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Embrace Winter

It’s been an especially cold winter in many places, but kids (and adults) can have fun and get healthy by going outside even in frigid, snowy weather. Each winter I resolve to renew my relationship with my skis, toboggan and ice skates. This winter looks like it might be a good time to keep that resolution! Ray Morley and his grandkids built snow huts and a giant sledding track across several back yards during winter vacation. My daughter tried out her new snow shoes.

I’ve skied off and on for nearly 30 years; a couple winters ago I had fun just taking my skis down to Beaverdale Park and skiing in giant figure 8’s, but there are groomed trails at Jester Park. Check out this video about cross-country skiing from Polk County Conservation; you can rent skis, snowshoes, boots and poles. This year Polk County Conservation is facilitating outdoor fitness programs for youth groups; contact Patrice Petersen-Keys for more information.

One of my favorite Chrysalis After-School group meetings was when the Star Choices girls at Harding Middle School spent most of the afternoon playing in the snow. The girls loved it and got some great exercise. Informal play develops independence and mastery. When I visited the fifth grade group at Capitol View, we were taking photos of the girls in the hallway and I asked them to all look and point to the right for a silly one. The next instant they exclaimed, “It’s snowing!” Their excitement was apparent. Two snow days followed, so that may have been the cause, but check out these resources for ideas about how to make the most of the winter months.

  • The Brenton Skating Plaza is a popular place for Chrysalis After-School groups; they have lessons, season passes, apparel and more at this site.
  • Sledding hills at Waveland and Grandview Parks are open as long as there is enough snow. The Des Moines Register recently published this map of sledding hills in central Iowa.

    Kate's Snowshoes

    Kate’s Snowshoes

  • My daughter snowshoes to Scattergood Friends School from her house on their farm; she says it’s easy. Take a look at this snowshoeing video from Polk County Conservation and see what YOU think.
  • On a quieter note, this slide show from the New York Times draws attention to the serene perspective of gardens in winter.
  • The National Wildlife Federation offers “5 Tips to Stay Warm” and some excellent information on why it’s important for kids to be outdoors.

Snow Hut

Snow Hut

Whatever you decide to do–make  a snow angel, build a fort, go sledding, skating or skiing, or just take a walk–have fun out there!

Discover a World of Difference

Sometimes people are amazed at the places I’ve been–Oaxaca, Zambia, Greece, Istanbul, Poland, Czech Republic, Budapest. Paris, Lille and London last spring were amazing, but not as exotic as the earlier destinations. Sometimes even I am surprised that I never even had a passport until 2004! But there are ways to experience the world  without leaving your home town.

One organization that is committed to creating such experiences is World of Difference. This organization, established in 2005, facilitates experiences for youth to develop skill, readiness and grace in intercultural relations. Their Cultural Ambassadors from more than 30 countries gently guide students through new concepts and thought processes. They address topics ranging from math ratios (African Drumming); to water ecology (Japanese Fish Printing); and government structures (Escaping Sudan).

These hands-on immersion workshops motivate students to explore more about the world, their classmates, and themselves. The workshops offer what text books and research projects cannot: interaction with challenging situations in which students examine their assumptions, beliefs, desires and strengths. After working the chores, playing the instruments, dancing to the music, speaking the language, hearing the accents, tasting the food and creating the art, World of Difference students are proud to proclaim, “I know about that!” Such experiences develop in students mental and emotional agility, preparing them for success in an ever-changing, uncertain global economy.

For more information or to schedule a program, contact Sherry Gupta, Executive Director, or Stacie Palmer at 515-273-8569.

Programs include–

World of Difference Girls

World of Difference Girls

  • Culture in the Classroom: 30- to 60-minute workshops
  • Photo Ethnography: 5 day program using photography to explore local culture
  • Look at the Workshops link especially for “Girls in the Middle East” for girls in 5th through 12th grades

Excel at Math and Science

Girl on a motorcycle in Bangalore, IndiaPeople used to believe that girls weren’t good at science and math; my high school physics teacher thought it was just luck when I got the high score on our weekly quiz. Until I aced statistics in graduate school, I thought I couldn’t do math. When my nephew was checking out the College of Engineering at Iowa State University 3 years ago, I went with him and my brother (his dad) to an engineering day. I can honestly say that until that day, I thought engineering might be one of the most boring fields he could go into. But the Engineering Leadership Program changed that perception; the students had us design a solution for an African village without clean water. Since I’d experienced just such a village in Zambia, the experience showed me the key role that engineers play in solving the world’s problems.

