Spring pics

It's been a while since we've posted pictures so, here they are!

Gaily Ezer on Restorative Justice at Mariposa

You may have heard the term Restorative Justice, especially now, as it gains popularity in schools (including Flynn). The main goal of schools that use Restorative Justice is to address interpersonal and behavioral problems in a way that actually solves the issue, by encouraging all sides to share their perspectives, and be open to others’ perspective. They aim to replace the current approach of matching a “consequence” to an “offender”, and instead identify the causes and effects of a conflict on all who are involved, and come up with an appropriate solution.

This is an involved process. It may seem strange, but it seems that getting in touch with one’s feeling, taking responsibility , and committing to change, is HARD. Even putting a finger on how we feel, alone, can be very hard. The good news is that, like knitting and skateboarding, empathy and honest expression are skills that can be learned and improved. One way to work on these skills is to participate in Restorative Justice Circles.

So far, at Mariposa, most of the circles we’ve held had a simple goal: To build trust and respect between members of the community. We play games, and share stories, mostly just to get comfortable, but also because these stories reveal to each one of us how similar many of our experiences really are. It is easier to address conflict and challenge ourselves, when we feel an actual connection to each other.

For example, in our circle with Mariposa’s girls, we explored the shared experience of being a girl. That ended up being a comfortable forum for some girls to express what they felt about sometimes being seen as inferior to boys. Later, other girls requested a circle when one was not scheduled, in order to discuss an ongoing problem in their friendship.

In the coming weeks, we hope to push our circles to the next level, deepen our discussions, and explore ways to genuinely address our conflicts as they arise.

Dance and Movement with Paola and Eva

 

Hello Mariposa families!

This is my first blog post and I am here to check in with you all about the new Dance and Movement workshop Eva and myself have headed up in this new year. We are very excited to be bringing our passion to the kids and I want to tell you more about what that means to us.

First a little background on us: My background is actually in Philosophy of Mind, which would seemingly bear no relation to dance and movement, however it was my interest in cognition and
consciousness that lead me to return to dance and movement in my own life. The first author I encountered on the subject of Somatics was Thomas Hanna. He defined somatics as "...the field of study dealing with somatic phenomena, i.e., the human being as experienced by himself (or herself) from the inside." He defined soma as the body experienced from within. An embodied explanation of
consciousness seemed to cut through all the back and forth dualistic arguments
I encountered in my Philosophy career.

As I continue to read and explore more about embodied consciousness I have come to realize there is a practical aspect to working with our bodies, and have begun to take dance classes for the first time (that is, since I was a little hyperactive girl enrolled in as many physical classes as my mother could find to tire me out each day!). As I began to explore I noticed a lot of new sensations. I noticed quite clearly the things that scare me and that to me feel uncomfortable, as well as those that feel good. I started to notice how some of those uncomfortable things could change, and start to feel pleasurable even, as I softened my approach and listened to what was there. With this exploration of my personal boundaries I was able skyrocket into a thrilling growth process that has inspired me to share the possibilities of self and our own relationship to it with others!

Eva is a beautiful dancer. She studied dance all throughout her schooling in Mexico and continued to dance with a company for many years before her lovely girls came into her life. Mariposa has been an opportunity to share her experience of embodiment with all of us, which I am certainly grateful for. When she expressed interest in doing a dance class with the kids I jumped on the opportunity to work alongside her in this project.

About the Workshop:
As we approached the idea of the Movement workshop we were completely exploratory. Neither of us has taught a children’s dance class before so the first sessions have been quite improvisational. We have learned some things, and solidified some goals and structures, and are moving forward with enthusiasm.

Neither of us felt comfortable from the very beginning with the idea of requirement in an exploratory class, so we approached the children with very few boundaries. They don’t have to come every week, and can leave or join at any time so long as it’s not in the middle of an exercise. We are also trying
to include a variety of elements to keep the doors open to as many kids as are interested. There is usually a circle exercise (to build group coherence), a creative movement activity (to open up and improvise and see what we are drawn to express), and choreography building session. Eva has been KEY in her ability to listen to the children’s movements and reflect them back in flow in order to turn their inspiration in to choreography.

