Shaping Youth BETA BLOG

In the wake of yesterday’s federal grand jury cyberbullying indictment of a twisted MySpace hoax which resulted in a teen’s suicide, it seems a good time to revisit the cruelty of the schoolyard.

Except for one small thing…It didn’t happen in the schoolyard…

The perp was a MOM. (CBS video, and Larry Magid’s analysis/podcast here) Maybe if the fictitious Adina’s Deck teen detective crew were privy to the now infamous Megan Meier case, they may have been able to solve the mystery and spare a life before the cruel MySpace joke got out of hand…

What is Adina’s Deck you say? Adina’s Deck is a worthy, award-winning 30-minute must-see ‘mystery’ film aimed at educating 9-15 year olds about “cyberbullying” (defined as using technology to harass, humiliate, stalk, or embarrass others via the internet, digital technology and mobile phones)

Grounded in sound theoretical framework, and created by Debbie Heimowitz and Jason Azicri as a masters thesis for the Learning, Design & Technology program at Stanford University, the film gives kids the tools to ‘connect the dots’ on relational aggression and emotional distress…which can sink techno-savvy teens into sullen self-esteem quicksand faster than you can say ‘IM.’

Here’s a video clip from KTVU’s Mornings on 2 from last fall, interviewing Debbie & Jason of Adina’s Deck… (more…)

“The world would be a better place without you.”

Just think about that phrase for awhile. Let it sink in. Feel the pain.

I don’t care if it was directed to a cockroach, it still merits introspection as to why it would be uttered at all, by any human being…even though the explanation was an attempt to ‘break up’ a non-existent relationship in a virtual hoax gone awry.

Yesterday I posted about ‘mini-me’s and wannabes’ addressing the ‘parent factor’ in this media/marketing conundrum of parent purchasing power and behavioral precedents…

Today, we have more evidence of moms misbehaving on MySpace, with the federal grand jury indictment of the 49-year old poseur paramour who set up, encouraged, and then jilted a 13-year old girl, by pretending to be a 16-year old romantic interest.

In actuality, she was just a meddling mom anxious to see what a ‘former friend’ was saying about her daughter…And yet? There’s a 13-year old dead due to the cruelty. Go figure.

As media keeps fear-mongering internet safety holes with ‘stranger danger’ and KIDS being ‘a problem’ it might behoove us all to look at cyberbullying in surround sound and start sourcing the motivations, vendettas and consequences of ALL ages. That’s right. Parents, teachers, and educators of all ages are fair game for scrutiny… (more…)

Just as I was thinking I wouldn’t have time to post today because of Shaping Youth’s film screening fund-raiser of Two Angry Moms a chime came into my e-mail from Dr. Robyn Silverman with full coverage of the House of Dereon collection of vamped up tots created by the ‘PopTart Princess’ herself, Beyoncé.

Ah, there IS a fairy godmother…As Dr. Robyn waves her magic wand of logic, research and reasoning to rescue me from overload and sheer lack of a clone to be ‘everywhere at once.’

I’d mentioned the Beyoncé debacle a tad in my diversity/fairytale post featuring Deesha Philyaw’s great deconstruction of ‘the princess problem’ but frankly, I hadn’t the time (nor the stomach) to tackle the foolishness of this fashionista absurdity that’s trashing childhood with vapid values of pop culture drek today. (gee, tell us how you REALLY feel, Amy, eh?–sorry, but I revile profiteering off of preschoolers, having ‘acid thrown on their innocence’ as Sen. Harkin says)

Anyway, rather than trot out my infamous ‘sexualized ad slop’ objectification diatribe that media seems to trumpet as a catch-phrase for ‘over-reaction,’ I’ll segue to Shaping Youth body image expert Dr. Robyn Silverman to explain the harm matter-of-factly as she details how this type of marketing is landing on kids… (more…)

One of my favorite ‘stereotypes in media’ moments is when I get to use my own background to instill critical thinking skills in teens.

At the national Girls For A Change summit for instance, I had the opportunity to break through race barriers and color codes of perceived expectations by starting off the session asking teens, “Okay, so who was I in high school?” to get the media stereotypes flying…As the girls started blurting out blonde-Barbie-isms and “Princess” banter, I added to the incredulousness by saying that I grew up as ‘a minority’ most of my life.

