Everest for KiDs
If you are a parent, capsule sometimes you get that question you can’t answer like “why is the sky blue” or “what is a 64 Chevy that dad talks about” or “ How hard is it to climb mountains?” In that spirit, I created a slide show designed for parents to read with their children about my climb of Mt. Everest in 2002. I simply call it Everest for KiDs It has pictures and a brief paragraph explaining each section of the climb. Written with input from 6 year-old’s parents and educators, it is written at a very simple level with questions for the kids. Today that slide show has gained worldwide attention and is used by teachers to explain geography, civics and many other topics. I recently added a child friendly page entitled Everest Facts for KiDs that is also popular. So as I climb Everest this year, I hope these tools will be useful to share with your children where I am and how I am doing. As a spoiler, I did not summit in 2002 after stopping around the Balcony at 27,300’. As a parent you can use my experience to reinforce any principle you like. Also, it would be an excellent opportunity to talk about aging with your kids, especially if you have Alzheimer’s in your family. While mostly thought of as an old person’s disease, the impact on teenagers and children is widely underestimated. Kids often have the responsibility to look after a grandparent when they come home from school so that their parent can run errands or just take a break. Yes, this disease has widespread impacts that go unnoticed. I am especially gratified that there are several school rooms following me this year and are donating their spare pennies (literally) in a glass jar each day so that a parent can make a donation to one of our causes. Finally, I am pleased to be carrying Flat Stanley with me – a popular education tool itself. I am sure he will bring me good luck. After all, the 2nd graders who loaned him to me would never forgive me if I don’t get him to the summit and back! Climb On! Alan
Flat Stanley and Dreams
The email from Ms. Hoy of Westchester Elementary School in Florida read: My class is a second grade class who is studying basic geography with the help of a character known as Flat Stanley. They colored Flat Stanley’s and sent him to places around the country but we do a virtual Stanley around the internet. Would you consider taking a Flat Stanley on your trip to Everest? He’s just paper. I knew of Mr. Stanley but did a quick search to make sure he was not a life-sized paper piece or weighed more than my oxygen bottles or something else. Here is what I learned. Flat Stanley has his own website and quite a upbringing. from his site: In 1995, Dale Hubert, a Grade 3 teacher in London, Ontario, Canada, began the Flat Stanley Project. He invited other teachers to take part by hosting flat visitors and to encourage their students to write their own Flat Stanley journals. Jeff Brown, the author of the Flat Stanley book, was delighted with the Flat Stanley Project as it renewed interest in the book which resulted in a sequel almost 40 years after the original. Jeff Brown stayed with Dale when he visited Wilfrid Jury Public School in London, Ontario as a guest author and hosted Dale and his family for a wonderful two week holiday in Connecticut. Dale and Jeff remained good friends until Jeff’s death in 2003. So a new part of the adventure is born. In addition to receiving Flat Stanley in the mail today, I received 19 handwritten letters from Gabrielle Ayah Ian Nicole Johann Ashlee Aleezah Joshua Jamie Mason Jacob Dustin Ethan Dylan Keanna Nageline Joey Jaheim Alley Each letter wished me good luck, asked me not to get sick and take care of Flat Stanley. I will do my on all counts! It is funny where inspiration arises. Each of these students were inspired by the Flat Stanley project and now are excited to watch his climb of the world’s highest mountain. For me, I am inspired by the courage of everyone impacted by Alzheimer’s – the individuals, their caregivers, researchers desperately trying to find a cure … Climb On! Alan