Fears That Make You Smile
September 9, 2009 by Dan
Filed under One Person's View
by Beverly Beckham
Sept. 9, 2009
I can see it from her point of view. Literally. I walk into the bathroom, kneel down, look up, and the cow on the wall does appear to be glaring at me.
“I no like. I ‘fraid,” Charlotte says, beeline-ing it past this bathroom and actually detouring — walking through the dining room and living room — to get to the steps that lead upstairs.
Charlotte is 2 and short like a fire hydrant. And the cow, though not real and not even three-dimensional — it’s painted on the bathroom wall — does loom over her. So I respect her feelings: The cow can look a little menacing.
Knowing this, I attempt to reassure her.
“The cow is smiling at you,” I tell my small granddaughter. “She likes you, Charlotte. She is a very nice cow.” But Charlotte is buying none of this. My spunky little Charlotte who is not afraid to climb on boulders and over fences, who jumps on and up and down and through just about anything, who picks up worms and ants and spiders (and sometimes pretends to eat them!), who swaggers through life doing all of the things the bigger 5-and-6-year-old kids do, wants nothing to do with this big stuck-on-the-wall inanimate, acrylic, huger-than-life heifer.
“Cow scary!” she insists as she climbs the 13 steps to the upstairs cow-free bathroom.
I shake my head and laugh because the cow was never meant to be scary. Quite the opposite. The cow and the sheep and the rooster and the duck with her ducklings and the pig and the mouse and all the little spiders and bees and butterflies and flowers lovingly painted on the walls by Sarah Bonnanzio three years ago were meant to be entertaining and fun.
I’d seen Bonnanzio’s work at the Public Library in Canton, Mass., where I live and where she’d donated her time and her talent. And I called her because I had a tiny space that I knew she could make cheerful and bright.
And she did. She painted a pig over the sink and ducks over the toilet and a rooster over the window and cow’s backsides over the door and a great big solemn-looking cow surrounded by sunflowers over the towel rack.
Solemn, but to Charlotte scary.
The other grandchildren sang “EE-I-EE-I-O” in the bathroom when they were 2 and 3. They counted the butterflies. They buzzed like bees. They mooed and they oinked and they bah-ed. They loved all the animals. They still do. Not Charlotte. She hollers as she races by.
Avoiding the Area
For months we chuckled at all the racing and hollering and the more recently “I no likes.” Because, really, Charlotte not liking the cow was just a funny quirky thing up until a few weeks ago when she began to actually use a bathroom.
Before it was an occasional trip up the stairs to check out the bathroom just in case. “Here’s the potty. Want to sit on it, Charlotte?” And Charlotte, just like her brother before her, refused.
Now Charlotte is potty-trained and the upstairs bathroom is an issue because from the backyard — where we’ve been spending our time, where there’s a playhouse and a tiny blow-up pool, where the kids run around all day — there are 13 steps leading just to the house, nine to the porch. Three to the garage. And a single big step into the kitchen.
Then there are 13 more steps to the second floor cow-free safe zone.
Twenty-six steps up. Twenty-six steps down. Up and down. Up and down so many times a day!
“Maybe you should paint over the cow,” Adam, Charlotte’s 5-year-old brother said last week as I sat splayed out and gasping on a lawn chair.
Charlotte’s mother suggested draping a towel over the bathroom door, then pushing the door wide open. This actually worked. It covered most of the cow’s head and all of the cow’s eyes. “Look, Charlotte,” we trilled. “The cow can’t see you anymore.”
But she could see still the cow.
“Cow big!” she moaned, bolting out of the bathroom, and back outside, putting as much distance between her and the bloated bovine as possible.
No Cows, No Dogs
Last week she decided that she didn’t like the big stuffed black dog that has stood by my front door since before she was born. She used to like it. She used to sit on it! But not anymore. “I no like dogs,” she told us, furrowing her brow.
A stuffed dog and a fake cow’s face give Charlotte the vapors. But two live groundhogs that live under a shed in my backyard? Charlotte says, “They fun!”
She chases them and laughs as they disappear under the shed and she’d be poking at them with a long stick if we let her. “I see hogs?” she says and we say, “No, Charlotte, not now. Maybe they’ll come out later.” And she’ll sit and wait for as long as it takes, as long as she’s not near the cow and the dog.
