Educational Adventures inspired by Univision's EDÚCATE Campaign

Inspiration…

Even though the economy is hampering progress right now, I believe that things will get better. Maybe not soon, but eventually changes have to be made if we are going to advance to be the beacon we used to be. Remember when immigrants would talk about gazing at the Statue of Liberty for the first time and feeling like they could do anything? When did that change for the immigrant population?  I digress... 

Let’s come together and stop quibbling over whose politics make more sense and start recognizing (and caring) that while we bicker; there are unemployed people losing their homes, families with no food to eat, and a generation that is beginning to lose hope. I believe that change is sparked by an educated mind that is inspired to move toward a goal. 

   With that said, here are some things that I tell my children to inspire them: 

1.           Never forget that your education is your shield; no one can take it from you.

2.           Never let someone tell you that you can’t do something; if they do—prove them wrong.

3.           Remember that the best leaders in history didn’t always start off being brave and knowing what to   

        do; this came after they took a stand and followed their passion.

4.           If you fall, don’t stay down, get back up and remember why you fell in the first place. Every failure 

        is just a lesson preparing you for success.

5.            If you think only of yourself you can’t expect to be fulfilled in life because one the greatest feelings in   the world is the contentment you feel when you help others. 

Education week is wrapping up and I just want to say that I am happy to have been a part of something that I believe in. To me, education is the first step to financial success and cultural awareness. Hopefully something I said in my posts has inspired you to get involved in your community, go back to school, or maybe even motivated you to participate more in your children’s academic life.

For more information about Univision’s EDÚCATE Campaign please visit the following link:

http://vidayfamilia.univision.com/es-el-momento/

They offer information on scholarships, educational resources in your state, and an extensive list of universities.

Educational Adventures inspired by Univision's EDÚCATE Campaign

Going to College

When I was pregnant with my first child I had tons of ideas of what a perfect Mom was. She would make sure there were warm cookies and dinner waiting for her children when they came home from school. I blame television and the fact that more often than not you want what you didn’t have when you were growing up. 

Needless to say I am NOT that Mom, but I strive to be the best nurturer I can be. When they were little my fondest memory of them was when I would read to them. I cherish those memories because it is so rare now that I am able to do that (after homework, dinner, and getting clothes ready for school/work all of which have to happen in less than three hours before they have to go to bed).  Now, they read mainly on their own, although we squeeze in a story at least three days a week. 

As important as catching a bedtime story with my boys has become it pales in comparison to the importance of preparing them for college. No, I am not being an overachiever, I am a first-generation college graduate and I had no idea what I was doing when I was applying for college. This probably contributed to my making some very bad educational as well as personal choices. I didn’t apply for any scholarships even though I graduated high school with a 3.9 GPA and pretty high SAT and ACT scores.

This is why I am starting now by making sure my oldest son has good test taking skills (we practiced at home for his California State Exams). He knows to write clearly, color in the bubbles completely, and so on. My youngest is in kindergarten so we are only reinforcing reading and focusing in class. These are small steps but they are the initial steps and are very important for our children to be comfortable as they get older and are competing with children in private schools, those with private tutors, and so on.

My mom’s first language was Spanish so she could never help me with any of the above tasks. She didn’t read any of the books I like so we never discussed what I read. She was shy around other parents so she never came to my plays, mock trials, or science competitions. I was doing all of these things without her moral support and it was not easy. I took buses to all of the aforementioned events (or one my friends’ parents picked me up). I lived about 2 hours away from my school so I studied and did my homework on buses instead of a library or a desk. 

I am not complaining over my childhood, I am describing it because I am sure there are countless of children that are living through similar situations. Although, with our current economy there are some children that are now facing deportation, homelessness, and a variety of other personal obstacles that will hinder their dreams of college/university.

