Monday, August 6, 2012
Sunday, July 29, 2012
LA Zoo Elephants Are Doing Fine
Musings is happy to report that Billy, Tina and Jewel appear to be living well in their new $42 Million enclosure. There are no sores, wounds or any other indication that any health problems exist as well not having enough stimulation. Musings arrived at the elephant exhibit ready and willing to create quite a ruckus if things did not appear as they should, but we gotta tell ya it's all good.
According to education presenters Lindsay Kelly and Larry Guarmett the information presented to the courts was old and out dated. The ground is loose, the flooring in the new "barn" is heated and the elephants move around freely. At night they may seek refuge in the barn or they may stay outside as they have been doing recently due to the heat of the days.
Guarmett added that Billy the Asian bull elephant has been at the LA Zoo for most of his life and if he returned to his natural habitat, he would more than likely fall victim to poachers or worse. In addition, Guarmett informed us that the person that owns the "haven" for elephants, which is being promoted as a viable option to the zoo, is run by a former circus employee who would not be able to provide the services and care that the elephants need.
The elephants are offered "enrichments" throughout the day in the huge enclosure which includes bamboo shoots hidden behind water falls, to bags attached to structures that can be grabbed by their trunks and shook loose. In the first picture Billy is munching on alfalfa that he had procured from such a bag, Billy is also fond of carrots. The three Asian elephants at this exhibit seem very content and well tended to by "Vicky" the Elephant Manager who has worked with these pachyderms for the past 18 years. Guarmett quoted her as saying "Nothing stands between me and my elephants."
Kelly informed Musings that the reason that the LA Zoo decided to go with Asian elephants for their exhibit was that Asian elephants are smaller, more docile and are more in danger of becoming extinct rather than the African elephants. Musings knew that due to the extreme nature of African bull elephants , Asian elephants were a better choice, but did not know nor was aware of the fact that they are in danger of becoming extinct.
For those interested in seeing for yourselves that all is well with our pachyderm friends Billy, Tina and Jewel next Friday through Sunday ( August 3,4,5 ) would be a great time to explore their new habitat.
The event is labeled "Elephant Appreciation Days" and are offering an open house which will enabled one to look around the new barn that houses the elephants during their down times. For Musings, seeing is believing and we are now believers.
Musings will never completely forget about the outrage for poor Hannibal back in 1992, but at least the LA Zoo is working on a better future for their current residents.
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Sunday, July 1, 2012
Parental Alienation Syndrome Cause
No truer words have been spoken when it comes to the havoc a vindictive ex-spouse can do to a young child by constantly putting down a former spouse. Leave the child/ren out of your ax to grind. Your children will love you a whole lot more. Love your child/ren by letting it go and move on.Sunday, June 17, 2012
MANNERS COUNT PART2
Awhile back Musings covered the subject of manners in the realm of teachers at day care centers/pre-schools and how teachers model the desired behavior to their students using positive examples of behaviors and not with holding an object until the child has said please or thank you. It is more effective to remind the child to say please or thank you while the transaction is in progress and this process should become second nature to a child's behavior patterns just as grammar. Musings may be preaching to the choir here but we want to remind parents that it is very important to encourage your child to have manners when they are young because as they age more information about acceptable behaviors will need to be learned and the matter of manners will already be in place. Most children will not learn them on their own.
Modeling is the most effective tool a parent has in their arsenal of techniques to enable a child to function in an ever increasing population. If a parent models crossing at signals instead of jay-walking the child will more than likely do the same. If a parent jay-walks because it is quicker and they are in a hurry then the child will more than likely jay-walk. This is not good because there have been increasing cases in Los Angeles, CA where a person has jay-walked and has been hit by an oncoming vehicle. Some of these individuals have died as a result of their injuries. If a child sees their parent spitting out gum on the sidewalk they will probably do the same until public streets will look like those in downtown Van Nuys, CA. Parents, please take care of what you are modeling for your child. Think about what you are doing and how it effects your child/ren. Musings knows that the children are quiet and not bothering you when they are on their computers and playing video games which frees you up to do other things, but pay attention.
Children that are left to their own devices will play video games, watch TV, use their computers in a manner that one may find repugnant and other less desirable behaviors. Manners know no boundaries and every ethnic group, religion and economic standing should have a firm grip on this subject. Children that are not taught at an early age to have manners will grow up to not possess them as well as not understanding that there are laws to obey and boundaries that are not crossed. It is up to the parents first and after that, perhaps a Life Skills class should be offered by the county of Los Angeles.
