Category: Modern Parenting,

Potential Effects of Growing Up With a Smartphone 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Environment,, Modern Parenting,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

What’s the connection between smartphones and the apparent psychological distress this generation is experiencing? For all their power to link kids day and night, social media also exacerbate the age-old teen concern about being left out. Today’s teens may go to fewer parties and spend less time together in person, but when they do congregate, they document their hangouts relentlessly—on Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook. Those not invited to come along are keenly aware of it. Accordingly, the number of teens who feel left out has reached all-time highs across age groups. Like the increase in loneliness, the upswing in feeling left out has been swift and significant.

…Social media levy a psychic tax on the teen doing the posting as well, as she anxiously awaits the affirmation of comments and likes. 

…These more dire consequences for teenage girls could also be rooted in the fact that they’re more likely to experience cyberbullying. Boys tend to bully one another physically, while girls are more likely to do so by undermining a victim’s social status or relationships.

…Adolescence is a key time for developing social skills; as teens spend less time with their friends face-to-face, they have fewer opportunities to practice them. 

Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation? – The Atlantic

Not ready to jump on board with the alarmist suggestions about how to rip technology out of the hands of tweens but interesting none-the-less.

Civics, Community, and Allyship: Why We Chose Our Local Public School 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Modern Parenting,, Money, Class, and Poverty,, Race,, Schools,Leave a comment

When parents ask me where my daughter is going to kindergarten, I tell them my local, public, elementary school. Many are surprised, and follow the question up with “Oh! Is that a good school?” 

…Because it IS a good school, with loving parents, teachers, and administrators. Without the glossy brochures, the extra fancy professional development, the “team-building.”

Because there is no lottery, no admissions process, no waitlist. No back door secret enrollment policies. You live in this neighborhood; this school belongs to you.

Because it is a school brimming with potential and excellence, despite many families and people in our neighborhood who ignore it or don’t consider it worth attending and supporting

Because just as the grassy strip of parkway in front of my house is my responsibility to maintain for myself and my neighbors, my local elementary school is also that- my responsibility. My responsibility to patronize, to trust, to support.

Because unless I am intentionally placing my children in diverse settings, both socio-economically and racially, unless I am intentionally acknowledging and addressing the issues of school segregation that have divided this great city, I will raise a racist. I won’t mean to. But intentions are no longer enough. Unless I am forcibly putting her out in to the world, confident in her resilience, humanity, and grit, I will keep her cloistered and separate from the truth of what it really means to be an equal among equals.

Civics, Community, and Allyship: Why We Chose Our Local Public School – IntegratedSchools.org

Amen, like-minded parent.
A-f’ing-men.

* = I fucking hate the word “ally” and the word “allyship.” I think both of them sound patronizing and disconnected as all hell. So fuck that word choice but I’m with this guy on everything else he says.

How one man built a $51m theme park for his daughter 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Media and Culture,, Modern Parenting,Leave a comment

Gordon Hartman [realized] there were no parks where his daughter Morgan, who is disabled, could play. So he decided to build one.

…The park, called Morgan’s Wonderland, cost $34m (£26m) and opened in 2010. Attractions include a fully-accessible Ferris wheel, adventure playground and miniature train. Visitors regularly tell Hartman it is the first time they’ve been able to experience such attractions.

There is also a carousel with specially designed chariots for wheelchairs that go up and down alongside the animals.

…Since it opened Morgan’s Wonderland has received over a million visitors from 67 countries and from all 50 American states. A third of staff have disabilities and entrance is free to any guest with a condition.

…”We open every year knowing we’re going to lose over $1m (£750,000) and we need to recover that through fundraising and partners.”

This year, the theme park was expanded with the opening of Morgan’s Inspiration Island, a fully-accessible water park.

“Fewer people were visiting in July because the wheelchairs got too hot. So we decided to create a water park next door,” Hartman says.

Parts of the island use warm water, which helps visitors with muscular problems. Waterproof [motorized] wheelchairs are provided, which run on compressed air rather than batteries. There is also an accessible river boat ride.

How one man built a $51m theme park for his daughter – BBC News

This is amazingly, amazingly cool.

Madison girls soccer team bristles at critics who say players are boys

On By peanutgallerynhIn Chick Stuff,, Media and Culture,, Modern Parenting,Leave a comment

The U-11 Madison 56ers girls soccer team is standing up for their short-haired players who often times get called boys by the opposing side.

