dimanche 18 juin 2017

Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop June 2017




Welcome to the Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop!

The Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop is a place where bloggers can share multicultural activities, crafts, recipes, and musings for our creative kids. We can't wait to see what you share this time!

Created by Frances of Discovering the World through My Son's Eyes, the blog hop has now found a new home at Multicultural Kid Blogs.
This month our co-hosts are:


Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop is a place for you to share your creative kids culture posts. It's very easy, and simple to participate!
Just follow these simple guidelines:
  • Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, or Facebook. Please let us know you're following us, and we will be sure to follow you back.
  • Link up any creative kids culture posts, such as language, culture, books, travel, food, crafts, playdates, activities, heritage, and holidays, etc. Please, link directly to your specific post, and no giveaways, shops, stores, etc.
Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop
  • Please grab the button code above and put it on your blog or the post you’re linking up. You can also add a text link back to this hop on your blog post. Note: By sharing your link up on this blog hop you are giving us permission to feature your blog post with pictures, and to pin your link up in our Creative Kids Culture Feature board on Pinterest.
  • Don't be a stranger, and share some comment love! Visit the other links, and comment. Everyone loves comments!
  • The Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop will go live on the 3rd Sunday of the month. It will run for three weeks. The following blog hop we will feature a previous link up post, and if you're featured, don't forget to grab the button below:
Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop


Here's my favorite from last time: 

Teach Your Kids Chinese: The Ultimate Resource Guide to Start With

My children are not learning Chinese, however they have many friends who have at least one of their parents who is Chinese. Leaving in Germany or France means for them that they have to rely on their parents (and sometimes grand-parents) to teach them their mother tongue. Chinese schools (on saturday or in the afternoon) can be found in several cities but it's not always possible for the children to attend the classes. Having helpful and good resources on line can be a great advantage for families. So thank you Miss Panda Chinese for this list of resources!




Thank you for linking-up, and we can't wait to see what you've been up to!



vendredi 26 mai 2017

As people of faith (Guest post from Sarah Ager)

Ramadan is starting tomorrow, Saturday 27th, 2017. Here is a guest post from Sarah Ager - a Christian UK girl who converted to Islam and is now happily married to a Muslim man and lives in Italy - who is the curator of Interfaith Ramadan (this text was written in 2016, but I kinda lost her text until this week when I found it by accident on my computer... God moves in mysterious ways):

le coran image pexels.com

As people of faith, we sometimes act under the assumption that ours is the only way of perceiving God. We hold this view even though Muslims make up only a seventh of the world's population. We sometimes forget that we live in a multi-cultural world alongside people of many diverse beliefs and faith backgrounds, who have their own unique ways of approaching and perceiving the Divine.

There are many lenses through which people perceive the world – the Bible, the Torah, the Qur'an, the Bhagavad Gita – to name just a few. There are a wealth of religious and non-religious texts which guide people in their daily lives – just as the Qur'an acts as a moral compass for Muslims.

In our increasingly globalised world, constant contact with other backgrounds and faiths make it imperative to learn more about the diversity of our neighbors because we are all an intrinsic part of the communities in which we live. Developing mutual respect, rather than merely tolerating one another, is not something that can be learned overnight. Through reaching out and speaking openly we can begin to nurture genuine appreciation for the ways others express their faith.

Without education, we can all too easily develop an irrational fear and mistrust of those we deem to be 'other'. This is especially true between people of different faiths, and when political groups, individuals, and certain factions of the Media so often seek to divide by exploiting and exaggerating religious difference.

Fear and mistrust of people based on assumptions of race or faith are at the core of countless acts of discrimination. To overcome this problem, we need open and constructive communication – the foundation of all positive relationships.

Through interfaith, an all-encompassing and inclusive way of interacting with one another, we endeavour to transcend human-made boundaries and make personal connections with people from all faith and non-faith backgrounds. Interfaith invites us to come as individuals with personal stories rather than being burdened with collective responsibility and representation of an entire faith community. Through sharing we gain greater understanding and become more inclusive in our interactions with the people around us.

As a Muslim from a predominantly Christian family, my inspiration for promoting interfaith is not only social, as a means of strenghtening ties with family and friends, but also deeply spiritual. Interfaith is not a foreign concept to Islam, it is in fact an intrinsic part of our faith. Within the pages of the Qur’an, we are called to protect “cloisters and churches and synagogues and mosques, wherein the name of God is oft commemorated” (Qur'an, 22:40). In his lifetime, Muhammad 
 encouraged and was actively involved in interfaith.

