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If we want children to thrive in our complicated world, we need to teach them how to think, says educator Brian Oshiro. And we can do it with 4 simple questions.
This post is part of TED's "How to Be a Better Human" series, each of which contains a piece of helpful advice from someone in the TED community; browse through all the posts here.
We all want the young people in our lives to thrive, but there's no clear consensus about what will best put them on the path to future success. Should every child be taught to code? Attain fluency in Mandarin, Spanish, Hindi and English?

Those are great, but they're not enough, says educator and teacher trainer Brian Oshiro. If we want our children to have flexible minds that can readily absorb new information and respond to complex problems, he says, we need to develop their critical thinking skills.

In adult life, "we all have to deal with questions that are a lot more complicated than those found on a multiple-choice test," he says in a TEDxXiguan talk. "We need to give students an opportunity to grapple with questions that don't necessarily have one correct answer. This is more realistic of the types of situations that they're likely to face when they get outside the classroom."

How can we encourage kids to think critically from an early age? Through an activity that every child is already an expert at - asking questions.

1. Go beyond "what?" - and ask "how?" and "why?"

Let's say your child is learning about climate change in school. Their teacher may ask them a question like "What are the main causes of climate change?" Oshiro says there are two problems with this question - it can be answered with a quick web search, and being able to answer it gives people a false sense of security; it makes them feel like they know a topic, but their knowledge is superficial.

At home, prompt your kid to answer questions such as " How exactly does X cause climate change?" and " Why should we worry about it?" To answer, they'll need to go beyond the bare facts and really think about a subject.

Other great questions: " How will climate change affect where we live?" or " Why should our town in particular worry about climate change?" Localizing questions gives kids, says Oshiro, "an opportunity to connect whatever knowledge they have to something personal in their lives."

2. Follow it up with "How do you know this?"

Oshiro says, "They have to provide some sort of evidence and be able to defend their answer against some logical attack." Answering this question requires kids to reflect on their previous statements and assess where they're getting their information from.

3. Prompt them to think about how their perspective may differ from other people's.

Ask a question like "How will climate change affect people living in X country or X city?" or "Why should people living in X country or X city worry about it?" Kids will be pushed to think about the priorities and concerns of others, says Oshiro, and to try to understand their perspectives - essential elements of creative problem-solving.

4. Finally, ask them how to solve this problem.

But be sure to focus the question. For example, rather than ask "How can we solve climate change?" - which is too big for anyone to wrap their mind around - ask "How could we address and solve cause X of climate change?" Answering this question will require kids to synthesize their knowledge. Nudge them to come up with a variety of approaches: What scientific solution could address cause X? What's a financial solution? Political solution?

You can start this project any time on any topic; you don't have to be an expert on what your kids are studying. This is about teaching them to think for themselves. Your role is to direct their questions, listen and respond. Meanwhile, your kids "have to think about how they're going to put this into digestible pieces for you to understand it," says Oshiro. "It's a great way to consolidate learning."

Critical thinking isn't just for the young, of course. He says, "If you're a lifelong learner, ask yourself these types of questions in order to test your assumptions about what you think you already know." As he adds, "We can all improve and support critical thinking by asking a few extra questions each day."
Watch his TEDxXiguan talk now:

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Critical thinking is a 21st-century essential - here's how to help kids learn it

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This post is part of TED's "How to Be a Better Human" series, each of which contains a piece of helpful advice from someone in the TED community; browse through all the posts here. We all want the young people in our lives to thrive, but there's no clear consensus about what will best put them on the path to future success.

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Here is a little video or Elza testing her ramp!

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Our last baking session! Thank you to all o you that participated!  Will be posting all the recipe we made during this two months!

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Our last baking session! Thank you to all o you that participated!  Will be posting all the recipe we made during this two months!

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Brachiosaurus and rollercoasters by Kai Soneji.

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We read this lovely story about things that move, roll, stop, push, pull. We learned about: force, motion, friction and gravity!

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We read this lovely story about things that move, roll, stop, push, pull. We learned about: force, motion, friction and gravity!

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Kai and Melissa set up a marble run! They tested out small marble vs. bouncy plastic ball... Which one bounce faster? which one will go the farthest? 

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Kai and Melissa set up a marble run! They tested out small marble vs. bouncy plastic ball... Which one bounce faster? which one will go the farthest? 

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Camila joins on week two and starts to test her cardboard ramp. 

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Camila joins on week two and starts to test her cardboard ramp. 

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Take a quick look of what we hava been doing on our Thursday zoom sessions #rampsandrollers

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Take a quick look of what we hava been doing on our Thursday zoom sessions #rampsandrollers

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This link will take you to google slides

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Asa was fascinated by the sounds these marbles made when they hit the wood blocks, he called it an instrument!

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NOW that we know what rolls,  HOW can we change our ramps?

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This week we start a new idea!

What can you find that rolls?

We are meeting this morning 9:45 and 3:00 p.m. via zoom to play around with the prompt join us! sign up here
We will share a book by Geoff Waring Oscar and the Cricket about moving and rolling, have time to brainstorm, figure what rolls and explore.

Please bring some cardboard to make a slope, building blocks, books and other objects

( balls, lemon, cans, race card) to test it out!

https://vimeo.com/438653882

I hope this inspires you to try out rolling!

Share what you make or discover in our Gatitos padlet

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And for the first time in two years the chicken let me pick her up and hold her!
We will deeply miss everyone at MK, including the animals!!

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My 3-year-old son has an inexplicable fondness for the whisk. And we are pros, my son and I, at making blueberry and chocolate muffins and spooning out cookie batter.

But when it comes to leafy greens or butternut squash, my son gets bored. He starts whining or throwing things or yelling at his baby sister. That's because he's not allowed to use a knife. And without having helped prepare them, he's not so inclined to eat those beautiful vegetables either.

Many agree with my general stance that equipping a child with a knife to help out in the kitchen sounds like a recipe for wounds and lost appendages. Both my mother and mother-in-law recoiled when I suggested letting my son try his hand at chopping. Yet research, and the experience of educators, suggest that parents such as me would be wise to hand a tot a knife.

As part of the practical skills curriculum at Montessori schools, children as young as 18 months old are given a butter or jam knife for spreading condiments. Then they move on to chopping soft fruits like bananas. Eventually the child graduates to a serrated knife. (Supersharp chef knives are not part of the program.)

The process is slow and supervised. "Kids are shown early on, even when they're using the butter knife to cut the banana, how to hold the handle, where to put the other hand, how to stabilize the banana," says Anna Perry, executive director of Seton Montessori Institute and Schools in the Chicago area.

Giving young children knives is a small component of Montessori education, Perry says, but it complements the central philosophy of fostering independence. "This drive to 'do it myself' - we're squashing as a society," says Perry.

