Nudge a Noodle!: Inspire your child to love learning!

Guest Post: Service Opportunities for Children

2011-10-10T16:17:47-04:00

Michele Burlot has worked in the field of humanitarian assistance for nearly fifteen years, in both the government and non-profit sectors. She has traveled throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin American for her work and currently resides in Budapest, Hungary where she is completing a Master’s degree in Global Development and Social Justice. If you have any comments or questions, feel free to write to her at Michele.burlot@yahoo.com

Michele visiting a Tibetan refugee settlement in India

Service Opportunities for Children – Introducing them to the World Beyond Wii

There are a lot of great ways to promote the value of service to our children, and it’s never too early to introduce them to this idea. Service can take the form of raising money for charity, promoting awareness of a worthy cause, volunteering in a soup kitchen, collecting items for those in need, participating in your church’s community outreach activities, the list goes on as far as your imagination and a little internet investigation carry you. Having worked for nonprofit organizations for 10 years and followed many other organizations through my own interest or that of friends and family, I have become aware of many such opportunities and wanted to take some time to share them with you.

Assemble School Kits

One of my previous employers is Lutheran World Relief, which provides humanitarian support to developing countries. Their programs are non-sectarian and non-proselytizing, and they have had a stellar reputation for delivering aid since their founding in 1945. Their website is flush with ideas for raising funds and awareness as well as fun engagement activities such as assembling school kits for children in need in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Check out how school kits can be assembled and donated, an engaging activity for children, who can simultaneously be educated on who the kits will go to and just how big a difference they make: http://lwr.org/site/c.dmJXKiOYJgI6G/b.7521997/k.98D3/School_Kits.htm

Poke around the website some more to find lots of cool ideas and resources. Fundraising ideas can be modified to fit your objectives and support your favorite cause.

Keep in mind that most major religious traditions have nonprofits that support worthy causes and couple this with educational resources for their followers; for example:

Catholic Relief Services: www.crs.org

United Methodist Committee on Relief: www.umcor.org

International Orthodox Christian Charities: www.iocc.org

American Friends Service Committee (Quaker): www.afsc.org

American Jewish World Service: www.ajws.org

I’ve listed some of the ones I am personally familiar with, but I am sure with a little research you can find one associated with your religious tradition, be it Islam or Baha’i. Check out any charities you are not familiar with to make sure they have a good reputation. A couple of places you can look are: Charity Navigator at www.charitynavigator.org and Better Business Bureau for Charities and Donors at http://www.bbb.org/us/charity/

Organize a SunDrive
PHOTO: Tanzanian child with sun damage due to albinism.
Source:http://www.nowpublic.com/world/red-cross-assists-albinos-are-hunted-body-parts

A relatively new non-profit that I have been following since it began is Asante Mariamu, which works with people with albinism in Africa, particularly Tanzania, and is named after an inspiring woman who was attacked because of her condition. The details of such violent attacks against people with albinism are not suitable for all ages, but the fact that they also succumb to skin cancer at staggering rates is something can be broached carefully with various age groups. Due to a lack of melanin, people with albinism are
virtually unprotected from the sun’s harmful rays. As you can imagine, those in Africa suffer greatly due to the sun’s strength in that area of the world. In addition, the incidence of albinism is far greater in East Africa than in other locations (it is where the genetic mutation originated), and people with albinism in Africa are among the most impoverished and vulnerable. Learn more about this issue at Asante Mariamu’s website www.asante-mariamu.org and learn how to organize a SunDrive below.

SunDrives are a great activity for middle-school aged child, Boy/Girl Scout troops, church groups, swim clubs, or other groups of people who would like to help. A SunDrive provides support to people with albinism in East Africa by collecting funds or collecting sun gear, including:

New wide-brimmed hats (children’s/youth sizes are needed most)
Lightweight long sleeve shirts
Sunscreen (SPF 35 +)
Sunglasses (can be used but must be clean and in good condition).
Send your donations to UTSS, Mike’s Parcel Pickup, 183 W. Stutsman Street, Pembina, ND 58271-4100. Contact Asante Mariamu for more information on donations. (UTSS stands for Under the Same Sun, a Canadian-based nonprofit that coordinates delivery of the supplies to those in need through their programs and in coordination with their Tanzania office. It is also a great organization, and you can learn about their work at www.underthesamesun.com)

I maintain an informational website about violence against people with albinism in Tanzania, suitable only for older children, at www.micheleburlot.wordpress.com

Participate in a Walk-a-Thon

Walk-a-Thons are great activities for kids to really get involved with a charity. They can learn all about the cause; reach out to friends, families, and neighbors to request sponsorship; and experience the positive energy of engaging with a great many other supporters through the act of walking, which is also great exercise! Many organizations, especially the larger ones related to health and disease, hold Walk-a-Thons. A few of the ones I am familiar with are listed below. If a particular health-related challenge has affected a child’s family or friends, it makes the service experience even deeper and can be a way of coping with stress or loss related to the illness.

