by Marsha Rakestraw You only have to watch kids in a garden or park to know that we humans have a special connection with the natural world. Studies have shown that we benefit physically, emotionally, and mentally (including academically) from our interactions with nature. Yet except for a hemmed-in tree here or there, or a…
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by Marsha Rakestraw Children’s literature is often a reflection of society (and sometimes an influencer). As we humans continue to make progress in doing more good and less harm and in striving to create a better world, we’re seeing more books for children that explore and celebrate those themes. Although we can search online for…
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by Marsha Rakestraw If you’re as old as I am, you probably remember math word problems asking you about the speed and direction of trains. Or geometry problems that asked you to calculate areas of objects drawn on paper. Or probabilities focused on dice roles. If you were lucky, you might have gotten to explore…
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by Marsha Rakestraw We’re fans of the pro-hero approach, rather than using an anti-bullying framework, but given that most educational institutions still think and act in terms of anti-bullying, this 2013 study by the American Educational Research Association (AERA) is relevant to anyone concerned about bullying in schools and universities. “Prevention of Bullying in Schools,…
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Young people are hungry to create a better world for people, animals, and the earth, but we’re not born knowing how to do that. Fortunately there are numerous organizations whose mission is to help educate, inspire, and support youth in their efforts to become effective solutionaries. Here are 7 just we wanted to highlight: Do…
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by Marsha Rakestraw Many schools have debate teams that choose an either/or side regarding a current event and then gather evidence and argue against other teams to support their chosen side. But what if instead of just discussing important issues, students were challenged to develop realistic, meaningful solutions to our pressing global problems? Students did…
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by Marsha Rakestraw We’ve all done it: Seen a nice shirt or must-have pair of pants or shoes. We buy them (usually at a discount price, because we’re bargain hunters after all) and take them home. We wear them for a bit, and then the new and shiny wears off. We get bored with them…
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by Marsha Rakestraw A few years ago at our graduate student residency, one of the students led an activity in which small groups looked at the prevalence of men, women, and people of color as authors of articles in different sections of the newspaper, such as Style, Sports, Business, and Arts. They found that men…
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A lot of teachers want to offer their students experiences in the natural world, but because of strictures on curriculum, the prevalence of standardized tests, and other challenges, encounters with nature can fall into the category of “nice but not necessary.” But we know from a plethora of research that we humans desperately need that…
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by Marsha Rakestraw Each May and June in the U.S. we celebrate Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. Moms usually receive pretty, smelly, “girly” stuff, and dad’s get yet another manly tie, cologne, or something to BBQ. Just one of the countless ways we perpetuate the stereotypes and biases about what women and men are supposed…
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