From a health and nutrition standpoint, studies have shown that getting kids cooking makes them more open to eating healthful foods, such as fruits and vegetables. With picky eating peaking between the ages of 2 and 6 - and my son is no exception - I've been hoping that letting him interact with his food in a meaningful way may reduce struggles at the dinner table. Both the Mayo Clinic and the American Heart Association suggest that getting kids involved with grocery shopping and food prep can reduce picky eating.

There's also an evolutionary argument for allowing children to learn how to cut their food themselves. A child's world, David Lancy, an anthropologist at Utah State University in Logan and author of The Anthropology of Childhood, tells me, used to be filled with tools, such as hammers, rakes, mortars, pestles and machetes to break open foods like coconuts.

Nowadays, though, the only real tools many kids use on a daily basis are spoons and forks. In an article titled "Playing with Knives" to appear later this year in the journal Child Development, Lancy writes that contemporary parental overprotectiveness is linked to rising incomes and declining family size, factors that have turned children into "precious treasures rather than future helpers."

Historically, it appears that humans not only gave the littlest members of society access to tools but also let them sort out the danger for themselves. Even now, in many communities around the world, young children still have access to sharp tools.

For instance, Lancy recounts the experience of a colleague working in the Amazon rain forest: A Piraha child "was playing with a sharp kitchen knife, about 9 inches in length. He was swinging the knife blade around him, often coming close to his eyes, his chest, his arm and other body parts. When he dropped the knife, his mother - talking to someone else - reached backward nonchalantly without interrupting her conversation, picked up the knife and handed it back to the toddler."

And he describes how another colleague observing the Aka, a group of forest foragers in Central Africa, heard from a parent there: "I don't like it when our children play with machetes, but if the baby decides to play, I leave it. And if the baby cuts themselves and if they see the blood, they themselves will decide not to play with the machete."

Lancy says that this laissez-faire approach to parenting has several explanations, among them parents' unwillingness to impose their will on another, even a child, and the belief that children must learn through exploration, regardless of the risks.

Here in the U.S, parents don't seem to be denying kids access to knives entirely but rather delaying it. A perusal of cooking classes for kids online, for instance, shows that the earliest knives are allowed in the kitchen is around age 7.

Yet Lancy and others argue that delaying knife use until then hinders the child's natural development and inhibits curiosity. It's akin to delaying potty training until elementary school, says Elizabeth Norman, director of advancement at Brickton Montessori School in Chicago. "You're creating a dependency that's not needed," Norman says. "Why would you do that to a child?"

Michelle Stern, author of The Whole Family Cookbook, says small children can wield other kitchen tools safely, too. Toddlers can use peelers to create ribbons of zucchini, though Stern notes that peelers are less safe than knives. Kids can also take on a hand-powered food chopper to dice onions. "I don't think a child can feel more proud than when you hand them a grown-up instrument to use," Stern says, adding that adults should make sure the kids always understand how to hold the food to be chopped.

I gave the matter a lot of thought. And finally, I had my 3-year-old help me cut some squash with a serrated knife. He still has 10 fingers. I've decided not to give the baby a machete just yet.

Sujata Gupta is a freelance science writer based in Burlington, Vt. Her work has appeared online and in print in the New Yorker, BBC, NovaNext, Scientific American and others. Follow her on Twitter @sujatagupta

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Go Ahead, Give Your Toddler A Kitchen Knife

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My 3-year-old son has an inexplicable fondness for the whisk. And we are pros, my son and I, at making blueberry and chocolate muffins and spooning out cookie batter. But when it comes to leafy greens or butternut squash, my son gets bored. He starts whining or throwing things or yelling at his baby sister.

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Green magnatiles and flashlights turn Kilolani into Hulk!

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Green magnatiles and flashlights turn Kilolani into Hulk!

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Kilolani brings Daniel Tiger to life with shadows! 

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Kilolani brings Daniel Tiger to life with shadows! 

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Thank you for entertaining Kilolani’s obsession with chocolate everything these days! We topped it off with fresh whipped cream and strawberries!

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We stopped by to trim guinea’s nails over the weekend and to say we have missed these little guys is an understatement!

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Thank you for letting me join and explore with you all today! Here is one exploration: https://www.instagram.com/p/CCtrzptBwyB/?igshid=mm1jmv2ejlb5

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El paseo de Rosie : Hutchins, Pat, 1942- : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

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Shane listens and watches teacher Olga read La Sombra del Oso via loom.  You can listen to Bear Shadow translated to Spanish on parents resources column.

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Fun Friday Read Aloud, Episode 1: "The Grouchy Ladybug" by Eric Carle

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Kilolani explores movement. Standing closer and further from the SUN made a difference in shape and size.

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Kilolani captures mom and dad!

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We asked Kilolani if a flashlight made our shadows. Nooooo!!! And then we explored the meaning of light source, and how the magnificent SUN is making our shadows.

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Kilolani loves to take pictures—including shadows of his Angel

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Kilolani using the sun to find our shadows

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Kilolani using the sun to find our shadows

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Cataleya playing with her shadow! Join us tomorrow for more explorations with shadows and light!

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It’s amazing to see these wonderful shadow explorations! We are using the hashtag #BlockBendBounce on social media to share these! Would love to have any and all join!

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Calling all kids, families and educators! We're exploring light and shadow for the next few weeks. Share what you make or discover with us using the hashtag #BlockBendBounce. . 號召所有兒童，家庭和教育工作者！我們將在接下來的幾週探索光與影的奧秘。 使用主題標籤 #BlockBendBounce 與我們分享您的創作或發現。 . ¡Llamando a todos los niños, familias y educadores! Vamos a explorar luces y sombras durante las próximas semanas. Compartan lo que hagas o descubras con nosotros usando el hashtag #BlockBendBounce.

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Gatitos classroom always had the best and most beautiful meal times!

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Gatitos classroom always had the best and most beautiful meal times!

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Kids taking turns to decided if we go to Coronado or Niños Unidos!

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Jugar al aire libre en días soleados ofrece muchas oportunidades para que tu niño explore la luz y la sombra. Anímalo a que descubra su sombra. ¿La tiene en frente o detrás? ¿Puede alejarse de su sombra? Únete al juego y que vea cómo sus sombras interactúan entre ellas. Traten de que sus sombras se toquen o tomen de la mano. ¿Pueden hacer que sus sombras se conviertan en una sola?

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Playing with Shadows today! #Blockbendbounce @tinkeringstudio 

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Playing with Shadows today! #Blockbendbounce @tinkeringstudio 

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Ori had a great time after circle

out in the yard. I think it was easier for him to manipulate objects when he didn’t have to handle the flashlight AND an object.  I traced his shadow, then he traced mine. We traced the shadow of a flower in our yard. We also looked at the shadow from some things we had out in our yard. Thank Maggie (Ori's Mom) for sharing this picture!

