Effective after school activities

When there are so many activities on offer, and each one looks as good as

the next, how do you gauge the worth and effectiveness of these

activities? Sure, you want an activity that junior enjoys. But, we really

cannot afford to waste time on pleasure for pleasure's sake, do we? There

needs to be a grain of gold somewhere in there. Given below is a list of

characteristics that any good after school activity must possess.

Clarity in objectives and goals is the first important thing. What does

the course offer? How does it propose to achieve the results? How many

kids make up a batch? Ask questions. After all, when you are dishing out

the dough, you really need to understand what you are getting in return.

A good after school activity will provide lots of opportunities for the

young to increase their level of understanding of complex concepts. This

is true of recreational activities too. Learning to pitch a ball, or dance

to a tune - regardless of the activity involved, the child should be

encouraged to grapple with and conquer new concepts. This not only keeps

boredom at bay by challenging the child, but also builds up his

self-confidence. Development of academic, personal and social skills is

one of the prime aims of an after school activity. As the skills develop,

the child's self-esteem also increases.

After school activities are all about boosting a child's sense of

competence. Good and effective after school activities promotes the

resilience of youth and encourages them to grow stronger, be it mentally,

emotionally or physically.

Safety is one of the first requirements of an after school activity. The

staff should be qualified, adequate and alert. Never put your child in a

program where safety is a matter of accident instead of a matter of

priority. The staff should be friendly and should have a positive

relationship with the child. Therefore, the program should have

professional and trained staff that loves to interact with children. The

program should maintain a cooperative and supportive attitude and a

structured environment. Participation and collaboration as opposed to

competition and antagonism must be encouraged.

Some programs involve the children in planning activities and making

decisions. Adults often forget to get the opinion of their children. By

giving the children an opportunity to voice their opinion, programs become

fun activities that children are motivated to participate in. Young people

thrive when they are listened to, respected and allowed to contribute

their mite.

Routine evaluations are an important part of after school programs. If the

child does not benefit from a class, don't waste time being

over-optimistic. Try something new.

You are now ready to look for the perfect after school activity for your

child. But don't let us forget that having fun is also an important part

of growing up. The child deserves a few hours of pure delight. Remember,

all work and no play, ……

New fee structure for Private sellers effective from 21st July on eBay.ie

29 July, 2011 | 12:01PM BST

Hello,

New features will shortly be available in My eBay that can help you manage your purchase history, payment and postage activity and watched items more easily.

See up to 3 years worth of purchases. Whether you need to keep an eye on local and international purchases, identify sellers you want to buy from again, or retrieve information for tax purposes, you?ll be able to see?all your purchases on eBay going back 3 years. To view, click ?Purchase History? on the left in My eBay and select the purchase history period.? If you like to use your purchase history page as a working area (for example, removing items after you?ve received them and left feedback), you?ll be able to hide items.

Removal of Selling modules from the ?My eBay Summary? page.? By default, this page is set up with a buyer view by default. This will help to facilitate the buying process, resulting in more sales, which is good for both buyers and sellers. If you like to see the items you?re selling or have sold, on the ?Summary? page, you can add these modules by clicking the ?Page Options? link at the top of the ?Summary? page. If you prefer not to see a large number of items on the ?Summary?page, you may want to change your landing page to ?All selling? view. (Please note that Selling Manager subscribers will automatically go to a selling-only summary page called Selling Manager Summary.) The landing page is the first page you go to when you click the ?My eBay?. It?s easy to change this setting: Click the ?change? link at the top of your My eBay Summary page. It?s next to the text that says ?My eBay landing page is set to??

Sort lists by most-recently added. If you like creating lists in My eBay (such as a ?Watched Items? list or a ?Shoes? list), you?ll b able to sort them by most-recently added item within ?Watch List & Other Lists? in My eBay. It?s the easy way to view and compare your latest finds.

My eBay will continue to change throughout the summer. Buyers will soon see bigger pictures on the My eBay buying pages and will notice improvements to lists, including better access to the watch list and other lists that you can create.

