Eco Definitions – How Can I Go Green If I Don’t Know What It Means?

This is the first in a series of posts defining the various different words, logos and certifications that appear on the things we buy, in the stories we read and on the news we watch and hear…so we can now all sprinkle these words into our daily conversation and sound real smart.

The more I write about green issues the more I run into words which, though I might toss them about freely…I really have no idea what they mean. Some of this seems to be because no one else has a precise definition either. Some of it though, is due to my inability to keep up with the explosion in green vocabulary.

So, I thought I’d take a stab at defining some of the common words that parents may run into watching the news, reading labels or simply listening to cocktail party conversation. Now you too can toss about some of these words with impunity.

1. Bisphenol A (BPA) - A chemical compound found in a many plastics including baby bottles and some drinking-water bottles. It is thought to be an endocrine disrupter. More

2. Carbon footprint – The impact that your activities have on the environment in terms of the amount of “greenhouse gases’ emitted. More

3. Carbon Offset - A way to negate your carbon footprint -
By purchasing an offset, you plant a tree, support a renewable energy project or some other project that will “undo” the impact of your daily activities. More

4. Fair Trade - Fair Trade products are loosely defined as those that are manufactured or raised by companies that practice environmental and social responsibility and pay a fair wage. More

5. FSC-certified: stands for Forest Stewardship Council, which promotes responsible management of the world’s forests. Producers of products bearing this seal have made some attempt to use wood from sustainable forests.

6. Greenwashing – A disparaging term used by environmental activists to describe an action by a company, person or organization that makes them look “greener’ than they really are. Energy companies and Big consumer products companies, get nailed with this term frequently. More

7. Greenhouse Gases - Chemical compounds found in the Earth’s atmosphere that allow sunlight to enter the atmosphere freely. Greenhouse gases absorb infrared radiation and trap the heat in the atmosphere.. Some of them occur in nature (water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide), while others are exclusively human-made (like gases used for aerosols). Too much build-up of greenhouses gases warms the earth too much – like a greenhouse – get it? More

8. Localvore – A relatively new term ( 2005) It refers to a person who, in trying to reduce their carbon footprint and live responsibly ( and healthily) eats only food grown locally and in season.

9. Low-VOC: This is a paint term usually and refers to a low incidence of Volatile Organic Chemicals in the products. Paint is already regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency to make sure that it doesn’t emit too many volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that contribute to smog and poor air quality both inside and outside the home, but low VOC paint takes that a step further. This is of particular importance in painting children’s rooms because of their smaller body size. More

10. Natural – unfortunately there are not real clear regulations on the use of this term so if you see it on grocery or household products you can probably assume it’s better than products that don’t carry any “healthy” terminology but, read the label to see exactly what the manufacturer means. More

11. Organic – This term usually refers to products made from materials grown using natural fertilizers and no synthetic growth hormones. Again this is a little shaky though Organic food production is legally regulated. Currently, the United States, the European Union, Japan and many other countries require producers to obtain organic certification in order to market food as organic. More

12. Phthalates – Found in soft plastic toys, pacifiers and bottle nipples, as well as, cosmetics and a variety of common household products, scientists are concerned that repeated exposure to phthalates can cause developmental delays. More

13. Sustainable: What A philosophical question …sustainable generally means that the making of a product does not use up resources faster than they're replenished. More

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Happy 50th Anniversary Lego

Lego's 50th Anniversary is a Reminder of The Classic Toys Place.

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Don't Mess With Amy - Expressing Ordinary Consumers' Concerns to Corporate America

My Blogger friend Amy hits the big time with NY Times Article,

Target tells a Blogger to go away!


My question is - O.K. Target doesn't deal with bloggers...how about consumers? The statement made by a Target P.R. person makes no sense.

“Unfortunately we are unable to respond to your inquiry because Target does not participate with nontraditional media outlets”

How about: " Sorry, I can't help you (not my department)- let me transfer you to someone in customer service/marketing/president of the company who can!"

Admittedly, she probably would have ended up with a polite " thanks for your input", e-mail from customer service and Amy would still have blogged about it but...it may not have ended up in the NY Times.

Unlike many in the mainstream media, bloggers do not have to answer to corporate concerns and can express their opinions openly. Now, that often makes for raucous and sometimes vitriolic posts but, many times these posts just expresses the concerns of ordinary citizens.

Companies one would hope would see bloggers as a window to their consumers, and many do...just not Target, I guess.

Just my thoughts on how bloggers have become the mouthpiece for ordinary consumers.


Check out Amy's blog at: Shaping Youth.org



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Fair Trade- A Fairly Easy Explanation

I was reading a post, Bringing Fair Trade Into The Classroom, today when it occurred to me…”do I know what, “Fair Trade” means?”

Like with so much in life, I have a somewhat fuzzy idea. Sure, I have seen the Fairtrade Certification Mark on my coffee. I also became aware of the term “fair trade” being tossed about by various folks in and out of the know. I too, would blithely toss it around, as long as it wasn’t obvious that I only had the vaguest idea of what I was talking about.

Well, now I’ve made a concerted effort to try to determine exactly what it IS that I am talking about…for a change. OK.

Fair Trade products are loosely defined as those that are manufactured or raised by companies that practice environmental and social responsibility and pay a fair wage. Fair Trade goods usually are those produced in developing countries where we, in the First World, have had a bad habit of exploiting natural resources, inhabitants and cultures for at least a few centuries.