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Keep exploring and then share back. Best to build a fort, work under the table, or in a dark room.

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Quick read about how to negotiate the use of technology with kids. 

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Quick read about how to negotiate the use of technology with kids. 

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Nir's Note: This interview with my good friends Vanessa Van Edwards first appeared on her blog, Science of People. She did such a great job summarizing our interview that I wanted to share it with my readers as well. Check out Vanessa's site and let me know what you think of this article on raising indistractable kids in the comments section at the bottom.

One of the best gifts we can give our children is the gift of focus. When kids know how to focus their attention they are...

Protected against distractions

Can better control their time

Focus on what matters

There are a lot of things that are simply not true about distracted kids. Starting with possibly the most common one...

Myth #1: Technology melts kids' brains

This is definitely not a new myth. Our parents- and even our grandparents- have been talking about how Super Mario, metal music, radio, and even MTV are causing kids to lose their minds.

What does the science say? 2 hours a day of TV, video games, or whatever your kid likes to do is perfectly fine...as long as it is purposeful (more on that below)!

So it's not technology itself per se, but too much technology (like too much of anything!) and the wrong kind of technology that really hurts us.

Myth #2: Sugar makes you hyper

I heard this at every birthday part I ever attended, "You have a sugar rush!" It turns out sugar rushes are a complete myth.

In fact, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics says this myth all started back in the mid 1970's when a doctor took away the sugar from a single child's diet, and that child's behavior improved. However, dozens of follow-up studies have tried to replicate this result and none have succeeded.

But here's the really surprising part: Nir shared a study that found the only people who experienced any change in behavior were the parents themselves.

Here's what happened:

Researchers told parents their kids ate sugar (they didn't).

They asked the parents to observe their kids' behavior.

The result? The parents were frantic and apologized for their kids' wild behavior! In other words, parents' perceptions of their children's behavior changed, even if their child was acting completely normal!

Classic placebo effect at its finest.

Psychological Vitamins: The 3 Things Our Children Are Missing

Let's answer the question we've been waiting on: Why do kids use so much technology nowadays?

Nir mentioned a theory called the Needs Displacement Hypothesis. In short, when we don't get our needs met in-person, we look elsewhere: technology.

No friends? Make digital friends. Too stressed from school? Watch TV. Not enough play time? Play a video game!

But what exactly are the needs our children are missing?

There are only 3: competency, autonomy, and relatedness. Nir calls these needs Psychological Vitamins.

Around the time of the first iPhone boom (circa 2007/2008), there came an increase in standardized testing and after that, programs like No Child Left Behind and Common Core were started.

Research from the University of Virginia even shows that kindergarten teachers, compared to 15 years ago, spend much more time teaching academics rather than play and art. Some children are even tested 3 to 4 times a year!

The big problem? These tests and programs can make kids feel like they are incompetent. Anyone who scores below average (50% of all kids!) are told they are not competent enough. Thus, they turn to Roblox or Minecraft to feel like they can achieve something. According to Concordia University, some games can even set expectations that successfully mirror the same sorts of social expectations we can find in real life!

Autonomy is when a child feels they can make their own decisions. In fact, we are in one of the most regulated and controlled times in all of history, making our kids the opposite of autonomous- dependent. There is very little free play for most kids today.

Nir mentions that there are only 2 places where we are so dependent on rules and regulation: school and prison.

The truth is, when kids come home, they want to run around and laugh and play. But we have taken free play away because we are afraid of 'stranger danger' and child abductions.

"Since about 1955 ... children's free play has been continually declining, at least partly because adults have exerted ever-increasing control over children's activities" - Dr. Peter Gray

Kids need friends and people to care about them, and they also need to care about others. So when they don't get their relatedness vitamin, they go online to bridge that longing for connection.

Technology in this case serves as an alternate means to connect. TV shows let kids feel like they connect to their favorite characters, video games allow kids to make friends in the digital world, and books transport kids into an alternate world where they feel empathy for the characters.

The bottom line: Technology is the symptom, not the cause. It's not necessarily bad, as it can offer an alternative to the 3 vitamins kids are lacking. It's only when technology is the biggest source of competency, autonomy, or relatedness that technology actually becomes a problem.

How Do We Raise Indistractable Kids?

Here are the top 7 tips to raise kids that know how to focus and are distraction-free.

#1: Leverage technology for free play

The greatest gift for children's wellbeing, according to Nir, is to let them play. More specifically, let them free play.
What is free play?
According to Dr. Gray, free play is play a child undertakes him-or her-self and is self-directed and an end in itself, rather than part of some organized activity.

Essentially, free play is letting kids play freely with their peers without the watchful eyes of parents, teachers, and coaches.

Free play lets kids learn their "place" in the world. It's the magical time where kids learn how the world works and that the world doesn't revolve around them. And it's especially important to do all this without the watchful eye of teachers because kids need to find out what's right and wrong on their own.

Nowadays, time for play is at an all-time low. Today, you don't hear kids playing around the neighborhood. Today, kids don't have an opportunity to go to the park and run around without being protected and monitored 24/7.

But here's the silver lining: we can use technology to create free play.

For example, Nir's daughter, Jasmine, has been homeschooled for years now. They use online software like Zoom to play cards with her friends, make time for chitchat, and play!

Essentially, Jasmine has easier access to free play by using the right technology.

#2: Filter for creation vs consuming content

Nir compared technology to swimming pools. Swimming pools are dangerous, and thousands of people drown in them every year. Yet we continue to use them, and we teach our kids how to swim. While dangerous, they are also wonderful for exercise and play.

Technology can also be both dangerous and wonderful. Like a pool, we need to make sure the technology our kids are using is safe and beneficial. All tech should be screened for helpful content-ideally that promotes the 3 vitamins.

Creation content are videos, books, and TV that teaches skills, educates, or provides valuable information. Ideally, this is age-appropriate for the child (ie. not too difficult and not too easy, but just slightly challenging). Here are some examples:

Should we eliminate all consuming content from our children's technology diet? I'll answer that in my next point...

#3: Make time for traction

Traction is any action that pulls us toward what we want to do. These actions are done with intent.

Distraction, on the other hand, is any action that pulls us away from what we want to do.

If your child wants to play video games, 2 hours or less is fine as long as it's scheduled and meaningful. However, playing video games to escape from their responsibilities is a distraction.

Do you see the difference? Technology is perfectly fine as long as it's purposeful.

Scheduled time allows us to take control of our time.

But we can't just impose a schedule on our kids- or ourselves, for that matter- because of a little psychological theory called Reactance Theory.
What is Reactance Theory?
This behavioral model states that when a person experiences a loss in their freedom, they will react with anxiety and distress. They may even react by performing the opposite action than their desired behavior.

What is Reactance Theory?

