Empowered by Play » marketing in schools

Keeping the field in Field Trip

Geralyn — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 11:40:46 +0000

“I can smell where you’ve been!” I joked with a group of youngsters earlier this fall. These first and second graders were getting off the bus from their field trip to a dairy farm. The ripe cow smell brought back cherished and vivid memories from my days teaching at Mission Hill School in Boston. No, Mission Hill School doesn’t have cows (though there are schoolyard gardens, many classroom pets, and even a working bee hive). Mission Hill School does, however, have a close relationship with The Farm School, a magical (and wonderfully smelly!) place in central Massachusetts.

Every student at Mission Hill’s K-8 school visits The Farm School every year. The younger students (K-3rd grade) visit for a day, and the older students (4th – 8th grade) spend three days and two nights. As the years pass, the students return over and over again, and they grow more connected to the farm. They become familiar with the farmers, the animals, the chores and the farmland. They figure out where they are most comfortable: is it holding a chicken in the chicken coop? Sweeping out the cow barn? Helping make dinner in the kitchen? They see how farm life varies with the seasons: times for planting and times for harvesting (and my favorite - collecting sap for maple syrup in late winter). During Farm School days, electronic devices are left behind, and connecting with each other and nature becomes the focus.

These connections take place closer to home as well. Mission Hill School has schoolyard gardens, and is located right across the street from a community garden. Taking a quick walk with my students to visit our plot at the community garden was always a welcome excursion – a field trip easily taken and rich with authentic experiences. We could investigate our own plot, as well as other plots, and spend time observing and recording information about our chosen trees as they changed with the seasons.

Field trips have been on my mind this fall. Last week I went to great event hosted by “Teaching the Hudson Valley” and the Child Development Institute at Sarah Lawrence College. A group of us viewed When Learning Comes Naturally, an inspiring and informative look at the many ways nature spurs learning. The teacher’s guide describes the learning this way, “In the outdoors children’s natural curiosity is activated. Each sense is stimulated, and living things, process of change, and mysteries to be solved are all around. As a result, learning of many kinds unfolds with ease in the moment, and with spontaneous excitement about creative exploration that can resonate for a lifetime.”

One of the clips features young elementary students wearing waders as they fish with nets in the Hudson River. A scientist helps them hold and learn about the creatures they’ve caught. After watching this, we got to talking about field trips – how field trips are becoming a thing of the past. High stakes testing, hours and weeks of the test prep, fear of law suits and budget woes - all these get in the way of the rich experience of field trips. Discovering and uncovering the natural spaces in your community is precisely what the makers of When Learning Comes Naturally recommend.

Unfortunately, many schools have turned to corporate sponsors for field trips…. to their stores. Check out this from the PETCO website:

“To further our commitment to animal welfare education, PETCO has teamed up with Field Trip Factory to proudly present Fur, Feathers & Fins™.

The Fur, Feathers & Fins program allows children to learn about the characteristics and habitats of fish, reptiles, birds and small animals. Lessons in science, math and geography come to life through this hands-on field trip. As students develop a respect for animals, they will also develop a greater sense of responsibility.

The FREE Fur, Feathers & Fins field trip will help children in grades K-8 develop and enhance skills in:

Basic needs for animal care
Animal habitats and characteristics
Environmental issues and animal survival
Animal respect
Math, reading and science”

This field trip is FREE. Did you catch that? No charge. They even offer three options for acquiring free buses to get to their stores. Ugh. In fact, the Field Trip Factory is making a business out of “uniting commerce, communities and classrooms” as well as cultivating brand loyalty. Interested in learning about how to take care of the environment? The Field Trip Factory offers trips to Ralph’s grocery stores for that one. I’m a big skeptic of these corporate sponsored field trips. I can’t help but wonder if the messages of consumerism outweigh any discoveries about animals and taking care of our environment.

Another option teachers are turning to are “Web Field Trips”. I first heard of this last year when my sons were in kindergarten. One afternoon my son declared, “Mom, I went on a field trip today. ” “Great!” I replied enthusiastically. “Where did you go?! What was it about?” “Hermit crabs,” he answered as he reached into his backpack and pulled out a worksheet. The title was “Web Field Trip Log” and it is produced by the school book publisher Houghton-Mifflin. He had visited a website about hermit crabs and filled in a worksheet about hermit crabs. Ugh. He hadn’t actually seen, touched, felt, heard or smelled a hermit crab. He wrote on the worksheet that he had learned they have a scientific name (but when I asked, he couldn’t remember what that scientific name was). All in all, he wasn’t too impressed with the web field trip. Neither was I. And I also know that all kinds of administrative, budgetary and curricular constraints kept his teachers from taking more actual field trips. In our district you can’t even walk around the block or down the street without giving the district 90 days notice.

