Travel Approvals, Matching, Series Topics, and the Poll
I see reports of TA’s for the most recent referrals being reported overseas this morning.
I also see a few more reports of the CCAA being in the process of matching, and one discussion about an agency being optimistic about how far they think the CCAA will get. I have no idea if they are being optimistic because of something the CCAA has said, or some other reason.
I have another three or four posting ideas for the Avoiding Toxins series – I’m going to do one on the various cooking oils, and then I’m going to do a few on homemade skin products. In most cases the stuff I make at home ends up being much less expensive than the stuff you buy. Is there something else someone would like to see a blog post on?
For my next series, I was considering photo editing techniques – anyone have an interest in learning how to manipulate pictures? You’ve got this perfect shot of your children backstage in costume for a play, but there is a woman right behind them bent over with her behind sticking up in the air. Or maybe you want to do the thing where your child is in color and the rest of the photo is in black and white. Or maybe you have three shots of ten children posing, and there are at least two kids with eyes closed or mouths in an odd shape in every shot – want to know how to fix that? With free software?
And finally, if you are still waiting for your NSN referral and expect to accept it, and have not registered your LID in the poll running through this referral cycle, please click here to do so. The poll will close when the next referrals arrive. For those couples who both hang out here, please double-check with your spouse to make sure they haven’t already done so before you do.
Happy Valentines Day!!!
February 14th, 2012 at 8:29 am
I want to know the products that people are using that ARE safe. I have figured out what is not. Its really confusing.
February 14th, 2012 at 9:16 am
I would love to learn more about the photo editing. I play around with Picasa, but it’s very limited in what it can do…
February 14th, 2012 at 9:17 am
I would see a post on hair care products. We are still searching for a shampoo that doesn’t make us feel crummy and still gets hair clean.
February 14th, 2012 at 9:22 am
Photography tips!
February 14th, 2012 at 9:24 am
I’d like to suggest a topic — toxins in children’s furniture (e.g., formaldehyde in engineered wood and glues) and how to find furniture that is free of these toxins.
The link below is helpful, but I would like suggestions regarding manufacturers/stores where I can buy solid wood furniture with no unhealthy glues or finishes.
http://healthychild.org/blog/comments/how_can_i_find_formaldehyde-free_furniture/
February 14th, 2012 at 9:30 am
How to chose a blog site and get started. Are there preferred blog sites to use or ones to avoid?
February 14th, 2012 at 10:08 am
How optimistic are we talking? Very eager to see if the can finish August and put Sept on deck.
February 14th, 2012 at 10:28 am
It’s wonderful to learn all about toxins and how to avoid them, but I don’t see anything on here about how to approach this topic with your kids. I’m the mom of two teens from China. I know for a fact this type of information greatly upsets my youngest. A couple years ago she couldn’t sleep and had anxiety issues. Our friend with cancer was telling us all about toxins and what to avoid. All wonderful advice, but my daughter was convinced she had cancer because she did all the “bad” things. In hindsight I wish I would have made sure she didn’t hear all of it at once. As adults this causes concern and worry. Can you just imagine what is does to a little child’s mind. Just a tiny heads up. Childhood should be happy and carefree, with caution given in appropriate doses. I used to watch a tv show called Marcus Welby MD. Yes, I just aged myself. I had the worst time thinking I had the disease of the week. My parents probably shouldn’t have let me watch it. lol
February 14th, 2012 at 10:40 am
RQ,
You mentioned that an agency is optimistic about this batch, can you please give more information? Did they mention a possible cut-off? If so, please let us know – even if it proves to be wrong, isn’t that why you have a rating system?
February 14th, 2012 at 11:09 am
Yes. Please post about photo editing.
February 14th, 2012 at 11:41 am
Photo editing, yes! You had me at free software! Have no interest in anything time-consuming, costly or complicated. Love Picnik but am bummed about them closing.
Thanks RQ!
February 14th, 2012 at 12:33 pm
I’m getting ready to head to China…and I wanted to stop by and congratulate those who are receiving TA’s, Referrals – just seeing those sweet little faces for the first time…and i’m sorry I will miss those!
LID 8-8-06
February 14th, 2012 at 12:42 pm
I told you what I know from the agency – when asked if they knew anything they said they were “optimistic about this next group of referrals”. If they’d given a date, I’d have given it.
