Waiting For Superman: Black Folks Must Choose Education, Or Die!

WTF??? Black Students Given "Ghetto Names" In High School Yearbook Prank

Jordan Smith Ain't Laughing

A yearbook staff student intentionally replaced the names of nine African Americans, including Smith, with "Tay Tay Shaniqua," "Crisphy Nanos" and "Laquan White" - next to their Black Student Union club photo.

What kind of crap is this?

The school's yearbook, The Chronicle, will clearly not be the same for these kids who are just trying to do the right thing by going to school and getting involved. As a parent, I'm really pissed about how Charter Oak High School in Covina, CA has handled the incident.

"Someone was just trying to be funny but it's not funny," said Jordan, 18, a BSU member. "It's upsetting. It's a mistake that should not of been overlooked."

School Board President Joseph M. Probst has said that "appropriate actions will be taken." Probst said he did not know the gender or race of the student who changed the names, but he did know the student will be a senior next year.

"We are discussing the intent and impact of the student's actions. The first step was to remedy the issue." The students whose names were changed were given stickers with the correct names to be placed over the error in their books.

"What else can you do?" asked Probst. "It would be nice to snap a magic finger, but I think it was incredibly well done."

SMH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How about agreeing to meet with the families in person to apologize? What about committing to having a school assembly in the Fall to discuss the issue of race and how important it is to show respect to individuals who may not look like you? What about implementing a policy that final approval before printing must be signed-off by a school official? What about expelling the student unless he or she apologizes on camera and it gets uploaded on YouTube???

That's what I'm talking about!

Instead, BSU student Evanne Jackson, a junior, said she was given a handful of stickers and told to pass them out to her friends on the last day of school.

"How humiliating," said Evanne's mother, Toi. "The school is responsible, and they ask the victim to pass out the stickers."

But BSU students like Paisley Moore, said the corrective sticker is not enough.

"I kind of laughed at it," said Moore. "Show that you are sincerely apologetic. I don't think they realize what happened here."

School officials are not aware of any previous similar incidents.

Past editions of the yearbook have received awards from the University of Columbia Scholastic Press with gold and silver medals in 2006 and 2007, respectively, according to school staff.

Of the 2,000 students who attend Charter Oak High School about 45 percent are Latino; 30 percent white and 4.5 percent black, according to school officials.

"We have a wonderful diversity on our campus which makes a richer educational experience," said Harwick.

But Moore said she is not surprised something like this happened.

"People of color, Latinos and African Americans, are viewed at the school as a joke," she said.

The affected picture appears in the back of the book and shares a page with other group photos including Class Councils, North American Unity and Asian Unity.

"This has hit us pretty hard," said Principal Kathleen Wiard. "We take great pride in producing a great yearbook with positive, good memories."

The BSU students' families, however, aren't so sure this yearbook is something they'll want to remember.

"A yearbook is very significant and something you always hold on to," said Toi. "When she shows it to her kids she will have to explain why she has the name Crisphy."

Source

Black Memphis Principal Outs Gay African American Students: Was That A Bad Thing?

High School Principal Posts List Of Student Couples

Even though my high school girlfriend (now wife and mother of my two boys) use to get our smooch on back in the day on campus, I'm on the sistah's team as it relates to this!

Fed up with public displays of affection in the hallways, Memphis Principal Daphne Beasley is being accused of posting a list naming the school's teenage gay couples --without their O.K. -- violating their privacy, according to one of the students involved.

"I really feel that my personal privacy was invaded," Nicholas, one of the young men who claims his sexuality was exposed without his approval by his principal, told ABC News' Memphis affiliate Eyewitness News Everywhere. "I mean, Principal Beasley called my mother and outted me to my mother!"

"It was actually frightening," Nicholas said of the incident, which occurred in Fall 2007, "to see a list with my name on it where not just other teachers could see but students as well."

Nicholas, an 11th grader at Hollis F. Price Middle College High School in Memphis, was allegedly named, along with his suspected boyfriend, 10th grader Andrew, on a list of couples posted by their principal, Daphne Beasley.

