Spring forward Sunday, March 14! Spring forward in time and celebrate opening businesses, going to school, sharing homeschooling with friends and making choices that are right for your family about healthful practices.

"The time has come for change! Get ready everyone – Daylight Savings is drawing nigh. Sometime during the early hours of Sunday March 14th – time will jump forward one hour. How did Daylight Savings come about? Join us as we visit the land of Old King Cole to learn how it developed in Once Upon A Time Change." Mountain Community Theater

"Good history presents an accurate picture of what happened in the past with a sympathy for those who lived before us. Studying the birth, growth, and survival of America—one of the most significant events in human history—provides foundational knowledge that we can apply to the challenges of our day." --vdh, a noted historian

"Social justice" is being incorporated into some schools' curricula. Research the concept and you will find varying definitions and differences of opinion. Keep digging in order to become well informed. Read authors who present different perspectives. Mentor your children in the process of seeking facts and opinions. Ask your childrens' schools for information on how/what/why social justice is presented. Be informed.

Dads and Moms, Our world swirls with competing ideas. We need honest, mature leaders of good character. Where are these qualities first and primarily developed and nourished? The family. It's up to us. Our families are the foundation of our nation, the source of our strength and virtue.

Have a great weekend with your families, Parmalee

"Take stroll through Bethany Curve! Bethany Curve runs four blocks, from West Cliff all the way to Delaware Ave. The Santa Cruz City Parks Crew has completed the installation of another section of decomposed granite pathway and header board between Oxford Way and Alta Ave, further improving the space. Take in the beauty of the assorted trees and bird species in this lush riparian zone."

"It’s that time of year again! The cows are back at Arana Gulch.

These grazers keep the grasses low and help to create conditions where germination of the Santa Cruz tarplant is possible. Upwards of 600 tarplant have been planted this year at Arana Gulch as part of an experimental out planting.

Come say hello to the cows and express your gratitude for all their hard work! But please do not pet or feed them."

When you take the kiddos for a walk in Evergreen Cemetery, you're combining nature and history!

In January 1860, London Nelson bought the land he was leasing for $250. Unfortunately by April, the local doctor and friend, Dr. Rawson was notified that Nelson had fallen ill. After visiting and treating him, London gave an oral will to Rawson, bequeathing all he owned to keep the nearby school open. Nelson died a month later, and was one of the first six graves at the new Evergreen Cemetery.

"Pinto Lake is a great park to come out and enjoy a wheelchair accessible hike. This park has everything you can think of: a playground, a lake, the Virgin Mary shrine; pretty much everything you will need to get a good day out in the park. It's bringing me back so many childhood memories." ~Brenda Gutierrez

From personal health concerns to worries about students who’ve fallen off the grid, the toll of teaching during the coronavirus pandemic can be immense. Many educators say their schools have done little to lighten the load. Not everywhere, though. In a MindShift survey this fall, some of our newsletter subscribers described structural changes at their schools that were making the year more manageable, such as shorter class periods or having one day per week devoted to teacher planning. Continue > > >

This free course explores the history of America as a land of hope founded on high principles. In presenting the great triumphs and achievements of our nation’s past, as well as the shortcomings and failures, it offers a broad and unbiased study of the kind essential to the cultivation of intelligent patriotism. Read the syllabus, 25 sessions > > >

As a white, financially stable, woman teaching in a local independent school I feel honored to be able to guide my students through Social Justice topics. I also feel nervous for a number of reasons. My lived experience could allow me to shy away from these hard topics - worried that my treatment of them might fall short or be somehow wrong - but I take a deep breath and remember that the work has to start somewhere and so I start. Read Gateway 4th-grade teacher Rachel Sattinger's essay > >

“During my first learning journey with Mount Madonna School students to South Africa in 2009, I was struck by the fact that the South Africans I met spoke so openly about race, apartheid, and the ongoing process of reconciliation and healing,” commented MMS Director of Upper School Shannon Kelly.

“I realize how seldom I had engaged in similar conversations at home, and Read how MMS matches actions with words > > >

Who could be against schools attempting to cultivate virtue in young people? Let me suggest that while there is a place for this in schools, one must tread very carefully in this area. Educators for Social Justice and like-minded groups should consider the potential problems they are inviting. Read a cautionary essay on social justice > > >

"Finally, it's important to note that this notion of social justice is ideologically neutral. It's as common to people on the Left to organize and form associations, to cooperate in many social projects, as it is to people on the Right. This is not a loaded political definition, but it does avoid the pitfall (on the Left) of thinking that social justice means distribution, égalité, the common good only as determined by state authority, and so forth. It also avoids the pitfall (on the Right) of thinking of the individual as unencumbered, closed-up, self-contained, self-sufficient." Read this fascinating article on the history of social Justice > > >