(upbeat music)
♪ 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. ♪
(upbeat music)
- Hello Possum and hello friends.
- Uh, hello Auntie Lena.
- Oh, Possum. It sounds like you're a little sad today.
- Oh, I am.
I really miss Turtle.
Well, she's been gone a long time.
- Well, I'm sorry to hear that Possum.
Do you know where she went?
- She went to visit her family in Hawaii.
- Right! You mentioned that.
Well, how does missing Turtle make you feel?
- It makes me feel lonely.
I miss all the fun stuff we do together.
I miss Turtle so much that
I, I, I kind of ache all over.
- Oh, like there's something heavy on your chest.
- Oh, yeah.
- It sounds like heartache Possum.
A deep, deep sadness.
- I wish Turtle would come back.
Well, she's been gone long enough.
- Well, Possum, we can't make Turtle come back.
But it's good that you're talking
about your feelings with someone you trust.
- But how does talking help me?
- It helps us feel less alone.
Sadness is like a heavy load.
It can feel like you're carrying
a big bucket of water all by yourself.
Talking with someone when you're sad
is like having a friend or family member
help you carry the load.
- So it's okay to share my sadness with you?
- Of course, Possum.
- And, what else can I do?
- Well, you can think about
what makes you feel safe and loved.
Maybe a hug from Grandpa Possum,
your favorite stuffed toy
or a big old bowl of worm sketty.
- Well, reading with Mama Possum makes me feel safe.
Maybe I'll ask her to read a story
to me tonight before bedtime.
- A story is a nice idea Possum.
I know a book about a little girl
who misses someone very important to her.
- What's it called Auntie Lena?
- It's called "Missing Daddy" by Mariame Kaba.
Let's listen with our friends at the rented library.
(gentle music)
[Miss Tara And Demi] Hi Friends.
- I'm Miss Tara and this is Demi.
And today we're here at the rented library.
We are going to read the story
"Missing Daddy" by Miriame Kaba
and illustrated by Bria Royal.
Daddy calls me light bug because I'm so pretty and bright.
Since I don't see him very much,
I hold onto his words real tight.
Daddy went away to prison when I was only three.
When I asked my grandma why he's there,
she says, "Baby the reasons are many."
Sometimes my classmates laugh and make fun.
They say, "You know, your daddy's a criminal
so that makes you one."
Is that very nice way to talk?
- No.
- No, look at that.
How do you think she feels?
- She probably feels sad.
- Yeah, she feels sad.
And that's not very nice.
I guess some kids forget
that words can really hurt your feelings.
Grandma says everyone should be kinder
and choose words that are gentle and healing.
That's how we like to be.
I try to be brave and hold back my heavy tears.
I feel a blue wave of sadness.
My daddy won't be home for years.
Mama works day and night.
She's always on her feet.
I miss her, but she says, "Baby, you know we have to eat."
My teacher, Ms. Lee, taught us
that there are all kinds of families.
Some kids only have a mommy or others two daddies.
Those who love us, help us grow no matter who they are.
They are our true family,
whether near or far.
Right.
Our family are the ones who help take care of us.
And everyone's family is different.
I have an older sister named Mary who I never get to see.
She lives with her mommy in a place called DC.
- You went to DC.
- I did go to DC.
I wish we could talk regularly
cause we share the same story.
I want to tell her that I miss Daddy
but I don't want her to worry.
At school I talk to the counselor, Ms. Parker.
I guess it helps me feel a little bit better.
She asks me a lot of questions about my daddy in prison.
Sometimes I don't want to speak
so I talk about my ballet lesson.
- Yeah!
- She wants to talk about other stuff.
That's okay too.
- There's the light bug.
And do you remember why there's a light bug in the story?
- Yes.
- Why?
- Cause she's called light bug.
Her dad calls her light bug.
- Yeah.
When visiting day is near, I can hardly sleep.
I'm so excited.
The happiness in my soul is deep.
Why do you think she's so excited?
- Because she gets to visit her dad.
- Yeah, yay!
- We travel to the prison.
It is far, far away.
Getting there takes grandma and me all day.
Finally, I see Daddy across the visiting room.
His laugh to me is like fireworks,
a loud, colorful boom.
What do you think she wants to do to her dad?