Mosi oa Tunya Protest

Mosi oa Tunya Protes

We need more women to pursue careers in engineering; women bring a unique perspective to communication, problem solving and relationship skills and orientation. Women with engineering and other science and math degrees will find a much friendlier job market when they graduate! Here are some resources for exploring engineering and related careers–

  • CanTEEN is an award winning Web site designed to “engage, educate and embrace girls as architects of change.” There are resources on their site for girls 11-17 years old, their parents, teachers and youth workers.
  • A couple years ago they sponsored a contest to find out “what’s in your makeup;” here you’ll find resources for decision making, activism and the contest winners.
  • This link will take you to fun stuff to do to feed your brain.
  • Check out some women engineers here.

Learn by Doing

Only as an adult have I settled into my preferred learning style. A counselor once listened to me describe a daydream of swimming and labeled me a kinesthetic learner. I’ve embraced that definition and learned to facilitate experiential education through my career at ISU Extension. Did you know that the 4-H motto is learning by doing?

This workshop presented by the Adventure Learning Center and Training Wheels will challenge you to think outside traditional teaching methods and use more experiential methods. Impact Teaching is one Training Wheels’ most popular and requested workshops. I plan to attend the training; I’ve learned lots from Michelle Cummings and I think you’ll have a great time learning there too!

Take Charge!

The subject of feminism continues to trouble people a lot smarter than me. I did, however, live at a critical time of “Women’s Lib” as my mom called it. She sent me off to a small midwestern college in 1968, thinking I would be safe there from the ferment on college campuses. I had other ideas though; I immediately got involved in the peace movement and later, the women’s movement.

I woke up a college graduate with no MRS degree in sight and started the somewhat baffling task of supporting myself. Through a career of nearly 40 years in education, justice and finally business, I’ve developed a theory that  women will never be treated equally until we carry our own stuff.

However, in my travels to Mexico, Zambia and eastern Europe, I’ve see women carrying huge loads and still being beaten down. We’re very lucky here in the US, though we seem to be stalled and perhaps even losing ground. Every war begins with our own small battles, though, and there are certainly some we can fight on the home front–

And finally, listen to Sister Joan Chittester on “On Being” talk about how she “backed into feminism.” She shares the following quatrain in answer to the question–

“Mama what’s a feminist?

A feminist my daughter

Is anyone who thinks or dares

To take in charge her own affairs

When men don’t say they oughter.”

Alice Duer Miller, 1928

Tear Down the Walls

My brother and I agree that our trip to central Europe last May made the 20th anniversary of the Berlin Wall’s fall more meaningful than I remember it being even when it happened. One Prague memory I keep going back to as I listen to reports of the celebration is the sculpture Quo Vadis, by the edgy Czech artist, David Cerny.

We visited about a dozen of the famous Cerny sculptures, but the most difficult to find was in the back garden of the German Embassy. As we made our way along a deserted, wooded dirt road, a German woman had followed us and stopped to stare into the lush gardens. As she overheard our conversation and realized how little we knew about the sculpture’s significance, she asked if we knew what it was about. At our vague, “sort of,” she told us the story; the emotion in her voice riveted our eyes to the empty garden beyond the iron fence.

Her words painted a picture of a different time when a huge crowd, 4,000 people who had climbed this wall between Soviet-ruled Czechoslovakia and the free land of the West German Embassy.

In September 1989, many East Germans were able to travel legally behind the Iron Curtain when East Germany closed the border again. They did not want to return to East Germany where they had been isolated since the end of World War II. Beginning with just one person, 4,000 East Germans climbed the wall and camped out in the garden of the Embassy. East Germany wanted them deported, but West Germany knew such action would soil the country’s reputation. It was a time of high tension and fear, and contributed to what Gorbachev called the “German Problem.”

Quo Vadis, German Embassy, Prague
Quo Vadis, German Embassy, Prague

How much courage such an act would require I can only guess. My brother says the woman’s story is one of his fondest memories of traveling. She felt left out of history as she was studying in England while the face of Europe was changed profoundly.

We gazed at Cerny’s sculpture of an East German Trabant; many such cars were abandoned on Prague streets late in 1989. Instead of resting on wheels, the car has four human legs, representing the 4,000 East Germans who scaled the Embassy wall and helped bring about the Velvet Revolution and toppled the Berlin Wall.

Remembering Prague is humbling on this 20th anniversary of the fall of the Wall. I’m grateful to have heard history from Czech, Greek, Zambian and Turkish viewpoints. I am awed by the  courage and power of people passionate about their causes.

