LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
I get so inspired around this time of the year. Geez, I could literally do an entire issue just on bento boxes alone, covering each of my regular features and more! I have 3 kids going to school this year: one in her second year of high school, two returning to school from being home schooled and my step-daughter is entering her second year of middle school to top it off. That being the case I find myself in need of plenty of tips on surviving the cost of back-to-school (while planning a wedding for the 10th of September!!)WEBSITE(s) OF THE MONTH
Free online tutors and homework help -www.algebra.com
www.eduwizards.com
www.tutoroli.com
www.tutorvista.com/math-help
BOOK OF THE MONTH
Our Schools Suck: Students Talk Back to a Segregated Nation on the Failures of Urban Education by Gaston Alonso, Noel Anderson, Celina Su, Jeanne Theoharis
"It's Being Done": Academic Success in Unexpected Schools by Karin Chenoweth
How It's Being Done: Urgent Lessons from Unexpected Schools by Karin Chenoweth
PRODUCT OF THE MONTH
The classic JanSport SuperBreak backpack
TRADITIONAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS
Heading back to school means being around other kids from other families that have other germs...so let's boost those immune systems that have become so weak in our desperate need to protect our children from those same germs.8 Foods That Boost Immunity @askdrsears.com
BEAUTY
When your daughter eventually reaches that age, she'll be prepared to put oil-based paint on her face to get the effect she wants, here are some more natural and even organic options that are affordable enough for a fickle teen.
FASHION
The focus for teens in most homes is on basics, then you worry about fancy trends...
DIY CRAFTY PROJECT
Martha Stewart has some of the cutest (and easy) ideas for Back to Crafts like this one... |
| Martha Stewart |
MENU PLANNER
There has been a huge buzz for the past couple of years about both the huge failings within our school systems lunch offerings and the traditional Japanese bento box lunches. The idea of packing a lunch can seem over whelming to some parents and I'm not here to guilt you, but making lunches for kids using reusable supplies sets a healthy, frugal, and sustainable example to your kids. Basically, lunchtime is the perfect time for you to cash that check your mouth has been writing all summer. |
| Flickr |
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| Lunch In a Box |
Where to Buy:
GOING GREEN ONE MONTH AT A TIME
AUGUST - REUSABLE LUNCH GEAR
Reusable lunch gear.even if you use a traditional lunchbox, there is no reason you can't use a cloth napkin and real utensils for you and your kids to wash and reuse. this saves you money, adds no extra time to the routine since you are already doing the dishes and doing the laundry, and allows for creativity as you choose your lunch time accessories.SUPPORT THIS
http://www.jamieoliver.com/us/
FEATURES
CHARTER SCHOOLS IN COLUMBUS - Self-Segregation or Honest Option?
by Jennifer Young
I live in Ohio, which has had one of the largest charter school booms in America, currently #4 in the nation according to USNews.com. We also have the 2nd highest Somali population behind the Twin Cities (in fact if you go to the Somali People page on Wikipedia the picture shown for Somali "geopgraphic distribution" is of a Halaal Market 1 block from my current home that I pass daily) as well as a large and growing Hispanic population. Columbus, Ohio ranks at #3 in homosexual population in 2011 and is considered to be very middle of the road politically versus the rest of the state.
In this kind of a city, where you are constantly surrounded by those of different origin, religion, creed and sexual orientation, are people struggling to find ways to separate themselves? It would seem so. Most of the Charter schools in Columbus consider themselves to be "Afrocentric", many employing the term in their name and are home to mostly African-American and/or Somali children. These schools tend to employ only teachers from these ethnic groups as well. Although enrollment must be open to everyone, legally, it is clear once you take a tour, whom these schools were developed for.
Growing up in a country where African-Americans feel the government does everything they can to hold their children back, or try to make them "whiter" it is not surprising that charter schools have become a popular option. The schools, though publicly funded tend to be more technology and science/math focused then the average public school. They also create a more strict environment utilizing private school stand-by's such as uniforms and the "honor system". These visible features have a tendency to lull the parents into thinking their children are getting a better education although most of these schools, on a scale of 1 to 10, test between 2 and 3 on national exams, as released on education.com. This average is often 3 to 4 below what the nearest public school averages on the same exams.
The charter schools that seem to focus on the Somali population (since it would appear that African-American citizens are not that interested in accepting Somali immigrants into their lives) fall into many of the same traps, though the parents seem less concerned about the actual education and more concerned that their children will be surrounded by those of the same faith and background. They feel this is safer for them, religiously, communally and physically. This is a tactic long employed by immigrants to America. Creating their own cities within cities has long been practiced from Little Havana to ChinaTown to Little Odessa to Columbus' own German Village. The Somali population have the extra disadvantages of not just being of a different color then even the general African-American people of our nation, but they are also fervently Muslim. When worried about your children's physical and spiritual safety, test scores can seem very unimportant.
In Columbus, the top schools in the city also happen to be charter schools, and some are career centers that offer charter school like programs within their walls. These schools tend to be older and to have arts, media and language focus' over science and math. These schools also tend to test better in science and math, despite this fact. Some of these schools are predominantly white, but most are not. The schools with the highest scores and the most students that move on to college are the same schools that have the most integrated student and teacher populations. Yes, the most diverse schools are the better schools.
It would seem that although parents may be using charter schools as a way to self-segregate, if betterment and educational improvement are the true objective, integration would still be the way to go. (this is but my humble observations).