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Bernie Sanders for President

Bernieposter-e1453755857207
Aled Lewis (aledlewis)

 

Hillary Clinton is banking on the hope that you are stupid. Bernie Sanders knows you aren’t. So ask yourself:

Who would speak for you?

Have you ever had to juggle expenses to pay down your medical bills? Did you have to walk away from your family home during the foreclosure crisis? Do you have enough money saved up to pay for your child’s college tuition? Are you still repaying student loans while trying to save for retirement, but getting nowhere?

Who would speak for you?

Do you wonder if you’ll have enough money for groceries until the next payday, even though you work full time? Do you worry that your teenage son or daughter will be a victim of police brutality or racial profiling? Are you a long time environmental activist hoping to see your country finally make a major investment in clean energy and break from outdated technologies that destroy our waterways and mountaintops?

Who would speak for you?

Are you chronically ill or self-employed and unable to manage the cost of healthcare premiums, prescription drugs, co-pays and annual deductibles that increasingly eat away at your income? Has the cost of healthcare ever kept you from seeing a doctor or specialist? Mandatory health insurance coverage is not the same as equal healthcare benefits for all.

Who would speak for you?

Are you a young college grad unable to find a decent paying job that values your education and intelligence? Are you struggling to pay down your massive student debt balance? Are you a two income family working harder and longer only to realize less and less financial stability as each year passes? Do you wonder how you will ever be able to afford to send your children to college?

Who would speak for you?

You’ve heard the claim that Clinton is a champion of women and all Americans. But how could her fighting spirit not push for a $15 minimum wage for all American workers, including the millions of hardworking American women, many of whom are not being paid what men in the same positions doing the same jobs are? As Julie Kashen, senior policy advisor of the Make it Work campaign fighting for working women's rights, recently wrote:

“...since two-thirds of the people who would benefit from an increase in the minimum wage are women, higher minimum wages would help close the gender gap in pay.”
Who would speak for you?

The cold hard reality is nowhere more plain to see than in the numbers: Sanders has a personal net worth of $330,506. Clinton’s is ‍‍‍$21.5 million. To take a page from Bill Clinton, that looks like good old “arithmetic” to me. Clinton is the candidate of the privileged class and a type of feminism that isn’t concerned with poor women.

Who would speak for you?

Clinton’s message has reinvented itself time and again to fit the seemingly most advantageous political path. Sanders has been saying the same goddamn thing for the past 30 plus years and has the voting record and career campaign finance record to prove it. With the sales and royalties of her multiple published books alone, Clinton could still currently earn a handsome salary. Instead, she chose to accept enormous sums of money from the very corporations she claims she will rail against if elected. Clinton Foundation donors include those who have specifically benefited from offshore tax havens. It takes a special kind of delusion to turn a blind eye to this duality.

What’s wrong with being rich, some ask? Everything, if it keeps you from understanding the anger of the very people whose lives are being destroyed by the greed of a few. The top richest possess a gilded future and the laws and rules of taxation governing this future look extremely different those than those that apply to the ordinary American, whose wealth lies not in trusts and shadow companies and capital gains or offshore, but instead in ordinary checking and savings accounts.

Lobbyists who have pushed for the Keystone Pipeline, and accepted money from Lehman Brothers, are, as you read this, currently heading Clinton’s 2016 campaign. Her top campaign finance bundlers have worked for the fossil fuel industry. By saying she is going after the same lobbyists who run her campaign, the moneyed elite that donate to both her campaign and her family’s Clinton Foundation, it's clear Clinton’s recent adoption of populist language on the eve of the Iowa caucuses amounts to nothing more than posturing for votes.

Last week as voters in Iowa listened to Sanders explain his proposals, Clinton was scheduled to fly to the East Coast to attend a finance industry fundraiser for her campaign. It has now been postponed until mid February. But for the few privileged enough to drop anywhere from $2,700 individually or raise $27,000 for the one dinner, my guess is that the subject matter of these two events will be drastically different. She is banking on this, and hoping you won’t notice at all.