This behavioral model states that when a person experiences a loss in their freedom, they will react with anxiety and distress. They may even react by performing the opposite action than their desired behavior.

If we enforce a schedule on a child, the child may ignore that schedule completely and watch TV all day.

So what can we do so our child has scheduled technology time? First, don't impose a schedule on them. Second, come up with a schedule together.

Here's how Nir did it when Jasmine was just 5 years old:

Jasmine's favorite phrase at the time was "iPad time".

Nir wanted to fix this, so he sat down with his daughter one-on-one.

Nir told Jasmine that technology comes with an opportunity cost- a missed opportunity to play with him and her mom, read a book, or engage in other activities.

He asked her how much time she would like to spend a day on her iPad.

The result? Jasmine asked for 45 minutes a day. Just 45 minutes!

What if your own kid asks for more time? You might just have to learn how to negotiate better!

How do you hold your child accountable for keeping on schedule? Here are a few ideas:

Set a kitchen timer.

Use Alexa / Google Home to set a timer. (Maybe even have your child set this!)

Use the built-in timer or Screen Time on your phone or iPad.

But the most important thing here is to let your kid do it him- or her-self.

You cannot put in hard rules for your child to follow- this creates 'little cheaters' in the long run. Instead, teach them to set the timer on their own and follow it.

But the most important thing here is that you have to set your own timer. Nir calls this the 'hypocrisy antenna' and they are built-in to all kids. Essentially, they can sniff out when someone is being a hypocrite, so you can't just tell them to be accountable and not be accountable for your own time.

Pro tip: Try verbalizing your own time schedule around your kids. For example, if you really want to browse Instagram some more but need to make time to spend with the family, say this out loud. Kids will pick up on this!

#5: Synchronize your schedules

Every Sunday night, Nir sits down with his wife and they take a look at their schedules. They used to fight about household responsibilities, but with schedule syncing, no more arguments!

Try doing the same with your family. Sync schedules with your family members so everyone knows who's busy and when.

Side note: Don't interrupt your child during his / her technology time, either. That's the last thing they want!

#6: Pull back on external triggers

External triggers are all the outside forces that distract us and pull us away from our goal, such as phone notifications and TV.

And we are all slaves to external triggers, unless we consciously decide to control them.

For example, when I have free time in the evening, I often wait for someone to call or see if there's anything new trending on Netflix. These are all external triggers that can pull me in any which direction. This means I am not in control of my own time.

I have removed all technology before bed. Try this with your kids and identify their own external triggers. This will let you know what is pulling your child towards distraction.

Teaching your kids how to handle their own external triggers is one of the best skills you can give them.

This is the step that has to come last, after everything else is in place. An effort pact is something that creates 'glue' between a child and something that they don't want to do.

In other words, you need to create a way for your child to know how to be focused on their task at hand, like doing homework.

Here's an idea: use an app called Forest. This app lets you set a timer, and when you hit the 'Start' button, a tree is planted! But the thing is, if you pick up the phone, the tree dies. Essentially, this lets your child go through a productive, focused session of work.

Bonus tip: Wear a concentration crown

Now that we know how to keep our kids indistractable, how do we keep them from distracting us during times of focused work? Nir came up with the fabulous idea of a concentration crown.

Every time you want to be focused put on the most ridiculous hat you own- like a pirate hat or one with elf ears. This signals to others that you should not be disturbed! (Eventually it will start getting you in the zone faster too).

Once you set the ground rules that anyone wearing this crown cannot be disturbed, you'll have your own little safe haven for focused work sessions, and no more trouble focusing!

In the end, technology can absolutely create a more focused, smarter, and more productive child. It all comes down to how you use it to your advantage.

Did you learn something new in this session? Leave a comment below!

And be sure to check out Nir's free 80-page workbook filled with exercises and his book, Indistractible, to take control of your life and master your distractions!

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How to Raise Distraction Free Kids - Nir & Far

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Nir's Note: This interview with my good friends Vanessa Van Edwards first appeared on her blog, Science of People. She did such a great job summarizing our interview that I wanted to share it with my readers as well.

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I hope you can keep exploring the shadows at home using your flashlight or natural light really and using cool things around the house to create shadows. Please send me your pictures of the shadows or if you create your shadow story send it my way.

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We bake galettes this week!

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Happy Birthday teacher Lucy!

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Hola Gatitos!
Espero que disfruten de esta historia tan entretenida de este oso que se encontro con su sombra en un dia de verano.

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Draw Me Safe: Coloring and Conversation about a Pandemic

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Draw Me Safe: Coloring and Conversation about a Pandemic

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Tuesday 08/03 To 08/07

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Summer Session Sign up: Gatitos, Conejitos, and Mariquitas!

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Ezra's learning to ride a pedal bike from by big sister Maya

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Ezra's learning to ride a pedal bike from by big sister Maya

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Roscoe trying to figure out where the reading loft is...

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Roscoe trying to figure out where the reading loft is...

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Roscoe and Shyla walking by the new MK forever home 969 Treat!

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Hello to Cayetana, Lola, Gaspare, and Caliope!!!

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Be An Antiracist. - San Francisco Public Library

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Be An Antiracist. by SFPL_ReadersAdvisory - a staff-created list : A collection of SFPL titles about racism, #BlackLivesMatter and pervasiveness of white supremacy.

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Feliz Cumpleaños 🎂 #5 para Gaspare!!!
Te queremos 🥳

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Drawing dinosaurs with Mylo.

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The events that have occurred recently might spark some conversations which some may find new or uncomfortable. Children are curious, they are listening and they say what they see and feel. Here are some helpful resources:

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In honor of Raising Race Conscious Children's 100 th post, this list lifts a quote from each and every blog post to date, modeling language that has actually been used in a conversation with a child regarding race (and other identity-markers such as gender and class). Through the blog and workshops/webinars, Raising Race Conscious Children support adults who are trying to talk about race with young children, with the goals of dismantling the color-blind framework and preparing young people to work toward racial justice.

Just click on a quote to read the original blog post from which the quote was lifted. Thank you to the 38 (and counting!) guest bloggers (and interviewee) whose words are included in this list, including Dr. Pedro Noguera, Dr. Brigitte Vittrup, performance artist Staceyann Chin, and members of Showing Up for Racial Justice.

