MommyMaestra Challenge: Read for the Record

Tomorrow, on October 6th, people all around the world will read the same book, Llama Llama Red Pajama, as part of Jumpstart’s Read for the Record.

I have taken the pledge and will be part of the record-breaking reading event, whose purpose is to help set the stage for millions of children to achieve success in school – and in life.

Jumpstart's goal? 2.1 million readers - a new world record. But wait! What's that you say? You don't have the book? No problema. I don't either. BUT, the neat part is that it is being offered to read FREE online in Spanish and English at WeGiveBooks.org.

You know what is even more exciting than setting a world record? The fact that Jumpstart has created a Spanish version of their website to reach out to Spanish-speaking families across the United States...and the world. You can even find their pledge page in Spanish.

Why is this such a big deal? How does reading one little book really make a difference? The fact is that children need to be equipped with fundamental literacy skills, and taking the time to read with your kids is an easy way to ensure they’re prepared. Reading one book on Thursday may lead to reading another book on Friday...or Saturday. And next thing you know, you are creating a learning environment in your home while doing an enjoyable activity that strengthens your bond with your child.

EVERY child deserves the chance to succeed. Doesn't matter what language they speak, where their parents came from, where they live, or how their name is pronounced. And as parents, we already know that our kids deserve the opportunity to learn, explore, and achieve their dreams.
 
So take the pledge and spread the word!
 
I hope you will join my family tomorrow as we Read for the Record.
 
Un abrazo fuerte,
 
~Monica

Operation Organize It! : Cabinets Under the Kitchen Sink!

Operation Organize It! is floundering here in our home. A very busy month with a two week trip right in the middle has slowed me down a bit in my cleaning madness. But I know that homeschooling moms CAN be clean and organized, too...it just takes a little longer.

But for the record (and because I am still holding myself accountable...), I can happily say that I managed to accomplish my task for last month: to clean out and organize the cabinets under my kitchen sink. Wepa! And the kids managed to relocate all of their toys to the bedrooms upstairs. Yay! Here's a few pics...


Antes/Before...



After!



My nicely organized pans :)

 

And the rest of the newly organized cabinet!

I'll admit that although my goal was to clean and organize without spending a lot of money, I did spend un poquito. I bought the shelf liner on sale at Lowe's for $5. And I also bought a set of two upright steel racks ($17 - ouch!) for organizing my cookie sheets and cake pans. They kept spilling everywhere, and I need something to provide support and help keep those babies in order.

Now I am super happy to see that at least one of you, dear readers, is standing up to the challenge and has dedicated herself to creating a cleaner, more organized space for her family, tambien. Kudos to Amanda, who has started small and is happy with her work. She says it only took 10 minutes to organize her food storage area.

And that's the point, no? Sometimes organization and cleanliness is only a matter of making ourselves stop for 10 minutes to rearrange and discard a few things.

¡Bueno! Our challenge for this next month/week is:


FOR ME

The linen closet. The other day I went to change the sheets on my bed and nearly died under an avalanche of sheets spilling from my linen closet. I then proceeded to steam and fume as I tried to find sheets the right size. Now, I know that I am not the only mama who's got old sheets, pillow cases, and quien sabe que in her closet. So I'm off to sort and separate...


FOR THE KIDS (Pobrecitos. They don't know what they're in for...):

Crayon culling and marker sorting. I have millions billions of broken pieces of crayon bits showing up in the strangest places (inside the fridge?). So their mission (whether they choose to accept it or not), is to divide and conquer - and sort and banish.


Con mucho cariño...

Mommy Maestra Challenge: Operation Organize It!

I mentioned in my resolution post for 2011 that one of the things I'd like to do is get rid of clutter and be more organized. The urge to clean has been roaring inside me since the beginning of the year, and sporadically, I have been giving in to it.

I come from a long line of clean, organized women. My great grandmother on my mother's side was an extraordinary chef and housekeeper. She was happiest taking care of her home and the people in it. The mere wiff of Pine Sol will instantly take me back 25 years or so (ahem) to her home. She was your typical abuelita, pleasantly plump with a giant smile on her face and her silver hair pulled back into a bun. She almost aways had an apron tied around her waist because if she wasn't cleaning, she was cooking mouth-watering dishes.

Almost all the women on my father's side of the family are cleaning divas. Their homes sparkle and shine. And often, when I fly to Spain for a visit, I leave in awe of what seems like their boundless energy and organizational ingenuity.

(How did that cleaning gene skip me?)

Anyway, I think that having a clean house is something with which many mothers struggle...especially those of us who homeschool. Why? Because quite simply we are spending a greater portion of our time in our homes. But I know that having a clean, organized home is not something that is unattainable. We can do it...it just takes us a little longer, and sometimes it requires a little more creativity or determination on our part.

So in keeping with my resolutions for this year, I am creating the Mommy Maestra Challenge: Operation Organize It! Each week or two, I will tackle a different area of my home, weed out the expendible items, and organize the rest.

While this is mainly a guideline for myself, I am sharing it with you so that if any of you want to follow along or share your own accomplishments, you can! I need a lot of motivation. And blogging about this goal will help hold me accountable. I would love for you to share any tips you may have for organizing your home - especially your homeschooling tools and lessons. If you follow me on Facebook, you will already see that I have jumped in to this challenge with both feet. I hope to meet you along the way!

