New Year’s package tours: On vacation into the new year)

Here you are right on the Baltic coast, but you can still enjoy New Year’s Eve parties with a metropolitan flair. It’s worth booking early: celebrate New Year’s Eve on Rügen Maritime flair: Celebrate New Year’s Eve at the Port of Hamburg – The best parties The most beautiful sayings for New Year

On your planned city trip to the Baltic Sea, you are of course not limited to the German Baltic Sea coast. The tourist magnets among the Hanseatic cities in the Baltic Sea region include, for example, cities such as Danzig / Gdánsk in Poland, Tallinn in Estonia and Riga in Latvia. Here, too, you can celebrate New Year’s Eve on the Baltic Sea and combine your short vacation with relaxing walks by the sea.

They usually decide for themselves which hobbies children have. 85 percent of parents say they try to promote their children’s interests. That goes from the "Generation Barometer 2009" from a representative survey by the Allensbach Institute for Demoscopy. However, many parents particularly like to see activities that increase children’s engagement or have a positive effect on their motivation. Because they keep an eye on the careers of the next generation at an early stage.

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Music and sport

Music and sport are at the top of the list of funding opportunities. On the other hand, learning a foreign language is much less common, the forum shares "Make family strong!" who commissioned the survey. 61 percent of the parents said that you have to give children lots of ideas early on so that they can develop their interests and inclinations.

Tired of the hobby anymore?

If the offspring is tired of a hobby, that is fine for most parents. Only 31 percent insist that their children pursue activities once they have started. For the "Generations barometer" 2,200 men and women aged 16 and over were interviewed.

Single parents and their children are less often at risk of poverty in Germany than in most other EU countries.

Germany good in the EU average

On average in the EU, every third family with just one parent is at risk of becoming impoverished, according to the EU Commission’s demography report. In Germany it is only every fourth. Countries such as Great Britain, Portugal, Ireland and Luxembourg fared significantly worse than Germany. Only in Denmark, Finland and Slovenia is the risk of poverty lower.

"At the end of the money there is so much month left": Many families have to do the math to get their budget. New toys or music lessons are often not included. With a little creativity, parents can support their children without money.

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Recreational opportunities for poorer children restricted

Educational toys, parent-child courses, books, music lessons, excursions and visits to the cinema: with a well-filled family budget, the young can be kept busy in a variety of ways. But many children can only dream of that. According to the German Children’s Fund, around three million children in Germany are affected by poverty. In the World Vision Children’s Study 2010, over 2500 primary school children were asked about their satisfaction with life. 20 percent of the children between the ages of six and eleven stated that they felt disadvantaged. Children from socially disadvantaged families are particularly affected. Money is not always the decisive factor in promoting children.

"Child happiness is not defined by money" says Birgit Ebbert, a qualified pedagogue from Borken in Westphalia. "It is important as a family to do as much as possible together." Keeping children busy often only takes time and creativity. "Everyday life alone offers a wealth of opportunities to entertain children in a variety of ways" says Paula Honkanen-Schoberth, Federal Managing Director of the German Child Protection Association (DKSB) in Berlin.

Playing and experimenting with everyday objects

Young children, for example, find almost everything their parents do interesting. "Set up play areas in the kitchen with kitchen utensils for the children." Stack mummy’s plastic cans, hit pots with spoons, play with balls of wool or towels, knead figures from salt dough: "That keeps children very busy and encourages them on the side" says Constanze Edinger, co-head of "Ina.Kinder.Garten" in Berlin.

Small experiments at home are exciting for children up to elementary school age: How long does an ice cube take to melt? What happens if you put a gummy bear in the water? How do you turn a clothes hanger into a scale? "Children are naturally curious and want to discover a lot" says Edinger. In addition, parents can specifically support their children, for example in language are indian mail brides real development: "Speak to your child very clearly" recommends Edinger. Instead of just briefly "Get that car over there" to say be a sentence like "Will you get me the yellow car to the left of the dresser, please?" much more informative. Children would learn colors and words and understand the difference between left and right at an early age.

Guessing games and library visits

When baking or cooking, children can weigh ingredients: "This is pure math!" says Edinger. Singing, reading fairy tales, thinking up stories, going on imaginary journeys: "These are the classics that should not be missing in any family" thinks Birgit Ebbert. "Often children have great ideas of what they want to play with their parents or siblings" says Edinger. The children’s eagerness to learn also satisfies joint research: "Does a dolphin have a navel?" "Can pigs swim?" Answering such questions can be a common task for parents and children.