"The principal did not list any information other than students' names on her personal call list, and she certainly did not specify the sexual orientation of any student," said Van D. Turner, Jr., associate general counsel of the Memphis City Schools Board of Education, in a statement provided to ABCNEWS.com. "Additionally, the list was never posted publicly anywhere at the school."

According to the statement, this "call list" was used by Beasley to "notify the parents of those children she knew to be involved romantically" after the school received "numerous complaints" of "explicit sexual behavior in public view."

The case has been taken up by the leading civil liberties group in the United States. "I really couldn't believe that a principal would have done something like this," said Christine Sun, the American Civil Liberties Union attorney handling the case after it was brought to her attention by Nicholas' mother.

As long as she didn't say who the partners were of these kids, I think the Principal Beasley was just trying to get the focus away from sex and back on the books. Given the horrible graduation rates we're seeing with our children, she's just doing what she's gotta do. Right? [ABC NEWS]

BARBARA WALTERS GOT HER FREAK ON WITH A MARRIED OBAMA CLONE BACK IN THE DAY!

Walters Admits She Was Ed Brooke's Jumpoff

Spike's Film 'Miracle at St Anna'/"Shut Up" Rev Wright
US Has Nelson Mandela on Terrorist List
Nearly 60 Percent of Black Children Can't Swim
Zimbabwe Opposition Disputes Electoral Figure

Excessive Imprisoning of Black Youths Before Trials

Will Black Folks Vote If Barack Loses?

Alicia Keys Recruiting Backup Singer via MySpace
Black Enterprise Unveils America's Leading Doctors
Cosby Brings 'Blunt' Message to Community Leaders
Latino Activists Reach Out to Blacks to Join Immigration March
Dwyane Wade on Star Jones Rumors: We're Friends

Happy Easter, From P Diddy And His "Girls"

Now If My Man Would Only Marry These Twin's Momma!

7-Year Old Alexis Goggins, aka 'Hero' Girl, Flies Again!

Little Black Girl From Detroit Recovering After Tragic Shooting

Alexis Goggins climbed aboard a special tricycle and maneuvered through hospital hallways, beginning the months of physical therapy she needs to recover from six gunshot wounds. To many people, the soft-spoken 7-year-old is a hero after she threw herself across her mother just as a gunman was about to shoot the woman in an SUV.

Recently released from the hospital, a 7-year-old Michigan girl credited with saving her mother's life by shielding her from a hail of gunfire with her body began the months of physical therapy needed to help her recover from her wounds. Seliethia Parker, above, said her daughter is nothing short of a living miracle.

"An angel is what I call her," Seliethia Parker said of her daughter.

After more than two months in the hospital and six surgeries, Alexis was recently released. She returns twice a week for physical therapy.

The young girl bears several scars from the Dec. 2 shooting, including a long, thin surgical line stretching from one side of her hairline to the other. Her right eye, which was blinded in the attack, has also been removed.

During rehabilitation, she rides a tricycle designed to be pedaled with a person's hands and plays hand-eye coordination games.

"I'll be good for therapy," Alexis promised her mother before bounding back to the games.

Alexis speaks little about the shooting."She remembers bits and pieces, but she's not really talking about it much. It's like she's blocking it out or something," said Parker, 30.

The mother and daughter were getting a ride from a friend when Parker's former boyfriend emerged from the shadows outside Parker's house and jumped into the vehicle. He then forced the friend to drive at gunpoint for several minutes.

Under the pretense of needing fuel, Parker's friend stopped at a Detroit gas station to call 911. Inside the SUV, Parker pleaded with the gunman not to shoot. As he was about to open fire, Alexis cried, "Don't hurt my mother!" and jumped into her mother's arms from the back seat.

Despite her daughter's efforts, Parker was shot twice.

Alexis is learning-disabled and lags behind other youngsters her age. As a result, police say, it may never be known whether Alexis meant to shield her mother from the bullets. But Parker has said that if her daughter had not put herself in between she might have been killed.

