Casting Call!

Are you a girl inventor or entrepreneur?

By Kids for Kids (BKFK) is looking for kids aged 8-16 with a great idea or business that has already achieved some success to appear in the new television series, THINK BIG!   By Kids for Kids is a company with the mission to inspire, motivate, and stimulate the innovative spirit within all young people.  The television show will provide a platform for kid inventors and entrepreneurs to showcase their products, letting the world know that kids have great ideas too.  Kids can plan, design and manufacture great ideas into products and services everyone can use.  Want to submit your idea? Visit their website at www.bkfk.com/thinkbig.

 

In fact, you may want to swing by their main website, powered by the new Idea Locker, too.  The company has four other contests running right now, one for designers, one for artists/writers, one for those interested in the environment, and one for sports enthusiasts.

What a fun way to explore your interests and find support for them!

Go, girls!

Sending you creative passion, Elizabeth (Bissy!)

Celebrate!

When was the last time you took a look in the mirror and celebrated you?  Or took a look inside and celebrated you?  I hope that it was today!

It's the season of celebration, which includes Hanukkah's celebration of light at the moment.  So it got me thinking.  Ritual has such a history of importance in many cultures throughout the world, and I know that somewhere deep inside you, you probably have a ritual just waiting for you to touch it and say, "Hey come out and play, let's celebrate something about myself!"  And you know what the most surprising thing might be?  That way to feel good about yourself might start with realizing the good you do others.  You know how when you light a candle, that candle can keep lighting others?  Just like a menorah.  So when you light yourself up inside, you have the potential to light up others, and you still shine as brightly!

Your ritual could be anything.  Something silly, like dancing into the bathroom in the morning!  Something serious, like painting the way your heart looks when you take a deep breath every day.  (I know, where did that come from--but wouldn't it be cool to try it?!)  Something original, like taking a pad of paper outside every day and doing equations that you make up because you just love math!

Want to light someone up with a gift this season?  It's kind of cool to remember what a gift you give to others by honoring yourself.  So when you're lighting up your own candle and then deciding how you'd like to spread that light, you may want to check out www.SafeGreenToys.org, sponsored by Co-Op America, an organization whose mission is "to harness economic power-the strength of consumers, investors, businesses, and the marketplace-and to create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society."  

Hmm, the gift ideas are starting to come to me...  This just might call for a post about creative gift ideas... What do you think?  Send one, send all, your most creative, thoughtful gift, ritual, everything celebration-ideas!

Here's to spreading that celebration feeling, Elizabeth (Bissy!)

Typing Like They Mean It

I just came across quite a cool network of women online. It's a blog run by Catherine Morgan called The Political Voices of Women: Opinion and Commentary of Over 200 Women Political Bloggers.

The site lists other cool blogs like:

Antigone Magazine: A Blog About Women, Politics, Women in Politics, and the Politics of Being a Woman

Mom’s Speak Up

MomsRising

On the site it shares this from the New York Times article Women, Politics, and the Internet by Katharine Q. Seelye: "We know that women slightly outnumber men online. But at least anecdotally, it seems as if more men are on the political blogs, writing specifically about politics, reading about politics and putting in their two cents in the comments sections."
This quote struck me in particular, because I find it an interesting parallel--or contrast--with the New Moon blog. Recently, many daughters have been chiming in to appreciate their moms, and moms have been adding their two cents, too. That's also why I highlighted the mothers' blogs. It's always wonderful to see the power of women's voices anywhere.

One thing's for certain: girls are growing to be the strong leaders their mothers have led them to be--just look at the recent "Letter to Congress" issue of New Moon!

I hope that the voices of women sharing political passion adds support to your own passion! You're part of quite a community.

Your blogger, Elizabeth!

Taking in the World

Do you ever receive unexpected guidance from the world around you? Like a stop sign when you're in the middle of worrying about something that you know there's a solution to if you just stop and take a breather? Maybe something even sillier--for me it's the opening line "Take a deep breath" when I open up the communication software Skype. Or perhaps you see a word suddenly shift before your eyes--the word "guidance," for example. One day, I was staring at it, and I suddenly realized that guidance has the word "dance" in it. It really is a dance, receiving guidance from anyone or anything. To take it in, you have to take part, the way dancers interact on the stage for it to be a true performance.

Or maybe it's inspiration that appears when you least expect it. Staring at an acorn, and you suddenly realize it's a great setting for your next adventure story--what would an acorn be like to live in if you were a tiny made-up character? Or the way sunlight falls on the floor of your room. That shape looks just like... And then you go off and have the solution to your geometry problem.

