Ok, so anybody interested in a "school of rock" type session for their kids...I have found an AWESOME mentor. 

 

 

He gave me the greenlight to refer him... David Hyman f/ burlington.

 

If you are interested in a group lesson at my house on Wednesdays for your kids, message me! We could do something cool...drums, bass, keyboard.  I am so happy!

 

 

Ok, so I recently signed my son up for music lessons- piano and drums.

 

 I know I am biased,  but he's really showing enormous promise and I think it very well (as I've said before) could be his "thing." Just to support my mommy-bias,  a few "real" musicians have said that my son is in fact talented. I won't say he's some sort of prodigy - that's ridiculous- but he gets in in a major way.

 

Anyway, I may have mentioned that the boys on the block (ages 8-10) want to start a band. They  they all have the same piano teacher who is helping them learn crazy train by ozzy osborne- cool right? Along with that, drum lessons are introducing my son to some basic info...plus he has a few videos and he's been watching those to get some ideas.

 

Well, I decided to expand on my son's experience...I thought he needed a mentor because he has several instruments and nobody to just play around on them with him...so I put an ad in craigslist requesting a mentor -type instructor to come to the house on a flexible basis and just hang out with my son and teach him about music- whether it's the bass one day or the keyboard another- anything goes. I want an enrichment situation vs. a straight up lesson. So, I got one response...

 

A substitute teacher guy who plays in a band, has his own record, a music degree, plays bass, guitar, keyboard, and can write & sing songs-- he totally seems awesome. I spoke to him yesterday and he is coming over for an hour today...he's going to show my son a well-rounded introduction to music. He might  play guitar and ask my son to play drums while he plays other instruments or show ds how to tune his guiars more accurately or how to play a bassline- who knows but I am glad somebody who is musically intelligent will be showing him the ropes...and the best thing? he's cheaper than drums and piano combined!

 

If you've seen school of rock, I'm hoping he's the mr. shneebly of b-town, lol.  Also, if you like this idea (and you live near burlington/williston), let me know, he might be up for more opportunities like this and I can send him your way... I'm thinking he may be helpful in the neighborhood band situation as well. :)

 

 

With the sniffles going around, I thought I'd post a family favorite. We read this poem and laugh every time. If you haven't heard it in awhile - or ever- enjoy! Then,  share it with someone who might be feeling under the weather...or at least faking it. lol

Sick by Shel Silverstein "I cannot go to school today," Said little Peggy Ann McKay. "I have the measles and the mumps, A gash, a rash and purple bumps. My mouth is wet, my throat is dry, I'm going blind in my right eye. My tonsils are as big as rocks, I've counted sixteen chicken pox And there's one more--that's seventeen, And don't you think my face looks green? My leg is cut--my eyes are blue-- It might be instamatic flu. I cough and sneeze and gasp and choke, I'm sure that my left leg is broke-- My hip hurts when I move my chin, My belly button's caving in, My back is wrenched, my ankle's sprained, My 'pendix pains each time it rains. My nose is cold, my toes are numb. I have a sliver in my thumb. My neck is stiff, my voice is weak, I hardly whisper when I speak. My tongue is filling up my mouth, I think my hair is falling out. My elbow's bent, my spine ain't straight, My temperature is one-o-eight. My brain is shrunk, I cannot hear, There is a hole inside my ear. I have a hangnail, and my heart is--what? What's that? What's that you say? You say today is. . .Saturday? G'bye, I'm going out to play!"   From Shel Silverstein: Poems and Drawings; originally appeared in Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein. Copyright © 2003 by HarperCollins Children's Books.

ok, growing up I thought moms wore make up for fun...I thought all those fineline and foundation  commercials were for optional!

 

Well, I've realized something: make-up is now a necessity. I remember my nana taking hours to apply all her creams and lotions for everything from wrinkes to under eye circles. I didn't get that she had to put that stuff on...well, now I do.

 

This morning, I wanted to run out the door to pick up my kids but I halted midway down the hall...turn around, you can't leave like that!

