Dia de los Muertos celebration

A Company of Girls is Celebrating Dia de los Muertos this weekend!! Sadly it is going to be the very last event to be held at Portland's Adams School. In the few weeks after the event ACOG will be moving to a new location and the City of Portland will be closing the building awaiting a new development project. The Adams school has been a great location for our program and we are sad to leave. That is why we are asking the Portland Community to help us celebrate our time here with one last event! On Friday night we will be displaying the art work of children, artist, and community members from 5-8pm. Then on Sat Nov. 1st the Day of the Dead will begin with the making of dead bread from 9-noon, then 3-4:45 Live music, with dinner to follow. After dinner of traditional cuisine ACOG will ask all who attend to parade around the neighborhood to end the evening. The cost is $10.00 for adults and $5.00 for students (there is no cost for the gallery on Friday). If you have any questions about the event please call ACOG at 874-2107 or email myself or Odelle Bowman at odelle@acompanyofgirls.org. We look forward to seeing you this weekend.

Safe space for LGBTQ students

Creating Safe Spaces for LGBTQ Youth Hardy Girls Healthy Women and Communities for Children and Youth are offering four regional trainings for adults working with youth. The trainings will help adults learn to create safe, supportive environments for lesbian and gay youth to grow. These trainings are free and open to the public. Lunch will be provided. Creating Safe Spaces Training Dates and Locations: November 12- Farmington, UMaine Farmington Campus, 10am-3pm November 13- Portland, USM Glickman Library, University Events Room, 10am-3pm November 18- Bangor, Sea Dog Brewing Company Conference Center, 10am-3pm November 19- Belfast, UMaine Hutchison Center, 10am-3pm For more information please email Hardy Girls Healthy Women or you can register online.

You the Man -- from Ad Verb Productions

Come find out why "You the Man" As a part of the Real Life. Real Talk. Coalition's events in honor of National Family Sexuality Month, Add Verb is holding 2 FREE public performances of You the Man. This is a great opportunity for parents, mentors, and friends to attend with the young people in their life for a performance that is entertaining, thought provoking and a way to get talking about dating violence and sexual assault. TONIGHT, October 21st, 7pm - You the Man at Deering High School Tuesday, October 28th, 7pm - You the Man at Portland High School Following the performances, there will be an audience talk back session with representatives from Family Crisis Services, Sexual Response Services of Southern Maine and Boys to Men. More About You the Man You the Man is an excellent way for a school or community to set the tone for productive, open dialogue about issues that plague our society: unhealthy relationships, sexual assault, and dating abuse. Written in consultation with DV and SA advocates around the country, You the Man is a powerful and engaging approach to the work at hand, and has received national attention from advocates and experts. Watch the You the Man Promo Video Watch the You the Man Post Show Discussion **New! See what others have been saying about You the Man See where You the Man has been performed What are others saying about You the Man? I want students to know that they deserve to be treated with respect, both emotionally and physically. You the Man demonstrates this point in a captivating, poignant, and powerful way. The play is the most unique way of conveying information and the best program I have ever seen on this topic. --Dr. Susan Salem, Director, Counseling and Psych Services, Mount St. Mary's College You the Man provides men with a way to empathize and identify with issues that many of us have long chosen to shy away from...You the Man is an original, creative -- and dare I say it -- entertaining contribution to this movement. It promises to spark some really useful dialogue between women and men on college campuses, high schools, and all sorts of community settings. --Jackson Katz, Founder of the Mentors in Violence Prevention (MVP) Program Other Add Verb Upcoming Portland Area Performances October 30th, 7pm - It's OK. You Can Say it.(1 Longfellow Square) Join Add Verb and the other Real Life. Real Talk. Coalition members for an eye opening event to see what people said when they were asked, "What do you wish someone had told you about sex?"

Books illustrated by Celeste!

Our very own art teacher, Celeste Henriquez, is the illustrator of several children's books, including the "Real 12 Days of Christmas" and "Best-Colors-mejores-colores : With the help of his two mammas, Nate learns he can have more than one best color and one best friend. Includes activity and teaching ideas."

StoryWalk on Mackworth Island (share with your friends!)