Regards,
The eBay.ie team

25 July, 2011 | 11:50AM BST

Hello,

Over 10 million people are currently at risk in East Africa due to conflict and, in some areas, the worst drought in 60 years.?

Leading UK aid agencies have launched a major appeal through the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) for donations to help those affected.

The DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal will support work in the affected areas of Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia and South Sudan.? Your donation will help to provide life saving aid such as food, water, care for malnourished children and medical treatment.

Since the appeal began, many thousands of eBay users have pledged donations through eBay for Charity, and have already raised over ?80,000.

To help, simply:

?1.????Make the DEC appeal a favourite charity, and add a donation when you pay for an item through eBay Checkout using PayPal.

?2.????Buy and sell items to benefit the DEC appeal using eBay for Charity.

?3.??? Donate to the DEC appeal?using your credit or debit card, or via PayPal using the ?Donate now? tab on the?DEC?s eBay for Charity page.

Please note that 100% of your donations will go to the DEC appeal, as eBay is covering all of MissionFish's collection and processing costs for this appeal.

Regards,
The eBay Team

22 July, 2011 | 11:43AM BST

Hello,

As announced early July 2011, new and revised listings in Clothing, Shoes & Accessories must include item specifics on brand and size. This is effective from yesterday. The exact item specifics may vary by category and listings without these specifics will be blocked.

Today, more and more buyers search using key details such as size, brand, condition and type. Using item specifics will help you to increase the visibility of your listings in search results, and potentially increase your sales.

Learn more about new item specifics in Clothes, shoes and accessories

Learn more about the sub-categories have been structured in Clothes, shoes and accessories

Regards,
The eBay Team

22 July, 2011 | 11:43AM BST

Hello,

As announced early July 2011, new and revised listings in Clothing, Shoes & Accessories must include item specifics on brand and size. This is effective from yesterday. The exact item specifics may vary by category and listings without these specifics will be blocked.

Today, more and more buyers search using key details such as size, brand, condition and type. Using item specifics will help you to increase the visibility of your listings in search results, and potentially increase your sales.

Learn more about new item specifics in Clothes, shoes and accessories

Learn more about the sub-categories have been structured in Clothes, shoes and accessories

Regards,

The eBay Team

21 July, 2011 | 09:36AM BST

Hello,

Over the next 2 weeks, we will introduce changes to the My eBay Summary page and to the Purchase History page based on member feedback.

If you like to use your ?Purchase history? page as a working area (for example, removing items after you?ve received them and left feedback), you?ll now be able to hide items. You?ll still be able to see all purchases made since 2009 in the Archive view .

By default, the ?My eBay Summary? page will be set up with a buyer view. This will help to ?facilitate the buying process, resulting in more sales, which good for both buyers and sellers.

If you like to see the items you?re selling, or have sold on the ?Summary? page, you can add these modules by clicking the ?Page options? link at the top of the ?Summary? page. If you prefer not to see a large number of items on the ?Summary?page, you may want to change your landing page to ?All selling? view. (Please note that Selling Manager subscribers will automatically go to a selling-only summary page called Selling Manager Summary.) The landing page is the first page you go to when you click the a ?My eBay? link. It?s easy to change this setting. Click the ?change? link at the top of your My eBay Summary page. It?s next to the text that says ?My eBay landing page is set to???

My eBay will continue to change throughout the summer. Buyers will soon see bigger pictures on the My eBay buying pages and will notice improvements to lists, including better access to the watch list and other lists that you can create.

Regards,
The eBay Team

13 July, 2011 | 10:38AM BST

Rewarding top quality service and making it easier for buyers to find your listings

eBay has evolved into a marketplace where buyers can find a wide selection of Buy It Now items alongside the familiar auction-style listings. Business sellers continue to play an important role in this evolution by supplying the variety and customer service that entices buyers. In the Second seller news of 2011, read about how we?re supporting business sellers.