I’ve often quoted Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” The story we heard leaning against the back wall of the German Embassy’s garden is a perfect illustration of Mead’s meaning.

Children Play in Wroclaw, Poland

Children Play in Wroclaw, Poland

The global problems we faces are daunting; but if each of us can find a fraction of the courage of those 4,000 East Germans, I’m sure we can tear down the walls and–

On this November 9, 2009, I plan to find the courage to do my small part in changing the world, one step at a time. Will you help me tear down the walls and change the world?

Find Refuge

I just applied to make my yard a certified wildlife habitat. I figured I might as well, since the deer have plucked my rosebuds one by one this summer and fall. Really, it’s a small step toward taking better care of the outdoors.

I started the process about three years ago when a group of friends and I removed an extensive pool, deck and pond structure and opened the space to nature. The huge Pin Oak that anchors the space has flourished since then, putting out new growth. I’ve added a perennial border of native plants and shrubs, allowed redbuds, oaks and maples to grow where they will. I’ve composted for a while, raised a bit of food and most recently installed a rain garden with the help of my friend Anne, the Iowa Garden Coach.

It’s really turned the back yard into a refuge, not just for the critters, but for me and my friends. I hope you’ll take some actions to make the world a little greener; here are some suggestions–

  • Take this “Outdoor Bill of Rights” Survey to help the Iowa Department of Natural Resources develop their agenda for getting children and youth opportunities to spend time outdoors.
  • Parents–Check out “Be Out There” at the National Wildlife Federation’s Web site, especially the resources for taking kids outside including Why kids need to play outside
  • The Next Step team was involved in creating this online resource for exploring Iowa–99 Parks Family Fun Guide
  • See what it would take to create a wildlife refuge at your school.

Tie a Knot

Yesterday I visited the Junior Bridges Chrysalis After-School Group at Southeast Polk Junior High School. It was really fun to see the girls surfing my Web site and then using some of the ideas they found there.

While they were in the computer lab, they asked me about the game, “Human Knots” and I told them I would put the directions up by today, so here they are–

  • Form a circle of 12 or less people; if you want a real challenge, try it with larger groups.
  • Have everyone put their hands into the middle of the circle and grab hold of the hands of 2 other people.
  • Don’t cross your arms; don’t grab 2 hands of the same person; don’t hold hands with the people next to you.
  • Now the group is in a circle holding hands.
  • Find the new circle without letting go of anyone’s hands. I’ve played where there was a “doctor” that helped the group get untangled.

When I was a kid in California, we played this game all the time on our patio, but we called it Scrambled Eggs. Once a kid fell while we were untangling a particularly difficult circle and broke his tooth. We all worked together to get help and get his tooth fixed and we all lived happily ever after.

Go Outside!

Last week my friend Anne and I built a “pondless waterfall” in my backyard. I had a great time digging in the dirt, getting muddy from top to toe and watching my little Tater cat explore the waterfall as it came into being. As I built it, I thought about my young friend Isaac playing in it when the weather warms up. Last week I took him to Gray’s Lake to build fairy houses, run in circles and explore a bug with intent wonder. Taking Isaac outside and building a stream are two of the projects I do to get kids outdoors.

Waterfall with Cat

Please complete this survey sponsored by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The goal is to find out how much young people like being outdoors and what they enjoy doing there.

Fishin'

Environmentalists across the U.S. are concerned about “nature deficit disorder,” a term coined by Richard Louv, to describe what happens to kids when they don’t play outside. Many parents are scared to let their kids play in the park by themselves, but there are real dangers of NOT going outdoors.

  • Join our Facebook Cause–Have Fun Outdoors!
  • Watch this video–Get ’em Outside on YouTube, to get a better understanding of the problem and some solutions.
  • Next April for Global Youth Service Day we are organizing a summit where adults will ask young people to create an outdoor agenda for Iowans, young and old.
  • Read Richard Louv’s book, Last Child in the Woods to find out what “nature deficit disorder” is and learn about what happens to kids when they are cooped up indoors all the time.
  • Learn more about the very real dangers of the childhood obesity epidemic and how its roots appear to be embedded in a sedentary lifestyle.
  • Check out the Nature Literacy Series by David Sobel available from Orion Publishing These books help adults overcome fear of the outdoors.
  • Classroom Earth is an online resource designed to help high school teachers include environmental education in their daily lesson plans. It has some great stuff on–
  • Student-led efforts to save energy in schools