EDIT : THE STORY WALK WILL LEAVE MACKWORTH ON WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 23 The Friends School of Portland has brought a storywalk to Mackworth Island. Storywalks engage children in literacy by combining the text and pictures from children's books with activities to do as they walk through the story (a winding walk by large posters from the books.) The storywalk on Mackworth is of Cathryn Falwell's newest book Scoot. The walk will be up through October and is just along the trail -- come check it out. Friends is offering admissions events in November for those wanting more information about the school. Admissions Events Parent Information Session Who: Prospective parents, friends and supporters. Adults only, please. What: Meet administrators & current parents Where: Friends School of Portland on Mackworth Island, Falmouth, Maine When: 6:00 to 7:00 pm, Wednesday, November 12 Please call to let us know you are coming, but last minute drop-ins are welcome. Family Open House Who: Prospective families, friends and supporters. Children welcome! What: Meet teachers, administrators, & current parents Where: Friends School of Portland on Mackworth Island, Falmouth, Maine When: 10 to 11:30 am, Saturday, November 15 Parent Class Visits Who: Prospective parents, only.

Planetarium Trip - -Nov 11th!

We’re going out of this world! The FSPA is sponsoring a trip to the Southworth Planetarium on our next holiday from school (Tuesday, November 11th). The show starts at 10:30 am and costs $4.00 per person. We will gather for lunch (bring your own or buy) at the Student Union afterwards. The show will be RUSTY ROCKET'S LAST BLAST: Join Rusty Rocket and his band of _rocket rookies as they explore the wonder worlds of the Solar System. Directions: I-295 NORTH OR SOUTH: Take Exit 6B. Go west (straight) on Forest Avenue to the second light. Turn left onto Falmouth Street. The Planetarium is on the left in the Science Building on the USM campus. Parking: There is on-street parking on Falmouth Street

Wolf Program @ Audobon

SPECIAL PRESENTATION: Mission Wolf Come meet two live gray wolves and learn about the species through myths, folklore, and facts about their behavior, habitat, and restoration efforts. Biologists from Mission Wolf bring their live wolves all the way from Montana to share this time with us. Afterwards, don't be surprised if you feel an insatiable yearning to howl at the moon! Choose from two programs, each geared to a different age group. Monday, October 20 4 p.m. (suggested for families with children ages 8 and younger) 7 p.m. (suggested for families with children ages 9 and up) Maine Audubon Members: $15/adult, $10/child Nonmembers: $18/adult, $12/child Advance registration necessary: Please call (207) 781-2330, ext. 215.

Events at Wolfs Neck Farm

FALL FAMILY FUN FESTIVAL Saturday, Oct. 18, 10am - 2pm Please come join us for a special day filled with pumpkin hayrides, crafts, apple cider-making, animal visits, and many other fun activities for the whole family! Cost: $5 per person. PUMPKIN HAYRIDES Saturdays in October 11am—3pm Sundays in October 12pm –3pm Bring your family for this traditional fall activity! Enjoy a visit with our animals and a hayride along the shores of Casco Bay. Pick a pie pumpkin from our patch, and munch on an orchard fresh apple on the ride back. Each trip is approximately 30 minutes. Cost: $5 per person, plus $1 per pumpkin. Babies on laps are free. FARMER for the MORNING Wednesdays from November 5th until April 15th. 10:30 am til 11:30-ish This program is open to all ages, but targeted for children in the 2 to 5 year old age group. Participants get to interact with and take care of a variety of farm animals. Children get to feed grain, hay, and treats to the animals. Each session is closed with a farm or environmentally themed story read out loud in the Haze Hut at the Farm. Arts and Crafts materials are available for parents to work individually with their children afterwards. Cost is $5 per child, member rates and seasonal discounts available. M D "Mitch" Mitchell Education Coordinator Wolfe's Neck Farm 184 Burnett Road, Freeport, ME 04032 Main #: (207) 865-4469 Education: 865-4363 Fax: 865-4884 mmitchell@wolfesneckfarm.org www.wolfesneckfarm.org “Only he can understand what a farm is...who shall have sacrificed part of himself to his farm...fought to save it, struggled to make it beautiful. Only then will the love of farm...fill his heart.” --Antoine de Saint-Exupery, author of "The Little Prince"