We listened when eBay Top-rated sellers told us that a temporary loss of status due to unforeseen issues makes it difficult for them to plan their business. While continuing to focus on high levels of service quality, we're responding by introducing more stability to the programme.

Read more about these updates and more that come into effect from August

Increase sales

Electronics: List using eBay catalogues in more categories
From 23 August 2011, we?re increasing the number of Electronics categories in which you should list your items with matching products from an eBay catalogue.

Category and item specifics changes: update your listings to help increase sales
In the week beginning 22 August 2011, we?re introducing changes to help make it easier and quicker for buyer?s to find your items, helping to increase sales.

Giving you space to write better item titles
In September, the number of characters available for your item title will increase from 55 to 80 characters.

Rewarding top quality service

Increased stability for eBay Top-rated sellers
eBay Top-rated sellers will get a grace period to bring their performance back up to standard without losing their status and benefits if they fall to Above Standard.

Policy and other changes

Streamlining after-sales emails
From late August, we?re making it easier to manage emails sent to buyers after a transaction, keeping them better informed and helping you to save time.

Add tracking information to reduce buyer questions
From late August 2011, we?re making changes relating to postage options to help reduce unnecessary buyer questions.

--

Read the Seller News for August 2011. A summary of important changes and key dates can be found in our seller checklist.

Regards,
The eBay Team

13 July, 2011 | 09:45AM BST

Rewarding top quality service and making it easier for buyers to find your listings

eBay has evolved into a marketplace where buyers can find a wide selection of Buy It Now items alongside the familiar auction-style listings. Business sellers continue to play an important role in this evolution by supplying the variety and customer service that entices buyers. In the Second seller news of 2011, read about how we?re supporting business sellers.

We listened when eBay Top-rated sellers told us that a temporary loss of status due to unforeseen issues makes it difficult for them to plan their business. While continuing to focus on high levels of service quality, we're responding by introducing more stability to the programme.

Read more about these updates and more that come into effect from late August.

Increase sales

Vehicle Parts & Accessories ? one listing for all compatible vehicles
From late September 2011, you?ll be able to show all the cars that are compatible with your item in one listing.

Electronics: List using eBay catalogues in more categories
From 23 August 2011, we?re increasing the number of Electronics categories in which you should list your items with matching products from an eBay catalogue.

Category and item specifics changes: update your listings to help increase sales
In the week beginning 22 August 2011, we?re introducing changes to help make it easier and quicker for buyers to find your items, helping to increase sales.

Giving you space to write better item titles
In September, the number of characters available for your item title will increase from 55 to 80 characters.

?

Rewarding top quality service

Increased stability for eBay Top-rated sellers
eBay Top-rated sellers will get a grace period to bring their performance back up to standard without losing their status and benefits if they fall to Above Standard.

eBay Buyer Protection cases: incentive for early resolution
From 31 August 2011, if a buyer opens an eBay Buyer Protection case without first contacting you and you resolve it to the buyer?s satisfaction within 3 working days, the case may be excluded from seller performance evaluation.

?

Policy and other changes

Specify postage costs to US, Canada and Australia
From late August 2011 if you specify the postage costs to the US, Canada and Australia, you may appear in the standard search results of those countries? eBay sites.

Testing of new cross-selling feature
Later this year, we?re testing a new promotional feature on eBay that allows you to cross-sell related items.

--

Read the Seller News for August 2011. A summary of important changes and key dates can be found in our seller checklist. For questions and comments, join the discussion on the special discussion board we've set up.

Regards,
The eBay Team

04 July, 2011 | 04:37PM BST

From 20 July 2011, new and revised listings in Clothing, Shoes & Accessories must include item specifics on brand, style and size. The exact item specifics may vary by category and listings without these specifics will be blocked.

Today, more and more buyers search using key details such as style, size, brand, condition and type. Using item specifics will help you to increase the visibility of your listings in search results, and potentially increase your sales.

Learn more about new item specifics in Clothes, shoes and accessories

Learn more about the sub-categories have been structured in Clothes, shoes and accessories

Regards,

The eBay Team