 

So I dash ed into the bathroom and grabbed my bottle of foundation. I can't just dot or dab anymore...I apply. I blend...I smudge...I feel like I am applying clown make-up...pasty white until I then put the faux life back into my cheeks, lips, eyes and lashes. What a difference two minutes makes!

At the beginning, I'm scary blotchy bad skin mama, then I'm lady bozo, then, I'm young looking again...wierd how that works. What's my point? I don't know - I don't even think I have one, other than the fact I realized that I'm like bozo the clown with my bottle of liquid face.. but I love make-up...it really helps.

 

tell me I am not alone...although in VT, my guess is less is more...:)

 

With all the talk about education, we all have big question marks about our own kids. I know there has been a lot of buzz about the education scene here in VT. I also know that many children do not "fit" the mold and if you feel your child may need some extra support, gifted & talented might be a place for you. I have yet to contact these people but they are on my  list because of all the issues I'm having with my son. The following characteristics of "gifted" (I think they need a better "label"- it sounds elitist...but if you have to deal with one, you know it's different!) are from the Green Mountain Center for Gifted Education  website. If you see your child's personality in the list below, there are many resources out there. This is one of those things- you can go with your gut if you feel your child needs something else, something more. I can say that because I know one child of mine does and one does not (the third I've yet to discover- although he may be a chrystal child, lol). Anyway, I say that objectively and I feel they are both smart- but one struggles so much more with intellectual issues that are beyond his control. He gets too much and can control too little...and so, if you are pulling your hair like me, try this avenue (why not?).

btw- can you tell my hubby is not home & my kids are snoozing...it's 6:30 and I am on my own! bedtime is going to be a mess tonight.

Characteristics of Giftedness

One great list of gifted characteristics is the following one, which is found on pp. 52-53 of Linda Silverman's book, Counseling the Gifted and Talented. For each intellectual characteristic listed on the left, there is a corresponding personality characteristic listed on the right. Each of these characteristics can be an incredible positive force in a gifted child's life. Many of these characteristics can also lead to problems for gifted children. (See gifteddevelopment.com for more information about Silverman's work.)

Related Intellectual and Personality Characteristics of Gifted Children

Intellectual: Exceptional reasoning ability Intellectual curiosity Rapid learning rate Facility with abstraction Complex thought processes Vivid imagination Early moral concern Passion for learning Powers of concentration Analytical thinking Divergent thinking/creativity Keen sense of justice Capacity for reflection

Personality: Insightfulness Need to understand Need for mental stimulation Perfectionism Need for precision/logic Excellent sense of humor Sensitivity/empathy Intensity Perseverance Acute self-awareness Nonconformity Questioning Tendency toward introversion

(Silverman, 1993, pp. 52-53)

ok, so after the morning sess with one counselor, I spoke to another...she suggested waldorf and asked if I had ever heard of indigo children...ok, people... anyone know anything more about indigo children?

 

my first take (I googled it today) is that indigo children are spiritually channeled children...it gets a bit new age and I wonder what I am supposed to think. she didn't give me any solid suggestions, websites or references but she said that she feels he's hypersensitive and some of his experiences / actions support that claim.  now,  my head is spinning because sprituality is really hard for me to address and I feel like a bad guide in that department...this is intense.  I have never heard of this...

 

dustbunny

 

http://www.indigochild.com/News-NYT.html

http://www.indigochild.com/Waldorf.html

 

http://www.starchild.co.za/what.html

ok, so I have an INTENSE perfectionist child. I thought the year started okay, minus one huge meltdown but no, I just spoke to the counselor and he's falling apart. this move to vermont has been a mess in many ways BUT I have no other choice and I feel like I am on trial at my son's school.  they don't call me and tell me this stuff and then they get mad at me for not contacting the teachers...I just don't know what to say.they go on about his "disturbing" behaviors such as crying all the time in school when he can't have the bird he wants for a research project or the appropriate amount of time for work or flopping around, touching everything.  they told me he has no coordination skills and that he can't even play patty-cake...ridiculous! the kid can play drums like no other 8 year old I've seen! I feel like a tool...I say gifted and they shrug it off...but it's getting more intense.

