Hey there! With Mother’s Day just around the corner in the United States, let’s dive into some fun facts about moms, both on TV and in the animal kingdom, and learn a bit about the history of Mother’s Day. Moms are amazing, and this is a great time to celebrate them!
Did you know that having your mom around might make you take fewer risks? In 2015, a study found that teenagers made safer choices when their moms were watching. Researchers had 14-year-olds play a driving game where they had to decide whether to stop or go at yellow lights. When playing alone, teens made risky choices 55% of the time, but with their moms watching, it dropped to 45%. The study showed that moms help boost self-control, making teens think twice before taking risks. Thanks, Mom!
TV moms have entertained us for years. Did you know that Carol Brady from “The Brady Bunch” has a mysterious past? Actress Florence Henderson joked that Carol might have “killed” her first husband! On “Gilmore Girls,” Lauren Graham drank so much coffee while playing Lorelai that she joked about almost overdosing on it.
Angelica Huston prepared for her role as Morticia Addams by watching a documentary, and Isabel Sanford from “The Jeffersons” wasn’t sure audiences would believe her character’s relationship with Sherman Hemsley. Wilma Flintstone’s maiden name is sometimes Slaghoople and sometimes Pebble, depending on the cartoon.
Julie Bowen, who played Claire Dunphy on “Modern Family,” won two Emmys, but one got broken by her son. And did you know that Lucille Bluth from “Arrested Development” was inspired by the creator’s mother-in-law?
In the animal world, moms have some unique parenting styles. Elephants use “allomothering,” where other females help take care of the calves. Cuckoo birds lay their eggs in other birds’ nests, leaving the foster parents to raise their chicks.
Lionesses give birth away from their pride and return later, with other lionesses helping raise the cubs. Killer whales and dolphins stay awake for a month after giving birth to guide their newborns. Emperor penguin moms leave their eggs with the dads while they travel far to find food.
Flowers have special meanings, especially on Mother’s Day. Carnations are known as the Mother’s Day flower, symbolizing love. Pink carnations represent a mother’s love, while white ones mean pure love and luck. Tulips can mean rebirth or cheerful thoughts, and daisies symbolize loyalty and innocence.
Roses are often linked to romance, but pink roses show gratitude, and yellow roses represent friendship and joy. Lilies are popular for Mother’s Day, symbolizing motherhood and happiness.
Mother’s Day has a fascinating history. It started with festivals in ancient Greece and Rome honoring mother goddesses. In the early 1900s, Anna Jarvis from West Virginia pushed for a day to honor mothers. She wrote to governors and even famous people like Mark Twain to make it happen.
In 1908, the first Mother’s Day service was held in West Virginia. By 1914, Congress made it an official holiday. However, Anna Jarvis wasn’t happy with how commercialized it became. She wanted it to be a day to spend time with moms and appreciate them.
So, as Mother’s Day approaches, let’s remember to thank our moms for everything they do. Happy Mother’s Day!
Imagine you’re a TV mom from one of the shows mentioned in the article. Create a short skit with your classmates where you portray a day in the life of your character. Think about how your character would interact with their family and what unique traits they bring to the role of a mom. This will help you understand the diverse portrayals of motherhood on television.
Choose one of the animal moms mentioned in the article, such as the elephant or the cuckoo bird. Research more about their parenting style and create a poster or presentation to share with the class. Include interesting facts and visuals to make your presentation engaging. This will help you learn about the fascinating ways different species care for their young.
Create an art project that represents the meanings of different flowers associated with Mother’s Day. Use materials like colored paper, paint, or digital tools to design a bouquet that symbolizes love, gratitude, and joy. Present your artwork to the class and explain the significance of each flower you included. This activity will deepen your understanding of the symbolic language of flowers.
Work in groups to create a timeline of the history of Mother’s Day, from ancient festivals to its official recognition in the United States. Use creative elements like drawings or digital graphics to illustrate key events. Present your timeline to the class, highlighting how the holiday has evolved over time. This will give you insight into the cultural and historical significance of Mother’s Day.
Conduct a simple experiment to explore the concept of risk-taking with and without parental supervision. Design a safe activity where students make decisions, such as a game or puzzle, and compare the choices made when a “mom” figure is present versus absent. Discuss the results as a class and relate them to the findings mentioned in the article. This will help you understand the influence of parental presence on decision-making.
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the YouTube transcript:
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Hi! Welcome to Mental Floss video. It’s almost Mother’s Day here in the United States, so today we’re going to learn about the holiday and moms in general because moms are awesome, especially my mom. Let’s get started!
In 2015, a study about teen risk-taking was published in the Journal of Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience. The lead researcher, Eva, and her colleagues wanted to find out whether adolescents would take fewer risks if their moms were watching. To do this, they had 14-year-olds play a driving game. There were 25 adolescents total in the study, and they received fMRI scans while playing the game, which allowed the researchers to analyze blood flow in the participants’ brains.
