Thursday, June 30, 2011
Science Education Goes to Maker Fair
Newshour speculates - too bad the tickets are so expensive. I would love to see Maker Fair sponsor some scholarships so every kid has a chance to become an engineer.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Tossing Text Books
SF Tosses Workbooks
Big publishing shows its face - why would teachers toss perfectly good teaching resources? Because the administration won't let them use old, when new can be bought for top dollar from out of state publishers. And don't think these books are priced like workbooks at our store - you're looking at $30 books in this bin!
Thursday, June 23, 2011
ASTRA Marketplace 2011
I'm just home from ASTRA marketplace. This is where specialty toy store owners and specialty toy manufacturers gather to plot and plan what kids will play with in the coming year! I had a great time, and I'll be posting more about what I learned and found. What I'm thinking about though is play. How can I make play more important - I make my living by retailing play, and I want it to have enormous value, because if it's valuable, people will want it.
This TED video is from TED Bulgaria, but it's very easy to just switch "America" for "Bulgaria". Play makes your brain bigger! How is that for an endorsement!
Steve Keil: A Manifesto for Play
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Science and Uncertainty
From an article on BoingBoing.net
"This is scientific uncertainty--where the things we know and the things we don't know collide, and we are left to figure out how to use what we have to make decisions anyway. If we want people to understand science, we can't just give them facts to memorize. Scientific literacy isn't about being able to win a game of quiz bowl. It's about understanding how science works, and how science can be used to guide human decision-making. It's about knowing that we don't have all the answers. But it's also about knowing that "we don't have all the answers" isn't the same thing as "we don't know anything." If we pump people full of facts, but don't teach them about uncertainty, then we can't be surprised when they dismiss anything that isn't 100% certain"
Just a note that uncertainty doesn't score well on standardized tests.
"This is scientific uncertainty--where the things we know and the things we don't know collide, and we are left to figure out how to use what we have to make decisions anyway. If we want people to understand science, we can't just give them facts to memorize. Scientific literacy isn't about being able to win a game of quiz bowl. It's about understanding how science works, and how science can be used to guide human decision-making. It's about knowing that we don't have all the answers. But it's also about knowing that "we don't have all the answers" isn't the same thing as "we don't know anything." If we pump people full of facts, but don't teach them about uncertainty, then we can't be surprised when they dismiss anything that isn't 100% certain"
Just a note that uncertainty doesn't score well on standardized tests.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Point to Happy
We are very excited to receive a new title "Point to Happy" from Workman. Here's a discussion with the authors:
It's a book designed for kids on the autism spectrum - we need more books like this!
It's a book designed for kids on the autism spectrum - we need more books like this!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Dave Eggers on Teacher Layoffs
The lives of public school teachers have never been more surreal. While they're being pilloried in film and in the press - for their unions being too strong, among other things - last week, 2,800 teachers in the Bay Area were told they might not have jobs in the fall. How's that for job security?
Read the rest
Read the rest
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
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