 

idealism and perfectionism are taking over his brain...

 

I'm tempted to pull him from public school and homeschool him. In fact, I could design a pretty rad curriculum for him.

 

anyway, he's been tested for ADD and referred to as gifted...but he's showing NO signs of compentency at schoolwork and they had a bad impression from the start so they don't think he's gifted, they think he's troubled.... nobody listens to me...I bring him all over and he sees counselors who he manipulates and scores treats and this and that from.

 

don't get me wrong, I am glad he has alliances but I'm just totally fed up.  he got off on the wrong foot at this school and it's only getting worse. I am in panic mode because if  we lose him in elementary, we're done-for...we won't get him back (in terms of liking school) in jr high, that's for sure!

 

anybody have any suggestions? I feel like they treat me like an idiot and this is probably the only topic I actually know what I am talking about (mostly, anyway! I have a master's in educational phsychology!!!) but communication is not working.

 

I can't help my son in his classroom... what should I do? this is one of those wierd things I can't step out of and make an objective decision or gain outsider perspective because he's my son and I have all the history of his actions ion my mind...

ok, so I was supposed to get myself into healthy mode after a weekend of calorie overload...what did I just do? sit down and inhale a huge piece of ice cream cake...why? I don't know... bad!

In response to my own post, I found this...it seems like a good chart and it allays my fears. My 2 y.o. is fine!

Two-year-olds like to be independent! Favorite words are "Mine" and "No" and "I do it!" Emotions take on a roller coaster-like quality as 2-year-olds can go from excitement to anger to laughter within a few moments. A great deal of time is spent exploring, pushing, pulling, filling, dumping, and touching.

Two-year-olds are surer of themselves and of what they can do as they grow. Their bodies stretch out, and most will lose the potbellied look during this third year of life. Their appetites lessen, and they may be particular about food. They are still growing fairly rapidly.

Toddlers are very attached to their caregivers. You may find them trying out new ideas and exploring their surroundings, but still staying close to you as they need a base of support and trust. Two-year-olds are usually interested in other children. However, social interest and physical abilities sometimes collide as a hug becomes a tackle and a gentle pat becomes a whack. You will need to teach children how to express affection appropriately.

SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT plays alongside others more than with them acts shy around strangers likes to imitate parents easily frustrated affectionate - hugs and kisses insists on trying to do several tasks without help enjoys simple make-believe like talking on phone, putting on hat very possessive - offers toys to other children but then wants them back needs considerable time to change activities capable of frequent tantrums, which are often a result of his inability to express himself even though he has ideas can show aggressive behavior and the intent to hurt others can be extremely demanding and persistent destructive to objects around him when frustrated and angry possessive about caregiver's attention; show feelings of jealousy has fears and nightmares has sense of humor; capable of laughter shows interest in dressing, brushing hair and teeth cannot sit still or play with a toy for more than a few minutes

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT weight: 22-38 pounds height: 32-40 inches has almost a full set of teeth walks up and down stairs by holding onto railing feeds self with spoon experiments by touching, smelling, and tasting likes to push, pull, fill, and dump can turn pages of a book stacks 4-6 objects scribbles vigorously with crayons or markers many children (but not all) will learn to use toilet walks without help walks backwards tosses or rolls a large ball stoops or squats opens cabinets, drawers can bend over to pick up toy without falling

INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT enjoys simple stories, rhymes, and songs uses 2-3 word sentences says names of toys hums or tries to sing enjoys looking at books points to eyes, ears, or nose when asked repeats words interested in learning how to use common items

IDEAS FOR CAREGIVERS

• Baby-proof your house again. Two-year-olds are taller and more skillful at opening doors and getting into mischief.
  
• Read aloud to children every day. Encourage toddlers to look at books with large pictures and sturdy pages. Simple story lines are best.
  
