Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Little Chef's Academy

Little Chef's Academy is a great playgroup model created and run by Ben and Mary-Jane Townson in Ararat, Victoria (Australia). 
Each program teaches kids a holistic approach to health including: nutrition, water, exercise, sunlight, temperance, air, rest and trust.
Jamie Oliver is coming to Ararat soon and will be talking to Ben and Mary-Jane in preparation for his visit. It is possible Ben and Mary-Jane will be involved in the show that Jamie runs in Ararat!
Cyrus (my 14 year old) and I went to Ararat this past Sunday and filmed one of their great Little Chef days. Cyrus put this video together to share the Little Chef's Academy story with Jamie Oliver's team. Hope you enjoy watching it!


Perhaps, you may even want to start your own Little Chef's Academy in your town!



Wednesday, April 18, 2012

The NEW Church - online for almost 4 years!

Wanting a free read? Check out "The NEW Church" on issuu... I put this online before any of my books had been published... My first book was an online book that went to print afterward! Cool, eh?

I’m Happy and I Know It

One of my favourite tasks each week is mentoring boys at Warburton Primary School. Sometimes we do classwork, sometimes we talk about life, and sometimes (their favourite) we play games on my iPad or PS Vita.
This Tuesday, as I entered the school foyer, the boy I was to meet first was sitting in the corner. He struggles with classrooms. He likes being out of his. I talked to the teacher and then took the boy into the mentoring room.
“What’s up?” I asked.
Shrug.
“Why were you sitting out?”
Shrug… pause… “Because I was singing and wouldn’t stop.”
“Singing? Wow! I didn’t know you’re a singer.” I lean in and whisper, “What were you singing?”
“I’m Elmo and I know it,” he looks up to gauge my reaction. “It’s a parody of ‘I’m Sexy and I Know It.’”
“Ah… So, your teacher wasn’t happy having Elmo in her class?”
“Not really. She just wanted me to stop and I wanted to finish the song.”
“I see.” We sit quiet for a few seconds and then I ask, “Have you heard the ‘I’m Nerdy and I Know It’ parody?”
He nods, without even a hint of a smile.
“My boys love it,” I continue, “It’s all about StarCraft and they love that game.” I mimic part of the chorus, “I play Zerg!”
A tiny smile emerges. “Well, yeah. I was singing the Elmo parody to a friend and I just wanted to finish.”
“And the teacher asked you to stop?”
“Yeah.”
“And you wouldn’t?”
“Yeah.”
“So you got sent out?”
“Yeah.”
“Sounds fair.”
“Yeah. I didn’t want to be in there anyway.”
“I know you didn’t,” I say, “Now, let’s have a look at our worksheet for today.” I can’t hold back a giggle as I turn to the page we are up to in his character development worksheets. “Look at that,” I laugh, “It’s called, The Choices I Make.”
He looks at the page and then up at me trying to discover the source of my joy.
“It’s a perfect topic for today. Wouldn’t you say?”
He get’s it … and smiles. “Yeah. I guess so.”



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For more parenting pondering,
see the "Parently" section of this blog.

Dave Edgren ~ Story: Teller, Author, Trainer ~

BOOK DAVE NOW! Dave Edgren is passionate about creating a values-based storytelling culture. In his engaging and often hilarious way,...