Ages 16-18

/Ages 16-18

Halloween is Almost Here! Helping Your Kids Handle Scary Movies

Halloween is tomorrow, and scary movies are everywhere. From the "Halloween" reboot and "Venom" in the theaters to countless horror movies running on TV and available on demand, it will be pretty easy for your children to get their fill of frights over the next few days. But can they handle it? Common Sense Media offers a guide to [...]

Thoughtful Thursday: Poems for Halloween

Halloween is less than a week away, so today's Thoughtful Thursday features some Halloween poems for you to share with your sons and daughters. This assortment includes the celebrated African-American poet Paul Laurence Dunbar's scary tale of a hanging from the tree's perspective, the classic witches chant from Shakespeare's Macbeth, and a silly poem about a Halloween party by [...]

“The Hate You Give” is a Must-See. Let’s Make it a Success!

In "The Hate U Give", a movie that opened in wide release this past weekend, Starr Carter, a young black girl who walks the fine line between her poor black neighborhood and her wealthy prep school, witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend by a police officer. She gets pressure from all sides to be quiet about [...]

Saving Our Sons: The Trauma of False Accusations

A recent story about a white woman falsely accusing a 9 year old Black boy of sexual assault sends chills down my spine. If you haven't heard, here's what happened: a white woman in a Brooklyn deli claimed that a 9 year old Black boy sexually assaulted her (by grabbing her backside) in the store. She confronted the child [...]

Thoughtful Thursday: Kamau Braithwaite on “Columbus Day”

Monday is Columbus Day. While many of us were taught in elementary school that "Columbus discovered America" in 1492, we now know that Christopher Columbus never set foot on what we know as the United States. Moreover, when he and his Spanish army got to the Caribbean islands in 1492 they found settlers already there-- indigenous people from the [...]

Thoughtful Thursday: The Pursuit of Truth

As we watch the Kavanaugh hearings today, and we watch the incredible political developments these days in general, we must find ways to talk with our sons and daughters about the concept of truth. How to tell it, how to determine it, the importance of standing up for it. (We must also find ways to talk with our sons [...]

Raising Great Readers With Here Wee Read

Want to know where to find great children's books featuring Black and Brown characters? Looking for new titles to add to your children's bookshelves? Want some help on how to raise an avid reader? Here Wee Read is here for you. Here Wee Read is a website (with a great Instagram account, @hereweeread) that finds and reviews children's books [...]

Thoughtful Thursday: Arthur Mitchell and Rita Dove on Dancing

Today's Thoughtful Thursday pays tribute to Arthur Mitchell, the founding director of the wonderful Dance Theater of Harlem, who died yesterday at the age of 84. Mitchell, born and raised in Harlem, was the first black ballet dancer to achieve international stardom when he was a principal dancer with The New York City Ballet, where he danced from 1956 [...]

Update on Colin Kaepernick: Just Do It—Vote

When you are talking with your sons and daughters about Colin Kaepernick and Nike, here’s one more thing to talk about: Kaepernick refused to vote in the 2016 Presidential elections, claiming that it would be “hypocritical”, as he is “against a system of oppression” and is “not going to show support for that system”. You can read more about [...]

By |2018-09-11T16:19:57+00:00September 11th, 2018|Ages 13-15, Ages 16-18, Ages 8-12, Cultural, Featured, Latest News, Motivators, Sports|0 Comments

Thoughtful Thursday: Congratulations Sonia Sanchez

Today's Thoughtful Thursday pays tribute to the renowned poet Sonia Sanchez, who recently was awarded the 2018 Wallace Stevens Award by the Academy of American Poets. The award is given annually to one poet to recognize his or her outstanding and proven mastery in the art of poetry, and carries a stipend of $100,000. Poet, playwright, and children’s book [...]