Autism Speaks http://www.walknowforautismspeaks.org/site/c.igIRL6PIJrH/b.4356939/k.BF85/Home.htm
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night Walk http://www.lightthenight.org/

Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Walk for a Cure http://www2.jdrf.org/site/PageServer?pagename=walk_homepage

Write Letters or Cards

Children can write letters or cards to be included in care packages sent to troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan http://www.carepackageproject.com/letters.asp or get well cards http://www.operationpal.com/

These efforts are organized through MarineParents.com, and according to their website, “Marines are especially touched by homemade cards from children, or letters that let them know what's going on back home: what books, movies, and music are coming out, or what your day-to-day life is like.”

This can be done as a family activity, on an ongoing basis, as an afterschool activity, by gathering your kids’ friends or schoolmates at your home one Saturday afternoon and providing milk and cookies, the list goes on.

Introducing children to service – to thinking about and reaching out to others in need – is a great way to help them develop a sense of maturity and an awareness beyond the worlds of Wii and “we”. I’ve shared a sampling of ideas, but the possibilities truly are endless. There are so many people in the world in need of basic food and clothing items, successful research to treat or cure their illness, or even just a smile or kind word of encouragement, and there is really a lot that each and every one of us, children included, can do. In the words of author and anthropologist Margaret Meade, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

Guest Post: The Ghost of Bullying Past

2011-07-28T07:27:51-04:00

From time to time, I break from the usual theme of this blog to encourage bully awareness. Tom Lasusa, an old friend from college, wrote this story for his blog in The Patch (Levittown, NY). Thanks Tom, for allowing me to repost it!

Social Networks are great for bringing together family and friends separated by miles or time. However, the reunions can sometimes be a little strange; a buddy of mine recently told me how he got a friend request from someone who was a playmate they were about four years old.

Last year, I also got a message from the past via Facebook. As soon as I saw the name and face, my heart fluttered -- and not in a good way.

It was from the bully who had made my childhood back in Queens a living hell.

At first, "Larry" and I started off as friends: we lived a block away from each other and would often play in the same circles. I would often go to his house for lunch and we'd play board games in his basement.

Then things changed between us. "Larry" started skateboarding and doing more adventurous activities. Being the blossoming geek (see my previous blog), I was content with reading comics, watching cartoons, and collecting Star Wars figures. Our interests had become very different -- the perfect kindling to fuel the flames of a bullying situation.

One day "Larry" started teasing me about my interests. Before long, the teasing got aggressive. He started pushing me around, both in the school yard and in our neighborhood. To make matters worse, he got some of the other kids in the neighborhood to bully in as well.

Then things escalated.

First came the hang-up and crank calls. It got so bad my parents had to change our phone number.

Then the house would be egged almost every other week. We'd be sitting in the living room at night and suddenly we'd hear the crunches of the eggs hitting the windows. The next day, my dad would be out, grumbling as he hosed everything down.

My parents tried speaking to his, which only made things worse: "Larry" branded me a coward for having 'mommy and daddy' come to my defense.

I stopped riding my bike, in fear of encountering him. When I saw a group of kids coming down the street, I didn't bother to wait to see if it was his pack -- I ran inside.

With all my heart, I hated "Larry." I wished horrible things would happen to him. I wished he would slip off his skateboard and get hurt enough to be stuck in his house for weeks. I will not lie: I wished worse things.

After a few years, the crank calls and egging stopped, but the fears of running into him still lingered. In high school, I was extremely cautious in making new friends. I found myself nervous, unwilling to take chances or test my limits in front of others, for fear of humiliation.

It wasn't until college when I made new friends that I felt safe for the first time in a long while. But the memories of "Larry" and what he did -- they lasted a long time.

