Author Archive

Beyond Books: Fun-Fueled Learning Techniques for Kids by Emily Graham

Monday, October 14th, 2024

Kids
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Beyond Books: Fun-Fueled Learning Techniques for Kids by Emily Graham

Every parent dreams of their child embracing the joy of learning with open arms
and a curious heart. To turn this dream into reality, creative approaches are
essential in making education enjoyable and engaging. By integrating fun into
educational activities, parents can ignite a passion for learning that lasts a
lifetime. These methods enrich a child's academic journey and strengthen the
bond between parent and child through shared discovery.

Setting Goals Together for Progress and Fun

Engage your child in setting specific, achievable learning goals to foster a sense
of ownership and excitement in their educational journey. Discuss areas they're
keen to improve, from increasing their reading volume to acquiring a new skill,
and break these larger ambitions into smaller, manageable tasks. Celebrate each
achievement to maintain high spirits and motivation. This cooperative approach
transforms learning into an enjoyable shared quest, instilling in your child a sense
of purpose and accomplishment.

Group Learning for a Fun, Social Experience

Transform learning into a communal activity involving peers or family members,
making the experience more engaging and interactive. Organize study groups,
family trivia nights, or collaborative projects, introducing healthy competition and
social interaction into the learning process. This collective environment makes
learning fun and allows children to explore different viewpoints and build social
skills.

Let Your Passion for Learning Be an Example

Show your child the thrill of learning by engaging in new subjects and displaying
genuine enthusiasm for knowledge. Pursuing an online accounting degree
enhances your business acumen and teaches you crucial skills like reading
financial statements, auditing, and applying generally accepted accounting
principles. This approach demonstrates lifelong learning and highlights how
education can open new doors. The flexibility of earning a degree online also
exemplifies how learning can adapt to fit your life, making it a practical choice for
busy parents.

Create Time for Reading Every Day

Incorporate daily reading into your routine to instill a lasting appreciation for
literature in your child. Choose a regular time for this activity, such as after dinner
or before bedtime, and encourage your child to select books that pique their
interest. This practice not only improves comprehension and vocabulary but also
stimulates the imagination. Engage in reading and discussing the content to
deepen their understanding and enhance the connection to the material.

Hands-On Activities to Spark Creativity

Use hands-on activities like arts and crafts, construction projects, or science
experiments to make learning more tangible and engaging. These interactive
experiences minimize passive screen time and encourage active participation,
enhancing understanding of complex concepts. Whether it's using baking to
explain measurements or constructing models to discuss geometry, these
creative endeavors foster critical thinking and learning joy. Such activities make
educational content memorable by connecting it to real-world applications.

Explore Museums, Nature Trails, and Cultural Events

Enhance your child's education with trips to museums, science centers, and
nature trails that offer hands-on learning about various subjects. These outings
expose them to new ideas and cultures and provide exciting, real-world
educational experiences. Observing a prehistoric fossil at a museum or exploring
local flora and fauna on a trail, such experiences deepen understanding and
inspire ongoing curiosity.
These adventures encourage a lifelong love of learning
by connecting classroom lessons to the broader world.

Ask Thoughtful Questions to Foster Critical Thinking

Encourage your child's critical thinking and imagination by asking open-ended
questions that require thoughtful responses. Avoid simple yes-or-no inquiries;
ask how they might solve a problem or predict an outcome in a story. These
discussions promote more profound engagement with learning materials and
enhance reasoning abilities. By challenging your child to consider various
perspectives and solutions, you help them develop essential analytical skills.
Fostering a love of learning in children is a rewarding endeavor that goes beyond
traditional schooling. When parents introduce innovative and enjoyable learning
strategies, they help their children see the endless possibilities that knowledge
can bring. This prepares them for academic success and instills a lifelong
curiosity and a robust love for discovery. Ultimately, these experiences enrich the
family's dynamic and contribute to a child's growth and happiness.

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.

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Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don’t Know by Malcolm Gladwell

Monday, October 7th, 2024

Strangers
Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don’t Know by Malcolm Gladwell features a number of notable stories where people were unable to correctly determine the intention of strangers. We default to truth when talking to strangers, which makes us prone to misjudgment. The opposite approach of always being skeptical of strangers, however, seems to be less productive.

Part One: Spies and Diplomats: Two Puzzles – 1. Fidel Castro’s Revenge

  • Many of the spies the US had in Cuba were double agents. For some reason our people couldn’t tell that they were.

2. Getting to Know Der Führer

  • Here is the story of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlin. Although he had met Hitler, he was duped while those who had not met him like Chamberlin’s predecessor Winston Churchill were not. This puzzling pattern pops up everywhere.
  • Judges are more likely to misjudge the people they see than a computer program that only knows their dossier. The main point of this book is that strangers are not easy to judge correctly.

Part Two: Default to Truth – 3. The Queen of Cuba

  • Here is another spy who fooled just about everybody. It’s not that the spies are brilliant, it’s something wrong with the people who misjudge them. Evolution should have favored people who can spot a lier, but it hasn’t.
  • One theory is the Truth-Default Theory. We operate on the assumption that the people we are dealing with are honest. Our lie detector is set to “off.” It also takes a lot of evidence over time for our suspicions to outweigh our default. A story here about a top Cuban female spy supports this.

