On Tuesday night, February 7th, members of Congress from the House and Senate will hear a speech from President Biden about the State of the Union. Our Founding Fathers thought the annual speech to Congress was so important, they put it in the Constitution.

But what IS the State of the Union address? And what's it like to be inside the U.S. Capitol, sitting in the House Gallery, above the lawmakers and Supreme Court Justices and the cabinet? 

In this special bonus episode of The Fina Mendoza Mysteries, we take you to the State of the Union address where a mysterious bird disrupts the speech.

Want to know more about the history of the State of the Union address? Or the rebuttal speech? Check out our Facts Behind the Fiction blog.

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries follow the adventures of the 10-year-old daughter of a congressman, investigating mysteries in the U.S. Capitol.

Kitty Felde is writer producer.

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries podcast is based on the book State of the Union, by Kitty Felde, published by Chesapeake Press. You can get an autographed copy of State of the Union, at the website Chesapeakepress.org. That’s also where you can find out more about the cast and crew of The Fina Mendoza Mysteries and a free download of the 56-page Teacher’s Guide to the book and the podcast just by signing up for our newsletter. Every week, that newsletter includes the facts behind the fiction in the Fina Mendoza Mysteries.

Cast:

Amy Solano - Fina Mendoza

Christine Avila - Abuelita

Steven Cuevas - Papa

Linda Graves - Claudia

Mark Bramhall - President of the United States

How do you explain the events of January 6th to children?

This special Fina Mendoza Mysteries episode is designed to help parents and teachers talk to young people about the attack on the U.S. Capitol two years ago and what larger lessons can be learned.

FREE curriculum for this episode can be downloaded here.

There is a NEW e-book version of Losing is Democratic available for 99 cents on Amazon.

The episode takes place on January 6th, 2021, in a zoom classroom, meeting remotely because of the pandemic. Our 10-year-old detective Fina Mendoza, the daughter of a congressman, has a new mystery to solve: who stole the 5th grade's pizza, a prize for the winner of a reading competition with the 4th grade?

Fina and her classmates have parents who work in the U.S. Capitol and they learn of the attack during class. Their teacher, Miss Greenwood, helps them understand the events in a larger context. They discuss the electoral process, George Washington's decision not to run for a third term, traditional post-game high fives in baseball, and how John Adams and Thomas Jefferson found a way to reconciliation after a particularly nasty election.

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries are based on a series of novels by Kitty Felde, including Welcome to Washington Fina Mendoza and State of the Union, published by Chesapeake Press and can be ordered at your local library, Amazon, or your favorite indie bookstore.

KItty Felde covered Capitol Hill for public radio for nearly a decade. She used to explain how Congress works to grownups. Now, she explains it to children.

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries follow the adventures of the 10-year-old daughter of a congressman, investigating mysterious animals in the U.S. Capitol.

It's Christmas in Washington, a time to remember family traditions and Capitol Hill traditions.

Find out more about the cast at the website.

Find out the facts behind the fiction in The Fina Mendoza Mysteries podcast. 

Season 2 of The Fina Mendoza Mysteries podcast is based on the book State of the Union, by Kitty Felde, published by Chesapeake Press. You can get an autographed copy of State of the Union, at the website Chesapeakepress.org. That’s also where you can find out more about the cast and crew of The Fina Mendoza Mysteries.

Want the Facts Behind the Fiction in The Fina Mendoza Mysteries? Sign up for our free newsletter. This month, it's the facts behind the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at the U.S. Capitol.

We celebrate Thanksgiving with Fina and the Mendoza family as they leave Washington to visit relatives in Los Angeles.  Fina worries that the curse of the Demon Cat will follow them to California. 

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries follow the adventures of the 10-year-old daughter of a congressman, investigating mysterious animals in the U.S. Capitol.

Writer/Producer - Kitty Felde

Our cast includes:  

Amy Solano - Fina Mendoza 

Monica Vigil - Gabby 

Raul Garza - Papa 

Christine Avila - Abuelita

Imelda Hinojosa - Tia Catalina

Rachel Desztich - Tia Margarita 

Brian Bland - Veteran

Steve DeVorkin - Senator Something 

Associate Producer - Hannah Matzecki 

Associate Sound Designer - Hunter Felde 

Music Composed and Performed - Andrew Barkan 

Logo Designer - Imelda Hinojosa      

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries podcast is based on the award-winning book series. The latest title State of the Union, published by Chesapeake Press is available wherever great books are sold.

You can find out more at our website finamendozamysteries.com.

Find out  in The Fina Mendoza Mysteries podcast. 

Want to know the facts behind the fiction in The Fina Mendoza Mysteries? Sign up for our newsletter.

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries follow the adventures of the 10-year-old daughter of a congressman, investigating mysterious animals in the U.S. Capitol.

Join the Mendoza family as they celebrate not only Halloween, but also Dia de los Muertos. 

Here's a link to curriculum for the episode.

You'll find more eductional materials on our Facts Behind the Fiction blog at the website. 

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries are written and produced by Kitty Felde.

Our cast includes: 

Amy Solano - Fina Mendoza

Monica Vigil - Monica

Christine Avila - Abuelita

Hannah Matzecki is our associate producer. Our music is by composer and musician Andrew Barkan. Our logo designer is Imelda Hinojosa. 

