(cheerful piano music begins)
♪ You are the best you the world will see ♪
♪ Come along now and share you with me ♪
♪ Let's learn something new and share feelings too ♪
♪ 'Cause these are the things to do to be the best you ♪
(cheerful piano music)
- Hi, Possum! Hello, friends!
- Hi, Auntie Lena!
- How are you doing today?
- Oh, I'm great!
I had so much fun at school.
- Well, what did you do?
- We had show and tell.
(Auntie Lena laughs)
Do you know what that is, Auntie Lena?
- I sure do.
I loved show and tell when I was going to school.
Show and tell was a chance to talk about things
that were special to me.
What did you share with your classmates?
- Oh, I showed everyone my shell collection.
Every time Mama Possum and I go to the beach,
we search for shells
and then choose our favorite one to take home.
- Someday you'll have to show me your shells.
Did the class like your collection?
- Oh, they did.
Um, but Auntie Lena?
- Yes, Possum?
- Mm, Turtle didn't have as much fun
at show and tell today as I did.
- Oh, well why is that? What happened?
- Well, Turtle showed us how the scales of her shell
come off so that she can grow.
But well, some of our classmates said, "Eww,"
and I think that made Turtle feel embarrassed.
- Well, that wasn't very nice of them.
- No, it wasn't.
Turtle hid for the rest of show and tell.
- Well, I can understand why she wanted to hide.
It hurts to share something with others
just to hear them laugh,
especially when it's a big part of who you are.
- I wish Turtle could talk to me about it.
I would try to help her feel better.
- Sometimes, one way that we can help our friends
to feel better is to let them have quiet time by themselves.
Do you remember why quiet time is important?
- Ummmm... Oh! It helps us calm down.
- Exactly.
Turtle probably needed some quiet time
to calm down and feel safe.
- Mh? Feel safe?
But we weren't in any danger, Auntie Lena.
- No, Possum.
I'm talking about a different kind of safety.
Sometimes, feeling safe means being comfortable
with yourself and the way you feel.
I know a story that might help you understand.
- Oh. Oh, what is it?
- It's called "The Boy & the Bindi" by Vivek Shraya.
- Uh, what's a bindi?
- Let's find out.
Let's listen with our friends at Kent Library.
- Hey, everybody.
- Hey. - I'm Dr. Thomas.
- And I'm Andersyn.
- And we're here at the Kent Library.
Today we'll be reading "The Boy & the Bindi,"
written by Vivek Shraya, and illustrated by Rajni Perera.
Have you seen my Ammi's dot?
It's a bright and pretty spot.
- What's Ammi?
- Ammi is another word for mommy.
- Oh.
[Andersyn] Her dot comes in every hue.
She likes red and sometimes blue.
- [Dr. Thomas] She peels and pastes it like a sticker.
Gently with her thumb and finger.
- [Andersyn] Above her nose is where it goes.
What is this dot?
I want to know!
- [Dr. Thomas] "Ammi, why do you wear that dot?
What's so special about that spot?"
"It's not a dot," says my Ammi,
"It's not a spot, it's a bindi!"
- [Andersyn] "What's a bindi? What does it do?"
"My bindi keeps me safe and true."
- [Dr. Thomas] "How does it do that, Ammi, how?"
"Well, when I stick it on my brow-"
- [Andersyn] "My bindi tells me where I'm from.
My bindi reminds me of my mom
and when she gave me my first one."
- [Dr. Thomas] I look at her bindi with this view,
I too would like to be safe and true.
"Ammi, can I have a bindi to wear?
Do you have one more to spare?"
- [Andersyn] She smiles and reaches in her drawer.
"Ta-da!," she says, "This one is yours!"
- [Dr. Thomas] She sticks it on my bare forehead.
- [Andersyn] But in the mirror, I don't see red.
What a surprise to discover yellow is my bindi color!
- Andersyn, if you had a bindi,
what color would you want yours to be?
