Donors Choose

We all talk about how little teachers make and the lack of support for public schools. Donors Choose has made it possible for teachers to ask for exactly what they need to accomplish a project and We can donate to make it happen.

DonorsChoose.org is a simple way to provide students in need with resources that our public schools often lack. At this not-for-profit web site, teachers submit project proposals for materials or experiences their students need to learn. These ideas become classroom reality when concerned individuals, whom we call Citizen Philanthropists, choose projects to fund.

Proposals range from "Magical Math Centers" ($200) to "Big Book Bonanza" ($320), to "Cooking Across the Curriculum" ($1,100). Any individual can search such proposals by areas of interest, learn about classroom needs, and choose to fund the project(s) they find most compelling. In completing a project, donors receive a feedback package of student photos and thank-you notes, and a teacher impact letter.

Canada to Declare BPA Toxic and Ban Baby Bottles

Canada to Declare BPA Toxic and Ban Baby Bottles In November, Mothering's article "Out of the Mouths of Babes" told you about teethers, sippy cups, bibs, and other seemingly innocuous plastic baby items containing chemicals that may harm your child's health. Among these chemicals is bisphenol-a. The Canadian government is planning an announcement on Friday to declare bisphenol-a, also known as BPA, a toxic chemical.

Widely used to produce plastic polycarbonate food and water containers, some products containing bisphenol are already being removed from shelves by leading Canadian retailers, citing possible health risks. Canada also intends to ban the import and sale of baby bottles made of plastic polycarbonate. Evidence links the chemical to neurological and behavioural problems in babies and could be tied to early puberty, some cancers, diabetes, and obesity.

Environmental groups are adamant that BPA is a dangerous chemical, while the industry says its use in plastic products is safe and claim that media reports about toxic toys are sensational and serve only to frighten parents. Yet, more than 150 government-funded studies have shown health effects in animals at extremely low doses of BPA—sometimes 2,000 times lower than the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) safe levels.

Sources:
"Out of the Mouths of Babes" Mothering Issue 145 - November/December 2007
Canada.com

Barefoot in Manhattan

By Judith Rosen -- Publishers Weekly, 4/21/2008

In a move that could push Barefoot Books further up Inc. magazine’s list of the top 5,000 fastest-growing private businesses (which it made for the first time last year), the Cambridge, Mass./Bath, England, children’s book publisher has reached an agreement with FAO Schwarz to create a dedicated Barefoot Books boutique in FAO’s flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York City. It will be the only bookstore within the revamped children’s retailer, a tourist destination with four million visitors a year.

To read the rest of the great article click below!

Barefoot in Manhattan

Kid Art Auction for Earth Day

Some big-hearted and forward-thinking mommybloggers have organized the first ever Kid Art Auction for Earth Day!

Participants can donate their kids' artwork (with the permission of the artiste, of course!) to the cause. All funds raised will be donated to the organization founded by Al Gore, called We Can Solve It, whose aim is to educate "people in the US and around the world that the climate crisis is both urgent and solvable."

Complete details and instructions for this innovative event are available at Greeblemonkey, where pretty buttons like the one shown above are available. Head on over, join in the cause and spread the word!

It’s Easy Being Green with Barefoot Books $200 Giveaway

This is a post from Mommy Poppins

Posted on April 9th, 2008 by Nina

Every few months I get to a point where I feel overwhelmingly bored of all the books my daughter chooses to read and need to find some exciting new ones to lure her away from the endless re-readings of her favorites. The Beeman, one of Barefoot Books’ new Spring titles is our most recent savior.

The Beeman teaches about the process of harvesting honey through the story of a boy whose grandpa keeps honeybees and while it’s still a bit out of reach for my two year old, she happily listens along and asks for more. The book ends with some solid in-depth science information and a recipe for apple honey muffins.

The thing I like about this book, and many of the Barefoot Books, is that I actually learn something from reading them as they go further in-depth than the average kids book and they aim to get the science right unlike some of the other pseudo science kids books out there (yeah, I’m talking about you, Very Hungry Caterpillar). And when you add the eye catching illustrations and rhyming text you get books that work really well for a wide range of ages.

Barefoot Books publishes children’s books with a slant toward openness, world-culture and themes that inspire goodness, think Putumayo on paper. You can see their line up of environmental and earth conscious children’s books on their online store.

As part of our Green Month we are giving away a $200 gift certificate to Barefoot Books where you can stock up on books, puzzles, puppets and more. Plus, Barefoot Books has offered ALL Mommy Poppins readers a 10% discount on all their products, just use the code SCTEMP which is good till April 30.

To win the gift certificate, all you have to do is leave a comment on the Mommy Poppins post before Saturday, April 12th at 8pm, letting us know which book from the Barefoot Books site you are most excited to check out. We will pick one commenter at random to win the $200 gift certificate. The rest of us will just be green with envy. But don’t worry we’ve got another big Green giveaway coming up on April 22, Earth Day.