If you can’t bring your students to nature, how do you bring nature to your students? In kindergarten, my sons were lucky enough to plant bulbs in the fall and watch them emerge in the spring; watch an amaryllis grow to amazing heights; check out the birds who visited the bird feeder attached to their class window; raise caterpillars that became butterflies; raise chicks from eggs; and observe stubborn tadpoles that seem to never want to grow up to be frogs. All this from their own classroom. Pretty wonderful stuff, to be sure. For many students, experiences in nature, even just within the walls of the classroom, can be enriching. Taking it one step further, and bringing students into nature, can bring the experience to whole new level. How can we help teachers keep the field in their “field trips”? One way is show parents, teachers, administrators and policy makers the powerful video When Learning Comes Naturally.

Scholastic, once again, finds a way to get to our school children

Geralyn — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 14:44:04 +0000

This week the New York Times ran an article about Admongo.gov, a media literacy campaign aimed at 4th through 6th graders (In a World of Ads, Teaching the Young How to Read Them, April 27th). After reading the article, and checking out the website, I was moved to write the following letter to the editor of the NY Times:

To the Editor,
As a parent and former classroom teacher, I am not impressed with the new media literacy program aimed at 4th – 6th graders (In a World of Ads, Teaching the Young How to Read Them, April 27th). I am all for children learning about advertising and becoming critical consumers, however, Scholastic isn’t the right company to be co-sponsoring such a curriculum. Scholastic has already taken advantage of the trust of parents and schools by marketing more and more “junk” to our children. Take a look at current Scholastic book clubs and book fairs, and you will see they are filled with media-linked books, lipsticks, jewelry and toy tie-ins that add to our consuming culture and seduce children away from good literature. Only under pressure from the Campaign for Commercial-Free Childhood did Scholastic take the highly-sexualized Bratz doll products out of their book clubs and book fairs. Now, Scholastic has managed another way to get to our children – under the dangerous ruse of being part of the solution.

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Meanwhile, there are other problems as well. For example, the fake advertisements are pretty tame. The curriculum does not dive into issues such as violence and over-sexualization, which are a huge part of marketing towards children. There are some useful tools, such as materials aimed at helping families deconstruct ads and have conversations at home, but whatever might be good, comes at the cost of giving Scholastic more space to advertise in our schools. I feel strongly that schools should be free of advertisements, so for me, the poster above – which will be popping up in schools all over – is actually just a big promotion for Scholastic – a for profit company.

Empowered by the movement

Geralyn — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 11:47:07 +0000

Incredible. Inspiring. Energizing. Those are just a few words to describe the 7th Annual Consuming Kids Summit in Boston this weekend. Hosted by the unflagging Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (you may remember they were forced out of their home after taking on Disney and Baby Einstein), the success of this summit is testimony that CCFC is alive and kicking! They were not silenced; instead they were strengthened.

It will take weeks (maybe months or even years!) to reflect on all the powerful moments from the weekend. It was truly an honor to be among so many activists and advocates, some whom have been at this work for decades and are making a world-wide impact – and others who are new to the work and ready to dive in head first. I am somewhere in the middle. I have thought for many years about the issues of marketing to children, especially in how it impacts quality play. However, only after attending Diane Levin’s Media Madness Institute, and getting the information to back up my intuitions, did I turn into a true activist. When I joined CCFC and TRUCE (Teachers Resisting Unhealthy Children’s Entertainment) I was no longer alone in the struggle. I became part of a movement.

That is what this weekend was all about. I truly felt as though I was part of a great movement. My conversations with folks from California, Alabama, Illinois and even Sweden fueled my energy and reinforced the feeling that this is a national and global movement. A movement dedicated to protecting children from the onslaught of marketing. Disney, McDonald’s, Hasbro, Scholastic and Bus Radio are all corporations that have felt the power of this movement, and have made changes in their marketing campaigns as a result. The world is a better place for children because of the hard work of CCFC.

