The Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance Visits our Community Senior Group

 Last week, our community's senior group, which has the catchy name "Ageless and Unstoppable," and is sponsored by a local realtor, Kali Hepker, and our area's Metro District, hosted a wonderful visit by the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance.  All registered participants met at our community Ranch House one morning on a bright blue-sky day. The bit of snow we had already melted, except for the north face of one of our high foothills in the distance.

There, we all met a wonderful Outreach Program Specialist, James Garcia. 

James has been with Denver Zoo for 22 years, most of which have been with "Zoo to You Community Outreach Programs."

 He had four different zoo species to show us on this visit — the first being a Red-tailed Hawk.

The Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance, according to Wikipedia,  is an 80-acre (32 ha) nonprofit zoological garden and conservation organization located in City Park of Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1896, it is operated by the Denver Zoological Foundation and funded in part by the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District (SCFD). Its other sources of funding are ticket sales and private donations. It is the most visited paid attraction in Denver.

Denver Zoo was started with the donation of an orphaned American black bear. With the construction of Bear Mountain, it became the first zoo in the United States to use naturalistic zoo enclosures rather than cages with bars.  It expanded on this concept with Primate Panorama, featuring huge mesh tents and open areas for apes and monkeys, and with Predator Ridge, which has three separate areas through which animals are rotated so that their overlapping scents provide environmental enrichment.

James explained the Red-tailed Hawk's diverse North American habitat, hunting abilities, and distinguishing features of this common bird of prey. The red-tailed hawk preys on small mammals such as rodents and lagomorphs, but also opportunistically consumes birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians. 

In the short video clip above, you can hear the hawk's distinctive high-pitched sound

The next creature James showed us was a lizard commonly called a  Shingleback Stink (Tiliqua Rugosa). The species is widely distributed in arid to semiarid regions of southern and western Australia. It is an omnivore that eats snails, insects, carrion, vegetation, and flowers.

The third creature that James showed us was the most surprising to me! It was a Boreal Toad. 

They are commonly found in the western U.S. and western Canada. 

 It is known in Colorado as the only alpine species of toad. It prefers high-altitude wet habitats (8,000–12,000 ft -- 2,438.4 meters-3,657.6 meters in elevation) such as lakes, marshes, ponds, bogs, and quiet shallow water.

Sadly, Boreal toad populations have declined recently due to an emerging amphibian disease, chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd).

 The boreal toad is currently listed as an endangered species by Colorado and New Mexico.

James explained how the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance and Colorado Parks and Wildlife are studying the boreal toad and hoping to breed ones that are fungus-resistant and reintroduce them back into their natural habitat. 

Boreal toads feed on a wide range of invertebrates and insects, including flies, mosquitoes, grasshoppers, beetles, and moths. 

The last creature that James exhibited was the Corn Snake.

James laughed when some people in the audience grimaced and groaned at the sight of the snake. He said that snakes are not well-loved, but that they play a very important role in the environment, and the earth would suffer without them. He said that when he shows a rabbit, an audience will usually smile and say "Aww" with affection, but in his 22 years of handling assorted creatures, the only one that ever bit him was a rabbit!

The Corn Snake is found throughout the southeastern and central United States. The corn snake is named for the species' regular presence near grain stores, where it feeds on the mice and rats that eat harvested corn.

James pointed out that while many people feel zoos are hurtful to wildlife by keeping them captive, zoos are usually more helpful and holistic these days, with many conservation programs that are helping to preserve species from total elimination due to the destruction of their habitat

through poaching, pollution, overdevelopment, deforestation, loss of prey, diseases, climate change, etc. 

I believe all the seniors in attendance enjoyed Mr. Garcia's presentation and learned a lot about the different species he showcased. We are also excited to know that, as a follow-up, we will all be visiting the Denver Zoo together in April for a guided zoo tour. I've visited the Denver Zoo many times with my grandchildren, but I'm looking forward to this "adult visit" very much!

Have a very Happy Spring!

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"Alice Dancing Under the Gallows"

Every now and then, I come across a YouTube movie that takes my breath away. I usually put them under the YouTube graphic in my blog's sidebar, and there is one there now that is also worth watching.

This video called "Alice Dancing Under the Gallows" is the Official Trailer for a new documentary short about the oldest Holocaust survivor in the world, Alice Herz-Sommer.  This interview with her, and some of her friends who were also Holocaust survivors, is so compelling that I think you will find it is one you will want to share with many.

Alice was a 39-year-old concert pianist in Prague in 1943 when she and her husband and six-year-old son were arrested and sent to the Nazi concentration camp Theresienstadt. I could not imagine the horrors she saw in her days in that camp, but playing music helped her to persevere. At the age of almost 107 years old she continues to live with hope and optimism. She is truly inspirational!