…What has taken the girls, their parents, even their coach by surprise is the impact of that style choice.

They’ve been ridiculed by opposing parents, coaches, even referees, all of whom refused to accept that they were not boys. At tournaments, they have been asked to prove their gender, and were told they didn’t deserve medals.

…”(Our girls) are just physical and are playing the sport the way it’s supposed to be played. When we tell a parent on the other team that they’re girls they just say, ‘Yeah right.'”

Once, the team went up to receive medals at a tournament, but didn’t get the congratulations that they thought they deserved. A referee told the girls they didn’t deserve to get medals because they played with boys on the team. 

“They say, ‘They’re too good. They move like boys,'” Julie Minikel-Lacocque, Adah’s mom said. “All these players have experienced the same discrimination, and I really would call it that. From teams demanding passports and accusations of cheating. It’s incredibly damaging to the girls.”

Madison girls soccer team bristles at critics who say players are boys

Is it really 2017?
Are we really still going through stupid, stupid nonsense like this?
Man alive, how surreal…

Michelle Obama criticizes Trump school lunch decision – CBS News

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Education,, Modern Parenting,, Money, Class, and Poverty,, Schools,Leave a comment

Former first lady says people should question motives behind Trump administration delaying federal rules aimed at healthier school lunches.

The school meal changes reflect suggestions from the School Nutrition Association, which represents school nutrition directors and companies that sell food to schools. The group often battled with the Obama administration, which phased in the healthier school meal rules starting in 2012.

Michelle Obama criticizes Trump school lunch decision – CBS News

Sigh…

Nebraska Supreme Court strikes down anti-gay foster parent rule.

On By peanutgallerynhIn Modern Parenting,Leave a comment

An impassioned ruling against “the humiliation of rejection and the stigmatic harm of unequal treatment.”

…”It is legally indistinguishable from a sign reading ‘Whites Only’ on the hiring-office door. Memo 1-95 clearly excluded same-sex couples and individuals who identified as homosexuals either from being licensed or from having state wards placed in their homes. There is no dispute that all the plaintiffs were ready and able to be foster parents, were aware of and deterred by Memo 1-95, and would have taken further steps to become foster parents but for the barrier expressed in Memo 1-95. The plaintiffs considered any further action to be futile and did not wish to subject themselves to the humiliation of rejection and the stigmatic harm of unequal treatment.”

Nebraska Supreme Court strikes down anti-gay foster parent rule.

nice

More evidence that the key to allergy-free kids is giving them plenty of dirt — and cows 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Modern Parenting,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

A new study may reveal one mechanism behind the strange allergy immunity of kids raised on farms.

…The research is related to something called the hygiene hypothesis, where a lack of exposure to microbes as a tyke leads to more allergy and asthma.

More evidence that the key to allergy-free kids is giving them plenty of dirt — and cows – The Washington Post

hmmm

White Parents Who Won’t Choose Black Schools 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Education,, Modern Parenting,, Race,, Schools,Leave a comment

They don’t want their kid to notice her whiteness in Pre-k and then find out while addressing that question, that while they already own great books about diversity, the only children’s books specifically about whiteness are published by the KKK. They don’t want their child to ask them why Quintavious’s sister says she doesn’t like white people. They don’t want to have to wonder when the teacher calls, if they are getting extra attention because white parents are often perceived as overbearing. They want diversity, just not too much.

Why White Parents Won’t Choose Black Schools | The Huffington Post

Sigh….

5 important stories you may have missed during last week’s news deluge NewsHour

On By peanutgallerynhIn Environment,, Europe,, Media and Culture,, Modern Parenting,, Money, Class, and Poverty,, Pacific Basin,, Religion,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

In honor of Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s five Super Bowl wins, here are five stories that ought to get more attention.

1. Worst fighting in years flares up in Ukraine
2. An inquiry into child abuse allegations in Australia’s Catholic Church leads to “tragic” statistics
3. The world’s most endangered marine mammal is going extinct
4. Taiwan one step closer to legalizing same-sex marriage
5. FCC’s latest move complicates efforts to lessen the digital divide

5 important stories you may have missed during last week’s news deluge | PBS NewsHour

hmmmmm

 

Painting depicting police officer as pig firing gun removed from Capitol display 

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,, Media and Culture,, Modern Parenting,, Race,Leave a comment

“Art imitates life, but no critic has asked the fundamental question the painting begs: Why would a young student with hope, promise and purpose perceive our community and the police in such a manner?” the pair wrote.