- Uh, hug.
- Give him a big hug!
I think you're right.
I run and jump into his arms and he hugs me tight.
"Good to see you my little light bug.
Always so pretty and bright."
Now look at that.
How is she feeling now
at the end of the story?
- Happy and joyful.
- Yes. Because she gets to see her dad.
Isn't that nice?
- Yeah.
- And that's the end of the story.
- Thanks for reading with us friends.
[Miss Tara and Demi] Bye.
- Auntie Lena, the little girl's dad was in prison?
- Yes, Possum.
Her dad was incarcerated.
It's like a very long time out for grownups.
- Oh, she misses her daddy.
Well, kinda like I miss Papa Possum.
- Yes. And it sounds like she misses
a lot of people in her life.
Her dad was in prison.
Her mother works a lot
and her sister lives in another town.
- Well, I'm glad that she got
to see her daddy on visiting day.
And I like the special name he had for her, light bug.
(Auntie Lena laughs)
- Isn't that a fun name?
It's a special connection that she has with her daddy.
- Like remembering Papa Possum
when I see the lilies in our garden.
- Exactly. His favorite flower.
What are some things that Turtle likes?
- She likes soccer and she also likes to watch the sunset
and name all the different colors in a rainbow.
- Well, maybe we can make something colorful
that reminds you of Turtle.
- Oh, that sounds fun.
- I'm sure Mr. Scott has some ideas.
Let's look, listen and learn
with our friends at the Nepantla Cultural Arts Gallery.
(gentle music)
- Hi friends.
My name is Mr. Mescal
and I'm here in Seattle, Washington
on the ancestral homelands of the Duwamish people.
Today we're gonna be making pinwheels,
and I think I'm gonna make mine for my niece Zoe,
who lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
And is very far away from me
and I've been missing her.
And I wanna invite you to ask the question,
who do I miss?
So some of the materials we're gonna be using today
include colorful paper
and we're gonna cut it into the shape of a square.
We're also gonna need a straw.
And then we're gonna use what's known as either
a chenille stick or a pipe cleaner.
And you might wanna think about
having some different colors,
so you can pick the favorite color
of the person you're gonna make your pinwheel for.
I'm also gonna use a glue stick
and a hole punch
and also some scissors.
All right.
To get started, we're gonna get a square of paper.
And if your paper's a rectangle,
you'll need to cut it into this shape,
which is a square equal on both sides.
And then we're gonna fold it in half.
And because it's a square
it doesn't matter which direction you start with.
So I've folded my paper in half
and then I'm gonna turn it
and I'm gonna fold it the opposite direction.
So I'm gonna line my corners up,
and then I'm gonna press on this edge,
and then I'm gonna fold it and make it
into a really small little square.
And when it's in this small square
I'm gonna get my whole punch
and just poke the corner.
Or I could use my scissors to cut that.
And that's gonna give me a hole right in the middle.
So once I have my hole in the center and my folds,
I'm gonna take my scissors and I'm gonna cut to
just past the halfway point on this.
And my paper has lines,
so I'm just gonna follow the lines.
And on this direction, I don't have a line to guide me.
So I'm just going to imagine a line that goes
straight from this corner to the center.
And I don't want to cut all the way,
just to just pass halfway.
And while we're cutting maybe you might want
to think about who you're missing.
Are they far away?
Maybe they've passed on.
Try to keep them in mind
while you're making this pinwheel for them.
Okay, so now you should have four cuts.
It will look like this.
And we're gonna get a hole punch
and we're gonna poke on all the left ones.
We're gonna poke a hole right on this side.
And I always remember my left because
your hand makes an L when it's the left hand
and the left hand side.
So I'm going to poke a hole
only on the left ones.
So I'm gonna place that down on my paper.
So what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna get my glue stick,
pop the cap off,
and I'm gonna put it on there.
And then I'll put some here as well.
And I'm gonna fold this in
and I'm gonna line it up
with my hole that I made earlier.
So when I'm done, I'll have a hole
that goes all the way through
that I can put a straw into.
So as I'm thinking about this,
I'm calling to mind my loved ones
and though this one's gonna be from my niece,
I have lots of people that are far away from me that I miss.
And maybe you have lots
of people in your life that you miss.
All right.