On one such occasion, Muhammad 
 met with a delegation of Christian Chiefs from Najran and together they signed a peace treaty which included the terms;
No compulsion is to be on them. Neither are their judges to be removed from their jobs nor their monks from their monasteries. No one is to destroy a house of their religion, to damage it, or to carry anything from it to the Muslims' houses. Should anyone take any of these, he would spoil God's covenant and disobey His Prophet.”

Alongside the promise that the Christians of Najran could worship freely, the treaty also included the understanding that “their Churches are to be respected. They are neither to be prevented from repairing them nor the sacredness of their covenants,” meaning they would be able to uphold their faith tradition alongside Muslims in the Arabian Peninsula.

It is clear that building strong communities by taking care of all those within it is an integral part of Islam and should be considered the duty of Muslims who strive to please Allah. The fighting we see between faith groups,  and even within them, hurts the whole community and goes against the golden rules of each faith, from the Christian concept of loving our neighbour and the Islamic principle that doing harm to another human being is as if you have hurt the whole of mankind, symbolising our intrinsic interconnectness.

Present day examples of interfaith in action include the iconic images of Muslims protecting Coptic Christians in Egypt during the 2011 Arab Spring and more recently, Christians providing refuge for persecuted Muslims in the Central African Republic despite the serious risk to their own lives. On a smaller but no less significant scale, there are regular and heartening stories of religious groups coming together to help other groups in times of need, from churches providing safe spaces for Muslims to pray during far-right protests in various European cities, to Muslims looking after synagogues in Kolkata.

On a more local level, Interfaith helps us to develop new and comprehensive ways of speaking in our daily lives that respects differences, and brings people together based on shared values. This inclusivity feeds into all our relationships, with family, friends, co-workers etc, and is particularly relevant for converts who have non-muslim family members or those in interfaith families. The tools of interfaith can also aid us in much needed intrafaith dialogue, creating stronger ties between different groups under the umbrella of Islam.

Although Interfaith dialogue invites us to share our personal experience of faith, we should remember that interfaith is not about throwing a net to catch potential converts. Critics of Muslim-based interfaith initiatives have argued that it's cleverly disguised dawah of the "creeping sharia" variety. Similarily, many Christian websites have written articles which recommend interfaith dialogue as a way of proselityising and essentially going undercover to gather information about how best to convert members of certain religious or secular groups. It is important to recognise the fine line between education and evangelism. Trust is crucial for open dialogue but it cannot develop if we suspect the other party is trying to boost their own numbers. Instead, interfaith offers us a safe space where we are able to come together, explore our similarities, change stereotypes, and build relationships based on constructive communication.

For people of faith, learning about other religions allows us to gain insight into how others worship and, ideally, helps us to deepen our connection with God while honouring our own faith tradition. Interfaith dialogue and hands on engagement provides us an opportunity to gain insight into our own tradition as we explain our beliefs to others and in turn learn how how faith is viewed through the lens of other faith traditions. In his book 'The Good of Religious Pluralism, Austrian-American sociologist Peter Berger states that 'pluralism influences individual believers and religious communities to distinguish between the core of their faith and less central elements'. As a result of pluralism, Mormon writer Daniel Peterson believes that we not only gain intellectual benefits from engaging with other but  we also 'become better by interacting with people different from ourselves.' People of diverse faiths share a common journey as learners and as seekers towards a better self and a better faith community in which we are a part.

Although we may be strolling down different paths, we are all on journeys seeking to find meaning in our lives, be our best selves, and for those who have faith, grow closer to our Creator. Interfaith dialogue reminds us of how much richer our lives can be when we strive towards these goals hand in hand.


dimanche 21 mai 2017

Creative Kids Cultural Blog Hop - May 2017



Welcome to the May 2017 Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop!


The Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop is a place where bloggers can share multicultural activities, crafts, recipes, and musings for our creative kids. We can't wait to see what you share this time!

Created by Frances of Discovering the World through My Son's Eyes, the blog hop has now found a new home at Multicultural Kid Blogs.