The video begins by running dark for a few seconds, but will soon open.

 

Rockefeller Park & The Real World

This is the conclusion of the walk I took along the Battery Park City Park Esplanade that runs along a portion of lower Manhattan west side along the Hudson River from Chambers Street to historical Battery Park...part one can be read here, and part two here. This beautiful walkway is filled with wonderful walkways, parks, meadows and flower beds. I am now in the section known as the Nelson A. Rockefeller Park, located in the north end of Battery Park City, west of River Terrace. The fountain in the photo above emptied into a man made pond.  You can see the stone top of the Irish Hunger Memorial in the background, and beyond that is the construction of the Freedom Tower on the former World Trade Center site. (all photos will enlarge when clicked on once and then click on once again when they open on a new page.)

This happy looking duck in the pond was enjoying his view of the Hudson River

Rockefeller Park contains most of Battery Park Conservancy Parks’ wide lawns, as well as a large playground, plantings and gardens, several public art pieces, and a sheltered pavilion. This playground contains a peddle-propelled carousel, climbing, running and jumping equipment for all different ages, plus sprinklers, swings and sand boxes.

The Rockefeller Park House loans board games and ping pong paddles, balls and jump ropes and has a first aid kit if needed.  A basketball and a handball court are nearby. 

The park is overseen by the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy, which provides amazing array of children's programs from May 1 to October 31.

Many of the flower beds in the park were filled with bushes filled with delightful large hibiscus flowers!

I also spotted lots of pink lilies, echinacea, and wild roses.

One of the large lawns in the park with a view of Jersey City, New Jersey, which is located across the Hudson River.

The most magical place in Rockefeller Park is Tom Otterness' "The Real World," which is a small sculpture garden at the northeast end of the park, bordering River Terrace.

Small bronze footprints wind a path toward the circular wading pool, where water rushes in at one end and sweeps out the other.

Tiny whimsical creatures lurk everywhere; on top of tables, and underfoot, even on top of lamp-posts.

The Park House will loan chess or checkers pieces if you'd like to play.

This bird better watch out as the cat has his eye on him!

A close up at all the detail in the fountain. A penny for your thoughts?

Is this frog a prince in disguise?  The Battery Park City building that houses the Poet's House can be seen in the background

This was my favorite sculpture. It is a working water fountain that has a friendly brass bulldog chained to it!

A photo collage of some more of the fanciful figures in the sculpture garden!

The Battery Park City Park Esplanade ends in the vicinity of Stuyvesant High School, which is located at 345 Chambers Street. Stuyvesant is a specialized high school for mathematics, science and technology, and is one of the premier high schools in the United States. It is noted for its strong academic programs, and has produced many notable alumni, including four Nobel laureates. Run by the New York City Department of Education, it is open to New York City residents and charges no tuition. Admission is by competitive examination.   I'm proud to say that my son is an alumnus, and was one of the first classes to attend the high school when this new building opened in Battery Park City in 1992, when the school was moved from the former east side location that was built in 1904.  We have witnessed quite a bit of the development of Battery Park City through the years, and even through the events of 9-11 severely effected the quality of life in that area for some time, the neighborhood has rebounded and is thriving and is definitely better than ever. 

The Battery Park City Park Esplanade is a wonderful place to visit and I hope you enjoyed walking along with me to see all it's interesting sights!

I'm linking to "Pink Saturday" on Beverly's blog "How Sweet The Sound."  One of my favorite blogs to visit on Pink Saturday is Susan's blog Black Eyed Susan's Kitchen.  Please visit Beverly to see the list of participating Pink Saturday blogs to visit and drop by Susan's and say hello!

The Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company

If you are a frequent reader of my blog you know I am a very proud life long resident of Brooklyn, New York, and that I always try to show this large and populous borough of the City of New York in a positive way, but even I was surprised to learn that Superheros like to shop here!  Are there really true Superheros in the world today?

 (all photos will enlarge when clicked on)

The Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company store is located at 372 5th Ave., Brooklyn, New York, between 5th and 6th Street in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn.

If you click on to enlarge this photo you will read their supply list and a list of services. They advertise "one stop for all your foe battling needs."  Hmmm...I think that a service that even non superheroes could use!

Peeking into the window I saw cans of omnipotence, bravery, immortality and an alternate universe.

Curious, I decided to go inside. The signs in the photo mosaic above were prominently displayed in the lobby.  It all sounds so official!

This was the first view I saw of the store when I walked in.  Superhero capes and costumes were for sale, but I could see that this was not just a costume store.