I want to hear your unexpected epiphanies or guidances or leadings or inspirations! Goofy, sure, but we can all use the break to take a look around and realize that there's more to the world than meets the eye. And you never know--sharing your leading may just get someone going on their latest fascination!

Wishing you many words shifting before your eyes, Elizabeth!

Letting her dreams take off?

Rose Petal Cottage, targeted toward girls three and older, is a new toy from the kids' company Playskool. It is a playhouse (the website says "more than just a playhouse") deemed "the house of her dreams." And what do girls get to make-believe in this dream house? Why, that they are doing laundry, of course. Is that not what every girl dreams of doing when she grows up? Each "cottage" has an accompanying play-stove, and Playskool also sells a (pretend) muffin-making kit, rose motif lounge chair, "nursery set," kitchen sink, and--you guessed it--washing machine to accompany the house. Would anyone ever market the opportunity to pretend to do a load of wash to boys?

The website has an option of viewing an open house to explore the possibilities within the playhouse. In it, a girl demonstrates the various tasks possible within the dream house and its accompanying accessories. Basically, it seems to show the activities of the very stereotypical image of a "dutiful housewife." Many know that the stereotypical image of a woman whose work is at home does not fit AT ALL with what the media tends to portray. While childcare, cooking, and yes, even cleaning for some, are wonderful pursuits if that is where your heart and passion lies, it simply does not work in my mind to assume that all girls must be exposed to the Rose Petal Cottage as the "house of her dreams." It is sort of like saying, "Here girls, limit your image of your life to within these four walls." What about girls' creativity? I would like to know what young girls would have come up with as their ideal houses and seen a product that resulted from collaboration with that information. A product that would have been flexible, changeable beyond which appliances you choose to purchase. What about multiple products, different houses geared toward different girls?

Now, I have to diverge here and talk about my own personal dream house. Although I would truly appreciate some nice appliances in this image of mine, the washer just never comes up when I picture myself there. (You can tell I am hung up on the laundry bit. It is one of my not-so-favorite activities. I have been recently encountering some laundry appliance challenges.) I picture myself out in a beautiful garden, and to tell the truth I really would not mind the whole rose petal effect on the roof and chimney. I like pink, always have, love floral patterns, and did very much used to enjoy taking care of dolls. That is just me, though. Anyway, within the house, I would love a great big desk for writing, a nice big open space for moving around, a sewing room (Again, just me. I happen to love sewing, but that does not mean any other female should or should not.) The whole gender-geared thing is tough. I remember attending a joint birthday party when I was about five of a brother and sister. For the girls, the party favors were princess hats, I believe. For the boys, something like castle buckets. I adored both of these party favors and lobbied hard to take both home. I seriously thought that everyone was going to take home one of each. I was surprised when I encountered a challenge as I tried to walk away with both. Growing up girl is all about finding the voice within and fending off the world's expectations while you do that. Then making that voice heard.

The feminist world has recently experienced a new craft wave after listening to women's voices. First, society made it the status quo and basically the necessity for most women to knit, sew, and craft in other ways. Making the family's clothes, manifesting handkerchiefs, and many other tasks were just part of a woman's world. Then, as feminism hit, women began dropping their needles in protest to what was defined as a "woman's work," and in general the sentiment was that an inclination for crafts and a feminist outlook on life contradicted each other. No more forced tasks that only women had to do. Now, the general consensus seems to be that women should be free to choose about everything in their lives. No more fitting a certain image of either a traditional woman or a feminist. Just being a feminist woman, and defining that individually. A self. An expressive, empowered, and celebratory inner voice showing up on the outside.

All this makes me think about a favorite recording of mine. It is from Free to Be... You and Me. The segment I love is called "Housework," and the actress Carol Channing narrates it. In it she recites such pearls of wisdom as, "Children, when you have a house of your own,/Make sure, when there's house work to do,/That you don't have to do it alone." It is truly a stellar piece of work, in my opinion. (I listened to the CD repeatedly when I was eleven. I am going to have to diverge again to extol its virtues. I played the CD for my younger cousins, I listened to it to help me go to sleep sometimes, I sang along to it quite a bit. There's one song on the CD, "It's Alright to Cry," that I truly treasure. I choreographed a dance to it when I was fourteen. The album, which is from the 1970s but still applies today, challenges gender stereotypes and celebrates children's freedom to be themselves. OK, my ode to Free to Be... You and Me now over. I could go on, though.)

