EDU Designs

Want Peace?

Loving the people in our lives can bring more peace to our world.  Maybe not the entire world, but at least to those people our lives touch. I’m so grateful for each and every one of you who has reached out to me..

Love and blessings to YOU!

So much to be thankful for! My wonderful husband, Jas and I were recently busy moving into a new apartment. Now that we’re settled in, we are busy creating musical projects and mentoring students.
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Jas created a charming video of his mom, who at 95 years old sang “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town”! Click on the pic below to see it!

My friend, Satyam Pal, an 3D Animation student in India,  created this Christmas message in 3D! I am so proud of him and thankful he allowed me to share it here!  Click below to watch:

Our short animated film, “Somebody Needs You” was recently submitted to the 43rd Annual Annie Awards. Though it was not nominated for an award, we are very proud of it. See it here: 

We LOVE giving to others. And we have never gotten or expected a salary for the work we do. But there are many expenses in creating, printing and distributing materials to those who need and cannot afford them. Our budget is very slim, and we need help too.

Will you please come to our rescue and make a tax-deductible-end-of-the-year donation?

To donate ANY amount, please click the ‘donate’ button below:  

Thank you so much,

THE NIGHT PRINCESS is an original fable that encourages us to see that the way we treat anyone, is the way we treat everyone!

With tears streaming down his face, RAY BRADBURY declared,
“It’s BEAUTIFUL!”   VAN DYKE PARKS said: “I loved your show, too. Terrific animation to a great tale. The music does justice to it all!”

The story of THE NIGHT PRINCESS
is as gripping as it is mysterious. What do you think happened to The Night Princess? The ending is up to YOU.

Here are questions for discussion with students:

What do YOU think happened?

Was she still alive?

What did the king do?

Did he learn a lesson?

What lesson did he learn?

SOON to be in book form.  

The Night Princess © Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon, 2006

Newly updated to Mandarin in 2015

To see our animated short, click on the image above!

Sometimes we may want to do something “big and important” in the world, all the while missing opportunities to help those around us.

The story Somebody Needs You is important for kids – to learn to pay attention to their surroundings, and see that they CAN make a difference, wherever they are. 

You can see it HERE.  And it’s getting rave reviews already!  

 “This should be a character education tool in schools across the country!” ~David McKibbin, writer/singer/actor

 “That was amazing. Totally loved it.” ~Charles Halloran, artist and owner of Halloran Comics

When June Foray, (best known for her work on Rocky and Bullwinkle), originally heard the story I wrote to help children, she recorded all 4 voices as a favor to me.  It’s taken a while to finish, but thanks to Dani Bowman and the generous contributions of our talented volunteers, we MADE IT!

Photo on left: Ruth Elliott and June Foray at the Annie Awards, 2013. On right: the famous Temple Grandin and Dani Bowman at a conference of AutismWorksNow, 2015.

Dani Bowman, the director and chief animator of our project, is a high functioning individual with Autism. She founded DaniMation Entertainment, at the remarkable age of 14! After Dani agreed to work personally with me, I knew I had found a partner. She has been the prime mover in bringing this story to life. 

Matt Miller, animator and character designer, generously volunteered his awesome design talent, just after overcoming his battle with cancer this year.  (Read what his adoptive mom wrote about it, here)

A sample of Matt Miller’s work!

Right: Ruth, June Foray, Dominique Ovalle, and Nicholas Mastrangelo.

Others who helped were: Fine artist Dominique Ovalle, on backgrounds, plus Zack Miller and Nicholas Mastrangelo with additional animation. 

ALSO: Special thanks go to Patrick Eidemiller and Sandra Vielma, who were supportive in more ways than I can list. We couldn’t have done it without them. And thanks to Toon Boom Animation for contributing the software.

And thank you to everyone who encouraged us along the way!

Watch it and share the link! https://youtu.be/IJAKzqK20kQ

Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon
Director, EDU DESIGNS
Creator, GoMommyGO®

Kids and Parents need all the help they can get.

EDU DESIGNS and GoMommyGO® are there to help, providing materials for parents and teachers who can’t afford them.  We need YOUR help to do that!

Click the picture to find out MORE about Ruth Elliott’s Art Textbook for kids “See What You’re Looking At!”

SEE WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING AT reveals the secrets of how children (and adults) can learn to draw!

SPECIAL OFFER!

LIMITED TIME ONLY until our next printing:

Get a FREE download of my Art Book with any donation!(A $9.99 Value)

Click the Blue Button above for a sneak peek at a few pages of this book!

After donating you will be automatically redirected to download the file you may view and print from your own computer. You can print it as many times as you need for personal educational purposes only. 