Our challenge for this week is:

FOR ME

The cabinets under the kitchen sink. To quote my friend, Liz: What the maracas is under there anyway? Mostly a giant mess. My cookie sheets and baking pans are falling all over the place, my pots and pans are a disgrace, cookie cutters are doing the salsa, and my plastic recycling tub is overflowing, belching out yogurt tubs and who knows what else. Time to regain some order.


FOR THE KIDS (Oh-ho! You didn't think I'd leave them out of this, did you?):

Downstairs toy relocation. That's it. I've had enough of stepping on toys and breaking them (not to mention my foot!), so they are being delegated up to my children's rooms. You wanna keep it, chicos? Then move 'em up. Otherwise, Mami gets to keep them. And she likes to store them in her donation box for Goodwill. (Will they stay upstairs? Probably not. But at least this will encourage them to spend time in their room and reduce the amount of clutter downstairs.)

Con mucho cariño...

Take the MommyMaestra Challenge: Waiting for "Superman"

This weekend I attended the Blogalicious conference in Miami. This gathering of multicultural bloggers allows them to connect with various brands and each other, while attending sessions to help them further develop their blogs.

I learned about a lot of great programs/products and met some wonderful people, but the greatest experience I had (and the one that directly relates to this blog) was on Saturday afternoon when we were given the opportunity to watch the movie, Waiting for “Superman.”

This amazing documentary by director Davis Guggenheim and producer Lesley Chilcott, presents the crisis of our public education system in such a way that will leave you, dear reader, with a much better understanding of how our schools are failing our children, why it is happening, and if can we fix it.

If you have never seen a documentary in your life, NOW is the time to do so.

Waiting for “Superman” is unlike the traditional documentary. It may, in fact, set the new standard for future films of this nature. While the movie is filled with information that is carefully presented to promote understanding, it is not boring, tedious, or dry.

Instead, from the very beginning, the movie reached out and engaged me deeply. As a mother, as a Latina, as a writer and educator, I was tormented and relieved and angered and hopeful. Guggenheim has done such a remarkable job of making me care about this issue by chronicling the lives of five families and their struggle to find and secure a good education for their children. It is an intimate peek into their desperate attempt to enroll their children in a good school. Their hopes hinge on the fickle and somewhat absurd lotteries that these great schools must use to fairly choose from an overwhelming number of families who apply each year.

I watched the movie with mi amiga, Roxana, from Spanglish Baby. I don’t think either one of us really knew what to expect. But by the end of that movie, I think we both walked away with the issue weighing heavily on our minds.

There is SO MUCH to say on this subject, I simply cannot finish in one post. So I will be talking about this subject a lot over the next few months. I want to continue the conversation that this movie has started and get us thinking about this problem that affects us all.

You might wonder, why is she talking about this on her “homeschool” blog? Why should I see this movie or care about this issue if I am homeschooling?

There are a lot of reasons.

First of all, while I am a Latina homeschooler, the information I share on this site is for any family or educator, who is looking for ways to teach their children at home, or to supplement their traditional education. I have been extremely pleased to discover that many of you are teachers in public or private schools, and even more excited to find out that some of you with children who go to elementary or middle schools are reading, too.

My greatest desire is to help our children succeed academically, regardless of how they are being taught.

And maybe you are one of the lucky ones whose child is in a great school, with awesome teachers and lots of resources. That is so wonderful! You are so blessed. But maybe you know someone who is not so fortunate.

Second, even if you are homeschooling your children, as I am, chances are pretty good that you have friends or family with children in public school. Because I love my friends, I love their children, too, and it pains me to see them have to struggle just to give their kids an education in a safe and nurturing environment.

I also realize that not everyone CAN homeschool. Sometimes, it isn’t realistic, because the parent(s) must work and can’t find the time. How many single moms or dads do you know? I’m guessing at least one. And sometimes it just isn’t a good fit for their familia.

This issue really hits home for me because the reason I started homeschooling was partially due to the fact that I live in a failed school district. Two of the schools in my town were closed and the State has taken over.

And I am lucky that I have a husband who makes enough money that I don’t have to work outside the home, too. At least not yet! But I also know that if anything were to happen to him, my entire world would be turned upside down and my ability to homeschool would disappear.

And to be honest, yes, it angers me that every child in our great country does not have the opportunity to get a fabulous education. Chilcott says in the book written to accompany the movie, “It just seemed so wrong – really the opposite of what America stands for. You can go to the store and there are seven different kinds of peanut butter to choose from, but you don’t get to choose your school? And when there is a good school available to you, the way you get in is determined by a bouncing ball in a cage?”

This issue affects us all.

Consider the following statistics:

• Only 55 percent of Latinos graduate from high school. The numbers are even worse for African Americans. And while whites graduate at 76%, why isn't it 100%?

• High school graduates live (on average) up to seven years longer than their dropout counterparts.

• In Pennsylvania, 68% of state prisoners are high school dropouts. (I imagine this number is roughly the same in other states.)

• The average college graduate earns 73% more than the average high school graduate

The list goes on and on.

I don’t want my children to be one of these statistics. I don’t want any of my friends’ or family’s kids to be one either.

So here’s my challenge for all of you: Hire a sitter and go see this film with your spouse, best friend, parents, or whoever. Don’t worry! Waiting for “Superman” does give you hope and talks about solutions.

But be prepared: I’m going to ask you next week to see if you’ve gone to see it yet!

So go here to find a theater near you or to take the pledge. And for each ticket that is purchased on their website, you will receive a $5 gift code to give a classroom of your choice on DonorsChoose.org

Con mucho cariño....