Calvin Tillie, a 29-year-old former convict on parole, is charged with two counts of assault with intent to commit murder, along with other offenses. Parker said she met Tillie last year but called off the relationship after three months.

Since the attack, Alexis and her family have received more than 200 letters from well-wishers, some from as far away as London. Supporters have also contributed $30,000 to a fund set up for Alexis through her school. In addition to the physical therapy, she also meets with a teacher assigned to the hospital until she's ready to return to school. And in the coming weeks, she will be fitted with an artificial eye.

Parker says her daughter is a living miracle."I'm thanking God every day that me and my baby are still here," she said. "It has taught me to ... appreciate the smaller things in life."

By COREY WILLIAMS, AP

Remember Back In The Day When Black Children Knew How To Behave?

Time out my foot!!!

1. Have you ever been called downstairs from upstairs or the back of the house, or from the front of the house to get the remote, change the channel, get yo momma's cigarettes or fix her a glass of ice water?
2. Have you ever been hit with an extension cord, a switch, or the nearest shoe?
3. Have you ever had to pick your own switch off the tree and ya moms sent you back because the one you picked was too little?
4. Have you ever been burned on your ear with a straightening comb?
5. Have you ever been hit in the head or knuckles with a comb or hair brush?
6. Have you ever been told to 'Shut up or I'll give you something to cry about while big momma beat you with a belt ~ pronouncing every syllable, 'Did-n't---I---tell----you---not---to-do--!--- That---no --- more?!'

7. Your ponytails or plaits were so tight, you got those little bumps around your scalp.
8. The White people in the school office (principal, secretary, etc) were afraid of your mama?
9. You were scared to go home when you had a bad report card?
10. Alcohol, peroxide, cocoa butter, and Vaseline were the main items in the bathroom cabinet. And that red hot water bottle hanging behind the bathroom door?

Bonus: You were never 'on punishment' - you would just get a whooping right out of the shower.

Check out part 2 next time!

Cleveland's SuccessTech Academy Fails At Keeping 14 Year-Old From Shooting On Campus Before Killing Himself

White Teen Dies After Injuring 5 at Predominantly Black High School In Ohio

Armed with an intent to wreak havoc on downtown Cleveland's SuccessTech Academy, Asa H Coons, opened fire on students and faculty today before taking his own life.

Clearly this troubled, disturbed young man had issues, but isn't it ironic that this White kid would have the last name Coons???

SuccessTech , an alternative high school with an incredible 94% graduation rate emphasizing technology and entrepreneurship, was the scene of chaos and hysteria as students stood outside the campus, many in tears, hugging each other and on cell phones. Ironically, this melee occurred right across the street from the FBI office in downtown Cleveland.

Parents have been demanding metal detectors for the school

Mayor Frank Jackson confirmed that three teens and two adults were hurt. He said the children were in "stable, good condition," and the adults were in "a little elevated condition." Police said SuccessTech Academy had been secured and that the lone suspect had fatally shot himself. Students said he was enrolled at the alternative school but did not attend class Wednesday.

Student Doneisha LeVert, who hid in a closet with two other students after she heard a "Code Blue" alert over the loudspeaker, said the shooter had threatened students Friday. He's crazy. He threatened to blow up our school. He threatened to stab everybody," she said. Ronnell Jackson, 15, said he saw a teen shooter running down a school hallway. "He was about to shoot me, but I got out just in time," he said. "He was aiming at me I got out just in time."

Tammy Mundy, 38, who has a son and daughter at the school, told The Plain Dealer that her daughter called when the shooting started. "She said, 'Mom they're shooting in here, kids are running out, I'm hiding in the closet,'" Mundy told the newspaper. Then she called her 18-year-old son, Darnell Rodgers, on his cell phone, and he told her he had been shot in the arm. "He said, 'Mom, I got shot,'" Mundy told the newspaper.