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries are based on the books State of the Union and Welcome to Washington Fina Mendoza by Kitty Felde.

Don't forget to rate and review!

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries follow the adventures of the 10-year-old daughter of a congressman, investigating mysterious animals in the U.S. Capitol.

It’s a new school year for Fina Mendoza, another year of distance learning. Her teacher assigns a Genius Project, letting students pick the topic they’d like to research and present to the class. Since it's an election year and Fina’s congressman father is back in California campaigning for re-election, Fina decides to research voting. Specifically, letting kids younger than 18 cast a ballot.

Real-life Congressman Mark Takano of Riverside, California zooms  with the class to answer questions about youth voting. 

There is also a mystery to be solved: who broke into their classroom, ransacking the backpacks and rifling the teacher’s desk. Fina consults with her detecting partner, a giant orange dog named Senator Something, and talks her sister into accompanying her on a field trip to see if her hunch about the culprit is correct.

There is FREE curriculum for this episode. And if you want to know the history of lowering the voting age, check out our Facts Behind the Fiction blog.

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries are  written and produced by Kitty Felde

Our cast includes: Amy Solano as Fina Mendoza

Monica Vigil as Gabby

 Susan Valot appears as Ms. Greenwood

India Scalione plays Becka

Eddie Pike plays Michael and

Myka Scalione plays Margaret

Laura Stegman appears as Congresswoman Mitchell

And Steve DeVorkin is Senator Something

Hannah Matzecki is our associate producer. Our music is by composer and musician Andrew Barkan. Our logo designer is Imelda Hinojosa. 

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries are based on the books State of the Union and Welcome to Washington Fina Mendoza by Kitty Felde.

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries follow the adventures of the 10-year-old daughter of a congressman, investigating mysterious animals in the U.S. Capitol.

It’s a new school year for Fina Mendoza, another year of distance learning. Her teacher assigns a Genius Project, letting students pick the topic they’d like to research and present to the class. Since it's an election year and Fina’s congressman father is back in California campaigning for re-election, Fina decides to research voting. Specifically, letting kids younger than 18 cast a ballot.

Real-life Congressman Mark Takano of Riverside, California zooms  with the class to answer questions about youth voting. 

There is also a mystery to be solved: who broke into their classroom, ransacking the backpacks and rifling the teacher’s desk. Fina consults with her detecting partner, a giant orange dog named Senator Something, and talks her sister into accompanying her on a field trip to see if her hunch about the culprit is correct.

There is FREE curriculum for this episode. And if you want to know the history of lowering the voting age, check out our Facts Behind the Fiction blog.

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries are  written and produced by Kitty Felde

Our cast includes: Amy Solano as Fina Mendoza

Monica Vigil as Gabby

 Susan Valot appears as Ms. Greenwood

India Scalione plays Becka

Eddie Pike plays Michael and

Myka Scalione plays Margaret

Laura Stegman appears as Congresswoman Mitchell

And Steve DeVorkin is Senator Something

Hannah Matzecki is our associate producer. Our music is by composer and musician Andrew Barkan. Our logo designer is Imelda Hinojosa. 

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries are based on the books State of the Union and Welcome to Washington Fina Mendoza by Kitty Felde.

Just in time for the November elections, we're re-releasing our special 2-part election episode of The Fina Mendoza Mysteries. It's called "Let Kids Vote."

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries follow the adventures of the 10-year-old daughter of a congressman, investigating mysterious animals in the U.S. Capitol.

Free curriculum for this episode.

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries follow the adventures of the 10-year-old daughter of a congressman, investigating mysterious animals in the U.S. Capitol.

Actor Steve DeVorkin channels our big orange dog Senator Something on the show. But this season, he also tackles another role: the House Chaplain Fr. Andrew.

Find out more about the cast at the website.

Find out the facts behind the fiction in The Fina Mendoza Mysteries podcast. 

Season 2 of The Fina Mendoza Mysteries podcast is based on the book State of the Union, by Kitty Felde, published by Chesapeake Press. You can get an autographed copy of State of the Union, at the website Chesapeakepress.org. That’s also where you can find out more about the cast and crew of The Fina Mendoza Mysteries and a free download of the 56-page Teacher’s Guide to the book and the podcast just by signing up for our newsletter. That newsletter includes the facts behind the fiction in the Fina Mendoza Mysteries.

The Fina Mendoza Mysteries follow the adventures of the 10-year-old daughter of a congressman, investigating mysterious animals in the U.S. Capitol.

Actress Amy Solano plays Fina Mendoza. And here's a secret: she's not really a 10-year-old girl.

Find out more about the cast at the website.

Find out the facts behind the fiction in The Fina Mendoza Mysteries podcast. 

Season 2 of The Fina Mendoza Mysteries podcast is based on the book State of the Union, by Kitty Felde, published by Chesapeake Press. You can get an autographed copy of State of the Union, at the website Chesapeakepress.org. That’s also where you can find out more about the cast and crew of The Fina Mendoza Mysteries and a free download of the 56-page Teacher’s Guide to the book and the podcast just by signing up for our newsletter. That newsletter includes the facts behind the fiction in the Fina Mendoza Mysteries.