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Music for a Friend That Can Stimulate Your Brain

Sunday, August 21st, 2022

Music
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Today’s post is special. I have a good friend who is recovering from heart and cancer surgeries. When we get together, we take turns playing favorite YouTube music videos. This is for him and anyone who wants to stimulate their brain. Enjoy and share. Dr. Doug

Classical: ach: Toccata & Fugue in D minor – Original Canadian Brass with Peter Schickele = If you like brass and Bach this is a winner. @CanadianBrass

Religious: Home Free – How Great Thou Art – This is my favorite hymn. You don’t have to believe in God to enjoy this as the background is insanely beautiful. @HomeFreeGuys

Folk: Psalm 136 with Béla Fleck and Sierra Hull – As a banjo player Bela is my idol. I think you will find that Sierra can keep up with him. @belafleckbanjo @sierrahull

Ukulele: Taimane Gardner, the Ukulele Virtuoso | Taimane Gardner | TEDxMaui – She mixes Bach’s Fugue in D minor with some flamenco stuff. This is VERY COOL. @taimanegardner @TEDxMaui

Classical: Mason Williams – Classical Gas w/ Deborah Henson-Conant – This is a very cool classic song with a harp accompaniment. @HipHarpist

Rock: Stevie Nicks – Edge of Seventeen (Official Music Video) – I never get tired of this song. I hope you like it too. @StevieNicks

PercussionRoyal Marines Corps of Drums and Top Secret Drum Corps | The Bands of HM Royal Marines – If you know any percussionists, please share this with them. @RMBandService

Rock: Guns N’ Roses – Sweet Child O’ Mine on iPhone (GarageBand) – Every GarageBand instrument & instrument setup used for #GunsNRoses #SweetChildOfMine can be found in this video

Folk: Punch Brothers cover Gordon Lightfoot’s “Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” 3/3/22 Boston, MA – Chris Thile and Punch Brothers with Noam Pikelny, Chris Eldridge, Gabe Witcher, and Paul Kowert perform Gordon Lightfoot and Tony Rice’s “Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” @LessThanFace1 @punchbrothers @christhile

Bagpipes: Shipping Up To Boston/Enter Sandman – Bagpipe Cover (The Snake Charmer x Goddesses of Bagpipe) This is a mix of Irish tunes and metal for you on the Bagpipes with 3 Female Bagpipers all the way from the US, Scotland and India. This video is very well done. @yourbestvids @DropkickMurphys

Rock: Rush – Tom Sawyer (Bass Cover) by a very young girl. She is incredible. Getty Lee is considered a top bass player, and she is playing his entire part. @EllenPlaysBass

Broadway: Six from Six: The Musical on Broadway – This is an Animatic of the final number, which to my tastes should be a big hit. If you like it a little searching will find videos from the actual show that I saw and really enjoyed on 2/18/2022. @TheTobyMarlow @MucyLoss

Movie Hit Song: This Little Girl Singing ‘Let It Go’ Inside A Ukrainian Bomb Shelter Will Melt Your Heart. Just in case you haven’t seen this yet I had to post it. @jamescrugnale @Independent

Song for early readers: Peace Love and Hope – David Perry Origina – This would be a good song for elementary teachers to play. It is especially good for beginning readers. @DavidPerryTunes

Folk: Northwest Passage (Stan Rogers) – The Water Boys (A Cappella Cover) – If you aren’t a Stan Rogers fan here is your chance to get started. @WaterBoysUW @Stanfest

Soul: Blues Brothers: Soul Man – SNL – Today’s song “Soul Man” by The Blues Brothers was recorded LIVE at the Universal Amphitheater in September 1978, a few months after they debuted on SNL as the musical guest on April 22, 1978. @dan_aykroyd @nbcsnl

1050s Ballad: “In the Still of the Night along with a lot of 1950s icons – The Five Satins perform this memorable song. If you’re my age you will love this. If you don’t remember the 1950s you can still get a kick out of this. @safeshare_tv

Rock: Joan Jett & Dave Grohl ~ Cherry Bomb 2015 – This is a favorite of mine. It’s a rock number for a woman, but Dave does it justice. @joanjett @foofighters

ABBA: ABBA’S DANCING QUEEN Like You’ve NEVER Heard It Before! Simon Cowell Won’t Forget This AGT Audition – Debbii Dawson WOWS Simon & the Judges with her GORGEOUS Original Version of a Pop Classic with Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum, Sofia Vergara, and Howie Mandel on America’s Got Talent 2022. @debbiidawson @AGT @SimonCowell @heidiklum @SofiaVergara @howiemandel

Metal: Miley Cyrus and Metallica “Nothing Else Matters” Live on the Stern Show You don’t have to be a fan of Miley or Metallica to enjoy this. It starts with a talk with Howard Stern. The singing starts at about the 2:40 mark. @Metallica @MileyNewsAccess @MileyCyrus @HowardStern

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The Developmental Benefits of a Summer Job by Amanda Winstead

Friday, July 29th, 2022

Summer Job 1
Photo by Julia M Cameron

The Developmental Benefits of a Summer Job by Amanda Winstead Explains the many benefits of working with others during the summers while you are in high school. While you may learn some useful skills on the job, the people skills you developed are invaluable. Thanks, Amanda.
Introduction
School and parenting are essential elements in a child’s growth, but they are not the only things that can benefit your child’s development. It is also helpful for them to gain further knowledge and skills through other life experiences, such as a job.