A standout moment was listening to Lenore Skenazy’s keynote, “Free Range Kids: Why Does an Old-Fashioned Childhood Sound So Radical?“ Lenore injected electrifying humor into a topic that can be paralyzingly depressing and added further energy to the conversation. Her keynote will be posted on You Tube, and I can not wait to listen again and send others the link.

Heading this movement are Dr. Alvin Poussaint, Susan Linn and Josh Golin – bearing the brunt of the corporate backlash. They know the rest of us – thousands of us – are behind them every step of the way. There is so much more to say about the summit – stories about integrity, voice, and change. For now, I will just say thanks to CCFC. Thanks for your vision. Thanks for staying strong in the face of adversity. And thanks for giving me a place to turn my anger, frustration and disappointment with corporations into positive change for children.

Milk Media Madness

Geralyn — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 02:38:18 +0000

Is it too much to ask that our school children eat a school lunch without being marketed to? I don’t think so. A few months ago, I wrote about Milk Media and their Milk Rocks! campaign. At that time I was upset about the Bakugan website advertised to my 5 year-old son on his school milk carton. Since then, both Milk Media and my local dairy have assured me that this won’t happen again. There won’t be a media character or a website advertised on their milk panels. Or, more accurately, there won’t be any website except for “Milk Rocks!”. Their website continues to be advertised to school children across the country every day.

Check out these images of some of their featured performers:

Every time I check out the Milk Rocks! website, I get more and more upset. The website features sexy singers (see above) and video games (some of them, such as 3 Foot Ninja II, are violent). They have trailers for all kinds of movies, including violent PG-13 movies such as Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Their contests and content are aimed at older children (13 -18) though their website appears on milk cartons for students of all ages - including kindergartners and elementary students. Now, when I look at the website, I see that kids are encouraged to “become a fan of Milk Rocks! on Facebook”. I am not naive. I know that there are 11 and 12 year-olds on Facebook, but should school milk cartons be encouraging that?

Why is this happening? How is Milk Media allowed to do this? Their website states proudly: “Milk Rocks! connects with students using milk carton side panels to lunchroom posters and book covers. Our Dairy partners make it all possible – their delivery personnel are in and out of every school every day — delivering cartons, checking posters, distributing book covers. We don’t just ship materials and hope for the best, we’re there every day.” Well, I have been trying to get in touch with my local dairy to ask more questions about this, but don’t have any answers yet. I truly do not believe that Milk Media should have such easy access to our children – especially when most parents do not even realize what is going on.

Milk Media and their Milk Rocks! campaign claim their aim is to increase low fat milk consumption (as opposed to sugary drinks), though healthy messages are only a tiny portion of all that the website has to offer. There is a bit of information about the health benefits of drinking low fat milk. There is also advertising from smallsteps.gov which encourages water drinking and exercise, however that ad popped up less often than the Facebook and Twitter ads when I browsed the website. Their motto, “Plug in. Drink up.” just doesn’t sit right with me either. Apparently, the motto refers to the electronic music and milk, but to me it sounds as if they are encouraging kids to play video games while drinking. Maybe that’s just me.

In my eyes, Milk Media continues to pull a fast one on parents (and schools) across the country. Enough already! If you think so, too, write to them at info@milkmedia.com or info@milkrocks.com. Find out if schools in your area are involved, and if so, contact your local dairy and let them know how you feel.

“The Brawl Begins” when Milk Media meets my son

Troublemakers and Peacemakers

Empowered by Play update

Geralyn Bywater McLaughlin M.Ed. — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 10:57:00 +0000

Today I played the game “3 Foot Ninja” on the MilkRocks! website. This is the website advertised on school milk cartons in grades K-12 throughout the country. Well, I wasn’t too good at the game, and quickly died a gruesome death – with my red blood spilling out. Nice way to start the day.

I urge you to contact Milk Media, the company running the “Milk Rocks! Plug in. Drink up.” campaign in schools. You can email them at info@milkmedia.com or info@milkrocks.com. They claim to be concerned about children’s health and well-being, but their motivation seems unclear. Urging kids to go online and play video games isn’t in children’s best interests. To me, Milk Media is taking advantage of the trust that kids have in their schools and pulling a fast one on parents who don’t even realize their kids are being marketed to this way.

I also contacted my local dairy, which supplies my son’s school and heard back for them today. They are “no longer participating in national campaigns promoting websites, movies or any media venue.” Now that is the type of email that makes my day.

