danny’s place youth services event

Former AB Student Wes Schroll's Inspiring Journey

Join Danny’s Place for an inspiring talk by Wes Schroll, a graduate from Acton-Boxborough Regional High School (ABRHS), who has gone on to be a successful entrepreneur! Wes will share his journey from starting his first company at 14 to founding Fetch, a successful venture with 800+ employees.

Wes will share from his experience, and then there will be time allotted for Q&A to learn more. Sign up ASAP to save your spot! Visit dannys-place.org to learn more and register.

Who is a helper in children’s lives? Of all the Fred Rogers’ quotes, “always look for the helpers” is perhaps the most repeated. Aside from moments of crisis and disaster, what does it mean for each of us to look for the helpers, be a helper, and help the helpers? Junlei Li, Saul Zaentz Senior Lecturer at Harvard Graduate School of Education and former Director of the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children’s Media, will share lessons from both the Neighborhood of Make-Believe and real neighborhoods to show and tell what is deep, simple, and powerful about helpful human interactions.

This event is free of charge, but pre-registration is required. Space is limited! Light refreshments will be available at no charge. Cash bar provided by True West Brewing Co.

Pre-register for Speaker Event with Junlei Li

October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Please join Domestic Violence Services Network in commemorating this year's victims of Domestic Violence. 

Keynote Speaker: Marian Ryan, District Attorney of Middlesex County, "High Risk Teams: A Community Approach".

With Hanscom Air Force Base Honor Guard
For more information, please call DVSN 978-318-3421

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Please join AB Cares in a community art show and presentation on sources of hope in response to suicide prevention throughout the lifespan.

Join Managing Editor of The Boston Globe Jennifer Peter and The League of Women Voters in The Gallery at Villageworks for an important and timely discussion on the changing landscape of news journalism and its impacts on Freedom of the Press.  For more info on this free event, please visit The League of Women Voters at lwv-aa.org.

35 years after the government report  A Nation At Risk sounded an alarm about our schools and the future of our society, there are still deep concerns about the level of education attained by our students and what that means for our democracy, which has itself come under scrutiny during these times of intense emotion around politics and elections.  Acton Coffee House will contribute to the conversation with a panel that includes:

Mike Capuano, U.S. Representative, 7th District

Jamie Eldridge, Mass. State Senator, Middlesex and Worcester District

Phil George, English Teacher, Framingham High School

Sarah Cannon Holden, Lincoln Town Moderator, Lawyer, former School Committee member

Cecilia Hylton, Communications Associate, Barr Foundation

Colleen Meaney, Director, Theodore R. Sizer Teachers’ Center 

Hal Salzman, Professor of Planning and Public Policy, Edward J. Bloustein School, Rutgers U.

Andrew Shen, Principal, R.J.Grey Junior High, Acton

Arthur Unobskey, Superintendent, Wayland Public Schools

The Discovery Museums and First Connections present Lawrence J. Cohen, Ph.D., the author of PLAYFUL PARENTING and THE OPPOSITE OF WORRY,  a licensed psychologist specializing in children's play and play therapy.

Free; $5 suggested donation at the door
More info at the Discovery Museums Website

Play is where children live, and it is the main way that they learn. Parents and teachers can visit children in this play zone, for the purpose of forging closer connections, promoting learning, and just having fun. This talk, presented in conjunction with First Connections, will discuss dramatic play, physical play, and play to solve behavior problems and heal from emotional upsets. You will discover how to "learn from the natives" when you visit children's world of play, and you will find more relaxation and joy in parenting and teaching. 

Lawrence J. Cohen, Ph.D., the author of PLAYFUL PARENTING and THE OPPOSITE OF WORRY, is a licensed psychologist specializing in children's play and play therapy. In addition to his private therapy practice, he is also an international speaker and consultant to public and independent schools and community organizations. Dr. Cohen is also the co-author, with Anthony DeBenedet, of The Art of Roughhousing. He wrote two books about children's friendships and peer relationships with Michael Thompson and Catherine O'Neill Grace: Best Friends, Worst Enemies, and Mom, They're Teasing Me. His books have been translated into fourteen languages.  Dr. Cohen attended Haverford College and received his doctorate in clinical psychology from Duke University. Dr. Cohen lives in Boston, Massachusetts. He and his wife Liz have two grown children and a granddaughter.

To mark the 200th birthday of Henry David Thoreau, CELEBRATE THOREAU is presented by the Friends of the Acton Libraries. This event aims to highlight Thoreau's writings and foster an appreciation for outdoor living. There will be a mixture of academic and social activities for heritage fans, and families. 

This is a free entry event being held at the Gallery at Villageworks. Thanks also to True West for their support. The Friends of the Acton Libraries are a non-profit, 501c3 organization dedicated to the support of Acton's 9 (!) libraries.

Program;
“Why Walden!” - speaker Carol Domblewski, Friends of the Acton Libraries
"Acton In The Time of Thoreau" - speaker Bill Klauer, Acton Historical Society
Oyster Shucking Demonstration led by Twin Seafoods
Axe Sharpening Demonstration - TBA
Open Mic' - pick a reading from Cape Cod, Maine Woods, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, or bring a favourite passage.

Activities;
WALDEN The Video Game
Lego 'build a cabin' - deliberately!
Cider donuts
True West beer
Pic-a-prize raffle
More...

