Creating my own website from scratch was exciting and rewarding. I had creating something I was proud of that let me share my knowledge with the world.

However, time passed and the software I used to run my website slowly became out of date. As technology improved, my code fell behind and it became difficult to make updates to my site. Furthermore, I no longer had the time I used to have to maintain and update my software.

After leaving my site alone for many years, I have decided to come back to it. To achieve this I would need to update the software it runs on. I had the option of updating all my code or using an existing content management system.

I don’t have the time to keep my software up to date. Also, tools have evolved so much in the past decade that it doesn’t even make sense to use a custom solution for this kind of website.

I have decided to move my site onto WordPress. This still required a fair amount of effort, but making this change allows me to focus on adding new content – something I’ve been wanting to do for some time now.

I have kept all the content I had before. Going forward I plan on updating some of the existing content that is out of date as well as add new content.

I hope you enjoy the new look and I look forward to adding more information in the near future!

The post Site Update appeared first on Skills Toolbox.

I have added a module about how to teach your child to read. I found that people can find the task of teaching their child to read to be overwhelming. I put together this guide so that parents and educators can have a resource that provides information on what is involved, how to get started, and what kind of progress to expect.

This module contains information on:

• When do kids start reading? — providing insight into when it is a good time to start teaching your child to read
• What is phonics — provides information on why I recommend the phonics approach and what is involved in using it
• Reading with phonics for children — this page gives an overview of how to present the phonics system to your child and what to expect
• What is phonemic awareness — phonemic awareness is a necessary skill when learning to read
• Phonemic awareness activities — there are many activities and games that increase phonemic awareness that you can do with your child individually or in a group setting
• Reading comprehension skills — once your child develops word recognition abilities the focus will shift to reading comprehension

While this information should give you a good idea of the benefits of teaching your child to read as well as what is involved, I recommend you find a complete system to help you present the necessary information to your child in a systematic and structured way. I personally have found the Children Learning Reading system to work well for me. I have used it with great success with my own daughter.

I hope you find this information useful and good luck getting started!

The post Teach your child to read appeared first on Skills Toolbox.

One of the most difficult tasks of setting up a personal budget is knowing how much money to allocate to each budget category. How do you determine what is an appropriate amount to allocate to housing, entertainment, or savings? Even if you have been tracking how you spend your money it is difficult to know if you are over-spending in one category or under-spending in another.

In order to help with this problem I have created an online personal budget allocation tool. With this tool you can enter your income then see recommendations on how much money you should allocate to each of your budget categories.

With this information you can then get started on creating and following your personal budget. After tracking your spending against the recommended budget amounts you can make adjustments and fine tune your budget.

Once you know how to budget, staying in control of your personal finances is easy.

The post Personal Budget Allocation Tool appeared first on Skills Toolbox.

Learning this system, however, requires a bit of skill and practice. In order to help with using this system I’ve created a Phonetic Mnemonic Tool. This tool can be used to convert numbers to words that follow the rules for creating effective visual imagery. You can use this tool to help you remember phone numbers, lock combinations, multiplication tables and more.

If you are not familiar with the Phonetic Mnemonic System I recommend you first read over the article: Phonetic Mnemonic System. Once you understand how to use the system give the Phonetic Mnemonic Tool a try to see the suggestions it makes. Try your phone number or best friend’s birthday. Once you get the hang of it you can try creating your own words for things you want to remember. With a bit of practice you will find you will be able to remember almost anything you want.

The post Phonetic Mnemonic Tool appeared first on Skills Toolbox.

A new addition to this website is the news section where I will be posting notifications of any content I add. This news section has an RSS feed so I encourage you to subscribe so you will be notified whenever I add new content to the site. You can subscribe with your favorite news reader by clicking on the ‘subscribe’ button in the left column.

I’ve also made significant changes to the software that runs this site. It is now easier for me to make updates, add new content, and add new tools.

So stay tuned and be sure to check back — hopefully these changes will help you find the information you are looking for.

The post Site Changes appeared first on Skills Toolbox.