Musings is not singling out anyone in particular when it comes to this subject as it seems to have wound it's way to all demographics and needs to be addressed now. As Los Angeles' population increases, the urge to put aside one's manners becomes a constant concern and threat. The population at large needs to learn how to work around these issues before they spin out of control. Stop making excuses such as "You don't know their story" or "It's their right to act like that" and my favorite "It's their lack of upbringing". If the parents won't do it then perhaps Life Skill Classes are the way to go.
Modeling is the most effective tool a parent has in their arsenal of techniques to enable a child to function in an ever increasing population. If a parent models crossing at signals instead of jay-walking the child will more than likely do the same. If a parent jay-walks because it is quicker and they are in a hurry then the child will more than likely jay-walk. This is not good because there have been increasing cases in Los Angeles, CA where a person has jay-walked and has been hit by an oncoming vehicle. Some of these individuals have died as a result of their injuries. If a child sees their parent spitting out gum on the sidewalk they will probably do the same until public streets will look like those in downtown Van Nuys, CA. Parents, please take care of what you are modeling for your child. Think about what you are doing and how it effects your child/ren. Musings knows that the children are quiet and not bothering you when they are on their computers and playing video games which frees you up to do other things, but pay attention.
Children that are left to their own devices will play video games, watch TV, use their computers in a manner that one may find repugnant and other less desirable behaviors. Manners know no boundaries and every ethnic group, religion and economic standing should have a firm grip on this subject. Children that are not taught at an early age to have manners will grow up to not possess them as well as not understanding that there are laws to obey and boundaries that are not crossed. It is up to the parents first and after that, perhaps a Life Skills class should be offered by the county of Los Angeles.
Musings is not singling out anyone in particular when it comes to this subject as it seems to have wound it's way to all demographics and needs to be addressed now. As Los Angeles' population increases, the urge to put aside one's manners becomes a constant concern and threat. The population at large needs to learn how to work around these issues before they spin out of control. Stop making excuses such as "You don't know their story" or "It's their right to act like that" and my favorite "It's their lack of upbringing". If the parents won't do it then perhaps Life Skill Classes are the way to go.
Monday, May 28, 2012
Freedom Ain't Free
Memorial Day is upon us and everyone is scurrying around taking trips, staging BBQ's and attending sales and I wonder if people have gotten so caught up in the commercialism of this special day that they may have forgotten to take a moment to give thanks for our brave soldiers and their families for the sacrifices that they have made in order for America to be free. Freedom ain't free. It's important for children to get into the habit of remembering our soldiers that have fought and/or given up their lives in order for America to be able to take Memorial Day vacations, have BBQ's w/friends and family and also be able to attend sales based around this special time of recognition. Please take a bit of time today to remember those soldiers that have sacrificed over the decades and tell your children stories about family members that have participated in the military and stood brave in order to keep America free.
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Pre-School Goes Green
Think pre-schoolers can't be "green" like adults? Think again! Universal Studios' Child Care Center's children have managed to divert 28 tons of waste from a landfill by recycling and composting as much as possible. This includes using glass plates, cups and silverware when ever possible instead of of disposable items which create more waste. At an early age these "green" minded children are taught "if it was once a plant, then it belongs in this bin." ie the recycle bin/compost bin. In turn, the compost comes back to the center to help nourish the gardens that the children plant and other plants around the studio.
To take it's "green" mentality one step further, Universal Studios has released a "green" film titled "The Lorax" which tells a tale of pollution and an environment that goes bad due to too much use of natural resources by big industry. It's message is simple...conserve the Earth's natural resources. Although this story was first published in book form by Dr. Seuss 40 years ago, it still rings true today as box office figures put the film's opening revenue at $70.2 Million which is the strongest opening of the year up to March. So step aside Captain Jack Sparrow, there's a new money magnet in town and it's "The Lorax"! It is never too late to teach young or old children to take care of the Earth and get them to think "The Earth is not our trash can".
As a pre-school teacher, I've heard conversations by children such as "What's the matter with you, don't you know that the Earth is not your trash can? Pick up your trash!" or as a child is walking along and spots a soda can and bids their elder sibling to please help keep the Earth clean by picking up other people's trash and recycle it when you can. These types of incidents are not by accident. It takes a lot of repeating the same information over and over and allowing the children to participate in the "green" clean-up to sink in, but it's worth it in the long run. Who knows, perhaps they'll write a book.