The mayor said two boys, ages 14 and 17, were hurt, as were two men, ages 42 and 57, and a 14-year-old girl he said fell and hurt her knee while running out of the school. The 57-year-old is a teacher and reportedly in good condition. The older teenage student was in stable condition, and that conditions on the other patients were not being released.

With about 240 mainly black students and a small number of white and Hispanic students, the five year-old campus ranks in the middle of the state's ratings for student performance. SuccessTech is housed on several floors of the district's downtown Cleveland Lakeside Avenue administration building.

"It's a shining beacon for the Cleveland Metropolitan School System," said John Zitzner, founder and president of E City Cleveland, a nonprofit group aimed at teaching business skills to inner-city teens. "It's orderly, it's disciplined, it's calm, it's focused."

Pray for these kids family. They're the ones trying to do the right thing. After reading this, you've gotta check out our next post to have some perspective.

15 Year-Old Black Teen Gets Arm Broken By School Security And Al Sharpton And Najee Ali See This As Jena 6 Part 2

LOS ANGELES - The Rev. Al Sharpton has weighed in on the Knight High School scuffle in Palmdale, California, saying that the rough handling of three students by school security and their subsequent criminal charges is "a miscarriage of justice" akin to the racially charged controversy in Jena, La. "We have said all the time that Jena is happening all over the country," Sharpton said.

"You have a young ... lady with a broken arm here, with a video of the man assaulting her, and she's charged with battery. In some cases, that may be even more egregious than Jena." Sharpton was referring to 15-year-old Pleajhai Mervin of Palmdale, who was arrested along with her mother, Latrisha Majors. Majors and Mervin stood with Sharpton at Friday's press conference and met privately with him beforehand. "Our goal is to seek justice and to make sure this never happens to another child again," Majors said. "My daughter didn't deserve this."


On Sept. 18, Mervin dropped a cake in the Knight High lunch area and was detained - roughly, by her account - by security guard Chris Niemeyer. Another student, 14-year-old Joshua Lockett, was detained by security guards after videotaping part of Mervin's arrest. His sister, Kenngela Lockett, was then detained after trying to pull guards off her brother. Majors was arrested as well, and all four were arrested for investigation of battery. While the others were released the same day, Joshua Lockett remained in custody because of an earlier incident. He was released Friday, said Najee Ali, a Los Angeles-based activist who has been in close contact with Majors and the three students.

Talking to a reporter after the incident, Mervin said Niemeyer "grabbed me and put my hands behind my back and pushed up on my arms until it hurt" then "slammed me on the table." The reverend said the incident has clear racial overtones - Majors and the three students are black, Niemeyer is white - and that the students are "really charged with (being) black and going to school."

"It would be inconceivable in the state of California for black guards to break limbs and bones of young whites and then walk away with no punishment, and then the whites be charged with assaulting them," Sharpton said. "Therefore the reverse should not be tolerated. ... Nowhere in America should young blacks be treated any differently than young whites."

Niemeyer is on paid administrative leave from the Antelope Valley Union High School District. School officials said the incident is being investigated to determine if excessive force was used against the students. Mervin and Kenngela Lockett have reported that they have broken wrists.

Sharpton indicated that a rally will be held in Palmdale on Nov. 19. "Just as we took a stand in Jena, we will take that here," he said. Along with the rally planned for Nov. 19, Ali, executive director of Project Islamic Hope, said there will be a protest Thursday at the Antelope Valley courthouse. Protestors will be demanding that the district attorney's office drop all charges against Majors and the three students, Ali said.

Sharpton said he is attending a House Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington this week. The hearing will focus on the situation in Jena, but Sharpton said he plans to discuss the Knight High case with committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich.

DADDY DIARIES #480: TO BE A PUSSYCAT DOLL ... MY SIX YEAR OLDS LIFE AMBITION

My Girls Think Sexy Girl Singers Are The Bomb: Not In My House! (part 1 of 2)

I have six year old twin daughters who, through much great effort on my part, have become music aficionados.

