One of the most exciting things about teaching in ways that support creativity, is that teaching for creativity can also support sound thinking. That is certainly true for the website iCivics. Founded by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, iCivics is designed to prepare young people to be knowledgeable and involved citizens—and do it … Continue reading
My husband loves television and is the classic remote “clicker,” as he speeds across the channels in search of the next most-interesting-thing. As a result, I learn about all kinds of strangely-fascinating programs I might never discover. One of these is History Channel’s American Pickers, a reality show that follows “pickers” Mike Wolfe and Frank … Continue reading
If you live far from the Salt Lake Valley, your first response to this post’s title may have been, “Pioneer what?” While students across the United States study westward expansion in school, only in Utah (as far as I know) do pioneers get their own holiday, July 24. Pioneer Day commemorates the day the Mormon … Continue reading
Have you ever wandered through an antique shop, intrigued by the strange machinery and wondering what it all did? Do you know a young person fascinated by gadgets? Or do you teach about inventions and inventing? If so, Jim Murphy’s books Weird and Wacky Inventions and Bizarre and Baffling Inventions, are for you. Set up … Continue reading
I love museums. I stand in awe of human creativity at the Detroit Institute of Arts, and of the innovations at the Henry Ford Museum. I delight in watching children’s explorations at our local Hands On Museum. And, of course, when I have the chance to travel, I find more museums to love—whether my traveling … Continue reading
Working with historian Dr Suzannah Lipscomb, a team of digital artists try to answer that question in a series of updated portraits imagining what historical characters might look like today. Dr. Lipscomb is Senior Lecturer for History at New College for the Humanities and a presenter for the television series “Secret Life of…..” on the … Continue reading
This is the time of year when I vacillate between being grateful to see the semester wind down and thinking about all the things I hope to do better next term. In case you, too, are in the mood for dreaming about next year’s exciting options (or for my Australian friends, embarking on a new … Continue reading
Once in a while (OK, maybe more than once in a while) I find a blog post I really wish I’d written. Recently, while looking for resources suitable for silly family fun for April, I came across this 2011 post from The New York Times Education website, focusing on serious ways to teach comedy across … Continue reading
There are a lot of ways to tell stories. These days, a lot of them seem to use speech bubbles. Photo memes are everywhere, from the ever-present talking cats to political commentary. Graphic novels use comic book formats to tell increasingly sophisticated tales. So it occurred to me that adding speech bubbles to photos might … Continue reading
I just read through a young person’s history book at breakneck speed, because I couldn’t wait to find out what happened. It was a mystery and a story of research, all wrapped in one, and it was about John Henry. You remember John Henry—the steel driving man who won the contest with a steam drill, … Continue reading
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