Why do we go see action movies? Is it for excellent story lines that just so happen to be supplemented by spectacular explosions? Given that the American Chemical Society (ACS), in a video from their online Reactions series, calls explosions “Hollywood’s go-to distraction from a bad plot,” the answer is probably no. Critics like to poke fun at producer Michael Bay for his reliance on pyrotechnics in [...]
“It may seem crazy what I’m about to say,” but Pharrell Williams will be releasing a children’s book in September. Williams is working with G. P. Putnam’s Sons, an imprint of the Penguin Group USA, to create a series of four books. The first is inspired by his platinum hit song “Happy.” The book will feature photos of children all around the world and what they feel [...]
Like many kids in my generation, I grew up on Harry Potter. My mom read the first few books to me at bedtime until I started reading them on my own. She continued reading the books too, and we talked about them together as I grew up. Until I came to college and heard criticism from writing professors for citing the series as [...]
Most of us know about the famous Smithsonian Institution, which includes a collection of 19 museums and galleries, most in the DC area, that house countless artifacts from American and world history. But did you know the Smithsonian also has a renowned education program? In 2015, the Smithsonian Associates celebrates 50 years of successful educational programming. The Smithsonian Associates offers museum-based education on a wide [...]
Countless psychologists and Disney fanatics have studied the science and psychology behind Frozen’s success since its release in 2013. What about this film in particular makes it so irresistible to adults and kids alike? Frozen is certainly one of the Disney movie giants: It’s the fifth-highest grossing film of all time, earning $1.2 billion worldwide, and it has won two Academy Awards, a BAFTA and [...]
Countless psychologists and Disney fanatics have studied the science and psychology behind Frozen’s success since its release in 2013. What about this film in particular makes it so irresistible to adults and kids alike? Frozen is certainly one of the Disney movie giants: It’s the fifth-highest grossing film of all time, earning $1.2 billion worldwide, and it has won two Academy Awards, a BAFTA and a [...]
The combination of dogs and reading may seem irrelevant, but it’s proving to be quite the opposite—specifically as a method for assisting children who have difficulty practicing this essential skill. Various dog reading programs are becoming exceedingly popular as their overall results show a great improvement in reader confidence and ability. The main logic behind these programs is that children who are struggling [...]
From old school VCRs to DVD players, HDTV, Blu-ray players and Netflix, closed captioning is all around us. But whether we use captions for foreign film translations or to understand TV dialogue, its variety of uses begs the question: What exactly is closed captioning? Closed captions display spoken dialogue as printed words on a screen. Captions are often used by those with hearing loss so that [...]
There’s a new show out there bringing some logical calm to the chaotic frenzy that is often children’s programming. The show is called Moochie Kalala Detectives Club. And its name, purposely silly, certainly isn’t the only unique thing about it. The show is live action, set in Chicago and aims to bring STEM to elementary school students. Centered on the characters of Grandpa, his [...]
In many communities, the public library is a well-recognized institution by adults and children alike. However, some libraries find their halls to be frequented only by a fraction of their community‘s population, and are reaching out to increase their membership. Last spring, the Evanston Public Library (EPL) in Illinois found a new way to cater to their patrons, looking to become more accessible by becoming [...]