Though it’s understandable that you might want your kids to have the freedom to enjoy their youth, a job doesn’t have to be a limiting experience for kids. In fact, a summer job can be fun, social, and help teach them new life skills and behaviors that are essential to growing into a responsible, healthy adult. And it doesn’t have to take up all of their time either.

Instead of having a job year-round, your kids can simply look into something part-time over the summer, which still gives them plenty of free time and opportunities to pursue other interests. But even just a part-time summer gig can do wonders for developmental growth and help prepare your kids for higher education and the “real world” once they graduate and move into adulthood.

A Summer Job is More Than Just a Paycheck
Though a summer job can help your kid financially prepare for college and put money in their pockets, it’s not just about the paycheck. A summer job can open your kid’s world up to so many new experiences.

Let’s take a look at the many benefits of a summer job that go above and beyond simply providing your kids with a paycheck.


When kids are younger, time is somewhat of an abstract construct. They rely on adults to help them understand what time it is and when things need to happen. But as your kids get older, time management becomes an important skill that can help them manage school, work, and their free time and social life. So by getting a summer job, your kid will learn to become more responsible with their time and how best to manage multiple things at once or in a day.

Self-Confidence
If your kid is lacking in confidence or simply doesn’t feel that they have much control over their life, a summer job can help. Having a job teaches your kid new skills that can help them feel more confident about their abilities, which can overall improve their sense of self-worth and self-confidence. It can also give them a sense of independence, which can help them feel like they are more in control of their life and what happens to them.

Educational Development
Summer jobs have also been shown to help kids with learning in the classroom. Overall, having a job can teach kids and teens new skills that boost their cognitive development and help them succeed more in school. Most importantly, it helps boost their critical thinking and problem-solving skills, which are essential when it comes to academic performance.

Social Skills
Whether your kids are shy or not, a job can help them expand their social circle and develop new relationships that can become an important part of their lives. For kids who perhaps are on the shy side, having a job can help them come out of their shells and learn to interact more with others. If they aren’t shy, it can help them socialize and network, expanding their circle of friends to people who can further help them grow and become a healthy adult.

Financial Responsibility
Understandably, kids don’t tend to have the best financial habits. With each new generation, such as Gen Z, spending habits change. So when your kids start earning money, it can help you better understand what their money habits are like or will be like, which paves the way for you to sit down and chat with them about healthy financial habits. This can help them learn how to better spend and save their money to prepare for their future.

Summer Job 2

Photo by cottonbro
Tips to Help Your Kid Land a Summer Job
It’s one thing to talk about your kid having a summer job and another thing altogether to help them actually get one. No two kids are the same. While some might easily land their ideal summer job, others might not. It’s also important not to force a job on your kid that isn’t a right fit.

land their ideal summer job:

1. Look for the right job.
Every job comes with different duties and requirements, so make sure the one your kid chooses is a good fit for them. This can include standard summer jobs at amusement parks, summer camps, swimming pools, restaurants, retail stores, etc. Or, it can be something a little more professional for older teens just out of high school, such as computer programing, pharmacy tech, customer service, or even maintenance work.

2. Interview practice.
For some kids, the interview can be the hardest and most nerve-wracking part of landing a summer job. So it can be helpful to sit down with them and practice what it’s like to be in an interview. Tell them what it might be like, what questions they might get asked, and how best to act and respond.

3. Interview outfit.
Though a lot of summer jobs don’t necessarily require your kids to dress nice or professional, it doesn’t hurt to go into the interview looking a little more put together. So in addition to helping them practice for an interview, it’s also helpful to take them out shopping for nice interview outfits. If they are just out of high school and going for a more professional job, the right outfit can help them make a good impression.

Final Thoughts
When helping your kid land a summer job, just remember that the goal is to improve their skills and provide them with a new experience that is beneficial to them. If you force them into something that isn’t the right fit or that they have zero interest in, it could end up doing more harm than good.

So try to make it a positive experience. The more interested your kid is in the job they land, the more they will get out of it and the more effort they will put into it.

