How Parental & Teacher Involvement & Partnership Benefits a Child’s Education
September 28, 2009 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 17 Comments
Studies show that children do better when their parents are actively involved in their education. In what ways do you contribute to your child’s education? What benefits do you see as a result? How can you support and participate in your child’s school and education to ensure greater success?
These are just a few of the topics we’ll cover in an A+ #gno party on Tuesday night where you’ll get to meet the great folks at OfficeMax and learn directly from them about ways to support your kids in school!
Don’t forget to nominate a teacher to win OfficeMax’s amazing giveaway this week on behalf of their “A Day Made Better” cause, founded to erase teacher-funded classrooms. Click here to check out the details.
- What: OfficeMax is sponsoring this week’s #gno Twitter party (Click here to learn about #gno!)
- When: Tuesday, September 29, 9-11 p.m. EST
- Where: Click here to party with us on our custom Tweetgrid. (Use hashtag #gno.)
- Topic: Supporting Schools & Teachers for Student Success
- Who: @adaymadebetter, @adopt_classroom, @BobThack417, @cindyhopper, @extraordmommy, @jamieharrington, @jennyonthespot, @jjero, @officemax, @TheAppleofMyEye, @tweenteacher
- Party Favors: Click here to check out this week’s giveaway sponsored by OfficeMax. And check out a list of other participating sites and more fabulous giveaways by clicking here.
- RSVP: Please leave your Twitter ID in the comments to follow and be followed (on Twitter, of course!) by other #gno gals. The best format is as follows: http://twitter.com/jylmomIF.
REVISED: Nominate a Teacher to Win $1000 in OfficeMax Classroom Supplies!—Deadline Extended!
September 20, 2009 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 75 Comments
Teachers are amazing! They inspire our children, build their confidence, encourage them to dream big, and make learning exciting. My boys spend 7 hours a day in school. Recently, my 6YO came home with a “superb” sticker from his teacher for advancing a reading level, and five days later, it’s still on his forehead, which he claims will stay there until 8th grade. Such a small validation has inspired my son to keep reading and advancing while building confidence in his abilities.
Teachers make such an impact on our children’s lives from an early age. And it kills me to know that his teacher, along with millions of others, is struggling to secure the essential supplies she needs to make ends meet in the classroom. Did you know teachers spend an average of $1200 of their own money on classroom supplies each year? Together, that’s $4 billion annually! I know—$4 billion!!! For most, they’re just trying to help kids get the basics!
That’s why OfficeMax teamed up with Adopt-A-Classroom to create “A Day Made Better“—a national cause event founded to erase teacher-funded classrooms. This year, “A Day Made Better” will take place on October 6 where 1,000 teachers will be surprised in their classrooms each with $1,000 worth of essential supplies from OfficeMax. That’s more than one million dollars donated to help teachers! Principals at needy schools nominated the teachers for demonstrating dedication, innovation and passion.
How Can You Get Involved?
To pay-it-forward, OfficeMax and Mom It Forward have teamed up to create awareness about the issue of teacher-funded classrooms and to give you the opportunity to get involved and help a teacher in your community on behalf of the “A Day Made Better.” Here’s how…
Simply nominate a teacher of your choice to win this giveaway following the entry requirements. Be sure to check out the prize and criteria!
Prizes
One exceptional teacher will receive over ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS in OfficeMax classroom supplies. Now that’s a lot of boxes of crayons! LOL!
And, four other amazing teachers will each receive a digital camera for their classrooms.
Criteria
This is a giveaway that is meant to be given away. What does that mean? You get to nominate a teacher by sharing why this person is exceptional and deserving of this giveaway. The winning teacher will be chosen based on the following criteria, so be sure to tell us why your teacher is most deserving:
- Dedication: does everything in his/her power to deliver the best possible education for his/her students.
- Innovation: thinks outside the box and engages his/her students through creative learning activities & programs.
- Passion: expresses a genuine passion for education and shares this enthusiasm in the classroom.
- Need: demonstrates a need for essential classroom supplies.
Entry Requirements
To enter your teacher and help spread the word about A Day Made Better, you are required to do three things.
(Note: post a separate comment for each entry.)