I started them at age two and three with nursery songs, and happy birthday and before I knew it they had that "nick, knack paddy whack give a dog a bone." down solid.

As they got older, I stepped it up to "Doe a Deer a Female Deer... (from 'The Sound of Music') and then I did a 'throw back' and taught them the theme to television's "The Courtship of Eddie's Father." You remember "... People let me tell you 'bout my best friend..."

This song made many a Kodak moment as I pushed them in swings at the park. And as a college music theatre major and saxophone player, I was pretty pleased with my legacy I was passing on.

Until last week.

While driving to the store, I snapped my neck into permanent whiplash to hear my my sweet six year olds singing, but obviously not understanding, ALL the lyrics to Beyonce's "To the Left".

To say I was concerned is an understatement. We might have a problem.

But no, two days later we are on the road again. This time I locked up the car breaks when, without any prompting from the radio, they started to sing the Pussy-Cat Dolls big hit, "Don't Cha?"

When they got to the lyrics, "Don't Cha wish your girlfriend was a freak like me?" I pulled the car over and came to a complete stop.

At their delicate age, they knew the song was sung by the Pussy Cat Dolls and then they boldly declared they were giving up on their career choices of doctor and veterinarian to become PUSSY CAT DOLLS. We definitely have a problem.

I blame this problem on their mom of course, because I only listen to sports radio and 70's disco. So if the song had been "So Many Men, So Little Time," you could blame me.

But this was obvious the heathenistic music of their mom. Mom who covers her coarse listening habits by saying, " this is just the music they play in my spin class at the gym ... it's work-out music. But were had I gone wrong? I taught them to resist music indiscretions. What had lead to the meltdown of their musical sensibility??

Next Time: Can their ears be rescued? Back to Dad's Music School.

ARE BLACK KIDS INTO DISNEY'S HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 2?

I don't know about you, but at my house -- Disney’s High School Musical 2 has been on ALL WEEKEND!

Sitting there mesmerized on Friday night, the much anticipated sequel had four boys and two girls, ages 5 - 15, in a trance. It was actually a little scary seeing these Black kids so fixated.

We actually rushed home to make sure my two sons, my niece, and my buddy's three could catch every minute of it.

Looks like we weren't the only ones wishing we had some Disney stock right about now. According to the Nielsen ratings, the premiere of HSM 2 broke all kinds of records on cable television.

17.2 million people tuned in to watch Zac Efron and company. That’s almost 70% more than tuned in for the series finale of The Sopranos earlier this year.

High School Musical 2’s TV debut was:

- The most-watched basic cable television program of all time.
- The most-watched basic cable movie of all time.
- The highest-rated television program ever for children age 6 to 11.
- The most-viewed Friday television telecast, cable or broadcast, in the past five years.

So you know there will be more sequels, spin-offs, series, concerts, and ridiculous merchandising. That mouse is roaring baby, and we ain't mad at 'cha Disney!

WHAT DOES TIGER WOODS AND GENARLOW WILSON HAVE IN COMMON? THEY'RE BOTH SWINGING LIKE CRAZY!

Woods Wins 3rd Bridgestone in Row

Mentors Help Black Girls Live Healthier Lifestyles

Sharpton Calls for an End to Jena's Double Standards

Is Radio One Changing Programming For RNC Cash?

Obama Calls for Justice in Genarlow Wilson Case

Civil Rights Lawyer Oliver Hill Dies at 100

Parents Alone Can't Steer Black Boys to College

Gang Wars Report Proves Racial Targeting of Black Males

RYAN BOATRIGHT: IF BLACK BOYS CAN'T GROW-UP TO BE BALLERS, WHAT'S THE POINT OF LIVING?

Greg Oden & Lebron James Are So, Like... Yesterday. Meet The Next Baby, Baby Jordan!

The latest basketball phenom to announce the always-anticipated verbal agreement to accept a sports scholarship and attend a major university is Ryan Boatright.

This 14 year-old young man has chosen to follow the much hyped O.J. Mayo and leave his hometown of Aurora, IL and head to beautiful Los Angeles to attend USC in the fall of 2011.