During my second year in college, I attended a party of a friend who happened to live in the town next to mine. There, kicking back in a chair with a pretty girl sitting on his lap, was "Larry."

"Hey Tom. How's it going?" He asked nonchalantly.

"Not bad." I replied, fighting every urge to run. Here I was: a sophomore in college, and I was deathly afraid of this guy -- and the possibility that if he realized it, the nightmare could start all over again. It took all my energy to remain calm and make some idle conversation with "Larry".

Eventually, I found the opportunity to excuse myself, and that's when it hit me: unlike me, HE had moved on. HE was totally fine.

Later that night, I found I was furious: How dare he be okay? How dare he not feel any regret or remorse for what he did to me?

But the fact was why wouldn't he be? The bullying didn't happen to him.

Back to the (almost) present, I sat there, staring at my laptop screen at "Larry's" simple note: "Hey, remember me?"

Are you kidding, I thought. How could I forget?

For a moment, I thought about deleting it. Then I thought about writing him back and tearing into him. But I realized either reaction would be, in some way, his final victory over me -- even if he never knew about it.

So, I did the only thing I realized I could do: I replied, "Hi Larry. Hope you are doing well," and left it at that.

Years ago, bullying wasn't addressed like it is today -- it was just a part of life. You were supposed to tough it out, or try to fight back, and once it was over just accept that it happened and get on with your life.

Yeah, right.

More than enough studies have been done on bullying that prove the emotional scars can last years, if not a lifetime. But who needs a study for that? I can tell you first hand that's true. To this day, I am still often very self-conscious of what others think of me.

During our the boys' first year in school here in Levittown, I was approached by the LAP administrators. It seemed an older boy (third or fourth grade) was picking on the younger ones, including one of mine. The teacher informed me that as soon as it was discovered, they took action: the boy was immediately separated from the others, and his parents informed. Zero tolerance: a nice change from the teachers that turned a blind eye in the schoolyard of my youth.

Unfortunately, bullies will never go away: Thanks to the internet and smart phones, it's taken on new and disturbing levels. But it's comforting to see more in the community taking it more seriously, and standing strong against the victim.

I pray neither of my boys ever have to deal with a bully like I had. And heaven help either of them if I ever find out they've become the bully.

Like I said before -- zero tolerance.

Never Thought I'd See the Day! 3D copiers!

2011-07-13T15:22:18-04:00

Completely shocked my kids (and myself) when I found this You Tube video of a 3D printer in action. 3-D copier

We're talking replicating fully functional replicas of 3D objects. Star Trek seems less fantastic by the day.

Comet Into the Sun

2011-07-13T10:04:02-04:00

Nice tidbit to share with the kids! First time a comet crashing into the sun is captured on camera.

'Smore than fun!

2011-06-27T12:01:46-04:00

For me, summer is about learning things and doing things you just don't have time for during the school year. However, more fun than that is accidentally learning new things. Who knew there was a better campfire sweet treat than smores?

You know those amazing jumbo marshmallows in stores lately? They lend themselves to something my daughter Amanda created called, "Inside-Out Smores!" Simply stick a small brick of chocolate in one side of the marshmallow and a small brick of graham cracker in the other. Shove the stick through the middle and toast.

Oh yes, it's messy to eat! But it's not quite as sickeningly sweet as original smores--in my family's opinion. And you only deal with the stickiness....not the graham crackers crumbling all over when you take a bite!

Hope you enjoy Amanda's creation!

Finding a Diversion (other than Facebook)

2011-06-06T18:20:21-04:00

PHOTO: Tibocut's Photostream

I am not the most disciplined writer. When writer's block hits, my attention goes south and I need a diversion until the gears begin churning again. Often, I wind up on Facebook. Sometimes, that's not such a bad thing. Other times, I know I have just wasted 15 minutes of my life I won't get back. I have found a solution, though--a way to change gears and always get something out of it.

I found Invention at Play by the Smithsonian's Lemelson Center. It's a center for Invention and Innovation. There's nothing like playing a creative game when you need to find your center of focus. My favorite is Tinker Ball. At least it was until my 12-year-old far exceeded my ability in this game. Oh, well, I've always wanted him to grow up smarter than me. Just wasn't planning on it happening this soon.

The Smithsonian History Explorer is another educational pastime that I just found. From photos of artifacts to interactive games, you can set your child up by grade-level to explore all sorts of eras in history.

