A DAY DEDICATED TO THE SPIRIT OF JIM HENSON

On the morning of Saturday, May 16, I woke up to this Facebook post from Kid President:

Kid President

Politician · 359,680 Likes

 · May 16 at 7:10am · 

On this date in 1990 Jim Henson died. I was 9 years old. When my mom told me - I cried. I never met him, but I cried. Thankful for the impact he made and the impact we can all make. The world is brighter because he was here. Same goes for you.

- Brad (the guy who makes all this Kid President stuff)

Turned out, it had been 25 years since puppeteer, film and television pioneer, and Muppet inventor Jim Henson passed away.

I paused a moment after reading the post, and decided that I would make this day about fun, kindness, and open-ended exploration and appreciation of colors, shapes, people, nature, art - everything around me.  I would dedicate the day to Jim.

  

First, my husband Mike and I took the subway out to Long Island City to visit our friends in an open studio weekend - LIC Arts Open 5 -  run out of a huge industrial space.  On the walk from the subway to the buildings, I asked Mike "What is your favorite kind of store to shop in?"  He replied: "Stores that sell donuts!."  Lo and behold, we rounded a corner, and saw The Doughnut Plant. Mike let out a shout of delight.

We went inside the industrial space that housed the art, and saw our friend Jessica Doh's paintings on silk.  

During the subway ride back to Brooklyn, we made some sketches, including this one:

After we returned to Brooklyn, we biked down to the beautiful Brooklyn Bridge Park.  Here's what I saw:

Young women dressed in fairy-tale gowns as they celebrated their Quinceaneras.

Bridesmaids wearing floaty, florescent orange dresses.

Cute dogs prancing down the path.

People of all ages running in and out of Jeppe Hein's fountain and mirror sculpture.

Later, I watched some videos that were taken of Jim Henson's funeral service, which was held in 1990 at The Cathedral of Saint John the Divine.  I've continued to watch clips of The Muppet Show, as well as interviews with his colleagues and family members.

I'm so grateful that Jim Henson lived and spread his magic among us.  The world is a better place because of him.

For more information about Jim's work and how it is being carried forward, please check out the website of The Jim Henson Legacy.

5 WAYS TO KEEP YOUR GRADE SCHOOL CHILD READING AND WRITING THIS SUMMER

Many parents of grade school children, especially children who struggle with reading and writing, express concern that their young ones will fall behind or lose traction with their skills during the summer months.

Here are 5 strategies to keep your child connected with reading and writing in ways that are fun, pleasurable, and meaningful to them. 

Approach these activities, as well as your child's overall literacy development, with a tone of relaxed encouragement.  Doing so will set the stage for them to flourish!  

1.  Visit your local library.  A library can be an oasis of calm, order, and, cool in the midst of summer heat.  Many libraries have summer reading programs for children, so ask your librarian what they have planned.  

Let your child make choices about what they want to read, even if a book seems too easy or too difficult.  Allow them to pursue the topics, authors, and genres that catch their interest.  Don't worry if your child wants to read a book multiple times;  it means that they are enjoying it.  There's pleasure in repetition. We adults read books that we love more than once, as well!

2.  Pick chapter books together and read them out loud to your child/ren.  I have great memories of being on camping trips with my family, and sitting on big rocks in the sun while my mom read A Wizard of Earthsea to us.  On another trip, my dad read Stuart Little.  Being read to is such a treat, and keeps children connected to the pleasures of good literature.

You can also have a lot of fun by acting out books in a charade-like fashion,

3.  Create a Writer's Box.  Fill a box or a drawer with a variety of materials that children can dig into to engage in lots of different writing projects. This idea is particularly great if you live in small living quarters.  You can use a large Tupperware container, or whatever is handy.  Consider including any of these items in your box:  Different sizes of notepads; loose-leaf paper; construction paper; 3 by 5 cards; pens, pencils and markers; stapler; tape; glitter glue; glue stick; stickers; ruler; stamps; envelopes; return address labels; magazines for cutting out images and text.

What else could you add?  Get creative!

4.  Keep a Summer Scrapbook.  Tape or glue photos, mementos, and found objects from your summer adventures into a book that you buy or make.  A simple 3-ring binder will do! Label your photos and mementos; make simple journal entries about what you do each day.  Your child can do the writing herself or dictate the words to you.  (There's great power in them getting to see the relationship between the spoken and the written word.)

5.  Write Letters - Summer is an ideal time to sit down and write postcards, letters, and cards to relatives and far-away friends. Pull out that Writer's Box and let people know about what your family has been up to!

Summer Literacy Tutoring with Eleanor Traubman

Would you like one-on-one literacy tutoring for your child this summer?  I customize sessions to reflect your child's individual interests and draw out their strengths. 