Source: Grandparents
Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com
Hubble Opens New Eyes on the Universe
September 9, 2009 by Dan
Filed under Human Interest
By NASA/PIO
Sept. 9, 2009
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope is back in business, ready to uncover new worlds, peer ever deeper into space, and even map the invisible backbone of the universe.
The first snapshots from the refurbished Hubble showcase the 19-year-old telescope’s new vision. Topping the list of exciting new views are colorful multi-wavelength pictures of far- flung galaxies, a densely packed star cluster, an eerie “pillar of creation,” and a “butterfly” nebula. Click For larger image and more info
With the release of these images, astronomers have declared Hubble a fully rejuvenated observatory. Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, D-Md., unveiled the images at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 9, 2009.
With its new imaging camera, Hubble can view galaxies, star clusters, and other objects across a wide swath of the electromagnetic spectrum, from ultraviolet to near-infrared light. A 
new spectrograph slices across billions of light-years to map the filamentary structure of the universe and trace the distribution of elements that are fundamental to life.
The telescope’s new instruments also are more sensitive to light and can observe in ways that are significantly more efficient and require less observing time than previous generations of Hubble instruments.
NASA astronauts installed the new instruments during the space shuttle servicing mission in May 2009. Besides adding the instruments, the astronauts also completed a dizzying list of other chores that included performing unprecedented repairs on two other science instruments. Click For larger image and more info
Now that Hubble has reopened for business, it will tackle a whole range of observations. Looking closer to 
Earth, such observations will include taking a census of the population of Kuiper Belt objects residing at the fringe of our solar system, witnessing the birth of planets around other stars, and probing the composition and structure of the atmospheres of other worlds.
Peering much farther away, astronomers have ambitious plans to use Hubble to make the deepest-ever portrait of the universe in near-infrared light. The resulting picture may reveal never-before-seen infant galaxies that existed when the universe was less than 500 million years old. Hubble also is now significantly more well-equipped to probe and further characterize the behavior of dark energy, a mysterious and little-understood repulsive force that is pushing the universe apart at an ever-faster rate.Click For larger image and more info
Related Links:
Gallery of all images
&Read the NASA press release
Source: NASA
Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@goldcoastchronicle.com
Tips for a Germ-Free School Year
By NG Kids
Sept. 8, 2009
The school year always brings new friends, new teachers, new assignments, and unfortunately some new germs. But not to worry, a new school year doesn’t have to mean new illnesses!
Follow these tips and you might score a perfect attendance record this year!
Wash your hands with soap and water after you sneeze, cough, or use the bathroom. Count to 20 or sing a couple of rounds of Row, Row, Row Your Boat while you scrub!
Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer if soap and water aren’t available.
Use a tissue when you need to sneeze or cough. Throw your tissues in the trash—don’t attempt a Guinness World Record for the biggest pile of dirty tissues!
If you can’t stifle a cough or sneeze in a tissue quickly enough, sneeze into the crook of your elbow.
Take a multi-vitamin every day.
Don’t share water bottles or drinks. Your friend might not know he or she is sick and spread germs to you.
Don’t share your hair brush or hat. Little creatures like head lice could be hiding out and could be passed on from one person to another.
Stay home from school, sports practice, and parties if you feel sick or have a fever.
Wash your dishes with detergent and very warm water to kill germs.
Stay away from family gatherings and reunions if you are sick or if one of your family members is sick. Grandma and Grandpa and younger cousins may have a stronger reaction to the illness than you do.
Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. A healthy diet can help boost your immune system and help you fight off illnesses before they make you sick!
Sleep eight or more hours every night. A strong body will help you fend off infections.
Wash your hands after you high five, fist bump or shake someone’s hand.
Don’t double dip into the salsa or dip.
Get some fresh air and exercise every day. Outside air often carries fewer germs than stagnant indoor air.
Avoid crowded places like movie theaters and shopping malls if the flu has been reported in your town.
Don’t touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. These areas are germ spreaders.
Don’t share ear buds with friends. They can harbor loads of germs.
Blow kisses to your sick friends and family instead of kisses and hugs.
Get a flu shot if your doctor or school recommends it.
Source: National Geographic
Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com
Who Were Our Presidents? Part 7
By Dan Samaria
Publisher/GCC
Sept. 8, 2009
Editor’s Note: How many of us along with our children? Know who our Presidents were and what they have done in Office.
Each week we will pick a President and tell you about them and their accomplishes.