Use of The Fairtrade (note that little difference – Fair Trade vs. Fairtrade) Certification mark we see on all sorts of , usually agricultural goods is granted by, Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International , a non-profit network of producers and labelers that certifies that products are grown in accordance with fair trade principles. The actual audit of working conditions is done by Flo-Cert- based in Bonn, Germany. (Historical note – the first product to be Fairtrade Certified was coffee in The Netherlands in 1988.)

In other words, a FairTrade Certification Mark means neither the workers, the land nor the culture of the producer country is getting screwed over by some grabby, greedy entity. (You can replace entity with: “soulless large corporation” or “uncaring capitalist” if you like.) And somebody has gone down there, checked it out and verified that this is the case.

The Fair Trade Certification mark, however, is only for agricultural goods. Makers of toys, clothing and household goods are out of luck. Or are they?

There are a variety of organizations including The International Fair Trade Organization that will certify all sorts of products as being made by companies following “Fair Trade” principles. Or, more or less following the golden rule.

The term, “Fair Trade”, however, it appears can be tossed around with impunity, by just about anybody. I’ve found, as in the case of organic vs. “certified organic”, that most small companies tend to just not be able to afford to pay for the certification process yet and use the more generic term, minus any mark or logo, in the meantime. You can read more about this here.

Now, as grubby tales of overworked teenagers in China, manufacturing the mountains of lead tainted toys we gave each other this Christmas leak out, there is increased interest in buying all sorts of Fair Trade produced goods. The International Fair Trade Organization has a searchable catalog of manufacturers on their website and there are a variety of other spots on the web that feature cooperatives of fair trade merchants.

While in many cases, Fair Trade goods tend to be more expensive, there are a few ways to look at this. When large corporations, such as Wal-Mart which, in a radical change of heart and under the suspicious eye of consumer advocates, is doing all sorts of socially responsible things these days, offers Fairtrade certified goods, you can be pretty sure, you’re paying a little extra but, it’s worth it to salve your conscience. Goods produced by companies using The International Fair Trade Organization mark also are perhaps a bit more expensive but more ethical.

In general, depending on how suspicious you are, you can assume that most people are using the words, “Fair Trade” fairly…if perhaps a bit loosely. Until I see it plastered on every chemical containing, plastic encased product on store shelves, I’ll assume somebody’s paying attention to the people, the culture and the environment of the country in which it is made.

BTW- After writing this post, I found a great site called Ecolabelling.org, a global directory of 295 ecolabels. See a label on a product you want to but, don't understand what it means? Enter it on this site to find out.

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Free Stuff with Freecycle

I’m a dedicated E-bay/Craigs List shopper. I love to shop thrift stores. I’ve been known to veer off the road just to pick something up at a garage sale. Now I think I’ve found the home of the ultimate bargain. Freecycle.

Started by an eco entrepreneur dedicated to preventing our trash from filling up landfills, Freecycle operates as a series of local networks of folks giving stuff away. And we’re not taking junk. Here is a current list of stuff members of my local chapter are giving away.

OFFER: piggy bank (HB)

TAKEN: Stucco paint 4 gallons(FV)

OFFER: 2T Boy Thermos (WM)

TAKEN: Nokia 19" Monitor (CM)

TAKEN: Children's Videos (SB)

FOUND: music stand (CM)

TAKEN: Gatorade (CM)

TAKEN: doll house wardrobe (CM)

TAKEN:comp monitor switch box(HB)

OFFER: bookcase (CM)

OFFER: short dresser (CM)

OFFER: desk (CM)

Set up through Yahoo groups it was simple to join. Then, every day or so I get a list, like the one above, of items offered… and often already taken if I’m not quick enough. It’s like a yard sale that comes to my house!

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Afterschooling Opera – Why We Eschew Kid’s Productions.

So, as I mentioned here we’ve been gearing up to take the kids to see The Magic Flute, an opera by Mozart.(Lest you think I’m totally weird, my husband is gearing up to take my son to a Star Trek convention next week…so it evens out.)

Anyway, back to the opera.

We managed to find discount tickets to the dress rehearsal of the Opera Pacific’s production of this classic. Something I’ve discovered, there are always student discount performances of just about every classical play, concert or opera….the trick is finding them. We found these and joined hundreds of students, most a good 5 to 10 years older than our crew and, might I say, somewhat less well behaved. Not that it was a rowdy affair, it’s just that teenagers tend to laugh at inappropriate places in a production, even a comedy.

Our preschooler and kindergartners loved it. It’s one I would recommend for a first opera. Why? Colorful costumes, great story and very funny physical humor. Though the opera was in German, the kids knew the story well enough to follow it.

Why? Because we beat it to death in advance.

I’ve become less and less a fan of kids productions of classic works. In the effort to appeal to a wide range of kids, often the work is “dumbed down” to the point that a well prepared kid complains that scenes are missing. This happened to us this summer when we went to see a child’s version of Robin Hood.

As a child can easily sit through 3 hours of Disney on Ice or Sesame Street Live because they know the stories and know the characters, so too can they sit through a well chosen classical production of an opera or a play. Choosing the right opera and play and then preparing the child in advance is all it takes.

We’ll keep going this route…though, yes, I’ll still look for the cheap tickets….I may not always be right about that “sitting through” point.

Visit the Carnival of Homeschooling here.

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Important Reminder

"The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no more than one to two hours of quality TV and videos a day for older children and no screen time for children under the age of 2."

"Keep TV sets, VCRs, video games and computers out of children's bedrooms."

