Young People in Politics

At this year's Education National Summit, students were able to have their voices heard.

This article from Scholastic News shares the story of students having the opportunity to talk about issues that so closely affect them. These include technology in the classrooms, standardized testing, and one size- fits all learning strategies.

"It's kind of odd, isn't it, that we're three years in and this is the first time we thought ‘Oh yeah, we should ask students what they think,'" spoken by Melissa Harris- Perry, moderator of the event. 

The broad cast was shown on MSNBC, reaching a wide variety of audiences. This event informed the public to the real problems and concerns that students deal with in modern day education.

The article does a really good job of conveying the most important highlights of the conference, while also being very informative. Several quotes were recorded from both the children involved and the adults in charge of running the event. 

http://www.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3757550

The True Super Heroes

"I'm Batman, you are Robin, and that guy over there is the bad Spiderman."

This direction was given to me by a child no older than six years old. His name is Tommy and according to this extraordinary imagination, we all had to pull our supernatural powers together to defeat the bad guy. As if pretending had nothing to do with it, we all sprang into action.

At one point I crossed the line of my role as Robin but this Batman was sure to put me in my place. "What do you think you're doing?! Robin can't fly like Batman, that's what I do! " he said.

Luckily everything worked out in the end and the evil Spiderman was defeated by the great power and strength of Batman and Robin. Although I had stepped out of my boundaries a few times "Batman Tommy" assured me that I had done a good job of helping win, but to work on my powers for the next time.

Looking back on this adventure I come to the recurring conclusion that kids are some of the best actors around, except to them what is acing is much more than something you pretend to be--it is what you are.

The "big kid" lesson that I take away from this experience is that if you handle every situation, no matter how small it may be, with great conviction and dedication then there is no way success will not be in store. Even if you're not the best sidekick in the world, you can always work on it and improve for the next time around.

As long as you do your best and never give up, you're the best super hero in the world.

Careful Cartoon Selections

It is no secret that children love to watch cartoons, but research has shown that certain programs can do more harm than others. This article reveals a story about disrupted sleep habits for preschoolers due to the overwhelming nature of certain shows like Scooby- Doo or Spongebob Squarepants. These cartoons are created for an older audience whereas Dora the Explorer or Sesame Street are much more age appropriate and will be processed easier by the younger children, allowing them to sleep soundly. This is a very quick, short article that gets to the point and offers an interesting take on how the media can affect little ones. http://www.newser.com/story/151530/help-preschoolers-sleep-turn-off-spongebob.html

Elementary Students Gain a Lesson About Life

The traumatic terrorist attack that will always be remembered in the hearts of American citizens had an anniversary yesterday, September 11th. This event has affected the lives of so many, and as it becomes a major mark of history it is imperative that today's generation of youth know what happened only eleven years ago. An elementary school in Thornville, Ohio made an impact in this necessity by providing students with a meaningful presentation from the local police department and EMTs who said a prayer for all who lost a loved one in the attack and shared their memories of that shocking day. The article itself was well done, especially dealing with such a sensitive topic. There are several quotes from the presentation, as well as perspectives from children who are students at the elementary school regarding what they thought about 9/ 11.

http://www.lancastereaglegazette.com/article/20120912/NEWS01/209120310/Thornville-students-help-remember-9-11-victims?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFrontpage

A New Generation of Voters

Argentinian government contemplates lowering the voting age from 18 to 16 in an effort to involve a younger demographic of voters. The debate on whether or not to go through with this action calls upon several perspectives as to why or why not it would be beneficial. This article does a good job of taking into account both sides of the argument, explaining the reasoning of each.  This article is interesting due to the relevance of heated political topics currently taking over the U.S. regarding the upcoming election. It makes the audience aware of governmental issues occurring elsewhere and causes a sense of reflection from these new ideas. 

http://www.wral.com/news/national_world/world/story/11507510/