AAA Math features a comprehensive set of interactive arithmetic lessons. Unlimited practice is available on each topic which allows thorough mastery of the concepts. A wide range of lessons (Kindergarten through Eighth grade level) enables learning or review to occur at each individual's current level.
Energy Kids-Find energy related stories, hands-on activities, and research articles for your classroom! These curriculum-based lessons are separated by age-grade.
The Open Door Web Site is a reference source for both students and teachers. The contents of this site are designed for use by students between the ages of 9 and 17.
Articles about Cognition, Affective Education and Pyschomotor Benefits
Emotional Intelligence Is the Missing Piece -This article is explains how social and emotional learning can help students successfully resolve conflict, communicate clearly, solve problems, and more.
Why Exercise Makes you Less Anxious - At a time when high stakes testing is imposed upon our students this article by Gretchen Reynolds point makes it clear that Physical Education should be more important to our curriculum than before.
Proficient Readers Need Good School Libraries - Gaby Chapman's article focuses on the fact that studies show that reading achievement in a school is directly related to the quality of its library but says,
School libraries are slowly but steadily being replaced by an onslaught of packaged reading programs designed to teach “virtual reading,” in which students can learn everything about reading without actually doing it.
Book Review
Mind Reading- by Allison Gopink is a book review for Stanislas Dehaene's new book about the reading and the brain called Reading in the Brain: The Science and Evolution of a Human Invention . Neuroscientist are discovering that reading has not been around long enough for humans to have become an inate part of the human brain.
Thoughts From Yrisarri
In my years of teaching and working in schools I came across a few poor teachers. But, as I listen to to the movement for reform it seems as if there are many more bad teachers than I ever imagined. One of the cornerstones of the current push from the Secretary of Education and other reformers is to rid the schools of bad teachers. It seems that teacher unions and teachers themselves are to blame for the education disaster in America!
Once again the Department of Education is missing the point of the future for our children. It is more important in today's workforce to know how to cooperate, punitively firing teachers who are deemed "bad" teachers by some objective or subjective criteria, is not going to help create a culture of learning that teaches our children good values. Competition is between companies, not between workers in the companies. The current thinking seems to be that competition is the missing equation in education. This includes students and the teaching force. It is as if teachers and students are always applying for the job but never get to practice their skills.
Instead of calling for dismissal of teachers for doing poor work, let us first decide that we will help any teacher who does not meet basic benchmarks without threatening the job of someone who invested personal treasure in themselves to become a teacher. Perhaps schools that don't meet the benchmarks can be assured that their community will be helped without a threat of takeover or dismantling of a community investment. Maybe we can even make it clear to our students that we want to help them not fail them. I think that message is not received by many of our students today.
What I suggest is that our first instinct be to help others rather than dismiss them. One of the great reforms for education could be to create a culture of kindness and a tradition of caring about others. We can begin this by finding ways to "dismiss" the punitive natures of some of our classrooms and schools. One way to begin this reform is by committing to help struggling teachers, schools and students rather than punish them when they fail.