- I would want mine to be pink.
- Oh, that is an awesome choice.
- Thanks.
- [Dr. Thomas] As soon as it's on, I feel so calm,
like all the noise around is gone.
- [Andersyn] But when I'm outside, people stare.
Maybe they want a bindi to wear.
My friends at school all want to know:
"What is that dot above your nose?"
- [Dr. Thomas] I do not have the words to say,
but if I close my eyes and wait,
my bindi turns into a star,
and then my forehead turns into the sky,
that's when all my fears fade out of sight
and my body feels so light,
Ammi was so very right!
- [Andersyn] So, now I leave it on my face.
My bindi will always have its place.
When I bathe or go to bed,
my bindi stays on my forehead.
- [Dr. Thomas] Not just because of the glue
or because it keeps me true,
but sometimes I've felt small like a dot,
and sometimes ugly like a blot.
- [Andersyn] But if a Bindi can be more than a spot
and bring beauty where there was not,
maybe I can too.
- [Dr. Thomas] Have you seen my yellow dot?
It's a bindi, not a spot.
"Why do you wear a Bindi?," you say.
"Why is it so special anyway?"
- [Andersyn] Well, my bindi is like a third eye
watching over me all the time
making sure I don't hide everything I am inside
and everything that I can be.
- [Dr. Thomas] Thank you Ammi, for my bindi!
The end.
- Thank you for joining us.
Bye.
- Did you like that story Possum?
- Yes.
Oh, I liked that the boy's bindi
helped keep him safe and true.
- That's right.
It reminded him about who he is and where he comes from.
- Mhm. (gasping) Just like Turtle's shell.
- Exactly.
It's important to stay true to ourselves
and to the things that are special to us
even if others don't like them or understand them.
- Mh. Oh, Auntie Lena?
What's something that makes you feel safe and true?
- Hmm. That's a good question, Possum.
Oh, I think it'll be easy for you to guess.
It's something that I wear every day.
- Hmm. Oh!
Your glasses! (Auntie Lena laughs)
- No.
- Hm. Oh! I know! Your sweater vest.
- Yes!
- I can't imagine you
without a vest. (Auntie Lena laughs)
- Me neither.
I wouldn't feel like myself.
- But has anyone ever made fun of your vests?
- They sure have, but it never stopped me from wearing one.
I feel unique and confident when I wear a vest.
Plus, I love finding vest of different colors
to add to my collection.
- Wow, you're brave, Auntie Lena.
- (laughing) Choosing to be yourself is always brave.
Would you like to learn how to help our friends stay safe
and true?
- I would.
- Well, let's go to the Nepantla Cultural Arts Gallery
and see what art project Miss Maya has
to share with us today.
(gentle guitar music)
- Hello, friends.
My name is Miss Maya,
and today we're here at the Nepantla Cultural Arts Gallery
in White Center.
So, today we'll be making handprint flowers
while learning a little bit about emotional safety.
So, I'm going to start by showing you guys an example
of what we're going to be making today.
This.
[Miss Maya] What you'll need for this project will be paint,
paintbrushes, and a piece of paper.
I'm going to start by using green paint.
And we're gonna put it on our little pallet thing here.
And then we're gonna start by painting the grass
[Miss Maya] at the bottom of the page
just going straight up like this.
(gentle guitar music)
So, emotional safety means
that you feel comfortable being yourself,
sharing your thoughts, feelings, and ideas
[Miss Maya] to the people you're surrounded by.
[Miss Maya] When is the time that you feel safe?
I feel safe when I am making art.
Making art brings a lot of joy to me,
and it makes me feel happy,
and just, I feel very comfortable when I make art.
[Miss Maya] Now that we've reached the end of the paper,
we're going to mark where we want the stem
of the flower to be.
And I'm gonna put mine right in the middle,
or near the middle I should say.
