, an American musician who lived and worked during the twentieth century, has always been considered a daring composer. Partch refused to let himself be limited by conventions; when he found the conventional western tuning system and its instruments constraining, he simply created his own. Partch’s handmade instruments use just intonation rather than the typical 12-tone equal temperament that is practiced in western music. These [...]
When I was five and growing up in Oakland, my parents would drive my older brother and me out to Berkeley, California, for a weekend afternoon at Adventure Playground. It was our favorite place in the world: a half-acre of dirt and lopsided structures that looked built by children because they had been. I remember working together with a dozen other five-, six- and [...]
Traveling via party bus, staff members headed into Boston, where we had a picnic in Christopher Columbus Park with delicious sandwiches and goodies from Bittersweet Bakery. Then the whole team hopped aboard a Duck Tour for a historical tour of Boston by land and by sea (or, specifically, the Charles River). We concluded the beautiful summer’s day with ice cream at J. P. [...]
Since its publication in 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird has had a profound impact on children and adults worldwide. Harper Lee’s first printed novel has been published in over forty different languages and still sells a million copies annually—a testament to its accessibility and power. Just as young Scout Finch had to grapple with the grim realities surrounding her, for many of us To Kill a [...]
Gym class: the often dreaded period of the day. In elementary school, we had these gym class scooters you would propel yourself on by shuffling your feet. There was nothing quite like having your fingers run over by the swivel wheels. And high school? Dodgeball just wasn’t my thing. My gym class experiences were completely at odds with my after-school participation in recreational, [...]
Instead of calling attention to students who misbehave, teachers in some schools are now practicing a technique called “active ignoring.” The idea behind it is simple: Teachers are no longer reprimanding students for their bad behavior but instead waiting for them to correct it on their own. When a student exhibits good conduct, they are verbally praised. For example, a teacher won’t acknowledge a [...]
When I first heard the term close reading, I was tempted to correct the speaker by asking, “Don’t you mean cloze reading?” referring to an old method of measuring a student’s ability by asking the student to determine a missing word from the context of a sentence. Such was not the case. Nancy Boyles, graduate reading program coordinator for Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven [...]
Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland remains popular 150 years after its first publication; in addition to the 2010 blockbuster movie starring Mia Wasikowska and Johnny Depp, over twenty other film adaptations exist, as well as numerous children’s shows, collectibles, comic books, musicals, ballets, operas and more. What many don’t know is that Alice Liddell, the inspiration for main character Alice, seasonally vacationed in Llandudno, [...]
When I’m not interning at PSG, I also work at a doggie day care. I have gotten to know about 40 dogs, from miniature dachshunds to German shepherds to English bulldogs to Great Danes. I rub bellies, toss Frisbees, serve lunch, referee scuffles and scoop poop. Even before this illustrious canine career, I was always a dog person. I grew up with a [...]
Math, science, languages—these are the subjects we tend to consider standard required courses for students, both in the United States and in other nations. Well, Spain could soon be adding a new one: chess may become a compulsory subject for students. In 2012, the European Parliament endorsed the Chess in School program, calling on each European Union (EU) member state to encourage the introduction of [...]