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Holiday Happenings & Gifts November 2016 • PITTSBURGH PARENT 1 what’s inside November 2016 • Volume 29 • Number 11 6 Dysgraphia 10 Politics 101 27 all about for kids November cover story departments 4 ..... editor’s note THE UNOFFICIAL, Homemade versus fast food KID FRIENDLY 8 ..... education connection What grade should kids begin FOOD TASTE TEST: to focus on careers MAKE IT OR BUY IT? 16 ..... teens today 12 Get your teen ready to launch into adulthood features 27 ..... all about November Calender of events and activities 6 ..... Dysgraphia: Children need to be able to “write” to succeed in school special 10 ..... Politics 101 – Talking about elections with your kids sections 24 ..... Birthday party life lessons learned 20-23 community spotlight 2016 HOLIDAY HAPPENINGS & GIFTS 5 ..... Shady Side Academy welcomes Fox Chapel Country Day School as second PK-5 campus Winter Party Guide 24-26 Cover: Abby and her mom Ashlee from Hopewell Township. Cover photo: TreyThomasImages 2 PITTSBURGH PARENT • November 2016 Winter Party Guide November 2016 • PITTSBURGH PARENT 3 editor’s note special occasion, but not healthy as a Homemade meals regular diet. • Preparing most of your meals at home vs. helps train your taste buds to appre- ciate a healthier fare. Your creative fast food cooking skills are bound to improve Publisher: Lynn Honeywill considerably as you learn enjoyable [email protected] he U.S. is the birthplace of fast ways to cook with flavorful and healthy food. Americans eat fewer than 70 ingredients. More meals cooked and Editor: Patricia Poshard Tpercent of their meals at home and eaten at home may help trim the your [email protected] less than a third of American families waistline too. Production and Web Designer : eat meals together more than twice a Kerri Lutz • [email protected] • Food-borne illnesses caused by week, according to Emory University. This bacteria-laden or under-cooked meats Art Consultant: fact, together with the obesity epidemic, Diana Ruhe and vegetables regularly make head- seems to point towards a need for a [email protected] lines and occasionally claim lives. While fundamental change in American food food you buy at the grocery store might Marketing & Finance: culture. be similarly contaminated, attention [email protected] Ann Howley dove into her assignment to proper food handling and cooking Calendar Editor: for this November’s cover story, “The techniques may keep you safer. [email protected] Unofficial, Kid Friendly Food Taste Test: Make It or Buy It,” by conducting her own • And, maybe the most important factor Social Media: taste tests asking young kids to weigh in we have lost sight of, children benefit [email protected] on homemade and fast food versions of greatly from the ritual of eating meals Advertising: the same recipes. Believe me, it is a great together. Family meals provide oppor- East/South Sales read! tunities for sharing the day’s events [email protected] A collective return to the home- and create a relaxing transition from North Sales cooked meal may offer significant health busy daytime activities to slower-paced [email protected] evening ones. and social advantages over current Editorial/Social Media Intern: trends. This inspired me to do some • Cooking meals at home and involving Maria Castello thinking on my own about the fast food your children in food preparation is the phenomena that exists today … even at best way to teach them healthy eating Founding Publisher: my house sans kids, it is easier to eat out. habits. Statistically, children who grow Marilyn McCabe Honeywill Here are just a few reasons it might be up in households where meals are 1931 - 2013 healthier to eat meals made at home. eaten together perform better academ- • Cooking your own meals affords you ically and show less tendency toward Pittsburgh Parent is published the peace of mind that goes along with engaging in risky behaviors according 12 times a year by Honey Hill Publishing, Inc. having complete control over the type to Washington State University nutrition P.O. Box 674, Valencia, PA 16059 and quality of ingredients in your meals researchers Martha Marina and Sue 724-898-1898 • pittsburghparent.com and the degree of cleanliness that goes Butkus. Office hours: Mon - Fri, 9am-4pm. Subscriptions: 1 year—$18 into their preparation. Just a few thoughts as we all try to • Preparing meals at home allows you to Pittsburgh Parent is distributed monthly to over 800 manage our time and our health in this locations in and around Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, easily accommodate family members fast paced world we live in! n Butler, Washington and Westmoreland counties. or guests who have allergies or food Distribution of this paper does not constitute an endorsement of information, products, or services. The intolerances, some of which, such as publisher reserves the right to reject any advertisement peanut and shellfish allergies, can lead or listing which is not in keeping