"TOP TEN" race conscious things you can say to your child to advance racial justice

1) Explicit, proactive language around race:
"We are called White, but it's confusing ...Look. This piece of paper really is the shade of white. Does this look like the color of our skin? But people with a lighter skin color, like ours, are called White even though we don't look like the real shade of white. And it's the same with Beba (her Black doll). Look," (showing a black long-sleeved shirt) "this is the real shade of black. Is this the color of Beba's skin? ...Beba has more of a brown skin color...but (some) people with Beba's skin color are called Black."
"The N-word is a terrible, horrible name used against Black people. It is a powerful insult meant to treat Black people as less than human." Click here for additional quotes about racism. Click here for additional quotes about explicit, proactive language around race. "We don't know what relationship people have with one another without asking...because you can't know which person belongs to another just by looking at them." Click here for additional quotes about multi-racial families.
2) Explaining racism
"It's interesting that all the people in this book have pale skin that we call White. This doesn't look like where we live, in Brooklyn, where there are people with all different shades of skin." Click here for additional quotes about children's books.
3) Multi-racial families
"...even though people who are Black aren't enslaved anymore, the history of slavery means that, today, people who are Black still are discriminated against. That means that they aren't treated fairly. But people who are White, like us, don't experience this discrimination. And that's really unfair. So now there is a movement called "Black Lives Matter" where people are standing up and saying, 'We want justice! Black people need to be treated fairly." Click here for additional quotes about Black Lives Matter and White privilege.
4) Children's books:
"Eric Garner was a father and grandfather who was hurt and killed by the police. He was one of too many Black men that the police have hurt and killed. His last words were 'I can't breathe.' ...By saying 'I can't breathe,' we are saying that it was wrong that Eric Garner was hurt and we are standing up for justice for him and his family. We are telling the police it is not OK to hurt people, and we will keep working together until everyone, especially people of color, are treated fairly, with respect and dignity." Click here for additional quotes about police violence.
5) Black Lives Matter and White privilege
In response to a parent's exploration of race with her children, they wrote this letter to Legos: "Dear Lego Friends, I really like your legos. There are just two problems for me. The girls don't have pants and we need more brown-skinned girls and boys." Click here for additional quotes about inspiring activism.
6) Police violence
"You know what? That boy wasn't just being mean," I said. "There's a word for what he was being. He was being 'sexist.'" Click here for additional quotes about gender identity and sexism.
7) Inspiring activism

8) Gender identity and sexism:
Click here for additional quotes about various holidays.
9) Holidays
Homelessness: Need a conversation starter? Click here for additional quotes about additional issue specific topics. Click here for more information on participating in a Raising Race Conscious Children interactive workshop/webinar or small group workshop series. "The world we live in is unfair. Some people have a lot more than they need-and because of that, other people don't have enough of what they need. This man is asking for money because he doesn't have enough of what he needs: food, a home, etc."
Thanksgiving/Thanks-taking: "A long time ago, a group of White people called the Pilgrims came from Europe to what we now call the United States. They came here because they didn't have freedoms where they lived and it wasn't fair...But, there were other people already living here called Native Americans or American Indians. Over time, more and more White people came here and ended up hurting the Native Americans. So in the end, the Pilgrims got their freedoms, but the American Indians lost those same freedoms. Today, there are still a lot of people who don't have access to the same freedoms and privileges that the Pilgrims came to the United States to find."

10) Issue specific topics

11) "Look, these children all have different shades of skin. Some have lighter skin we call White, like us. Some have darker skin and might be Black or Indian..."

12) "This boy has peachy colored skin...that people call "White.' We are White, too, but your skin is more like the color of a brown egg shell."
16) "Mia is the only girl who looks like her...you are totally right! With straight, dark hair, and eyes shaped like hers and skin like hers. Mia is Chinese. She is the only Chinese girl in your class, and you noticed that."
13) "This baby has light skin like us that we call White," and "This baby is Asian...he might be Korean... or Chinese or Japanese," and "You know, it's nice that there is a baby with brown skin on the cover but I noticed that most of the babies in the book are actually White."

14) In response to a two-year-old asking "Will the baby be Black or White?" about a new sibling: "The baby's skin will probably look like yours and mine and Daddy's skin, the peachy color we call White."

15) "Both of these dolls have the same skin color that we also call White, and the same hair style...their hair color is different, though."

17) In response to a child saying, "I just noticed that all of the people who work in the cafeteria are Black..." a teacher responded, "You're right, that's a good observation."
22) 23) "You know sometimes we form hypotheses about people based on their race or their gender and I think that Ruby's mom might have been making an assumption about you both because you are a boy and because you are brown-what do you think?" "This is your friend Nestor. He has brown skin and really curly hair. This is his mom. She is from the Dominican Republic. She also has brown skin."
18) In response to a child looking at Doc McStuffins and Disney princess advertising: "Doc McStuffins has brown skin and these girls all have pale skin or White skin. But you're right about two things. These girls do look similar to one another. And there should be girls with brown skin on this box, too."
27) "I think that's a very rude and offensive thing to say, and I'm upset that you are speaking hatefully around my family." 29) "I don't like when people dress up like a group of people. That's not a costume I think is funny."
19) "Usually people call people who look like us 'White,' even though our skin isn't actually White. Usually people call other people with very dark skin 'Black,' even though their skin isn't actually Black."

20) "I'm trying to see which color crayon matches my skin color."

21) "Puerto Ricans come in all colors and shades."
34) "Some children have siblings, some live with a grandparent, some have step-parents, some have two dads..." 36) 37) ...in our family it is important to learn the language of the place where you were born. That's why I continue to learn Spanish, too. "Some mommies and children have a similar skin color, but other mommies and their children have different skin colors, did you know that?" "Do you think the man should take George home with him?" "No." "I agree, George looks very happy in Africa. Africa is his home and he has all the space he wants to play, and find food, and be free."
24) "Hmm, yes, I guess they do resemble Daddy, but you know what? Daddy doesn't like those statues, and neither do I, because we think they could be making fun of people who look like Daddy."
"Look, this baby has peachy skin that people call White, like us. This baby also has blonde hair like your friend Sienna." Or: "This baby has brown skin that people call Black. Our neighbor Sally is Black, too."
25) "In our school, we don't make fun of other people-and when we pretend to change the way our eyes look or laugh about other friends' eyes, we are making fun of friends who are Asian for being different."
"My father told me to save this gold for myself. But I already built myself a solid, brick house, and have enough food to put on my table, and what do I need with all the gold in the world if another wolf happens to come along and take my two friends away from me?"
26) "A racist is someone who is mean to another person based on the color of their skin. See your skin? People call that White skin. Other people have different color skin."
How do you think it makes Carlitos feel that his mom works full-time but still doesn't have enough money to pay for his grandmother's medicine? How does it make you feel?
28) "I don't like this video, it is making fun of people who are Asian."
In response to "They smiled at the good and frowned at the bad": "Let me tell you why I don't like this picture. This is showing a man stealing money, which is wrong...but I don't like that the book is calling him "bad" just because he is stealing. We live in a world where not everyone has everything they need. And that is also wrong."
30) "My husband is Black and I'm White, so our son is a color in between." It was such a simple explanation, yet something many children are unaware of because of the general silence around the topic of race and the invisibility of interracial families in the media.
In response to a White student saying, "The fence should be there because Black people are evil.": "The media often portrays Black people as 'bad.' But, in fact, people of all races sometimes do 'bad' things. And it is just as likely that a White person does a 'bad' thing."
31) In response to ""Why did (G-d) create things so that they always match? Like kids match their parents?" "I honestly don't know. It really doesn't make any sense does it? It would be far more interesting if people, animals, and things didn't match, right? ...we don't match, but we don't need to match to be a family and love each other."
"You see this block? Before it was a construction site, there were people who lived here and who had businesses here and they were basically forced to leave their homes and businesses. It's like in the book, Lakas and the Makibaka Hotel-and even though lots of people stood up and said, 'This isn't fair, we don't want to leave our homes," they were forced to leave anyway. So when I walk by this block, I think about the people who lived here before."
32) In response to a White child asking a White mom of a child of color "why didn't her real mother want her?" "a conversation...about her school friends who are adopted and of different races and what that's like for her and for her friends and how kind of cool it all really is."
"...I want to tell you why I don't like this book. Look at the cover. This woman's name is Snow White and, for me, the picture is sending the message that to be beautiful, like her, you have to have White, pale skin like hers. And I don't think that's true. People with brown skin and coffee skin and olive skin are all beautiful. So I don't like the message this picture is trying to give us."
33) "Look, these are families like ours. Our skin may not look exactly the same, but we are most definitely family."
"There are lots of people in the world whose lives and experiences are very different from ours and if we only read books about White characters, our understanding of the world leaves out a lot of what the world is like." "Have you ever noticed whether the books you read have a lot of characters of color (or not)?" In response to talking about and reading books that positively reflected this African-American child's identity: "Yes, I'm African American. I was born in New York and my mommy is Jamaican, where are you from?"
35) "I noticed that the grandma has peachy skin and her grandbaby has brown skin."

