LEARNING THAT DOESN’T FEEL LIKE SCHOOL Mentally Stimulating Activities for Summer
process of making the solution will teach ratios, and finding creative ways to blow bubbles fosters problem-solving skills and creative thinking.
FOR TEENAGERS: FAMILY DINNER PARTY Cooking teaches so many important skills: math, science, nutrition, concentration, cultural understanding, following directions, creativity, time management, and more. Even better, it doesn’t feel like learning; it feels like fun. Encourage your older children to take the reins for preparing regular meals throughout the summer. You can pick guiding themes, like “a trip to Mexico” or “pasta party,” but let them choose the recipes and prep the meals on their own. FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY: AN EDUCATIONAL FIELD TRIP Field trips always inspire excitement in students, and you’ll find the same goes for your family members. You can tailor your destination to the interests of your kids for maximum engagement. If you have a family of art lovers, head to a museum for some inspiration and discussion. Kids who prefer the outdoors will enjoy a nature walk or hike. You can bring along a field guide to identify flora and fauna. These trips may not pack the thrill of a water park, but they’re fun in an entirely different way.
Every summer, parents across the country have to deal with the same delicate problem. They want to make sure their kids continue to learn without feeling like they’re being assigned tasks. After all, summer homework is every child’s worst nightmare. Luckily, you don’t have to rely on math problems and book reports to keep your child’s development from taking a two-month vacation. Here are a few mentally stimulating activities that are as educational as they are fun. FOR LITTLE ONES: HOMEMADE BUBBLES Bubbles fascinate young children, so why not spend a day making your own solution and experimenting by blowing different types of bubbles? The formula is simple: 1 part dish soap (Dawn or Joy work best) to 10 parts water. Optionally, you can also include 1/4 part glycerin. The Aimee’s Story Attorney Lisa Fights f r Disabled Workers Our team is passionate about getting clients the compensation they need. Recently, attorney Lisa Pezzano Mickey testified before the New Jersey Labor Committee on the topic of workers’ compensation permanent disability benefits. Lisa shares the story of one of her clients and explains why this bill is so important to New Jersey citizens. I had the pleasure of testifying recently before the N.J. Senate Labor Committee regarding Bill No. 782, which increases workers’ compensation permanent disability benefits for the loss of a hand or foot. As anyone familiar with the law knows, our state provides woefully insufficient compensation to workers with injuries to their extremities. One of my clients, Aimee, was kind enough to join me in Trenton to share her experience with the Committee. Aimee fractured her right (dominant) wrist in 2010, when she was working her way through college as a bartender. She underwent three surgeries and was unable to continue bartending, so she had to leave college. Eight years later, she continues to drop things because of the injury and still uses a brace on her hand. She received a workers’ compensation award of 35 percent — a pretty high disability level, right? Guess what dollar amount she received for a 35 percent loss in the use of her hand: $14,285.09, which net her at approximately $12,000 after cost and fees. Let me repeat that: three surgeries, causing her to drop out of
college, and a future which most likely includes developing arthritis. For that she received a grand total award of only $14,000.
The “hand and foot bill” proposes to increase the number of weeks of benefits paid for more serious injuries to the extremities (defined as a 25 percent or greater disability) to 300 weeks of compensation for a total loss of a hand or foot. For example, if Aimee’s injury occurred in 2018 (the rates change every year), she would have received a gross award of $20,665.75 for a loss of 35 percent of her hand usability. If this bill becomes law, the same injury will result in an award of $24,676.75. This modest increase in benefits is long overdue. Thank you for sharing your story, Aimee!
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