PLEASE TELL YOUR FRIENDS!  Emmy Award winning author and illustrator Ruth Elliott has packed over 30 years of experience in drawing into one amazing book. What makes this art textbook unique? She has distilled what she knows into simple language that anyone can understand, in step-by-step lessons that build on the previous one, to discover new skills in ‘seeing’ what you’re looking at. Including tips on everything from how to hold your pencil to how animation works, plus a bonus section with art games.

For a limited time only, Get a FREE download with any donation!

Kids and Parents need all the help they can get.

EDU DESIGNS and GoMommyGO® are there to help, providing materials for parents and teachers who can’t afford them.  We need YOUR help to do that!

THANK YOU!

I love people! When I was a little kid I dreamed of having lots of children.  And I wanted to change the world by bringing good people into it, one person at a time. 

When I was twenty years old I wrote a song for my future children, imagining what I would say to them should they ever make a mistake so bad they were afraid to come home.  It took over 40 years to get the song recorded, but last month it happened, thanks to a friend, and this month my husband and I made it into a video on YouTube!

PLEASE WATCH!

Life is a lot of work, isn’t it?

That’s why I’ve created this blog. Now that my own kids are all grown up, I have more time to share practical tips for handling the challenges you may face too.

Here are a few you may need right now!

POSITIVE DISCIPLINE 

WHAT IS A LEADER

KIDS NEED GOOD EXAMPLES

HELP STOP BULLYING (3 posters for you)

SEVEN SUPER STRATEGIES TO SUCCEED IN SCHOOL (with  printable pdf)

Love to you and yours,

Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon
Director, EDU DESIGNS
Creator, GoMommyGO® 

Kids and Parents need all the help they can get.

EDU DESIGNS and GoMommyGO® are there to help.

Please donate!

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Click to DOWNLOAD The PRINTABLE Version. 

7 SUPER STRATEGIES to SUCCEED IN SCHOOL!

SUCCESS TO YOU!

Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon
Director, EDU DESIGNS
Creator, GoMommyGO® 

Kids and Parents need all the help they can get.

EDU DESIGNS and GoMommyGO® are there to help.

Please donate!

These three posters stop Bullies!

Scroll down to the last one to download all three.

This one helps identify a bully:

This one tells what to do when faced with a bully:

This one helps kids ask themselves, “Do I ever bully others?”

HELP STOP BULLYING!

 Download all 3 Posters HERE: 

My gift to you!

Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon
Director, EDU DESIGNS
Creator, GoMommyGO® 

Kids and Parents need all the help they can get.

EDU DESIGNS and GoMommyGO® are there to help.

Please donate!

WILL THEY FOLLOW YOU?

Force alone does NOT make people want to follow. 

Dale Carnegie, author of “How to Win Friends and Influence People” said,

“A man convinced against his will, is of the same opinion still.”

Dwight D. Eisenhower used to say that being a leader is like pulling a string. 

“Pull the string,” he said, “and it will follow wherever you wish. Push it, and it will go nowhere at all.”

You can begin NOW to become your child’s LEADER, by acting the way you want them to behave.

Calmly state what we want our kids to do and they will more willingly follow your example.

Mahatma Ghandhi influenced millions of people in his lifetime. He said:

“Be the change you wish to see in the world.”

Leave an example your children will want to imitate and follow.

When people tried to get him upset, Ghandhi used a technique he called, “Passive Non-Cooperation”. He would stick to his position stubbornly, but in a peaceful, non violent manner.

Josh McDowell, pastor, teacher and writer said:

“Rules without Relationship lead to Rebellion”

You can keep a good relationship with your kids without letting them ‘be the boss’. How? Instruct them patiently that there are CONSEQUENCES to every action, good or bad. Kids will test us, but continue repeating what they need to do calmly, without giving in to bad behavior yourself. 

KEEP THE GOAL IN MIND: The loving people you want them to be. 

LOVE YOUR KIDS AS THOUGH YOU WON’T HAVE THEM TOMORROW, AND TEACH YOUR KIDS AS THOUGH THEY WON’T HAVE YOU TOMORROW!

LOVE TO YOU AND YOURS!

Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon
Director, EDU DESIGNS
Creator, GoMommyGO® 

Kids and Parents need all the help they can get.

EDU DESIGNS and GoMommyGO® are there to help.

Please donate!

POSITIVE DISCIPLINE MEANS GUIDING A CHILD TO SEE THAT HE OR SHE CAN MAKE A VALUABLE CONTRIBUTION TO THE WORLD.

