Search Results for: blog my inner city story inner city conditions

We Need Inner City Children to be Inner City Teachers

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It has been a long time issue that inner city schools often have the hardest time keeping and hiring qualified teachers. Cities, such as Milwaukee, face trouble with teachers leaving and moving to more suburbanized areas. As it stands, Milwaukee has a policy that requires teachers to live in the area. Some have thought that more teachers might stay at Milwaukee’s Public Schools if they were allowed to live elsewhere. Many of the teachers do not want to live in the area because they would have to send their own children to the public schools. There is no easy answer … Continue reading →

West Side Story (1961)

“West Side Story” is one of the most acclaimed plays and films ever made. A musical, it’s not all about sweetness and light – in fact, it’s the most gritty musical I’ve ever seen, a modern retelling of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Our plot revolves around two street gangs in New York City – the anglo Jets and the Puerto Rican Sharks. Tony (Richard Beymer) is the former leader of the Jets, but he has turned from his gang life and is trying to go clean. Riff (Russ Tamblyn) has taken over the leadership role, but he admits that he’s … Continue reading →

How Safe Are America’s Highways?

Blowing snow and icy roads wrecked thousands of couples’ plans for romantic dinners last night. Law enforcement officers reported thousands of accidents on highways stretching from the Midwest to the Northeast yesterday. The Ohio State Highway Patrol alone handled more than 1,200 calls involving weather-related accidents. Sounds bad, and it is (I’ve had my share of weather-related incidents), but believe it or not, according to a new report, sunny skies and open freeways are more common conditions for fatal traffic accidents than snow and ice covered roads. The new driving study, conducted by Carnegie Mellon University’s Center for the Study … Continue reading →

10 Things You Didn’t Know About the New Food Blogger

I am not new to families.com but I now get the privilege of blogging for the food blog on a regular basis. If you’ve read my blogs, you probably know a few things about me already: I have twin girls who are almost 20 months old, along with the other three children. . .making a total of 5 kids (under the age of 7)! I live in the inner city. I know way too much about nursing babies and advocate it any chance I get. We are a homeschooling family with a particularly inquisitive son. I have even done a … Continue reading →

An Introduction to Royal Family Kids’ Camp

I told Melissa I would write this guest blog months ago. I’ve had a hard time. I can tell you that as a repeat volunteer at Royal Family Kids’ Camp, it is the most intense experience I have ever had. (Keep in mind that I live in the inner city too!) My husband, who also volunteered for six years, would agree. In fact, after every year we would say, “We can’t go back. . .” But then we would go back. As a couple, this was our first introduction to working with at risk kids. Royal Family Kids’ Camp is … Continue reading →

Kudos to the Freedom Writers

I think educators have such a hard job that every once in awhile I spotlight someone who does something fantastic. Recently, I gave kudos to Oprah Winfrey for starting a school in South Africa. Awhile ago, I gave kudos to a principal who spent the night on the roof as part of a reading challenge in his school. (You’ll definitely have to look at that blog for a more thorough explanation!) Today I’m giving kudos to Erin Gruwell and her students–”The Freedom Writers” You will likely here about this story soon as Hilary Swank is playing the part of Erin … Continue reading →

The Most Talked About Blogs in Education for 2006

We bloggers love when our readers leave comments. Whether you agree or disagree, this is a community that embraces discussions. I know that I always look for the blogs with lots of comments not only to read what the blogger has written, but to read what others think. With that said, here is a list of the most talked about blogs in education for 2006. Hot Button Issues Are Teachers Over Paid? The Good, the Bad, and the Inappropriate: Banning Books from Your Child’s Library Would Schools Be Safer with Stricter Gun Control Laws? To Separate or Not to Separate: … Continue reading →

Does More Money Mean a Better Education?

Since Congress is changing hands from the GOP to the Dems in January of 2007, the NEA has its sights on what it sees as potential for change. NCLB* and the ESEA** are up for tweaking and renewal. The NEA also has a whole slew of other proposals that they want to see pushed through, such as giving educators additional tax breaks for the money they spend on their classrooms, initiatives to decrease the drop out rate, increase the graduation rate, increase funding for Title 1 programs, and improvement for their teacher’s salary packages (benefits, pensions etc.) What I read, … Continue reading →

A Child’s Life in the Ghetto

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I have never been to the apartment complex where our boys used to live. I have the address and I plan to go there eventually. Our oldest is the only child who can really remember what life was like there. When he is older, we may go back and look around. Many of us drive by the squalor of inner city tenements every day. Most people would not want to visit such a place. It is far too dangerous. Many innocent children call these places home. Their lives are in danger every day because of violence, abuse and neglect. An … Continue reading →

The Education Blog in Review: October 29-November 6

I know, I know. . .this is a little post dated. Since our regular education blogger Kaye Siders has left, several of us from the Families.com community have been guest blogging sporadically here in Education. Consequently, the regularly posted “week in review” blogs that many of us are accustomed to seeing in various sections of the Families.com blogs were missing. But never fear! We’re working on getting you caught up in case you’ve missed some of the exciting blogs in education over the last several weeks. Did you read My Inner City Story? I started a series sharing some thoughts … Continue reading →