Site Review Blog

Everyone who has a child is convinced that their child is so much smarter thana all other children. I bet you even think that your own child or children are so much smarter than all othe other children. I bet if you ask every mother and father of the kids at the playgroup that they will say the same thing - My child is a genius.

The truth of the matter is that there are very few children who are truly gifted. That doesn’t mean that you don’t want to give your kids the very best possible start in life. One of the choices that may help you child is your choice of Toys. By picking the best Educational toys your child will have the best chance of developing and being above average. Now being above average is a pretty darn good start if you ask me.

Mastermindtoys is an online Toy store that has everthing that I have come to expect from any online store. The important things are there - such as a physical address and Telephone Numbers for contact. When I checked out the Store locations page I am presented with a regional map and a photo of each of their stores. Next to each of their stores they have a location map, address and opening hours. From the about page I found that Mastermindtoys have been operationg stores for 22 years and have had an online store for 9 years.

Now, the Online store makes it much easier to shop. Come on - how many times have you taken your child into a Toy store - you will know exactly what I mean. Your search for Educational Toys for children of all ages is made easy by the layout - You can shop by age, category and even Brand. We all have children in our lives so take a look, buy their educational toys online and even include a special message and gift wrapping.

Visit www.mastermindtoys.com

Anyone with children eventually get asked by their children if they can play with the Computer. Children are fascinated and want to use your computer. What most parents quickly realise is that there is not a lot of suitable software aimed at the younger child. Midoritech has available a small selection of Kids games that are great for younger children. At the moment the selection is small, but over time they will offer more.

Lets take a quick look at the sort of games that are on offer - there is Laydybug which is a maze with over a hundred levels. Your child helps the ladybug find her way home and all the while they are learning and having fun. Another Game is Yoo Doo - which is a “constructor set”. Your child can drag and drop various items to create their own Mister Monster, You Glow or My Garden. The child has fun creating and is learning co-ordination while they creating.

The good news is that there are demo version to download and try of these games before you purchase the full version. Even better, the full versions are quite cheap! The Games are available as PC games and Mac Games - so no matter what sort of computer you have, you can enjoy these games with your kids.

Another thing for the Mac user to check out is the Classic game of mahjong - I don’t know how many hours I have spent playing this game (it is something for the older kids and the young at heart to enjoy).

The website itself if fairly new and quite simple. It has a bit of info on each game, download links for the demo versions, some screenshots and full payment details. You just have to look at the photo on the About page - I wish I lived there!

Visit www.midoritech.com

Nearly of of us in our work life answer to someone, and if you are anything like me you probably question the competence of the person who is your boss or Manager.  Rather than just complain about him or her there are things that you can do.  But, before you do anything, wander over to to the Leadership501 Blog and read up on their leadership resources.  You might just get some sort of insight into why your boss thinks the way he does, but it is more likely that you will quickly come to realise that his or her leadership skills are just not up to scratch!  You would have to be one of the lucky ones if this is not the case.

The Leadership501 site is part of the 501 network, of which we will look more closely at over upcoming days. This site promises info and help for people to become more efficient in a leadership position.  A look at the topics and the count of articles in each gives an indication that the topics cover a fairly broad range of subjects from education, leadership motivation, resources and teamwork to mention a few.

I took a quick look at the latest article to be posted on the front page which is titled Functional Leadership Model.  I really had no idea what a Functional leadership Model is but the article was easy to read and clearly explained what it is all about.  Onto the 2nd article.  Once again, the article was fairly easy to read and presented what I thought to be pretty good info.  The 2 articles seem to be a reasonable balance of quality and provide a reasonable degree of information on their topic.

So, with these article seeming pretty good, I randomly selected another article from the middle of the last viewed list.  The chosen article happened to be Management Systems.  After reading the first 2 articles I was full of hope and anticipation about this one.  It, like the other articles was well written, stayed on topic, but unlike the other articles had very little actual substance and information.  I got to the end and couldn’t find the page 2 button that I was expecting.  Well, I understand a little about the subject and that is possibly why it didn’t meet my expectations.

With 2 out of the 3 articles I read, this site looks like it would be useful for someone with little to no management skills or training and possibly an OK resource for people with experience and wanting to brush up a little on current infor and trends.  Have a read for yourself and you decide.

