All about Popularity

Popularity during teenage years is one of the most important things for young teens.   Everybody is worried about the same thing: How popular am I? How many friends do I have? Am I looking “cool”? Are my friends "cool" enough? Our son is in grade 6 and he is already talking about who is more popular than others at his school and who is the less popular than others.

Popularity is a time when young boys and girls are conscious about just about everything.  Many children secretly love being the center of attraction but fail to do so; therefore, they start feeling low and their confidence level sinks. This is the time when children also become particular about their looks and the clothes they wear.  I have noticed our son started to even put gel in his hair every morning recently.  

I try to tell our son the definition of being popular is to be liked and adored by the majority of people, however, that doesn’t mean he or she is necessarily academically smart.  There are plenty of unpopular teenagers and some are socioeconomically successful much to the chagrin of their more popular friends.

My advice for those unpopular kids is DO NOT get stressed out if you are not popular. You are who you are and nothing can change it. That’s life. Be happy and do not be obsessed with who you want to be.

AP vs. IB: Which one is better?

In Canada there are two enrichment programs:

AP - Advanced Placement
IB - International Baccalaureate

IB is designed to be much harder than AP, but it depends a lot on the school. If you enrol in an IB program, it basically means all of your classes are advanced.  AP classes are about equally advanced, but the difference is you can choose to take some classes as AP while taking others at a regular level.

AP and IB are almost universally accepted as proof of secondary academic achievement on a higher level.

The AP and IB programs are not for every student or every school; however, if it is true academic excellence which you wish to attain, you will examine what the programs offer, and consider implementing one or the other.

In a nutshell, IB is more rigorous than AP.  Well-rounded people are more likely to succeed in IB. AP is less stressful than IB, but definitely it is still stressful. There is a greater chance that AP students could enjoy their classes and earn a higher GPA.

What is the youngest age to play soccer?

We have received a lot of inquiries from parents regarding what is the youngest age to play soccer.

Well, basically as soon as children have learned to walk and run.  In my opinion, age 4-5 is the best age to start joining soccer programs.  My son started when he was 4 years old and he still loves to play soccer.

Usually, most of community centers in BC offer mini soccer programs for kids aged 3-5.  Such as “Mini Stars Soccer” at Killarney Community Centre and Kitsilano Community Centre.

After that, if your child wants to continue to play soccer, which is a great sport to play, you can sign them up at a soccer club near you.  The youngest age to enter into those soccer clubs is U6 (age 5).

If you want to be the perfect soccer mom or dad, you need to encourage your child and take part in your child’s soccer activities.

Remember don't force a child to play soccer if they don't want to.

Our First Blog

Here it is!

KidsClubs.ca has its own blog now!

Kids Clubs provides information for parents about children's clubs and activities including academics, sports, music, education, tutoring, family activities and special needs clubs for children in the Vancouver, Burnaby, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Surrey, Richmond, North Vancouver, West Vancouver, Port Moody, Pitt Meadows, Mission, Maple Ridge, Delta and Abbotsford areas.  One of our goals is to provide information for the entire lower mainland area.