Radio Therapist, John Jolliffe once said, 

“The way you feel about yourself is both your punishment and your reward. Your job is to become the kind of person YOU can love.”

When you feel Valuable and Needed, it makes a huge difference in what you can accomplish in life.  

HOW TO MOTIVATE PEOPLE (KIDS OR OTHERS):

From the WEAKEST to the most powerful ways to motivate others:

HOW CAN YOU GET YOUR KIDS TO HELP? 

You have to inspire them to WANT to help!

Once you have that, the rest is easy!

How do you do that?

Combining the Three ‘R’s’, of Relationship, Rules and Rewards gives you the best chance of motivating your child.

Relationship – Keep loving them. Nothing beats smiles, hugs and affirmation for encouraging a person to do better.

Rules and Rewards – Plan your strategy. Follow a system that will include incentives to action, whether a Chart, or reward for good behavior that grants special activities or privileges, to go along with a good relationship. Make it like a game, and it will be easier for everyone.

MOST of ALL – Be a GOOD EXAMPLE. Show you don’t mind ‘getting your hands dirty’ too. Your example will speak VOLUMES! If it’s a chore, get in there and act like it’s FUN. You may be pretending at first, but it WILL be fun if you’re doing it together. (Think of Mike Rowe from the show ‘Dirty Jobs’!)

READY OR NOT – YOU ARE THE LEADER!

Once you’ve shown them HOW to do a job the first time, then let them do it! Even if they don’t do it perfectly, praise efforts made. Be patient. It may take a while for them to get it right. 

LOVE YOUR KIDS AS THOUGH YOU WON’T HAVE THEM TOMORROW, AND TEACH YOUR KIDS AS THOUGH THEY WON’T HAVE YOU TOMORROW!

READ MORE on BEING A GOOD LEADER here.

LOVE TO YOU AND YOURS!

Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon
Director, EDU DESIGNS
Creator, GoMommyGO® 

Kids and Parents need all the help they can get.

EDU DESIGNS and GoMommyGO® are there to help.

Please donate!

How can we get our kids to be nice people?

Be nice people ourselves!

But they need discipline, too.

Discipline means ‘child training’.

So, what are we training kids to be?

Many parents send the message,

“Be pleasant and do what I tell you“

But, what the kids hear them saying is,

“I’m the parent. I can do whatever I like while I order YOU around!”

When parents either: 1- walk around angry and complaining, or 2- drudgingly drag themselves through life like martyrs, it makes ‘being an adult’ look pretty miserable! Who would want to follow that example?

Not me! I decided long ago I would NEVER forget how to have fun!

Sometimes a little thing like FUN can steer kids in the right direction, making the right thing seem a better choice than the wrong.  

Never forget how to have fun, and learn to have fun with your children, and you’ll be the parent they want to follow as an example. 

Discipline is important, too.  Please see more on DISCIPLINE here.

LOVE YOUR KIDS AS THOUGH YOU WON’T HAVE THEM TOMORROW, AND TEACH YOUR KIDS AS THOUGH THEY WON’T HAVE YOU TOMORROW!

Love to you and yours,

Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon
Director, EDU DESIGNS
Creator, GoMommyGO® 

Kids and Parents need all the help they can get.

EDU DESIGNS and GoMommyGO® are there to help.

Please donate!

INTERRUPTABILITY!

While working at home with a babysitter watching the kids, my 4 year old daughter Annie came into my office with a sweet smile and asked if she could just sit there quietly for a little while. I wanted to say, “Yes” – but my brain argued with my heart, thinking,

‘If I am to be organized, I must follow rules and not let anything interrupt me.’

So, against my intuition, I put on a straight face and said,

“No honey – I have to work”,  and sent her out.

She started crying hysterically as the babysitter took her out of the room.

I tried to rationalize that I wasn’t being heartless. 

“I’m supposed to be working. I’m paying the babysitter. She should handle this!”  

But I knew I had hurt Annie. I felt horrible all day, and so did she.

A few years later, the incident came up in conversation:

I did remember, and I was sad about it.  I said, 

“I’m so sorry honey. Would you like that hug NOW?”

And Annie said,  “Nope. It expired!”

I thought, “What can I do, now?”

Had I hurt my daughter forever by that one ‘businesslike’ decision?

No.

My daughter did eventually forgive me.

But what did it take?

TIME.

And love.

SOFTEN WITH LOVE

Did you ever cook oatmeal and not wash the pan right away?

When you come back later the oatmeal is dry and stuck like GLUE.

What do you do? Soak it in water for a while and it’ll soften up again.

Love, like water on dried oatmeal, softens the heart.

The hardest part is admitting when you are mistaken, though.

