Nov 28th, 2009
by Leslie.
I have a soft spot for eco-friendly toys. They’re toys! They’re eco-friendly!
I first saw these particular trucks in my local toy store, and I fell in love with them immediately. In addition to being attractive and appearing durable, they have an interesting origin: They’re made from recycled plastic milk jugs, and they’re made in the U.S., in California.
The manufacturer, Green Toys, has this to say about these toys on its website:
All Green Toys products are 100% made in the USA. To be more specific, they are produced in California, a state known for strict toy safety and environmental laws. It’s cool to buy USA, but also think about this: transportation is one of the biggest contributors to greenhouse gasses. We all know driving less is good for mother nature, b
ut did you ever think about how many miles a toy logs before it ends up in your local store? Continue reading →
Posted in: green toys, unique gift ideas.
Nov 25th, 2009
by Leslie.
Did you know that the first year of a child’s life is a critical period for establishing fluency in a language?
Don’t freak out, however, if the children in your life weren’t babbling in two languages before they could walk. There are developmental changes in the brain around puberty that may make learning language a bit more difficult, but that doesn’t mean children and adults of all languages can’t become proficient in one more more foreign languages. Bilingualism hasn’t been shown to cause any long-term delay in the development of English-language skills, even for students enrolled in language immersion programs at school.
Remember, too, that bilingualism has benefits beyond the second language. Children who are learning a second language, or acquiring two languages simultaneously, may also exhibit earlier reading, better problem-solving skills, and higher scores on both the verbal and mathematical sections of the SAT than monolingual students. Bilingualism also opens the doors to a broader spectrum of careers.
Why this gift matters
As you can see from the benefits discussed above, children benefit tremendously—in both the short and long term—from learning a second language. By setting a child on the path to bilingualism, or encouraging a child who is already on that path, you are enabling the development of crucial intellectual and social skills. Continue reading →
Posted in: bilingualism, books, unique gift ideas.
Nov 22nd, 2009
by Leslie.
I’m starting a new feature here: I’ll regularly post the best articles, blog posts, reports, fun things, and other resources I run across each week.
Quiz!
You must take–and encourage others to take–this eye-opening quiz from EdChange. To get a sense of it, check out the first three questions:
1. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, what is the percentage of U.S. schools with no teachers of color on staff?
2. Compared with White women, how likely are African American women in the U.S. to die during childbirth due to a lack of access to prenatal care, according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality?
3. According to a study by the American Association of Physicians for Human Rights, what percentage of physicians report witnessing a colleague giving reduced care or refusing care to lesbian, gay, or bisexual patients?
If the answers don’t get you energized to work toward social justice and a better world for your children or students, I don’t know what will. Continue reading →
Posted in: GLBTI issues, ethnic dolls, ethnic toys, high-achieving students, kids and social justice, multicultural dolls, my favorite things.
Nov 21st, 2009
by Leslie.
I frequently reference multicultural crafts here at The Multicultural Toybox, so I wanted to create a quick reference site that folks can browse at a glance. Consider this a mini-mall for multicultural arts and crafts. You might also check out the multicultural crafts category to locate posts about arts and crafts.
By the way, if you do a ton of shopping at Amazon, I can’t recommend highly enough the Amazon Prime service. Currently, for about $6 per month (you get 13 months for the price of 12, since the first month is free), you get unlimited free 2-day shipping, and you can share the service with up to four people in your household. There’s no minimum order size, and you can upgrade any item to overnight shipping for only $3.99. Go check it out! Continue reading →
Posted in: multicultural crafts, unique gift ideas.
Nov 21st, 2009
by Leslie.
This post is a continuation of my post on multicultural crafts supplies that would make thoughtful gifts. While the first post focused on helping children represent the full spectrum of human skin tones when they draw people, this post looks more closely at folk arts and crafts from a range of cultures.
African Textile Paper
Combine this textile paper with the human paper shapes kit to give kids the opportunity to really express themselves as they create beautiful clothing for the paper figures. These papers reproduce a rich variety of African traditional fabrics, and each 32-sheet package comes with a project idea guide.