1. Nominate them through a comment.
Leave a comment on this post with the name of the teacher, the school and city he or she works in, and the reasons why you feel he or she meets the above-listed criteria and deserves to win this giveaway. Please keep comments to 150 words or less.
2. Post these messages on Facebook and/or Twitter.
(Note: Be sure to leave comments here with links to your messages.)- Teachers spend avg $1200 of own $$ on school supplies annually! Help erase teacher-funded classrooms. http://bit.ly/3VUNvC PLS RT #omx
- Nominate a teacher 2 win $1000+ in @OfficeMax classroom supplies. http://bit.ly/1337uy PLS RT #omx
- Join the “A Day Made Better” movement to end teacher-funded classrooms at http://bit.ly/UJ3LF #omx
3. Join the A Day Made Better Facebook Cause and leave a comment on the cause page about a teacher that has made a positive difference in your life.
Thanks so much for helping pay-it-forward to teachers in your community! Please join us on Tuesdays, September 22, September 29, and October 6 from 9 to 11 pm ET for Girls Night Out (#gno) on Twitter if you’d like to meet the team behind the cause: @officemax, @adaymadebetter and @Adopt_Classroom. Hope to see you there!
Fine Print
Entries are due Sunday, October 11 by midnight PDT. No purchase necessary to enter. Winners will be selected by me based on the entry that in my opinion meets the above criteria. OfficeMax, Adopt-A-Classroom and Mom It Forward play no part in choosing the winner of this giveaway. OfficeMax, Adopt-A-Classroom, and Mom It Forward employees are ineligible to enter. In a spirit of fairness, my personal friends and family members are also ineligible. Entries that do not follow all of the entry requirements will not be considered. The winner will be notified and have 24 hours to confirm receipt of the email. If no response is received within 24 hours, another winner will be selected. Open to participants in the U.S. 18 years and older. You are welcome to enter all giveaways associated with this campaign, but you may only win once.Share Tips for Helping Kids Succeed at School Tuesday During the #gno Twitter Party
September 19, 2009 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 45 Comments
Now that vacation is over and our kids are back at school, it’s time to return to the basics and help our kids be the best students they can be at home and in the classroom. How do you help your kids do their best in school? Any solutions for creating a conducive learning environment at home? What school supplies are “must-haves” for every kid or parent? How do you accommodate your childrens’ different learning styles?
These are just a few of the topics we’ll cover in an A+ #gno party on Tuesday night where you’ll get to meet the great folks at OfficeMax and learn directly from them about ways to support your kids in school!
Don’t forget to nominate a teacher to win OfficeMax’s amazing giveaway this week on behalf of their “A Day Made Better” cause, founded to erase teacher-funded classrooms. Click here to check out the details.
- What: OfficeMax is sponsoring this week’s #gno Twitter party (Click here to learn about #gno!)
- When: Tuesday, September 22, 9-11 p.m. EST
- Where: Click here to party with us on our custom Tweetgrid. (Use hashtag #gno.)
- Topic: Helping kids succeed at school
- Who: @adaymadebetter, @chaotic_barb, @highimpactmom, @jjroo, @mommyniri, @officemax, @texasholly, @The_Jerri_Ann, @TipJunkie
- Party Favors: Click here to check out this week’s giveaway sponsored by OfficeMax. And check out a list of other participating sites and more fabulous giveaways by clicking here.
- RSVP: Please leave your Twitter ID in the comments to follow and be followed (on Twitter, of course!) by other #gno gals. The best format is as follows: http://twitter.com/jylmomIF.
How OfficeMax Is Helping Erase Teacher-Funded Classrooms
September 19, 2009 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · Leave a Comment
What Is “A Day Made Better?”
“A Day Made Better” is a national cause founded by OfficeMax and nonprofit organization, Adopt-A-Classroom, to lead the fight to end teacher-funded classrooms. Annually in October, more than 3,500 OfficeMax associates surprise and honor more than 1,000 teachers at 1,000 schools across the country with $1,000 worth of classroom supplies. Nominated by their school, teacher recipients receive this honor for their exceptional contributions as an educator.
