The upcoming election seems to have everyone scratching their head, but we have some help for you:

-- The Childhood Matters Radio Program this Saturday, May 16th, on Green 960 AM, 9 to 10 AM for a discussion of Prop D.  If you miss it you can listen to it online later.
-- California Voter's Guide

--Easy Voter Guide (with info in many languages)

-- League of Women Voters

23rd ANNUAL "YOUNG AT ART" FESTIVAL KICKS OFF MAY 15 AT THE DE YOUNG MUSEUM
This 9-day festival celebrates the creativity of all San Francisco students at the de Young Museum with exhibits and performances at the Museum and the Concourse Bandshell in Golden Gate Park. Festival participants and student mentors include filmmaker and San Francisco native Peter Bratt, local author and poet Michelle Tea and Stagewrite, an arts-in-education organization that uses theatre to build literacy in inner-city elementary schools.

 

 

Zeum is a unique, interactive museum that focuses on multimedia arts and technology. It offers lots of creative outlets for school-aged children, teens, and adults.

 

One of their current exhibits is World Savvy's Global Youth Media & Arts Festival 2009, running through June 5.  Global education non-profit World Savvy is hosting a Global Youth Media & Arts Program (MAP) Festival Celebration. Over 500 students from 20 Bay Area public schools will be showcasing artwork and performances around the program theme of Immigration & Identity. 

 

Laure Latham has written a great guide to Fort Mason, including information about the new Exploratorium Exhibit Outdoor Exploratorium. 

FREE FAMILY PASSES! The Exploratorium has graciously donated some Family Passes to the museum.  The first families to email us will receive a pass.

 

"Set between two iconic San Francisco destinations - Fisherman's Wharf and Crissy Field - Fort Mason is a world of its own. A pre-Civil War coastal fortification, Fort Mason once featured an underground tunnel connecting three Navy piers to the Embarcadero's railroad system ...  (read more)

 

 

Even the best students need help from time to time and summer is also a good time to start tutoring to help your kids retain what they've learned throughout the school year. Professional tutor Johanna Wallace has written a great guide with advice about the benefits and limitations of each tutoring option, things to take in to account, and questions to ask.

 

 

Martial arts very beneficial for kids, are very popular in San Francisco, and there are a ton of different disciplines to study. 

Molly Cox has written a great initial guide to the martial arts options in San Francisco including what to look for and questions to ask.

 

"We are very fortunate, living in SF, to have an array of creative and credible martial arts classes to keep our kids engaged and involved. San Francisco's scene is a particularly diverse and richly representative of martial arts cultures and "hybrid" cultures. There are literally dozens of  ... (read more)

 

DCYF provides free healthy lunches and snacks to everyone ages 18 years and younger, regardless of income, at over 100 sites throughout the City.  To see list of sites see the Summer Lunch Brochure (in Spanish, Chinese and Russian in addition to English)

Physical Fitness develops coordination, strategic thinking, and cardiovascular fitness as well as strength and endurance. With the rise of obesity in children and lack of funding for PE programs at schools, parents need to ensure their children (and their whole whole family) are getting enough exercise. San Francisco is a great place to find unique and fun activities.

We have many resources to help. See our listings of Sports and Fitness classes, and check out our Family Fitness Page and Active Fun Page, you'll will have lots of activities to choose from!  Our Events Calendar also has many active events listed - do a sub-search for Sports and Fitness to find events and activities.

 

Sunday Streets is back and better than last year!

Upcoming Dates Include:

Sunday, June 7 & Sunday July 19: New route for 2009 through the Mission, engaging new neighborhoods in the Sunday Streets movement.

Sunday, August 9 & Sunday Sept. 6: Great Highway Route. Connecting Golden Gate Park to the San Francisco Zoo, along Ocean Beach.

 

"Kids & Cops" is a program that has been implemented by SAFE in neighborhoods throughout the city over the past five years. Also known as "Cops Read to Kids," this program helps increase children's literacy and listening skills, educates them about crime prevention and public safety, and encourages positive relationships with the police. "Kids & Cops" addresses safety concerns such as personal safety at home and on the street, bullying prevention, abduction prevention, emergency preparedness, conflict resolution and community building.

SAFE is also holding child passenger safety workshops in late May and early June in the Western Addition and Mission Districts. Participating families get a free carseat.  For more information, contact Elly Mayen at SAFE: (415) 553-1986 or elly@sfsafe.org.

 

SAFE also has great brochures on all kinds of safety issues, see their website for more information.