I teach my kids about toxins as it comes up. When they want something I look at the ingredients, and if there is something in there I don’t want them to ingest or use on their body, I talk to them about the ingredient and what it can do to them. As they get older and want details, we go into a whole lot more of the specifics. We talk about how eating or using it once or twice or even ten times over the course of a month or two probably won’t hurt them, but that many of these things build up in their body and we don’t know what the exact number of times it might take before it would start hurting them, so we just avoid it as much as possible.
They know if they eat at someone’s house they should not turn a cooked meal down because it has HFCS in it – though with GG it is okay to turn something down with a lot of food dye because one time of that does make a difference.
I guess for a child who has never been exposed to the idea that many of the foods in the grocery store can hurt you, and has been eating them, it might be better to back off first and then start teaching? I don’t know the best way to handle it in that case.
My kids know the difference between healthy and unhealthy, and I don’t think it has made their childhood any less happy.
February 14th, 2012 at 1:23 pm
For the toxins series…have you done one on propolene glycol? Try avoiding that stuff. Ugh!!! I had to give up blue cheese dressing because I could not find a brand without it. Funny enough the organic lines, that we have around here, don’t even have a blue cheese.
February 14th, 2012 at 1:32 pm
RQ, Please don’t think I was in any way judging your parenting or your children’s happiness. I just feel that as we must broach the subject of “stranger danger” with our children, but not scare them to death of every person they meet, we must also do the same with toxins. They are everywhere we turn and must be avoided, however, some children are sensitive to such things and easily frightened. My daughter came home from school the other day and said that a friend told her hamburger causes cancer. I had just made a meatloaf. (We don’t like turkey) She loves my meatloaf, but picked at it. She was seriously afraid of my meatloaf. ARGH… Again I had to explain we don’t eat a lot of red meat and it won’t kill you. Both my parents died in their fifties of cancer. My dad of lung cancer, my mom pancreatic. I lived with two parents and second hand smoke my entire life. I also sunbathed throughout the entire 70′s and 80′s. By all rights, I should be dead by now. When I was young, cigs caused cancer, now everything does. I’m 52 and healthy as a horse and God willing I stay that way. I simply think care needs to be taken when discussing these issues with children, and that’s all I meant. I made a mistake of allowing a conversation about toxins to frighten my child, and I didn’t want it to happen to someone else.
February 14th, 2012 at 1:41 pm
I would really enjoy a series on photo editing, especially using free software as I don’t own any of the Photo Shop suite.
Thanks!
February 14th, 2012 at 1:48 pm
Knowledge is power – I’ve given my kids a whole lot of knowledge about toxins vs healthy food. Someone wanted to shove the whole toxin thing in GG’s face once, and told her eating the apple she happened to be eating at the time was putting toxins into her also, and she shot back, “No, first off because this is organic and unwaxed, and second because we wash everything really good when we bring it home from the market”. She was sure enough in her knowledge that she knew that they were wrong. She was aware of what they were talking about – the wax seals the pesticides onto the apple peel of apples grown on a corporate farm – and knew that her apple didn’t have that problem. (And, as a side note, I just love watching her tick things off on her fingers when she’s explaining things.)
I think it may be a good idea to tell your kids if someone tells them something will give them cancer that they need to come to you and talk to you about it before they believe them. Older kids are probably going to look it up on the internet for themselves, but younger kids who aren’t doing that yet need to know there is somewhere they can go for answers.
Most kids have this whole “magical thinking” thing going for them, where they think nothing bad can happen to them. Our kids have already lost one set of parents — they know bad things can happen to them and to those they love and depend on. I think we have to be sensitive to that, and understand some of where their fears about us getting sick and/or dying are stemming from.
Like I said – knowledge is power.
February 14th, 2012 at 2:02 pm
Absolutely. Knowledge is power. As long as that knowledge is doled out with the knowledge that although all these things “can” cause us harm, there is no real fear to be had. My daughter and I had a long talk after she overheard my friend and I discussing toxins, and yet hearing that hamburger causes cancer upset her. (I guess I neglected to mention that one.) Everything is suspect nowadays. We all aren’t wealthy, and not everyone can afford to live toxin free. My children play with inner-city kids. A lot of these kids have roaches in their house and are just happy to eat an apple, whether or not it’s organic. Everything in perspective. I won’t tell my kids they can’t play over because their friend’s dad sprayed insecticide to kill the creepy crawlies. As with everything, moderation is key. Just be careful how we discuss all this with the kids. That’s all I’m saying.