The name, “A Day Made Better,” is derived from the concept that OfficeMax and Adopt-A-Classroom can make at least one day better for teachers by providing them with essential classroom supplies. Through 1,000 simultaneous events, OfficeMax seeks to call attention to the issue of teacher out-of-pocket spending and motivate the public to take action by supporting local educators through Adopt-A-Classroom. “A Day Made Better” was first conducted in October 2007 and has since contributed to the funding of more than 10,000 classrooms.
Why Is OfficeMax Doing This?
“A Day Made Better” was founded in response to the fact that teachers are now spending on average $1200 out-of-pocket for necessary classroom supplies—collectively nearly $4 billion annually—to offset budget shortfalls, according to a 2005 survey by the National Education Association. Striving to erase teacher-funded classrooms, OfficeMax and Adopt-A-Classroom are working together to create awareness and generate widespread support for teachers nationwide.
Education Facts
Fifty percent of teachers leave the profession within the first five years:
- Each time a teacher leaves the education system, the cost is approximately $11,500 to recruit, hire, and provide orientation and professional development for the replacement.
- Teachers cite a lack of support as the top reason for leaving the education profession.
- Education is one of the “top ten most important problems” facing the United States (Gallup Poll, 2007).
How You Can Help
To show support for “A Day Made Better,” the public is invited to do the following:
- Host your own “A Day Made Better” surprise for a local teacher.
- Join the Facebook Cause page at http://apps.facebook.com/causes/116541.
- Follow the cause on Twitter at http://twitter.com/adaymadebetter.
- Learn more about the cause at www.ADayMadeBetter.com.
- Adopt a local teacher through www.AdoptAClassroom.org.
- Purchase an oversized paperclip magnet at OfficeMax stores, which benefits the OfficeMax Charitable Foundation’s program supporting K-12 public school teachers.
Nominate a Teacher to Win $100 in Classroom Supplies on Participating Websites
September 19, 2009 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 2 Comments
OfficeMax recently kicked off a campaign called A Day Made Better to help erase teacher-funded classrooms. As part of this initiative, OfficeMax is involving more than 30 “Max Moms” to help spread the word about erasing teacher-funded classrooms through giveaways on their websites and events in their hometowns.
Click on any or all of the following links to nominate a teacher of your choice to win $100 in OfficeMax classroom supplies. Entry requirements are simple: Share why you feel that person is deserving in either in the posts’ comment section, in a blog post on your site, or through a Whrrl story and help promote the A Day Made Better campaign via Twitter and/or Facebook.
Note: You may enter every contest, but you may only win once per nominated teacher.Max Moms’ Giveaways
Allie from No Time for Flashcards and @noflashcards
Amanda from High Impact Mom and @highimpactmom
Amanda from Oh! Amanda and @oohamanda
Amy from Mom Spark and @momspark
Andrea from Mommy Snacks and @mommysnacks
Angie from Angie’s 7 Clown Circus and @angiescircus
Barb from Elementary Spirits and @chaotic_barb
Beth from The Plus Size Mommy and @plussizemommy
Carissa from Good and Crazy People and @carissarogers
Cindy from Skip to My Lou and @cindyhopper
Courtney from Detroit Mommies and @TheAppleofMyEye
Danielle from Extraordinary Mommy and @extraordmommy
Holly from June Cleaver Nirvana and @texasholly
Janine from Twofer Mom and @twincident
Jen from JenHinton.com and @keepitclassyjen
Jen from Savor the Thyme and @savorthethyme
Jenny from Jenny on the Spot and @jennyonthespot
Jerri Ann from Mom E Centric and @the_jerri_ann
Katja from Skimbaco Lifestyle and @katjapresnal
Kelly from Childhood Clothing and @childhood
Kim from Crafty Mama of 4 and @craftymamaof4
Laurie from Tip Junkie and @tipjunkie
Leighann from Multi-Minding Mom and @LeighannMMM
Lori from A Cowboy’s Wife and @acowboyswife
Maya from Think Maya and @thinkmaya
Michele from Scraps of My Geek Life and @scrappinmichele
Lori from MissLori.tv and @misslori
Niri from Mommy Niri and @mommyniri
Rachael From Todays Mama and @todaysmama
Rachel from Mamarucci and @rachelferrucci
Sugar from SugarJones.tv and @sugarjones
Tanya from Mommy Goggles and @mommygoggles
Moms Turns Political Commentary into Mommentary
September 19, 2009 by Danielle Smith · Leave a Comment
Politics can be such a divisive topic. Many have opinions, strong ones. Others waffle back and forth – struggling to really understand the issues, but afraid to ask.