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Marketing Violent Movies to Kids – Toys, TV and The FTC

When I read Lisa’s post over at Parents for Ethical Marketing , I was inspired to finally write a post on this topic…one that really bothers me.

My regular readers know that my son does not watch TV (at least not at home and rarely when visiting others) and we try to limit videos made after 1975.(I call on my friend TAN for advice on movies made after that date. She and her husband preview all movies prior to taking their kids to them or renting them on video.)

Unfortunately most parents can’t do that…and don’t know TAN. They rely on the MPAA rating system for movies…which can be found here and basically says very little.

Now – here’s a list of some recent PG movies

Madagascar

Lilo and Stitch – Stitch has a Glitch Can someone tell me why a cartoon, obviously for young kids is rated PG?

Chronicles of Narnia

And some PG-13 favorites

Transformers

Pirates of the Caribbean – all three of them

Spiderman

And some coming out this year:

Chronicles of Narnia – Prince Caspian

Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

What do you bet we’re looking at a PG or PG-13 for these too!

OK – fine- that’s OK. I was allowed to see PG (or GP movies in those days) when I was 12- though most of my friends saw them at 10.)

And here’s the bigger problem:

Let’s look at a few popular toys

Hasbro Spiderman Super Pal- recommended age range : 18 months – 6 years.

Hasbro Transformers Cyber Stompin' Optimus Prime Action Figure – recommended age range (on Amazon) – 2-4

Pirates of The Caribbean 3 Ultimate Jack Sparrow – manufacturer recommended age – 4+, but on Amazon – age 2-4.

So let me get this straight – 2 year old should be able to see a PG-13 movie?

This has been going on for some time under the radar or maybe out of the sphere of influence of many government agencies. But now…it’s gone a bit too far. The FTC recently released a report requesting that the MPAA comply with their request to prohibit marketing of PG and PG-13 movies to children. Then, on January 17^th:

A coalition of nineteen advocacy groups is demanding that the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) comply with the Federal Trade Commission’s recent recommendation for explicit restrictions on the marketing of PG-13 films to young children. In a letter sent today to MPAA CEO Dan Glickman, the groups urged the MPAA to develop a policy that would restrict the advertising of PG-13 films on children’s television; prohibit restaurant toy giveaways or other food promotions aimed at young children for PG-13 movies; and insure that any toys released in conjunction with a film carry an age recommendation consistent with the film’s rating.

I’m not clear exactly how this is going to work. Let’s see, the FCC controls the airways (what is broadcast on television) so they can restrict what movies are advertised on what children’s TV shows, though that hasn’t been mentioned so far, The FTC is responsible for protecting the consumer by supporting truth in advertising and prohibiting fraudulent marketing practices.
The MPAA is merely a trade group for the Movie Picture industry. I think a little more ammunition needs to be aimed at the toy manufacturers AND the retailers...as I discuss here.

Here's the original letter sent to the FTC

That remains to be seen.

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This Just In from The FDA – Didn’t They Already tell us About Cough and Cold Medicines?

Back in October, The FDA issued an advisory warning parents not to use over-the-counter cough and cold medicines for children under six. I wrote about that here and here .

At that time a number of manufacturers withdrew their products from the market. After an editorial in the December issue of The New England Journal of medicine urging that the FDA take a firmer stance, it looks like they have.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today issued a Public Health Advisory for parents and caregivers, recommending that over-the-counter (OTC) cough and cold products should not be used to treat infants and children less than 2 years of age because serious and potentially life-threatening side effects can occur from such use. OTC cough and cold products include decongestants, expectorants, antihistamines, and antitussives (cough suppressants) for the treatment of colds.

There are a wide variety of rare, serious adverse events reported with cough and cold products. They include death, convulsions, rapid heart rates, and decreased levels of consciousness.

Well didn’t they just say that in August ?

And again in September?

I know there are processes that the agencies need to follow but, it seems this is getting a little confusing. I think I'll stick with honey and cold compresses.



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Reusing 100 Billion Plastic Grocery Bags

Since I wrote this post about reusable grocery bags, I have been pretty good at bringing my own bags along to the store. My husband however, is not. As he does a significant portion of the grocery shopping, that means we tend to still have plastic grocery bags lying around which I hesitate to throw out.

According to The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually.

So, it's probably a good idea that I recycle a few.

Now, I’m not the first to find a new use for plastic grocery bags. But I thought I’d go beyond the obvious uses as wastebasket liners and car trash bags. Here’s some other ideas.

Return them to the store. Many grocery stores have collection bins for plastic bags now.

Store used paint brushes in them and stick them in the freezer – makes cleaning paint brushes easier

Keep a few in the car for wet/muddy clothes.

Put one in your child’s backpack for same- especially for preschool and kindergarten

Use them instead of bubble wrap to protect the next package you send

Scrunch them up and tape them into a ball for indoor snowball fights

Attach them with rubber bands around your hands for really messing projects.

Organize your Christmas lights by putting one strand in each bag before storing.

Cover your hair with one when unexpectedly caught in the rain.

Use as collection bags for impromptu treasure hunts

Use them to cover plants to protect from frost

Pack a few extra in your suitcase for wet or dirty clothes

Attach to a string and let the kids run around the yard pulling them

According to … calculations extrapolated from data released by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in 2001 on U.S. plastic bag, sack, and wrap consumption, somewhere between 500 billion and a trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide each year. Of those, millions end up in the litter stream outside of landfills—estimates range from less than one to three percent of the bags are recycled.