At Discoveries Learning Centers in Santa Barbara, CA there is a whole lot of "green" going on. Their motto is "reduce, reuse, recycle". Even the chickens that they keep are a part of this philosophy as they get much of the school's left overs from meals served at the school. In addition, they keep a recycle box for electrical equipment such as cell phones, chargers, ink for printers. Once, a teacher went to the local zoo and saw a sign that asked visitors to please recycle their old cell phones and help to save the gorilla population in the Congo. She decided to provide lessons about the gorilla, cell phone recycling and how this helps them. In addition the children wrote a book about the subject. The school has also been named a green school and is a member of Green Care For Children. For more information on this organization please go to www.greencareforchildren.org and you can visit the Lorax Project at www.theloraxproject.com.
Help to inspire the children in your lives to be aware of how important it is to take care of the environment that we share by simple steps. Include them in a clean-up at a beach or local estuary such as the Los Angeles River that snakes throughout the entire area. Explain to them how important it is to pick up trash even tho it may not be theirs.
At the end of the day, it is time well spent and is music to one's ears when you hear them say "The Earth is not your trash can!"
To take it's "green" mentality one step further, Universal Studios has released a "green" film titled "The Lorax" which tells a tale of pollution and an environment that goes bad due to too much use of natural resources by big industry. It's message is simple...conserve the Earth's natural resources. Although this story was first published in book form by Dr. Seuss 40 years ago, it still rings true today as box office figures put the film's opening revenue at $70.2 Million which is the strongest opening of the year up to March. So step aside Captain Jack Sparrow, there's a new money magnet in town and it's "The Lorax"! It is never too late to teach young or old children to take care of the Earth and get them to think "The Earth is not our trash can".
As a pre-school teacher, I've heard conversations by children such as "What's the matter with you, don't you know that the Earth is not your trash can? Pick up your trash!" or as a child is walking along and spots a soda can and bids their elder sibling to please help keep the Earth clean by picking up other people's trash and recycle it when you can. These types of incidents are not by accident. It takes a lot of repeating the same information over and over and allowing the children to participate in the "green" clean-up to sink in, but it's worth it in the long run. Who knows, perhaps they'll write a book.
At Discoveries Learning Centers in Santa Barbara, CA there is a whole lot of "green" going on. Their motto is "reduce, reuse, recycle". Even the chickens that they keep are a part of this philosophy as they get much of the school's left overs from meals served at the school. In addition, they keep a recycle box for electrical equipment such as cell phones, chargers, ink for printers. Once, a teacher went to the local zoo and saw a sign that asked visitors to please recycle their old cell phones and help to save the gorilla population in the Congo. She decided to provide lessons about the gorilla, cell phone recycling and how this helps them. In addition the children wrote a book about the subject. The school has also been named a green school and is a member of Green Care For Children. For more information on this organization please go to www.greencareforchildren.org and you can visit the Lorax Project at www.theloraxproject.com.
Help to inspire the children in your lives to be aware of how important it is to take care of the environment that we share by simple steps. Include them in a clean-up at a beach or local estuary such as the Los Angeles River that snakes throughout the entire area. Explain to them how important it is to pick up trash even tho it may not be theirs.
At the end of the day, it is time well spent and is music to one's ears when you hear them say "The Earth is not your trash can!"
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Saturday, March 24, 2012
Manners Count/Respectful Language
How many times have you heard a parent order a child to say "sorry" or heard a parent tell their child to say "hello" to you? Does it make you feel uncomfortable? It does me. Now, think about how the child must feel. It's not okay to tell/ force a child to tell another person that they are sorry when in fact they are not even sure about what just occurred. In essence, they are being taught to tell their first white lie. Respectful language is about modeling behavior and not forcing a child to say or do anything. It is okay to suggest to a child while handing the desired object to say or sign please and thank you, but it's not okay to dangle an object in front of them and say "Say Please". Model the desired behavior to the child. You can do this verbally, by signing or both.
Respect for a child's feelings is important and it will be happily remembered by the child if you make them feel respected instead of making them angry or uncomfortable. Once the child feels disrespected it will be hard to open them up to listen again. We are encouraging you to try and model the appropriate behavior instead of demanding that they be used. Example: If a person waves to you and the child and they wave back it's good, but it is also okay if they don't. Ask the child if they would like to wave hello or goodbye and say that it's okay if they don't want to say or wave goodbye. Allow the child to do it on their own first. Remember that modeling comes from the heart and will be better learned by your child.
Respect for a child's feelings is important and it will be happily remembered by the child if you make them feel respected instead of making them angry or uncomfortable. Once the child feels disrespected it will be hard to open them up to listen again. We are encouraging you to try and model the appropriate behavior instead of demanding that they be used. Example: If a person waves to you and the child and they wave back it's good, but it is also okay if they don't. Ask the child if they would like to wave hello or goodbye and say that it's okay if they don't want to say or wave goodbye. Allow the child to do it on their own first. Remember that modeling comes from the heart and will be better learned by your child.
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