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529 Plans: Saving for Your Child's Education

3/31/2016

by Alicia Bodine, Contributing Writer

Image © 401kcalculator.org; Flickr.com

Tuition for Colleges and University's has become so expensive it is necessary to make a savings plan for your child's education as soon as he or she is born. Private schools average $20,000 per year with State Colleges coming in at $10,000. A 529 Plan is an option that every parent should consider and comes with many added benefits.

There are two types of 529 plans: prepaid and savings. Each state has at least one 529 Plan. It is the state that decides whether they are going to offer a 529 plan and what that plan will look like. The plans offered by the State are generally savings plans. These plans can be used to pay any accredited College or University. Prepaid plans are offered by the Educational Institution itself. This is good if you know the particular College or University your child is going to attend. You can easily set up a plan with the school and begin to pre-pay your child's tuition.

There are no income or age restrictions associated with either 529 Plan. This allows you to start out small if you cannot afford to start out with a large contribution.

There are 3 Major benefits you can get from a 529 Plan:

1. The Tax Breaks: You are not required to pay taxes on your money while it is growing. Also, whatever money is dispersed to your college student often times comes out tax free (with the federal government). Each state offers different tax breaks you can check out as well.

2. You are always in control of the funds: You decide when to withdrawal money from the plan and for what reason. Most of the time you can even reclaim the money for yourself should your child decide to drop out or not attend college at all. Of course there are penalty fees and taxes you must pay if you choose this route.

3. Convenience: You can set up the plan and basically forget about it. It is as easy as 1,2, 3. 1. Complete the enrollment form, 2. Make your contribution, and 3. Set up automatic withdrawal (optional).

Finally, if you are wondering how having a 529 Plan will affect your chances of getting grants and loans, a new law was passed for the 06-07 school year. No 529's in a student's name will count against them as assets. For plans in a parent's name, however, the Federal aid will be reduced by 5.64% of the plan's value.

This article originally appeared on the Yahoo Contributor Network.

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Six Exciting Opportunities to Work on Colors with Toddlers

3/23/2016

by Floria Alex, Contributing Writer

As a parent, an educator, or a daycare teacher, you want to help the children in your care learn all that they need to learn. You want to help toddlers learn the things that are necessary to succeed in life. One of the basic things that all toddlers needs to learn is their colors. Young children need to know what color is what and they need to be able to figure out what color an item is when they see it. You can help the children in your life learn their colors, and you can do that in a fun way through the help of the following ideas. Every child will be excited to work with you and learn when you make the learning fun and exciting, when you work it into their everyday life.

Six Games that Teach Toddlers Colors:

1. Allow toddlers to play with their food. When you fill a young child's plate, there will be a variety of colors on that plate. The little one will be able to practice their colors as they deal with their food and as they play with the items that you give them. Have them name the color of the food that they are playing with, and have them name the color of the food as they pop it into their mouths. Have them look over their plate and name the color of each item before them. Talk about food and how it comes in a variety of colors and flavors.

2. Finger-paint with the children. When you finger-paint with young children, you allow them to work with a variety of colors. You can help the children to learn about colors by naming each one that they are painting with. You can also help the children mix the colors to make new ones for more advanced play. Children enjoy being creative, and they will have fun working on a finger painting project.

3. Use printable color books to help children learn about colors. Give the children crayons or markers and help them to color with each one. You can use printable color books to print color pages at home. Color books are great for those times when you want to set your child up with something to work on while you accomplish other things.

4. Give your child a piece of colored paper and then head outside. As you walk with the child, help them to find items that are colored in a way that matches the paper that they are carrying. Find items in nature that match the color of the paper and get excited about each one of them. Congratulate your child as they recognize colors and pick out items on their own.

5. Tie colored ribbons around some type of small object and set those objects in a bucket together away from your child. Yell out a color and have your child run to find the object with the ribbon that matches the color that you mentioned and bring it back to you. Children love running around, and they like to have the opportunity to fetch something that you want them to fetch, so they will enjoy this game.

6. Have your child dress up all in one color. Find clothing that is in various shades of one color and have your child wear that clothing. Let them know what color they are wearing and allow them to be that color all day long. Consider dressing in a different color, yourself, and allowing them to compare the two colors.

When your child starts to make improvements in regard to learning their colors, when they begin to figure out what color is what and they learn what you want them to learn, reward them for their efforts. Every child deserves to be rewarded when they have done great things, and you can award your child through the help of an award certificate template and all that it offers. Through the help of such a template, you will be able to quickly award the child who has learned a lot and who has put in good effort.

About the Author:
Floria is a graphic designer by profession and also mother of 2 beautiful angels, 2 sons. As a profession, you can see her work on creating certificate templates and also at dotxes.com.

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529 Plans: Saving for Your Child's Education

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