Back to Playskool, though. By now, you have gotten my opinion of Rose Petal Cottage. I would have liked to see some flexibility with it, some insinuation that girls do not have to conform to this image whatsoever, and some realistic input from a range of girls. I think it would have been pretty cool if they had thrown in a pretend tool set or maybe a science lab add-on. I would have liked those when I was younger.

What do you think? Please, please, please, share your opinion! It does not have to go along with a thing I have to say. All you have to do is express yourself from your gut. Do you think that the toy world markets fairly to girls? Do you wish toys were more gender-neutral? What kind of images do you think young girls should be exposed to in the media?

I want to know. I will be waiting excitedly to hear your responses!

Sending you a heap of empowerment, Elizabeth

School Days

Why hello! We posted your responses about school in September, and it has sure kept you sharing! The school year is in full gear, and you have lots to say about what your school is like, why you go there, and what you would like to change. We all know school is about a lot more than classes. I could go on and on about education (I was an education minor in college), but for now, I want to share what you have to say. Thanks for your input! I am so excited to share more girls' voices on the subject of school:


Homeschooling

The first thing other kids usually ask me when I tell them I’m home schooled is “how do you make friends?” What I tell them is always the same. I have a lot of friends. Most of them I know through my support group. Support groups are a bunch of home schoolers who get together, often at parks or for activities like field trips or classes. My support group gets together every Thursday at different parks. Before we go to the park some people go to workshops, like writing groups and book clubs, that the moms organize.

My family has been coming to the group since I was two, and most of the girls my age have been coming to the group for at least four or five years, although we do have some newer girls. My oldest friend from my group has been coming to the group for about eight years, since we were three. Two of my other friends have been coming to the group for six or seven years—and then there is another girl, who just joined a few weeks ago. Also, because there aren’t as many girls my age in my group as there are in a school, I’m pretty close to all the eleven and twelve-year-old girls in the group. At the park, my friends and I like to play tag, climb trees and just talk! In the past we have had clubs where we play games and make crafts. We’ve performed plays, and we’ve choreographed dances for our group’s Talent Show.

We recently started a mother-daughter group called the Saturn Sisters. We meet once a month at each
other’s houses and talk about growing up and being a girl. Outside of my support group I have a lot of other friends. I go to ballet class four times a week and have become friends with a lot of the girls, especially the ones that have been in my class for three or four years. I have two good friends who are my neighbors that both go to school. I also go to summer camps and make friends there. And I will always have an everlasting friendship with my cousin, who’s just a month and five days younger then me. Over all, even though I don’t go to school I still have a lot of friends. Enough that I have trouble keeping my birthday parties small, especially when they’re sleepovers!

--Lily, 11


Private School

I have recently started seventh grade at an all girls’ school. Though some girls may think me crazy, I chose it over another school that was co-ed for a reason. At my elementary school, though I had my crush here and there, I began to get sick of boys thinking they could control us girls. I hated the way they were so arrogant and always being over-aggressive. They always got control of the play-yard, and when one or two of us decided it was too much, they ganged up on us and we ended up right where we started.

I believe that if all of us girls had decided to try and get a piece of the yard for ourselves, we could have. Unfortunately, my friends always said things like “Well, they never play football, we should let them do it for once,” “But we don’t want to play kickball,” “I don’t want to get in a fight with them, they’ll get angry.” This made me feel like the ten boys in our class of eighteen had control over us. I don’t like anything that is prejudice or sexist, especially when I am involved in it. It was usually only me or maybe one other girl trying to fight for eight of us.

The worst of it was that some boys, who were the nicest ones there, probably felt the way I did. But did they stand up to the other boys? No, they were afraid of being teased for taking sides with the girls. This is the main reason why I decided to change schools. Now I am enjoying an all girls’ school with my old friends, who didn’t want to stand up to the boys, and new friends, including someone who I hope will become my best friend.

The greatest thing about an all girls’ school is that not many girls are showing off to “get boys,” something that gives me the creeps. You can go to school with un-brushed hair, you didn’t take a shower, and no one cares! I love my new school for all of my listed reasons and hope that girls around the world can have courage enough to stand up against people who are being prejudiced and unfair.

--Kayla, 13

Public School

I go to a public Montessori school. I have been in Montessori for 6 years. I like Montessori because you can do what you want when you want to do it. So, say you really like math, then you can do a math work, like square root where you make a square out of pegs on a peg board, while someone else is doing research on a horse or something. Montessori classrooms are mixed age classrooms. There’s ages 3-6, 6-9, and 9-12. Last year one of the fourth graders was doing 7^th grade algebra. New Moon wrote that Montessori discourages testing. However, in my class we have a pre-spelling test and a post spelling test every week. Because we are a public school, we have standardized tests including math, language, and science tests every 6 weeks. We also take my state's yearly standardized tests starting in 3^rd grade.