Who would speak for you?

Pundits wonder why Clinton’s brand of politics is no longer resonating with younger voters? Here's my guess: They’re hungry for more and will no longer be satisfied with mere crumbs tossed their way. As Gen X parents screwed by the system installed in large part by Clinton’s husband now raise their own children and young adults, they have instilled much of their anti-establishment skepticism upon them.

Not content to be merely placated by brand loyalty and reality television, a massive number of younger voters are looking for the alternative to a status quo that has left them and their parents future out to dry.

It’s time to end legalized tax evasion in America. If hoarding extreme wealth could be defined as a mental disorder, isn’t it time that we wrest control of this country from the grip of the unhinged 1 percent?

In early 1972, a book called “A Populist Manifesto” The Making of A New Majority was published. Authored by Jack Newfield and Jeff Greenfield, this book outlined a progressive populist “political alignment” among the many political interests of the day (civil rights, the ecology movement, women’s rights, low and moderate income citizens being short-changed by the mutating liberal agenda of the day moving away from the social democrat ideals of Roosevelt and Johnson). The book’s preface begins with 3 facts, the first of which states:

“Wealth and power are unequally and unfairly distributed in America today.”

That was 44 years ago. Enough is enough. Our time is now. Our candidate is Bernie Sanders. Intersectionality is at the heart of the Sanders campaign and the reason his campaign messages resonate with such a wide cross section of Americans. We see through Clinton, the candidate who fiercely opposed gay marriage, supported the Iraq War, called the TPP the “gold standard”, received funds from the private prison industry, opposes the Glass-Steagall act, advocated for fracking, and profited from promoting the Keystone Pipeline.

We the people of the United States of America deserve more and we are not stupid.

Who would speak for you?
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Posted on February 01, 2016 at 03:50 PM in Ad watch, Environmental Health, Global News, Green Building, Green Business, Green City Chicago, Green Living, Learning and Education, Local News, News, Opinion, Progressive Politics | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: Bernie Sanders, Bernie Sanders endorsement, campaign finance election 2016, chicago for bernie sanders, chicago for sanders, democratic primary, election 2016, election 2016, Green Parent Chicago, Hillary Rodham Clinton, iowa caucuses, presidential election 2016

Morton Arboretum's Children's Garden Celebrates 10 years

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It's hard to believe that 10 years have gone by since the opening of the Children's Garden at Morton Arboretum.

Since then, countless children have meandered the paths, climbed the mazes, slid down the slides, splashed in the fountains and ponds, and learned about their connection to nature from a visit to the garden.

On Sunday, Sept. 13, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. the Children's Garden will celebrate its 10th birthday with a day of fun activities for kids and their families.

Childrensgardenmap

Here are some of the activities planned for the celebration:

LEGOLAND's Master Builder David Bray will demonstrate how a master builder creates amazing LEGO sculptures in celebration of our current exhibit, Nature Connects®: Art with LEGO® bricks by Sean Kenney.
Dance to the music of Earthsinger. Singer songwriter Dave Orleans will perform his nature-inspired songs for kids throughout the day.  
Make birthday treats for the birds.  
Blow colored bubbles onto a big birthday paper mural. This sensory-based art project will combine fun colors and fruity fragrances along with a favorite childhood pastime. 
Search for 10 unique trees throughout the garden. Celebrate 10 years with a scavenger hunt that takes visitors from clue to clue to find those trees that have had a big impact in the garden’s history.  
Try some goodies from the garden. Sample fruits and veggies as well as the less traditional edible flowers and insects.
Get your face painted. Pick from one of four fun nature designs.
Make a wish. Help the Arboretum celebrate by writing a wish for the garden onto a ribbon and decorating the trees with it.  

Children's Garden Admission is free with Arboretum admission.

