Cabinet Meetings and Commercials

Hey everyone!

I have had a great couple of weeks! First of all, I got to have another Cabinet meeting! Melody, Hayden, Eva, and Reilly were able to join me. It was so amazing to catch up with everyone and hear how their platforms are going. You can read more about them in their own blog posts (Reilly's, Hayden's, Eva's)!

Me with Cabinet members Melody, Hayden, Eva, and Reilly. 

At the Cabinet meeting, we did something very special. We chose the top thirteen finalists for my statewide poster contest! The poster contest was held in cooperation with the State Department of Children and Families as part of their 2019 CT Family Day. The final winner will be selected from those top thirteen and then will be used to promote CT Family Day and helping to find forever homes for children who need them. We had about 80 entries and I'll tel you a little secret: they were all amazing! All of them were so colorful, happy, and cheerful! It took us such a long time to choose just the top 40! I am really proud of all of the people who participated in the contest. You can see the top designs on Facebook HERE.

We also had an Open House at Connecticut's Old State House. The Old State House was open to the public and people could come in, walk around, and learn all about Connecticut's government. The Kid Governor's Cabinet and I were there to greet visitors. It was a lot of fun getting to meet all of you and to hear your stories. I also want to thank all of the people who donated to our collection drive to benefit East Hartford and Hartford food pantries, Mercy Housing and Shelter Corporation, and the Winifred House. Oh, and those who signed Hayden's Screen Time Pledge! 

Along with all of that, I shot a special commercial for the CT Sun Pride Night game. I got to meet professional basketball players and I had a really nice time. On July 12th, I will be attending Pride Night for the CT Sun women's basket ball game at Mohegan Sun. I hope a lot of people will come to the game! If you do go, feel welcome to stop me and say "hi!". I would love to meet every single one of you. 

How can you show love today? Think before you speak. Make sure the words you are saying are positive and kind. 

Love you all!

Your Kid Governor, 

From the CTKG Cabinet: Hayden Xhokaxhiu

Hello, my name is Hayden Xhokaxhiu, one of the six finalists in the 2018 Connecticut's Kid

Governor Statewide Election. I'm now working on the Kid Governor's Cabinet with 2019 CTKG Ella!

I ran for Kid Governor because I realized a big problem that even I had. People, including kids like us, spend way too much time using electronics. Humans these days don't seem to understand the beauty in this world. Instead, they are on their phones, computers, TV, etc. So when I realized this had been going on, it truly motivated me to do something about it.

What Overuse of Electronics Can Do To You
When I say "what overuse of electronics can do to you," I mean what they can do to you over time if you use them too much. I don't want you to read this and then break your computer! Technology is one of the biggest resources in the world for information, knowledge, and education. Use your electronics to your advantage, not your disadvantage. Using electronics in a negative way is when they gain "control" over you. Another word for this is called an addiction. When you use too much screen time, it causes some side effects. For example, eye damage, a glaring effect, in which the bright light from the electronic screen can cause your eyes to have blurry vision and can cause headaches. These consequences can lower your ability to learn in school which can cause you to struggle later in life.

How You Can Lower Screen Time
You can lower your screen time by first making a commitment to yourself. What I did was read more. Then I started to step it up and do some different activities, like join a basketball team in town in addition to playing soccer. I chose to play outside more with my buddies in the neighborhood. When you do this, it gives you things to do other than just sitting, head bent, looking down at your phone. You can also attack this problem differently than I did. You could play with your friends, take an art class, take part in a club, or go swimming in a pool or at the beach on beautiful summer days.

You can also track your screen time and as weeks go by, you can try to lower it even more until you reach your goal. A good goal is about one hour a day of electronics time. That means only spending seven hours a week instead of twenty hours playing addicting games-- yes, this means Fortnite!

What I'm Doing to Help Others on this Issue
I'm encouraging 5th graders at my school to do other things instead of using electronics like playing

outside, doing crossword puzzles, and playing games with your family. Next, I have created a pledge that I am including in this post (click HERE!) where kids can sign it and use the screen time tracker that comes with it. It is one week long and helps to track how much you have decreased your screen time. Keep using it every week until you have reached your goal! Half of my class has signed the pledge and taken on the challenge. Finally, I am brainstorming ideas for a "shout-out program" that highlights the kids who have greatly decreased their screen time over summer break.

I'd love to hear how much screen time you've cut out during the week! Email me at info@KidGovernor.org to tell me about it. You can also visit CT.KidGovernor.org/cabinet2019 to read about the other cabinet members.

Thanks for reading!

-Hayden
Pleasant Valley Elementary School
South Windsor, CT 

My First Meeting with my Cabinet!

Hey everyone!

We had our first cabinet meeting this week and it was so much fun! The Kid Governor Cabinet includes the six other finalists from the Statewide Election back in November. The members of the cabinet are Eva, Hayden, Jason, Madison, Melody, and Reilly. They are all such nice people and it is an honor to be able to work with them.

At the meeting, we got to know each other a bit more by completing a scavenger hunt that was set all over Connecticut's Old State House. We had to solve clues to bring us to our next location and then take selfies with an iPad to prove that we had solved the clue! One of the clues brought us to the downstairs costume room and we all had to dress up in fun costumes. I dressed up as a 90s rock star, Eva was a lion, Jason was a basketball player, and Melody and Reilly were circus performers! We all had a great time.

After the scavenger hunt, we shared a pizza dinner together and then it was time to get down to business. We held our meeting in the Kid Governor's Office (which was once the Grown Up Governor's office). The first thing we discussed was how we were all doing with working on our own individual platforms. I updated the Cabinet on my progress with the guide I am writing to start GSAs in schools, the teacher webinar that I am working on to train educators on LGBTQ issues, and the poster contest I'd like to run to help advocate for foster homes for LGBTQ youth.

Eva mentioned how she had run a toiletry drive at her school to help get needed supplies for families who may not be able to afford them. Reilly did a blanket and pillow collection at her school to donate to local foster homes. Melody has been organizing food drives at her school to benefit local food pantries. Jason is building a Little Library in his community. Hayden is running a screen-free week with a screen-free pledge. We all brainstormed ideas about what we can do to help each other achieve the goals we set during our campaigns. We then went into a Facebook Live video where we answered questions from our constituents. If you go to the CT's Kid Governor Facebook page, you can watch the video!

Overall, it was an amazing experience to get to know and work with such a passionate group of students who obviously care a lot about their causes. I can't wait until our next meeting!

How can we all show love today? You can work hard in school to always be a role model for others by being kind not only to other students but also the adults in the building. Your teachers love you, make sure to show your love back!

Love you all!

Your Kid Governor,

A message from your friends at the Connecticut Democracy Center...

Stay tuned for upcoming guest blog posts from the six cabinet members to learn all about the incredible work that they are each doing in their communities!