Not long ago, I wrote a post, at the request of a reader, about encouraging kids to craft, create and “actually make things.” A few weeks later, the “maker movement” went viral when Caine’s Arcade, a short film about an enterprising nine year old’s cardboard creations, hit the web. The film introduces us to young Caine Monroy who, armed with cardboard boxes and lots of packing tape, built an elaborate arcade in his father’s auto parts shop. The film has since gotten a lot of attention, from media outlets, as well as educators who are promoting the idea that informal learning, creating, and making things with their own hands is just as important as the formal education kids get in schools.
The creativity and real-world skills children gain from this sort of unstructured productive play is invaluable, and may serve them well in their future careers; jobs which almost certainly will require technical skills, as well as workers who are inventive, adaptable, and creative.
“If you can’t play sports or video games or hang out with your friends or watch TV, I guess it’s okay.” A preteen boy, asked what he thinks about reading.
Matt Arkin, head of schools at Georgia Cyber Academy, sat down with the Good Day show on WFXL Fox 31 News in Albany, to explain how online learning works, how it can be an excellent alternative to traditional brick and mortar schools and highlights how the K12 curriculum supports and enhances student literacy.
Sunday is Mother's Day, time to celebrate, appreciate and honor moms everywhere. I was looking for creative and innovative ideas to offer our students, and came across the idea of journaling.