We hope that you will enjoy this series. And let us know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com
7. ANDREW JACKSON 1829-1837
More nearly than any of his predecessors, Andrew Jackson was elected by popular vote; as President he sought to act as the direct representative of the common man.
Born in a backwoods settlement in the Carolinas in 1767, he received sporadic education. But in his late teens he read law for about two years, and he became an outstanding young lawyer in Tennessee. Fiercely jealous of his honor, he engaged in brawls, and in a duel killed a man who cast an unjustified slur on his wife Rachel.
Jackson prospered sufficiently to buy slaves and to build a mansion, the Hermitage, near Nashville. He was the first man elected from Tennessee to the House of Representatives, and he served briefly in the Senate. A major general in the War of 1812, Jackson became a national hero when he defeated the British at New Orleans.
In 1824 some state political factions rallied around Jackson; by 1828 enough had joined “Old Hickory” to win numerous state elections and control of the Federal administration in Washington.
In his first Annual Message to Congress, Jackson recommended eliminating the Electoral College. He also tried to democratize Federal officeholding. Already state machines were being built on patronage, and a New York Senator openly proclaimed “that to the victors belong the spoils. . . . ”
Jackson took a milder view. Decrying officeholders who seemed to enjoy life tenure, he believed Government duties could be “so plain and simple” that offices should rotate among deserving applicants.
As national politics polarized around Jackson and his opposition, two parties grew out of the old Republican Party–the Democratic Republicans, or Democrats, adhering to Jackson; and the National Republicans, or Whigs, opposing him.
Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and other Whig leaders proclaimed themselves defenders of popular liberties against the usurpation of Jackson. Hostile cartoonists portrayed him as King Andrew I.
Behind their accusations lay the fact that Jackson, unlike previous Presidents, did not defer to Congress in policy-making but used his power of the veto and his party leadership to assume command.
The greatest party battle centered around the Second Bank of the United States, a private corporation but virtually a Government-sponsored monopoly. When Jackson appeared hostile toward it, the Bank threw its power against him.
Clay and Webster, who had acted as attorneys for the Bank, led the fight for its recharter in Congress. “The bank,” Jackson told Martin Van Buren, “is trying to kill me, but I will kill it!” Jackson, in vetoing the recharter bill, charged the Bank with undue economic privilege.
His views won approval from the American electorate; in 1832 he polled more than 56 percent of the popular vote and almost five times as many electoral votes as Clay.
Jackson met head-on the challenge of John C. Calhoun, leader of forces trying to rid themselves of a high protective tariff.
When South Carolina undertook to nullify the tariff, Jackson ordered armed forces to Charleston and privately threatened to hang Calhoun. Violence seemed imminent until Clay negotiated a compromise: tariffs were lowered and South Carolina dropped nullification.
In January of 1832, while the President was dining with friends at the White House, someone whispered to him that the Senate had rejected the nomination of Martin Van Buren as Minister to England. Jackson jumped to his feet and exclaimed, “By the Eternal! I’ll smash them!” So he did. His favorite, Van Buren, became Vice President, and succeeded to the Presidency when “Old Hickory” retired to the Hermitage, where he died in June 1845.
Editor’s Note: Here is some of the accomplishment of the 7th President:
He was military governor of Florida (1821), commander of the American forces at the Battle of New Orleans (1815), and eponym of the era of Jacksonian democracy. He was a polarizing figure who dominated American politics in the 1820s and 1830s. His political ambition combined with widening political participation, shaping the modern Democratic Party.[1] Renowned for his toughness, he was nicknamed “Old Hickory.” As he based his career in developing Tennessee, Jackson was the first president primarily associated with the frontier.
· Jacksonian Democracy – “the people shall rule” – increased turnout of votes proving that common people had the vote & would use it to their ends
· reflected individualism, versatility, opportunism
· laissez faire
· supported spoils system
· did not support internal improvements (roads, canals)
· Webster- Hayne Debate 1829
· Indian Removal Act 1830
· Nat Turner’s Rebellion 1831
· Nullification Crisis 1832
· vetoes recharter of BUS 1832
· Tariff of 1832
· Force Bill 1833
· vetoes Maysville Road
· Texas Revolution 1836 & recognition 1837
· Specie Circular 1836
· Bank War 1836
We would like to know what you think? And is there anything else that he has done? You could win a prize dan@youngchronicle.com
Source: White House Askville
A Dream Comes True For 13 Year Old
By NG Kids
September 8, 2009
Laura Dekker is a girl with a dream–to be the youngest person to circumnavigate (sail around) the world alone in her yacht, Guppy. Laura isn’t new to sailing. She was born on a boat in New Zealand, and was sailing solo on lakes when she was six years old. She sailed across the English Channel to England and back at her father’s insistence that she prove herself before tackling the open ocean. Laura is 13 years old.