So the more ideas we have on how to reuse the better…or don’t use them at all!

You can often find reusable bags at your local grocery store or at a number of sites on the web including here.

Photo courtesy Seacat

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A Week Without Ziplock

When I was a child my father’s car developed a strange affliction that rendered it unable to go in reverse. Rather than fix it right away, my dad chose to drive around for a week or so seeing if he could manage to only go forward.

This of course necessitated pulling into parking spaces that had a clear one in front of them so he could drive all the way through. It nixed parallel parking and pulling into our driveway. And drove my mother crazy but, he enjoyed the challenge.

That’s a little how I’ve felt this week since we ran out of zippered sandwich bags. Like Gift of Green, I’m addicted to them. My plan was to switch to wax paper bags and be more ecologically responsible but when I went to Whole Foods to get some…the cupboard was bare. They were out and had no idea when they would be back in stock.

Bet you thought I’d give up and buy some more zippered bags…wrong. I’ve spent the last week packing lunch the old fashioned way.

I’ve gone through wrapping in foil- works well for pretzels, not so well for sunflower seeds.

I’ve used tiny Tupperware containers. Great, but how many can you get in a standard size lunch box? Not too many it turns out. It got so full I had to rubber band one of them to the outside.

I’ve let my creative juices flow; wrapped sandwiches in cloth napkins; apples in wax paper and cookies in cloth bags.

It’s been fun. Maybe I won’t buy zipper bags again…and drive my husband crazy.

Addendum: I just found this site that sells dishwasher accessories to wash your bags …Thanks Green-sexy for the tip!

For more great Works for me Wednesday ideas visit Rocks in My Dryer



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Defining Natural

"If we get down to it, if it came from Mother Nature, it is natural,"

"If we have an apple from a tree, that is natural. If we have crackers in a box, it is not natural. ... There is no granola bar farm."

And the FDA declined to define it for consumers - no, we're not confused...

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Clorox Goes Green with Green Works – Is It a Stretch?

Clorox has been busy recently – busy going green. Last week, an article in the New York Times asked:

Can Burt’s Bees Turn CloroxGreen?

Apparently the answer is, “yes”, since today Clorox announced the launch of an entire line of eco cleaning products, Green Works.

One has to wonder about the timing of the Burt’s Bees article though. Clorox acquired Burt’sBees last fall from the quirky couple that started it in a turkey coop in Vermont. (Yes, you read that correctly.)

A few lines from the article:

Clorox executives have been fighting what they call “misinformation” about bleach for years. The company says that 95 to 98 percent of its bleach breaks into salt and water and that the remaining byproduct is safe for sewer systems.

But as companies rush to put out more and more “natural,” “organic” or “green” products, consumers and advocacy groups are increasingly questioning the meaning of these labels. Clorox, for one, will face plenty of skepticism. Environmentalists have long said that bleach is harmful when drained into city sewers.

“Who likes Burt’s Bees now that it’s been bought by Clorox?” Alison Stewart, a host on National Public Radio, said in November. “You know, just slap some bleach on your lips, it’ll all be good.”

But as one of the founders of Burt’s Bees put it:

“If we think about the Greater Good,” … “one lesson we’ve learned is, if you set your mind to the goal of more natural and sustainable practices, you might actually surprise yourself with what you can accomplish.”

I think Clorox has probably done that. As one who has been a Product Manager, a Product Development Manager and a Director of Marketing I am both more and less skeptical than advocacy group members and old and new media journalists. I’ve seen what a determined product manager with a dream can accomplish. And remember, the folks that come up with new product ideas aren’t fusty old men in suits…the typical marketing manager is in her 20s or 30s and….more often than not…female.

The face of Green Works is a young mother herself, Director of Marketing, Jessica Buttimer. And she did everything right. The new line is priced appropriately…that is…cheaper than other natural products and boasts the endorsement of The Sierra Club.

“One of the Sierra Club’s primary goals is to foster vibrant, healthy communities with clean water and air that are free from pollution,” said Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope. “Products like Green Works help to achieve this goal in the home. We’re looking forward to working with Clorox and the Green Works team to promote a line of natural cleaning products for consumers who are moving toward a greener lifestyle.”

Bittmer also chose to list ALL of the ingredients on the package, something that is not required but, the FDA kindly left her some wiggle room, because they have declined to attach a meaning to the word, "natural", as I discussed at length, here .

...there is no government standard for products that call themselves "natural." Nor does the government require companies to list the ingredients of cleaning products on their labels.

The road ahead is surely bumpy as Clorox tried to change its image. But, like an "ecopreneur", Clorox just needs to stay on message, clean up after their mistakes and expect to make them.

Meanwhile, be on the look out for Clorox Green Works line which will be available in stores, starting with Wal-Mart, (who is also attempting to “green” its image) soon.

• Green Works Natural All-Purpose Cleaner
• Green Works Natural Glass & Surface Cleaner
• Green Works Natural Toilet Bowl Cleaner
• Green Works Natural Dilutable Cleaner
• Green Works Natural Bathroom Cleaner

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History on DVD – Looking Back For old Favorites

We watch a lot of old movies around here. Not that we don’t like new movies….we just don’t like them for our son. Newer movies seem to be either excessively violent, disrespectful or well...just plain dumb. So we often revert back to old favorites.

And since we are afterschooling, we find that a video that complements our studies works well. It’s quite easy to find science videos. Child friendly science DVD's abound. National Geographic and Discovery Channel have great documentaries and Magic School Bus DVDs if not always accurate, inspire inquiry.