-Christine

 

 

Posted on September 04, 2015 at 02:47 PM in Chicago Green Families, Green Celebrations, Green Living, Learning and Education, Local News, News, Play More Spend Less, Things to Do, Urban Gardening, Urban Green Space | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: Children's Garden 10th Birthday Bash, family fun Chicago, gardens Chicago, Green Parent Chicago, Morton Arboretum, Morton Arboretum Children's Garden, nature centers Chicago, nature Chicago, outdoor activities Chicago, urban nature Chicago

Freebie of the week: Get started canning with this free guide

Peachandblueberryjams
It's time to get ready for the garden season. Whether you plan to grow your own produce or take advantage of local farmers' markets, canning and preserving is a great way to extend the harvest and continue to eat local throughout the year. 

Offered by Chicago's Jane Addams Hull-House Museum and available for download in your choice of colors, check out this handy-dandy canning guide perfect for beginners.

photo credit:Rachel Tayse, flickr

Posted on March 30, 2015 at 09:32 PM in Food and Drink, Green Freebies, Green Living, Learning and Education, Local Food, Play More Spend Less, Simpler Living | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: canning guide for beginners, chicago farmers markets, chicago gardening, Green Freebies, Green Parent Chicago, how to can produce, how to preserve produce, Jane Addams Hull-House, preserving for beginners

"Class Dismissed" documentary back in Chicago this Sunday by popular demand

CD_Poster
As parent backlash grows in response to unnecessary standardized testing and excessive homework, more and more families in the U.S. are turning to alternative methods of instruction to ensure that their children receive a well rounded education, free of a high stakes, pressurized environment focused on test scores over individual achievement.

One of these growing alternative educational movements is homeschooling, often still seen as controversial to some, and the even more poorly misunderstood related method known as unschooling. 

No formal numbers exist to illustrate the number of families homeschooling or unschooling in Illinois, but a quick glance at the growing number of offerings and partnerships that Chicago area arts organizations and cultural institutions continue to make available to homeschoolers speaks volumes.

Wisely, these organizations and many private businesses are realizing the advantage of working with a growing population of eager learners whose schedule may make them available at off hours of the day, while school children may be unavailable. 

A new film highlighting this growing trend of education is Class  Dismissed, a documentary directed by Jeremy Stuart and co-produced by Stuart and Dustin Woodard. Having made its debut in October of this past year, the film has screened in theaters to several sold out audiences in over 20 cities in the U.S. and internationally, most recently coming off a 3 screening run in New Zealand. A large number of private screenings have also taken place throughout the nation. 

The film had its first showing in the Chicago area in January of this year. It returns to Chicago with a single screening this Sunday at noon at the historic Patio Theater.

Tickets must be purchased in advance. Adults are $10. Kids 17 and under are $5

For more information or to purchase tickets: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1273824

View a trailer of the film here:

 

 

 

 

 

Posted on March 11, 2015 at 08:31 PM in Arts and Entertainment, Chicago Arts and Music, Film, Learning and Education, Local News, Media, News, Parenting, Things to Do | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: 3Story Films, alternative education in Chicago, alternative education in Illinois, Class Dismissed, Class Dismissed documentary, Dustin Woodard, Green Parent Chicago, homeschooling documentary, homeschooling in Chicago, homeschooling in Illinois, homeschooling movie, Jeremy Stuart, The Patio Theater, unschooling documentary, unschooling movie

"Class Dismissed", New Indie Documentary on Home Education Receiving Amazing Audience Response

Jeremy Stuart and Dustin Woodard
A new independent film about homeschooling, now showing in select theaters on the West Coast and making its way to the Midwest and East Coast in November, is currently screening to sold out audiences. "Class Dismissed" explores the fast growing movement in the U.S. toward home education and learning outside of the traditional confines of a classroom. Produced by 3StoryFilms, the movie follows a homeschooling family from LA who decide to take their two children out of school to pursue learning in a completely different way.

I recently spoke to the film's director and co-producer Jeremy Stuart. Stuart, who produced the film with Dustin Woodard, is himself a homeschooling dad. He talked about the surprising response to the film and what he hopes audiences, viewers, and critics will take away from seeing it:

How did you arrive at the decision to create a documentary about learning outside the classroom?