A visit to the city or community library is ideal as a small research trip: "Children there often even get an identity card free of charge." Whether borrowing books, cassettes, CDs or family games: "Libraries are ideal when you have little money" says Ebbert.

Play outside and explore the surroundings

"For a child’s motor skills and development, it is very important to play a lot outside" says Christoph Schmidt, psychologist at the counseling center for parents, children and young people in Groß-Gerau. Walking, romping through meadows and forests, exploring the surroundings by bike: "All of this doesn’t cost parents a cent!" Honkanen-Schoberth also pleads for more movement: "Children must be allowed to run around in playgrounds and dig in the mud and sand in the park or garden." But many parents would not want to: "You can meet and get to know other parents there" knows Schmidt. Networking with other families is a valuable support: "You can get tips, relieve each other and plan activities together with the children" recommends the expert from the German Child Protection Association.

Discounted tuition and club fees?

In general, parents should dare to ask more often what clubs cost and whether there are subsidies, recommends Honkanen-Schoberth: "You don’t have to be ashamed." School tuition can also be organized for little or no money: "Many charitable associations offer tuition or support from family sponsors, such as ‘loan grandmas’, says the federal manager of the German Child Protection Association. Tutoring providers are also often willing to negotiate. "Talk to the class teacher about whether there are any in-school options" advises the qualified psychologist Christoph Schmidt. Neighbors, acquaintances or relatives are also often willing to help.

The open-air party on New Year’s Eve in Berlin is considered the largest in the world. It goes without saying that a short break in the capital at the turn of the year is particularly attractive for many. At the Brandenburg Gate and elsewhere – read here where to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Berlin.

New Year’s Eve customs from Germany and the world

Photo series with 8 pictures

Celebrate New Year’s Eve at the Brandenburg Gate

The New Year’s Eve party at the Brandenburg Gate breaks all records: around a million people have regularly celebrated the New Year here in recent years. In addition to the artful fireworks at midnight, the supporting program with numerous well-known music groups and international stars also inspires. Booths, stages and light installations line the festival mile on Straße des 17. Juni between the Victory Column and the Brandenburg Gate. The festival mile is around two kilometers long and offers enough space for those who like to party. The exact program is not revealed until mid-December every year, like the official capital city portal "berlin.de" notifies. In any case, admission is free – and the open-air disco can continue to party until the early hours of the morning. (New Year’s Eve: Why do we celebrate the New Year?)

Tip: For safety reasons, sharp objects, glass bottles and your own fireworks are prohibited on the festival mile at the Brandenburg Gate. This is what you should watch out for when you are heading to the party on New Year’s Eve in Berlin. In any case, be on time at the site, because by the afternoon it can be so full that latecomers have no chance. The festival area at the Brandenburg Gate is not really for children, because it can get very narrow and crowded in front of the stage, especially at a late hour.

New Year’s Eve in Berlin: You can also experience that

If the crowd at the Brandenburg Gate is too crowded for you or if you prefer to celebrate indoors when the temperature is frosty, there is of course plenty of opportunity for this on New Year’s Eve in Berlin. Almost every club has its own New Year’s Eve program, and in many restaurants you can book special New Year’s Eve arrangements with a menu or buffet. And of course you don’t miss the midnight fireworks along the Spree, on Gendarmenmarkt and on Kurfürstendamm. New Year’s Day is ideal for a long stroll through the city to the sights – or January 2nd, if your short vacation lasts several days and you celebrated particularly well on New Year’s Eve. (New Year’s package tours: On vacation into the new year)

Obviously, getting a cheap hotel in Berlin over New Year’s Eve becomes more difficult the closer the New Year approaches. If you are not committed to the immediate vicinity of the festival mile, but also take a short ride on the S-Bahn or U-Bahn after the New Year’s party, you will definitely find a room in one of the less popular parts of the city.

An outdoor New Year’s Eve party is all about socializing and saying goodbye to the past year – outdoors, of course, so that you can enjoy the fireworks at the end. It would be uncomfortable on such a long evening if you had to freeze all the time. Aside from warm clothing, there are other tips that can help you out against the cold.

New Year’s Eve customs from Germany and the world

Photo series with 8 pictures

Tips on choosing clothes

First of all, it makes sense that you choose the right clothing for an outdoor New Year’s party. Festive occasion or not: You shouldn’t just make sure that the clothes are fashionably appealing. It is actually much more important that it keeps the cold out. Therefore wear sturdy shoes with thick soles, as this will prevent you from cooling down on the possibly frozen ground. A tip for those who do not want to buy new shoes at the end of the year: Use insoles made of wool or fur that you put in the shoes. But not only the feet should be well warmed: The body cools down quickly, especially through the extremities.