38) "You and your sister are Asian and White...This is very special, but other people are different and special too, and that is a good thing. Wouldn't it be boring if we were all the same?"

39) Curious George

40) More, More, More, Said the Baby

41) The Third Little Pig (Raising Race Conscious Children's version)
55) 56) "I'm glad I that you didn't want to play with that gun and liked how you asked your friend to put it away. You know, last year, a 12-year-old boy was playing with a toy gun that was bigger and even more real-looking and the police killed him." In response to "But why would a police officer (shoot and kill a boy) if the boy didn't even have a gun?" "Well, because Black and brown people have been treated unfairly for a long time in this country, and they still are. And if that boy looked like you (White), this probably wouldn't have happened." 59) 60) In responseto a parent's conversation with her five-year-old about police violence and Black Lives Matter: "The protesters spoke up so people will know this is not fair...it is OK to tell me about scary things because they got hurt, and when you are hurt you have to not keep it a secret because then nobody can help you...we have to not let anymore hurting go on-we have to do something about it." "There are a lot of people who are sad and mad because a police officer hurt a man who was Black..."
42) Si, Se Puede! Yes, We Can!

43) Madeline
65) "Curtis only has two cans of beans, but Fitz has so much food! It's too much for him. It doesn't seem fair. What can we do about this?"
44) The Other Side by Jacqueline Woodson

45) Lakas and the Hotel Makibaka

46) Snow White:

47), 48), and 49) Reading diverse children's books:

50) "Slavery was when people with Black skin were enslaved. That means people with White skin owned them and they didn't have any rights or freedoms. And because of this history, people with Black skin are still treated unfairly."
72) "I'm also a girl with short hair. But you're right that there are boys who look like me. I liked your question because people look lots of different ways and so it's always nice to ask someone what they want to be called."
51) "We are here today because racism still exists and because of the grassroots movement #BlackLivesMatter."