As my own family began our journey into the world of home education, it became clear to me from the response we got from friends and strangers alike, that many people, despite being dissatisfied with the current educational model, felt they had no choice about their children’s education. They weren’t aware that they had options and if they did, they had no idea how to begin. Also at that time, there were a couple of documentaries about education that were making the rounds, "Waiting for Superman", and "Race to Nowhere", both of which I’d seen and both of which I’d been disappointed in for their failure to present alternatives to conventional schooling.

Why was nobody talking about alternatives? Why were people so willing to just go with convention despite it being so clearly broken?  I felt also that there was much misunderstanding in the general public about home education, so I decided to make a documentary about it to challenge their assumptions and to highlight the fact that children who learn outside the classroom can be successful.

You’ve sold out the last 3 screenings of Class Dismissed in California, including the premiere in LA. Did you expect this kind of enthusiastic response to the film?

The response to the film so far has been overwhelming and has far exceeded our expectations. We had done a few test screenings early on in the process of editing the film and had received good feedback, but I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect from a larger audience. The subject of education in general can be a contentious one and opinions can be polarizing, but the film seems to have hit a nerve among homeschoolers and non-homeschoolers alike and we’re thrilled that the conversation is happening.

What are some of the comments you’ve received from audience members, questions you’ve been asked during the post show discussions?

The comments so far have been very positive. If they are already homeschooling many people have commented about how the film offers validation and encouragement to their own journey and experiences. And there have been a number of non-homeschoolers in the audiences who have shared that after seeing the film they are inspired to make the leap. I think the film addresses and answers many of the typical questions that people have about homeschooling and the comments we’ve been getting seem to reflect that.

You have screenings in Portland and Washington, with a screening in the Chicago area in mid-November. What are your hopes for this film looking into the next few months?

We’re going to do as many independent theater screenings as we can logistically and financially manage, but with no big distributor behind us and very limited resources (there’s only 2 of us on the team) we’re only going to be able to sustain that method for so long, which is why we have put together a Screener Pack that anyone can buy. The Screener Pack contains a DVD of the film, a guide to hosting a screening in your community, homeschool group, church or even your own home and a Homeschool Resource Guide packed full of information, links and useful resources for those who want to know more about homeschooling options.

We’re encouraging people to purchase the Screener Pack, organize their own event and invite friends, relatives and neighbors, especially those who are "homeschool curious". Afterwards they can engage in conversation, answer questions, share their own experiences, and hand out information for those new to home education. The Screener Pack is available for purchase now and will ship in early November.

For those who prefer a big-screen theater experience, they can contact their local theater and arrange a screening providing they can gather enough people to make it profitable. There’s nothing like seeing the film on a big screen with a group of people. Here’s the link with information about these options: http://classdismissedmovie.com/see-the-film/guide-to-hosting-a-screening/

Additionally we are submitting the film to festivals around the country. We’ve submitted to 5 so far and will continue to do so as they become available and if they are an appropriate venue for the film. And finally, the film will be widely available on DVD and as a digital download sometime early next year.

Your documentary features educators, activists and writers who emphasize the unlimited learning potential of education outside the classroom. Do you think that “Class Dismissed” will help viewers to finally realize that home schooling can be everything but isolating?

Yes, absolutely. I think the film does a good job of dispelling the myths that surround homeschooling and sheds light on various ways to make it viable as an educational and social model. I want the film to stir up dialogue around the topic of home education, persuade people to re-think their notions of what homeschooling is about and to consider other possibilities for learning outside the classroom. I envision Class Dismissed as a wake up call that education has been in crisis for a long time and it’s time to confront long-standing assumptions about what it means to be educated in the 21st Century.

After watching the film, I want the audience to feel moved to do something, to find out more about the information presented in the film, and to walk away with their hearts and minds opened to the prospect of new possibilities for themselves and their families.