That’s when necks start to swivel and faces squinch up in that ‘you-gadda-be-kiddin -me-lady-get-real’ look…A few connected the dots quickly to lead the others through the process like a scavenger hunt, probing into ‘how that could be.’ (yup, formative years in Hawaii, D.C. and Japan, none of which were brimming with tall blonde-haole girls at the time)

Things are NOT always ‘as they appear’…which is why the whole ‘fairy princess’ marketing bit sticks in my craw as aspirational hooey…planting stereotypes over storylines, and gender/race-based ideals of what kids ‘should’ grow up to be.

In my house, I brushed off princesses dismissively rather than give them any ‘heat’ at all, preferring to subversively turn stereotypes upside down with a wink and a nod reading fairytales like The Paper Bag Princess (who does NOT live happily ever after with Ronald) and Dinorella (the dinosaur that saves ‘Duke Dudley’s tail, quite literally). Sure, we read the classics, but it became a favorite past-time to add a dollop of irony to the usual palate of kid-lit and lack of cultural diversity in the princess posse. (more…)

On Friday, digital education dominated the kidsphere, spanning from my own NextNow collaboratory peer, Claudia L’Amoreaux of Second Life, speaking at the Smithsonian on storytelling and innovation in the metaverse (interview here), to the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop’s first annual symposium on the impact of digital media in educating children. (webcast here)

Here’s the agenda that Global Kids’ Digital Initative live-streamed Friday, called, “Logging into the Playground”…all about how digital media is shaping kids’ learning. And here’s the YouTube video showing some of the kids interacting firsthand, along with the Consumer Reports WebWatch study of key points and full report here.

Now…If this all sounds like gobbledygook to you, let’s back up and start with the basics…“What is a virtual world?” then segue to my prior post about the greening of kids’ virtual worlds for Earth Day, which we have NOT forgotten about on the follow-up front!

In fact, due to deferrals from gonzo deadlines for our fund-raiser screening of Two Angry Moms, I’m going to ‘up the ante’ and bring forth personal interviews with the founders/creative minds behind both Zookazoo and Dizzywood, on their respective launches and plans in the kids’ virtual world arena to enlighten and inform. (more…)

A bouquet of thanks to all of the mothers out there who are sharing their knowledge and tips for making the world a better place for kids, including favorite visionaries and parenting communities…

Such as? The bounty of mom bloggers at BlogHer, the EcoMom Alliance, Literary Mama, CityMama, SafeMama, Green Mom Finds, Eco-Child’s Play, Anti-Racist Parent and new community neighborhoods like The Motherhood (started by BlogHer’s Act faves Cooper & Emily) and new beta sites like Education.com and Parenthood.

There’s also Shaping Youth’s favorite social change agent gal pals, Lisa at Parents for Ethical Marketing, Beth Kanter’s blog for social media magic, Britt Bravo’s Have Fun, Do Good and of course the Two Angry Moms who work tirelessly to make the planet more inhabitable for the future of children…

I’d also like to thank ‘non-moms’ who know the world of youth inside out and contribute to the conversation by helping parents ‘get it,’ sometimes by helping us step out of our own skins and see through the lenses of kids themselves…

…Folks like Vanessa Van Petten with a “Gen Y” perspective on Teens Today, doctoral gaming research pro and virtual worlds guru Sara M. Grimes of Gamine Expedition, online community digital maven Izzy Neis, Anastasia Goodstein, publisher of YPulse, Courtney Macavinta at Respect Rx, and Dr. Robyn’s Powerful Parent blog…all practitioners working with youth on a wide scale, serving up tips for the times with grounded wisdom.

In fact, Elisa Camhort at BlogHer has a great post about the power of mom-communities NOT being contingent upon being a mom! Brava!

I’d also like to give a special ’shout out’ to the single moms who write about their world like Christina at SoloMom, MsSingleMama, and specifically to my own daughter’s godmother, Kathie Steinwinter, who taught me early on that judgment and protocol has no place in a child’s healthy rearing and worldview of what constitutes loving parenting. (more…)