We're getting near the end of this
but you just be patient and take your time.
It's okay to take your time on this project.
All right.
I think my glue is dry.
So this is what your pinwheel, will look like.
This is the top part.
And what we're gonna wanna do is set
that off to the side for a second.
We're gonna get one of our straws
and we want to come about an inch down.
Then we're gonna use our scissors
and we're gonna cut that off.
All right, so I have two pieces of straw.
So I'm gonna get my longer piece of the straw
And I'm gonna cut through about halfway.
This is a very careful cut
and you might need an adult to help you with this part.
So once I've made that cut
you'll see that it'll open up like that.
So what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna pick.
I wonder which color is the best for my niece?
I think she would like the orange one.
So I'm gonna put it in the bottom of the straw
and I'm gonna open that top part I made.
I'm gonna send that through.
Then I'm gonna put this little piece that we made
put it there, and we're gonna pull some through.
Then what we're gonna do is
we're gonna bend this
to the side, almost like the number seven.
So we have our stem here.
What we're gonna do is we're gonna come through
and I'm gonna push the straw all the way through.
So it's through my holes.
And then what I'm gonna do is with this extra
chenille stick or pipe cleaner
that I have hanging out,
I'm gonna twist it into a little ball.
And then on the bottom piece
I'm gonna twist this up and around like that.
All right, so my pinwheel is all finished.
So maybe you'll have a pinwheel.
And when you spin it
you can think about the person you're missing.
Or maybe you might want to package it up,
or if you travel you could give it to the person
or you could send it to them in the mail.
Thanks for joining us.
- Auntie Lena! Auntie Lena!
Look at the pinwheel I made.
- Wow, that is fabulous.
You did an amazing job.
- Oh, thank you Auntie Lena.
The colors make me feel happy inside.
- I'm glad Possum, when Turtle gets back
you can show her your pinwheel.
I should make one of these
for my sister who lives in Florida.
- Do you miss her Auntie Lena?
- I sure do Possum.
- What do you do to make yourself
feel better when you miss her?
- Well, sometimes I call her and we share stories
about silly things we did when we were kids.
Or I look at my happy list
and find something else that will cheer me up.
- Oh yeah, my happy list.
Oh, sometimes I forget I have it.
- Oh, that's okay.
I keep my happy list in a box by my bed.
That way I can find it when I need it.
- Hmm. And is there anything to eat in that box?
- Oh, Possum!
You are are always ready for a treat, aren't you?
- I sure am.
- Well, let's see what our friends are making today
at Rainier Beach, Urban Farm and Wetlands.
(gentle music)
- [Ibrahim and Layla] Hi friends.
- I'm Ibrahim and I'm here with-
- Layla.
- And today we are here at the
Rainier Beach Urban Farm and Wetlands.
Layla, what are we gonna make today?
- We're gonna make no bake carrot cake bites.
- All right.
So we are gonna make no bake carrot cake bites.
And to make that we are gonna need some ingredients.
So Layla, do you wanna show us
what ingredients we would need?
- We're gonna need rolled oats, raisins, shredded carrots
cinnamon and almond butter.
- All right. So to get us started,
we are gonna take each of our ingredients
and we're gonna pour them into this bowl.
Should we get started with that?
- Okay.
- Oats.
- That's the rolled oats.
- Raisins.
(Layla laughs)
- You did it. Good job.
- The shredded carrots,
cinnamon,
and then the almond butter.
- Can I help you with that one?
Ooh. All right.
So now that we have all of them in
the next step will be to mix all our ingredients together.
Can I get us started?
- Mm-hmm.
- Okay. So we are gonna mix our ingredients.
Make sure it's consistent.
- If I wanted to take these to school
do you think sun butter would work?
- That's such a great question, Layla.
I think you can substitute the almond butter
for your favorite nut butter.
- You could even substitute the raisins for cranberries.
- You sure can, Layla.
You are full of great ideas.
All right.
Do you think it's looking good?
- I think it looks good.
- There we go.
I think it looks real good!
So now that we have all the ingredients mixed together
the next step will be to-
- Roll them into one inch balls.
- We're gonna roll them into one inch balls.
Can I roll the first one?
All right.
This is my first ball,
and I'm gonna put it right here.
- On the baking sheet.
Great job, Layla.