We are hoping to bring together a piece or two to present to the Mariposa community in the coming months! All in all, we are hoping to encourage the kids to try new things, and to feel free to move from their own impulse. We are keeping a respectful and judgment-free environment and hoping that with the opportunity to be embraced by their peers we might see less embarrassment and hesitation when it comes to the individual interaction with the physical world through all the incredibly awkward and challenging stages that lay ahead.

We’ll be movin and shakin every Tuesday afternoon from about 4-5 at Rolph!

-Paola

Fundraiser Highlights by Conrad

A special thanks to all of those who came to the fundraiser, it truly was a special experience. The fundraiser is more than a way to help fund our program. For us Mariposans, it's a chance to step outside our role as child care providers and share our personalities with the families. It's also an opportunity for families to get to know each other outside of being just parents. I imagine for many of you that's an opportunity the comes fairly rarely.

In any case, if you didn't get to come, here's what you missed!

 The prizes (they were numerous).

A letter from Amelia

The first few months of school have whizzed by. Our Mariposa Kids settled nicely into our routine, and we have had some great times together. As it has been the case for years now  our crew has grown and changed enormously over the last little while. Somethings, however, remain the same, for example the audible happiness exuded when our crew gets together. It is a very special thing.  For me it is especially reassuring and nice  to look around and see so many smiling faces, big and small. Mariposa Kids is in many ways my baby growing up and stepping out into the world. And as any parent watching their little one venture off I felt all of the following: anxiety, hope, fear, jubilation, moments of awkward confusion and a lot of pride.

Working with children is a dynamic working environment for adults. If you don’t know what I mean spend an afternoon with us and you soon will. Mariposa Leaders are asked to put on many hats in the course of an afternoon.  This fact makes our Mariposa Leaders feel all the more magical to me. We have so many amazing and passionate people spending time and creating relationships with Mariposa Kids, and this good positive energy of people being with children is working. For example, my ego aside, I love seeing the kids upon exiting the school breeze past me and into the arms of Paola, Conrad, Danny or any of our other Mariposa Leaders. This is what it is suppose to be.

After school is about caring for your children, and providing a safe space to learn and grow and stretch, run, and have fun.  But, if I am going to be really honest with you Mariposa Kids is about so much more. At the core of it, there is a seed of revolutionary learning, to create a healthier, more creative and peaceful world. My hope is that this revolution will be led by children who  can know in their hearts that each of us do indeed CARE for them and RESPECT them and are their to SUPPORT them.

For some this might not seem like such a big deal, but in a world where we spend more money on bombs than on education, and where the murders of urban youth is so rampant that it is the norm-  I say it is absolutely a big deal. No matter how hard we as parents try we cannot shield from

our children the scary truths facing our society. Children are always watching and trying to make sense of the world around them. They are by nature perceptive creatures.

To actively show children, that despite so much evidence to the contrary, there are people in their community (outside of their families) who do truly love and care for them, and value their ideas, I believe is a radical revolutionary act.

I strongly believe that the Mariposa Kids Community Project is such a place, and I am eternally grateful for all of it. For the opportunity to be there, to watch it grow, and in turn grow myself;  to meet so many wonderful people, big and small who make this experience what it is.  I invite you all to come and hang out for an afternoon, participate, have fun, share your expertise, and I promise that you will, along with tired, feel a deep sense of optimism. Kids have that effect.

Halloween Highlights

It was a whirlwind of fun, fear and lots of hard work! Halloween at Mariposa is always a special occasion and we'd like to thank all of the staff, kids and families that contributed to this year's amazing haunted house/carnival. Here are some photo highlights courtesy of professional photographer Kimberly Needham (let us know if you want to get a hold of her!)