The Spark Blog
Category: parenting
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Exam Stress Tips for Students
It is not long until schools, colleges and universities across Scotland will put up their ‘Quiet! Exam in Progress’ signs. And with it comes the inevitable exam stress and worry. To help you cope with pre-exam nerves, The Spark has prepared some top tips. We work in Scottish schools providing courses on how to cope…
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Top 5 Kids’ Easter Holiday Activities
How to keep the kids busy during the Easter school holiday The Easter school holiday is nearly upon us. Parents can look forward to asking the same big question a dozen times: what do I do with the kids today? To help ease the pressure on stressed-out parents, here are our top 5 things to…
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Relationships and Social Media
Social media is becoming ever more intertwined in our lives and relationships. In an earlier blog we looked at the concept of the ‘digital shadow’ and the risk to relationships between parents and children. The conclusion being that parents who share every aspect of a child’s life on social media risk damage to their future…
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Songs For Sound Minds #12 – Lee Ann Womack
Songs for Sound Minds are our picks of the best music that uplifts, inspires and boosts mental health. Songs written as an anthem to overcoming the storms of life. The songs that give hope in those times when we are struggling. For our latest pick we are going a little bit country with ‘I Hope…
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How to Have a Better Conversation
Poor communication can be a starting point for relationship problems. Whether between married couples, parents and children, amongst friends or work colleagues, bad communication helps no one. Even amidst the rise of social media our primary means of communication remains the same now as it was before the telephone (let alone the mobile phone) was…
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Is it time for a ‘Family Day’ in the UK?
We celebrate some elements of family in British life. We recognise Christmas Day as a time to spend with family and enjoy a public holiday in which to do it. Mother’s Day and Father’s Day recognise the contribution parents make to society. But the family unit itself does not get as much as a party…
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Growing up on Social Media
When it comes to posting pictures on social media we tend to operate a bit like the archetypal cowboy in a spaghetti Western; ‘shoot’ the picture first, ask questions later. This minor epiphany came to mind after reading an article about parents, kids and social media. Growing up on social media The feature posed this…
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The Value of Counselling in Mediation
A recent TV series on mediation for separating couples reminded me how distressing the breakup of a relationship can be. The person you planned to spend your whole life with has become someone you do not know. Sometimes you are left wondering if you ever knew them. Who am I now? A breakup is a…
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Do Exam Results Define your Future?
One positive thing about January is that feeling of getting back to a normal routine – the calm after the hectic Christmas and New Year storm. For a lot of young people, however, this marks the beginning of six months of non-stop exam pressure. Prelims run January to February and then there is just over…
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