Let’s focus on creating a society that values education. We need to take them to university tours when they are available. We can also go to our children’s school and speak to their academic advisors. Your children need your help. They need to see you taking an interest in their academic future. Once they see you take that stand it will become an automatic decision for them to go to college/university.  If they see that you believe in them that is one less person they have to convince and they have your voice inside them telling them that THEY CAN every time society or one their peers is telling them that they can’t succeed or dream that big. They should all WANT to go to college; it should just be a matter of “What will I major in?” not “Why should I go?”  Or even worse “I can’t afford to go”. 

 Education is something that nobody can take away from you. Our children can’t defend their roots, if they don’t know them. Our children can’t get better paying jobs, if they aren’t equipped with degrees. Your children won’t feel cultural pride, if you don’t feel pride in yourself. Begin by educating yourself so that you can pass it on to your children. EDÚCATE!

Ritalin or not... that is the question...

Here is another serious one folks. One of the things that I love so much about blogging is that I can write about whatever I want and I know that this next one may have some people definitely talking and ultimately that is important because we should always be able to look at each other’s point of view and agree to disagree.

My son is about to be six and he was in kindergarten last year and he didn't do very well academically. He is so amazing in his social development but when it comes to paying attention, well... let's just say he is not always there.

I have been worried about his development since he was one. He was in speech therapy at that age. I had to quit my job because it was daily therapy and Darion (my oldest) was also going through some health issues as well. I wanted to make sure that they both got the medical care that they needed without having to schedule it with my job (as I am currently doing).

Fast forward to these past few weeks. I was told my son's teacher that he was still not where she wanted him to be this year in kindergarten. He is still not focusing enough and spaces out quite frequently. I have always kept it in the back of my mind that one day I may to consider Ritalin for him because his dad has ADHD and had to take Ritalin in elementary school 

His pediatrician has been advising Ritalin for about a year and half and I have staunchly refused because I worried about the side-effects that it may have for him, not only short-term but long-term as well. I have tried regular exercise and I changed his diet but none of these has seemed to work, I have gotten her (pediatrician) to hold off on the finality of medicating him but I am worried if this will also be a bad decision if he can't keep up with his classmates academically.

Their dad said that he stayed on it for a couple of years and that the drug helped to control himself to a point where he didn't need it anymore, but... drugs react differently in everyone. Here are some articles I found helpful:


More side-effects

If you are seriously considering medication here is a guide to might help you find the right medication.

I wish I could tell you that I knew what I was going to decide. Medications scare me and I love the way Jaden looks at the world, I don't want to take that away from him. Parenting decisions are often fraught with the hard choices and what makes it worse is that your choices will affect your children for the rest of their lives. I am not an absent parent; I work with both of my sons as much as a single working parent can. I got to all the parent meetings, special events, and very rarely go out without them. I say all that because there are so many people that would like to blame the absent parent for the academic demise of the child, however in this case it couldn't be further from the truth. Their academic, emotional, and over-all well-being is of the utmost importance to me. My children truly are the best presents that I have ever received. I am unbelievably blessed to be able to call them "mine".

With that in mind, I am in no way saying that drugs are the answer but what I am saying is that they are not a decision to be made out of frustration and we must try other alternatives 9even if they inconvenient for us) first before we, as parents, think about taking that step. I encourage you to take some breathing room, go for walk on your own, pray, meditate, and be calm when making this kind of decision. Surround yourself with a supportive team (i.e. teacher, doctor, friend, grandparents) because this road is not easy (parenting alone is hard enough) and make sure that all of you know all the side-effects and other pertinent information.

I am not a doctor and can in no way give anyone advice. I strongly advise that you get second and third opinions from pediatricians before making this kind of decision. Sometimes even a change of school may be in order because let’s face it, some kids learn differently in an environment that they either don't feel comfortable in or one in which they don't.

Lastly, if you haven't, spend one on one time with your little one, sometimes that extra attention really helps. Parenting is a crazy journey, but it has been rewarding in the best of times, and never boring at the worst of times. :)