Jaime T. Bear for the Massachusetts Senate

Jaime the Bear has heard that schools are not getting enough money. That doesn’t seem fair. Lots of little kids need good schools and teachers.

That bothers Jaime. She decided to go to the Statehouse to see what she could see.

She saw that Beacon Hill is a lot bigger than she is.

She wanted to talk to her senator, Sonia Chang-Diaz. Sonia would understand about the schools. After all, she used to be a teacher. Jaime wants to be a teacher. They’d understand each other.

When she got through security, Jaime realized she didn’t know where Senator Sonia’s office is. She got nervous. But one of the Park Rangers told her there is a book with all the representatives’ names and contact information in it.

Jaime took the elevator to Sonia’s office.

Senator Sonia wasn’t available.

Jaime was crushed.

But she made friends with some other bears from Jamaica Plain who had come to visit Sonia.

And Senator Sonia’s staff was very nice. Jaime learned that five of the six people who worked in the office are girls. Jaime liked that. Sonia’s staff gave Jaime the senator’s card and said she might have better luck next time if she calls ahead.

As she was walking back down the hallway, Jaime came across this sign.

Jaime liked that a girl is president of the Senate, so she decided to check out the Senate. After all, she she was already in the building.

She learned that centuries ago, when Maine (Jaime’s home state) was part of Massachusetts, there were almost 800 state representatives who crammed into this room.

Jaime thinks it must have been stinky in there.

Since no one was around, she decided to take a closer look at the place.

Jaime started to think…

Maybe she might like to be a senator one day. After all, Sonia used to be a teacher and Jaime will be a teacher. And then she could make sure schools get all the money they need.

Jaime saw a sign for “The Grand Staircase.”

Every kid knows that grand staircases have banisters.

And banisters are MEANT to be slid down.

It was a sunny day, and Jaime really wanted to go out. But as she was leaving the Grand Staircase area, a big crowd of people caught her attention.

It was Governor Patrick, swearing in a family court judge!

Jaime likes family court judges because she was adopted. If it hadn’t been for family court, she never would have found a family.

She got to thinking…maybe she’d like to be a judge.

She practiced taking the oath, too.

Just in case she changes her mind about being a teacher.

Maybe she could be governor. Then she could pick the judges who help kids find families.

Jaime passed the Hall of Flags on her way out. It has over 300 flags in it, one from every community in Massachusetts. Usually that would interest her, but it’d been a long day and she could see the sun through the sky light.

It made her realize it was a beautiful day out. There are swings to swing on and, after all, it’s going to be awhile before she can fix school funding.

Practicalities: Tours run through the Massachusetts Statehouse in 30 minute intervals during business hours. No reservations needed. The nearest T stop is Park Street. Click here for more details.

A Bear in a Boat: Community Boating’s Junior Program

On a recent walk to her favorite playground on the Esplanade, Jaime came across this.

This place promises “Sailing for All” and that kids can sail all summer for $1. That’s not much out of her allowance at all.

She went in to find out more.

She met the staff. They were nice.

They let her sit on a boat.

They let her play with the sails.

Jaime loves school…but she loves playing even more. She signed up for a Junior Membership and can’t wait for June to roll around so she can start to learn how to sail.

Practicalities: Community Boating is the oldest and largest non-profit sailing organization in the United States. Located next to the Hatch Shell, the nearest T station is Charles/MGH.

Children between the ages of 10 and 18 can indeed sail for just $1 for the entire summer between 9:00 and 3:00. All the children need is proof they can swim and written permission from their parents.

Public Radio: Not Just for Car Rides to School

Jaime in Studio 2 at WBUR, Boston's NPR News Station. She thinks maybe she could host Morning Edition one day...but it would interfere with her teaching career.

Jaime supports her local public radio station, 90.9 WBUR. It’s located on the campus of Boston University.

Every morning, on her way to school on the station wagon, they listen to Morning Edition. On the way home from school, they listen to “All Things Considered.” She explains the big words to her little brothers and sisters.

Jaime is practicing for the next station fundraiser, when she'll answer the phones.

This is how NPR radio stations make money: Every few months, the people who work there go on the air and ask for the people listening to send in money. It’s kind of annoying, but it’s not as annoying as the stupid commercials on the TV during the news.

So, when the radio station workers ask for money, they need volunteers to come in and answer the phones.

When you help out, YOU GET TO GO ON A TOUR OF THE STATION.

Usually, they don’t let little kids on the soundboard, but Jaime was so cute the engineer couldn’t say no.

Jaime struggles to reach all of the buttons. But next year, she'll be a little taller.

Practicalities: Tours of radio stations can be fun. But even if you don’t go on a tour, or if you don’t have time to volunteers, merely listening to your local NPR station can be informative for your kids. Some stations even have programming designed specially for young people, such as WGBH’s “Kids Classical Hour.” Find your local public radio station.