I'm never going to outgrow the threat of writer's block. But, I can wrangle myself away from Facebook when it bites--sometimes.

News about Education Nation 2011....

2011-04-08T14:53:20-04:00

NBC's Education Nation dates and details have been announced. Click here.

Event for Future Marine Biologists!

2011-04-07T08:14:58-04:00

Quick FYI! The Jason Project will be broadcasting live, interactive Q&As with marine biologist Emma Hickerson today, April 7th at 10:30, 1:30, 4:30, and 6:30 (Eastern)

At least one of my kids will be attending at 4:30.

Ch...ch...ch...Changes

2011-03-22T05:43:56-04:00

The first step in a revamping of this blog has taken place...

Nuggets of Knowledge is now...

Nudge a Noodle! Not only that...but the blog has a streamlined url:

www.nudgeanoodle.com

Thanks for reading!

GUEST POST: A Fair and Sustainable World in Englewood, New Jersey

2011-03-14T18:30:00-04:00

In a world where the words green, sustainable, and fair trade are being used more frequently, it helps to know more about these terms in order to explain them to our children. With more people like entrepreneur Cynthia Thek putting these concepts into practice, we can be hopeful that sustainable living will one day make our planet a cleaner, more equitable place for all. Guest poster Dina Mustafa, working toward her Masters in Sustainability Management at Columbia University and The Earth Institute, has interviewed Cynthia and written an article about the admirable goals behind her business. Today, I'm sharing it on Nuggets of Knowledge:

A Fair and Sustainable World in
Englewood,New Jersey

An interview with Cynthia Thek, the owner of “It’s a Fair World After All” in Englewood, New Jersey.

www.fairworldafterall.com

It was a cold February afternoon when I walked into the store for the first time. Cynthia Thek was going through boxes with her assistant. The first thing I noticed after taking the few steps and entering the store was the distinct smell. It was the soothing fragrance of wood, incense and something I couldn’t quite put my finger on, until I got closer. It was chocolate.

In the store I noticed the hand knit scarves, the jewelry, the beautiful carved pieces, the coffee and chocolate display, the handmade soups, and the dazzling colors. Cynthia Thek, the owner of the small fair trade store “It’s a Fair World After All” on 31 N. Dean Street, in Englewood, NJ 07670, is a petite woman with a warm smile and intelligent dark eyes. Her passion for fair trade and sustainability radiates from every corner of the store. We went for a walk to the local tea place down the street, where the owner greets us with a smile. Cynthia Thek is a local merchant in this small town that has been hit hard by the recession. She wants to organize a Green Englewood Day in the spring, to attract socially aware customers to the area and boost business for local merchants. The two women exchange greetings and talk a little about the town’s well being.

After ordering a hot cup of tea and a slice of pound cake, I asked Thek how she got into fair trade. She said, “Growing up, I was always conscious of the dichotomy between the first world and the developing world. I was born in Germany, where my parents worked and lived at the time. I was sent back to a rural fishing village in the south of India. There, I attended a Catholic School in the state of Kerala on the Arabian coast, yet every year I would travel back to Germany for summer vacation. I felt lucky and guilty at the same time. I knew girls in the village who couldn’t go to school; I was truly one of the lucky ones.”

Thek went on to attend American University (AU) in Washington DC where she said that a lot of her peers where socially conscious and very much into public service. “They really wanted to make a difference in the world, so by the time I graduated I was more socially aware. My background and where I came from also fueled my awareness.” She smiled when remembering her political aspirations after graduation, “I she realized early on that it wasn’t for me” she said shaking her head “So I switched to the non-for profit sector after that and worked at International House in New York City, I was the Assistant Director of Development for Institutional Giving”. International House was conceived by the late YMCA official Harry Edmonds following a chance encounter with a lonely Chinese graduate student in 1909, in New York City. The mission of International house is to promote cross-cultural exchange among future global leaders; this was a perfect fit for Cynthia.

“After a trip with my friends to California, I came across this little fair trade store in Sonoma. That was it; I fell in love.” I heard the excitement in her voice when she said that, even through her professional demeanor. “I came home and read up about the fair trade movement, and was pretty convinced that everything I buy from that day on had to be fair trade. But there was nothing around here [in the northern New Jersey area]. So, I decided to open up my own place.”

