Ages 8-12

/Ages 8-12

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 [...]

Back-in-School Check-in: Is Everything on Track?

Now that your son has gotten his first few weeks of school under his belt, here are a few areas to check in and focus on: School Supplies, Backpack: Does your son have the proper supplies for all of his classes? Does he need extra folders for the handouts from class? Does the math teacher require graph paper notebooks? [...]

Thoughtful Thursday: Back-To-School

Today's Thoughtful Thursday features poems to share with middle school (or younger) children as they settle back into the school rhythm. We start with "Who Has Seen The Wind", a classic that introduces youngsters to the mysteries of science. We continue with the fun nonsense poem "Eletelephony", and end with "Sick", a Shel Silverstein classic which is sure to [...]

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 [...]

Talk To Your Children About Colin Kaepernick and Nike

The new Nike ad campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick has everyone talking, and we should be talking to our children about it. As you probably know, Nike has made Kaepernick the face of its 30th anniversary campaign. Kaepernick announced this a few days ago by tweeting a close up of his face, with the message "Believe in something. Even if [...]

Lots of Great Back-to-School Tips for Parents

GCP co-hosted the Back-to-School #ReadinessCheck Chat last Wednesday, along with @BeALearningHero, @GreatSchools, @NationalPTA and other education advocates. This lively session offered a lot of great suggestions as to how parents can best help their children to be ready for a strong start to the school year. Here are some of the highlights: How to Prep For the New School [...]

Thoughtful Thursday: Nikki Giovanni and Carla Hayden Love Libraries

Don't you just love a good public library? Those of us born in the pre-internet world fondly remember wandering up and down the isles of the local public library, looking for the next great read or the critical info for that paper due too soon. Public libraries today have adapted to the new digital world and are still going [...]

Parents, Check Out These Great Back-to-School Resources!

GCP parents, it's time to get focused on helping our sons and daughters get ready for their best school year yet. Here are some helpful resources: Readiness Check: You know what grades your kids got last year, but how much of the material do they confidently understand? Does a C in math for the semester mean that your child [...]