The game had multiple stoplights. As the adolescents approached a light, they had to press a stop button or a go button. The objective was to make it through the course as fast as possible, and crashing the car meant they would be delayed longer than if they had just stopped. Choosing to drive through a yellow stoplight was the risky behavior here. A participant would play through the game once alone and another time knowing that their mom was watching. The teenagers made about 55% risky choices while playing alone, but when their moms watched, there were fewer risky choices—about 45%. According to Eva, the researchers considered that a big effect.
The fMRI scans provided some interesting data too. When an adolescent played alone and took the risk of running a yellow light, their ventral striatum—a region linked to rewards—was activated. However, that activity did not occur when a teen being watched by their mom took the same risk. Other studies have shown that adolescents get this boost from the ventral striatum while taking risks more than other age groups like children and adults. Their mom being there might have reduced that reward, essentially taking the fun out of being risky, as the authors suggested. When teens stopped the car at a yellow light while their mom watched, the connections between the ventral striatum and the prefrontal cortex were activated, which didn’t happen when they were alone. In the words of the study, these results suggest that mothers boost self-control by increasing prefrontal cortex activation, facilitating more deliberate and safe decisions. Thanks, Mom!
Now, let’s move on to some quick facts about TV moms. It’s a mystery what happened to Carol Brady’s first husband before she married Mike. Florence Henderson, who played Carol, revealed her theory on NPR’s “Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me,” jokingly saying, “I killed him.” Speaking of television, Lauren Graham almost overdosed on coffee while playing Lorelai Gilmore in “Gilmore Girls.” She once jokingly said she drank so much coffee that she would reach a point where she felt she might keel over.
To prepare for the role of Morticia Addams in “The Addams Family,” Angelica Huston watched the documentary “Grey Gardens.” Isabel Sanford wasn’t convinced that audiences would buy her and Sherman Hemsley as a couple on “The Jeffersons.” She once called him a little man that she could squash like a bug.
Wilma Flintstone’s maiden name is Slaghoople, but some cartoons give her the maiden name Pebble. According to Flintstones expert Earl Kress, it’s just as simple as Hanna-Barbera not caring about continuity. “Family Matters” was a spinoff of “Perfect Strangers.” The character of Harriette Winslow, played by Jo Marie Payton, was the elevator operator on “Perfect Strangers” before her family got their own show.
There is a cartoon spinoff of “Roseanne” called “Little Rosie,” which aired in 1990 but only made it to 13 episodes before getting canceled. Not everyone is a fan of June Cleaver’s fancy high heels at home, but it turns out there’s a reason she originally wore flats. The actors who played her sons had growth spurts, so the character got heels to stay as tall as possible compared to her kids.
Julie Bowen has won two Emmys for her portrayal of Claire Dunphy on “Modern Family.” The first Emmy broke when her son took a golf club to the trophy, attempting to hit the ball-shaped part of it, which snapped one of the arms. The notoriously mean Lucille Bluth of “Arrested Development” is based on a real person. When the show’s creator Mitch Hurwitz was developing the character, he was inspired by his mother-in-law.
Connie Britton and Kyle Chandler, who played Tammy and Eric Taylor on “Friday Night Lights,” had an interesting way of getting to know each other. They moved to Austin, Texas, for the show and drove there together from LA—kind of. They drove at the same time in separate cars but used walkie-talkies to communicate.
In the pilot of “Family Guy,” Lois Griffin was blond. Some fans speculate that’s why Chris is the only Griffin with blond hair; he actually got it from his mother. Soon after, she became a redhead. In the 90s, First Lady Barbara Bush called “The Simpsons” the dumbest thing she had ever seen. Soon after, she received a letter from none other than Marge Simpson, who was deeply hurt by the criticism of her family. What a good mom! Barbara Bush later sent an apology letter in response.
Moving on from TV moms to animal moms, there are some very interesting ways of parenting in the animal kingdom. For example, “allomothering” is when animals other than the genetic parents step into a parental role. Elephants commonly use this practice. According to research, elephant calves receive protection from their mothers as well as multiple other females, usually within their family, like aunts, sisters, or cousins.
Female cuckoo birds lay their eggs in the nests of other birds and then leave because raising babies is too much work. Researchers have even studied young cuckoos for their ability to trick their foster parents into feeding them. However, if a bird notices an egg that’s not theirs, they won’t hesitate to throw it out of the nest.
Lions are similar to elephants and cuckoo birds. Lionesses leave their prides to give birth to their cubs and stay away for four to six weeks while they start to raise them. Then they return to the pride, and an entire group of lionesses helps raise them. Lactating female lions will nurse any cub in their pride.
Killer whales and bottlenose dolphins also have an interesting post-birth routine. They stay awake for an entire month. One team of researchers found that newborns come up for air every three to thirty seconds without any sleep. Their mothers not only stay awake with them but also lead them through the water the entire time at a quick pace.
Like the cuckoo bird, a female emperor penguin ditches her egg but first finds a male to take care of it. Then the mom embarks on a major journey to find food, traveling to the ocean, which could be about 50 miles away from their regular habitat, and she brings the food back for her chick. Some skinks eat their own eggs if they notice that they’ve laid eggs near predators. This is known as whole clutch filial cannibalism.