February 14th, 2012 at 2:17 pm
I too would enjoy a series on photoediting, since with the slow down always getting slower, I am just thinking of photoshopping my prospective child into our family photo. The child won’t age (kind of like a cartoon character) until we actually get a referral. We can explain away the appearance differences by saying she had plastic surgery.
Sincerely though it is nice to know the technology that is available.
February 14th, 2012 at 2:19 pm
Liamay, I totally get what you are saying. It is a fine line between having kids who are aware, informed, appropriately concerned about the environment and kids who are perpetually scared. I remember when I was about 9 years old, reading in the encyclopedia about the lifecycle of a star and that someday our sun would burn so hot that it would destroy the earth. I was horrified! (Even though I knew it wasn’t an immediate threat to me, it was really upsetting). I never discussed it with my parents (we can’t assume our kids will tell us everything they are worrying about). A little perspective would have helped and that’s what I try to provide to my kids.
February 14th, 2012 at 2:20 pm
I have a cousin who works at a corner gas station and she is the primary breadwinner for a family of five. Nothing wrong with that – she’s a hard worker and I respect her for it. However, she complains about not being able to afford nutritious food, and yet when we are there I see bags and bags of different flavors of potato chips, oreos, all kinds of soda…. there will easily be $50 to $75 worth of junk sitting there. If they would refrain from buying junk food and instead opt for good nutrition they may discover they have more money left over after grocery shopping than they did before.
When I go to the produce market I end up with at least two full baskets – often three full baskets – of food, and I spend around $35 or $40. Dollar for dollar I’m getting at least as many calories, and certainly a whole lot more nutrition, than people get when they buy junk food. Yes, it takes two trips – one to the produce market and another to the grocery store, but it’s more than worth it. I’m fortunate that the produce market is practically on my way to work, too.
Also, since we don’t buy meat, that’s another huge drain on the budget that many people have and we do not.
I doubt we are spending more than the average household spends per month to feed a family of four.
February 14th, 2012 at 2:29 pm
Okay, curiosity got the better of me.
http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/Publications/FoodPlans/2011/CostofFoodDec2011.pdf
According to this, with kids the ages mine are, if we were thrifty we should spend $624 a month, low-cost is $815, moderate is $1017, and liberal is $1236. We’re closer to low-cost than we are to moderate.
February 14th, 2012 at 2:44 pm
Wait – forgot RK eats out for lunch a few days a week – that extra $80 or so a month pushes us up closer to moderate.
February 14th, 2012 at 2:59 pm
Which isn’t to say we never buy potato chips – we occasionally get them in the small bag multi-packs for the girls to take to school in their lunch. And sometimes we buy bags of some of the better chips to eat at home – there is a vinegar and salt one we could all easily get addicted to. But it’s not every week, and we don’t buy one of every flavor.
We buy some of the prepackaged crackers for the girls to pack in their lunch sometimes, too. It’s not that we never buy any of that stuff. It’s just that we don’t fill our shopping cart up with it every week.
February 14th, 2012 at 3:47 pm
I have really appreciated the Toxins series. I was aware and “on watch” for some of these things and it was nice to have a bit of a refresher. Other toxins you brought up weren’t on my radar screen and I’m grateful that they now are.
I too would love a series on photo editing. Goodness knows I take about 800 pictures a month.
Maybe some blog posts on household cleaners/detergents. I use Seventh Generation but it’s so expensive, I’d like to hear what others use. . . especially of the homemade variety.
RQ, thank you so much for all that you do. The posts on China Adoption, raising children, books. . . everything. I can honestly say that my life and the lives of my DH and DD are enhanced because I read your blog. Thanks.
February 14th, 2012 at 4:12 pm
That was a very interesting link to the USDA website. I learned that our food budget (myself, age 53 and two females ages 16 and 10) is between thrifty and low-cost each month. Considering that we live in one of the most expensive states in the U.S. (Connecticut) I think we’re doing pretty well on our food budget! This also includes several meat meals a week. Chicken is a big staple in our diets – chicken soup, roast chicken, crockpot chicken stew with sweet potatoes. With careful planning it is possible to eat a diverse, healthy diet without breaking the bank. The secret, to me, is to avoid buying beverages (filtered tap water is the only thing we drink, other than my coffee :-) and keep packaged convenience foods to a minimum. Example: instead of buying single serving containers of yogurt with granola in a plastic topper, we buy a large container of yogurt and a box of Kashi Go Lean. LOTS of protein and far less expensive. There is really no need to rely on junk food if you don’t have a big food budget.