4. The Holy Fool

  • Bernie Madoff is known as the perpetrator of the largest Ponzi Scheme in history. Malcolm gives the names of a number of people in the securities business who thought that something had to be amiss with Madoff’s business, but they assumed that they were wrong and gave him the benefit of the doubt. The Holy Fool comes from Russian folklore. This is the one person who sees through a scheme and is in a position where he is free to tell everyone what he sees. An example is the boy in Hans Christian Anderson’s The King’s New Clothes. Gladwell tells of one such Holy Fool associated with the Madoff scandal.
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Navigating Your Career Path: The Power of a Professional Development Plan by Emily Graham

Thursday, October 3rd, 2024

Graham
A professional development plan is a strategic tool that guides your career trajectory toward success. It empowers you to take charge of your growth by providing a structured approach to achieving your professional goals. Embracing this plan can dramatically enhance your effectiveness and satisfaction in your
career.

Understanding the Role of Self-Assessment in Career Growth

Self-assessment plays a crucial role in any career development plan, serving as the bedrock for genuine professional growth. By critically evaluating your skills and weaknesses, you not only pinpoint areas that need enhancement but also recognize your strengths to capitalize on them. This process facilitates the setting of tailored, realistic goals that align with your broader career ambitions. Continuous self-reflection helps you adapt to changes in the professional environment, keeping your career trajectory on track.

Balancing Work and Life for Professional Success

Maintaining a work-life balance is essential, not only for personal well-being but also for peak professional performance. This balance helps prevent burnout and sustains your mental and emotional health, enabling you to excel at your job. Effective strategies like taking regular breaks, setting clear boundaries, and managing your time can keep both your career and personal life thriving. Ultimately, a harmonious work-life balance boosts productivity and fosters innovation in your professional endeavors.

Advancing Your Career by Earning a Degree Online

Earning a degree online can be a powerful way to advance your career while maintaining the flexibility to work and manage personal commitments. With a wide range of programs available, online education allows you to gain specialized knowledge and skills that can enhance your qualifications and make you more competitive in the job market. Pursuing an online EdD degree, in particular, enables you to influence curriculum development and policy, as well as evaluate instructional and assessment methods to improve learning outcomes, making a lasting impact on the education system.

Networking and Joining Professional Associations

Networking is a powerhouse tool for career advancement, opening doors to new opportunities and insights through robust professional relationships. Participating in conferences, joining professional associations, and engaging in online communities are effective strategies for expanding your professional network. Membership in professional associations also grants access to exclusive educational resources and industry insights. These networks can lead to pivotal career opportunities, including job offers and collaborations that can significantly propel your career forward.

Leveraging Feedback for Career Advancement

Receiving constructive feedback is invaluable for both personal and professional development. Feedback from peers and mentors provides perspectives that pinpoint both strengths and areas for improvement, often highlighting unseen opportunities for growth. Embracing this feedback and integrating it into your development strategy can dramatically enhance your career trajectory. Continually refining your skills in response to feedback ensures ongoing improvement and success in your professional life.

Developing Adaptability

In today's dynamic professional landscape, adaptability is essential for career progression. Embracing new challenges, learning cutting-edge skills, and innovating within your field can distinguish you from your peers. Staying open to change not only prepares you for the evolving demands of the job market but also turns potential challenges into opportunities for growth. Cultivating a flexible approach to your career can lead to new roles and responsibilities that enhance your professional journey.

Continuous Learning and Certification as Career Boosters

Committing to lifelong learning is crucial for staying relevant and competitive in any field. Engaging in ongoing education through workshops, certifications, and keeping abreast of industry trends ensures you meet the evolving challenges in your sector. Certifications, in particular, underscore your dedication to your profession and can open doors to advanced career opportunities. Making continuous learning a cornerstone of your professional development guarantees
you are always ready for the next step in your career.

How Side Projects and Hobbies Can Enhance Your Career

Your personal interests and side projects can significantly enrich your professional skill set. These pursuits not only develop transferrable skills like creativity and problem-solving but also enhance your professional profile. For instance, managing a personal blog can sharpen your communication skills, while community service can bolster your leadership capabilities. Integrating hobbies and side projects into your career planning not only fosters personal satisfaction but also elevates your professional prospects.

Implementing a professional development plan can be transformative, offering a clear route to personal and professional fulfillment. By actively managing your career development, you ensure continuous progress and adaptability in a competitive world. This proactive approach is key to unlocking your full potential and achieving long-term career success.

Enhance your educational practices with professional development resources
from Dr. Doug Green, perfect for educators, administrators, and parents.

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.

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MATH-ish: Finding Creativity, Diversity, and Meaning in Mathematics by Jo Boaler

Monday, September 9th, 2024

Math-Ish
MATH-ish: Finding Creativity, Diversity, and Meaning in Mathematics by Jo Boaler explains how to change math teaching in order to allow more students to succeed. Students should study and create visuals, engage in class discussions, and be given more diverse lessons. Be sure to check out her website YouCubed.org for lots of great math resources.