In case you forgot what year it is, let me break this down. This freshly graduated middle-schooler has verbally agreed to attend the COLLEGE of his choice on a basketball scholarship.

Not adolescent dreams of someday donning his favorite school’s colors while he sips on a carton of chocolate milk, Boatright has set it in virtual imaginary stone. Now that Ryan has finally made the second major decision of his academic life, choosing which high school to attend in the fall, after choosing his college, he now has to live up to the adult expectations now placed on him to become the player USC coach Tim Floyd envisions.

It is a verbal agreement, which can be backed out of by either side in the future, but it does solidify in the inexperienced kid’s head that his destiny has to be playing basketball at a major Division I university in the spotlight.

This kind of pressure begs the question; does he know what the hell he’s doing?

Or better yet, does he know how to solve problems on differentiation of trigonometric functions? Ok, I forgot that stuff by now, too, but…my guess is that he doesn’t, and he probably shouldn’t yet, just like he shouldn’t be inking in his future, meeting with coaching staffs, or choosing which number he will try to retire of the Cardinal and Gold of USC.

Floyd discovered Boatright at the Trojans’ elite basketball camp that included highly touted high school players. Somehow, it was possible to become impressed with the youngster’s apparent skills, eventual build, and hopeful level-headedness to offer him the scholarship.

"In recruiting," said one assistant coach of a top-10 program, "it's all about being first. If you get in on the kid in eighth grade, you're first."

Since being first to nab a player in a field that also has junior elite basketball camps for prospects ranging from 5th to 8th grade is so important, coaches are better off going after long shot hopefuls and backing off if they don’t develop the way the crystal ball predicted.

In other words, they don’t care, they’re trying to do their jobs of getting the best players years and years down the line, overlooking that they’re feeding kids adult sized portions of life.
Since coaches don’t have to care, then someone should.

At age 14, most young athletes have a one-track mind, concentrating mostly on going pro, getting paid, and figuring out a signature celebration when they make a game winning shot. When these healthy dreams become a reality to a KID, their realm of reality and real-life link their minds in this fantasy for the rest of their lives.

This is where we constantly see the newest trend of young rich athletes acting like kids and never growing out of their adolescence. Young Ryan Boatright can now start assembling his entourage and security team from his middle school friends that like to fight for no reason. Ask Allen Iverson.

Adults who have experienced this crucial part of life are the ones that should be responsible enough to pull the reins, refocus their children’s minds, and let them know there’s more to a young Black man’s life than becoming a pro athlete.

Although it’s a beautiful thing that he’s not making headlines for selling drugs or getting shot at the way many headlines target our young men, we can’t let them forget there are more ways to be successful than simply going pro.

Ryan’s mother proudly proclaimed, "Whether USC offered him something at 14, 16 or 18, what is wrong with it? What if it was a scholarship for good grades? Wouldn't that be exciting? My son makes good grades and he is good at sports. He's been trained to work hard and study hard."

As soon as he gets that scholastic scholarship offer and he has to make that tough decision of choosing between his jumper or a career as a future surgeon is when I’ll be happy he’s truly made the right decision for himself.

And not Tim Floyd.

“Keep talking, it’s the only way they’ll ever hear you.”--JJJ

WHY BLACK WOMEN ARE ANGRY THE PREQUEL: THE MAKINGS OF A DEADBEAT DAD

P Diddy, You Probably Think This Post Is About You

We have all heard the awful effects of the deadbeat dads.

Essentially, these are fathers who are not involved emotionally and/or financially in the lives of their child or children. It is an awful and emotional issue that leads to bitterness on all sides with the fathers, mothers and children.

Let's take Rhonda for instance. Recently, after 15 years, Rhonda finally decided to open a child support case against the father of her child.

In knowing Rhonda for years, I know she did all she could to work with the father. During her pregnancy, she even offered the father - who we'll refer to as Paul - to sign away his parental rights. The guilt she experienced for being pregnant without being married almost drove her insane.