52) In response to explicit conversations about race and racism, this White parent's child has been known to walk around the house chanting "Black Lives Matter."
76) "...we don't know if this little girl has a mommy or a papi...she could just have one mommy, or she could have two mommies...or she could have two papis."
53) "...if you are White and you commit a crime, like stealing something, the police might say 'that was wrong, don't do that again,' and that's all...but if you are Black and commit the same crime, they might arrest you and you might go to prison. And that isn't fair."
"Columbus was a White man from Italy who took a ship a long, long time ago before he could take an airplane and ended up in the Americas which includes where we live in Brooklyn, which is part of the United States of America. And this holiday is about celebrating Columbus for finding the Americas. But he didn't actually discover the Americans because there were already people living here who are called 'Indians' or 'Native Americans.'"
54) "You know that police officers are supposed to help people, but this police officer hurt a man and he died. What really makes me mad is that that people who are Black have to be scared that a police officer might hurt them. That isn't fair. We are White, and we don't really worry that a police officer might hurt us."
"...on Chanukah we can also think about the people who don't have the things that are important to them or the things they need. And we can think about what we can do to help them."
57) "...we are going to be with people tonight who are sad...because 9 Black people died...were killed by a mean White man...you see how all these people have brown skin? The man who killed them didn't like brown skin. He had White skin like us."
"...we eat matzah to remind us that the Jewish people were once slaves...as Jewish people, we can stand with people of color (internal and external to the Jewish community), and say 'No! That's not fair.'"
58) "...I'm going to keep you safe, and that's why we're going to this protest, to stop police from hurting people like you, and other people who are Black and Latino and Asian."
In response to "Why do so many Black people live in this neighborhood?" "..I don't know enough about why. But I have been reading some things, and I am learning that White people didn't want Black people to live near them, or have much money, so they didn't let them buy houses except in certain parts of the city." Did you know that before you were born, most of the people who lived in our neighborhood were Black? And now, more and more White people live in our neighborhood...When more and more White people move in to a neighborhood, it often gets more expensive to live there...and that can mean that the Black people who lived in that neighborhood before, can no longer afford to live there. This is called gentrification. In response to analyzing a map that labeled each neighborhood in a city with its racial demographics: "Where are most of the White people living?"
61) "Some schools and neighborhoods are mostly White, and others are mostly Black, Latino, or new Asian immigrants. The White schools usually have more money and the children get more support there...It's not fair, is it? Our job is to make things more fair, what do you think we should do?"
In response to a conversation about homelessness, this author's son was playing Minecraft and shared: "This is the house I built for me and over here are the houses I built for the homeless...the villagers just wander around they don't have anywhere to go, so I built them a house."
62) In response to a book about Angela Davis and the KKK: "Black people led the way, and some people with White skin also helped because they cared about justice too and knew that our whole world is better when it is more fair for everyone."
In response to this parent's daughter sharing that one of her White classmates had told her that she is 'Black' and that it was 'a secret:' "Yes, you are Black, and it is not a secret. Your skin color is exactly the color it should be." "I don't like when I hear other children ask questions about what language we are speaking in a negative way. It's an incredible thing to speak two languages. And we know a lot of people who speak two languages."
63) "An activist is someone who sees something that is unfair and decides to do something to make it more fair. For example, people who are Black are treated differently than people who are White. And women are treated differently than men...women don't make as much money as men, for example, and that's not fair...So people speak up and say 'that's not fair, we want justice.'"
In response to a toddler's comment that another child was a 'baby:' "He's not a baby, he's the same age as you are. All of us are working on learning how to do something better and Matthew is working on learning how to touch people gently." "Some children need different things than others so they can learn and be happy and successful."
64) "...it is a good idea to try to tell other people about what we are doing because they might not know that most of the chocolate companies use slave labor."
"This man isn't wearing face paint, he has a beauty mark on his face just like I have one on my chin and you have one on your arm." "I know you're not a mean guy, but some people say that African American people look like monkeys to be mean. I know you like monkeys, and you're not being mean, but some people do that."
66) "...Malala was not allowed to go to school because she was a girl...First she was sad. Then she got mad. And decided to speak up about it and fight for girl power."
"Well, a lot of people who work in our supermarket are immigrants. That means that they were born in another country and moved here, like Papi. And a lot of times, when immigrants come to a new country and don't speak English, working in a supermarket is a good opportunity to have a job and make money so they can pay for things like food and an apartment where they can live."
67) "These people are protesting because they think there is something that is unfair that they want to change."
In response to a teacher's inquiry about segregation: "Segregation was when Black and White kids weren't allowed to go to the same schools...(but) we're all Black."
68) "...I have spent my entire life protesting boys and men who says girls can't do stuff! So how does that make you feel?"
"...the people in the crowd were so filled with hate that they thought what they were doing was right. I went on to explain that he had nothing to fear because lynchings no longer occur in this country."
69) In response to: "Rick said he likes pink, too. He's the only other boy I know who likes pink. Most of my friends say pink's for girls..." "I like pink. Now you know three boys."
"I think that sometimes what we say about others has more to do with something going on inside of us. Like when people have been treated badly or gotten hurt because of who they are, sometimes they will treat others the same way to deal with the experience...they got hurt by racism and that's their way of showing it."
70) In response to a young child: "Playing with our penises or vaginas is really fun, where do you think is the best place to do it?"
"That's not Julien. That little boy is one of our neighbors...You're right that he and Julien are both Black, but Julien is much younger! That boy over there is much older-look how tall he is!"
71) "You know, some people are born with penises but feel like girls on the inside and some people are born with vaginas but feel like boys on the inside. We can't always tell if someone is a boy or a girl just by looking at them and that's okay."
"...it really makes me sad when we waste food-because remember when we saw children in Chiapas asking for food on the street? They were asking for food because they didn't have enough to eat-and that isn't fair. So I don't like it when we waste our food."
73) In response to teachers' prompting students to analyze toy advertisements: "The advertisers think this ad is for boys, but we think it is for all kids...Some of the advertisements might change what toy I felt comfortable asking for, even if I really wanted that toy."
"...I really like places like schools and neighborhoods to be diverse-but it's also really important that people have spaces where they can share experiences with people who share their same experiences."
74) In response to "Momma, why aren't there more boy teachers?": "In our family, we believe that teachers are very important but not everyone thinks that way, so teachers are not always well-respected and are not the highest paid jobs...As you move onto high school and college there will likely be more male teachers. There is more respect for high school and college level teachers and often a bigger salary..."
"Trump is not (yet-in that moment the reality was more far-fetched) a nominee for president...and I believe there are many people in the U.S. who share our view of this country being welcoming to a people from diverse backgrounds."
75) In response to using the word "pretty" with regard to girls: "Would you ask if the butterfly was 'pretty' if she were a boy?"
"In the United States, there are many, many people who are in jail who shouldn't be in jail but, instead, need help. For example, someone who was so hungry that they stole food...that person doesn't need to be in prison. It's wrong to steal but what that person really needs is a job so they can make money to buy food."
77) In response to the gender binary: "People decide for themselves how they want to identify, just like with skin color-unless we ask (click here or here to read posts about asking questions about identity in an appropriate way) we don't know how people like to be called just by looking at them."
Need a conversation starter? Click here for more information on participating in a Raising Race Conscious Children interactive workshop/webinar.
78) Columbus Day/Native American Remembrance Day

79) Chanukah

80) Passover

81), 82), and 83) Red-lining and gentrification

84) Homelessness

85) and 86) Racial/cultural identity:

87) and 88) Talking about children with disabilities

89) and 90) Responding to children's comments in public

91) The service industry and immigrants

92) Segregation

93) The history of lynching

94) Internalized racism

95) Confusing two people based on their race

96) Waste

97) Striking the balance between same-race and cross-race spaces:

98) Trump and immigration

99) Prisons:

100) In honor of Raising Race Conscious Children's 100th post, add your own "race conscious" language to the comments section below!

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100 race-conscious things you can say to your child to advance racial justice - Raising Race Conscious Children

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In honor of Raising Race Conscious Children's 100th post, this list lifts a quote from each and every blog post to date, modeling language that has actually been used in a conversation with a child regarding race (and other identity-markers...

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Teacher Kellen’s project grows here!

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Last week we made cheese biscuits! What a yummy treat!

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Parents and other caregivers are seeking resources to help them hold children through the current, terrible wave of racialized violence, which is exacerbated by the tensions and vulnerabilities exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. As scholars, writers, and parents who use books to connect with our children and spark conversations with them, we've developed this book list to help engage the broad range of emotions and needs of diverse children in our multiracial society. In some cases, we've highlighted worthy, albeit lesser-known titles. Some are older books, some are newer, and a few will publish later this year but are available for pre-order now. This list skews heavily towards #ownvoices books and is arranged alphabetically by title.

Please use these books to help you do the work of making the world a safer, more equitable place for all children.

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20 Picture Books for 2020: Readings to Embrace Race, Provide Solace &...

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As scholars, writers, and parents who use books to connect with our children and spark conversations with them, we've developed this book list to help...

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Here are sources to find books on how to engage with your children about antiracism, diversity and inclusion.
Please add to the list in the comment section below~

https://socialjusticebooks.org/booklists/

https://www.embracerace.org/resources/books-that-support-kids-to-think-critically-about-racial-inequity

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/kids-books-diversity-differences_n_5b912bd8e4b0cf7b003d3508

https://www.scholastic.com/parents/books-and-reading/raise-a-reader-blog/multicultural-childrens-books.html

https://www.readbrightly.com/9-great-lgbtq-books-kids/

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Cheese Crackers! 📷 ~credit Laura Brady (Camila’s mom)

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This week we read: MIXED  a colorful story about diversity and love.

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This week we read: MIXED  a colorful story about diversity and love.

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Themes: Mixing colors, friendship, inclusiveness,  and diversity

Parts of a story:
Beginning

Middle

End

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We used this great resource as support this week. We put our dots markers, white paper, and black a sharpie then we gave students a chance to mix clors and name thier own new colors! After that we learned some easy steps on how to draw!