1. A New Mathematical Relationship

  • There are three villains here. One is our thinking that math is a series of procedures that need to be performed at speed. Second is that math is the most over-tested subject. Third is believing that there is a math brain that some of us either have at birth or not. This has all made math seem narrow for almost everyone.
  • Of the 40% of students who go to a two-year college, 80% of are required to take remedial math and 65% of those never pass it. Thus the door to STEM courses in slammed. Mathematical diversity is usually missing. It can be a key for collaboration, problem-solving, compassion, and achievement. Diversity in math values different ways that people see and think about math more slowly and creatively. This book can even help the reader, even if they are already good at math.

2. Learning to Learn

  • The big idea here is to be a metacognitive learner. This can help learners of any age and for any situation in and outside of math class. Metacognitive learners are self-aware, reflect on different strategies, and track their own progress. They take a step back to get the big picture, draw visuals when possible, look for new approaches, repeatedly ask “why,” try to simplify, conjecture, try to satisfy skeptics, and try smaller cases.
  • Jo promotes reflection as part of metacognitive thinking to promote a growth mindset. She also recommends using rubrics. She uses group work with specific roles for each member. Students keep a journal and teachers add comments with post-it notes.

3. Valuing Struggle

  • People with growth mindsets view mistakes as opportunities. They pay more attention to feedback and experience less emotional stress due to errors. Be sure to give students their tests back so they can see and make notes about their mistakes. Try the process of having students and groups share their mistakes with the entire class. Students should know that evidence of struggle shows that their brains are working hard, which is a good thing. Share favorite mistakes and consider the logic used.
  • Tell students “I am giving you difficult work because I want you to struggle.” If you can promote a growth mindset you will raise achievement, improve health, and dial back aggression. Working at their edge of understanding causes struggle and promotes learning. We don’t achieve much by playing it safe. Creativity and mistakes go together. Parents should know that struggle starts at home. Praise hard work not smarts, and don’t punish mistakes.
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Brave New Words: How AI Will Revolutionize Education (and Why That’s a Good Thing) by Salman Khan

Friday, August 23rd, 2024

Book
Brave New Words: How AI Will Revolutionize Education (and Why That’s a Good Thing) by Salman Khan paints a rosy picture of how AI can be used to provide personalized tutoring and assessment for every student. It can also help parents as they monitor and encourage their children to focus on important learning. While I hope that Sal is right to be positive, this book reads a bit like an advertisement for Kahnmigo, his tutoring product. None the less, it is a must read for parents, teachers, and school leaders.

Introduction: Let’s Write a New Story Together

  • Sal and his team were given privileged access to ChatGPT-4 before is was available to the public. It’s clear that Sal has a bias that AI can be beneficial for education at all levels and he challenged his team to figure out how to use AI to improve the offerings of The Khan Academy. While many school districts were soon to ban ChatGPT-4 and other AI systems, Sal wanted to figure out how to make it a personal tutor. A guiding principal was to be careful, but to not be afraid of change.

1. Rise of the AI Tutor

  • Most students that go to college don’t even place into college level math. English Language Arts placements aren’t much better and writing scores are the worst. What theses students need is specialized feedback that allows for mastery learning. What is needed is an intimate relationship with a tutor who has an in-depth sense of what they know.
  • Using the power of ChatGPT, Khan and his team created Khanmigo. It’s a personal AI tutor that can ask the kind of leading questions that a real tutor can ask. It’s designed to meet students at their learning edge also known as the zone of proximal development. It pushes the student to think deeper, make students more comfortable, and be available 24/7.

2. Giving Voice to the Social Sciences

  • Cheating is less of an issue if everyone is using AI to help them write. It’s a first pass tool that isn’t good at originality. It requires students to rethink the way they write. In essence, students have to learn how to collaborate with AI.
  • Next we have examples of how Khanmigo talks to the students and how they can use Khanmigo to talk to famous historical figures like George Washington and Harriet Tubman. It can also talk about abstract concepts like the 14th Amendment. In each case the person or thing they are talking to pushes them to think deeper rather than giving them the answer.

3. Empowering the Next Innovators

  • This chapter contains examples of text that Kahnmigo generates from specific prompts. This will give you a good idea of what it can do. Keep in mind that Kahnmigo is built on ChatGPT-4, which makes it more powerful.
  • The goal here is to develop Kahnmigo versions of every course. This can be a big help for poor schools that don’t offer courses like algebra 2, chemistry, physics, and calculus. Such schools also lack enough students to fill these classes. Without access to these courses in high school, students won’t be able to take on a STEM major in college. Kahnmigo, with permission, can also send emails and texts to students, parents, and teachers in order to hold students more accountable. This is an example of proactive intervention.
  • By early 2024, Kahnmigo was being piloted by over 30,000 students and teachers with successful feedback. It is also important to note that the product stresses how subjects work together making it an interdisciplinary tool.
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