--Cora, 10

As a ninth grader at our local three-year junior high school, I've seen a lot. Every year, the incoming seventh graders seem to care increasingly more about their images and less about their grades. Our school rules clearly state "No shorts or skirts above knee-length." and "All shirts must be sleeved, or shoulders must be covered." Nowhere in the rules does it say "Welcome seventh graders! Because you're new to this school, we'll just give you a warning every time your shorts look like underwear and your shirts are more like bikinis. Oh, and since we're letting you get off, we might as well let the ninth and eighth graders do it, too. Have a great year!" It seems to me as if the school district thinks that just because we're still in middle school, we're still innocent and the media hasn't gotten to our heads yet. I'd like to write them a lengthly e-letter explaining just how wrong they are. I don't want to make any stereotypes against these girls, but the fact that these twelve-year-olds are drinking water and picking at low-cal chips for lunch scares me. In their attempts to grow up faster and be more like the girls they see on TV, these poor seventh graders have been morphed into the likes of sophomores, and are shown no mercy by the media.

All of this on top of the fact that grades are slipping, both district- and nation-wide. It makes me wonder what will happen in twenty or thirty years, when the leaders of today are retired and the girls I see strutting through the hallways with painted faces and tiny skirts are forced into leadership. And trust me on this one, it's not just the girls. The guys are also tricked by the media. They've been led to believe that the only girls "worthy" of their attention are the skinny ones with cheer-leading uniforms and pounds of makeup coating their faces. School no longer means "education"; it's means "reputation". And honestly, I'm terrified of what's going to happen to these kids when they discover that they need more than just good looks to get into college, or get a job. Maybe some of them haven't been so influenced by the magazines and TV shows, but it's coming. The influence of peer-pressure has unbelievable powers, especially in a junior high that is so tightly controlled by the "popular" group.

Just when it seems that the hierarchy of the marketing community will be overthrown by the people, it lets another stream of propaganda into the system. Each time I think it has to end somewhere, I see another mile of lies stretching in the distance. The only thing I know is this; The next time my little brother (who is, by chance, one of the very seventh graders I speak of) asks a girl out on a "dare date", I'll march right up and end it. If no one else will put a stop to this distorted reality, I will. And I encourage every other girl out there to do the same.

--Lauren, 14


I go to a public charter school for home schoolers. Here is how it works. My parents teach me math, writing, science, history, p.e., spelling and typing. On Wednesdays I take classes with other home schoolers. I also have an E.C. (education coordinater) who my parents and I meet with every six weeks to show her my work samples. We also make a plan for the next six weeks.

The school also does organized field trips. I have not been one yet but when classes start I might go on field trips. But it depends on if kids my age go.

I am glad I get to go to a school were I can make friends but do not have to see them everyday. I am also glad there is less teasing and more fun.

--Abby 11


Thanks for sharing your unique experiences! Keep in touch with responses and comments as the school year goes on. What do you think? I cannot wait to hear more from you!

Sending happiness your way, Elizabeth

Girl's Best Friend

It takes guts to be a girl in this world. There is no denying it. It is an exciting and fruitful position to have, but it takes a certain amount of courage. There are media images to combat, stereotypes to face, and the ongoing processes of connecting to and holding onto the true voice within herself. Every girl is brave.

One brave girl who has shown up in the news lately is twelve-year-old Shea Megale. Together with her five-year-old companion dog Mercer, she is trying to get the news out about Spinal Muscular Atrophy, a condition that has resulted in her use of a wheelchair to get around. Mercer, Shea, and her mother recently did a television interview to promote Shea's new book, Marvelous Mercer. Shea is remarkably well-spoken, showing the world just what girls have in store for it in terms of an ability to make a difference. "I want to do things to change the world. I think kids like us can," Shea says on the Marvelous Mercer website. She sounds like a New Moon girl!

Marvelous Mercer tells the imagined story of Mercer's nighttime adventures, taking part in the physical activities like ice skating that Shea herself cannot because of her SMA. One point that Shea's mother makes in the interview is that the Marvelous Mercer books (the book is planned to turn into a series) help take the focus off of Shea by focusing people's attention on her dog. It takes bravery to attract the amount of attention that Shea does just by going to the store, and it takes even more to channel her experience constructively by writing. Her "disability" is transformed into a heightened ability to imagine.

