Episode 309: Keeping Our Children Healthy During COVID-19 with Dr. Ilan Shapiro

School is almost out for summer and we can feel our children getting more excited as each school week ends! But even though it feels like things have gone back to normal with fewer masks, warmer weather and summer vacation plans of travel & family outings, it doesn’t mean that COVID-19 has left us for good. In honor of Children’s day and in partnership with Juntos Sí Podemos, this week’s episode focuses on how we can continue to protect our children and families from COVID. We interview past guest and great friend of the show, Dr. Ilan Shapiro, about the latest updates in COVID and it’s variants, getting our kids vaccinated and what we can expect in the future with this pandemic. We understand that vaccinations are a personal choice, but Dr. Shapiro says it best during this episode: “I want to be as safe as I can. That’s why I chose to be vaccinated.”
For more information on COVID, vaccinations for your kids and how to keep your family safe & healthy this summer, visit https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/.

More about Dr. Shaps: Dr. Ilan Shapiro joined AltaMed in 2016 as the Chief Health Correspondent and Medical Affairs Officer, where he oversaw an expansion of behavioral health and employee health education services. He was also involved in the creation of programs to prevent and manage chronic disease in children and adults, as well as helping patients facing economic hardship, food insecurity, and mental health challenges. Most recently, Dr. Shapiro has been on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic as a leading source of education and information and a trusted media resource on both national and international news outlets, including CNN, NBC, MSNBC, Telemundo, and Univision. He also continues to have a strong social media presence averaging more than one billion unique views per year. 

In his new role, Dr. Shapiro will lead strategy for external health communications, policy, and community relations to advance equity and inclusion and expand community health and wellness initiatives. He will serve as the chief physician spokesperson for AltaMed and work closely with the Public Affairs, Government Relations, and Civic Engagement departments in this capacity.

More about the Juntos Sí Podemos campaign: The HHS COVID-19 public education campaign is a national initiative to increase public confidence in and uptake of COVID-19 vaccines while reinforcing basic prevention measures such as mask wearing and social distancing. For more information, please visit https://juntossipodemos.hhs.gov/.

Our Conversation with Dr. Shapiro

Dr. Shapiro’s pandemic experience

As people are getting ready for summer, many people think the pandemic is over and we’re done with this virus. What do you tell those families about the current status of the pandemic?

What do we need to do to keep our families healthy?

Kids & COVID-19

Are boosters really necessary for children 12 and older if they’ve already been vaccinated 

AND have had COVID? 

If a child has already had COVID, why is it necessary for them to get vaccinated, especially now that rates of infection have been declining steadily?

Medical advice for unvaccinated folks

Why do you think some parents remain hesitant to vaccinate their children?

Should parents be concerned about any long-term side effects of COVID vaccines? 

Should we expect the covid vaccine to be an annual shot like the flu shot?

When will vaccines for children under 5 years old be approved and how will those vaccines be the same or different from the ones for 5 years and older?

Pick or Tip of the Week 

Two pick this week from Bricia! First, Liz Hernandez’s WORDAFUL Kids Affirmation Cards. She’s going to start adding these to the kids’ everyday routine because they’re so beautiful Second, during Bricia’s dinner party this past weekend they guests all played WORDAFUL The Game and it got deep. Highly recommend for your next girls’ night.

Paulina’s pick is also staying in theme with the episode - something for the kids to keep them healthy! If you caught it on our Instagram Stories, Zixta, Paulina’s youngest daughter, got sick and made a trip to urgent care. She used these Vapo Patches on Zixta’s clothes and it helped her feel more comfortable and get a better sleep.

Links

Follow Dr. Shapiro on Instagram and Twitter @dr_shaps

Learn more about the HHS COVID-19 Public Education campaign. Visit WeCanDoThis.hhs.gov to learn about COVID-19 vaccines and more.

Episode 296: Representation Matters in Children’s Television, a chat with with Sonia Manzano, creator of PBS’ Alma’s Way

We have a Latina television icon on the show! We interview actress & writer, Sonia Manzano, AKA Maria from Sesame Street. This super mama has over 40 years experience bringing quality television to children & families on Sesame Street, and now she’s helping teach even more heartfelt lessons through her new PBS show, Alma’s Way. Together we talk about the importance of representation and why age appropriate TV will teach children lessons they’ll carry for life.

More about Sonia: Sonia Manzano is a first-generation American of Latino descent who has affected the lives of millions of parents and children since the early 1970s, when she was offered an opportunity to play “Maria” on Sesame Street.

Manzano was raised in the South Bronx where her involvement in the arts was inspired by teachers who encouraged her to audition for the High School of Performing Arts. She was accepted there and began her career as an actress. A scholarship took her to Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, and in her junior year, she came to New York to star in the original production of the off-Broadway show Godspell. Within a year, Manzano joined the production of Sesame Street, where she eventually began writing scripts for the series. She was thrilled to help write the story line for “Maria’s” marriage and birth of “Maria’s” baby, played for a while by Manzano’s real-life daughter Gabriela.

Manzano has performed on the New York stage in the critically acclaimed theater pieces The Vagina Monologues and The Exonerated and Love Loss and What I Wore.