Amanda Winstead

  • Amanda is a freelance writer out of Portland focusing on many topics, including educational technology. Along with writing, she enjoys traveling, reading, working out, and going to concerts. If you want to follow her writing journey, or even just say hi, you can find her on Twitter.
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Can You Learn to Be Lucky? Why Some People Seem to Win More Often Than Others by Karla Staff

Wednesday, July 20th, 2022

Lucky
Can You Learn to Be Lucky? Why Some People Seem to Win More Often Than Others by Karla Staff explains in detail how you can increase your chances of being lucky and therefore successful. We all experience good luck and bad luck as we go through life, but with Karla’s help, we can make good luck more likely and take better advantage of it, and better survive and learn from our bad luck. This book belongs in every professional learning library.

Introduction

  • This book is about navigating life’s hidden patterns. While there is no way to account for every variable influencing our situation, this doesn’t make the world entirely unpredictable. We need to see the world as understandable and manageable. If you feel unsure about your ability to handle the future, anxiety will follow. Regardless of your merit, frugality, and faith, elements of chance will always be part of your life. This is where luck comes in. A bias toward action, however, can help as doing nothing can lead to learned helplessness. You can’t stumble on to something good by sitting down.

1. Best in Show: Why Lucky Timing Is out of Our Hands

  • Studies show that your chances of winning a subjectively scored event are better if you are judged near the end. They also show that prisoners get the best deals if they are judged right after lunch or a break. If you are part of a contest or are interviewing for a job, do what you can to be near the end of the process. Then do what you can to be memorable and emphasize what makes you special or unique. Frame losses as learning experiences and don’t take them personally. And if you want to score with the gender of your choice at a bar, stay until closing time.

2. The Charlie Brewer Principle: How That Warm, Fuzzy Feeling Leads to Luck

  • The focus is Charlie Brewer whose father and grandfather were star quarterbacks. Is it any wonder that the coach looked to him to be his next quarterback? If you have some advantage due to your family’s circumstances be sure to leverage it. However, if you are rich and good looking you might get away with being a dick, but it’s not a good strategy in the long run. Charlie’s story deals with confirmation bias. This is a concept you need to understand on the road to luck.
  • The other big idea here is availability. By consistently showing up you increase your chances to be lucky. If you are always there you will seem safe, which correlates with luck. The more people see you the more they are likely to like you as long as you are nice. Proximity counts. People who live on the bottom floor have more friends. Kids who sit in the middle of the room are more popular. Your attire is very important. For example, women who show up in a nightclub dress are not likely to be seen as highly capable. Make a good first impression and know that it takes time and effort to build a good reputation.

3. Bitches in Glasses: The Occasionally Unlucky Side of Intuition

  • We use our feelings to decide and rationalize our choices after the fact. There are things we can control like grooming, attire, facial expressions, posture, what we say, tone of voice, and body language. We have some control over our body shape and size. We have little control over the shape of our face and our height, and they both count for more than they should. Be sure to act in a friendly manner and smile when you meet someone. Act like you are happy to see them. This you can control and it will help make a good first impression.
  • We tend to map traits from people we know on to people we meet who look similar. The feelings we currently feel also impact our impression of the people we are with. Women who don’t smile are judged more harshly than men who don’t smile. People with square jaws and wider faces are more likely to be promoted. Life is indeed unfair. What you can do is throw your hat into the ring every chance you get, use an easy-to-pronounce version of your name, and avoid edgy jokes and weird online IDs.
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What Is Covered in a Human Trafficking Course? by Kathleen Zara

Sunday, July 17th, 2022

Free Resources for Busy Parents and Educators Who Don’t Have as Much Time to Read and Surf as I Do

TrafickingWhat Is Covered in a Human Trafficking Course? by Kathleen Zara explains why at least one person in every school district should take such a course. Be sure to share it with leadership in your school district.

Human trafficking has become an international issue that is gaining more attention yearly. On the international level, South and Central Asia was the region with the second-most trafficking victims in 2019. Businesses need to be aware of what it is and how to identify it. This article will discuss the different things covered in a human trafficking course.

1. The Definition
It is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt of persons using threat or use of force or other methods of coercion, abduction, fraud, deception, abuse of power or position of vulnerability, or giving payments or benefits to get the consent of a person having control over another person for exploitation.
Exploitation is prostitution or any other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labor or services, slavery or similar practices, and the removal of organs.

2. How to Identify Victims
The course will cover identifying potential victims of human trafficking and the signs that may indicate that someone is being trafficked. It includes looking for patterns of control, exploitation, and victimization.
It is essential to identify victims because they are often hidden in plain sight. They may be working in massage parlors, nail salons, or factories. They may be living in homes with many other people and not have any personal belongings. They may also be moved around frequently and have few close friends or family members.
If you see someone you think may be a victim of it, the best thing to do is reach out to organizations that can help, such as the National Human Trafficking Hotline. (888 373-7888) They can support victims and connect them with resources in their area.

