California Tells Schools to Start Later, Giving Teenagers More Sleep
“A new law pushed back start times at most public middle and high schools, citing research that says attendance and performance will improve if teenagers get more sleep.”
Spelling Their Way to Success
“Four past champions of the Scripps National Spelling Bee on what the competition taught them about hard work, grit and luck.”
3 Ways to Shape Math Into a Positive Experience
“As with other subjects, having a growth mindset in math matters — and not just for kids. A range of parent and teacher beliefs and attitudes toward math have been linked with children’s beliefs and performance in the subject, especially among girls. In a recent study of Chilean kindergartners and their families, for example, mothers’ math self-concepts positively predicted girls’ math self-concepts, while fathers’ math self-concepts negatively predicted girls’ math self-concepts. (The latter effect was reduced in cases where fathers engaged in home math activities with their daughters.)”
10 Core Insights on Civics Education, and How to Improve it
“As Education Week’s 18-month investigation of civics has shown, civics teaching doesn’t happen in schools as much as it should. It’s not always required, for one reason, and, at a time when the nation is deeply polarized, teachers sometimes prefer to avoid politically controversial topics like impeachment. Yet this post-Parkland generation of students seems to be deeply interested in becoming civically engaged.”
The ‘Zero-Waste Classroom’: Teachers Share Tips for Going Green
“There’s a lot of waste that comes out of a classroom daily—dried-up markers, used tissues, filled-out worksheets, half-eaten snacks … the list goes on. A lot of that trash can feel inevitable. But over the past few years, there’s been a small but passionate movement of teachers who are working toward a ‘zero-waste classroom’.”
Fraction Problems
“Failure to understand fractions and lack of fluency with their arithmetic often blocks students’ entry to algebra and higher-level mathematics. Perhaps wrestling with some interesting fraction problems can help. Here are three.”
Why Intentionally Building Empathy Is More Important Now Than Ever
“‘It turns out that nice guys finish first in lots of different ways,’ Zaki said on KQED’s Forum program. And, when people are nice, they not only help others, but they help themselves as well. Empathetic people are generally happier, healthier and more effective at work. And, acting from a place of empathy, he argues, could be just what the world needs at this moment, when division has become the norm.”
