Consider Your Child

• Is your child interested in keeping a nice hair-do? Does she prefer hair bows and primping, or pony tails that straggle? You need to determine whether your child is a fashionista or a tomboy. This will help you find a style that either takes a lot of up keep or can look fine when it's blowing in the wind. Once you have agreed upon your child's level of commitment to keep up a hair-do, you can schedule a trip to the salon and start looking at styles.
  
  

Hair Length

• For children younger than 12, shorter hair works better. Girls have a hard time keeping long hairstyles up by themselves. Although they can manage ponytails, complicated braids or curls will mean that mom is committed to several hours of work during the school week when there is a premium on time. Boys with extra long hair may be teased, so parents should keep that in mind. They also suffer from tangled locks and may not be up to keeping it correctly brushed.
  
  

Styles for Boys

• Boys generally don't pay attention to their hair until they are teenagers. Summer is a great time to do a buzz cut because boys are usually active and often in the swimming pool. One quick haircut the day after school lets out for summer will be sufficient for the next three months. By that time the grow out will lend itself to a spiked look. If your boy likes a surfer cut, just do a clean up trim; let it keep growing to below the ears, and shag the layers. Boys with straight hair do well with an overall combed down look where the bangs sweep from crown down across the forehead and the rest just seeks natural gravity. This can be parted if your boy prefers, but that takes a little more effort to keep the part straight.
  
  

Styles for Girls

• Long hair is lovely, but not easy to keep clean and in place. If your daughter likes hairbands and barrettes, you can keep the ends trimmed evenly and use clips and bands to hold her hair out of her face. Long hair lends itself to braids and ponytails. Many girls like two side ponytails, and that is a sure way to keep hair corralled and off the face. Try to compromise with shoulder length hair for easier styling.
  
  If your daughter doesn't like rubber bands, opt for a short hair-do. The bob is easy for both straight and slightly curly hair and frames the face. Give hair more volume by shagging it into layers. Some girls even like spikes at the crown and hair gel stays in place all day. A good cut will ensure that the hair swings into place without extra styling.
  
  

Curly Hair

• Long curly hair is the most difficult style to maintain. Children with curly hair have an easier time if it is cut short. It takes a lot of different products to tame the curl, and curly hair is easily tangled. Curly hair can quickly mat at the back of the neck. For that reason alone, sleep on satin pillowcases. Use anti-frizz serum on towel damp hair and let it dry naturally. The beautiful part of curly hair is that you can scrunch it into place and it never looks unkempt. Remember not to brush curly hair. Just let it settle into ringlets.