April Reign

Speak your mind even if your voice shakes

giving

An Open Letter to Dalton McGuinty

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Dear Mr. McGuinty,

My name is Devon. I am a 12 year old girl attending elementary school in Ontario.

In the past election you said your government would be best for education.

I recently watched this video, Writing on the Wall, by the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation.

I don’t think that schools should have to be in a draw to get books for kids.
School libraries should never get like this, the classrooms should never have only four textbooks for everyone in the class.

According to the video 38% of Ontario’s grade 3 children fail the standard reading exam.
The school library is the most important way to learn how to read, get up-to-date info for assignments and research and to get books to read for fun.

Four textbooks per class is not acceptable, it’s not a very good way to learn and get an Education.

Sometimes schools in rich areas can get books by donations from parents and bake sales, but poorer areas can’t do this. And bake sales are a bad way to budget for books anyway.

I hope you will take this seriously and that you and your government will do what you said about being best for Education. You can start by giving enough money to schools for libraries and textbooks.

Sincerely

Devon S.

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child readingI would also like to let everyone else know more about the video

you can find it on this page

Also there is a pdf with a letter to send to the Minister of Education in your province.

Please take this seriously. We are too young to vote. But our lives will be much poorer if we don’t get books and textbooks. Without them our education will suffer, and we won’t have much hope for the future.

We need adults to stand up to government and demand that they put our education first.

Feel good gifting

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Came across this story today.

Amamanta, Spanish for breastfeeding, is a blend of two words that mean love and protection.

It is also the name of a doll family whose members may appeal to holiday shoppers looking beyond the latest Barbie or Bratz doll for a present that’s non-hazardous to body image and can also educate about how babies are made, born and nurtured.

Each 16-inch cloth adult Amamanta doll has genitals and pubic hair, and the mother doll features breasts that can be snapped onto the baby doll’s mouth to help reinforce the importance of breastfeeding.

“I wish children to be happy and grow with the idea that sexuality is important and is part of our lives,” says Margarita Maria Mesa Leal, owner of the company that makes the dolls. Leal hand sews dolls herself, in addition to employing 27 local women in Medellin, Colombia, all of them mothers.

Dolls aren’t cheap; an individual can be purchased for $39 or a family for up to $199. Leal didn’t go into the particulars of what she pays her workers, but she says these prices allow her to pay a living wage and use only high quality materials.

Fantastic too that they show proper birthing, breastfeeding and come in multi racial/cultural varieties.

Giving a great gift, supporting small business, supporting ethical business, now that says christmas! [Read more…] about Feel good gifting