with the publication’s to life-threatening emergencies. standards. The entire contents of the publication are copyrighted and may not be reproduced or copied in any • Restaurant and other commercially form without permission of the publisher. Copyright Honey prepared foods are notoriously high in Hill Publishing Inc. 2016. All rights reserved. fat, salt and sugar. These foods are fine Patricia Poshard, Editor Distribution Audited By as an occasional indulgence or for a 4 PITTSBURGH PARENT • November 2016 COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT EDUCATION SPONSORED CONTENT Shady Side Academy Welcomes Fox Chapel Country Day School as Second PK-5 Campus By Shady Side Academy Families in Pittsburgh’s Children spend time playing, north suburbs now have exploring and learning outdoors greater access to the region’s on the beautiful wooded best PK-12 education, campus, as well as in the bright, as Shady Side Academy welcoming indoor classrooms. welcomes Fox Chapel Country Ideal student/teacher ratios Day School as its second support a learning environment in PK-5 campus in 2017. which small groups of students The two highly respected are given a foundation in math, independent schools signed reading, science, language arts, a merger agreement this past Spanish and other academic summer. areas, carefully designed to With the merger, Shady meet the needs of varied levels Side Academy now offers and learning styles. The solid families the choice between academic curriculum, along with two PK-5 campuses, one a strong commitment to the in Point Breeze and one creative and performing arts, in Fox Chapel. While both builds confidence and social junior school experiences skills while preparing students for are distinct, they are equally alive with engaged and curious Shady Side’s Middle School. learners who are well-prepared to succeed at Shady Side’s FCCDS campus facilities includes a library, technology Middle and Senior Schools. center, gym, science lab, auditorium, arts facilities and SMART Fox Chapel Country Day School is located on 17 acres of Boards. Outdoor spaces include an educational garden, athletic wooded grounds within the Fox Chapel parkland area. The field, playground and outdoor classroom. school enrolls more than 100 students in junior pre-kindergarten “We are very excited about formalizing a relationship that (age three) through fifth grade. Founded in 1948, the school has been very close over the years,” said Fox Chapel Country provides a foundation that is centered in academics and the Day School Head of School Sharon Smith. “Historically, Country arts, in which each child can achieve both academic success Day has been a strong feeder for Shady Side’s Middle School, and personal self-confidence. Historically, a majority of FCCDS so many Fox Chapel Country Day School families are also graduates have gone on to attend SSA Middle School, which is Shady Side Academy families.” located less than a mile up the road. “Sixty percent of our Middle School enrollment is from the From the moment you enter Fox Chapel Country Day northern suburbs, but many of those families don’t join us until School, its motto, “Childhood is a journey, not a race,” is sixth grade because the commute to our Junior School in Point unmistakable. The unhurried, nurturing environment fosters Breeze is simply too long,” said SSA President Tom Cangiano. happy and creative students who come to school ready to “This merger will give more North Hills families access to a discover and learn each day. Shady Side Academy education at an earlier age.” Each morning, students participate in school wide Students who live in a school district within ten miles of the and classroom meetings, learning the value in caring for FCCDS campus are eligible under Pennsylvania law for bus others, themselves and their environment. Close, supportive transportation by their home school district at no cost. School interactions promote lifelong friendships, with the older children districts falling in that ten-mile radius include Allegheny Valley, serving as “buddies” and mentors for the younger children. Deer Lakes, Fox Chapel Area, Hampton, North Allegheny, North Talented and dedicated teachers work with parents from Hills, Penn Hills, Pine-Richland, Pittsburgh Public Schools, the very beginning, recognizing that each child’s educational Plum, Riverview, Shaler and Woodland Hills. journey is unique. Families interested in learning more about Fox Chapel Country Day School are encouraged to attend the school’s Admissions Open House on Thursday, Dec. 8, at 9:30 a.m. The campus is located at 620 Squaw Run Road East, Pittsburgh PA 15238. To RSVP for the open house, to inquire about admission for the 2017-2018 school year, or to simply learn more, visit www. ShadySideAcademy.org/CountryDay or call 412-963-8644. November 2016 • PITTSBURGH PARENT 5 Signs of dysgraphia Dysgraphia: Make sure (ages 4-6) • Difficulty learning the alphabet and identifying letter sounds to the your child has the “write” stuff to letter.