[Miss Maya] And I'm going to curve the line
so that it goes up towards the middle of the paper.
[Miss Maya] It doesn't have to be perfect.
And then once we have that stem,
this is where things get interesting.
We're going to choose our favorite color.
And for me, I think mine is purple.
So, what we're going to do
is put the paint in your hand like this.
[Miss Maya] It's gonna be really messy.
[Miss Maya] Just, oh, bear with me.
And then you're gonna rub it in your hands
and make sure it's fully covered and whatnot.
[Miss Maya] And then you're going to press one hand down,
and then lift it up.
[Miss Maya] And then you're gonna press your next hand down,
and then lift it.
[Miss Maya] And then you're gonna press your next hand down,
and lift it.
And then you are going press again
and lift,
and then press again and lift.
[Miss Maya] And there's your flower.
Grab some wipes for my hands to clean them
'cause you don't want the paint
to get all over your clothes.
Once you're done with that,
you can feel free to add a sun
or add birds,
whatever you want.
[Miss Maya] Just make a
a circle right up here
for the sun.
The sun makes me happy.
So, we're gonna go in with some,
let's make some bluejays
with our blue paint.
[Miss Maya] Let's use a paintbrush.
[Miss Maya] And I'm gonna make, let's do, like, three.
[Miss Maya] Three, three birds.
And then let's do another one here.
Who's someone that you feel like you can count on?
For me, it would be my parents,
because they've been there for me through thick and thin,
and their love is very much so unconditional.
[Miss Maya] And let's do one more bird.
[Miss Maya] Right here.
So, this is how it should look.
Something like this.
It doesn't have to look exactly like this because,
remember, we're being creative.
Thanks for joining us, friends.
Bye.
(cheerful guitar and whistle music)
- [Possum] It's time for Movement Minute!
- Hi, I'm Miss Crystal from the Seattle Storm,
and welcome to Movement Minute.
Today I'm gonna show you guys how to do inch worms.
So, we're gonna start out,
you're gonna go and reach and touch your toes
and then walk out.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
Hands up, back down.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
Hands up, back down.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
Stick with me, guys. One more.
Hands up, down.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
Whew. That was a workout, friends.
Thanks for joining me with Movement Minute today.
Bye.
- Okay, Possum.
Now it's your turn.
- Uh, my turn for what?
- What makes you feel safe and true?
- Oh.
Hmm.
- Well, let me ask you this.
Is there something or someone
who you would feel sad or lost without?
- Mama Possum is special to me.
I would feel really sad without her.
- So, Mama Possum makes you feel safe?
- Mhm, she does.
And we do so many fun things together
like going to the beach and reading
and gardening and cooking.
- Oh, I love to cook with my family too.
When we're all together in the kitchen,
we laugh and talk and feel free to be ourselves.
- Oh, can we cook with our friends, Auntie Lena?
- We sure can.
Let's go to the Rainier Beach Urban Farm and Wetlands
and see what our friends are making today.
- [Both] Hi.
- My name is Miss MarcKia and this is my son.
- Braylon.
- Today we're gonna make a tasty snack
for you called hummus.
Braylon, would you like to start with the first ingredient?
- Okay.
- We're going to squeeze a fourth a cup
of fresh lemon juice.
All right.
I think that's about right. That's enough.
So, once we squeeze the lemon juice in,
we're going to add the lemon juice
and a fourth a cup of tahini into the blender.
Will you pass me the lemon juice, please?
- Okay. - Thank you.
- You're welcome.
- This is a fourth a cup of tahini
that we're gonna add to the blender.
So, after we've added the lemon juice and the tahini,
we're going to blend both for 30 seconds.
[Miss MarcKia] When we're blending,
it's important to have an adult blend for you
just to make sure that we're doing it in a safe way.
(blender whirs)
The next ingredient we're gonna use is
half a tablespoon of salt.
Braylon, will you pass me the salt, please?