• Try to expand a 2-year-old's knowledge of words and sentence structure. Let her hear the correct word order, but don't demand that she imitate you. For example, if she says "more juice," say "Anna wants more orange juice."
  
• Encourage them to identify noises like vacuum, tap water, dogs barking, thunder, airplane, and car.
  
• Let toddlers help you with simple chores such as picking up toys or putting clothes in the laundry basket. Encourage them to name things that you are using.
  
• Add new information to what a child is saying. "Yes that's a blanket, a soft, warm blanket."
  
• Give toddlers clear and simple choices. "Do you want to drink milk or juice? Do you want to wear green or blue socks?"
  
• Know how to handle a temper tantrum:
  1. don't yell or hit the child,
  2. remain calm,
  3. talk in soothing tone,
  4. put your hand gently on child's arm if possible.
  
• Provide newspaper, flattened grocery sacks, and computer scraps for drawing and painting. Color books, workbooks, and ditto sheets are not recommended.
  
• Avoid making models of clay or drawing pictures for children to copy. They learn more by working out their own ideas, and adult-induced items can actually hinder learning.
  
• Do not expect toddlers to share or take turns. Right now they are focused on learning how to physically handle themselves and on learning to talk. Learning to share will come later.
  
• Provide spaces where toddlers can spend time alone. An old cardboard box or a blanket over a card table works great.
  
• Avoid pressuring children to be right or left handed. A few 2-year- olds will begin to show preference for one hand, but many children will continue to use both hands for a few years.
• Provide safe outlets for physical activity and space exploration like small steps, boxes, barrels, tires, pulling and pushing toys, ride-on and ride-in toys.
  
• Provide opportunities for learning about cause and effect by giving toddlers many opportunities to fill, dump, collect, gather, give, hide, and seek.
  
• Play "parade" or "follow the leader." Sing sequential songs like "Old MacDonald" to explain sequences.
  
• Encourage verbal skills by giving simple directions like "Close the door, please" or "Would you pick up the doll?"
  
• Encourage a toddler's love for imitation by teaching fingerplays and songs. Play "you are a mirror." Stand or sit facing the children and have them copy everything you do. Reverse roles and let the child lead while you mirror the actions.
  
• Encourage sand, mud, clay, and water play. Toddlers enjoy messy play and learn a great deal from mixing, sifting, pouring, stirring, and shaping.
  

Lesia Oesterreich, M.S.
Family Life Extension Specialist
Human Development and Family Studies
Iowa State University

Copyright/Access Information

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DOCUMENT USE/COPYRIGHT
National Network for Child Care - NNCC. Part of CYFERNET, the National Extension Service Children Youth and Family Educational Research Network. Permission is granted to reproduce these materials in whole or in part for educational purposes only(not for profit beyond the cost of reproduction) provided that the author and Network receive acknowledgment and this notice is included:

ok. hi everyone! I am back from Maine.

 

I went to a beautiful-straight-out-of-a-jcrew/banana republic -catalog wedding. Classic Kennedy vibe meets Maine meets artsy urban intellectuals. The ceremony was inside an old barn perched on a hillside overlooking the water (by a golf course). Everything inside was whitewashed and small, white votives flickered adding simple, romantic ambiance.

 

The wedding  colors were (relatively) casual black and white with a grass green (maybe darker, but not much) accent color.  At the reception, they had wildflowers on every table in eclectic vintage-style vases and bottles. It was amazing- probably my favorite floral arrangements to date...anyway,  it was just perfect except my camera felt free to not work  and it was freezing but otherwise, beautiful. I'd recommend bar harbor to anyone who's  never considered maine a destination location...it was a great experience. We took a whale watch cruise (brrrr....) & we saw seals & dolphin- no whales though.  Oh well.