What does fair trade mean to Cynthia? For her, fair trade “means that the people both at the producer end and the consumer end are treated fairly.” She continued to explain “Farmers, for example, decide democratically how to invest their revenues. Fair trade premiums are invested in social and business development projects, and producers or farmers use environmentally sustainable methods, for the well being of the environment, but mostly for the well being of the workers.

I asked her how she knows if the products are in fact fair trade. She replied, “When I first started, I found out that there was a lot of controversy about fair trade products. Some can have as little as 2% of their total content coming from fair trade sources, but are still labeled fair trade. For me, I only go through the certification agencies.” I pressed her for those agencies. She added “For commodities there’s Fair Trade USA, and in terms of the products I carry in my store, the Fair Trade Federation monitors the producers and the whole sellers. So, I only go through vendors who are members of the Fair Trade Federation.”

But is fair Trade sustainable?

“Environmental sustainability is a key component of the standards established by the Fair Trade Federation. The Federation and TransFair USA do not certify products that do not meet environmental standards. The Fair Trade Federation refuses admission to organizations that do not uphold this principle. Fair Trade products are frequently made from materials that are abundantly available. The simplicity of the production process also guarantees significantly less CO2 emissions compared to factory-based productions. So, the two go hand in hand.”

“Fair trade flowers, for example, use less pesticide and less chemicals, because they need to ensure that the workers working and cultivating the flowers are given safety equipment and training and are in a healthy work environment,” said Thek. “Do you know that a large percentage of the flowers imported in the United States come from Ecuador and the Dominican Republic and that mostly women work in those fields?” she asked “In some farms, there were high incidences of miscarriages among these women, because of their exposure to harmful chemicals. These women don’t complain because if they do, they can lose their jobs. Usually, that’s the only income that they have.”

She continued to explain that fair trade flower companies must meet certain criteria. The fair trade flower certification ensures that flower farms comply with rigorous environmental standards governing the use of pesticides, conservation of water, treatment of wastewater, protection of ecosystems and more. “So, you see” she added “they protect the cultivators and workers from being exposed to these harmful chemicals.”

Since there is always the question of paying more for fair trade products, I asked if fair trade products compete in price with non fair trade products, “It depends on what the product is” she explained. “With commodities, especially coffee and chocolate, you’ll see a premium because there’s a guaranteed minimum fair price that’s been paid to the farmer. But with other products, such as crafts and hand-made products such as the ones sold in my store, most of the time that’s not the case.”

We make our way back to the store after saying “good-by” to the owner of the tea shop.

I noticed that a lot of the products in her store have a story. Walking around, she tells me a few, “We work so hard to get these products sold, but when you’re buying them you know that, for example, someone in South Africa is able to support her children and that makes a difference.”

“I used to carry coasters from South Africa. They were made out of used tea bags. These women collect them, dry them and paint them, and then they make them into coasters and bookmarks and so on. The whole seller forwarded me a letter from one woman in the group. Her husband works in a gold mine and she’s the one who takes care of the children and sends them to school. She started working for the group making the tea bag products. She wrote in that letter, “When I hear the sound of rain on the roof [tin roof], it’s the most beautiful thing to me, because then I know that I’ve been able to provide shelter for my children.” You see, that came from her work; from supplementing her husbands’ income. A lot of the time the woman’s income makes a difference in being able to pay for doctor visits and sending the kids to the school.”

Looking around, I see that lot of the products in the store are sustainable. They are made of things that would usually end up as garbage, but are reused or crafted into something else. There were little hand bags from India made of old VCR tapes. The actual tape is woven and made to give sheen to this beautifully handcrafted bag. Cynthia walks me around the store telling me stories behind this piece of jewelry or that bowl. I ask her if the story sells the product. She says “I don’t need a sexy story to sell these products. As long as I’m comfortable that the product comes through fair trade resources, I can sell it.”

I caught a glimpse of a small brass- colored peace dove necklace on a thin black rope. I pick it up and read the word “peace” on it. The tag on it read “Cambodia.” Cynthia was standing by me, and said “After the war in Cambodia, the landscape was littered with bullet casings and unexploded bombs. The Halo Trust Agency helped make the landscape safe by collecting these casings and shells. Young people have the ability to gain skills by transforming bomb casings and bullet casings into these piece doves in order in to sustain a living.”

One bullet-casing peace-dove necklace- Sold.