Reading to the kids of Nickerson Gardens
Last week I flew to Los Angeles for an American Federation of Teachers media event on August 19th. As a child, unions were a natural part of life to me. I grew up with talk of Cesar Chavez, as well as shop talk about the electric union my father belonged to. So I was honored to be included in supporting the union that supports some of my favorite and most respected fellows: educators.
The event took place at the Head Start Center, deep in the Nickerson Gardens Projects in Watts, Los Angeles. The outside walls were covered with fading, but powerful renditions of Martin Luther King Jr. and inspirational words. The images reminded me Continue reading »
Filed under Events, Maya in the Classroom | Tags: children, event, family, neighborhood, outreach, school visit | Comment (0)Gender Now Coloring Book: A Learning Adventure for Children and Adults
When we received the very first copy of GENDER NOW we couldn’t have been more pleased! After several years of hard work and dedication in creating the art and text for the book, it was finally here. And yet even as we held the first copy, looking at the kids playing and dancing throughout the pages of the book, it felt like it had always been. It’s funny how that happens. It’s as if the images of the children had made their personalities known as we worked with them, telling us who they were, and how they wanted to share their message with other children.
We can only hope that this book will reach all the children who are desperately seeking reflection in their world. We know that it is the children who will change the world and instilling messages of equality and acceptance can only serve to further the goal of positive change. We hope that whether you are transgender or not, whether you know someone who is transgender or not, you will take a moment to connect with the child within, open the coloring book, get out your crayons and let the kids of the gender team open your mind to all the many ways to be in this world.
| Read more about the Coloring Book>>> | Read the Press Release>>> |
| View inside and buy>>> |
Endings are Beginnings
Ahh…well here it is, the end of the school year. The feet are standing in summer already. School is like a memory. It was a very busy Spring up until the very end. And while the school visits are over, we are heavy into our next big project, our latest venture, Gender Now Coloring Book, but more about that later.
It’s time to remember and close the books on this last school year. May 13 we went into Paul Revere Elementary School here in San Francisco. I was asked to come visit the school by the mother of one of Zai’s close friends, Virginia, who I adore. So not only was Virginia there (they met in nursery school and became deep friends) but for the first time Zai got to come visit me “at work.” 
This made it extra special. I always tell her tales of my adventures, but I LOVED having her there in person. I always have a lot to learn from kids, but having one of my greatest teachers with me, my sweet Zai, was awesome.
The very next day Matthew and I were off to El Granada Elementary School near Half Moon Bay. I got to talk to some excellent Continue reading »
Filed under Maya in the Classroom | Tags: children, family, fun, library, presentations, school visit | Comment (0)Dancing in Half Moon Bay – Celebrating Día de los Niños
Oh the traveling about…we have been everywhere! And truly it has felt like a party everywhere we go. But everywhere there is a treat, a special prize to be had…and the Half Moon Library on April 29th, was no exception.
Beforehand, Matthew shared with me that he thought Armando Ramirez, the Librarian who invited me to the event, and I were old friends because of the way he worded his email to us. I laughed. “Nah, we’re just Mexican.” I joked, “I don’t think we’ve ever met, he just needed a favor.” I was joking, but the truth is that at times, cultural differences are clear and do bond us. It’s not that Mexicans are friends right off the bat. Of course not, life is not that simple. But there is a sentiment, a cultural aura that has been handed down to us through???eating tamales only our grandmother could have made, the bond of menudo, nature, sangre?, genes, or just culture??? Truly, it is impossible to pinpoint the heart of a Mexican. But as each race knows, there is something that is inherent to each of us. It may be tagged as a stereotype or a profile by outsiders, but there is a heart within us that remains uniquely our own, a shared navigational tool to face the reality of “westernization” through centuries of familial colonization… or possibly just this moment.
As I suspected, when I met Armando, he felt like family, a familiar fellow.
We set up for the event. We played with fantastically awesome kids who looked just like me or the kids in my books. It was good. Together, we read I Know the River Loves Me (see video below) and later Continue reading »
Watching the Master at Work
I went along with Maya this last Thursday, April 29th, as she visited an elementary school in Pacifica, CA. I’ve gone along on Maya’s presentations in the past, usually for a library or classroom visit where there’s maybe 30-40 kids, but never an assembly-style one where she speaks to over 300 children at once. I have to say, I couldn’t do it. Not yet anyway. It’s funny though, I can’t help but get nervous for her. I always ask her, “aren’t you nervous? You don’t really know what they want you to do or how many kids you’ll be speaking to!?” She laughs and shrugs and says, “It’s exciting, I love to play!” with a huge smile.
On this day, we arrived nice and early to check in and they almost seemed surprised to see us. We didn’t know much of the details beforehand or whether the children had been reading any of her books in the classroom in preparation for her visit. I just kept thinking that I couldn’t do what she does. I like to know what I’m getting myself into, what the general plan is. I like plans. Maya, she likes surprises. She asked Continue reading »
Filed under Maya in the Classroom | Tags: children, children's books, creative process, presentations, school visit | Comment (0)
