family values Archives - Page 15 of 18

Apr 17 2018

Culturally Diverse Parenting

Amy and Joe are madly in love with their baby daughter. They are full of dreams and aspirations for their daughter who they plan to raise in a traditional, two parent household. Joe is a 5^th generation Californian with ancestors from Ireland and Germany. Amy is a third generation Japanese-American. Amy and Joe want their little girl to appreciate both of their cultures. Raising their daughter to enjoy a rich cross-cultural heritage can be enhanced when considering the following: [Read more…]

Joyce Iwasaki, Early Parenting

Joyce Iwasaki has over thirty years of educational experience working with diverse students in grades from preschool through high school. Joyce’s extensive background includes teaching elementary school, serving on early childhood advisory boards, and advocating for educational initiatives as a legislative aide. During her tenure as a legislative aide, she helped create legislation that allowed incarcerated mothers to keep their newborn babies with them while in prison. Additional legislation was enacted to allow incarcerated pregnant mothers to remain unshackled during labor and delivery. Ms. Iwasaki established and served as the president of an educational scholarship foundation for fifteen years. Her foundation awarded college scholarships to emerging student leaders who provided service to their schools and communities. Joyce is active in performing arts and cultural organizations. She also provides ongoing support to her daughter and family by raising her grandson in her home.

Apr 03 2018

Helping High School Students Prepare for Their Futures!

Yesterday, I met with our high school leadership team. We were discussing how to help our students prepare for a future career or goal. One colleague stated that we should teach our students autonomy. Another argued that we need to put family values first and help students grow with this focus. A third leader suggested that we needed to identify how those values might challenge a student’s future career and college success. The more we discussed this topic, the more I am convinced that we need to help students learn how to take care of themselves to ensure their future success. [Read more…]

Yvette King-Berg, College Readiness

Yvette King-Berg, is the Executive Director of Youth Policy Institute’s Charter Schools. She was the former California Charter Schools Association Vice-President of School Development and Outreach-Southern California. Ms. King-Berg has over thirty years of experience working with teachers, students, parents, and organizations in a variety of positions including Director, Assistant Director, Curriculum Advisor, Bilingual, and Title 1 Coordinators, classroom teacher (K-12) in Pasadena and LAUSD. She has been married for twenty-three years, and is the proud mother of her son, EJ, who attends UC Berkeley.

Mar 06 2018

The Value of Community Service

Over the years, my kids and I have participated in a number of community service opportunities as a family. Whether it be collecting canned goods for the local food pantry, cleaning up a local school, or raising money for animal conservation, there are a number of excellent activities suited for children. The experience of serving others and the world at large have given my children a perspective about their place in the world, namely that even though they are young, children can still make a difference.

How to Serve Others

Serving others gives children a sense of connectedness to people. It’s very easy for children to get caught up in the routines of the everyday – the same class, the same grocery store, the same friends, the same teachers. For many reasons, structure is needed to help create a sense of safety for children. However, when we provide opportunities for children to see the needs of others, it shows them we all live and interact with one another in community. Being a good neighbor has to start with us teaching our children how to cultivate healthy connections with others. Community service appropriate for cultivating connectedness include singing songs at a convalescent hospital, making get-well-soon cards for sick children in a local hospital, or even cleaning up a local school or park for the enjoyment of neighbors.
Community service projects help develop empathy. When you’re collecting canned goods for the local food pantry or bringing jackets and socks to be distributed at a local homeless shelter, children will ask the inevitable question of why people will need such basic necessities. This gives us parents the perfect opportunity to teach our children to be thankful for their possessions, but more importantly, to see others’ struggles. When children are able to see the needs of others, it will inspire them to respond in care and address others’ needs with compassion.
Preparing for community service gives a broader perspective of the world. If children are passionate about recycling, have them read information that will inform them about the impact of plastic dumped in landfills. If children are passionate about endangered animals, have them research information about the animals’ country of origin and how their habitat have been affected. Whatever it is that drives children to care, use that opportunity to enable them to respond responsibly and make things right in the world.

[Read more…]

Jaime Koo, Encouraging Literacy

Discovering the joy of teaching while in high school, Jaime pursued her B.A. in English at Santa Clara University. She also received a teaching credential and a M.A. in Education Administration from Santa Clara University. Jaime taught English Language Arts at Rancho Middle School, motivating and inspiring young people to become effective communicators and contributors in their community. From being a Middle School English Language Arts/English Language Development teacher to becoming a stay-at home mom, Jaime is an education consultant who presents literacy workshops. Her workshops focus on a combination of her ten years of teaching expertise with tried-and-true experiences that she uses with her own children. Jaime is also a Teacher Consultant with the San Jose Area Writing Project. Jaime’s mission is to share effective reading and writing strategies with families to encourage literacy.

Jan 16 2018

Overcoming Holiday Brain Drain

Presents have been unwrapped, leftovers have been eaten, decorations have been put away…You have survived another hectic holiday season! So what’s going on with the kids? Have you noticed that the kids are cranky during and especially after the holidays? Are their brains now a mush and are they dreading the return to school?

The reality is that the holiday season is a major emotional roller coaster, especially for kids. Think about all the excitement and anticipation that kids have experienced during this time– writing a hopeful letter (fingers and toes crossed!) to Santa with their wish list, on-the-go activities like Christmas tree shopping and decorating the home, ice skating and drinking hot chocolate. Of course, there’s holiday shopping, attending traditional winter performances or recitals, watching new-release movies…not to mention the waiting and waiting for Christmas Day to open presents and the anticipation (or dread) of family get-togethers and holiday feasts!

And then everything comes to an abrupt halt.

What if the solution to overcoming holiday brain drain is moderation? Pacing your activities so that kids don’t crash from an emotional high would be a great way to overcome holiday brain drain. Here are some examples: [Read more…]

Jaime Koo, Encouraging Literacy

Dec 26 2017

How to Handle Social Challenges

I was painfully shy as kid. I cried every morning when my mom dropped me off at school during the first week of kindergarten. I cried when her face wasn’t the first one I saw when school let out for the day. In fact, I was so leery of social interaction that I sat in my teacher’s lap that year for school pictures! Thankfully, my parents have helped me through my timidity and I’ve come a long way from since I was in kindergarten! Here are a few lessons I have taught my own kids to help guide them through different social challenges. [Read more…]

Jaime Koo, Encouraging Literacy