Back to School & the Dreaded Homework

Come on – admit it, isn’t a small part of you quite pleased that the children are going back to school next week?  There’s a little bit of me that is, as I long for things to get “back to normal” and once again my day will be moving along nicely to a pre-set routine involving the hurried brekkies, misplaced packed lunches or dinner money and the school run.  The school day book ended nicely between these frenzied moments and my screaming to get changed out of uniforms and the habitual cry of “have you done your homework!?”

Ah yes, the dreaded H word.  Is ‘homework’ a feared word in your house?  To me the worst word I can hear at homework time is “maths”!  Not because I’m a number thickie, I’m not - studying Maths and Economics at A level meant that numbers didn’t scare me but “modern maths” does faze me and I cannot fathom Tallest Daughter’s maths homework at all.  Plus ça change …………  Luckily, she doesn’t need me to help her once she’s underway BUT she does need my regular nagging to make her start it in the first place

And I’m not alone.  Lots of parents secretly admit to having the same feelings of dread and resistance towards their children’s homework as their kids do. There are so many distractions – gaming, constant TV, social media and mates to facetime…….in fact, ANYTHING other than homework, to be honest.  So what canny tactics can we find to combat resistance – our own as well as our children’s?

Take the hard work out of homework

• Make it clear that TV time is limited and homework still has to be done.  A friend of mine put the TV on a timer switch. After one hour it switches off – then it’s homework time.  After initial groans, her brood soon became used to this.
• Another ploy which works well with younger children is to combine after school snack time with homework to lure then to the table.  Yes, it’s bribery but show me a parent who hasn’t used a petit filous or a cereal bar with sneaky intentions and I’ll show you a big fat fibber!
• Thinking of younger children, let them have fun with homework as they are usually only expected to go over work they have already done at school as a refresher.  Reading and spelling is much more fun if you can use a silly voice and coloured pens make a page come alive far more than pencil!
• For older children who have more work, show them that you sympathise with their workload – make sure that they aren’t worried about any chores they may have to do.  Especially around exam time, you may have to cut Junior some slack if his bedroom’s a tip.
• Establish a regular time in the evening or weekend for homework and make sure the rest of the household knows that this is quiet time as your older child get on with studies
• Finally, if things get really desperate and the lure of Dick and Dom is too much for your younger ones or Hollyoaks is too tempting for the teenagers – hide the remote and turn off the set top box.  They’ll soon get the message.  The same works for a computer mouse or keyboard if it’s gaming on the PC that’s your youngster’s downfall.

Like many of us, some kids will strive to do the bare minimum they can get away with and others will stress and fret until they’ve finished, driving themselves into a panic and possibly making themselves ill in the process.  Know your child and help them find a balance.

Finally, technology is there to help with homework too – have a look at www.homeworkelephant.co.uk  There’s help for us all out there!

Good Fridge Hygiene

I’ve been feeling a little off colour this week and several people suggested that it may be something that I had eaten.  We haven’t eaten out all week and my family are all ok  - well as “ok” as my lot ever are! – so I guess not. However, so many people proffered this up along with their own horror stories of how poorly they had felt in the past, all of which made me think that it must be something that happens a lot.  It is: 10% of us will suffer from food poisoning in any year and most of this is down to poor food hygiene and could be avoided.

The main culprit is our fridges and the way in which we store the food inside them.  Do you know your fridge has differing temperature zones, even though it is likely to have just one temperature setting………or in my case, there is a very cold spot that freezes everything at the back of the third shelf down!  No idea why and cannot seem to remedy it but fret not dear Reader, I have learnt NOT to put the lettuce there and do remember that it is also cold enough to freeze the contents of jars too.

So, how do you keep differing foods at the best temperature when your fridge has just one temperature setting? Easy – use the different shelves, racks, drawers and the areas in the fridge door. And always keep your fridge at a temperature of less than 5°C.

The coldest area of the fridge is on the bottom shelf and this is where you should keep your meat, poultry and fish.  Interestingly enough, my fridge has a section marked “meat” on the very top shelf.  I shall ignore that from now on………  Also, as raw meat may leak juices, it is best these foods are at the bottom, so that they cannot leak onto anything placed belo and ruin that food. Keeping the raw meats etc. well wrapped and in sealed containers will also help stop other food being contaminated.

The top and middle shelves are the warmest areas of the fridge and are best for pre-prepared foods such as dairy products and cooked meats; if you keep dairy on the top shelf, you can store cooked meats and left overs in sealed containers on the shelf – or even shelves – below.

Your fruit and vegetables should always be kept in the salad crisper drawer.  In modern fridges, many salad drawers are able to control the humidity and reduce the moisture so that your veggies last longer.

Everything kept in the fridge door is subject to changes in temperature as the door is left open but the racks in the door are useful for jars, juices and eggs, although I must admit that I’m with Delia on the matter of eggs and always keep mine at room temperature.  Butter and spreads may be kept in the door too but are best in one of the door’s lidded compartments.

Some further food hygiene tips are:

• Refrigerate leftovers within 90 minutes of cooking and eat within two days – they won’t keep forever!
• Keep the time spent out of the fridge for any foods down to a minimum
• Never put opened tins of food in the fridge as the metal can contaminate the can’s contents.  If you haven’t eaten all your baked beans, decant the remainder into another container for storage
• Use-by dates should not be ignored.  These are used on foods with a short shelf life and eating anything past its use-by date may be dangerous
• Best-before dates are for foods that have a much longer shelf life and the date is an indication of when the food will be at its best quality; eating after a best-before date isn’t dangerous but it may mean that flavour is impaired
• Keep the fridge door closed tightly, as the temperature will rise if the door is left open.
• Don’t overpack the fridge, as this can stop cool air from circulating freely and the fridge may not keep the foods properly chilled.
• Don’t put hot food in the fridge as this can raise the fridge temperature
• Clean the fridge regularly, especially the fridge handle, shelves and storage compartments.
• Wash all surfaces thoroughly with warm, soapy water, then rinse them clean.
• Dry surfaces thoroughly with a clean towel or kitchen roll.
• Wipe up spills straightaway.
• Never use cleaning products that may leave a taste in food or damage the fridge.
• At least once a week, check for foods that have passed the ‘use by’ date, and throw them out

I think that just about covers everything on the subject of fridge hygiene, although one major topic has been overlooked in all areas of my research – where’s the best place to keep the wine?!