Episode 055: Jambo Books

02:22 Welcome, Mijha Godfrey!

Mijha Godfrey is the founder of Jambo Books. Jambo, which means both “hello” and “welcome” in Swahili, is a book subscription service for children aged 0 – 13 where all the books feature lead characters who are children of color. The stories in Jambo Books focus on the beauty of childhood, the joys of friendship and family, the thrill of new adventures, the wonderful tapestry that is the life of a child of color.

Mijha is passionate about helping parents raise children who won’t need to be taught how to tolerate people who are different from themselves because they will expect and enjoy healthy inclusion.

04:04 The importance of a diverse library

• Not letting experience resonate in only trauma or holiday

05:25 When should parents start showcasing different representations in their community to their children?

• Yesterday.. aka ASAP, as young as infants
• Race is recognized from an early age and the earlier exposure the better
• Showcasing universal things all children go through, not just culturally recognized celebrations
• Normalizing life experience of children of color

09:32 Jambo celebrates all representations

• Books are a gentle gateway
• Letting children of color know that they belong in all spaces

13:40 How do you choose books for Jambo?

• All books sent out are fiction
• Must star a child of color
• Has to be a good story, impactful

15:45 How do you introduce the ideas in the books to your children?

• Confront stereotypes head on!
• Can I touch your hair?

19:40 What push back have you experienced?

• Standing strong in their mission

24:20 Tips for book storage?

• More shelves!
• Recycle and pass forward books in the community

26:15 Genius / fail moments

• KWu's son turned 3! Yayy.. but feeling guilty that she is a couple years behind on the yearly photo albums. #fail
• Allison's daughter boy-cots her virtual doctors appointment, her son zips off virtual kindergarten and chaos is all happening at once! #fail
• Arit's daughters nails a technical aspect of potty training. #genius
• Mijha's daughter reads a book that sparks a racail conversation on a playdate. History well learned, but not wanting to her daughter to do the race work #winfail

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Panel

KWu
Allison
Arit

Special Guest: Mijha Godfrey.

Sponsored By:

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Episode 045: Miriam Tocino - Zerus and Ona

01:56 Welcome Miriam!

Zerus & Ona were born from Miriam's own circumstances as a mom. By the time she had her baby, Miriam was the coordinator and teacher of a Development Bootcamp in Amsterdam. So, when the time came to go back to work (her son was 3 months old), she jumped back. After some weeks in the job, Miriam realised she couldn't do it. She was constantly sleep deprived and with no help around from family (we're expats). Miriam quit her job and stayed at home with her baby. She then started to use his naps to draw and write Zerus & Ona.

**FREE PDF from Zerus and Ona on the ABCs of Computers

03:29 Orgins of Zerus and Ona

• Miriam was leading tech bootcamps, then got pregnant
• Her baby was more work than expected ;)
• Miriam returns to work, but quit after a few weeks after returning
• Sleep deprived evenings inspired new ideas!

08:40 Finding more intention as a new mom

• Thriving through a creative outlet
• Craving more information for her child in the future, specifically around TECH
• Motherhood and creativity are interconnected
• 2 year journey to build Zerus and Ona

15:05 Switching from architecture to tech to creative children’s books

• Binge learning and career switching
• No regrets

19:05 Zerus and Ona “bits”

• Breaking down complex topics to make them easily understandable
• Miriam switches from thinking with her head, to listening with her heart.
• Unlocking creativity through The Artist's Way
• Intuitive writing, journaling and play!

28:15 Zerus and Ona 2.0

• Evolution of creating the books
• If you’re thinking of making a move, do it!
• Learning to move on from perfectionism

32:20 Genius / Fail moments

• Miriam allows her son a device while she finishes a project (unheard of in her house), only to discover all her original drawings of Zerus and Ona are GONE afterwards. #fail
• Allison’s son acts out more than usual during a super busy week for the family and realizes that maybe their communication could have been clearer with him from the start #fail
• Chris commits to structuring a new art piece with his daughter by watching YouTube videos. He ends up paying someone else, but instills a solid mindset in his daughter during the process #genius

Follow & Support

Please follow us @parentdrivendev on Twitter or email us at panel@parentdrivendevelopment.com.

Our website is at ParentDrivenDevelopment.com.

Support us via Patreon and get access to our our Slack Community.

Get your own copy of Zerus and Ona

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Panel

Allison McMillan
Chris Sexton

Special Guest: Miriam Tocino.

Sponsored By:

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