimedia, personal computer, internet browser, communication device and most of all, the mother of all video game consoles, all-in-one.

Everything about Wii revolves around the remote controller and Nintendo Wii Games are no exception. Its motion sensing technology makes the gaming experience feels like the real thing be it tennis, bowling, baseball, boxing and so forth. So much for the ‘couch potato’ image of video gaming as the intrinsic specialty of Nintendo Wii Video Games is the players’ movement.

The Nintendo Wii Console is basically just a very ordinary processing station. It is the wireless remote controller that is the wizard of Nintendo Wii gaming. Depending on the game in play, it can be a sports gear or an adventure weapon or anything. When used in conjunction with the Nunchuck secondary controller, it sends gamers on highs that are potentially addictive or compulsive, so watch out!

Game consoles are generally tended to kids but Nintendo Wii Video Games can be family affairs, they have the range. There’s even a menu channel for setting up personal profiles called Mii so involvement and participation can be even and well-matched regardless of age, gender and other conditions. A wide variety of games are available spanning sports, action, fighting, puzzles, casino and others.

Another key feature of the Nintendo Wii is its backward compatibility. Old favorites and classics of GameCube and Nintendo Entertainment System line are widely available in retro. Some can even be directly played with the new remote controller. GameCube controller ports are designed in and the media bay will accept GameCube discs automatically also.

The primary source of Nintendo Wii Video Games is the Wii games store. They are also available through the Wii Virtual Console. However, the pricing structure through these two avenues is rigid and can be steep in the long run especially for serial Wii gamers. That?s why an alternative source of Nintendo Wii Games with a commercial twist through online download is getting vastly popular. At a fraction of the cost of the conventional disc, why wouldn?t it be?