This month our co-hosts are:


Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop is a place for you to share your creative kids culture posts. It's very easy, and simple to participate!
Just follow these simple guidelines:
  • Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, or Facebook. Please let us know you're following us, and we will be sure to follow you back.
  • Link up any creative kids culture posts, such as language, culture, books, travel, food, crafts, playdates, activities, heritage, and holidays, etc. Please, link directly to your specific post, and no giveaways, shops, stores, etc.
Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop
  • Please grab the button code above and put it on your blog or the post you’re linking up. You can also add a text link back to this hop on your blog post. Note: By sharing your link up on this blog hop you are giving us permission to feature your blog post with pictures, and to pin your link up in our Creative Kids Culture Feature board on Pinterest.
  • Don't be a stranger, and share some comment love! Visit the other links, and comment. Everyone loves comments!
  • The Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop will go live on the 3rd Sunday of the month. It will run for three weeks. The following blog hop we will feature a previous link up post, and if you're featured, don't forget to grab the button below:
Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop


The post I have selected for this CKCBH has a real meaning for me : 

6 tips for communicating with grand parents who live abroad


Well, we live in Germany and all my kids' grand-parents are in France. It's not far away and at the same time, we can't see them as often as we would like. We are already doing some of the things listed, however I know many other people would be interested in those ideas!




Thank you for linking-up, and we can't wait to see what you've been up to!



dimanche 18 septembre 2016

Creative Culture Blog Hop September 2016




Welcome to the Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop!

The Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop is a place where bloggers can share multicultural activities, crafts, recipes, and musings for our creative kids. We can't wait to see what you share this time!

Created by Frances of Discovering the World through My Son's Eyes, the blog hop has now found a new home at Multicultural Kid Blogs.
This month our co-hosts are:


Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop is a place for you to share your creative kids culture posts. It's very easy, and simple to participate!
Just follow these simple guidelines:
  • Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, or Facebook. Please let us know you're following us, and we will be sure to follow you back.
  • Link up any creative kids culture posts, such as language, culture, books, travel, food, crafts, playdates, activities, heritage, and holidays, etc. Please, link directly to your specific post, and no giveaways, shops, stores, etc.
Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop
  • Please grab the button code above and put it on your blog or the post you’re linking up. You can also add a text link back to this hop on your blog post. Note: By sharing your link up on this blog hop you are giving us permission to feature your blog post with pictures, and to pin your link up in our Creative Kids Culture Feature board on Pinterest.
  • Don't be a stranger, and share some comment love! Visit the other links, and comment. Everyone loves comments!
  • The Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop will go live on the 3rd Sunday of the month. It will run for three weeks. The following blog hop we will feature a previous link up post, and if you're featured, don't forget to grab the button below:
Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop


Here's my favorite from last time:





If you want to help your children learn geography and other important facts about our world, this post should be interesting for you. Practical Mom has come with a nice cross between a where's Wally and a map hunt game. As my son loves both Wally and maps, I think we're going to do that activity during the next holidays.



Thank you for linking-up, and we can't wait to see what you've been up to!



lundi 22 août 2016

Creative Kid Culture Blog Hop - August 2016



Welcome to the Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop!

The Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop is a place where bloggers can share multicultural activities, crafts, recipes, and musings for our creative kids. We can't wait to see what you share this time!

Created by Frances of Discovering the World through My Son's Eyes, the blog hop has now found a new home at Multicultural Kid Blogs.

This month our co-hosts are:


Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop is a place for you to share your creative kids culture posts. It's very easy, and simple to participate!
Just follow these simple guidelines:
  • Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, or Facebook. Please let us know you're following us, and we will be sure to follow you back.
  • Link up any creative kids culture posts, such as language, culture, books, travel, food, crafts, playdates, activities, heritage, and holidays, etc. Please, link directly to your specific post, and no giveaways, shops, stores, etc.
Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop
  • Please grab the button code above and put it on your blog or the post you’re linking up. You can also add a text link back to this hop on your blog post. Note: By sharing your link up on this blog hop you are giving us permission to feature your blog post with pictures, and to pin your link up in our Creative Kids Culture Feature board on Pinterest.
  • Don't be a stranger, and share some comment love! Visit the other links, and comment. Everyone loves comments!
  • The Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop will go live on the 3rd Sunday of the month. It will run for three weeks. The following blog hop we will feature a previous link up post, and if you're featured, don't forget to grab the button below:
Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop



This month, I would like to feature a post from Crafty Moms Share about an activity I rather enjoy: coloring! 

The Colors of Asia seems to be one of those coloring book that can both help you de-stress and teach you about design and cultures. The fact that you can learn which country has inspired which drawing is a definite bonus!



Thank you for linking-up, and we can't wait to see what you've been up to!



mercredi 3 août 2016

Songs for past sport championships & olympics


Many songs have been written for the opening or closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games. We will talk about some of them that have been and are still loved around the world.