February 14th, 2012 at 5:44 pm
I’m looking forward to seeing your homemade skin care formulas. If you have any other “recipes” you make at home to replace a potentially toxic product, I’d love to have it.
Thanks!
February 14th, 2012 at 6:59 pm
The “natural” or no preservative deli meats, cleaning products, furniture/rugs (apparently rugs are full of crap).
And MOST of all – and someone web savvy could make a killing at this – I refer back to the very first response from doc33. I would like a specific site that gives me the actual items and brands of SAFE choices. The selection can have the links to why, the links to ingredients, etc. But honestly, I just want someone to spell it all out to my face. The rest makes me dizzy.
So one page would be snack foods, one for makeups, cleaning products, etc. No brand favoritism or kick backs or corporate sponsors. I would pay money every year to subscribe to a site where it was simply spelled out. I.e. – Mascara – a list of the safest. i.e. Glass cleaners – a list of the safest. Nailpolish – a list of the safest. That’s it. Easy.
February 14th, 2012 at 7:40 pm
Shampoos – ugg. If someone has a good shampoo with good stuff in it – please share. Long long ago, like 20 or so years ago, I used a really good one, but the company went out of business and I’ve never found anything else commercially available that works. The “good stuff” products I’ve tried have either not gotten my hair clean in the first place, or stripped it too much and damaged it. I work on the principal that I don’t leave the shampoo on very long so maybe it’s not soaking into my scalp too terribly much.
I can’t help with things like deli meats — I didn’t even know they were making them without phosphates and nitrites.
I believe (not sure) furniture is only dangerous for a little while, and once it fully cures then it no longer has the dangerous fumes. Since we wait so long for our kids, we can buy the furniture well ahead of time. :-) Honestly, that one hasn’t been too strong on my radar. I bought some IKEA bookshelves and wall units a few years ago, but other than that, we’re pretty much set on furniture.
New carpet is bad – no argument there. I have an aunt who had never been bothered by asthma, but they got new carpeting and she almost died. She was in the hospital for 11 weeks, and spent a huge amount of that time in an oxygen tent thing. It’s been ten or so years, and she has pretty severe asthma, still. I haven’t researched possible alternatives to that one, most of our house is hardwood floors. Our bedrooms are carpeted, but the carpet was already here when we moved in and wasn’t new, so it wasn’t a problem.
Completely forgot about Propylene glycol, but that reminds me I should talk about all of the things MSG can be called.
I can talk about cleaners, but that’s one subject I tend to steer the opposite way the “all natural” sites point. I’m not so trustful of some of the new cleaners, they haven’t been around long enough for us to know how they are going to interract with… everything. And the stuff that is “safe enough to drink”? Doesn’t sound like it’s going to kill too many germs, does it?
I use a strong bleach mixture to clean toilets, sinks, tubs, showers, etc. It’s one quarter bleach to three quarters water and about a teaspoon of dish-washing liquid mixed in a spray bottle.
I use a weaker bleach mixture for things like light switches and the walls around them, door frames, our glass topped kitchen table, etc. That one is a little less than 5% bleach and the rest water.
And I use a vinegar mixture for windows and mirrors and faucets –- it’s half water and half vinegar.
I buy a gallon of bleach maybe once or twice a year, and a gallon of vinegar lasts even longer. A very cheap way to clean. And we know what bleach and vinegar do. They’ve been around forever and we know their properties. And we know bleach kills the bad stuff. I search for the old fashioned bleach though – not the new stuff with all of the additives in it. I’m careful with it, don’t touch it more than I have to, use in a well ventilated area, but it’s bleach so of course we are careful. I see people using some of the “new” stuff and getting it all over them without thinking twice because the label says they can. If it is strong enough to kill germs then you probably don’t want it touching you… and if it isn’t killing germs then it isn’t a good cleaner.
February 14th, 2012 at 8:35 pm
Your response to poor people and nutrition, well frankly it floored me. Really? Is it that simple? I live among them. If only it were.
http://www.fatnutritionist.com/index.php/if-only-poor-people-understood-nutrition/
February 14th, 2012 at 10:34 pm
Ditto the helpful blog making post. I could seriously use some technology help and the to-dos and not to-dos for the blogging world.
