Mohamed Al Fayed, the Egyptian businessman who began his career selling drinks on the streets of Alexandria and

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Board games like Monopoly and Snakes and Ladders – which are based on numbers – could make young children better at maths, new research suggests. The games are already known to enhance learning and development, including reading and literacy. But the new study suggests that for three to nine-year-olds, the format of number-based board games helps to improve counting, addition, and the ability to recognise if a number is higher or lower than another. Using board games can be considered a strategy with potential effects on basic and complex maths skills Dr Jaime Balladares, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile Researchers say children benefit from programmes – or interventions – where they play board games a few times a week supervised by a teacher or another trained adult. Lead author Dr Jaime Balladares, from Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, in Santiago, Chile, said: “Board games enhance mathematical abilities for young children. “Using board games can be considered a strategy with potential effects on basic and complex maths skills. “Board games can easily be adapted to include learning objectives related to mathematical skills or other domains.” The new study aimed to compile the available evidence on the effects of board games on children, and the researchers set out to investigate the scale of the effects of physical board games in promoting learning in young children. The findings are based on a review of 19 studies published from 2000 onwards involving children aged from three to nine years. All except one study focused on the relationship between board games and mathematical skills. All of the children in the studies received special board game sessions, which took place on average twice a week for 20 minutes over one-and-a-half months. The sessions were led by adults including teachers, therapists, and parents. In some of the 19 studies, children were grouped into either the number board game or to a board game that did not focus on numeracy skills. The children’s maths skills were assessed before and after the intervention sessions that were designed to encourage skills such as counting out loud. Success was rated according to four categories including basic numeric competency such as the ability to name numbers, and basic number comprehension. The other categories were deepened number comprehension – where a child can accurately add and subtract – and interest in mathematics. The findings, published in the journal Early Years, suggest that maths skills improved significantly after the sessions among children for more than half (52%) of the tasks looked at. In nearly a third (32%) of cases, children in the intervention groups gained better results than those who did not play the board games. Dr Balladares concluded: “Future studies should be designed to explore the effects that these games could have on other cognitive and developmental skills. “An interesting space for the development of intervention and assessment of board games should open up in the next few years, given the complexity of games and the need to design more and better games for educational purposes.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live 6 of the best new running shoes for summer Skin cancer cases reach record high – how to spot the signs Why do I get sick when I go on holiday?

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Most women feel ‘invisible’ and ‘unappreciated’ when they become mothers, new research has revealed. Instead of ‘having it all’, 72% of mums feel invisible and 93% feel unappreciated, unacknowledged or unseen once they’ve had children. Another 93% said that since having a child, their identity has been reduced to only being a mother. And the weight of expectation is huge, too, with 97% of mums questioned in the survey by the online motherhood community Peanut saying pressure is put on them to ‘do it all and be it all’. Plus, 94% believe they’re expected to put themselves last and self-sacrifice for their families, partners, jobs, and other responsibilities, so they can achieve what they feel is required of them. Nearly half of mums (46%) said they don’t feel supported by the healthcare system after giving birth, and 70% expected more support from society in general. As a result of this lack of support and invisibility, most women surveyed (95%) agreed there’s an impact on their mental health and wellbeing, with 86% having experienced anxiety, 82% feeling stressed, burned out or exhausted, and 80% feeling overwhelmed, or lonely and isolated. Other strong feelings identified by mums included irritability (78%), loss of identity (65%), feeling judged (66%), feeling unsupported (64%), guilt (63%), depression (55%), resentment (54%), worthlessness (50%), and neglect (24%). Women attributed the things making them feel invisible to unfair division of labour in the home, trying to juggle a career and childcare, lack of empathy and understanding from both family and everyone else, gaps in healthcare and mental health support, identity and independence struggles, hiding the pain of pregnancy loss, and general pressure from healthcare, education institutions and the media. Commenting on the findings, psychologist Dr Rachel Goldman said: “The invisibility of motherhood is a stark reality many face. The journey begins with frequent visits to healthcare providers, but once the child arrives, there’s a sudden gap, creating a sense of abandonment. Women grapple with overwhelming feelings of exhaustion and stress, only to confront rushed appointments where healthcare professionals don’t have time to adequately dive into concerns.” As a result of the research, Peanut has launched an Invisible Mothers campaign, featuring a State of Invisibility report, to draw attention to mums’ struggles and highlight ways to make them more visible and better supported. The report found mums think more empathy and gender equality will help them feel more visible, with 82% calling for flexible, family-friendly workplaces, 77% wanting equal and extended leave for both parents, and 71% saying an equal share of parenting tasks would help. Additional measures that will help mums, says Peanut, include more public toilets having changing facilities, additional resources for mental health support, support groups for both parents, and educational initiatives about gender stereotypes. The report also identified the most common unwanted questions that contribute to mothers’ feelings of invisibility, with alternative suggestions that women say they would prefer to hear. So instead of asking ‘How’s the baby?’, Peanut suggests mums are asked ‘How are you really – mentally, emotionally and physically?’, and rather than ‘Was the pregnancy planned?’, try ‘Are you excited?’, and change ‘How do you do it all?’ to ‘How’s the mental load?’. Goldman added: “It doesn’t take grand gestures to offer support. A genuine ‘how are you’ or ‘thinking of you’ can significantly shift perceptions, signalling to someone that they matter. Small changes or actions, like compassionate conversations, can have profound impacts. “By acknowledging and addressing these issues, we can begin to truly support motherhood.” Read More The best ways to work-out in 22 minutes – as study finds this is magic number for offsetting ‘negative impact of sitting’ What crops will we be growing in the future, as climate change alters the landscape? As Rebecca Adlington shares heart-breaking miscarriage news: How to support others experiencing baby loss What you need to know about new research into treating cervical cancer How to do Halloween make up and still take care of your skin Which houseplants best suit your star sign?

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Freddie Freeman singled to deep center field with the bases loaded in the 11th inning, Chris Taylor hit a tying grand slam in the sixth, and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago White Sox 5-4

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