A Dutch court has ruled that Laura is too young to make the trip alone, and has placed her under state supervision for two months to make sure she stays on dry land.
Do you think 13 is too young to sail solo around the world? How old do you think someone should be before sailing such a huge distance alone?
Read more about Laura Dekker on the BBC
Source: Kids National Geographic
Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com
The 12th Annual Poster Contest!
September 7, 2009 by Dan
Filed under Encouragement
By Alexander
September 7, 2009
We had so many great entries for our 12th Annual Food Allergy News for Kids Poster Contest this year. We know you’ve been eager to see the artwork of our winners. Here are the entries that won first, second, and third places!
Theme for the 12th Annual Poster Contest: “Take Action, Prevent Reactions.”
Ages 4-7
Karina B., age 6, Coral Springs, Fla.
Samuel D., age 5, Staten Island, N.Y.
Akshay G., age 5, Somerset, N.J.
Ages 8-11
Brittney F., age 10, Clifton, Va.
Samantha S., age 10, Merrimack, N.H.
Michael C., age 9, Metairie, La.
Take a look the 2008 winners and 2007 winners!
Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com
A Garden Playhouse
September 7, 2009 by Dan
Filed under Arts and Crafts
By Family Fun
September 6, 2009
Practicality and whimsy are perfect playmates in this outside-in room.
| CRAFT MATERIALS: | |
| Plywood | |
| Wallpaper sample | |
| Hot glue gun | |
| Wooden birdhouses | |
| Fabric | |
| Cedar shake | |
| Masonite | |
| Molding | |
| Fake plants | |
| Craft board | |
| Rope | |
| Screws | |
Time needed: Weekend Project
1. To create a robin, cut out from wallpaper samples and hot-glue a craft-store nest and eggs next to it.
2. For curtain holders, paint two wooden craft-store birdhouses. Drill holes for the fabric, then screw them to the window frame. A craft-store bird perches in the entry hole.
3. Use a third birdhouse into a floor lamp by drilling a hole through the bottom and mounting it on a hollow post made from narrow boards.
4. The plywood playhouse is topped with cedar shakes and faced with Masonite. Thin strips of molding staple-gunned together create the illusion of windowpanes , while a wooden window box filled with fake flowers, moss, and ivy adds a welcoming touch.
5. The swing is made from a craft board purchased at Home Depot, strung on rope, and attached to lag screws drilled through the ceiling into the joists.
Source: Family Fun
Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com
Obama Speech to American School Children
By Fox News
September 7, 2009
Editor’s Note: The following are prepared remarks from President Obama’s Back to School Event scheduled for Tuesday in Arlington, Virginia
We would like to know what you think? Are you allowing your child to hear the President’s Speech tomorrow? dan@youngchronicle.com
The President: Hello everyone – how’s everybody doing today? I’m here with students at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia. And we’ve got students tuning in from all across America, kindergarten through twelfth grade. I’m glad you all could join us today.
I know that for many of you, today is the first day of school. And for those of you in kindergarten, or starting middle or high school, it’s your first day in a new school, so it’s understandable if you’re a little nervous. I imagine there are some seniors out there who are feeling pretty good right now, with just one more year to go. And no matter what grade you’re in, some of you are probably wishing it were still summer, and you could’ve stayed in bed just a little longer this morning.
I know that feeling. When I was young, my family lived in Indonesia for a few years, and my mother didn’t have the money to send me where all the American kids went to school. So she decided to teach me extra lessons herself, Monday through Friday – at 4:30 in the morning. Now I wasn’t too happy about getting up that early. A lot of times, I’d fall asleep right there at the kitchen table. But whenever I’d complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and say, “This is no picnic for me either, buster.”
So I know some of you are still adjusting to being back at school. But I’m here today because I have something important to discuss with you. I’m here because I want to talk with you about your education and what’s expected of all of you in this new school year.