3. The Different Forms That Human Trafficking Can Take
It is crucial to know the different forms that human trafficking can take to identify it. It can include sex trafficking, forced labor, organ trafficking, or domestic servitude. Sex trafficking happens when someone is forced or coerced into sexual activity. It can happen through force, fraud, or coercion. Victims of sex trafficking can be children or adults of either gender.
Forced labor is when someone is made to work against their will through force, fraud, or coercion. It can happen in many industries, such as agriculture, manufacturing, construction, and domestic work. Organ trafficking is when organs are removed from a person for transplantation.

4. What Businesses Can Do to Help Prevent and Report Instances
You can learn how to prevent it in your business and what to do if you witness or suspect it. This knowledge is critical for business owners, employees, and managers. You’ll also learn about the signs of trafficking and how to report it.

5. Due Diligence, Victims, and Perpetrators
The human trafficking course covers a variety of topics related to crime. These can include due diligence measures businesses can take to ensure they are not complicit in trafficking, how to identify victims of trafficking, and profiles of typical perpetrators. The goal of these courses is to help participants better understand the issue and try to prevent them.

Conclusion
Whether you are searching to start a career or want to learn more about human trafficking, taking a certified course is a great way to gain knowledge and skills. A comprehensive online course will identify victims, understand legal issues, and develop victim-centered responses.

Kathleen Zara
Kathleen works as a freelancer and entrepreneur working from a start-up learning along the way about marketing, social and networking, creating Web sites, and web content. @ACAMS_AML

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First-Year Teachers Can Use These Strategies to Prepare by Emily Graham

Thursday, July 14th, 2022

TUtoring
First-Year Teachers Can Use These Strategies to Prepare

Starting your first year of teaching can be challenging, even with student teaching experience under your belt. You may be anxious about meeting fellow staff members or about how to exercise control over the classroom so that everyone has a fair chance at learning. You might also feel stress over the preparation that goes into a new school year, which is common even for educators who have been in the business a long time.

There are many ways you can ready yourself and your classroom without stress, but the key is to get organized as early as possible. You can also look for resources online that will help you stay focused. Dr. Doug Green has great tips for educators who need a little boost when it comes to professional development.

Here are a few strategies that will help you prepare for your first year as a teacher:

Get your files together

Whether it’s a lesson plan template or a seating chart, keeping your files neat and organized is an essential part of preventing stress or anxiety as a first-year teacher. Separating your documents can lead to important info getting lost, which will affect both you and your students. Keep everything together by using an online tool that will allow you to add pages to PDF so you never have to worry about keeping up with multiple documents. This is a great way to start off the school year since it will help you manage anything classroom-related–including parent consent forms and emergency information–all in one place.

Get to know your new coworkers

You might also learn some great organization tips from your new coworkers, who can help you set up your room or give you pointers on how to manage everything during your first week. Depending on how your school is set up, you may come to depend on the teachers whose classrooms are closest to yours when you need help, so it’s a good idea to get to know them before the school year starts. Ask administrators about upcoming faculty events, and reach out to individual teachers in order to introduce yourself. You can also offer your help to them in the weeks leading up to the first day of school.

Focus on the priorities

As the big day inches closer, it’s important to keep your priorities in check so you can ensure a smooth transition for yourself, your students, and their families. Once you’ve gotten to know some of the other teachers, focus on setting up your classroom, but realize that you don’t have to make it look like a picture-perfect wonderland all at once. Getting organized and creating simple, useful areas in the room is much more important than going all out with a decorative theme and besides, you can add to the classroom aesthetic as the year goes on, especially when different holidays roll around.

Set some guidelines

Once your room is set up, it’s time to think about a careful set of guidelines that will help your students and their families navigate the first weeks of school as smoothly as possible. This will also be helpful to you, of course, and will allow you to save time and energy. Consider the details; depending on the age of your students, you might set rules about how everyone will move to different stations around the room, take restroom breaks, or manage their behavior. Be sure to create a guide for family events, orientation, and conferences as well, so that parents will know what to expect.

Breaking into your first year of teaching can be a trying experience, but it can also be a joyous one. With the right preparations, you can ensure that your classroom is well-organized and that your students have the best possible environment for learning.

Emily Graham
Emily is the creator of MightyMoms.Net. She believes being a mom is one of the hardest jobs around and wanted to create a support system for moms from all walks of life. On her site, she offers a wide range of info tailored for busy moms — from how to reduce stress to creative ways to spend time together as a family. You can email her at emilygraham@mightymoms.net. She lives in Arizona.

Have an education question for Dr. Doug Green? Get in touch today via the contact form.

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