- Okay. - We're gonna add that
to the blender.
What's the next ingredient?
- It's the garlic.
- A minced garlic clove. We're gonna add that.
And then our next ingredient
is gonna be half a teaspoon of cumin.
So, can you pass me that please?
- Okay.
- The next ingredient we're gonna use
is two tablespoons of olive oil,
and we'll add that to the blender.
So, the olive oil is really smooth.
We're gonna add all of those ingredients
that we just put into the blender,
we're gonna mix those for about 30 seconds.
(blender whirs)
All right.
So Braylon, can you tell me
what the next ingredient is gonna be?
- The chickpeas and the three tablespoons of water.
- Okay. So we're gonna add half of the can of chickpeas.
So, can you pass me the chickpeas, please?
- Yes.
- Thank you.
- Welcome.
- So, once we've added half a can of chickpeas,
we're gonna blend those.
(blender whirs)
All right.
And so, our final ingredient
is gonna be three tablespoons of water.
So Braylon, can you hand me the water?
And I'll mix that in with the rest of the chickpeas.
Here's our water.
[Miss MarcKia] Thank you.
- Welcome.
- And we'll add the rest of the chickpeas.
All right.
Can you sit that back over there?
And we're gonna blend those for about one minute.
(blender whirs)
All right, so now we have all of our ingredients
blended together,
and we can put those in a bowl.
All right. It looks delicious.
What do you think?
- Yes. - All right.
- So, usually when we have hummus as a snack,
we eat it with some pita bread.
So, you wanna try it with me?
- Yes.
- Okay, so you can take your spoon if you'd like
and put some on your bread.
So Braylon, what makes you feel safe?
- When, like, my parents are taking care of me and my needs.
And hugs.
- And hugs? Hugs make you feel safe?
- Yes. - I love giving you hugs.
You give the best hugs.
- Thank you.
- All right, let's try our hummus.
- Mm.
- Mm, delicious. It's very good.
So, how does food and cooking make us feel safe?
- Because healthy food makes our health better.
- Makes our bodies healthy,
- Yes. - if we cook healthy food?
- Yes. - Yes? Sounds good.
- Thanks for doing us today.
- Bye, everyone.
- Oh, I can't wait to show that recipe to Mama Possum.
(gasping) Oh, and maybe I'll invite Turtle over,
and she can show Mama possum her shell.
- That's a great idea, Possum.
I think Turtle will appreciate that
after what happened during today's show and tell.
- You really think so?
- Yes. It will be a nice reminder for Turtle that,
as her friend,
you care about the things that are special to her.
- And that she can feel safe and true with me.
- Exactly.
- Auntie Lena?
I thought of someone else who makes me feel safe and true.
- Oh, who's that?
- You!
- Oh, and I feel safe and true with you too, Possum.
- Aw, (laughing) thank you, Auntie Lena.
- You're welcome.
And friends, thank you for taking the time
to Look, Listen and Learn with us today.
Remember, you are the best you that the world will ever see.
- Bye, for now.
- Bye-bye.
Stay tuned after the credits for Auntie Lena's Parent Tip.
(inspirational piano and strings music)
What makes you feel safe, like you belong?
Is it wearing a sweater vest,
eating a yummy bowl of beans and rice,
or saying your daily prayers?
Today's episode on feeling safe and being true to yourself
is an important conversation
to help build your child's confidence and self-esteem.
Key ingredients for success.
Our story, "The Boy and the Bindi,"
demonstrates how something that may be ordinary
to one person can be extra special to someone else.
What one person may call a dot,
is actually a point of safety and comfort for others.
The story makes me stop and think
about the people, foods, symbols and rituals
that help me feel safe and true to myself.
What about you?
Talk to your child about what helps them feel
safe, good, and true.
As we learn from today's story, a bindi is more than a spot.
It can bring beauty where there's none.
Help your little learner discover the beauty and comfort
in their lives too.