But history, that’s a bigger challenge. History documentaries tend to be made for an older audience…older than our 5-year-old anyway. Many focus on more recent history and unfortunately, tend to be long. PBS specials sometimes work but again the target age is a bit older.

And newer renditions of classic stories are often too violent. Though I loved, Troy – I’d never share it with my kindergartener. So we’ve started to look for old movies instead. Since we’re studying the ancient world this year, using TWTM’s, Story of the World , we’ve found quite a few good ones.

Land of the Pharaohs

Alexander The Great

Cleopatra

There are hundreds of great old movies out there and we’re enjoying hunting them down and relearning a little history ourselves.

What great old movies have you found to complement your studies?

Visit The Carnival of Homeschooling here!

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Watch out for Greenwashing – Home Décor May Look Natural Next Year – But Is It?

"Anything that looks like something that helps save the environment will be big," says Amy Larrabee, spokeswoman for the Color Marketing Group in Annapolis, Md. "It does not necessarily have to be better for the environment, but it will look that way."

As eco living goes mainstream manufacturers are ready to cash in on the trend. As I wrote about here , The Color Marketing Group, in their November update, eco-colors are in…which should lead to more “eco looking” finishes and texturing.

Eco-looking isn’t necessarily eco, so the fashionably trendy will be able to look green this year without tough sacrifices. Hmmm. on the other hand, the more eco awareness we have, the better.

But, beware. Expect stores this year to be flooded with eco look-alikes. Martha Stewart already has a line at Bed, Bath and beyond in the “new” eco color – light blue. I’ve already been caught a few times buying what I thought was eco and wasn’t.

I’ll be reading labels a little closer this year…

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Toys in the Sandbox – New Digital Toys at CES

"Clearly, we're in a digital age," says Claire Green, president of the Parents' Choice Foundation. "Kids are teething on remote controls. They're constantly exposed to digital media. So let's find out what makes sense. Let's find out what's age appropriate and what encourages learning, thinking, probing."

And so among the glitz and gadgets of The Annual Consumer Electronics show, producers, educators and researchers, as well as, childrens advocacy groups, gathered to review play in the digital age.

This year a number of devices were introduced specifically targeting children and teens. Despite the amazing paucity of research on the impact of technology on children’s behavior, intellect and development, game and toy manufacturers had no problem touting the educational properties of their offerings.

Some of them are worth watching for in the coming months as they show up in stores and online. Some are worth avoiding…despite the mournful pleas of kids exposed to advertisements for them in every possible venue.

Let’s take a look.

What to watch for:

Bob – the TV Timer - Though this product has been around for awhile, it picked up a lot of press at the show, which means you may find it more available and visible in stores this year. A simple, $99.00 device that plugs into your TV, computer or video game player, it allows parents to preset the amount of time up to 6 children can access the device. Great for those times when your well managed screen time schedule seems to break down.See a review from Family Safe Media.

Tutor.com - Since I’ve taught online for almost 10 years now, I’m a big fan of online education and believe that it has a place in education for middle schoolers on up. The easy, instant access and inexpensive price ($29.00 for 50 minutes) for one-to-one tutoring seems a winner, especially since it accommodates to every schedule.

Digital Blue Computer Microscope - This is one of those products that can get away from you if you’re not careful. The concept of an inexpensive ($100) microscope that projects onto a screen is intriguing but all the bells and whistles

This Microscope can capture and record images and video on most PC computers and kids an share their findings at a specially created online community

can turn it from a fun toy to yet another way for kids spend countless hours hanging out in a virtual playground.

WhatTheyPlay.com– Since The Entertainment Software Rating Board, which rates video games doesn’t necessarily give ratings that many parents find helpful…i.e. they tend to be a wee bit more lax in what is considered acceptable, a new subscription service offers detailed information about the games and lets parents decide their appropriateness.

What to watch out for…..

Jack LaLanne Redux – Our national obsession with childhood obesity and the sad decline in physical activity by youngsters has spawned a number of electronic “solutions”. Dance Revolution and Wii are joined this year by several offerings from Wild Planet Entertainment including Hyper Dash (ages 6 to 12), Hyper Jump and upcoming Animal Scramble (for preschoolers). All use voice commands and in some cases RFID chips to create clever active games for kids to play….without parental involvement or much creative thought. How ‘bout we get out and play a game of family musical chairs, Twister or hot potato instead?

Virtual worlds – As I wrote about here and here, online worlds for children are exploding. Visits to such sites went up 68% last year, according to Hitwise with Disney’s Penguin Club and Mattel’s Barbiegirls.com, as well as Webkinz some of the most popular and the least educational.

One recommendation in the report D is for Digital by the Cooney Center, which I wrote about here is that producers of these sites make a wild attempt to incorporate something educational. Meanwhile beware, this is the hot new trend and there will be a lot of marketing dollars behind it.

Barbie® iDesign – the newest product from the Barbie Tech group, uses a CD-Rom computer game, a USB-connected scanner and swipe-able fashion cards to move traditional doll dress up play onto an interactive, computer-based game. I remember this game in its non-tech version from my youth. It was fun but not as much fun as dressing up my real Barbies.

There are a number of reasons to avoid this product: If you’re Mom who bemoans the gender typing aspect of a “fashion design” or if you dislike Barbies in general you’ll probably not give this product a second look. But “Barbie-neutral” moms may be caught off guard and find Barbie dolls abandoned in lieu hours in front of a screen in the world of virtual Barbie.