Global Designs Textile Papers
This 128-sheet pack expands on the African textile paper described above. These paper reproductions of beautiful textiles are based on Asian, African, Native American, and Hispanic cultural motifs from around the world. The package comes with a project idea guide. Continue reading →
Posted in: multicultural crafts, unique gift ideas.
Nov 21st, 2009
by Leslie.
When I was a kid, adults still frequently referred to the peach crayon as “flesh color.” Today, there’s no excuse for passing on to children such a narrow view of human diversity–both because we are in many ways more sensitive to issues of diversity and because there are some fabulous art supplies out there to solve the problem of the singular flesh-colored crayon.
Why this gift matters
Kids can learn pretty early on–by picking up on explicit and implicit signals from adults–how to view a society that is becoming increasingly diverse. It’s important to both be direct with your children about living in a multicultural society by working the topic into your everyday conversations and to model good behavior as a citizen of a diverse society. Arts and crafts are an excellent opportunity to have these kinds of discussions, as kids are relatively focused on a single task. Providing children with craft supplies designed with multiculturalism in mind makes it even easier to start these conversations–and lets you encourage your children to imagine the possibility of a vibrant world packed with interesting people from whose lives and experiences they might learn. Continue reading →
Posted in: multicultural crafts, unique gift ideas.
Nov 17th, 2009
by Leslie.
Here’s one thing I’ve learned from being around kids: They all love elephants. They may not always name them as their favorite animal, but ask them a question about elephants, and they’re sure to offer elephant trivia in response to questions you haven’t yet asked.
Why this gift matters
At a moment—an era, really—of global environmental and social crises, the elephant provides an interdisciplinary crossroads from which to consider any number of issues. Too often, the environmental messages we send our young people are oversimplified—to use but one example (from Susan Davis’s excellent book Spectacular Nature: Corporate Culture and the Sea World Experience), young visitors to edutainment venues like Sea World are told that they can hep save the whales if they don’t litter. In reality, conservation is far more complicated—it would be better to get kids on board with using less plastic, or with lobbying governments to punish corporate polluters, for example—and thus it makes sense to help kids understand both the nature and culture of conservation. This African elephant-themed education kit approaches elephants and elephant conservation from multiple disciplines and learning styles–kinesthetic and tactile learning through play (with a puppet), visual and scientific learning (through photographs and books), and narrative and aural learning (through folktales). Continue reading →
Posted in: unique gift ideas.
Nov 17th, 2009
by Leslie.
It’s day 2 of our series on unique holiday gifts that emphasize multicultural learning. (Browse the previous unique holiday gift ideas.) Here, for the budding gourmand or cook on your holiday gift list, I’ve pulled together a selection of items that you might give individually or as a set to reinforce learning.
Why this gift matters
Food is a huge issue around the world, whether it be because of hunger, increasing costs to grow and transport food, a push to grow food locally, or discussions about the safety of genetically modified foods. These gifts can open the door to conversations and learning about a number of food issues. In addition, they also offer opportunities to discuss, and in some cases taste the cuisine of, cultures from around the world. Whether children are tactile, kinesthetic, visual, olfactory, or gustatory learners, these gifts are sure to delight. Continue reading →
Posted in: books, food, unique gift ideas.
Nov 17th, 2009
by Leslie.
I’m bringing the Multicultural Toybox out of hiatus—it has sat dormant too long. To make it up to my readers, I’m going to start offering ideas for thoughtful, educational holiday gifts–or, really, gifts for any time of year–in a variety of price ranges.
Each post will provide a cluster of gift ideas on a theme. You can pick and choose from among the items highlighted or splurge on the entire package for your favorite young friend or relative.
Many of these gifts would also make excellent gifts for teachers, many of whom would much rather have books, toys, or games for their classrooms than another candle or bottle of lotion.
Posted in: unique gift ideas.
