Candy Buy Back

Dr. Shems, an orthodontist with an office in the True North building is offering a candy-buy back if anyone feels overloaded this Halloween... any others or any good strategies for taming the candy montser?

Dr. Bellinger's Power Point

If you missed the P4P event on Tuesday but would like to see Dr. B's powerpoint, or if you saw it and would like to have a copy, he has graciously offered to share it. Leave a comment or e-mail me and I can send it to you.

Friday is Pumpkin Day at School

If you don't have any yet, check out this list of possible places to get them...

DETOX YOUR TOYBOX - RESOURCES for Parents and Teachers

A teensy preview of tonight's ideas... Nicole says the best way to help kids make healthy choices for their bodies and their land is to take them outside as much as possible (this is a huge paraphrase ~ come tonight to hear her whole message).  Here are a few resources to help us do that: 

The Friends School teachers had a community read of David Sobel's books and Nicole recommends them as a place to start for thinking about when and how to introduce kids to environmental education and activism. 

Four found these cool links: 

The Children and Nature Network

Take It Outside : a Maine initiative

I like Roots and Shoots as a resource for thinking about how to engage kids in service/stewarship projects

Eartheasy posted a blog post with lots of links to websites that are supposed to be appropriate for kids interested in learning more about environmental issues

Wisconsin Water Library has some book ideas for kids

What Kids Can Do shares some stories about successful youth environmental activism

If you are more interested in how to decrease environmental health hazards immediately, check out: 

National Institute of Environmental Health Science's pdfs on air and water quality at home and school 

Partnership for Children's Health and the Environment offers a subscription for up-to-date news. 

The Alliance for a Clean and Healthy Maine has a huge list of fabulous resources 

And, as we start the Halloween -- New Years plastic consumption, consider the New American Dream's website to help us simplify, or use HealthyStuff.org to find out what's safe to buy.. 

 

Beyond Ecophobia -- COME TO DETOX YOUR TOYBOX TOMORROW NIGHT

Are you curious about Tuesday night's talk, but worried that you'll be overwhelmed with "NOTs"? There is so much bad news (check out this Bangor Daily News article about toxins in the blood of Maine Health Care workers for a shock) but feeling worried, anxious, guilty or panicky often immobilizes us instead of helping move us toward action.

Although we are going to get the most up-to-date information from David Bellinger, we're also going to celebrate the most recent community activism (you can take part today, see below)!) coordinated by Kristine of the Environmental Health Strategy Center. And, perhaps most important for us FSPers, Nicole is going to inspire us with stories about the ways that kids are engaged in environmental action simply by loving tree-house beach, by noticing the animals that live in our ocean, and by spending time in Maine's wilderness. They have "ecological intelligence" and we can partner with them to make cleaning the planet both joyful and ordinary.

See David Sobel's article in YES magazine for a teaser... or this more recent YES article about "place-based" education.

Fwd: Reminder: Day of Action for Safer Chemicals: Monday Morning!

See http://www.preventharm.org for great action alerts!

Spam

Thank you, Audra, for alerting me to more spam... I'm going to disable the e-mail access and hopefully our blog will be our own again! Kim

prior FSP family on TV in support of NO on 1

Tamiko and Terry were FSP parents way back in year 1... Cam, their son, attended the preschool.... you can see them on TV talking about what No on 1 means to them... 

BBC on Play Based Learning

I'm listening to an interesting NPR/BBC story about a new recommendation from the UK suggesting that kids should delay "formal learning" until the age of 6.  They suggest play-based preschool and kindergarten for young children but that children should not be taught reading or other formal content until at least six years old.  The BBC report includes counter arguments and some information about what happens around the world... 

How much is that what happens in our communities?  How structured should learning be in middle childhood? 

Interesting questions... here's the link to the BBC story and here's the link to the actual report. 

Kids Photo Project & chance to think about water in yet another way (being on an island and all...)

Take Part in the Drop of Hope Water Photography project!

Celebrate water, build awareness and create art with young people in New England and across the country! Share your water photos today and inspire people to protect water locally and globally. Download the flyer.