amazing kids

Can you make it on $9 an hour?

Urban Ministries of Durham has put out “Spent” a game that simulates the decisions that the underemployed in America have to make every day.

Playing the simulation with Nate was enlightening.  He constantly chose the options like “Take the money out of your kid’s birthday card” and  “Miss the kid’s school play because you were offered a side job”.  I asked him to really think about how that would make him feel and he said “I’d be mad, but at least I’d have food.”  As a mother, I made the opposite desicions, sacrficing the money almost every time it would somehow affect my child.

We were able to talk about what it meant to be “underemployed” and some of the myriad of reasons why someone with a child would have to take a minimum wage job.  This was a fantastic way to teach Nate about the sacrifices people have to make everyday. 

Try your hand at Spent here.

Did you succeed? Did your kids try it?  How were their answers different than yours?  Share in the comments!

Still Time for Young Space Geeks to Submit a question!

I’m leaving for NASA’s Johnson Space Centerearly on Monday morning.  I will take questions right up until I can’t anymore. I would guess that I will have computer/internet access during any Q&A’s we have, but I’d say if you want your child’s question to be considered, Monday night would be a good cutoff.  That’s when I’ll make sure that I have all of the questions available to me on my mobile device.

I’ll be meeting astronauts, flight directors, trainers and managers.  If your kid, teen (or you if it’s a good one!) has a question about NASA or space submit it in the comments section below. Make sure to leave your child’s first name, age and city.

I can’t guarantee that I’ll get to ask your child’s question, but I will do my best!

For more info on my upcoming NASA trip read my original article here.

Be sure to follow @ParentingGeekly on Twitter during the tweetup.  I’ll be using the #NASATweetup hastag!

resell seo