I find it isn’t often you hear politics discussed by moms on the playground. That could be because we find ourselves too pressed for time to pay attention or because we are wary of engaging in serious debate without having done the proper research.
Now that may be on over-generalization, however, Molly Teichman is on a mission to bring politics to moms. Recognizing our value in the home, and as leaders in our families she wants mothers to be educated about politics, to have a forum to express their opinions without fear of ridicule and she wants them to be comfortable asking questions if there is something they don’t know or don’t understand.
This mother of three beautiful children created Political Mommentary - a site dedicated to factual political discussion free of “name calling, one liners or other divisive behavior”. Molly recognizes people won’t always agree; in fact, she embraces the idea. She is hoping to encourage bipartisan discussion.
She explains, “With a furrowed brow I find myself misunderstood and disappointed at the incredibly divided political landscape. Often not in line with my Republican party, nor feeling understanding from a more liberal crowd, I felt it was necessary to begin a new path toward bipartisan debate and understanding.”
And thus, Political Mommentary was born. With information presented from both sides of the political spectrum – and everywhere in between, Molly has created a political haven for moms to learn, understand and question the world around them.
Engage. Ask. Discuss. Debate.
Offer commentary.
About the Author: Danielle Smith is a mommy to two smart and sassy small people, as well as the founder and primary author of ExtraordinaryMommy.com. You can catch her hosting a brand new live show, The Spin Cycle, on MomTV.com every Wednesday at 9pmEST. She also hosts a show on Blog Talk Radio and contributes to WhyMomsMatter. Danielle is thrilled to be contributing to MomItForward as ‘giving back’ has always been an important part of who she is and what she hopes to teach her children.
RSVP to Share Family Togetherness & Meal Time Tips This Tuesday on Twitter
September 12, 2009 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 47 Comments
Stop for a second and think about your most favorite meal time experience with your family. What made it fun or meaningful? What did you eat? What did you talk about? What was it that helped you connect and grow closer as a family?
Now think for a second about what gets in the way of achieving that on a regular basis. If you’re like me, quick and simple meals are never quick or simple enough, meal times are rushed, and while I’d love to have all sorts of meaningful conversations with the family during meal time, we are usually lucky to get a home-cooked meal and even luckier to get conversation with it.
But… statistics show the importance of family togetherness during meal times. So, this Tuesday, we are fortunate to have Libby’s and Feeding America along with other #gno gals to share with us their fabulous tips for making the most of meal time. Have lots to share? Want to learn? Or, want to connect for a little girl power? Then, join us this Tuesday for #gno.
And, don’t forget to enter to win one of our amazing giveaway going on this week.
- What: Libby’s is sponsoring this week’s #gno Twitter party (Click here to learn about #gno!)
- When: Tuesday, September 15, 9-11 p.m. EST
- Where: Party with us on our custom Tweetgrid. (Use hashtag #gno.)
- Topic: Family togetherness and meal times
- Who: @feedingamerica @goodlifeeats @hannahkeeley @janemaynard @savorthethyme @rockinmama
- Party Favors: Click here to check out this week’s giveaway sponsored by Libby’s.
- RSVP: Please leave your Twitter ID in the comments to follow and be followed (on Twitter, of course!) by other #gno gals. The best format is as follows: http://twitter.com/jylmomIF.
Libby’s Picnic Basket Giveaway Worth $450 (3 Winners)
September 12, 2009 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 393 Comments
Think picnic season is over? Think again! This trendy Picnic Time Metro Basket is going to make you want to move your picnic indoors this fall when you see all the goodies that come inside!
Prizes
Three lucky winners will each receive this picnic basket filled with everything you need to make a delicious family meal, including:
- Assorted Libby’s Vegetables
- Hannah Keeley’s Total Mom Makeover book
- Picnic Time Metro Basket
- Scanpan CTX Saute Pan
- Scanpan CTX Fry Pan
This entire basket has an approximate retail value of $450.00.
Entry Requirements
To enter for a chance to win, you are required to do two things (make sure you leave a separate comment for each of your entries).