Olympics

Barcelona, Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé. Barcelona 1992

This, this is the first song I really remember when someone talks about the Olympics. Not because I remember the opening ceremony with the big screen showing the recorded video of the two singers, just a few months after Freddie Mercury's death. It's just because I sung it with my middle school choir during several concerts. This song always gave me the chills and a "je ne sais quoi"... I will always have a special place in my heart for it.



Reach, Gloria Estefan. Atlanta 1996

This song talks about motivation and going beyond oneself... and it's not only in sports but also in life in general. In facts, it was written six years after Gloria's car crash in which she had her spine fractured. She succeeded in overcoming her pain and was able to walk again. That's a powerful song, isn't it?



One moment in time, Whitney Houston. Seoul 1988

If this video-clip doesn't represent the Olympic Games, I don't know what could! Whitney received an Emmy Award for it in 2008.


Hand in hand, Koreana. Seoul 1988

You will see in the clip that on the official korean TV, the opening ceremony was translated in Korean Sign Language. As the song talks about cooperation and frienship, this seems rather fitting!




The Flame, Tina Arena. Sydney 2000


The singer Tina Arena sung it with a children choir and it's one of the best remembered singing act of an Olympics ceremony.



Heroes live forever, Vanessa Amorosi. Sydney 2000

I discovered this song while researching for this post and I totally felt in love with it! What a beautiful and powerful voice! The lyrics are not bad either...



Championships

Every football / soccer fan knows it: for each world cup or regional championship, songs are recorded and (heavily) passed on the radios. Here are 5 memorables, that could also aplied for Olympics athletes.

Waka waka, Shakira. South Africa 2010


La Copa de la Vida, Ricky Martin. France 1998


We are the champions, Queen. USA 1994




Dar um Jeito (We will find a way), Carlos Santana, Wyclef, Avicii and Alexandre Pires . Brazil 2014


Magic in the air, Magic System. Brazil 2014

In France, it was the biggest hit with the song from Shakira (La la la) and the one from Germany (Auf Uns, from Andreas Bourani) during the 2014 Wordl Cup.


Bonus


It's not a song, but I'm sure you are as fan as I am of this video sequence!



*****

http://multiculturalkidblogs.com/olympics-for-kids/

Welcome to our Olympics for Kids series! The Olympics are a wonderful opportunity to teach kids about the world and explore cultures together. Today, you can find more about other music posts about various countries thanks to our participating bloggers:

How Dutch Nursery Rhymes Helped Me as an Expat Mother - Multicultural Kid Blogs
Songs for Past Sports Championships and the Olympics - La Cité des Vents
Ladysmith Black Mambazo - Globe Trottin' Kids
Chile - La Clase de Sra. DuFault

Don't forget that you can also download our Summer Games Unit activity pack to learn more about the world and have fun during the Olympics.

http://multiculturalkidblogs.com/product/summer-games-unit-activity-pack-ages-8-12/


Save



Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop

vendredi 29 juillet 2016

Places where Olympics took place

France has seen many Olympic Games. As the "founder", Baron Pierre de Coubertin was French, France and French have strong ties with them.

Winter Games:


Three times France has been the host: 1924 was the first time the Winter Games took place, and it was in Chamonix. 5 sports for 9 different competitions... Quite less than our actual Olympic Games with 7 sports and 15 disciplines.



Second time was in Grenoble in 1968: 37 nations were present for the tenth Winter Games.



Third time in Albertville, in 1992, was my first real exposition to winter sports on television. I was 10 and I loved to watch biathlon, bobsleigh, figure skating (that's a sport I already watched), or ski jumping.



Summer Games:



Paris held two times the Olympics: in 1900 and 1924. The 1924 Games (VIIIth Olympics) saw 44 nations competing. 17 sports and 23 disciplines were "fought" by 2954 men and 135 women.




All the pictures in this post are from the website Les Sports.info


*****

http://multiculturalkidblogs.com/olympics-for-kids/

Welcome to our Olympics for Kids series! The Olympics are a wonderful opportunity to teach kids about the world and explore cultures together. Today, you can find more geography and flag posts about various countries thanks to our participating bloggers:

All about Chile - Multicultural Kid Blogs
France: Places Where the Olympics Took Place - La Cité des Vents
South Africa's Flag: A Symbol of Unity and Progress - Globe Trottin' Kids
Brazilian Flag Infographic - the piri-piri lexicon
Flying the Dutch Flag - Expat Life with a Double Buggy

Don't forget that you can also download our Summer Games Unit activity pack to learn more about the world and have fun during the Olympics.

http://multiculturalkidblogs.com/product/summer-games-unit-activity-pack-ages-8-12/
Save

lundi 25 juillet 2016

Sports to try when visiting France

Visiting France for foreigners has a feel of "Yes, I've been there!!!" However, if some places are huge touristic areas (say: Paris city, Alsace, Côte d'Azur, Provence, Vallée de la Loire, the island of Corse, etc), the possibilities for enjoying my lovely country are far more diverse.