February 15th, 2012 at 7:11 am
liamay – the one thing that truly irritates me is when people put words into my mouth. I said nothing about poor people not understanding nutrition.
I said that people who can afford potato chips and sodas and oreas have no room to say they can’t afford to buy nutritious food. That crap is expensive! If you have enough expendable income to buy super expensive junk food then you should have enough income to buy locally grown fruits and vegetables.
I know that truly poor people are the ones dumpster diving the grocery store at night in order to eat, and they are just looking for enough calories to get by another day. Those aren’t the people I was talking about.
I’m talking about the people looking at the sixty five cent organic apple my daughter is holding and saying “not everyone can afford to buy organic, you must be so rich” while they are holding $2 worth of soda and potato chips in their hands chowing down. Eating organic doesn’t mean you are rich, it just means you’ve put a priority on what foods you are going to feed yourself and your family.
February 15th, 2012 at 10:21 am
RQ: Did you read liamay’s fantastic link? Because it addresses the fallacious reasoning behind this quote of yours: “I said that people who can afford potato chips and sodas and oreas have no room to say they can’t afford to buy nutritious food. That crap is expensive! If you have enough expendable income to buy super expensive junk food then you should have enough income to buy locally grown fruits and vegetables.” Locally grown fruits and vegetables are not as accessible to poorer people, and not as calorie-dense. I have to say I’m with liamay in expressing some surprise here.
Otherwise, great series. Look forward to more.
February 15th, 2012 at 10:33 am
RQ. I beg to differ. I did not put words in your mouth. If you re-read your statement you used your cousin as an example of why people with a limited budget don’t eat organically, or more nutritionally. I would guess that your cousin, working as she does for a gas station, doesn’t make a whole heck of a lot of money. She has five kids to raise. I’m thinking she doesn’t have an SUV to go to specialty markets. If she does, she’s one of the “lucky poor” with transportation at her whim. Of course after a hard day of working to support those five kids, she could take a few buses to get to places that do sell organically, rather than buying the “poison apples” most poor kids get at the the local store, but I bet she’s kinda tired by then. The average Joe in my neighborhood has to decide whether to buy enough generic macaroni and cheese for dinner, or pay their heat bill. Eating organically is the last thing on their minds. And to suggest otherwise is elitist and sad. Your blanket comment reeks with “If the poor would just get a job, they wouldn’t have to depend on society to support them.” Where I live…there are no jobs. My daughter sits next to kids who only get food at school. They don’t serve organic apples. They also don’t serve organically at the local churches or soup kitchens. These are your normal Americans. I’m sure you won’t print this, but I thought you should know.
February 15th, 2012 at 12:23 pm
RQ-I agree with you, except for two things that make it difficult to purchase differently…convenient foods are right there, within sight of the child who wants something to eat. If organic fruits were treated like candy in the store, by the merchants, more children would eat more healthy. Most of the time, the organic foods are shoved in the corner somewhere among the long aisles of fruits and vegetables, and are usually old and flimsy because they don’t get as much attention as the nonorganic ones. There have been many a times that I have gone to the organic section in our local grocery store, and CHOSEN not to get the organic apple…not because it was more expensive, but because it was soft and old. Sure, I could go to a local fruit and vegie store, but I usually don’t. I do, however purchase organic milk….always. And other organic items that are placed with non organic and tend to move quickly out of the store.
And secondly, poor people tend to want immediate gratification. They usually can’t afford gymnastics classes for their kids, or after school science classes, or private schools with art and music built right in…or other things that give their children stimuli and gratification. So, a lot of times, the kids are raised to enjoy instant gratification. Not saying it’s right, just saying that’s how the mind works.
February 15th, 2012 at 12:27 pm
I also read somewhere (wish I knew where that page was now) that there are certain items that SHOULD be organic, and some that really do not need to be organic. When we hear organic, most people think EVERYTHING should be organic, but in reality there are several items that do not need to be organic. Broccoli comes to mind. I recall on that list, broccoli does not need to be organic because the flourettes are very hardy and not much can penetrate broccoli. Oddly, I think I also recall that potatoes SHOULD be organic. I wish I could find that page. If anyone knows what page or a similar one, it would be helpful to have again.