Note: Entries that do not follow all of these requirements will not be considered.
- Sign up to become a member of Libby’s Get Back to the Table community, which promotes family togetherness.
- Post these messages on Facebook and/or on Twitter and leave comments here, linking to your messages:
Join #gno Tues 9/15 from 9-11 ET 2 share tips on family togetherness & mealtimes w/ #Libby’s & @feedingamerica RSVP: http://bit.ly/espTa
GIVEAWAY! Enter 4 a chance 2 win picnic basket w/ #Libby’s veggies, ScanPan pans, & more! (Ret Val $450) http://bit.ly/aooGl
Extra Entries
You can earn up to five extra entries for this week’s giveaways. These extra entries count for both giveaways. You do not need to repeat them twice!
- Join the Mom It Forward Facebook group.
- Post the “Mom Is a Verb” button on your blog. (See right-hand sidebar for button with code.)
- Join the Mom It Forward Facebook page and leave a comment on the wall, answering one of the questions about mealtime and family togetherness.
- Join the Mom It Forward Google Friend Connect. (See right-hand sidebar.)
- Follow @momitforward on Twitter.
The Fine Print
No purchase necessary to enter. Winners will be selected randomly through http://random.org. Libbys and Mom It Forward employees are ineligible to participate. All entries received after Sunday, September 20 at midnight PDT will not be considered. Entries that do not follow all of the entry requirements will not be considered. Winners will be notified and will have 24 hours to confirm receipt of the e-mail. If they do not reply within 24 hours, another winner will be selected. Open to participants in the US and Canada 18 years and older.
Fighting Breast Cancer One Blog Post at a Time
September 12, 2009 by Danielle Smith · 3 Comments
You might call her a Southern Belle.
You might call her a fantastic chef.
She is a Mommy, a friend and a fighter. I call her an inspiration.
Those who inspire most deeply tend to be the people who lead by example. Rachel from A Southern Fairy Tale does just that. She is dedicating her blog to fighting breast cancer for the entire month of October. As is typical of Rachel’s sweet nature and wit, she is calling it Blogging for Boobs.
Last year she did a huge giveaway to drive traffic to her site to increase awareness and raise money through Ad revenue. This year, she is stepping up her committment. She is donating her entire site to the cause. Come October, her blog will turn pink and she will have guest posters sharing their stories, their tributes and information. Items have already been donated so she can do weekly giveaways – and she has set up a special page called, what else – Blogging for Boobs where people can donate directly to the Susan G Komen foundation.
Why is Rachel doing this? Not because she has to. But because she knows you and I have likely been touched, in some way, by this disease – and she knows a cure is in our future – if only we can continue to fight, spread awareness and raise money.
For Rachel, it is her mother-in-law and at least three friends who’s moms have been affected. These women serve as a reminder of the pervasiveness of this disease. And it is for them that Rachel is Blogging for Boobs.
About the Author: Danielle Smith is a mommy to two smart and sassy small people, as well as the founder and primary author of ExtraordinaryMommy.com. You can catch her hosting a brand new live show, The Spin Cycle, on MomTV.com every Wednesday at 9pmEST. She also hosts a show on Blog Talk Radio and contributes to WhyMomsMatter. Danielle is thrilled to be contributing to MomItForward as ‘giving back’ has always been an important part of who she is and what she hopes to teach her children.
Born to Fly International Announces Sept. 9 Twitterthon to Fight Child Slavery
September 7, 2009 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 5 Comments
A Florida-based journalist turned abolitionist recently named in Huffington Post as one of the “Top 10 Women Warriors of Twitter” has launched “09-09-09” – a one-day Twitterthon initiative on September 9, 2009, to raise funds to fight child trafficking.
Diana Scimone, a veteran journalist who has chronicled the $9.5 billion-a-year human trafficking industry for years, founded the non-profit Born to Fly International to help end child slavery. Scimone’s 09-09-09 Twitterthon goal is for 9,000 people to give $9 each – the $81,000 needed to start printing a new child-trafficking awareness book and curriculum by Scimone and illustrator Leah Wiedemer. “Each year more than a million children are lured into slavery around the world,” Scimone said. “Imagine what a dent we can make in the trafficking pipeline if we educate kids and their parents about the tactics traffickers use before they show up at their doorstep.”