For related posts, see

More on Milk Media

Geralyn Bywater McLaughlin M.Ed. — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:51:00 +0000

This weekend I spent time thinking about Milk Media and the Milk Rocks! campaign in schools. (See previous posts “The Brawl Begins” when Milk Media meets my son and Troublemakers and Peacemakers for background information.) According to the representative I talked with, the video games and movie previews available on the Milk Rocks! website are posted through automatic feed. That is why the violent content gets through (such as the shoot-em-up Commando game I found). The company is responsive to parents, they say, which is why the violent content I found has been taken down.

But whose responsibility is it to monitor the content of a website marketed to K-12 children in schools across the country? Contests such as the Bakugan/Nintendo Wii give-away grab a lot of kids’ attention. That is what MilkMedia wants – kids’ attention. But when you have that attention – especially when you’ve gotten it at school – you have a deep responsibility to make sure your message is appropriate. Young children can not fully grasp the marketing techniques at hand. If the message is received at school, in their young eyes the school is endorsing the message. So when they get home and go to the website, the messages they see are, in effect, endorsed by the school.

At this point, Milk Media is committed to making milk cool for kids, as a way to combat the obesity epidemic in our country. Lowfat milk is healthier than the sugary drinks that are out there. I get that. But what price do we have to pay?

In my opinion, a step in the right direction, would be to vary the milk carton “promotions” depending on the school population, so that a K-6 school, such as my son’s school, wouldn’t have the promotions aimed at the 13-18 year-olds. That seems reasonable. And more responsible.

Troublemakers and Peacemakers

Geralyn Bywater McLaughlin M.Ed. — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 10:35:00 +0000

Today I am thinking about ways to make a little trouble. I am talking about speaking up when you see something that concerns you and making noise to effect small changes.

Yesterday I had a conversation with an executive at MilkMedia, the folks who brought us the Bakugan/Nintendo milk carton for schools. It was an interesting conversation, and we agreed that we will never agree, but at least the violent content that I mentioned has been removed from the website. Also, the Bakugan side panels have been recalled. He promises that no character properties or PG-13 properties will be used in upcoming milk side panels. Small victories – if we can’t fix everything, at least we can make it better. It reminded me of earlier this fall when the Common Sense Media website had posted terrible advice to parents of toddlers – recommending PG-13 costumes. I contacted the co-founder and editor, and within minutes, she had agreed and changed the content of the website. When my husband is in a public place and the television is blaring, he’ll reach up and turn it off or turn down the volume. Usually no one minds. The other day at the gym, the television was showing Saving Private Ryan, Band of Brothers or something along that line. My 5 year-old sons were fascinated. I was not happy. I quietly signaled a staff member to turn it off. He saw the young boys staring at the screen, and quickly obliged. I tell these stories in the hopes that you will consider being a bit of a troublemaker for peace. Every little bit helps our kids and our world.

"The Brawl Begins" when Milk Media meets my son

Geralyn — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:21:00 +0000

“THE BRAWL BEGINS AT WWW.BAKUGAN-VIDEOGAME.COM,” reads the enticing invitation. “WIN A BAKUGAN VIDEO GAME AND NINTENDO Wii!”

Driving in the car last week, one of my sons declared, “Mom, I learned about a new dot com today. Bakugan dot com. You can watch videos and play games.” I paused, then asked, “Where did you learn about it?” “On my milk at school,” he answered.

Whoa, now. On his milk carton at school?! I expected him to say from one of his friends or cousins. That would’ve been okay with me. But on his milk carton? That I wasn’t expecting. I know that commercialism in schools is a major problem in the US – with PEPSI sponsored scoreboards; Pizza Hut reading incentives; and millions of students subjected daily to the controversial Channel One programming (in exchange for audio/visual equipment). And I also know that my son’s school does a great job keeping the commercialism out. There are none of those alluring pop star/star athlete “Milk – it does a body good” ads that are so often in school cafeterias. And the boys don’t come home with lunch menus adorned with media-linked ads (as I’ve seen in some districts). Also, our PTA/PTO opted NOT to do fundraisers at McDonald’s or Chuck E. Cheese (where the costumed character visits classrooms to promote the event).

When I showed our principal the Bakugan ad, she immediately dialed the phone number of the head of nutrition for the district, and told him about it. The issue will be taken care of, she said, assuring me that our district pays for the milk and that our students do not need to be advertised to. I was thankful for her incredibly supportive response, and I will write a letter to the dairy company, too, so they can hear directly from a parent.