The column concluded with: “David’s only comment is, ‘The art speaks for itself.’ It has spoken loudly. Now, who will protect American civilization, including our Constitution and democracy?”

Painting depicting police officer as pig firing gun removed from Capitol display – CBS News

hmmm

How blood feud is growing among the Syrian youth 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Middle East,, Modern Parenting,Leave a comment

The schism in the fabric of Syrian society is very evident and yet intricate at the same time.

…”Assad is worse than ISIL, believe me,” he continued. This judgement may raise a few eyebrows, but it shouldn’t, as this is an inevitable sentiment of young people watching their fellow countrymen killed in cold blood and evacuated from their homes.

…Tens of thousands of civilians – in the aftermath of an agreement – fled Aleppo, most of them with the bitter taste of evacuation, after enduring years of war.

Poverty, despair and hunger for revenge will drive the evacuated youth to restore their honour and self-worth. The evidence of this intense yearning is becoming more visible, warning all of us about an even more complicated situation in Syria.

…The destruction of their loved ones’ lives is the driving force for many young Syrians to get revenge against the regime for obliterating their families, houses, lives and everything else in its path.

…Recent research done by the Thomson Reuters Foundation revealed that the need to earn a basic living, a desire for a sense of purpose and revenge are the key factors that push young Syrians into joining extremist groups.

…If the revenge valve exploded in Syria, the current death toll would seem minor compared to what will happen next. The only way out of this bloodbath is the political compromise between the Syrians themselves and the international powers involved.

This option seems to be the most ridiculous, least honourable, solution for the youth whose hearts are full of hard feelings, while unfortunately being the only rational solution.

How blood feud is growing among the Syrian youth – Al Jazeera English

Hmmmm

The Story of the 16-Year-Old Who Died in Custody After Being Arrested for Arguing With Her Mother

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,, Chick Stuff,, Modern Parenting,Leave a comment

“There is a reflexive incarceration of girls for behavior that would better be described as everyday adolescent rebellion than juvenile delinquency,” Lindsay Rosenthal, senior program associate and gender justice fellow with the Vera Institute’s Center on Youth Justice, told Jezebel.

Criminologists also suggest that the changes in policing practices with respect to domestic disputes are to blame. In one study, data from police records of 320 domestic violence calls in five Massachusetts jurisdictions operating under a pro-arrest statute found that less than half (47 percent) involved intimate partner violence. The arrest patterns revealed surprising age and gender biases: Female offenders were nearly 2.5 times more likely than males to be arrested, while adolescents were 4.5 times more likely than adults to face arrest.

So what explains this counterintuitive situation? There a few possible factors, criminologists say. When the police arrive at a home riven by family chaos, young people tend to be less composed than their parents, making them more susceptible to arrest. Youths also have fewer civil rights, and arresting them is less complicated than carting off the primary caregiver or sole breadwinner.

In these cases, judicial and parental paternalism may also be fueling girls’ arrests, researchers say. Police and judges may be more inclined to take young women into custody for their own protection. Meanwhile, adults tend to impose more rules on daughters than sons, leading to greater conflict. “Girls are the ones who have curfews, who are yelled at for going out,” said Chesney-Lind. “There’s a double standard.”

…At around 6:30 a.m. on Monday, a worker carrying a tray of breakfast food knocked on the door, the suit states. When she didn’t answer, he noted that Gynnya “declined breakfast—refused to acknowledge staff.” Later, at 8:53, he opened her cell door and noted on the bed check form that she “declined snack.” At both points, though, Gynnya was already dead.

The Story of the 16-Year-Old Who Died in Custody After Being Arrested for Arguing With Her Mother

A clusterf*ck of madness and errors.

L.A.’s proposed ban on single adults near playgrounds is fear-based policy making at its worst

On By peanutgallerynhIn Local Interest,, Modern Parenting,Leave a comment

In an attempt to make Los Angeles parks seem super safe, City Councilman Mitch O’Farrell has proposed barring adults unaccompanied by children from entering playgrounds. It’s an effort, he said, to keep city parks “free of creepy activity.”

