NY Times Op-Ed & More!

Cheery Friday Greetings to our Learning How to Learners!

Book of the Week

We’re very interested in how games attract people’s attention. So as we are beginning to explore the world of gaming, we couldn’t resist reading David Kushner’s awesome Masters of Doom: How Two Guys  Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture, about John Romero and John Carmack, and how the pair of geniuses helped revolutionize the gaming industry.  A riveting read.

Barb’s Op-Ed in The New York Times

Barb’s recent op-ed in The New York Times on how to help little girls (and little boys) succeed in math has caused quite a stir, becoming one of the most emailed articles of the week.  

Study: Music, Manipulatives Are Fun, But Basics Are Best for Struggling Math Students

This excellent article by Sarah Sparks in Education Week points towards  research that reveals how practice at foundational levels can make a big difference in a child’s success in math.  The worse off that kids might be in their math studies, the more they can benefit from straightforward teacher explanations and practice problems. In the related article ‘Drill, baby, drill? Study finds worksheets, practice improve math skills more than fun stuff” by Maureen Downey expands on these important ideas.  This latter article includes a great brief interview with one of the research co-authors, Paul Morgan. Paul’s group has also done intriguing research related to reducing science achievement gaps.

A Special Salute to the School Teachers and Administrators of Delta, Colorado

Barb gave the opening keynote to the visionary teachers and administrators of Delta, Colorado, for their district-wide professional development day on August 14th.  This is an exceptional school district—keep your eye on them!

A Podcast with Polymath Charles Chu

We really like Charles Chu of The PolyMath Project, and it shows in this offbeat podcast with Barb—the pair go off together to discuss unusual ideas.

Barb Went to Jail

Yes, Barb recently spoke at the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, where she was deeply impressed at how much the inmates knew about the key ideas of Learning How to Learn—they were awesome!  The jail has been successfully using Learning How to Learn to help inmates acquire new skills to help them succeed. Clark County Detention Center, working with Coursera, is setting an example for the country, and the world, in how to build new skills and mindsets.  

Incidentally,  the interesting Ear Hustle podcast “brings you the stories of life inside prison, shared and produced by those living it.”

Memory Champion Nelson Dellis is Cubing It Without Seeing It!

4-time US Memory Champion is back with an unbelievable video on how to memorize and solve a 2×2 Rubik’s Cube—blindfolded!

A Podcast in Relation to Homeschooling and Learning How to Learn

Here’s podcaster and homeschooling maven Julie Bogart with a  series of questions for Barb in relation to homeschooling and learning. Julie does great work with relation to writing in the homeschooling world, so if that’s of interest to you, check out the podcast along with Julie’s wonderful Brave Writer blog.

Barb’s Webinar for IEEE

Here is the recording link (you’ll just need to scroll down and click the webinar title) if you want to share it with anyone.  

That’s all for this week. Have a happy week in Learning How to Learn!

Barb, Terry, and the entire Learning How to Learn team

 

• Get the course recommended text, A Mind for Numbers!

 

• NEW! Learning How to Learn: How to Succeed in School Without Spending All Your Time Studying; A Guide for Kids and Teens. Great ideas for parents, too!
• Follow LHTL on Facebook | Join the private LHTL Hall of Fame group | Follow LHTL on Twitter