Inspiring+Reads

="The Data Deluge: and how to handle it"=

My husband informed me of this special report put out by **__The Economist__** on February 27. The report has nine short articles that shed some light into the world of 0's and 1's. It mainly deals with the internet and the content on it. The article uncovers what what has happened, what is happening and tries to predict what will happen in the near future. It also weights some of the benefits and dangers to our and our children's life.


 * //Click on the following highlighted titles to see the articles.//**

Data, Data Everywhere - "Information has gone from scares to superabundant. That brings huge new benefits, but also big headaches" All Too Much - Explains the "monstrous amounts of data" A Different Game - Analysis of how "information is transforming traditional business" Clicking For Gold - "How internet companies profit from data on the web" The Open Society - "Governments are letting in the light" //With privacy being respected, I think schools are and should go more this route// Show Me - "New Ways of Visualising Data" //I have briefly looked at some of the highlighted free programs and the programs are amazing with how they sort and manipulate data.// Needle In A Haystack - "The uses of information about information" New Rules For Big Data - "Regulators are having to rethink their brief" Handling The Cornucopia - "The best way to deal with all the information is to use machines. But they need watching"

="The Commission on the Whole Child"= The co-chairs of ASCD's Commission on the Whole Child—Hugh B. Price and Stephanie Pace Marshall—spoke with Educational Leadership about what it means to educate the whole child. Price, senior fellow with the Brookings Institution and past president and chief executive officer of the National Urban League, and Marshall, founding president of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, share their different—yet complementary—perspectives.


 * Quote from text:** "Each moment we live never was before and will never be again. And yet what we teach children in school is 2 + 2 = 4 and Paris is the capital of France. What we should be teaching them is what they are. We should be saying: "Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the world there is no other child exactly like you. In the millions of years that have passed, there has never been another child exactly like you. You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity for anything. Yes, you are a marvel." -Pablo Casals

=Cognitive Coaching=

I took a course in cognitive Coaching last year and found it helpful inside and outside the classroom setting. The mission of Cognitive CoachingSM is to develop cognitive capacities for self-directedness independently and in community. Research indicates that teaching is a complex intellectual activity and that teachers who think at higher levels produce students who are higher achieving, more cooperative, and better problem solvers. It is the invisible skills of teaching, the thinking processes that underlie instructional decisions, which produce superior instruction. Cognitive CoachingSM is a research-based model which capitalizes upon and enhances teachers' cognitive processes.

Click on Cognitive Coaching Website to learn more about coaching.

=The Wonder of Boys / The Wonder of Girls=

A few years back, I was talking with Tom Pado (last years MS Principal) about the differences between boys and girls. He brought Michael Gurian to my attention and now that I am expecting a child of my own, his books have again springed into my conciousness.

If you are interested in understanding more about the uniqueness of boys or girls and their brain development, bio-chemistry, and societal (family, friends, media) influences, then consider reading anyone of Michael Gurian's books. Tom had two daughters and found //The Wonder of Girls: Understanding// the Hidden Nature of our Daughters particularly thought provoking. This book has two interesting chapters which he found to be interesting- "The Artful Mother" and "The Gifts of a Father".

Michael Gurian is a family therapist, corporate consultant, lecturer and the New York Times bestselling author of twenty five books published in twenty one languages. The Gurian Institute, which he co-founded, conducts research internationally, launches pilot programs and trains professionals. Michael has been called "the people's philosopher" for his ability to bring together people's ordinary lives and scientific ideas.

He has pioneered efforts to bring neuro-biology and brain research into homes, schools, corporations, and public policy. A number of his ground-breaking books in child development, including THE MINDS OF BOYS, THE WONDER OF GIRLS, THE WONDER OF BOYS, BOYS AND GIRLS LEARN DIFFERENTLY!, and NURTURE THE NATURE have sparked national debate.

=Positive Discipline=

//Positive Discipline// authored by Jane Nelsen, are a series well known books that provides parents and teachers with very concrete approaches and strategies to disciplining children of all ages. Many of the underlying values and beliefs about behavior, effective communication, and discipline contained in the book may challenge some of our beliefs about the needs of children at different ages. There are a few copies of her books in the library if you wish to do some reading. If you wish to explore this approach further, then click on Positive Discipline Website to see the array of books offered and access to their website.