Movies include Deathwish, Follow That Bird and Elmo in Grouchland.

She is an advisor for literary NY institution Symphony Space and is often a reader for Selected Shorts. She regularly reads for their adult literacy program All-Write.

She has written for the Peabody Award-winning children’s series, Little Bill, and has written a parenting column for the Sesame Workshop web site called Talking Out Loud. Her children’s book, No Dogs Allowed! published by Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing in 2004. In 2005 General Mills selected No Dogs Allowed! for their Spoonfuls of Stories series. Over one million copies of No Dogs Allowed! were given away in cereal boxes courtesy of General Mills.

Her first young adult novel entitled The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano, published by Scholastic was a Pura Belpre Honor.  Becoming Maria: Love and Chaos in the South Bronx, is a memoir published by Scholastic, 8/25/2015. Miracle on 133rd Street is a picture book published by Simon and Schuster, 9/25/2015.

She enjoys traveling the country giving comedic speeches with substance. 

More about Alma’s Way: Inspired by Manzano’s own childhood, ALMA’S WAY centers on 6-year-old Alma Rivera, a proud, confident Puerto Rican girl who lives in the Bronx along with her parents, Mami and Papi; younger brother, Junior; her Abuelo; and their lovable little dog, Chacho. In every episode, Alma speaks directly to young viewers with asides and her “Think Through” moments, where she stops, thinks, and processes. She models optimism and determination, showing that if she puts her mind to a problem, she can figure it out. Young viewers will tag along with Alma as she learns to speak up for herself, make tough decisions, figure out how to help friends, and so much more. Infused with Manzano’s humor and grounded in a social and emotional curriculum, the series will give children ages 4-6 the tools to find their own answers, express what they think and feel, and recognize and respect the unique perspective of others. 

“The stories on ALMA’S WAY are designed to help kids learn to think for themselves and take into consideration the perspectives of those around them,” said Ellen Doherty, Chief Creative Officer, Fred Rogers Productions. “As Alma thinks things through, she models self-advocacy, empathy and social awareness. She’s a smart kid with a big heart — we hope young viewers will think she’s way, way, way fun to watch!”

Each episode showcases different aspects of Latino cultures through language, food, music, and customs. All viewers will see how other families are both alike and different from their own. Music is the “backbeat” of the series and includes traditional Puerto Rican styles like Plena, Bomba, and salsa along with other Latino genres such as Cuban son and Colombian cumbia. The original theme song, written and produced by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Bill Sherman, is performed by Flaco Navaja and Summer Rose Castillo, who plays Alma. The series music is composed by Asher Lenz, Stephen Skratt, and Fabiola M. Mendez. The series will be available for viewers in both English and Spanish on all PBS KIDS platforms.

LINKS

You can watch Alma’s Way on PBS stations - check your local listings - and streaming for free on PBS Kids.

Episode 284: Introducing Your Baby to Real World Concepts with Jessica Rolph, Co-founder of Lovevery

Summer is here and we’re ready to play! This week we interview Jessica Rolph, cofounder and CEO of Lovevery, a stage-based play product company. We have been big fans of the brand for a while now with Bricia loving the sustainable, organic toys for Augustina and Paulina using the older stage toys for Zixta. In this episode, we learn that Jessica began her entrepreneurial journey with her first company, Happy Family, before moving over to the play space & Lovevery, where she has continued to expand her love of child development. We also talk about the power of observing your baby trying to understand the world & why it’s so important that they fail, even at a young age. Finally, Jessica shares a few of her favorite lessons for future entrepreneurs. 

More about Jessica: Jessica Rolph is Cofounder and CEO of Lovevery. Prior to Lovevery, Jessica was the Cofounder and COO of Happy Family, helping to launch, build and lead Happy Family to its position as a top organic baby and toddler brand in the US. Happy Family was acquired by Group Danone in 2013. 

Jessica also co-founded the Climate Collaborative , a non-profit organization helping companies in the natural products industry take meaningful steps to reverse climate change. She is an Aspen Institute Henry Crown Fellow and was awarded the Park Leadership Fellowship, graduating from Cornell’s Johnson School in 2004. Jessica also holds a BA from Cornell University, where she graduated cum laude.

Jessica and her husband, Decker, live in Boise, Idaho and are parents to Beatrice, Thacher and Leland.

A few lessons for Future Entreprenuers from Jessica Rolph

• When you have an idea, it becomes your baby. Some people will understand your concept and others won’t, and that’s okay.

• Separate your emotions from doing the work.

• You can’t learn unless you put one foot in front of the other.

Quotes by Jessica

“A child’s learning environment is you.”

“By doing, ideas will become.”

“I can’t be it all. So I tell myself the mess and clutter is okay. I’m grateful for my friend that are still there.”

Links

Shop Lovevery’s play kits at lovevery.com and learn more about their new Spanish book sets here. You can also sign up for their email newsletter (available to anyone, not just subscribers!) for a weekly email series of FREE resources!

Bricia also mentions the RIE parenting method. Check out our older episodes about the RIE philosophy here and here.