On May 10th, join thousands of organizations, companies, schools, museums, libraries and homes — anywhere people already gather — in a global conversation about what it will take to get to a more gender-balanced world in all sectors of society: business, politics, culture, home, and more.

The event will be facilitated by Kathy Elkind of elKind Nourishment.  The evening will consist of the following:

• Introduction to 50/50 Day: 10 mins
• Screening of short film: 20 mins
• Small or Large group discussion using age-specific questions: 30 mins
• Wrap-up: 15 mins

FREE and open to the public.  Please RSVP on Eventbrite so we know how many people to expect.  

Sponsored by elKind Nourishment, Wellness at Villageworks, and West Acton Villageworks.

Ron Fournier: Love That Boy - What Two Presidents, Eight Road Trips, and My Son Taught Me About a Parent's Expectations

In his book Love That Boy: What Two Presidents, Eight Road Trips, and My Son Taught Me About a Parent's Expectations, award-winning political journalist Ron Fournier writes movingly about the causes and costs of parental expectations in 21st century America through the lens of his relationship with his son Tyler. He lurches between the two poles of parenthood: what we want for our children - popularity, normalcy, achievement, genius - and what they truly need - grit, empathy, character.

Their journey turns the spotlight on all parents, urging us to do as Ron ultimately does: learn to love our children for who they are, not who we wish them to be. Love That Boy is a deeply personal and honest look at the universal pitfalls of modern parenting.

Ron Fournier is the senior political columnist for The Atlantic and National Journal, and a frequent contributor on politically themed TV shows, including NBC's Meet the Press, CBS's Face the Nation, FOX News's Special Report, and MSNBC's Morning Joe. He began his family and career in Arkansas, covering then governor Bill Clinton before moving to Washington in 1993, where he reported on politics and the presidency during the administrations of Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama. Fournier also served as a fellow at the Harvard Institute of Politics,where he cowrote the New York Times bestseller Applebee's America. He holds the Society of Professional Journalists' Sigma Delta Chi Award for coverage of the 2000 elections, and he is a four-time winner of the prestigious White House Correspondents' Association Merriman Smith Memorial Award.

This event is free of charge, but pre-registration is required. A wait list is expected.
REGISTER HERE
Cash bar and light refreshments from True West will be available.
Ron will sign copies of his book, Love That Boy, following the presentation.

The Discovery Museums Speaker Series Presents: "The Decline of Outdoor Play in Children and the Rise of Sensory Issues" by Angela Hanscom, MOT, OTR/L.

This event is free of charge, but pre-registration is required.
Cash bar and light refreshments will be available.

As we continue to decrease children's time and space to move and play outdoors, we are seeing a simultaneous rise in the number of children that are presenting with sensory and motor deficits. At the same time, classroom teachers are observing more and more children having trouble with attention, falling out of their seats in school, increased clumsiness, and even aggressiveness with games like tag on the playground. 

So, how can we reverse this alarming trend of sensory and motor issues in children? How can we ensure that children are fully engaging their body, mind, and all of their senses? 

Using the same philosophy that lies at the heart of her popular TimberNook program-that nature is the ultimate sensory experience, and that psychological and physical health improves for children when they spend time outside on a regular basis -- Angela Hanscom offers several strategies to help children thrive in outdoor environments using a therapeutic approach to outdoor play.

Angela Hanscom is a pediatric occupational therapist and the founder of TimberNook, an internationally recognized program in the United States and New Zealand. She is the author of the book, Balanced & Barefoot: How Unrestricted Outdoor Play Makes for Strong, Confident, and Capable Children by New Harbinger. Angela has been featured on the Children & Nature Network, Huffington Post, MindShift, Babble.com, NPR's Education blog, the DIY Network, The Jerusalem Post, Times of India, Johnson & Johnson TEDx Talks, and is a frequent contributor to the Washington Post Answer Sheet.

Drew Houston is an American internet entrepreneur, born and raised in Acton, MA, best known for being the co-founder and CEO of Dropbox, an online backup and storage service. In a fireside chat with The Discovery Museums CEO, Neil Gordon, learn about Drew's journey from exploring his dad's office as a kid to bringing his ideas to Silicon Valley, where he created one of the fastest growing tech companies. He'll share insights from his experiences and discuss what the future of the changing workplace could look like for the next generation.

Drew Houston is CEO and co-founder of Dropbox, leading Dropbox's growth from a simple idea to a product used by millions around the world. Before founding Dropbox, Drew received his bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT in 2006. While at MIT, he took a leave of absence to found the online SAT prep company Accolade, while working as a software engineer at various startups. After graduating, Drew was endlessly frustrated by carrying USB drives and emailing files to himself. In early 2007, he teamed up with fellow MIT student Arash Ferdowsi to begin working on the project that eventually became Dropbox. In 2012, Drew was named to MIT Technology Review’s TR35 list honoring the world’s top innovators under 35, and was also included in Fortune’s “40 Under 40.” He and his co-founder Arash received TechCrunch’s Founders Of The Year Crunchie Award in 2014, and were co-winners in The Economist's Innovation Awards’ Computing and Telecommunications category in 2015.

Click Here For Free Registration

More at http://yogaacton.com/dharma-talk-meditation-discussion/

More info at http://yogaacton.com/dharma-talk-meditation-discussion/