Patriots’ Day, Part Two: The Boston Marathon

Jaime cheers at the 2009 Boston Marathon. She learned that the runners whose names are on the front of their shirts are called "elite" and are some of the best athletes in the world. Jaime wishes she could run that fast.

Jaime was glad to see a woman in the race. She wants to run the Boston Marathon when she grows up.

The Boston Marathon is the oldest, continually-run marathon in the world. (The very oldest marathon actually took place in 490 BC during the wars between Greece and the Persian empire. That was a really long time ago.) Boston has been hosting its marathon since 1896. About  half a million people tune into the Marathon every year. The only sport more people in America watch every year is the Superbowl. (I watch both.)

My friends and I went to Heartbreak Hill. I like to watch the marathon late in the race because people say a marathon really begins at mile 20. I like to cheer people on when they’re struggling.

I like to cheer for the people in wheelchairs because…even though they finish the race faster than other people, I think it would be hard to have to live in a wheelchair.

A wheelchair racer after Heartbreak Hill.

I think it would be really hard to run a whole marathon, but I just can’t believe someone could run it without legs. But this man did. The crowd cheered so loud that I couldn’t hear my voice. And I couldn’t help but wonder: Why didn’t he have any legs? And how hard has it been for him to prepare for this day? He was really fast, too. He was only about ten minutes behind the winner.

The best part of the day was when a man ran by who had no legs.

People who run the marathon say the best part of it is the that so many people turn out to cheer them on. Being out there, cheering, makes me feel like I’m really a part of my city.

Practicalities: If you want to watch and cheer at the Boston Marathon, avoid the beginning and the end. Getting in and out of Hopkinton is hard even for the athletes the morning of the race. And the crowds are so thick at the end that it’s hard for a wee person to see through the crowd. To plot your place of viewing that’s best for your commute, visit the website for the Boston Athletic Association, which has a map of the course and the nearest public transportation.

Cheering crowds at BC

MinuteBear: Jaime’s Foray Into The American Revolution

Listen my children and you shall hear of the morning ride of Jaime Bear. On the 19th of April in 2009, many a bear is now alive who remembers that day and year!

To see the full show, watch my audio slideshow.

Each year, Lexington, Massachusetts remembers “The shot heard round the world” — The first battle of the American Revolution. Each year, on Patriot’s Day (usually in mid-April), men and women dress in 18th century costumes and re-enact the Battles of Lexington and Concord. (For annual details, click here.)

The festivities surrounding Patriot’s Day start the Sunday night before, when officials at The Old North Church in Boston’s Historic North End light two candles in their steeple. This, because Paul Revere had said he needed to know from the lookouts if the British troops were going to come over land or by boat. The code between the lookout and Paul Revere was, “One if by land, two if by sea.”

(It was by sea, so every year The Old North Church lights two lamps.)

I didn’t actually go to the re-enactment of the lighting of the lamps because it was at 8:00 p.m., and I had to get up early the next morning to go to the re-enactment of the Battle of Lexington.

Jaime looks over the crowds gathering for the Battle of Lexington Reenactment. She climbed to the top of Belfry Hill to get the bear's-eye view.

The battle reenactment starts at 6:00 a.m. So we got up at 4:30 to get to Lexington on-time. But even then, it was hard to find a place to see anything. The next time I go, I’ll be like these kids.

Even though we had a hard time seeing, we met a lot of interesting people.

The modern meets the colonial as Redcoats march to Lexington Green to take on the Minutemen.

These men actually supported the King. Jaime still can't believe she met people like that.

These men are from the 54th Massachusetts Regiment. They were the first regiment made up entirely of free black men. These three decided to travel back in time to honor all the revolutionaries who founded our country. But, in particular, they came to honor Prince Estabrook, who was America's first black soldier. In this picture, they are showing Jaime pictures from their trip to the Inauguration of America's first black president, Barack Obama. Jaime learned a lot from them.

This particular woman was very sweet to me. She told me that I shouldn’t be discouraged that I had a hard time seeing the battle because lots of people have a hard time seeing it all the time. She gave us this tip: Every year, the actors practice for the battle the weekend before it. You can visit The Battle Road Website each year for the details.

The rehearsal is better, she said, because the crowds aren’t as big, and the actors keep practicing their moves over and over to get it perfect. And they don’t actually shoot the guns, so little kids don’t get scared.

So, next year, I can go to the Lantern Lighting at the Old North Church AND the battle rehearsal. And all are free!

Practicalities: The Battle of Lexington is reenacted every year in Lexington Center, off Rte 2. Because it takes place so early in the morning, it isn’t possible to take public transportation. Also, either stake out a spot at 4:15 in the morning or bring a ladder because it’s impossible to appreciate the spectacle fully otherwise. But the crowds are very well-behaved and the event is pretty authentic. Great event!

Jaime is proud of New England's role in the American Revolution and can't wait to learn more about it. Maybe she'll be a history teacher.