Rhonda is a great mother. On top of that, she is attractive, kind, hardworking and an overall good person. For years, she attempted to work with Paul because he already had one daughter from a previous marriage who had a terminal illness.

The mother of that child as well as the medical costs associated with his child's illness was overbearing. Rhonda never required anything of him other than an effort to form a relationship with their daughter. Paul hasn't given $5,000 over the entire life of their daughter who we'll refer to as Ashley.

More>>>

DADDY DIARIES # 477 - ILLEGITMATE CHILDREN OF BLACK NBA STARS ASK, "WHERE'S DADDY?'

This Story Came Out Ten Years Ago. Has Anything Changed?

Nearly one-third of all children in this country are born to unwed mothers.

But this week, Sports Illustrated reports that among professional athletes out-of-wedlock births are epidemic.

And of athletes in the major sports leagues, those in the NBA appear to have the greatest number of cases. According to SI, one of the NBA's top agents says he spends more time dealing with paternity claims than he does negotiating contracts.

The agent tells the magazine that there might be more kids out of wedlock than there are players in the NBA. According to Sports Illustrated, Larry Johnson of the Knicks is supporting five children by four women, including two he has with his wife, and Shawn Kemp of the Cavaliers, who is not married, has fathered seven children.

Other NBA players who have been the subject of paternity-related lawsuits include Patrick Ewing, Juwan Howard, Scottie Pippen, Jason Kidd, Stephon Marbury, Hakeem Olajuwon and Gary Payton, as well as Larry Bird, who is now the coach of the Pacers, and current NBC game analyst Isiah Thomas.

Click here for more about this story and the interview with then SI Senior Editor Sandy Bailey.

SUMMER PART 1: THE WEATHER IS FINE ... BUT WHAT THE HELL TO DO WITH THESE KIDS

WHY- WHY- WHY, SHOULD WE KEEP THE KIDS BUSY?

The kids are out of school and they have the long lazy days of July and August ahead. They could spend their summer days in front of the TV or your children could be using their imaginations to create projects that are a reflection of their own unique talents.

Does it matter what kids do on their summer vacation? After all, they are in school 10 months of the year and most do take some art classes. Don’t they get enough art classes in school?

Creative and artistic are not the same thing. Creativity is an approach to life. Creative thinkers know that problems have many different solutions. When they encounter an obstacle, they find a way around rather than giving up. They have to be willing to take risks as they learn new skills. These are important life skills that need to be encouraged in children.

Summer activities, childrens crafts and science projects give children the opportunity to learn and practice these skills. Even if they follow a project guide exactly, they will still to make decisions about shades of colors and where to place items. Once they are familiar with the project, most children will want to make it again. That is when they get really creative. First the colors change, then the shapes, and suddenly it is a new project from their own imagination.

Creative projects encourage children to find the resources to make what they want, rather than opening up a box that has all the supplies in one place. The first project in the weekly project list (see below) uses an old knee-hi or pair of pantyhose. What if none are available? Should the children wait until someone else finds all the ‘right’ materials. No, have them start thinking about what they could substitute. Would an old sock work? How about a dish cloth? It is fun to sit back and watch children solve their own problems.

COMING LATER TODAY--- THE WHAT WHAT WHAT TO DO!
STAY TUNED AND CHECK BACK LATER TODAY!

SUMMER PART 2: MY KIDS ARE BORED AND DRIVING ME CRAZY. HELP ME AND HELP ME QUICK!

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WHAT-WHAT-WHAT TO DO WITH THESE KIDS?

We've previously talked about "why keep the kids busy this summer", now lets get a game plan of what things we can do.

First off these next activity ideas don't take a lot of money. We are talking really cost effective. You know how we do it. How many times have the kids gotten a big expensive present only to be bored with it after 30 minutes, but when you look, they have spent the last Two Hours playing with the box the toy came in. I recall my nephews, favorite toys weren't the electric fire truck, (though we did enjoy crashing Johnny Lighting cars in mid air) his favorite toys were a stick and a bandanna. It is all about the imagination and what you can challenge them too. So check these summer helpers out.

