Group items tagged

"It is always such a pleasure to see student creativity. To watch their creative muscles grow and see their fantastic imaginations blossom into works of art. Technology is a great medium through which students can craft their wonders. It offers abilities that aren't possible in other media. Here is a recommended collection of creative iPad and iPhone apps from Glenda Stewart-Smith of Surrey School District #36 in Canada. It is a diverse collection covering creativity in art, photography, music, writing, and more. What apps would you recommend to foster creativity in students?"

"Summer's the perfect time for a new creative outlet, but it's far too easy to slip into "consumer" mode, passively watching TV or playing video games. Coding is a great way to break the cycle and flex your creative and logical muscles. Anyone can learn to code! We've chosen six fun starter activities that help kids see that making their own games is much more fun than playing a game made by someone else. They can just fire up their web browser (or the Tynker app for tablets) and choose whichever activity most strikes their interest! Kids follow easy step-by-step instructions to make their own games and stories while creatively customizing the project as they go. They can access hundreds more free activities by going to tynker.com or downloading the Tynker app for iPads or Android tablets."

"Whether it's Minecraft or duct tape wallets, the childhood passions that seem like fads, if not totally unproductive, can alternatively be seen as mediums for experiencing the virtuous cycle of curiosity: discovering, trying, failing and growing. At DIY, we've created a way for kids to explore hundreds of skills and to understand the ways in which they can be creative through them. Often, the skills are unconventional, and almost always the results are surprising. I don't think it's important that kids use the skills they learn on DIY for the rest of their lives. What's important is that kids develop the muscle to be fearless learners so that they are never stuck with the skills they have. Only this will prepare them for a world where change is accelerating and depending on a single skill to provide a lifetime career is becoming impossible."

"My Incredible Body is an iPad app (currently free) designed to help students learn how the human body works. The app features eight sections. Those sections are circulation, muscles, senses (vision, smell, hearing, touch), kidneys & urine, skeleton, respiration, digestion, and brain & nerves. Each section of the app contains short animated videos that explain the functions of each system and how it works."

"Video games get a bad rap. They are often portrayed as violent, addictive, and a mindless waste of hours that encourage laziness and make us fat. But that's not the full story. Most virtual games can be designed to have educational and physical benefits for players. Games that use repetitive actions, such as the swinging of a bat or targeting a moving object, train the brain and muscles to perform better in real-life activities. Video game brain training has the same effect as reading a book or riding a bike - when the brain is learning, thousands of new connections are being formed. The addition of a reward system motivates players to continuously improve their skills."

"We're all familiar with the term "muscle memory." Once you've learned to do something--serve a tennis ball, play a difficult piece of piano music, or draw a lifelike human hand--your body seems to intuitively "know" how to reproduce that action. But researchers at Johns Hopkins university have recently discovered that our ability to perform a physical athletic or creative task isn't entirely about what the body has learned to do right. Instead, we owe our success to the hundred times we've tried to master a skill and failed."

"The first time linguist and game studies theorist James Gee played a video game, he failed many times over. But instead of giving up, he merrily persevered, choosing to exercise "learning muscles" he hadn't worked out since his grad school days. "Lots of young people pay lots of money to engage in an activity that is hard, long, and complex," he realized. Games were evidence that humans love learning. But why do they seem to love it more during Minecraft than in the classroom? A game, most simply defined, is nothing more than a set of problems that a player must solve in order to win. And whether played on a board, cards, a computer, an iPad, or a console, games have the ability to intrinsically shape the way we teach and learn language and literacy. "

"Brain fitness is just as important as physical fitness for staying healthy. There is a growing body of scientific literature on the importance of cognitive workout. For instance, a study featured in CBS News found that 'people who kept their brains active most of their lives by reading, writing, completing crossword puzzles, or playing challenging games were a lot less likely to develop brain plaques that are tied to Alzheimer's disease.' Technology and the mobile one in particular offers various potent ways to train your brain muscles and sharpen your cognitive abilities. In this regard, we have curated a collection of some of the best iPad apps to use with kids as well as adults to help with brain workout."

"And you thought Red Bull was bad. It turns out that while a can of the energy drink has 80 milligrams of caffeine, a small cup of Starbucks drip coffee has more than three times that amount. Since many beverages don't show their caffeine content, it can be tough to make sure you're not overdoing it - and the Mayo Clinic advises adults to limit their caffeine intake to 400 mg per day. More than that and you run the risk of unpleasant side effects ranging from migraine headaches to irritability, upset stomach, and even muscle tremors"

"Flashy spaces and shiny toys in makerspaces are enticing, but it takes time and explicit scaffolding to develop a true Innovator. Building and providing the space for Making to happen is one thing; nurturing a mindset that gives students the mental tools to engage with said spaces is a much larger, and timely, endeavor. Best defined by the research and work of Carol Dweck, Jo Boaler and Eduardo Briceno, growth mindset is the recognition of the brain as a muscle that-with practice, effort, and nurturing-can continue to grow and develop. When you think of an inventor or innovator, past or present, what descriptors come to mind? Creative. Persistent. Curious. Fearless. Passionate. But educators know that most students don't show up to your class on the first day of school exhibiting these qualities. So how do we provide not only the physical tools but the mental tools to Make? Here are the essential pieces:"

"Did you know that more than just about any other activity, play is what promotes the healthy development of your child! The most important thing to remember about play is that it should be pleasurable.  That means that if your child is having fun, then you are doing it right!  Play can use the mind, body or even props.  It engages the imagination and exercises the muscles, and it also allows our children to practice new skills. All children are curious beings.  They like to explore and play, and these behaviours usually come quite naturally to them.  Play that allows for exploration provides a sense of discovery and learning.  This discovery and learning are actually a valuable source of pleasure to the child.  They find exploring and learning fun."

Free Anatomically correct 3d Human Anatomy site. Kevin Jarrett reminds us in the comments that if you're going to use Visible Body with younger students be aware that Visible Body is 100% anatomically correct. In that case it's probably best to use Visible Body as a teacher-directed exercise and not a individualized activity.

"Bodybuilders See Kidney Damage With Steroids "