I will also contact Milk Media, the company responsible for the Bakugan milk carton ad. From their site:

“Welcome to Milk Media, connecting with kids to promote nutrition and healthy lifestyles! It began with milk carton side panels. Now we’ve taken it to a whole new level with Milk Rocks! Milk Rocks helps to make milk ‘cool for kids’ through three unique distribution channels: In schools! On the web! Through live concerts!”

On the Milk Rocks! website, there are multiple contests (such as the Bakugan contest mentioned above); many movie trailers (such as GI Joe the Rise of the Cobra) and “hot” music samples. Click on “Fun and Games” and you are brought to video games such as the violent Commando. The Milk Rocks motto is, “Plug in. Drink Up.” Here’s more: “Milk Rocks is a multi-tiered program with a simple overriding goal – to stop the decline in children’s nutritional status by promoting increased milk consumption and positive life-long eating habits. Targeted to teens and tweens but reaching all grave levels K-12, Milk Rocks features some of today’s most popular recording artists and emerging talent along with film and television stars, athletes (with an accent on x-treme sports idols!) and other influential role models to help us make the milk=cool association.”

So, I need help understanding how watching GI Joe the Rise of the Cobra, and playing Commando, promotes positive life-long eating habits? Admittedly, the ads are geared to older kids, but are sent to all ages. My son is 5 years old. The contest he was reading about is for 13-18 year-olds. There aren’t even any 13-18 year-olds at his school. (Not that I would condone these ads on anyone’s school milk – but the absurdity is magnified when the student reached is a kindergartener.) I – and many, many others – are working hard to get kids healthier by getting them “unplugged”. Nature and quality play are at the center. The Milk Rocks motto, “Plug In. Drink Up.” is downright irresponsible. And “influential role models” such as pop stars and movie stars already have enough hold on our kids. Do they really need more inroads into our children’s lives? The emphasis on “cool” bothers me, too. Yes, I want kids to stop drinking sugary beverages, but marketing “coolness” to kids is never a good idea. In fact in Canada it is illegal.

Here in the US, however, it happens all the time. Even in schools. A few weeks ago, when I was in Washington DC, I had a chance to talk to some folks from the Office of Communications and Outreach at the U.S. Department of Education. I told them of my concerns about marketing in schools, using my sons’ Bakugan.com story as an example. These US DOE folks were fascinated with the story and said they didn’t even realize that marketing in schools was a problem. Wow.

We have a long way to go in our country, and I hope others will join the fight. For more information on marketing in schools check out the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood and Click: the Twelfth Annual Report on Schoolhouse Commercialism Trends 2008-2009.

Fair Play for Children: The good news (and the bad news)

Geralyn — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 01:26:00 +0000

For good and bad, today launched me firmly into the new role of “parent of school-aged children”. My twin sons had their kindergarten screening this morning. The boys were great (thank goodness), I was nervous (no surprise there) and the teachers were friendly (awesome!). The boys were escorted to the screening room while I waited with other parents, aunts and big sisters. Unfortunately, as the door to the screening room closed, an advertisement came squarely into view. What was it for?….wait for it…A local live performance of High-School Musical! [cringe]

“Oh!” cheered an aunt, “I didn’t know about that! Let me write it down so I can take my niece!” She was delighted. I was deflated. I had to tread lightly though, since this is my first time at school in the parent role. I nodded and said nothing. I wondered why the school would even be advertising this show. It is as if the school endorses High School Musical for its incoming kindergartners! I will have to practice what I will say next time to another parent – though tomorrow I will be calling the school. (The district kindergarten screening wasn’t at the school my boys will actually attend, but I still want to register my concerns.) Deep breath…I know this is just the beginning. I can’t dwell too long on all the battles ahead – just going to take it one day at a time.

OK, enough of the bad news. The good news is, I just got reconnected with a fantastic organization. I had somehow lost track of their excellent work, but received their newsletter yesterday and was reminded what an incredible resource they are. Fair Play for Children is based in the UK, and as their website describes:

Fair Play for Children exists to promote understanding and action on the Child’s Right to Play. We recognise the importance of Play in the Child’s life and development. Also that this Right does not exist in isolation from other Rights of the Child. And that its importance transcends borders.

Hands down, they have the most comprehensive and up to date website I have ever seen – with daily links to stories from around the world that relate to children’s rights in regards to health, play and more. Outstanding. Thank you Fair Play for Children for being part of the good news…(even when you are sharing bad news). I needed you today!