 

Anyway, we didn't get back until late last night, my house is upside down, I am behind in my work and I'm old now (it was my 30th birthday). Anyway, I feel pretty wierd- my baby turned two and my life's in a new phase- I just don't know what the hell to do with myself...oh well, I'll start with unloading the dishes. peace out. -db

 

I'll load pics when my friends , including sullysmama- whoop-whoop, shout out!, send them to me - oh and we partied like rockstars (wimpy ones)- we even had a jumping off a deck injury after an open bar reception! No worries, though, it was not me or sullysmama so it's all good.

oh my friends at mybaby...I just need to tell you how tired I am...

 

I was supposed to get work done last night- did I? No, old friends came over with wine (yes, on a monday b/c I am turning 3-0 this weekend and I won't be here!) and things got carried away and we watched the entire VMA awards - fully commentating every act (rewinding and all, it was DVRd)- and then, it was around midnight and they left and I went to bed...and then I woke up. at 3:30 and realized I had a lot of stuff to do.

 

SO (I have never done this before) I got up, made coffee and fried up some french toast. I worked from 4:00- 7:00, finished a piece of work, sent my son off to school and went back to the computer. I've been in half mode all day...it's hitting me right...about...now.

 

if you can stomach teen angst...this movie is flipping hysterical.

 

vulgar, I'll admit (in my old age and motherly opinion)...but really friggin funny.

 

grade: A!

 

well done, excellent effort at capturing those illegal, panic inducing moments of teenage distress PLUS the fantasy element...very creative (as in,  if cops really acted like that in high school...rad). supertroopers meets american pie meets I don't even know where I'm going with this...

 

 

http://www.apple.com/trailers/sony_pictures/superbad/medium.html

 

 

 

watch it.  start the buzz. 

IRONMAN.

my neighbor co-wrote the screenplay for this $150 million dollar movie.  send the trailer around...the more people who get out there to see it, the better my block party next spring. kidding. not.

 

http://www.apple.com/trailers/paramount/ironman/medium_trailer.html

Hyper Kids? Cut Out Preservatives

Parents who suspect that artificial ingredients in food are affecting their children's behavior can now point to some cold, hard proof. A carefully designed study released Thursday in The Lancet, a leading British medical journal, shows that a variety of common food dyes and the preservative sodium benzoate — an ingredient in many soft drinks, fruit juices, salad dressings and other foods — causes some children to become more hyperactive and distractible than usual.

"In terms of a question that's been raging for years, it's the best study to date — an extremely good study," says Dr. Philip Shaw, a research psychiatrist in the Child Psychiatry branch of the National Institute of Mental Health.

The study prompted Britain's Food Standards Agency to issue an immediate advisory to parents to limit their children's intake of additives if they notice an effect on behavior. In the U.S., there's been no such official response, but doctors say it makes sense for parents to be on the alert.

Meanwhile, the food industry is awaiting further research. "We take our responsibility to consumers seriously and will study the research finding in great detail," says Cathy Cook, spokesperson for the International Association of Color Manufacturers.

The research, led by Jim Stevenson, a professor of psychology at England's University of Southampton, involved about 300 children in two age groups: 3-year-olds and 8- and 9-year-olds. Over three one-week periods, the children were randomly assigned to consume one of three fruit drinks daily: one contained the amount of dye and sodium benzoate typically found in a British child's diet, a second drink had a lower concentration of the additives, and a third was additive-free. All the children spent a week drinking each of the three mixtures, which looked and tasted alike. During each weeklong period, teachers and parents, who did not know which drink the kids were getting, used a variety of standardized behavior-evaluation tools — some observational and one computer-based — to size up such qualities as restlessness, lack of concentration, fidgeting, and talking or interrupting too much.

Stevenson found that children in both age groups were significantly more hyperactive when drinking the stuff containing additives. Three-year-olds had a bigger response than the older kids to the lower dose of additives — roughly the same amount of food coloring as in two 2-oz. bags of candy. And, there were big individual differences in sensitivity. While the effects were not nearly so great as to cause full-blown ADHD, Stevenson nonetheless warns that "these adverse effects could affect the child's ability to benefit from the experience of school."