Here’s my favorite quote from one of our recent screening attendees:


“Watch out parents of America; this film gives any bullied, unchallenged, misrepresented, creative students all the information to advocate an alternative to a week where they are required to spend 40 hours in desks with an additional 20 dedicated to homework.”

Purchase tickets for the Chicago screening of "Class Dismissed" here: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/907613

View the trailer for the film here:

- Christine

Posted on October 22, 2014 at 05:45 PM in Arts and Entertainment, Chicago Arts and Music, Film, Global News, Learning and Education, Local News, Media, News, Parenting, Things to Do | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: 3StoryFilms, alternative education in the U.S., Class Dismissed the movie, Dustin Woodard, Green Parent Chicago, homeschool movie U.S., homeschooling documentary, homeschooling in the U.S., homeschooling movement in the U.S., independent homeschooling documentary, independent homeschooling film, Jeremy Stuart, learning outside the classroom

Chicago Park District Wins Gold Medal, Named Top Park District in the U.S.

Chicagoparkdistrict

The Chicago Park District has won the Gold Medal for excellence in parks and recreation management.

According to a news release today from the park district's website, "Agencies were judged on their ability to address the needs of those they serve through the collective energies of citizens, staff and elected officials."

The Gold Medal Award honors communities throughout the United States that demonstrate excellence in long-range planning, resource management, and agency recognition. The Chicago Park District is the first urban park district to win the prestigious award.


-Christine

 

Posted on October 14, 2014 at 05:21 PM in Green City Chicago, Green Living, Learning and Education, Local News, News, Things to Do, Urban Gardening, Urban Green Space | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: Chicago Park District Gold Medal, Gold Medal for Excellence in Parks and Recreation, Green Parent Chicago, top park districts in the U.S. Chicago Park District, top urban parks

Local Midwest Farm Training Program Accepting Applications

 

If you've ever dreamed of owning and working your own sustainable farm business, now is your chance to learn directly from Midwest farmers. Angelic Organics Learning Center in Calendonia, IL is accepting applications for their winter farmer training program.

This week is the final week to submit application materials for the center's training program, Stateline Farm Beginnings, which begins October 11. The program runs until March 2015. Organizers say Stateline Farm Beginnings has launched more than 55 new sustainable farms in northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin since its inception in 2005.

Trainees receive business planning sessions, learn through field days, and one on one advising from successful local farmers. Find out more information and apply here. 

Posted on September 30, 2014 at 12:32 PM in Green Living, Learning and Education, Local Food, Local News, News, Things to Do, Urban Gardening | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: Angelic Organics Learning Center, farm training programs, farmer training programs Illinois, farmer training programs Midwest, Green Parent Chicago, local farming Chicago, local farming Illinois, local farming Midwest, sustainable farming education

Selfie Boom: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Competing with our children’s digital world can be a challenge, especially when you would like them to experience the environment and the many ways they can sustain it. It’s hard enough to get them to look up from their device but when they are taking selfies, this might be the right time to capture their attention. With the ‘selfie boom’ in full swing (the word was added to the Oxford Dictionary in 2013), what more reason to entice your child to take as many as possible while camping, recycling, hiking, composting, fishing and basically enjoying all nature has to offer.

An Opportunity

It’s easy to shun the onslaught of technology that seems to have turned our society into the ‘heads down tribe.’ Gone are the days when children would hop on their bikes early Saturday morning and not be seen until lunch and then again at dinner. Now it’s all about expensive digital devices to entertain, communicate and solve everyday challenges.

However, when you step back from such electronic confusion there may very well be rare opportunities to be had. Embracing technology rather than pushing it away could allow you to show your child how our environment is faring through it all. Using a wide variety of available tools, online and off, you may be able to incorporate tips and advice to teach your kid how important environmentalism really is.

The Selfie and You

Believe it or not selfies have been around for a long time. The first one was taken in 1839 by an amateur chemist and photographer named Robert Cornelius. Then, about 166 years later, MySpace became the first platform popularly used for displaying selfies. Finally, in 2010 Apple rolled out the iPhone 4 with a front facing camera and people have been mugging into the lens ever since.