For More information:

Eleanor Traubman
Facebook.com/brooklyntutor
Creativetimes.blogspot.com
ETraubman@gmail.com

About Eleanor 

Eleanor is a seasoned educator, community-builder, and arts and culture writer. An alumna of the Bank Street College of Education, Eleanor has spent the last 25 years working with young people and families in private and public schools, nonprofit education organizations, and museum settings including P.S. 29, The Brooklyn Museum, and The Brooklyn Children's Museum.  As Editor-In-Chief of the arts blog Creative Times, Eleanor has interviewed world-loved children's book author/illustrators, as well as original cast and crew members of Sesame Street. Eleanor fosters young people's literacy development by providing creative, project-based opportunities for them to read and write for a real-world audience about topics and for purposes which hold personal meaning for them.  

INSIDE THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF NINA CHAKRABARTI

It's fun and fascinating to go behind the scenes with artists.  Here's a peek inside the studio of Nina Chakrabarti, who illustrated, amongst other titles, The Wonderful World of Fashion and The Wonderful World of Shoes.

Q AND A WITH SARA JUNE GILMORE, FOUNDER OF SARA JUNE SALON

Sara June Gilmore in Her Salon

Q:  How did you get the idea to start your own salon?

A: I was working for a great salon called Soon Beauty Lab in Carroll Gardens for two years and had built a large following there. I fell in love with Brooklyn and wanted to keep my life here. But, I tend to get bored if I do the same thing for longer than a few years, so I started dreaming about what could keep me here in Brooklyn. Owning a salon was an obvious solution.

Q:  What's great about being a small business owner?

A: Owning a business is nothing like I thought it would be. It isn't better or worse; it is just constant. It is always on my mind. I like that it gives me purpose and drive. I like that other people are depending on me to provide a wonderful place to work, and I like that clients are enjoying a delightful space to get beautiful hair.


Q: What is challenging about being a small biz owner?

A: The challenges are many. One of my personal challenges is learning how to manage my time efficiently. I have been doing hair for 15 years and so have never had a desk job. It proves difficult to answer emails, order color and product and manage payroll without getting distracted. I’m learning, though!

Q:  What drew you to working with people's hair?

A: I honestly never knew that I would be doing hair for my work. As a kid, I loved watching my hair lady part my hair with clips and chop chunks of hair off my head. I thought it was dramatic and wonderful to look so different so fast. I enjoy reinvention and newness. Getting a new cut or color is one of the fastest way to feel different and fresh. I think I love that the most. I also love people so much. I learn a lot every day from my employees and my clients. It’s inspiring.

Q:  What do you love about living in Brooklyn?

A: I love the people everywhere. I like the energy that almost colliding into hundreds of people every day gives me. I like human interactions without actually interacting. It's a constant dance, and I love it.


Q: Is there anything about living here that is challenging?

A: One of the challenges of living in Brooklyn is how hard we all work. Work occasionally wears me down to a point of depression, and then I look out at the people around me and realize they are all working just as hard. It helps me energize again and get back to work:)

Q:  I know that you were raised as a Mormon, and that you no longer practice that religion.  How does that upbringing shape how you think about things and approach your everyday life?  
A: One of the things I love about being raised Mormon is the belief in continual growth and personal development. It shaped me in a way that makes me face my weaknesses and try to master them. I love that about the religion. I also love that I came from a family of 8 kids. I definitely learned how to work with many different personalities and to love them all.

Q:  What do you love to do when you are not in the salon?

A: Camping is one of my favorite summer activities. I can’t wait to get to the mountains upstate.

Q:  What are some of your favorite places to hang out?

A:  The park in Sunset Park and my roof are my two favorite spots. I also love The Sackett and The Gowanus Yacht Club.

Q:  Where do you see yourself and the salon a year from now?

A: The wonderful thing about Sara June is that our team is full of very talented and experienced stylists. We are growing incredibly fast, which is super exciting! I hope that in a year from now,  Sara June will be known as the place to go to get the best hair in Brooklyn - or in NYC for that matter!

For more information about Sara June Salon, visit their website:  http://sarajunebrooklyn.com/

This Q and A marks the first interview in what will be a series of interviews with owners of local barbershops and salons.  Stay tuned!

THE MAGIC OF MINI BOOKS: A SUMMER CLASS FOR CHILDREN WHO LOVE TO DRAW, WRITE, AND TELL STORIES

Do you know a young person who loves to draw, write, read graphic novels, and tell stories? 

I'm pleased to announce that I'll be teaching The Magic of Mini Books, a summer class for grades 3-5, at The Smith Street Workshop.

Session One: July 13-17; 
Session Two: August 3-7

Sessions run Monday - Friday 9:30 - 11 am

To register:

http://www.smithstreetworkshop.com/english-camps/

About the Teacher: Eleanor Traubman is a seasoned educator, community-builder, and arts and culture writer. An alumna of the Bank Street College of Education, Eleanor has spent the last 25 years working with young people and families in private and public schools, nonprofit education organizations, and museum settings including P.S. 29, The Brooklyn Museum, and The Brooklyn Children's Museum.  As Editor-In-Chief of the arts blog Creative Times, Eleanor has interviewed world-loved children's book author/illustrators, as well as original cast and crew members of Sesame Street. Eleanor fosters young people's literacy development by providing creative, project-based opportunities for them to read and write for a real-world audience about topics and for purposes which hold personal meaning for them.