Notice I didn’t use the word ‘wrong’?

‘Wrong’ holds too much shame and blame.

DON’T USE THE WORD ‘WRONG’.

INSTEAD SAY, ‘MISTAKEN’.

As a new parent, I was deathly afraid of being ‘WRONG’.

I decided not to make the same errors my parents had made.

And I didn’t. I made NEW ones.

I assumed parents must always be good examples, do the right thing, and be the ones who know what to do in all circumstances. Boy, was I WRONG! (Oops! I mean, ‘mistaken’!) LOL

Everyone makes mistakes. And they can usually be worked through, unless we never apologize. Now THAT is WRONG.

If you didn’t do wrong on purpose, then it was a ‘mistake’.

You can’t fault yourself for the wisdom you didn’t have at the time.

Don’t wait to say, “I’m sorry”.

Take care of your mess before it has ‘dried out’, and it will be easier to clean up.

But even if you have made the mistake of waiting, soak the problem in love, be patient with yourself and your loved ones, and you’ll see things improve.

They won’t be able to resist forever! Like the old adage:

Q.  How do you stop an argument?

A.  Apologize

Now THERE’S wisdom that works!

And, be interruptable!

Love to you and yours,

Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon
Director, EDU DESIGNS
Creator, GoMommyGO 

Kids and Parents need all the help they can get. EDU DESIGNS and GoMommyGO are there for YOU. Please donate!

Life can either make you Bitter or Better.
From a crucible of  unimaginable suffering came a survivor –  Antwone Fisher*, The man the movie of the same name was made about,  directed by and starring Denzel Washington.

I had the pleasure of meeting Antwone in 2010 at Vroman’s, at the book signing for:
“A Boy Should Know How To Tie A Tie (and other Lessons for Succeeding in Life)” 

What a gift he shares in it: The advice he never got from the dad he never had. Brimming with insight, it shows his suffering was not in vain. 

He held a raffle for a gorgeous tie too. Antwone reached in and picked out the winning ticket – and as fate would have it, a young student, Marcus, got it! I’m so glad he won – he was so happy! 

Antwone Fisher (L) with the young man, Marcus, who won the TIE at the Vroman’s book signing event.

Have you heard about Antwone Fisher? Have you seen the movie?

The movie, Antwone Fisher, directed by and starring Denzel Washington.

If not, this one is a MUST. Rent it at the library! Better yet – BUY it – you’ll be glad you did! (Note: It’s NOT for younger kids. Rated PG 13 for violence, language and involving child abuse)

By the way – Preventing child abuse starts with everyone. We are all dominos that affect those around us. GoMommyGO has tools to help parents learn to manage their kids’ behavior from a proactive standpoint. Visit for free behavior charts that REALLY WORK!

Great teachers speak in parables. Stories can change the character of the people who hear them – for the better. That’s what our non profit, EDU DESIGNS aims for in our media for children. Thanks for your support of what we do.

We can’t do it without you! 

Many thanks,

Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon
Director, EDU DESIGNS
Creator, GoMommyGO 

I heard on the the news one day that a young boy had committed suicide to after he’d made a mistake he thought would embarrass his family. He was trying to ‘save face’.  

I felt so sad to think he believed he had no other choice.  I cried for that little boy and his family that night.

As I drifted off to sleep thinking of him, this little story came to me:

Welcome to the Land of “I’M SORRY” by Ruth Elliott

Once there was a boy whose teacher said:

“Boy – Always do right, and Never do Wrong. Then you will be perfect.”

So the boy went out to always do right.

But one day he did something wrong. He was so sad, he thought his life was ruined forever. “There’s nothing left to do but jump down a hole and HIDE.”

He was about to jump, when someone came along and said,

“All is not lost! You can still have a good life. But you have to go through these two gates first, called: “I’M SORRY” and  ” I’LL DO BETTER NEXT TIME“

So the boy left the hole behind, and went through the gates.

When he got to the other side he saw his teacher there.  

He was shocked and said,

“You’re here, TOO?  YOU had to say sorry? What did YOU do that was wrong?”

The teacher said,

“I told you you could be perfect and never do wrong – but that was impossible to do. That was my mistake. I am sorry.”

The Land of “I’m Sorry”, © Ruth Elliott, 2010

 Please. Never give up!

Warmly,

Ruth Elliott-Hilsdon
Director, EDU DESIGNS
Creator, GoMommyGO 

PS – Speaking of making mistakes – have you read my article on INTERRUPTIBLITY?  Click the word or this link:

http://www.edudesigns.org/blog/the-first-requirement-of-parenthood-interruptability/