Maybe you have no interest in photographing yourself, or tried stepping into the selfie craze with little excitement--or maybe you do it all the time--but the cold hard fact is that selfies are here to stay and today’s kids are at the top of the selfie food chain. Therefore, it may be time to explore selfies as a way to connect or reconnect with your digitally savvy child.

An Environmental Connection

If you watch the news you will most likely be bombarded with a slew of negative, depressing stories involving almost everything including the environment. Yet, some things are improving throughout our planet. The ozone layer has a better outlook; electric carmaker Tesla has announced a new factory in Nevada offering jobs and a future of clean energy infrastructure change; and more corporations are bringing green choices to demanding consumers.

So by using your available digital tools to embrace this positive change it can be an excellent way to bring your child on board. Facebook (48% of selfies are reported to be shared here), Twitter, Instagram and a laundry list of other social media and/or photo sharing and storing sites offer a variety of ways to lure your child into your love for the environment.

Tune In and Turn On

If you aren’t on any social media (or the like) platforms chances are you are continually spiraling further away from an extremely important part of your child’s world. Whether they are plugged in to the gills, roll on one device or do not have any home digital connection whatsoever it is nearly impossible for them to ignore what’s out there.

Practically every aspect of electronic communication will inevitably demand their attention, either in the home or outside the home such as school, friends, gaming, extracurricular activities, commerce and eventually their career. By joining social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and getting their permission to friend, follow or be followed by them has the potential for a whole new relationship to emerge. Add in the sharing of selfies and the environment and it could be a real win-win.

Post the Most

Once you get yourself plugged in alongside your kid then the real fun will begin. Rather than hear them grumble that you want to go on another hike or volunteer for a highway cleanup, present it as a selfie opportunity and encourage them to bring their device.

Take a bunch of selfies alone and especially with them for posting. You can navigate how selfies become a major part of your environmental passion which will hopefully spark a similar love in your child.

Get clever and find ways to share selfies with each other and the world, if you’re so inclined. Take NASA for instance: back in April of 2014 the space organization celebrated Earth Day with a ‘Global Selfie Event’. Check out your favorite environmentalist organizations and see if they too accept selfie posts. Before long your kid will hopefully look forward to your excursions as well as all to be seen and commented on afterward.

As long as your child is safe, selfies can be a positive bonding experience. Making the selfie a positive thing will show your child that you are not only with the times but interested in something that makes them happy.

-Amy Williams is a freelance writer and mother of two in Southern California. She hopes to use her experience as a mother to help other parents understand their teens.

SelfieBoom

Posted on September 19, 2014 at 04:09 PM in Ad watch, Environmental Health, Healthy families, Learning and Education, Media, Opinion, Parenting, Television, Things to Do | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: Amy Williams, can selfies be educational, educational benefits of taking selfies, environment and selfies, Green Parent Chicago, popularity of selfies among teens, selfies and teens, selfies in pop culture, taking selfies teens, teen internet safety, teens and social media use, The Selfie Boom

Nature as Nurturing: An Educator’s Narrative to Motivate Nature Play

A soft breeze graces against our skin, birds chirp happily in the tree tops and the sweet smell of a magnolia tree perfumes the air around us. Many of us recall distinctive sensory memories from our time outdoors and nature poses a feast for the senses. Visual stimuli abound: greenery of all shapes and sizes, leaves garnished with edges from smooth to jagged, and an array of characters from pale brown squirrels to vermillion insects. Nature invigorates and nurtures all of our senses: visual, auditory, tactile and olfactory.

Nature offers a lot more to us than just sensory memories, however. Children around us often serve as a reminder of how enticing nature can be. Many teachers and parents can speak to how many times “Can we go outside?” has punctuated a topic at hand.

This is for good reason: nature offers a learning environment that is engaging while remaining calming and restorative. Researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have conducted several studies that indicate time spent outdoors can have a positive effect on reducing the symptoms of ADHD in students ages 5 to 18 across gender and socioeconomic statuses. This evidence was also observed in both a nationwide study and a preliminary study whereby students were monitored for cognitive challenges before and after a walk.

