Showing posts with label language. Show all posts
Showing posts with label language. Show all posts

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Sesame Street Revamps Website

My son has outgrown Sesame Street although we still watch PBS Kids from time to time. I especially enjoy WordGirl, Between the Lions, Arthur, Super WHY!, WordWorld, and Dragon Tales.

I recently heard that Sesame Street has revamped its website so I had to check it out. I can't even tell you how much fun my son and I have playing games on line. He first learned his colors and how to use the computer mouse from the learning activities found on this family-friendly website. Now, he's learning basic math skills from Cyber Chase and I can't begin to describe how safe I feel when he's on the site, having fun and learning at the same time.

I often get letters in the mail from Sesame Workshop, asking for donations. I will tell you that even though my son no longer watches Sesame Street, I will always send them money since I know how valuable those early experiences with language and learning truly are to my child's development.

If you haven't visited the Sesame Street since it made some improvements, head over now. The site for parents includes many great tips, such as the article on Understanding How Preschoolers Handle Stress or Handling Delicate or Hurtful Situations.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

I Slept With a White Guy Last Night

It's all very innocent...trust me.

It began as soon as my son started to talk - and recognize colors. You see, according to him, people's "colors" change as often as their clothes - literally. Of course if he knows the person by name, he'll refer to them that way. This color description he created is for those he doesn't know, or for times when he can't remember a person's name.

The first time he used this type of terminology to refer to someone was after a holiday spent with my family. There were quite a few people he had been introduced to and it was pretty overwhelming. Afterwards, I asked him if he had fun playing with his cousins and he remembered their names and talked about them for several days afterwards.

Then one day, he asked me who the "white guy" was. I was floored when he said it and asked him to repeat the question. After several questions - of my own - I realized that he was referring to one of my relatives who just so happened to be wearing a white sweatshirt during the family gathering.

Last night, two years after this initial conversation, he insisted that I sleep with his "white guy" last night since he was sleeping with the "green guy."

The guys he was referring to were his new BIONICLE® Lego sets that we purchased yesterday. They were on sale - Buy One, Get One Free. I couldn't resist the opportunity to take advantage of such a bargain.

LEGO

I smile when people look at my son and I strangely after overhearing our public discussions about "black guys" and "white guys" in particular. They have no idea that people's skin colors do not even phase him.

I'm concerned about who he'll share this information with.

But, I won't deny it. I slept with a white guy last night.