New Mexico Kids! November/December 2018

Page 16

Albuquerque

ACT, SAT & PARCC Test Prep ongoing NOW! Focusing on K-12

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The Homework place and more W

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DI D I N H A N D T O M AK E A

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Regular Hours: 3:30-6:30pm Mondays-Thursdays

Homework Help & Enrichment!

New Math Skills & Advancement Hours Saturday 11am-1pm

(505) 307-4170 www.mytutorme.com

5528 Eubank, Suite 6, Albuquerque, NM 87111

facebook.com/mytutorme Santa Fe

PRESCHOOL - ELEMENTARY For 40 years... Little Earth School has provided a successful program of academic excellence for children preschool through elementary. Children learn through an integrated, developmentally appropriate and experiential curriculum which includes art, music, Spanish, yoga, environmental and multicultural studies and emphasizes respect for self and others.

Open House November 3

NEW program for TWO year old s!

T ou r Begin s at 1 0:30 321 West Zia Road

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LittleEarthSchool.org

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505.988.1968

Santa Fe Epne O

Latin art

no text books

ronll E ingnr Koinllm dere gnart tefo nrfog rr2a0d 1e8s1K 9!-6

www.FayetteStreetAcademy.org New Mexico Kids!

November/December 2018

four day school week

weekly packets

830 Fayette Street, Santa Fe, NM 87505 (505) 982-3396

Greek

brain gym

tree-climbing course

multi-age classrooms

craft weeks

16

located in Santa Fe, teaching students ages 5-12.

UNM Programs Teaches Environmental Advocacy By EFRAIN VILLA

Math - Science - English & More! Call for a FREE trial. Best Prices guaranteed!!

now enrolling 2018-19

Kid Lobbyists! For the past 25 years, 4th through 12th grade students participating in the University of New Mexico’s Wild Friends of New Mexico program have learned about nature and civics through first-hand research and political advocacy. “I think it is really important to ensure that children are engaged through civics at an early age,� says Dr. Stephanie Sanchez, a program specialist with the Graduate Resource Center at UNM who participated in the program when she was a child. “I think that the experience with Wild Friends really helped me solidify the relationship between what happens in daily life and our government. It gave me more confidence in how I and others can be active participants in making positive policy changes.� In the first semester of each school year, Wild Friends students learn about environmental issues and how they overlap with public policy. Once students have been Wild Friends participants from LBJ exposed to the subject matter through guest lectures, classroom Middle School learn about pollinators at activities and outdoor field trips, Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge. Courtesy photo. they use what they have learned to develop a piece of legislation that they lobby for during the legislative session in Santa Fe. Last year, the students created a pollinator-friendly plant guide that was distributed to legislators, botanical gardens, nature centers, cooperative extension offices and 20 local nurseries in nine communities throughout the state. The brochure, featuring original student art and content, was produced as part of a New Mexico Senate memorial written by Wild Friends participants. The public is encouraged to download the guide free-of-charge at wildfriends.unm.edu. “This year, the legislation is going to be a bill to establish a new specialty license plate that enables the protection of pollinators, such as birds, bats, butterflies and bees,� says Sue George, director of Wild Friends of New Mexico. “Proceeds from the sale of the license plates will go to the New Mexico Department of Transportation to increase pollinator-friendly planting along roadsides and establish demo gardens at New Mexico rest area stops.� Retired State Senator Dede Feldman has been a longtime supporter of the program. “I think it's a wonderful concept that gets students involved in their communities and encourages them to address really important themes affecting the planet,� says Feldman. Helen Stein has been teaching elementary and middle school students in Albuquerque for 35. “I've been participating for about three years now and really enjoy the legislative session component,� Stein says. “What I like most is that after the students do the research and learn a lot about how our laws are made and about how civics and local government work, they get to see how powerful their own voices are when they talk to our elected officials. They learn to express themselves really well and I think that can really affect them in whatever they go on to do in life.� Wild Friends is currently in 12 schools around the state. “We encourage interested schools to fill out an application,� George says. The program is funded through legislative appropriations, grants, donations and fundraising.


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