Technorati tags:Barbie Barbie iDesign CES Sandbox Summit


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Not-Quite-Crunchy Parenting Goals

As usual, I’m a bit behind in my New Year’s resolutions. As always, I’m behind in everything.

Since becoming a parent, I find I have to create an additional set of resolutions beyond the usual: lose weight, exercise more, etc…so maybe I have an excuse for my tardiness this year …and the last several and next several as well. The problem with kids is…they keep changing and so do my resolutions.

This year they are perhaps, a bit more introspective than in the past, as I move from providing physical support to providing mental and emotional support as well. Just as well…it makes for a more interesting list.

1. Breathe deep before responding
2. Ask questions- engage in conversation - listen
3. Limit junk food
4. Fight the media monster
5. Watch for inappropriate playmates…and language
6. Work harder on healthy food
7. Let go – relinquish control; Encourage independence
8. Provide structure
9. Read, read, read
10. Play – games I don’t like or understand but he does
11. Learn about what interest him – be able to discuss them
12. Limit “no” – try for “let’s discuss”
13. Say “I love you”; “That’s great”, “good job”

While this, my short list of resolutions, perhaps the most important can be summed up in one word:

Reassess

What’s on your list?

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Technorati Tags: parenting goals crunchy parent new years resolutions

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D is from Digital – A Report from the Sandbox

The Sandbox Summit, held yesterday in Las Vegas, which I discussed here was more about boxes than about sand – digital boxes. Held in connection with The Consumer Electronics Show, it featured a dozen or so manufacturers of digital devices aimed at kids as well as children’s advocacy groups and academics.

They all met to figure out how children play in the technological age and, in the manufacturers’ case anyway, how to capitalize on the increasingly digitalization of childhood...in other words how to create more electronic games, toys and devices for kids.

Whatever the underlying purpose, (it WAS held at CES, the trade show for electronic gadget makers after all) at least they had a summit. And at least we did hear about some of the effects of technology on children.

"We see how play and technology are merging," says Parent’s Choice Foundation’s ( the summit’s sponser) Claire Green. "There's no putting the genie back in the bottle." Now, Green adds, it's a matter of getting toy manufacturers to keep enhancing their product lines.

And you know…that’s really the point. It is a new day and we CAN keep our children shielded from technology to some extent but not all and not forever. Parents need to understand the impact of technology and the industry needs to develop products that meet parents’ needs.

Unfortunately, with little regulation of product claims, that doesn’t happen now too often. “Educational toys”, too often turn out to be...not really.

A report presented at the conference by the Joan Ganz Cooney Center, D is for Digital, analyzed the children’s interactive media environment with a focus on mass marketed, informal
learning products for children ages 3 to 11.

They found that while both parents and experts believe that the new interactive media represents an opportunity to expand children’s skills and knowledge, major concerns with quality, developmental appropriateness, and educational value persist.

Ah, yea....

Some of the trends they uncovered were startling and somewhat scary to those of us interested in holding off on plugging our kids in as long as possible.

Children are using digital media more often and at an earlier age, beginning to use electronic gadgets at age 6.7, as opposed to age 8.1 in 2005 (NPD, 2007).

Media convergence has never been more prominent, providing children with continuous round-the-clock access to content.

Educational toys, referred to in the industry as Electronic Learning Aids (ELAs),represent a significant category within the $22 billion toy industry.

And they made some recommendations:

Create evidentiary standards to help make sense of products marketed as “educational.” No voluntary or regulatory standards currently exist around marketing products as educational. Without firm and independently verified standards of educational value, how is a parent or educator able to discern if
products live up to their claims?

Break the traditional model of one child per screen in children’s educational digital media. The bulk of educational digital media products now on the market assume one child sitting alone in front of a screen; however, better learning takes place when an adult is present to scaffold the child’s learning experience… this is an opportune timeto develop educational digital media products that encourage intergenerational interaction.

Protect children from digital age commercialism. The emergence of immersive
digital media products for children, such as virtual worlds, creates an unprecedented
opportunity for commercial marketing. For children under the age of 12 who are highly impressionable, it is especially important to advance policies that safeguard them from commercial targeting in the digital age.

All good recommendations. And, implicitly, because the report focuses on children 3 and up, this report supports the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendation of no screen time for children under two.

Granted, Jane Ganz Cooney, is a televisions producer created with developing Sesame Street and the foundation has a vested interest in working with electronic media. Their goal:

The Joan Ganz Cooney Center will focus new attention on the challenges children face today, asking the 21st century equivalent of her original question, "How can emerging media help children learn?"

But, I’m OK with that. I’ve always been an advocate of working from the inside to institute change. The digital age is here to stay. Let’s limit children’s’ exposure to electronic toys and games but let’s also make sure that the ones that they have are providing the educational value that blocks, dolls and tree houses do…at least on some level.

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4 Inch Icing Cupcake

Here's the cupcakes mentioned in my earlier post....Ways Were Crunchy...Ways We Were Not

We ate cupcakes with 4 inches of super high sugar and preservative laden icing on New Year’s day…for breakfast.

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The Sandbox Summit - A Not-Quite-Crunchy Look at a Major Trade Show Event

Once a year, techys from around the world descend upon Las Vegas for the annual Consumer Electronics Show. One of the largest trade shows in the world, CES is where major technological advances have been announced for several decades now.