February 15th, 2012 at 12:36 pm
Just thought I would add a comment about shampoo- I have used LUSH dry shampoo for a while now (gets hair clean but doesnt foam the way normal shampoo does) http://www.lushusa.com/shop/hair/ many of their products are vegan and they are extremely carfeful responsible about sorcing products by responsible means. That being said after glancing over the ingredient list it doesnt seem to contain anything toxic but I am not an expert. Their products are expensive but it is hard to find vegan products. They also have “normal” non-dry shampoo that works well. We use the dry because it means less plastic bottles going to the landfill (and it gets through airport security without a hassle =)) http://www.lushusa.com/shop/hair/
February 15th, 2012 at 1:33 pm
As for lotions and soaps and shampoos…what do you think of the Kiss My Face line? I know you mentioned that their sunscreens had some of the ingredients that you avoid, but what about their other products? The pure olive oil soap and some of their lotions look like they may “pass muster” as far as toxins go. And they have moisturizers, chapsticks, shampoo and conditioner, etc.
I, like some of the other people that commented, would like to know what brands are generally safe…
thanks for all the information you’ve been posting on this topic…it is pretty new to me!!
February 15th, 2012 at 6:31 pm
Again – putting words into my mouth. Family of five does not mean five kids. It means her, three kids, and a boyfriend on disability.
She lives closer to the produce market than I do. She drives a minivan that is three years newer than my car. She works forty hours a week, and does no housework because her boyfriend cleans house, does the laundry, and cooks their meals. There is no riding the bus, there is no haggard single mom who doesn’t have time to go grocery shopping. She is choosing to use their expendable grocery money on junk instead of on fruits and vegetables. That’s fine, it’s her choice, but I get tired of hearing how it must be nice to be able to afford organics when we can afford to do that only because we aren’t eating out all the time, and buying a lot of expensive junk food.
I am not talking about the people deciding whether to buy food or pay the rent. I’m not talking about the people buying the cheapest hotdogs and bologna just to try to get some kind of protein source.
I’m talking about people who can afford oreas, sodas, and five plus bags of potato chips. I stand by my statement — if you have enough spending money to buy that kind of junk then you could be buying more nutritious food.
February 15th, 2012 at 7:37 pm
liamay- I completely see your side of this argument as well as RQs.
However, I tend to agree more with RQ on the matter of organic fruits and vegies vs junk food prices. When you pay for the items side by side, many times the price tag would be similar.
As for feeding kids in schools…whole ‘nother subject. It’s really sad more schools can’t (won’t) take advantage of the playgrounds to build edible gardens. Aside from getting the funds to build the garden up, and the water consumed, gardens could be very cheap, and could easily be organic. Teachers or staff could take turns helping the kids tend to the gardens. They could even plant a few apple/fruit trees on the school property which would virtually be self sustaining, and again, aside from initial set up, and fencing them off to keep them from being torn up, there really would be very little money needed for them.
Im, in no way indicating that doing this could feed the entire school, and of course they would need other sources of nutrition…but in a lot of cases, children do not KNOW how to sustain themselves with healthy foods, or perhaps they live in apartments with no yards. What a wonderful opportunity to show them ‘from the ground up’ HOW to be healthy.
When I was growing up, I lived in the country, and the lunch room actually had a kitchen with ovens, and when we had lunch, the school cook actually COOKED turkeys or chickens in the oven(s). Most likely, having full time cooks at the school cafeterias would be less costly than having the food shipped in, with the food corporation contracts, and more healthy. But, schools get government funding for lunches and the corporate contracts with food industries, so bottom line, it would be less expensive, but ironically MORE expensive for the individual school districts to fund an actual cook at the lunch room.
However, the idea of school gardens are still within reach. It takes teachers, staff, and PTA members…or just informed and innovative parents to get something like that in place. And most likely a lot of persistence because it would be ‘upsetting the apple cart’ to even suggest such a thing in many schools.
February 15th, 2012 at 7:44 pm
In addition, the kids could do projects on worm composting in the classrooms….there’s so much that can be done, but most likely will NOT be done in many, many school districts nationwide. And it can be built in to teaching units. Instead, they go hog wild with photocopies of handouts of things that really do not relate to the child or daily life in a productive way. DD actually came home with a science hand out in first grade, that showed a RATTLE SNAKE in a garden, and the correct “fill in the bubble” answer was, “snakes are good for the garden” This was a very highly rated elementary school, yet there I was…looking at the most ridiculous hand out. The most important part of that exercise was how to fill in a bubble with the right answer, for school testing that was coming up later in the year. Sad.