Now I’ve given a lot of speeches about education. And I’ve talked a lot about responsibility.
I’ve talked about your teachers’ responsibility for inspiring you, and pushing you to learn. I’ve talked about your parents’ responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and get your homework done, and don’t spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with that Xbox.
I’ve talked a lot about your government’s responsibility for setting high standards, supporting teachers and principals, and turning around schools that aren’t working where students aren’t getting the opportunities they deserve.
But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world – and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay attention to those teachers; listen to your parents, grandparents and other adults; and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.
And that’s what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education. I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself.
Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That’s the opportunity an education can provide.
Maybe you could be a good writer – maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper – but you might not know it until you write a paper for your English class. Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor – maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or a new medicine or vaccine – but you might not know it until you do a project for your science class. Maybe you could be a mayor or a Senator or a Supreme Court Justice, but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.
And no matter what you want to do with your life – I guarantee that you’ll need an education to do it. You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You’re going to need a good education for every single one of those careers. You can’t drop out of school and just drop into a good job. You’ve got to work for it and train for it and learn for it.
And this isn’t just important for your own life and your own future. What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country. What you’re learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future.
You’ll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment. You’ll need the insights and critical thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and homelessness, crime and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free. You’ll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy.
We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can help solve our most difficult problems. If you don’t do that – if you quit on school – you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country.
Now I know it’s not always easy to do well in school. I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.
I get it. I know what that’s like. My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mother who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn’t always able to give us things the other kids had. There were times when I missed having a father in my life. There were times when I was lonely and felt like I didn’t fit in.
So I wasn’t always as focused as I should have been. I did some things I’m not proud of, and got in more trouble than I should have. And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse.
But I was fortunate. I got a lot of second chances and had the opportunity to go to college, and law school, and follow my dreams. My wife, our First Lady Michelle Obama, has a similar story. Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn’t have much. But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.
Some of you might not have those advantages. Maybe you don’t have adults in your life who give you the support that you need. Maybe someone in your family has lost their job, and there’s not enough money to go around. Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don’t feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren’t right.
But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life – what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home – that’s no excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude. That’s no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school. That’s no excuse for not trying.
Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up. No one’s written your destiny for you. Here in America, you write your own destiny. You make your own future. That’s what young people like you are doing every day, all across America.
Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas. Jazmin didn’t speak English when she first started school. Hardly anyone in her hometown went to college, and neither of her parents had gone either. But she worked hard, earned good grades, got a scholarship to Brown University, and is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to being Dr. Jazmin Perez.
I’m thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who’s fought brain cancer since he was three. He’s endured all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer – hundreds of extra hours – to do his schoolwork. But he never fell behind, and he’s headed to college this fall.
And then there’s Shantell Steve, from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois. Even when bouncing from foster home to foster home in the toughest neighborhoods, she managed to get a job at a local health center; start a program to keep young people out of gangs; and she’s on track to graduate high school with honors and go on to college.
Jazmin, Andoni and Shantell aren’t any different from any of you. They faced challenges in their lives just like you do. But they refused to give up. They chose to take responsibility for their education and set goals for themselves. And I expect all of you to do the same.
That’s why today, I’m calling on each of you to set your own goals for your education – and to do everything you can to meet them. Your goal can be something as simple as doing all your homework, paying attention in class, or spending time each day reading a book.
Maybe you’ll decide to get involved in an extracurricular activity, or volunteer in your community. Maybe you’ll decide to stand up for kids who are being teased or bullied because of who they are or how they look, because you believe, like I do, that all kids deserve a safe environment to study and learn. Maybe you’ll decide to take better care of yourself so you can be more ready to learn.
And along those lines, I hope you’ll all wash your hands a lot, and stay home from school when you don’t feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter.
Whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it. I want you to really work at it.
I know that sometimes, you get the sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work — that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things.
But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won’t love every subject you study. You won’t click with every teacher. Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right this minute. And you won’t necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.
That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures. JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was rejected twelve times before it was finally published. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career. But he once said, “I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures define you – you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time. If you get in trouble, that doesn’t mean you’re a troublemaker, it means you need to try harder to behave. If you get a bad grade, that doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it just means you need to spend more time studying.