….It would bar any adult from sitting on a bench, exercising or otherwise enjoying public space near playground unless he or she brought a child along.

…His proposal is based on laws in place in a handful of major cities, including New York City, where police caused a minor uproar several years ago by ticketing people for sitting on playground-adjacent benches to eat donuts or play chess.

L.A.’s proposed ban on single adults near playgrounds is fear-based policy making at its worst – LA Times

WTF?! It didn’t work and caused chaos in NYC and LA thinks to itself, hey that’s what we want to do?

‘Under attack. Nowhere to go’: Bana Alabed, 7-year-old Aleppo girl, back on Twitter after account disappeared [Video]

On By peanutgallerynhIn Middle East,, Modern Parenting,Leave a comment

A 7-year-old Syrian girl caught the attention of people across the globe with her tweets about life in war-torn Aleppo. On Sunday, as the Syrian army pushed into eastern Aleppo, her Twitter account mysteriously disappeared. 

‘Under attack. Nowhere to go’: Bana Alabed, 7-year-old Aleppo girl, back on Twitter after account disappeared [Video]

hmmmm

Texas Lawmaker Wants To Force Teachers To Out LGBT Students To Parents 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Media and Culture,, Modern Parenting,, Schools,Leave a comment

Sen. Konni Burton argues that “a parent has a right to full and total information [about] their child.”

…Because in Buron’s mind parents own their children.
…Because in Burton’s mind human beings can own other human beings?

Texas Lawmaker Wants To Force Teachers To Out LGBT Students To Parents | NewNowNext

Biatch

Texas and Textbooks

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Education,, Local Interest,, Modern Parenting,, Religion,, Schools,Leave a comment

Texas and Textbooks | The Huffington Post

Sigh…

Some background history:

Conservative members of the Texas Board of Education don’t want to create a group of state university professors to fact-check students’ textbooks for potential errors, despite recent controversies…

Source: Texas Board of Education Refuses To Allow Professors To Fact-Check Textbooks

~~~

A broken process at the Texas State Board of Education has allowed right-wing activists to politicize the facts—or fiction—that get taught in history class.

Source: Was Moses a Founding Father? – The Atlantic

~~~

Moses and the American Constitution: If Texas wants biblical characters and states’ rights in textbooks, publishers are happy to deliver.

Source: Texas board of education hearings: Moses and states’ rights in social studies textbooks.

~~~

No matter where you live, if your children go to public schools, the textbooks they use were very possibly written under Texas influence. If they graduated with a reflexive suspicion of the concept of separation of church and state and an unexpected interest in the contributions of the National Rifle Association to American history, you know who to blame.

…Texas originally acquired its power over the nation’s textbook supply because it paid 100 percent of the cost of all public school textbooks, as long as the books in question came from a very short list of board-approved options.

…The books on the Texas list were likely to be mass-produced by the publisher in anticipation of those sales, so other states liked to buy them and take advantage of the economies of scale.

…All the bickering and pressuring over the years has caused publishers to shy away from using the kind of clear, lively language that might raise hackles in one corner or another. The more writers were constrained by confusing demands and conflicting requests, the more they produced unreadable mush.  ..The [Thomas B. Fordham Institute evaluation of US history standards for public schools authors] said,

“the document distorts or suppresses less triumphal or more nuanced aspects of our past that the Board found politically unacceptable (slavery and segregation are all but ignored, while religious influences are grossly exaggerated). The resulting fusion is a confusing, unteachable hodgepodge.”

All around the country, teachers and students are left to make their way through murky generalities as they struggle through the swamps of boxes and lists. “Maybe the most striking thing about current history textbooks is that they have lost a controlling narrative,” wrote historian Russell Shorto.

And that’s the legacy. Texas certainly didn’t single-handedly mess up American textbooks, but its size, its purchasing heft, and the pickiness of the school board’s endless demands—not to mention the board’s overall craziness—certainly made it the trend leader. Texas has never managed to get evolution out of American science textbooks. It’s been far more successful in helping to make evolution—and history, and everything else—seem boring.

Source: How Texas Inflicts Bad Textbooks on Us | by Gail Collins | The New York Review of Books