This leads me to my questions for you readers. If you had been inventing the English language, what would you have called the word "disability" instead? To me, it's always seemed like it shouldn't have anything that suggests a negative the way the prefix "dis-" so wrongly does. Do any of the alternate terms out there? Or does something like "unexpectedly gifted" ring more of a bell in your heart? I want to know.

What about companion animals? There are all kinds--seeing eye dogs, hearing ear dogs, the list goes on... Do you or someone you know have a special companion animal who makes a difference? In the television interview, Shea pointed out that of all the miraculous things Mercer can do for her, like turning on the lights and opening doors, the most valuable of all is being her best friend.

Bravery has many forms, and this evening I want to celebrate all of you brave girls out there.

Adios for now, Elizabeth

Let's Clarify "Pretty"

I paused when I heard the name of the new product Nair Pretty. This product is targeted at girls just becoming aware of their changing body hair. "Feel pretty every day!" the website boasts. Are they trying to imply that removing your body hair makes you feel prettier? "Pretty isn't a look it's a feeling," the website also reminds visitors. This confuses me. What further confounds me is another blurb from the main website, this about the discovery of more noticeable body hair: "Chill. You're growing up...it's all good." Well, yes, growing up is a celebration.

If the company wants girls to "feel pretty every day," and they understand that "pretty isn't a look, it's a feeling," and they are also encouraging girls not to worry about their changing bodies, that it is all part of the natural progression to womanhood, then why are they endorsing hair removal? I personally feel a lot prettier now that I do not shave or remove my hair in any other way. When I used to, it only served to make me more self-conscious and occupy my mind with fitting in enough shower time to shave. I did not have as much time to value my natural beauty and listen to my internal voice. Taking a deep breath, I looked around at all the animals I saw sporting their normal hair, and trusted that if they had the guts to strut their stuff proudly, so did I. I do feel pretty every day, and it is because of a feeling rather than external cues (although I also celebrate my outward appearance, as I believe everyone should, no matter what). I think every woman and girl deserves to have the chance to choose what works for her without advertisers sneaking in ways to trigger self-consciousness.

Admittedly, the angle that Nair Pretty seems to be taking is that their product is a prettier alternative to shaving. They are not directly saying that it is prettier than no removal. However, there seems to be no implication that a girl would ever choose the very healthy option of leaving her body hair just where it is. Besides, how many times have I witnessed or heard of rashes people got from using Nair?

Well, now I want to know what you think about this new product. Feel free to voice your opinion, and feel free if you have a completely different opinion than I do. How do you feel about the pressure on females to remove their body hair? Does it seem unfair to you that there are different standards for hair removal for males and females? What about the fairness of the specific age group Nair Pretty is targeting?

I want to know. (A character in a favorite series of mine, Anne of Green Gables, always said that to the main character, Anne. You may hear me use that line a lot.)

I want to remind all you girl readers that you shine from within no matter what.

Signing off, Elizabeth

Hi, I'm Elizabeth!

Hi, my name is Elizabeth! I am the new blog coordinator, so you'll be hearing from me on here a lot. I hope that means I'll be hearing a lot back from girls! You have such valuable voices.

I know how good it feels to be a girl and have a place to use your voice, because when I was eleven, I joined the editorial board for New Moon's series of four books. They were published in 1999 and 2000, about three years after the editorial board was formed. Each book was on a different subject--Money, Friendship, Writing, and Sports--and the book series had a separate editorial board from the magazine, which we called the BGEB (Book Girls Editorial Board). First we brainstormed what would be in them at a special meeting in New York City, then we all went home (to such varied locales as Alaska, Hawaii, Minnesota, and more) and started writing. We kept in touch through the internet. Once our writing was combined with excerpts from back issues of New Moon, we got to see the galleys, the term for the almost-finished version of a book. We gave our last input, and they were published by Crown, with our names on the cover page! Even though that was a long time ago, I still keep those memories close at heart. The best part was learning how powerful girls can be.

In my bio for the books, I wrote that I loved "anything that involves making something," and that's a good way to introduce myself in the present day, too. I discovered over the past year that I could design and make my own clothing, and it was so liberating! My clothing choices didn't have to depend on what the stores sold anymore. Now in my early twenties, I am still passionate about writing and making things, especially sewing clothing, as you have gathered. My dream is to be a full-time writer and advocate for girls and women. Nature and health are my two newest interests that I know are here to stay, and I have every plan of discovering many more passions and interests as my life proceeds.

Sometimes leaps and bounds in life aren't as far away as you might expect. I want to let all of you know that I am thrilled to be the new blog coordinator--I've got lots of ideas for topics to encourage your voices. I'm going to go get reading what you've sent in!

Until next time, Elizabeth