It seems that nature offers something analogous to a holistic reset button, an effortless way to experience calm and effective attention restoration. These therapeutic effects within nature may even have beneficial effects yet to be explored, including components such as reduced levels of domestic violence within the home and positive uplift for cancer patients. Many would argue that these therapeutics effects are important to note in an increasingly stress-inducing, medicating world.

“Well, what about in winter?” The results are even more striking. The therapeutic effects of nature can be at work literally through a window view. Besides gardening, hiking, and walking outdoors, we can still receive nature’s perks by simply looking outside to a natural view. Many natural changes are impressive and breathtaking to witness, and as an added bonus, these benefits are cost-effective and increase support and appreciation for the environment.

How do we cultivate a system for beating the winter blues, homework blues, or “need a moment” blues? Pursuing a course of nature perks can be simple, elegant and personalized in a way meaningful to an adult, family or child. Here are some suggestions:

Begin a nature journal: Use it to press leaves or wildflowers, describe nature observations and practice nature poetry.

Dabble into the world of field guides: birds, trees, wildflowers, edible plants, medicinal plants… name it and there is a field guide that educates on the topic. These are simple, inexpensive and easily available online or in a local bookstore.

Go on a nature walk: Make family time in nature. Have kids collect artifacts from their walk (leaves, pinecones, flowers, etc.) and help them to identify what they found. For kinesthetic learners , have them act out a skit of their favorite nature walk moment.

Create a monthly nature goal: Consider a nature-inspired family trip, new walk route, nature photography collage or intention to make homework breaks “outdoor” breaks. This is a great way to capitalize on diverse family interests and talents.

Cultivating time to look, react to and document what is happening in the natural world is an important role to be reinforced. Without being aware of the subtle peace and beauty within our natural landscape, much understanding of where our food comes from or what is so precious about our natural landscape will be lost to generations raised indoors.

From solar panels to beautiful gardens and biodiesel, people need to pay attention to their natural surroundings in order to fully appreciate all the complexity our environmental world can and should offer. Look to the kids asking to go outside or romping in a nearby park and remember that nature is the best teacher.


-Julie Ann Howlett is an Illinois-based educator and nature enthusiast offering educational services that promote environmental respect, holistic understandings, and compassion for your educational journey. Sign up for her e-newsletter with JAHLearning@gmail.com or visit JulieAnnHowlettConsulting.com.

This article appears in the August 2014 issue of Natural Awakenings Chicago

Posted on August 11, 2014 at 09:54 PM in Environmental Health, Green Living, Healthy families, Learning and Education, Opinion, Play More Spend Less, Science, Simpler Living, Things to Do, Urban Green Space | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: benefits of playing outdoors, benefits of spending time in nature, Green Parent Chicago, health and nature, kids and nature, kids health and nature, Nature play outdoors, outdoor educations, spending time in nature, therapeutic benefits of nature

Calling All Newbie Campers: Family Camp Out at Chicago Parks

Northerlyisland
The Chicago Park District has just announced its second year of Family Camping geared toward novice campers. For a single low registration fee, families can take advantage of guided nature hikes, marshmallow roasts, fishing, fire building demos and camping under the stars at some of the most popular parks in the city. 

Registration is now open for camping at Garfield Park Conservatory, Calumet Park, Bull Frog Lake in (in partnership with the Cook County Forest Preserve), and Northerly Island.

The Family Camping registration fee is $50 per family of up to six members, including children ages 6-12.

Check www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/nature for more information and to register.

-Christine

Posted on August 06, 2014 at 07:31 PM in Learning and Education, Local News, Play More Spend Less, Transportation, Urban Green Space | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: Camping in Chicago, Chicago Family Campout Parks, Chicago Park District, city camping, family camping chicago, Green Parent Chicago, new campers, new to camping, The North Face, urban camping

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