He notes that a separate pilot study found that kids can become more hyperactive within one hour of consuming food additives.

The Lancet study is the first to nail down a link between artificial ingredients and hyperactivity, though the connection has long been suspected and was the basis for the Feingold Diet, which eliminates all artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners and preservatives and was popularized in the 1970s as a treatment for ADHD. Though such a diet alone is not a proven treatment for ADHD, some clinicians routinely advise parents of kids with ADHD to stick with a more natural diet." I'm not maniacal about it, but I tell parents that your kid will do better if they are on a diet that is free of additives and junk food," says psychiatrist Edward Hallowell, author a several books on ADHD. "I urge them to eat whole foods; they'll be healthier anyway."

Now that a link has been found, researchers will be looking to confirm the British study and build upon it. "My guess is that if we do similarly systematic work with other additives, we'd learn they, too, have implications for behavior," says Dr. James Perrin, professor of pediatrics at Harvard. "My friends who study the food industry say we have about 70,000 new products a year, so children are facing tremendous numbers of new opportunities for things that may not be good for them." The study, he says, is one more reason to cheer the movement toward organic and natural foods.

• Find this article at:
• http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1659835,00.html

This site, which usually requires a fee, is open to the public until Sept 15. Everything from trends, issues, jobs to school choice and more. Check it:

http://www.edweek.org/ew/index.html

 

(from my inbox)

Dear Educator:

 

Now that summer is over, edweek.org is having an Open House to kick off the new school year!  You are invited to come in and take a look around.  You'll find everything you need to be up to speed on K-12 news, policy changes, commentary, analysis and more.

 

Our doors are wide open from September 5 through September 15.  That means you'll have full access to everything our premium subscribers see daily!

 

Here are some of the most popular articles read by your colleagues this summer.  Now is your chance to read them, too:

• Reading Curricula Don't Make Cut For Federal Review - By Kathleen Kennedy Manzo
• Learning and Earning - By Christopher B. Swanson
• Teachers Say That NCLB Has Changed Classroom Practice - By Debra Viadero
• Teaching Secrets: Students Behave When Teachers Engage - By Anthony Cody

• Plus, you can do research using our archives, review our special reports, and get all of the current news.

 

There is so much to see – all for free – and only 10 days to see it.  So hurry!

 

If you run out of time, you can still enjoy free access to edweek.org and Education Week by starting a free trial subscription.  Click here to start your free trial of print and online access: www.edweek.org/go/4weektrial.

 

Enjoy your free access, and welcome back to the 2007-2008 school year.

 

Best regards,

 

Virginia B. Edwards

Editor and Publisher

 

P.S.  Pass the word along about this Back-To-School Open House to your colleagues!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.edweek.org/ew/index.html

ok, so I'm a bad mommy but, on the eve of my two youngsters' first day of preschool I went out for dinner. 

 

that meant no bath, no clean new outfits, no matching slippers (btw, I have 5 different unmatched slippers!), no goodnight story or new bedtime routine.

 

With a third grader ill with a (low grade) temp, I went out for sushi.  I just left and when I returned at 10:00 the baby was still awake and my 8yo was still lying on the couch. You know what? we all survived.

 

I even managed to get them dressed and out the door despite a mild sake and vodka hangover...oh well. everyone's doing alright and tomorrow is another day! maybe I'll even get a load of wash done so they have clean pants for their second morning of preschool.

 

peace out. db

 

ok, so today is my anniversary...babysitter called in with a fever and my son's school called in - my son has a fever as well...there goes my sushi dinner. maybe we'll just do take out. i have aback up sitter but we'll see how that goes.

 

anyway, cheers to eight years of sheer bliss, roses, champagne, chocolate, fancy dinners, sweet nothings, expensive clothing, sparkling jewelry, international jet-setting, sleeping in, love songs & love letters, date nights and so much more...

oh wait, that was jude law and cameron diaz in that movie I watched last night...I thought that was my life, is it not?

 

it's not?

 

oh.... well, I love husband anyway.