They also had the supplies a Superhero and his, or her, sidekick might need! There were cans of things like gravity and anti gravity, x-ray vision, muscle, invincibility and intelligence.

There were boxes full of devices, such as invisibility detection goggles and night vision binoculars. There was even an evil blob containment capsule!

The economy sized plastic jugs of telekinesis, telepathy and e.s.p. seemed to be big sellers.

Need replacement parts for your cyborg robot?  Step right up and order them here!

During the time I was browsing in the store I saw two little Superheros use this special "devillainizer" wind chamber to make sure their capes were not corrupted.

Although all the items shown here are actually for sale, both at the store and through mail order from the web site, the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company is not just a novelty store, it is literally a front for the charitable non profit organization called  826NYC, with all sales going to the organization. 

 826NYC is dedicated towards supporting students ages 6 to18 to develop their creative and expository writing skills, and it also helps teachers to inspire their students to write.  826NYC provides free drop-in tutoring, after-school workshops, in-schools tutoring, help for English language learners, and assistance with student publications.

  Inside the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company store there are "secret" rooms located behind the shelves, where free after school drop in tutoring sessions are held Sunday through Thursday, along with special after school and summer workshops ranging from playful to practical, and taught by volunteer writers, artists, educators and publishing professionals.

826 National was founded in 2002 by author David Eggers and co-founder Nínive Calegari, at the flagship location in San Francisco, known as 826 Valencia. It has since grown into seven more chapters across the country: Los Angeles, New York City, Seattle, Chicago, Ann Arbor, Boston, and Washington D.C., several of which offer a unique storefront retail experiences as fundraisers, all with different themes.

826NYC's writing center opened its doors in September 2004. Since then their programs have offered well over one thousand students opportunities to improve their writing and to work side by side with community volunteers.

Do you want to learn more about the services of 826?  Watch this informative Youtube video.  Pay attention towards the end of the video and you'll see the secret passage to the tutoring room in the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Store revealed.

So, are there true Superheros in the world today?  Yes!  Each and every 826 National volunteer and all the children who participate in literacy programs throughout the country are Superheros.  Hopefully, they will someday make the world a better place.

Teacher Resources

I am very proud of my children.

My son works for a bipartisan organization that serves the legislators of our nation's 50 states, as a representative in the field of education, and his wife, my daughter-in-law, is a kindergarten teacher, and now my daughter, who has been in a high powered business job for five years, has almost completed a Master Degree program in elementary education.
My daughter had her first official day of class room observation in an NYC public school yesterday. She was very touched because a little girl in the class made a card for her which said: "I like you! Please come back soon." That made my daughter's resolve to teach someday all the stronger

Teaching is a noble profession that requires much stamina, dedication and creativity.
Luckily, for today's teachers, the Internet has a wealth of information available to help them plan and enhance their lessons, to do arts and crafts to decorate their classrooms, and suggest many topics for their students to explore.

I've been collecting teacher resource web sites for a long time to share with my daughter-in-law and my daughter, and I'd love to share them with you.

I also have a request that if you have any in your favorite files that I don't mention, please put a link in your comments, and I'll edit my post to add it.

Thanks so much!



Education World -- lesson planning, professional development, technology integration, school issues, the administrator's desk.
The Educator's Reference Desk -- resource guides, lesson plans, question archives, search GEM and ERIC
I Love That Teaching Idea -- We inspire teachers with practical, teacher-created ideas and resources that you can use in your classroom immediately.
Teachnet.com -- lesson plans, power tools, sharing, help
Teachers Net -- teaching ideas and lesson plans
Federal Resources For Educational Excellence -- teaching and learning resources from Federal Agencies
Teacher Vision -- dedicated to helping teachers save time. Find 15,000 pages of classroom-ready lesson plans, printables, and resources. Some are free, some require a subscription
The Teacher's Corner -- lesson plans, thematic units, seasonal items, printable worksheets, message boards, bulletin boards, book nook, etc.
Teacher Tube -- an online community for sharing instructional videos.
Embracing the Child -- literature for learning and shared reading
DLTK's Printable Crafts for Kids -- a variety of fun, printable children's crafts, coloring pages and more including projects for holidays, educational themes and some of our children's favorite cartoon characters
New York Times Learning Network -- grades 3 -12 connections for parents student and teachers
Scholastic -- teacher resources, student activities, books and authors
Homework NYC -- New York City Library resources for students and teachers
National Geographic Educator's Site -- geography resources for educators
Atlapedia Online -- full-color physical maps, political maps as well as key facts and statistics on countries of the world
The History Place -- dedicated to students, educators, and all who enjoy history
A to Z Teacher Stuff -- teacher resources, lesson plans, themes, tips, printable, and more
The Teacher's Room -- sharing teaching ideas with other kindergarten teachers online
Exploratorium -- the museum of science, art and human perception
Crayola -- free coloring pages, crafts, creative resources for teachers
Kids Printables -- kids crafts, song lyrics, jokes and recipes
Sites for Teachers -- hundreds of educational websites rated by popularity
Time for Kids -Teachers -- worksheets,mini-lessons, graphic organizers
PBS Teachers -- PBS's national web destination for high-quality preK-12 educational resources