You're such a good roller.
It's perfect.
Can I roll one more?
- Mhm.
- Okay, let's help each other.
We got our last ball here.
Perfect, Layla.
So now that we've rolled them into balls
the next step will be to take them
and put them in the refrigerator.
For how many minutes?
- For 30 minutes.
Well, we have our no bake carrot cake bites ready.
Are you ready to take the first bite Layla?
- Okay.
Mhhh.
- Me too.
Mhhh! Layla it's really good.
We did such a great job.
High five.
Layla, have you ever missed someone?
- Mm-hmm. Yes, I have.
I miss my Baba and Naha.
And the rest of my family who live in Ghana.
- Oh, Baba and Naha are my parents
and I miss them a lot too.
And it's been a long time since I saw them.
And how does that make you feel
when you miss someone, Layla?
- It makes me feel sad and lonely
but some things that make me feel better
are remembering the times that
I have with them and the memories.
And also seeing or imagining the souvenirs
that we have from Ghana.
Those make me feel better.
- Thank you, Layla.
That is so good to make a connection
between the things we have from Ghana
and the people we miss in Ghana.
And I really really hope
that someday we get to see them again soon.
- I have a trick.
- You do have a trick.
Tell me about this trick.
- So if you look up at the sun or the moon,
then you'll know that it's the same sun or moon
that they would look at if they looked up
at the same time as you.
- That is such a good trick because guess what?
The moon and the sun that we see here will be
the exact same moon or sun that they will see in Ghana.
So that is one thing we can all be connected to
and think about when we miss them.
Okay.
- Yeah, it makes you feel closer.
- It makes you feel closer.
Thank you so much for sharing your trick Layla.
Thank you for joining us friends.
- [Ibrahim and Layla] Bye-bye.
(upbeat music)
- How do you fix a broken pumpkin?
With the pumpkin patch!
(Layla laughs)
- What's a bear with no teeth?
A gummy bear!
(Layla laughs)
- Possum. I hope our chat today helps you
feel less sad about missing Turtle.
- It does, but I still wish she was here.
- Oh, that's fine, Possum.
You don't have to stop missing Turtle.
You can remember the fun times you have with her.
- Oh, good idea.
And I'll make a list of the fun things
we can do when she gets back.
Oh, thank you Auntie Lena.
- You are welcome, Possum.
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.
(upbeat music)
- It's time for movement minute.
- Hi friends. I'm Coach Jamila,
and today we're gonna be going through our movement minute.
So we're gonna start with the windmill.
So we're gonna have our feet about shoulder width apart,
nice and flat feet,
arms stretched out nice and wide,
fingertips reaching for the walls.
And we're gonna bend, we're gonna take one hand
and down to the opposite foot,
and then come back up.
And again to the other side down
and then bring it back up.
Keep those tummies nice and tight.
Take it down and up.
Feel that good stretch,
down and up.
Let's do it again,
and up.
Keep reaching nice and wide.
And if you wanna have a little bit of balance
we're gonna pick up one foot
and we're gonna go down.
Whoa.
And come back up and put that foot down
and the other side down and up.
Let's do it again.
Down and up.
Great job.
Thank you so much for joining me today.
Bye.
- Please stay tuned after the credits
for Auntie Lena's parent tip.
(upbeat music)
(guitar thrumming)
- In today's episode,
we learned that we can miss family and friends
for many different reasons.
It can leave us feeling sad, lonely,
lethargic and frustrated.
For early learners, it's important
that we help find words to identify
and express their feelings.
By helping them name what they are feeling,
we help them to discover ways to cope.
Researchers call this ability to cope or calm oneself,
self soothing.
Self soothing is a skill that helps
early learners treat themselves and others
with kindness during stressful times.
This is when the wisdom of elders,
cultural and spiritual practices can offer
comfort and build resilience.
How we take care of ourselves when we're sad
or missing someone is important.
Maybe you prepare a favorite comfort food,
you draw or journal.
Perhaps you take a walk or call someone.
Maybe you light a candle,
take a deep breath or say a prayer.
However you choose to self sooth,
try to remember that sad and lonely times
are an opportunity to calm both ourselves
and our early learners.
Although these experiences can be difficult
they help us bounce back
and be the best that we can be.