El Día de Los Libros/El Día de Los Niños
April is a busy and exciting month this year! Maya will be participating in many events for El Día de los Libros/El Día de los Niños! 
All events are FREE and open to the public and most will have lots of festivities, refreshments, free books, art activities and more. So come celebrate the importance of reading at an event near you. Look forward to seeing you there!
Saturday, April 17th, 2010:
2:00-5:00pm
Arthur F. Turner Community Library, West Sacramento, CA
Dance performances by Folklórico Latino de Woodland, bilingual stories, crafts for kids, pinata raffle and presentations by Maya Gonzalez and Francisco Alarcón. Plus free books for kids! This FREE event is Continue reading »
So Much More than Art
We attended Our Focus: The Child and Creciendo Juntos: Educadores, Niños y Familias Conference this past weekend sponsored by Las Positas College and Chabot College. 
I often present at conferences like these but it was our first time as vendors. We didn’t know what to expect and were just fabulously impressed with the great turn out, around 500 attendees. We were also impressed with the intent and breadth of the conference format. There were presentations in English, Spanish and Cantonese. And during lunch great dragons and flying skirts dancing and drumming!
During the keynote given by First 5’s Deputy Director Gloria Corral, we were nodding our heads and dreaming about sharing our Claiming Face curriculum as a tool to build cultural capacity in classrooms! We also connected with many great educators and students.
My presentation was filled to the maximum with Continue reading »
Filed under Conferences, Power of Reflection | Tags: CLAIMING FACE, conference, educators, presentations, reflection | Comment (0)Letting Go to Express
I went to Almaden Elementary School in San Jose in January. It was one of those visits that leaves me feeling very happy. I enjoyed an especially full day because I got to come into contact with basically every kid in the school. This meant 3 big assemblies and 2 preschool readings. The last assembly was the older kids, 4-5th grade, so besides my presentation we got to do a project together. I’m always moved by the generosity and exuberance of childhood and what children show in their art. But this time what I was most moved by was the very last question of the day. We only had time for one more. Thankfully I called on this boy who asked, “How do I let go and express my emotions in my art?”
I swear it was like having a plant in the audience to ask the most beautiful question possible. I get asked a lot, a lot of things, but this was unique. This question seemed Continue reading »
Filed under Maya in the Classroom, The Creative Process | Tags: children, CLAIMING FACE, creativity, empowerment, presentations, school visit | Comment (0)Reading the World Conference
UPDATE February 16, 2010: Unfortunately it looks like the economy continues to take its toll. Due to low registration for Reading the World this year, the conference has been cancelled. We are disappointed as Maya was looking forward to presenting at what has been in the past a very enjoyable event. On a positive note, you can still find us at The Early Childhood Conference at Chabot College in Hayward, CA, March 13th and also at the Día de los Niños / Day of the Child event in April at the JFK Library in Vallejo, more information on these events coming soon.
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The University of San Francisco’s School of Education sponsors a yearly conference called Reading the World, A Conference Celebrating Multicultural Literature for Children and Young Adults. Maya has presented at this conference in past years and will again be presenting at the 2010 conference that will be held March 6 and 7th in San Francisco. Her presentation will focus on the importance of reflection and bringing creativity into the classroom as a tool for empowerment.
The Reading the World conference brings together educators, students, illustrators, authors, Continue reading »
Filed under Conferences | Tags: conference, presentations, Reading the World | Comment (0)Visiting Redwood Day School
It was a gorgeous Bay day as I drove across the Bay Bridge on my way to Redwood Day School in Oakland last Thursday for my artist presentation. I was singing my head off and feeling excited to meet new friends and see what art might get made.
My fabulous directions took me directly to my destination with great ease and in perfect time. I walked into the school library and was struck at how beautiful it was. I wanted to wander through the aisles and look at all the books, but I focused on setting up for my presentation. Although, I couldn’t help but look at the colorful array of frog art displayed on the ends of the shelves and the amazing parade of art finalists above the window for the latest art contest. I could tell right away this was going to be good day.
Jen Ammenti, the head librarian showed me around, told me a few tales and generously took photos of me and the kids playing. I knew I wanted to write about my visit later, but it’s tricky to talk and take photos at the same time. Librarians are notoriously special folks! Jen has been added to my official list of librarians I love.
First off I got to talk with kindergarten through 2nd graders. I was impressed as the entire library filled up. I found a friend in the first row to help me out. She posed as I dressed her in the same shawl I photographed for Nana’s Big Surprise written by Amada Irma Perez. We talked about the story inside the story that the art can tell. We looked at Continue reading »
Filed under Maya in the Classroom | Tags: children, presentations, school visit | Comment (1)