Telling Room Workshops

Friends, Mainers, Good Folks, lend us your ears: You never need an excuse to stop by, but if you're looking for a reason to send your students or children or your friends' students or children to The Telling Room, here are two great upcoming workshops and one ongoing opportunity. Here are the workshops, the first taught by Portland's first-ever Poet Laureate and the second by a local artist and comic book writer. Seeing with the Heart's Ear Grades 4 – 6 Mondays, November 3rd, 10th, 17th and December 1st and 8th 3:30 – 5:00 p.m. Lead Teacher: Martin Steingesser "We will be looking for how wind soughing among spruce and hemlock, the lap of waves, the migrating geese, conversation over dinner, in hallways, and weather ruffle the heart’s fur, reflect and carry our stories. This is, hopefully, a vision-shifting workshop to help with writing more expressive, stronger and clearer poetry. Finding and making images that resonate with our reflective and feeling life is one of its loving concerns." This from the workshop's teacher, a wonderful Maine writer who teaches poetry to children through the Maine Arts Commission and likes to dance on stilts. Comics: Start with a Dot Grades 5 –8 Wednesdays, November 5th, 12th, 19th and December 3rd 3:30 – 4:45 p.m. Lead Teacher: Henry Wolyniec Sometimes, a comic says it best. Find out why, and how to lose yourself in the alternative universe of the page. What is a picture, really? How do you know what words to use? Find out how to combine images and words to tell the kind of story that can only happen in the comics. More workshops, including comics for younger writers and visual journaling, to come later this year. Head to www.tellingroom.org to find out more and to register. As always, our workshop and tutoring programs are free. Also, don't forget that every Tuesday and Thursday we offer after-school tutoring anytime from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. College essays, school projects, or new screenplays, we've got it covered. Send any students you know who are 8 to 18 and can use homework help or writing mentoring our way. All best, The Telling Room Crew

Movie night @ FSP

FSP's first movie night is this coming Friday. The cost is $3.00 and will include snacks. There will be 2 movie choices -- Wallace & Grommit and Beethoven. The movies were selected by a group of kids who worked with the Quaker decision making process, clerked by Lise. It was quite wonderful to witness. Waterville offers a kids film festival with ideas for some alternative and international films... and Kid's First offers a film festival and list of ideas. Where else do you get media ideas for your family?

Happiness Blog

This is a pretty cool blog about using the science of happiness to inform parenting.

Info about families / ask a debate question

I am teaching a course on the family, and have found myself fascinated and horrified by some of the info. I thought some of the links might be of interest to others: Jody Heymann MD, PhD wrote a heartbreaking book about families living in global poverty (Forgotten Families) and issued a report last year about how the USA measures up. Sadly, we fall behind many countries in the world in terms of public policy designed to help parents balance work and family. UNICEF issues a similar report, but focused on the well-being of children. They separate out a report of the well being of children in the world's richest countries, and found that the U.S. ranks 20th out of 21 countries. The full report is here. Finally, the World Economic Forum ranks us 31st out of 128 countries in the world with regard to the Global Gender Gap. All this leads to a chance to suggest a question for the next presidential debate, around support for families. The link is here, questions need to be posed today!

Pollen to speak at Bates College

Food has been a topic of interest at FSP, and I think some people may even have read some of Michael Pollen's book The Omnivore's Dilemma last year as part of the middle school food project. Pollen will be speaking on October 27th at the Bates College Chappel, at 7:30 pm.

Steve Songs

I have never heard of him, but this was posted on the Cumberland Family Network Steve Songs is a wonderful children's musician. His shows are wonderful. Check it out!! Sun, Oct 12, 1:00PM Marvelous Adventures DVD Release Concert One Longfellow Square Corner of Congress & State Streets, Portland, ME This will be a band show family concert! Tickets: $10 in advance/$12 at the door. To purchase tickets call 207-761-1757, visit the Box Office (181 State St, Suite 304, Portland, ME), or click this link: One Longfellow Square http://www.stevesongs.com/index.php

Election Resources for Kids

There are some great books and web sites that help kids (and adults) demystify the electoral process. PBS has several, including the democracy project which has a few kids games about voting, and government. The show "Zoom" also sponsors a page of games and activities, with a focus on GOTV. The Children's Book Council has a bibliography of election books for kids Older kids might be interested in the Youth Voting Project (policy issues for teens, really, I think)