Visit www.leadership501.com

Nearly everyone has heard of mental depression and diseases and are probably unaware of how they can affect you.  Nobody really thinks about mental health or mental healthcare until you or someone close to you is diagnosed with a disorder.  Anxiety is one of the disorders that can be debilitating for sufferers.  If you suffer from anxiety or live with someone who does, the doctors will only provide part of the depression information on the what and how to treat and assist your recovery.

A lot of people who suspect they have any sort of mental disorder still avoid seeking medical advice due to the stigma still attached to sufferers.  Thesedays, you can at least turn to the Internet and do a little bit of research on your own if you suspect that you may be suffering.  You can look for information on Symptoms of Anxiety attacks in your own home.  By recognising the symptoms you can then seek appropriate professional help.

By reading and educating yourself about anxiety attack symptoms and causes you can start to understand and come to terms with what you are dealing with.  The mildest forms of such an attack might be just a fear of public speaking and a lot of people have suffered from this even just a little bit.  A sufferer would have this sort of anxeity under almost any stressful situation.

The Anxiety Help website contains a lot of articles, resources and information that looks to be quite well written and presented in a way that is easy to read.  What impressed me most was that they do mention the importance of seeking professional advice, but theire articles do seem to explain in fairly simple terms all aspects about this problem.

Visit www.anxietyattackshelp.com

If you are looking to learn or teach English as a second language then ESLgo provides a range of resources. They bring together information for both people who are wanting to Learn English as well as information for people who do teach or want to teach English.

They provide over 40 free ESL Classes online.  The classes are structured to cover the Basics of learning the language and have several courses at each stage.  The stages are Beginner, Low Intermediate, Intermediate, Upper intermediate and Advanced.  By following the Courses and then participate in the practice forums you will increase your knowledge and skills of the English language.

As noted, the other part of this site provides information and resources for people to teach English as a second language. With information on how to  develop lesson plans (including some free lesson plans), letter and written skills and once again Teachers development forums.  One of the resources presented is the English teaching store.  The store contains books that are divided into several categories from theory and Classroom activities.

The site is run by Jim, who has extensive personal experience in Teaching English in Korea.  The information and resources of this site are vast.  The website is loosly divided into 2 parts with a logical seperation between learning and teaching.

So, if English is not your first language, or even if you just wish to “brush up” on some aspects, you could take a look at some of the free online classes and see for yourself.

Visit www.eslgo.com

At some point in our lives nearly everyone is a student, and if you are a student in the UK, AllAboutStudents is one portal you should check out.  The site is aimed at the Student who is in College or University and contains articles and information on a range of topics.

One of the biggest issues with being a student are Finances and where to find financial advice.  There is all sorts of financial info from banking to loans and credit.

Being a student is not all about the study, but also about the lifestyle.  All students at some point want to travel, either as part of your studies or to have a fun holiday with all your friends.  From a weekend in Blackpool to a week Skiing in the Swiss Alps - you are certain to find something that is within your budget here.

 Towards the end of your studies (or even on your holiday breaks) you will probably be interested in looking for a job.  Allaboutstudents has jobs listed suitable for Students and recent graduates.  You can sign up to be notified of new job postings or even advertsie a position if you are an employer.

The websites is laid out with a distinctive blue background, with centered content and is quite easy to navigate.  The information is up to date and updated regularly.

 Visit www.allaboutstudents.co.uk

Driver Education Online is a resource site that provides information for The Learner Driver and their Parents.  They provide information in all aspects of obtaining your License starting with a Practice test for your permit.

The site is very easy to navigate and find out the relevent information of the requirements for each State.  The information is clear and concise and will help you plan everything from obtaining a permit, then a provisional license, right through to a Regular license.

We all know that an important part of obtaining a license is to get out on the road.  In order to do this you need an instructor.  Paying for a driving instructor can be an expensive proposition.  Rather than paying an instructor, you can do an online course to get you started and Driver Education Online provides one such course.  The course contains all necessary information including a parent lesson plan.

They do not stop helping you even if you have a license - as they also offer  Defensive Driving Online as an alternative to traffic School in the event you get a traffic ticket.  Traffic school is not only for drivers who have a ticket but should be considered for every driver as by showing your insurance company that you have taken a course you will probably reduce your insurance rates as well.

You can also start your search for insurance on the site as well, which makes Driver Education Online a convenient one-stop shop for all Drivers.

Visit www.drivereducationonline.us