No one’s born being good at things, you become good at things through hard work. You’re not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport. You don’t hit every note the first time you sing a song. You’ve got to practice. It’s the same with your schoolwork. You might have to do a math problem a few times before you get it right, or read something a few times before you understand it, or do a few drafts of a paper before it’s good enough to hand in.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and to learn something new. So find an adult you trust – a parent, grandparent or teacher; a coach or counselor – and ask them to help you stay on track to meet your goals.
And even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you – don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.
The story of America isn’t about people who quit when things got tough. It’s about people who kept going, who tried harder, who loved their country too much to do anything less than their best.
It’s the story of students who sat where you sit 250 years ago, and went on to wage a revolution and found this nation. Students who sat where you sit 75 years ago who overcame a Depression and won a world war; who fought for civil rights and put a man on the moon. Students who sat where you sit 20 years ago who founded Google, Twitter and Facebook and changed the way we communicate with each other.
So today, I want to ask you, what’s your contribution going to be? What problems are you going to solve? What discoveries will you make? What will a president who comes here in twenty or fifty or one hundred years say about what all of you did for this country? Your families, your teachers, and I are doing everything we can to make sure you have the education you need to answer these questions. I’m working hard to fix up your classrooms and get you the books, equipment and computers you need to learn. But you’ve got to do your part too.
So I expect you to get serious this year. I expect you to put your best effort into everything you do. I expect great things from each of you. So don’t let us down – don’t let your family or your country or yourself down. Make us all proud. I know you can do it.
Thank you, God bless you, and God bless America.
Source: Fox News
Healthy After-School Living
September 7, 2009 by Dan
Filed under Parent's Advice
By ARA Content
Sept. 7, 2009
While what children eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner are extremely important for a child’s health, snacking also plays an important role. Developing healthy snacking habits early on may have more of an impact on a child’s overall health than most people realize.
After-school snacking can either contribute to a healthy lifestyle or can be an unhealthy culprit in your child’s day. It’s no surprise that most kids are ravenous after school; they often eat lunch at 11:30 a.m.! And with today’s parents staying later at the office or facing longer commutes, many families are not sitting down for dinner until 7:30 p.m. It’s all too easy for children to fall into a routine of junk food, and hours in front of the TV after school if parents or caregivers do not intervene. A great first step to improve your child’s well-being is to plan an after-school routine to help your child stay healthy and active even after the school bell rings.
“With the changing demands and pressures of work and school, it’s more important than ever to incorporate simple nutritious solutions into our routines,” says Laura Molseed, registered dietitian for Del Monte Foods. Here are some simple solutions to meet every family’s needs!
Stock Your Pantry with Easy Choices
Tip: Take your kids to the grocery store, and allow them to be directly involved in the selection process. According to experts, they are more likely to make better choices for it. Encourage kids to choose their favorite seasonal fruits and vegetables as well as a selection of nuts, raisins, low-fat yogurts and whole-wheat crackers, all of which are low in fat, sodium and sugar. “While an occasional sweet is a nice treat, having routine sweet afternoon treats, such as cookies and cupcakes, can really add up in terms of extra calories, fat and sugar ” says Molseed. “Keeping delicious, fun and healthy options in the kitchen and in your children’s lunchboxes will help them feel energized until dinner.”
Ants on a Log
Get Them Involved!
Tip: Teach your kids that healthy can still be fun.
Children love the idea of cooking, and making their own snacks and treats. Young children can help make easy 1-2-3 recipes, and older children can assist with meal planning, even creating their own dinner or lunch options. For example, for a twist on dessert, take Del Monte Fruit Chillers sorbet out of your pantry and turn them into something your entire family will love — a fun, after-dinner treat! Kids will love making this easy recipe for Iceberg Pie, a creamy, refreshing dessert. Simply mix 1/4 cup of low-fat vanilla yogurt with a 4.5-ounce cup of Fruit Chillers sorbet and pour the mixture into a favorite bowl. Freeze overnight. Del Monte Fruit Chillers sorbet (delmonte.com) is available at Target and Wal-Mart nationwide and is found at room-temperature in the canned fruit aisle. One cup of Fruit Chillers sorbet contains 100 percent DV Vitamin C and almost one complete serving of real fruit.
Get Them Moving! 
Time spent in front of the TV or computer is often at the expense of physical activity. Kids need to be moving at least 30 to 60 minutes a day, according to experts.