Flowers have different symbolic meanings that vary depending on the person, situation, and culture. Since many of you will be buying a bouquet for your mom this year, let’s talk about some commonly interpreted symbols. Carnations have been called the Mother’s Day flower, generally representing love. As for what color to buy, pink has been interpreted as a symbol of a mother’s love and gratitude. Other flower experts recommend white, which represents pure love and luck.
Tulips represent romantic love, although they can also symbolize rebirth. If you’re buying tulips for family, the best bets are probably yellow, which once represented jealousy but now means cheerful thoughts, or pink, which symbolizes platonic affection or care. Daisies can represent loyalty, true love, innocence, and cheerfulness, making them a good choice for new moms on Mother’s Day.
Most people connect roses with romance, but there are a couple of good color options for the holiday. Pink roses represent gratitude and appreciation, while yellow roses are good for well wishes and joy. Many prefer to use them to represent friendship. Lilies are a popular Mother’s Day flower, often viewed as representing motherhood and happiness. White lilies can mean modesty and majesty, which might be something your mom wants you to call her.
As far as we know, humans are the only animals to celebrate Mother’s Day. The holiday has some interesting origins. Some of the earliest known ways to honor mothers were festivals in ancient Greece and Rome that primarily focused on mother goddesses. There was also something known as Mothering Sunday in early Christian history, but that sort of disappeared, and eventually, the Mother’s Day we know today took over.
This current holiday came to be thanks primarily to one woman named Anna Jarvis from Webster, West Virginia. There were a few other people who tried to start similar holidays, like abolitionists and suffragists, but it was really Jarvis who drove the movement. When Anna Jarvis was a young girl, she supposedly heard her mom praying for a day to commemorate mothers.
Anna’s mother ran Mother’s Day work clubs, which taught moms how to be mothers. Historian Catherine Lane theorizes that Anna Jarvis probably meant this theoretical prayer holiday to be a community service day in which mothers would help out less fortunate mothers. However, Anna, who never had children, remembered that prayer and eventually, after her mom died, started writing to the governors of every state about creating a Mother’s Day. She wanted it to be the second Sunday of May, the Sunday closest to the anniversary of her mother’s death.
It wasn’t just governors she wrote to; she reached out to anyone she thought could help draw attention to her cause, including Mark Twain. In 1908, Anna helped hold the first Mother’s Day service at Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church in Grafton, West Virginia. It was financially backed by a department store owner in Philadelphia who also held the Mother’s Day event at one of his stores. Two years later, West Virginia became the first state to pass a law making Mother’s Day an official holiday, and other states followed until in 1914, Congress passed a law designating the second Sunday of May as Mother’s Day.
Imagine that—Congress passing a law! This is where things get a little weird. Anna Jarvis believed she held the copyright to Mother’s Day. In her mind, Mother’s Day was her intellectual property, and she spent a lot of time fighting with people about it. The more the holiday became commercialized, the more miserable she became. She intended it just as a holiday to spend time with your mom and thank her for everything.
Anna got into a fight with Eleanor Roosevelt, the First Lady of New York at the time, because they were on different Mother’s Day committees. On another occasion, she went to a Philadelphia tea room owned by her friend that happened to have a dish called Mother’s Day salad on the menu. She ordered it and then threw it on the floor. She always signed her letters “Anna Jarvis, founder of Mother’s Day.” The media loved Anna’s anger and reported on her escapades and the many news releases she would write.
Happy Mother’s Day, everybody! Thanks for watching Mental Floss video, which is made with the help of all of these nice people. Please subscribe to our channel if you’d like to see more scatterbrained videos, and as they say in our hometown, don’t forget to be awesome!
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Moms – Women who have children and take on the role of raising them, often providing care, guidance, and support. – In social studies, we learn about how moms in different cultures balance work and family responsibilities.
Risks – Situations involving exposure to danger, harm, or loss, often requiring careful decision-making. – In psychology, understanding how teenagers assess risks can help in developing better educational programs.
Choices – Decisions made between two or more possibilities, often reflecting personal preferences or values. – History shows us that the choices made by leaders can significantly impact the course of events.
Animals – Living organisms that are not plants, often studied for their behavior and interaction with humans. – In social studies, we explore how animals have been domesticated and their role in human societies.
Flowers – The reproductive structures of flowering plants, often used symbolically in various cultures. – In history, flowers have been used to convey messages and emotions, such as during the Victorian era.
Love – A deep affection or care for someone or something, often influencing human behavior and relationships. – Psychology examines how love affects the brain and influences our interactions with others.
History – The study of past events, particularly in human affairs, to understand how they shape the present and future. – In Grade 8 social studies, we learn about the history of different civilizations and their contributions to the world.
Parenting – The process of raising and educating a child from birth to adulthood, involving nurturing and guidance. – Psychology provides insights into effective parenting techniques that promote healthy child development.
Teenagers – Young people between the ages of 13 and 19, often experiencing significant physical and emotional changes. – Social studies explore the challenges teenagers face in different societies and how they are supported.
Celebration – A joyful occasion or event, often marking a significant achievement or cultural tradition. – In history, we study how different cultures have unique celebrations to honor their heritage and values.