I will be talking a lot about the CES show this week on my blog as technology has entered childhood in a big way and impacts the way children play today. I’ve attended this event a number of times, weaving down The Strip dodging inebriated conventioneers and fighting the crowds around the booths featuring the newest technology or the most outlandish design (complete indoor ice skating rinks, full on stage productions and elaborate costumes are not unheard of).

Retailers and manufacturers gather in Las Vegas each year to see the latest technology that will be available in stores over the next 12 months. It is NOT open to the general public but is open to those who will be deciding what the latest and greatest technological gadget you will be buying.

To give you some perspective on this show, It was here that the world learned about The Commodore 64 computer in 1982. In 1981 the compact disc player was introduced, and in 1996, the DVD player. In 1985, the Nintendo game system was introduced and in 2001 the X-box. Gives you an idea of how this show has changed over the years.

While the masses are focused on the keynote speech given by Bill Gates (his last, so he says) I will be focusing on The Sandbox Summit, a day long event billed as: A play date with technology.

The Sandbox Summit is a series of conferences exploring how technology is changing the ways kids play, learn, and connect in a digital world.

This is of course of interest not only to those who create technology based toys but to parents, educators, teachers and child development specialists. The Parent’s Choice Awards will be hosting a conference on The New Frontier in Play and has this to say:

Play, from toddler toys to adult gaming, has become such a serious activity that the idea of free play — play for the pure fun of it — has gone the way of stick ball and paper dolls. In an honest attempt to make our kids smarter, faster, earlier, parents, educators, toy manufacturers, and legislators are unwittingly squeezing the fun out of childhood. Our kids are becoming like the virtual pets they carry in their pockets: predictably responding to preset stimuli. Independent, creative thinking has no place in their time-pressed, goal-oriented world. We are at risk of raising a generation of kids who can competently navigate achievement tests, but lack the skills and experience for thinking out of the box.

So, I too will be taking a look at some of the latest and greatest technology out there for kids and sharing my opinion – stay tuned….

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Tags: parenting, CES, sandbox summit

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Books I'm Reading - Toys and TV

I just have a minute to share two great books I just finished reading

One, The Real Toy Story, is an in depth look at the toy industry. As an insider I have to say it is pretty accurate. This is a great read if you wonder how the "must have" toys come to be so and includes important information for any parent to consider when purchasing toys...like, the point isn't to create developmentally appropriate playthings; the point is to make money.

The second book, The Big Turnoff,by Ellen Currey-Wilson, is a first person account of a woman trying to raise her child TV free. though she was somewhat more successful than I, it was quite funny and somewhat eerie to read how she was influenced by many of the same things as I was: Waldorf playgroup, attachment parenting, etc.

"This is my life", I said more than once as she threw herself in front of a blaring TV set at a play date or tried to interest "glued to the screen" kids in something else.

I laughed my way through this book and then e-mailed Ellen to tell her how much I enjoyed it and that I had joined her yahoo group for "TV limiting Moms" . She responded, almost immediately - that's refreshing and encouraged me to pass on information about the group so...check it out at her website and read the book if you want a good laugh.

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Afterschooling with Audubon

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle…

From The Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore

Though we have lots of children’s reference books, one that has found a place in our daily life in many unexpected ways is our National Audubon Society Field Guide. Sure, we use it on hikes and during science discussions but who thought it would come in handy while reading The Night Before Christmas.

“What’s a thistle, Mom?” my son inquired. It, apparently was important to him to understand exactly HOW Santa flew away.

“ummm, a sort of plant.” I began and then started to head toward my computer for a quick Googling of the term, which would provide both information and photograph in short order.

Spying our Audubon Field guide nearby though stopped me in my tracks. I quickly grabbed it and was able to provide the needed information sans computer…which got me thinking.

Unlike my parents who had to rely on The Encyclopedia Britannica and liberal use of, “I don’t know” to answer questions common and arcane, I have the luxury of knowing the answer to just about any question can be found on the Internet, with just a few keystrokes.

But, what am I in my “limited TV; no computer; no video game” world trying to teach my son? Well, a love of books is one of my goals and one of the reasons I want him to love books is because of the non-linear nature of them.

A Google search turns up all the information I might need about thistles

“…the common name of a polyphyletic group of flowering plants characterised by leaves with sharp spines or prickles on the margins, mostly in the plant family Asteraceae.”

But, leafing through the Audubon guide in search of thistles turned up several pages on starfish to read later in the day, a section on the rainy season in California and a great picture explaining how rocks are formed.

I love that about books. I love that about libraries too. Who knows what unexpected information might turn up when one leafs through a book or ambles through a stack?

And so, I think I’ll turn to my Audubon guide and all of the other reference books I pick up at used books stores and yard sales, before I turn to the Internet. Who knows what treasures await?

Visit The Carnival of Homeschooling here!

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Delicious

Organic orange from a neighbor's tree wrapped in natural paraffin coated wax paper!

Become a Photo Hunter. View Blogroll


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Ways We Were Crunchy – Ways We Were Not - A Holiday Recap

As we wind down the holidays I started thinking about how we celebrated this year. Often after an extended break from school I find my plans for my family are in complete disarray. I’ve strayed from the course and loaded them up with junk food, junk toys and junk images.

This year, in my semi occasional analysis, I don’t feel that I have done too bad. I’ve stayed the not-quite crunchy course and , may I say it, I’m relatively proud!

Ways we were crunchy...

Our Holiday baking included: organic sugar cookies with organic icing and organic M&Ms type candies.