As the Olympic Games will start next month, let see which sports you can try while touring France. [Post from the MKB series during the 2016 Olympic Games]

Hiking in the mountains

A definitly easy (or not) sport to do! France has several mountain ranges, some high (Alpes, Pyrénées) and others more medium (Vosges, Massif Central). Ask the tourist office in the city or village of your choice, and they will explain you all the hiking roads and paths in the area!

Hiking in the mountains was part of my childhood experiences. Living at the foot of the Pyrénées (in Céret, Pyrénées-Orientales), each year my scholls organized a pic-nic in the mountains. We even crossed a couple of time the border between France and Spain... and if the teachers hadn't tell us, we would have never known! Because a pathway on the top of a mountain looks the same in both countries. ;-)

Lac des Bouillouses, Pyrénées-Orientales, France. Photo: Office de tourisme des PO


Canoeing on the rivers

Ok, it's not everywhere you can go canoeing, but do it if you are near gorges (= canyon): gorges du Tarn, gorges de l'Ardèche, gorges de l'Hérault, gorges du Verdon... The list is open!

My mother is not really of the adventurous type, so I never tried canoeing. I hope I will be able to do it with my kids when they will be a bit older.

image: North of the Dordogne.

Pétanque

Nothing is like pétanque when in holidays. That's the friendly yet competitive, slow yet precise, sport you can enjoy with your family, friends or people you know nothing about. It's a custom in the South of France, and you can play it in the whole country (we even have some pétanque sand pit in my town in Germany!!!) Be careful not to lose the cochonnet, and don't walk in the middle of game: you would be in serious danger of "verbal abuse" from the players you have disturbed. Pétanque is not a child game, it's serious matter!

Crédit photo: wikipedia


Horse riding

If you like horseriding, France has many opportunities for you to both discover the landscape and have a good time with a horse. Riding in woods, in the countryside or on the beaches, pick what you prefer!

Crédit: farandride


Rock Climbing

I tried it once in my childhood, but I'm not as balanced as needed for this sport. On this website, you have a list of all the good rock climbing places in France. You can't say you didn't know where to go!

Rock climbing in Bourgogne

Char à voile

The website of the French federation lists all the clubs where you can do some char à voile. My son has seen a video of that sport and now he can't wait to be big enough to try it! (Have I told you how adventurous he is?)

Credit: Ouest-France


Motor sports

You like to go fast or drive through the mountains? Check the website of the French Federation of Motor Sports for all the dates of the future rallyes, where you can train, etc. (website in French only). It's not my cup of tea, but I know people who love to discover a region that way.

Grand circuit du Roussillon

Skiing and everything "winter sports"

This is it! You're coming to France in winter, and you would be eager to mix touring and winter sports? Haha! We have everything you want (and more) in France! It's not for nothing that the Winter Olympic Games have been held 3 times in my country (in the Alpes)! If you go to Chamonix, Grenoble or Albertville, you will be able to play many winter sports. But you have also wonderful ski pists in the Pyrénées.

Chamonix

Now, you have been warned. France is a sportive country!

*****



http://multiculturalkidblogs.com/olympics-for-kids/

Welcome to our Olympics for Kids series! The Olympics are a wonderful opportunity to teach kids about the world and explore cultures together. Today, you can find more about other travel posts about various countries thanks to our participating bloggers:

Explore Wild Nature in Latvia - Multicultural Kid Blogs
Sports to Try When Visiting France - La Cité des Vents
A Journey in South Africa - Globe Trottin' Kids
Sports to Try When Visiting France - La Cité des Vents
Traveling to Chile - La Clase de Sra. DuFault
Tomar, Portugal: the Last Templar Town - the piri-piri lexicon
7 Places to Explore in the Netherlands - Expat Life with a Double Buggy
Explore Buenos Aires, Argentina - Hispanic Mama
Kid-Friendly Vacation in Puerto Rico - Discovering the World Through My Son's Eyes

Don't forget that you can also download our Summer Games Unit activity pack to learn more about the world and have fun during the Olympics.

http://multiculturalkidblogs.com/product/summer-games-unit-activity-pack-ages-8-12/
Save

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