Tired of the same old school fundraisers? Here’s an idea for a different approach that does double duty by promoting a healthy lifestyle. This fall, the Dairy Council of Arizona is teaming up with BRAX Fundraising to offer The Fuel Up Cups fundraiser. “This is a fantastic non-food-based fundraiser that helps improve the school wellness [...]
Summertime for Arizona children is a time of fun, sun and…toiling in the fields? Today’s nine-month school calendar has been unchanged since the agrarian age, despite the fact that only 3 percent of American careers currently have ties to the agriculture cycle. Yet we persist with long summer breaks as if harvesting jalapeños and cactus [...]
Statistics can oversimplify complex ideas, but they can be revealing and fun. Sort of. I was looking for information on when the 2012-13 school rankings will be available from the Arizona Department of Education. I think it’ll be August, because that is when the 2011-12 rankings came out. Starting here, I found the 2011-12 list [...]
Are you sure that advancing wall of dust is the sign of an incoming monsoon? Look closer. That billowing haze might just be the result of an enthusiastic crowd of children kicking up plumes of sand as they zealously make their way to local libraries to participate in summer reading programs. Sound far-fetched? Not when [...]
Enrollment in charter schools in Arizona is up, as you can see from this graph. It’s part of a Goldwater Institute policy report “Arizona Charter Schools: A Vision for the Next 20 Years.” You can read it, if you like that kind of thing. Frankly, when I hear about institutes, think tanks, blue-ribbon panels or [...]
Can’t make it to a high school graduation because your son or daughter is graduating the same time as a niece or nephew? Or maybe it’s too expensive for all the relatives from the other side of the country. You could have someone send pictures taken from faraway seats. Or you could be on the [...]
Last Tuesday, Jennifer Cheesman, who teaches sixth graders science and math at Zuni Hills Elementary School in the Peoria Unified School District, prepared a 700-gram latex helium weather balloon for launch. Her husband, Jim, helped. The balloon was capable of climbing to 50,000 feet and the extremely high altitude would cause it to swell and [...]
Two hundred kids from seven Valley schools participated in a STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) event Tuesday at the Arizona Science Center. Activities focused on what engineers do, how they use technology and what science they need to know to create the gadgets, tools and technologies we so gleefully use every day. The event, called [...]
It isn’t surprising to learn that the wealthiest families can offer their kids more opportunities. What may be surprising, however, is that before 1980 rich kids didn’t do that much better than middle-class kids, though middle-class kids did better than poor kids. “The academic gap is widening because rich students are increasingly entering kindergarten much [...]
I went to Paradise Valley Christian College Preparatory High School (PVCCP) in Phoenix to talk to members of its first graduating class, but 16.7 percent of the seniors were absent. Senior ditch day? They graduate on May 20, so the timing would be about right. But no, there are only six seniors at PVCCP, and one [...]
Make your next birthday party a real splash by holding it at Kiwanis Recreation Center’s indoor wave pool and water slide! What could be better than three-foot waves and a double-spiral water slide? We’re giving away a Splash Bash Birthday Party valued at $175. It includes: 16 people, birthday child is free two-hour hosted public [...]
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This summer, those lovable yellow minions assemble and return to theaters when “Despicable Me 2″ opens July 3. We are sending five families (four tickets each) to a special, reserved-seating advance screening at 7pm on Thursday, June 27 at the AMC Deer Valley 30. The screening will be in Real D 3D. The film features [...]
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JUNE 2013
$6.00Great Escapes! Our updated directory of some of the best family-friendly getaways at resorts in Arizona, California, Colorado, Mexico and Nevada.
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MAY 2013
$6.00Our 2013 directory of Valley aquatics programs — everything from learn-to-swim programs to diving, racing and synchronized swimming!
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April 2013
$6.00Our April 2013 issue features the 2013 Summer Solutions directory — more than 500 day camps in Maricopa County!
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March 2013
$6.00Our March 2013 issue features the 2013 directory of Overnight Camps in Arizona and the Southwest!
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February 2013
$6.00Our February 2013 issue is all about babies! Learn how to begin building your baby’s bookshelf, make your own baby food, find parent/tot classes and Daddy Boot Camps around the Valley. Plus: gifts, gadgets and great new looks for baby.
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January 2013
$6.00It’s our annual pregnancy issue! Learn about the latest trend among expectant parents: “gender-reveal” parties. Plus: Should you bank your baby’s umbilical cord blood?
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