We hung wooden garlands on our tree, forgoing the synthetic tinselly ones that shed all over the house (note the alternative motive).

We hung no outside lights outside our house, opting instead for poinsettias and wreaths – partly because we were too lazy to untangle them and used a “planet saving” excuse instead.

We featured our wooden train set and created a wooden Christmas village under the tree. Why buy an expensive electric train and light up village when we have a perfectly good child driven one collecting dust in the playroom?

We bought mostly non-electronic toys including Tinker Toys, a wooden farm and Legos.

We went to see The Nutcracker – the full on version- the kids made it through the whole thing!

We made a batch of Christmas ornaments this year- not salt dough this time…we used Sculpty...does that count as crunchy?

Ways we were not…

Watched lots of movies. Probably too many. We even “plugged the kids in” on Christmas Eve so the adults could enjoy dinner in peace.

Our Christmas tree featured a string of decidedly uncrunchy lights that played snips of Christmas carols and which my DH hooked up to a remote so we could exhibit tackiness from all over the house.

We purchased a plastic, battery operated cleaning cart for my DS – he’s been asking for one for years!

We perhaps, indulged in a few too many story CDs…not as bad as television but perhaps a little too hands off.

We ate cupcakes with 4 inches of super high sugar and preservative laden icing on New Year’s day…for breakfast.

My DS stayed up late almost every night – no 7:00 bedtime around here…try 10:00 too many nights in a row.

All in all…not too bad…how about you?

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What's Really Eco About Eco Laundry Soap? Some Thoughts on Green Marketing

This post is part of a continuing series in which I make a wild attempt to deconstruct how marketers develop, package and advertise products in an attempt to get you to buy them. Hopefully this evens the playing field a bit.

Yesterday I wrote a review about Dropps, a new eco friendly laundry detergent.

Since there are a wide variety of so called, “natural”, “eco friendly” and “healthy” laundry detergents, one might ask several questions:

Why is this more eco?

Is this more eco than other eco laundry detergents and how?

And after 10 minutes standing in front of the various different options …

Why is this all so confusing?

Well…we’ve entered a new phase in the eco product lifecycle. Eco is hot. We have organic ketchup and natural cleaners and greenwashing galore.

So, to make it a little easier for you…at least in the laundry aisle, here’s the low down on laundry detergent. If your main interest is in protecting the environment, the key is…less is more.

According to the Laundry Sustainability Project (stop giggling, there’s a project for everything), the real key to saving the environment is twofold.

…products are manufactured in a safe manner (and), taking care of the environment by more efficient use of chemicals and natural resources (eg water).

That’s it. Less packaging, less product, less use of other natural resources (water) means taking better care of the environment. Yes, recycling those big old laundry detergent bottles is important but…how about not using them at all?

This one key point for sustainable laundry is where Dropps has a huge advantage over other natural brands…but consumers aren’t really aware of its importance. AND…Dropps does nothing to educate consumers about that one key point.

…if you are really concerned about saving the planet...here’s the killer detail. Because Dropps are super concentrated, a package with enough detergent to do 20 loads weighs only 10 ozs! Compare that to Seventh Generation’s product where 20 loads uses 31 ozs of detergent…and it goes up from there for other brands.

Of course, this math and the consequences are not relatively apparent. But, if you think about it, 10 ozs uses up less packaging, uses less fuel to ship and uses less water as filler for the product. That’s a pretty big saving for the planet.

Instead of promoting their superconcentrated product, which comes in small dissolving packets as THE most eco alternative…they promote it as the most convenient…which means little to the average in home washing machine eco consumer.

Hello? Dropps you’ve got a great positioning if you want a bunch of college students to buy your product…if they can afford it!

Instead of using this little perceptual map (this is a tool marketers use to figure out why their product is better than the competition in a way that is important to consumers) to determine what message to put on the package and coming up with “…just toss and go…”

...which a consumer interprets as. " oh, this product is for those seeking convenience…"

How about using this one and coming up with one along the lines of “…little packages mean little impact” (OK- I’m not going to write the copy...that’s just the concept). The right message is one that tells the consumer this product is for folks who REALLY want to save the planet.

Eco marketing has reached a new phase. No longer do companies need to educate the consumer on why going green is important. Now, they need to educate consumers on what being green truly means.

We’re waiting….

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Jingle Hunt - A Simple Holiday Game for Kids

While adults may tire of repetition, children thrive on it.

And so, when faced with planning a child's party, a family get together or a play date, I often fall back on an old favorite.

The Treasure Hunt

With children under the age of 7 or 8 and often later (like 45), the non competitive version of this game works best. Run around; collect the treasure; share with friends who couldn't find any. At then end of the hunt kids take both bag and bells home.

For our holiday party we scattered small jingle bells all over our yard and gave each child a red or green fabric bag (purchased at Michael's for $1.00 each) and sent them out to hunt.

This also works inside since planning is minimal. Put the kids in one room, run into the designated treasure hunt room and toss handfuls of bells in various places.

Then let them loose.

Ridiculously easy.

Make sure you explain to the older children in advance that they will all be taking the same number of bells home. In our case we told each child to find 9 bells. Once they had found their nine, they were asked to go help someone who hadn't found all of theirs yet.

The nice thing about this game is that it can be adapted for just about any occasion...Valentine hearts; Quarters for Presidents Day, etc.

For more great Works for me Wednesday ideas visit Rocks in My Dryer

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An Old Fashioned Christmas Village

Who needs electric trains and plug in villages?

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