Kids VT, Fall 2021 August 2021 (Kids VT)
The Return: Back to School During Delta; Marty Spaulding Works Behind the Scenes to Help Students Learn on Campus; Make Your Own Worm Farm
Making Their Mark: Lincoln and Bristol Youth Update Garlands Bridge Mural
At the beginning of summer, the mural beneath Garlands Bridge in Lincoln was faded and peeling. Created six years ago as part of a summer camp led by Lincoln artist Rory Jackson, it featured overlapping colorful silhouettes depicting both community elders and youth. This summer, Jackson organized a new group project to refresh the mural.…
Mr. Fix-It: Marty Spaulding Works Behind the Scenes to Help Students Learn on Campus
When Vermont kids go back to school in person this fall, it’s partly thanks to people like Marty Spaulding. As property services director for the Burlington School District, Spaulding oversees the city’s six elementary schools, two middle schools, high school and technical center. Spaulding has maintained educational facilities for 25 years, but the last one…
How Can Parents Ease Kids’ COVID-19 Anxieties About Returning to School?
This month, thousands of schoolchildren throughout Vermont will return to full-time, in-person classroom learning, many for the first time since the start of the pandemic. In addition to the typical jitters that come with starting a new school year, many kids and parents are feeling heightened anxiety about COVID-19, the spread of the more contagious…
Back to School During Delta: A Pediatrician With Young Children Offers a Road Map — and Survival Strategies
From the editor How should parents approach this school year? In the early days of August, as the Delta variant started driving up COVID-19 case counts in Vermont, our Kids VT team came across this essay on Medium. The author, Rebecca Bell, is a pediatric intensivist at the University of Vermont Children’s Hospital, taking care…
Mealtime: Spring Rolls Three Ways
I’ve always loved to pack lunches for my kids, even when that means early mornings. I’ve found that skipping the cafeteria line gives them longer to eat lunch. It’s also been a great way to let my type 1 diabetic son know exactly how much insulin to take, instead of having to look at the…
Signs of Fall: Using Free Apps and Phenology to Track the Rhythms of the Year
When I was younger, my awareness of the rhythms of the year revolved around getting things: at Halloween, my birthday, Christmas. I always loved back-to-school time, which meant new school clothes and supplies. I can still remember the jeans with the Miss Piggy patch and the blue Trapper Keeper I received in the fifth grade.…
Lending a Hand: Volunteering in Your Kid’s Classroom Benefits Everybody
During the winter of 2019-20, I volunteered in my daughter’s preschool classroom for the first time and unexpectedly found myself in the spotlight, holding a ukulele. “All right, so who wants to hear the ABCs?” I excitedly asked the dozen preschoolers sitting in front of me. “Me! Me! Me!” responded the crowd of eager children.…
Thrifting for Parents 101: Where and How to Find Good Deals
Before my baby was born, I had countless hours to spare in thrift stores, and that time was often the key to my success. My first piece of advice for new thrifters used to be to go through and touch everything. But my first trip back to a thrift store after my girl was born…
Vermont Visionaries: Emma Makdessi, Camp Outright Codirector
As the community engagement director for Burlington-based Outright Vermont, Emma Makdessi works with youth who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or questioning and their allies. The nonprofit organization hosts weekly peer-support groups; provides workshops, education and training for schools and colleges; and organizes annual events like the Queer & Allied Youth Summit. But one…
Can You Dig It? Make Your Own Worm Farm With These Simple Steps
Some grandmas do arts and crafts or bake cookies with their grandkids. Kim Ray of Londonderry raises worms. For several years, Ray has been learning about the little wigglers alongside her 9-year-old granddaughter, Lyric, and 6-year-old grandson, Luca. She chronicles their adventures on a website, littlediggerswormfarm.com. A few months ago, Lyric and Luca started hosting…
Twists and Turns
My biggest worry in August 2019 was whether my kids had all the clothes they needed to start school. Back then, they were excited to see their friends and maybe a little nervous about getting along with their teachers. Seems like a lifetime ago. This is a different kind of year. When I asked Ivy…