ETA: 2/27
Teacher's Net Gazette -- features education news, commentary, teaching tips, lessons, pedagogy, classroom crafts, recipes, inspiration, humor, and free printables for the classroom
Administrator's Net -- topics for school administrators
Project Impact -- K to 12 resources for teachers -- many helpful web site links
2/28
Children's Books -- This site is a resource for parents, teachers, librarians, collectors, writers, illustrators, and others who value children and children's books
Teacher Wide -- hundreds of low cost books for children listed by grade level and special interests,some as low as one dollar, bargain bundles, and teacher resource books, classroom supplies
Jan Brett -- projects to extend Jan Brett books to Reading/Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies and Music/Art/Drama. The web projects are ongoing adventures. The goal is to provide educational information that can enhance and enrich any elementary school curriculum
Children's Book Council --a nonprofit trade association and our members are publishers of trade books for children and young adults in the United States
3/4/08
Education Oasis --a not-for-profit, non-commercial siteof free teaching resources created by teachers, for teachers.

Word Magic

I've always loved to learn new words. I'll be the first to admit I am not a scholar, or the most erudite, and crossword puzzles or Scrabble are not my passions, but I've always found myself enthralled by vocabulary and the meanings and usage of words.

I think it began in elementary school where I had a language arts teacher who told us to always reach higher and strive to use a more descriptive word. She would tell us "Don't say big, say ASTRONOMICAL!" As a class assignment we had to keep a journal and write down all the new words we heard and read each day, with their definition, and sometimes the teacher would make us write a composition using ten words from our journal. It created a habit for me to keep a dictionary nearby whenever I read, and I believe I passed on this trait to my children, much to my delight.





Here are some of my favorite linguaphile websites and newsletters that I've discovered over the years:


Wordsmith Wordsmith.org is a worldwide online community of some half-million people who share a love for words, wordplay, language, and literature.

Wordsmith.org was founded in 1994 by Anu Garg, while studying as a graduate student in computer science. I have subscribed to, and enjoyed, Mr. Garg's free A Word A Day newsletter for years. He usually has a theme for the week, sends a word a day with its definition, part of speech, an example of its use in a sentence, with a link to hear its pronunciation, and as an added bonus he adds a daily quotation.

AlphaDictionary Enter a word on this web page's search box and it searches 992 online English dictionaries at once! There a quite a few fun features on their website to explore. I have subscribed to the daily free "What's The Good Word ?" newsletter for years and here, too, a daily word is sent with its definition, parts of speech, pronunciation, "in play" where it is shown how it is used, and "word history" where its etymology is shown.

Vocabulary.com Has root word lesson plans, thematic puzzles, word lists, and test prep/assessment. They have a monthly newsletter which I have recently signed up for. This is a fascinating website to explore and has a wealth of information for teachers to use as a resource.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary and thesaurus, word games, “Word of the Day” and the “Word for the Wise” podcasts

The Visual Thesaurus The Visual Thesaurus is an interactive dictionary and thesaurus which creates word maps that visually blossoms with meanings and branches to related words.
LawGuru A searchable dictionary of over 6,500 commonly used legal terms

Acronymfinder A searchable database to find out what any acronym, abbreviation, or initialism stands for.

Ask Oxford Among all the information about English usage and writing resources there is a section called "World of Words" with information about new words and their usage.
Abbreviations Since many abbreviations and acronyms are learned on a need-to-know basis, visit this site for thousands of entries, including Internet emoticons.
Fun With Words Just that! Anagrams, oxymorons, spoonerisms, malapropisms, and word games to play online. Some annoying pop up ads, but I guess that is how they pay for their bandwidth.

Online Spell Check Not a vocabulary web site, but very helpful to me since the spell check function on blogger hasn't been working lately. I might love words, but I never did well in spelling bees! :-)

Even though I've enjoyed words my whole life, as I am getting older I often find that a word I need at a specific time flies right out of my consciousness, only to pop back in hours later when it's no longer needed! It can be very frustrating. Hmmmmm...... I think I just might have to start exercising my brain by doing those crossword puzzles I've been avoiding for so long.

Anyone know an eleven letter word for "writer's cramp"?