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We used this great resource as support this week. We put our dots markers, white paper, and black a sharpie then we gave students a chance to mix clors and name thier own new colors! After that we learned some easy steps on how to draw!

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What's has been your kids favorite activity during quarantine? Chime in below with a picture or a comment of your kid favorite activity!

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And then for some reason Mylo said "ok now make him showing his butt."

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Today I played bingo with Kai, he won and then I drew and colored with Mylo. Here is what we drew together.

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Banana bread 🍌 Gatitos get baking!

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Emiliano and Naila exploring their Enciclopedia de Animales.

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Shane taking his bday balloons for our evening walk (inspired by the book “I took the moon for a walk”

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Shane taking his bday balloons for our evening walk (inspired by the book “I took the moon for a walk”

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(I don’t know why is says anonymous. This is Rachel)

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She's just hanging out on her trampoline! Don't try this at home kids!

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Anyone up for making a group video? I can put it together if you send me your clips 😉
Los Bradys

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 Exploring Leaves: In this science experiment for kids we’ll be observing how liquids travel through leaves over a period of three days.

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 Exploring Leaves: In this science experiment for kids we’ll be observing how liquids travel through leaves over a period of three days.

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Materials for Leaf Experiment

Leaves ( different kinds, sizes, colors)

Scissors

Clear cups

Water

Red food coloring, watercolor, use the inside of a marker

Magnifying glass (optional)

Free observation sheet (optional)

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Guidance for supporting young children through Covid-19.

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SIGN UP,  ZOOM REUNIONS, INDIVIDUAL CALLS READING TIME AND ALL SCHOOL FIELD TRIP TO GOAT FARM.  06/30- 07/03

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SIGN UP,  ZOOM REUNIONS, INDIVIDUAL CALLS READING TIME AND ALL SCHOOL FIELD TRIP TO GOAT FARM.  06/30- 07/03

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Gatitos classroom sign up.

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Gatitos Classroom Signup April, May, June

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Talking about Coronavirus with young children.

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Talking about Coronavirus with young children.

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Why I can not go to my friend house?

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Defending the Early Years presents Dr. Susan Linn and Audrey Duck Talking about the Coronavirus

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Delish banana bread and muffins with Teacher Olga

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Delish banana bread and muffins with Teacher Olga

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Some COVID resources in Spanish from Desame Street

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Some COVID resources in Spanish from Desame Street

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Sneezing and Coughing Safely Spanish | Coronavirus Response | Ad Council

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Teacher Kellen reading during circle time! 

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Teacher Kellen reading during circle time! 

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Kai wanted to share this with everyone. He made a stop motion thank you for the teachers last week!

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Kai wanted to share this with everyone. He made a stop motion thank you for the teachers last week!

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Those Darn Squirrels one of the kids favorite stories! 

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Those Darn Squirrels one of the kids favorite stories! 

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Read by: Teacher Andrew reading

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Gatitos learned on Tuesday May 5th about evaporation, condensation,  and precipitation.

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Join us on Tuesday May 7th 3:00 Teacher Kellen will be leading our weekly science experiment!

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You can make it rain indoors! In this experiment, you'll explore earth science and the water cycle. With a Ziploc® brand bag, a little bit of water, and some help from the sun, you can create a demonstration that shows how Earth's natural forces work. By hanging your Water Cycle Bag in direct sunlight, you can see the water evaporate and condense into tiny droplets (this is how clouds are formed). When the droplets become bigger, they'll run down the side of the bag (this is precipitation, like rain), and the water will pool again at the bottom of the bag (this is collection, like lakes and oceans). And then just as it does on Earth, the water cycle begins again.

Learn more:

On Earth, the water cycle is influenced by many things, such as energy from the sun, temperature, and the force of gravity. What changes can you make to your bag to observe some of these factors? Try creating a second bag and placing it in a different location (perhaps a shady window) and see how the results differ. You can also leave the bag for a few days and check on it at different stages. See how time of day, temperature, and amount of sunlight affects it!

Connections with Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)

Earth's Systems MS-ESS ₂₋₄.

Develop a model to describe the cycling of water through Earth's systems driven by energy from the sun and the force of gravity.

Create a model of the water cycle to observe and identify the different parts of the cycle and how that relates to Earth's systems.

2 Smooth the Ziploc® brand bag out on a flat surface. Use the permanent marker to draw the water cycle from the Water Cycle Printable on the bag. (Draw carefully to avoid puncturing the bag.)

3 Pour ⅓ cup of water into the bag (avoid filling the bag more than halfway). Put one or two drops of blue food coloring into the water. Make sure to keep the bag upright.

4 Find a sunny window and tape the bag up. Tape the bag at a slight angle to simulate the runoff and collection stages of the cycle.

5 Check in on the water cycle bag at different times throughout the next few days. Do you see water droplets form along the bag from the condensation? Eventually, you'll see streaks along the side of the bag as the droplets grow and drop down the side, representing precipitation. From there, the water will recollect and pool at the bottom. How does this mimic the water cycle we see on Earth?

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You can make it rain indoors! In this experiment, you'll explore earth science and the water cycle. With a Ziploc® brand bag, a little bit of water, and some help from the sun, you can create a demonstration that shows how Earth's natural forces work.

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Game: Letter Hunt and your friend’s letter! Use white board to write a upper case and lower case letter.

What is your special letter?

Begins with the sound….

Can you bring something with the letter O! Orange, Olive, Oats, Onion,
Octopus! Way to go gatitos!

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Afternoon reading time using the ebooks from the San Francisco Library! 

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Afternoon reading time using the ebooks from the San Francisco Library! 

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Roscoe, 'woah! That's realllly cool.'

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Picture Day!

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Los pollitos dicen,  "pío, pío, pío"
Cuando tienen hambre, cuando tienen frío.
La gallina busca el maíz y el trigo
Les da la comida y les presta abrigo.
Bajo sus dos alas, acurrucaditos,
Hasta el otro día duermen los pollitos.
"Pío, pío, pío, duermen los pollitos.

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Uno, dos, tres, deditos,
Cuatro, cinco, seis, deditos,
Siete, ocho, nueve deditos,
Diez deditos de las manos.

Uno, dos, tres, deditos,
Cuatro, cinco, seis, deditos,
Siete, ocho, nueve deditos,
Diez deditos de los pies!

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At home KK made this chart to track the seed science project! Way to go!

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What are some other things that we can do to stay healthy and safe?

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Thursday Circle Time! Chris playing the guitar and singing I  love trash and Willoughby Wallaby Woo

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Thursday Circle Time! Chris playing the guitar and singing I  love trash and Willoughby Wallaby Woo

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Elza zooming on her pedal bike!

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Growing chia pets!