While there are many reasons why a child may be trafficked (sadly, some are knowingly sold into slavery by their parents), Born to Fly works specifically to educate the millions of children and parents who are lured into slavery by false promises of “employment” and a better life for a child. The centerpiece of the Born to Fly project is a picture book – wordless so it doesn’t have to be translated into hundreds of languages – that teaches children to make wise choices. A companion curriculum will reinforce the important concepts in the book.
The curriculum and book illustrations are nearly complete. The final layout is scheduled for October. If enough funds are raised, printing will start in December. Born to Fly will then ship to a waiting list of schools, missions and aid organizations in North America and as far away as Ghana, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, India and Bulgaria. “Our goal is to give the books away without charge, of course. So we are counting on our crowdfunding to help get this done.”
Enter the 09-09-09 Twitterthon.
Crowdfunding 101
Twitter has become a major source of crowdfunding – raising funds by appealing to large numbers of ordinary people for small donations. The 09-09-09 project, which has its own special twitter account – @09_09_09 – was featured prominently in a recent article on Mashable.com entitled A Guide to Crowdfunding Success. The Mashable Twitter account has nearly 1.2 million followers, and Mashable.com is one of the most respected social media authorities on the web. Scimone says the attention should help Born to Fly reach its 09-09-09 goal: “Lots of awareness, lots of strong new relationships, and lots of money.”
Scimone, who regularly tweets as @dianascimone where she has 1,500 followers, says Twitter could not have arrived at a better time. “What I love about Twitter is the community,” explains Scimone. “Twitter connects me with people I don’t know, but should.” Many companies have even donated prizes to give away during the Twitterthon. Everyone who donates $9 will be eligible for a prize drawing. (The prizes include original artwork, handcrafted sterling silver jewelry and plenty more. Scimone is announcing a prize each day leading up to 09-09-09 on her blog – www.dianascimone.com.)
Children as young as pre-schoolers are lured into modern-day slavery all over the world, including in the United States, where they’re raped for profit—night after night. Scimone wants her followers to get angry about this and to do something about it. “Traffickers think kids are commodities,” said Scimone. “On 9/9/09, I challenge my twitter followers to tell kids they’re priceless.”
The Born to Fly Project 09-09-09 Twitterthon Challenge:
• Donate: Go to www.born2fly.org and use the orange Chip-in button to donate $9.
• Twitter: Tweet about it. Follow @09_09_09. Add a Twibbon after you’ve donated.
• Email: Tell 9 people about 09-09-09 and send them to www.born2fly.org where they can donate via the Chip-in button.
• Blog: Post about 09-09-09. Include the logo and a link to www.born2fly.org.
• Facebook: Talk about 09-09-09; include a link to www.born2fly.org.
• Updates: Check Diana Scimone’s blog for the latest: www.dianascimone.com
For more about the Born to Fly Project, visit www.born2fly.org.
Diana Scimone’s Back Story
Born to Fly International founder and director Diana Scimone is a journalist who has traveled to more than 40 countries including Sudan, Zimbabwe, Thailand, China and India.
“As a journalist I’ve seen a lot. I’ve been to a refugee camp in Sudan, an orphanage overflowing with “throw-away” kids in China, and a home for AIDS orphans in Zimbabwe. Nothing, however, prepared me for what I saw in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), India: cages that held little girls—some as young as 5 years old—smuggled in from Nepal.
“That’s when I first learned about the global child sex trade and began to write about it. On that trip I interviewed a young teenager whose boyfriend had drugged her and sold her to a madam. The stories did not get prettier. In Pattaya, Thailand, I remember a banner hanging over an intersection in the red-light district proclaiming this was “boys town.” In most areas where child sex slavery flourishes, girls are for sale, but this particular area specialized in young boys.
“I’ve stood at border crossings into Cambodia and Myanmar, knowing that children were trafficked across the border along with cattle, chickens, and rice. The real shock was to learn that child trafficking is not just across the globe but also across the street. The problem has grown so bad in my own city of Orlando, Florida, that we now have a human trafficking coalition as well as a prayer group that focuses specifically on the problem.”