Your child is continuously bombarded with advertisements, often for fast food and other sugary snacks that do not promote healthy habits. According to Kaiser Family Foundation, children ages eight to 12 see an average of 21 television ads each day for candy, snacks, cereal and fast foods. It’s no wonder the first snacks they reach for are typically the items they see on TV each day.
Keep your kids active and provide plenty of healthy snacks along the way to avoid this. As kids often do not go directly home after school, packing healthy, delicious snacks they can easily eat on the go is important.
The colorful new “Bento Box”, based on the Japanese version, will hold several nutritious snacks in its various compartments and comes with a nutritious eating guide that allows you to plan fun, healthy snacks with your child!
Tip: Check with your babysitter or daycare center to ensure they are walking, dancing or playing group games.
Consider suggesting the babysitter host an after-school game session, but swap the usual board games with entertaining and interactive games designed to get your kids up and off the couch. One game that combines yoga, aerobics and stretches is the new WiiFit, soon to be launched from Nintendo. Finally, encouraging your child to eat healthier snacks and do more physical activities after school may prevent your child from reaching for the sugary or salty snacks, while still leaving them hungry for a delicious family dinner!
Source: ARAcontent Eversave
Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com
Helping Out in the Community
By McGruff and Scruff
Sept. 5, 2009
In 1974, a neighborhood crime watch group was organized in South Dade County. Citizens met with their local law enforcement departments to ask what they could do to help the police apprehend a rapist terrorizing their community. From this first informal meeting, communities and law enforcement began to work together to keep neighborhoods safe and free from crime. An organization was formed, and Citizens’ Crime Watch of Miami-Dade County, Inc. (CCW) was registered as a 501(c) (3) non profit organization. Today, over 1,600 neighborhoods participate in the crime watch concept.
In 1979, the crime watch concept was introduced into the public school system at one school. Because it succeeded in curbing school crime, the Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) requested we, CCW, expand its student crime watch program from one school to include all public schools in the county. Since that time, Youth Crime Watch of Miami-Dade (YCW) has functioned as an allied program of the public schools.
Methodology The public school system contracts with YCW to educate and train students in violence and crime prevention strategies. Children also learn that good citizenship and personal responsibility include watching out for family, friends, schools and community. YCW maintains a presence in all M-DCPS.
The foundation of the YCW program is built upon a “school safety survey” which is administered at the school during the first few months of the school year. It asks respondents to rank their particular safety concerns – those issues which they believe have the potential to cause harm to themselves or their schoolmates. YCW students, student advisors, and our staff are then enlisted in the effort to resolve those issues impeding the safety, health, and education of young people. The results of the survey are prioritized and comprise the core content of the YCW program.
The YCW program is structured to teach leadership skills to students who volunteer to learn about school safety. While they learn how to keep themselves safe, they also learn public speaking, critical thinking, leadership, and other skills that will serve them into their adult lives. This, in turn, reinforces their self-esteem and promotes positive involvement, again curbing misbehavior, crime and violence in the school.
I’m McGruff the Crime Dog – world famous for my advice on how to stop crime before it happens, and for my great sense of humor. But seriously, my job is to help people, especially kids, learn how to be safe and make their neighborhood safer. Something else you should know about me is that I go all over the country to talk to people about how they can take a bite out of crime. So if you see me in your town, come on up and say hi. You can recognize me by my tan trench coat – I never go anywhere without it.
This here is my nephew Scruff. He helps me show kids how they can stay safe. Scruff’s a good pup but sometimes gets himself into a bit of trouble. Lucky for him he’s got a good memory – eventually he remembers the right thing to do to get out of trouble. Want to know more about me and Scruff?
You can read more about yours truly in the story How McGruff Became the Crime Dog, and you can read some of Scruff’s adventures in these comic books.
Today we will talk about: Helping Out in the Community
You and your friends can help out in your neighborhood by taking some few simple steps each day:
Ask your teacher if you could help by erasing the blackboard, or if he or she needs help carrying supplies.
- Bake some goodies for the elderly people in your community.
- Offer to rake the lawns of those in your neighborhood who are not able to.
- Ask your parents if they need help around the house. For example, offer to fold the laundry while you watch the television…that way you both win!
- Collect donations for a local shelter or Red Cross office. These are just a few ideas that you can do to help out around your community.
- By helping out, you are saying thanks to all those who make your neighborhood great!
Help Scruff help out in his community by playing these games!
Community Clean-up
Source: McGruff
Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com