Category: Education

California Wants Kids to go Out to ‘Juagar’ -or Something

~ Mi Blog es tu Blog ~ Leave a comment

Juaga

It is always a good thing when U.S. organizations take the time to embrace other cultures -and languages. But, here’s a piece of advice: If you are a children’s museum seeking to encourage children to play and explore in English -and Spanish- you will be well advised to use proper Spanish translations and -ding!- do it right.

Now, you probably don’t have tons of money to hire someone awesome like, ahem, myself, but heck! at least you can use Google Translate. See below. It works!

Screen Shot 2014-07-30 at 2.02.35 PM

So in a nutshell: Don’t be freaking lazy; do your job properly or stop “juagando” with my people.

UNLESS, of course, you meant to say “JuanGa” in which case I’m in and I wan to play!

Hat tip: Begoña Lozano, purveyor of awesome postings.

Believe it or Not, These Crayons are Multicultural

~ Mi Blog es tu Blog ~ 2 Comments

MulticulturalCrayolas

I am almost embarrassed to say this, but -after all these years living in the “First World”- I did not know crayons can also be multicultural.

So apologies to the folks over at Crayola for not realizing this before. Thanks to their website -and a very “multicultural” friend of mine in Tijuana- I was able to learn that crayons come in an assortment of skin hues, rendering them, pues, multiculturales.

Hat tip: Carla Raygoza. Tijuana, B.C., the land of ¡ajúa!

 

There’s a Culturally-Relevant Journalism School in NYC

~ Mi Blog es tu Blog ~ 1 Comment

Periodismo

I think I’ve said this a million times, but I love my neighborhood.

And not only because I can easily find authentic foods like Hispanic lettuce and ethnically diverse beauty salons, but because business owners really go out of their way to cater to an increasingly Latino demographic.

I might not live near Columbia, but I’m a proud neighbor of the Dominican Institute of Journalism, founded by Dr. Pittaluga in 2005. ¡Sí, señor!

 

Related articles:

O.C. High-School Asked to Drop ‘Señores & Señoritas’ Event

~ Mi Blog es tu Blog ~ Leave a comment

Oh, Man! Why do media outlets have to come and ruin the fun for everybody?

Take this Anaheim Hills High-School in Orange County, whose students have been asked to drop a “Mexican-themed Day,” and exchange it for some “sensitivity training courses.” I mean… booooooooring!

Tell me: Where are these poor, unimaginative kids going to get their kicks now?

[This blogger is not making this sh*t up. Click on the above photo to watch the clip or watch here

Leno, Vergara Loooove Dulce de Leche…. Gordon Ramsay Thinks it Tastes Like S**t

~ Mi Blog es tu Blog ~ 32 Comments

In case you missed it, Colombian (nor Columbian) bombshell Sofía Vergara went to Jay Leno this week, apparently to talk about Modern Family, but ultimately to pitch Alpina’s Dulce de Leche, which by the way Chef Gordon Ramsay thought tasted like “shit.”

In a public statement, Carlos Ramírez, a spokesman for the U.S. subsidiary of Alpina said: “We were pleased that Sofia Vergara chose Alpina’s Dulce de Leche and we are very happy that Jay Leno liked it.”

Perhaps, what Mr. Ramírez really, really wanted to say was: “We couldn’t care less that Chef Ramsay didn’t like it. What do British people know about food, anyway?”

Texas School Urges Children to Study and Be ‘Seasoned’ Like a Beef Fajita

~ Mi Blog es tu Blog ~ Leave a comment

When it comes to our children education, no efforts should be spared… even if you live in Texas, whose Board of Education this month decided to re-write History.

That is why Crockett Elementary School in Dallas hosted a school assembly and invited motivational speaker Fabian Ramirez to encourage students to do their best on the upcoming Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test. Speaking to 200 kids that are scheduled to take the test in April, Ramírez went straight to the point:

“You have to be seasoned before you get grilled,” he said while holding 2 pounds of seasoned beef fajitas in the air before laying a portion over an electric grill. “Seasoned students are well done after they have been grilled.”

While this blogger greatly appreciates the metaphor, I think Mr. Ramírez should have added that failing the TAKS would turn these children into a bunch of burritos.

Texas School Urges Children to Study and Be ‘Seasoned’ Like a Beef Fajita

~ Mi Blog es tu Blog ~ Leave a comment

When it comes to our children education, no efforts should be spared… even if you live in Texas, whose Board of Education this month decided to re-write History.

That is why Crockett Elementary School in Dallas last week hosted a school assembly and invited motivational speaker Fabian Ramirez to encourage students to do their best on the upcoming Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test. Speaking to 200 kids that are scheduled to take the test in April, Ramírez went straight to the point:

“You have to be seasoned before you get grilled,” he said while holding 2 pounds of seasoned beef fajitas in the air before laying a portion over an electric grill. “Seasoned students are well done after they have been grilled.”

While this blogger greatly appreciates the metaphor, I think Mr. Ramírez should have added that failing the TAKS would turn these children into a bunch of burritos.

Shakira, World Bank Launch $300M Initiative. Socks for Former Chief Not in the Agenda

~ Mi Blog es tu Blog ~ Leave a comment

Attention Shakira lovers -and World Bank haters: The Colombian singer is expected to announce today (Monday, Feb. 22) a $300 million joint initiative with the World Bank aimed “at expanding development programs for young children in Latin America.”

According to the World Bank:

“The Early Childhood Initiative: An Investment for Life seeks to mobilize policy makers, public opinion and resources towards the adoption of Early Childhood programs in the region, which have proven to be critical in helping kids achieve their full potential in life.”

Shakira will join World Bank’s president, Robert B. Zoellick, at an event in Washington D.C on Monday, February 22 at 1pm EST.
No word yet if any of these resources will be pumped into Shakira’s own Pies Descalzos Foundation, but perhaps Zoellick will want to set some money aside to help colleague and former World Bank prez Paul “He Wolf” get a new pair of socks.

Perhaps?

socks.jpg
Fiscally conservative Paul Wolfowitz entering the Selimiye Mosque in Turkey (2007)

Washington Hispanics Excel at Spanish. I Want to Move There to Excel at Something

~ Mi Blog es tu Blog ~ Leave a comment

Of all the shocking revelations I’ve been exposed to lately, this one takes the cake: Hispanics and Chinese students are packing college-level Spanish and Chinese language classes and acing their AP tests at rates far higher than their English-speaking peers.

According to the Washington Examiner:

In Maryland, Virginia and D.C., public school students identified as Mexican-American, Puerto Rican or “other Hispanic” passed Advanced Placement Spanish language and literature exams at a rate of nearly 80 percent, compared with less than 60 percent of their white peers and less than 30 percent of black students.

This state of affairs has some native, U.S.-born English speakers kind of upset, because not only we are taking their jobs but we are beating them to language proficiency. [It also has made me kind of jealous since I’ve never really excelled at anything.]

Hat tip: F. Benitez