1) Start a garden. Kids love to watch things grow! It all starts with a couple of 15 cent packets of seed and go for it.

2) Painted Shirts and pants. They paint the walls they paint the floor they paint each other. You have some old paint (not oil base), lying around and some old clothes (floods) they should have stopped wearing last Christmas.
Let the kids create a work of art they can wear!

3) Pet Rocks. Don't laugh! If you could have been this brilliant 25 years ago... You'd be spending this and every summer on the French Rivera. Kids can let their imaginations run wild when creating creatures out of rocks. They can think about how to use the different shapes to make their own creation.

4) Start a Journal. Wow what a concept, writing your thoughts down and maybe even creating your own story. I even saw the old style diaries and notebooks at the 99cent store last week. Everything old is new again!

5) Rain Sticks. Those kid run through rolls and rolls of paper towel. And I throw all the tubes into a cabinet for later arts and craft projects and this is one. Rice inside the tube tape paper over the ends. It doesn't stop there, 'cause they really ought to decorate them with their favorite animal pattern.

Kids love to listen to the sounds of these sticks. They are amazed when they discover that paper and rice really does sound like rain.

6) Make an Innuksuk. A what??? Have you ever wondered about those stone piles on the side of many highways? Have you wanted to try to make one?

7) Treasure Hunt. Ok save this one for the finale when it is Fourth of July, Labor Day or a big summer birthday, when you are watching your kids, your sisters kids, your no good cousins kids and every kid you wondered if somewhere down the line could be your kid. YOU make the clues and have them paired up in teams of 2 to five. So they have to work together, (ANOTHER BRILLIANT CONCEPT) The list has them gathering things all over the yard and house. Then they put everything together and maybe the first letter of every thing they collect spells out where you have left the McDonald's coupons. YES, there has to be a pay off in a Treasure Hunt! And even some of the things they have to collect to solve the puzzle can be edibles, or stickers or ... you fill in the blank. You know you can be a little creative yourself. And whats the pay off for all your hard work ... This Treasure Hunt Keeps a large group of kids amused FOR HOURS!!!! Need I Say More?

OUR TEENS ARE GETTING CRUNKED & HOOKING UP ONLINE AND WE DON'T HAVE A CLUE

Per Study, Drugs And Sex Prominent In Teen Online Chats... Right Huey?

Parents who think their teens' online conversations with peers are innocent may want to reconsider.

A new study shows 1 in 10 of their messages discuss drugs or sex.

This story and video doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. Meanwhile many of us grown folks adults are unwilling to learn about this new technology because we "can't relate."

Look Black people, get your ass online! If you're reading this, pass on this site to someone. Enough with this digital divide ish. We can't blame the White man or feign ignorance anymore.

We gotta keep it real up in here! Don't believe me, check out Huey's 'Pop, Lock It, Drop It"

ANY QUESTIONS???

OKAY BLACK FOLKS: IS IT AX OR ASK???

Garrard McClendon, professor of Education at Calumet College of St. Joseph in Indiana, has written an interesting book called “Ax or Ask? The African-American Guide to Better English."

McClendon penned the book to, “teach African Americans how to speak mainstream American English in order to avoid employment and educational discrimination and exclusion due to dialect.”

McClendon's website gives you more to chew on. Check it out!

SUMMER: A TIME TO CELEBRATE OUR CHILDREN

The images of Black children unfortunately are not as balanced in the mainstream media as they should be.

I will admit that I am grateful for the positive images of our children through such entities as Disney and NBC - with shows like That's So Raven and of course The Cosby Show and A Different World.

Yet, in our everyday reality, the negative images pertaining to our children in the news media still out-weigh the positive images of Black children I see everyday in my neighborhood and the school my child attends.

As they say in journalism, if it bleeds, it leads.

For more, click here.

Who Can Forget the Days of Summer Gone By?