Tag: children

New Approaches to teaching fractions [Article]

For the parents struggling to teach fractions, research suggests using pies isn’t necessarily the best way:

When two pizzas sit side-by-side, slices of one divided into sixths may not look that different from slices of another divided into fifths……..Fraction bars and number lines are considered easier than circles for children to draw and divide into parts. They also let students line up fractions in a row and see the difference in size, something they can’t do when dividing up a pie in the traditional approach.

Does the world need more people? [Article]

Judge Richard Posner answers his own question: “I am dubious.”

Maybe children are actually an “inferior” good, valued most by poor people either because the children of the poor work to augment family income or because the family lacks the resources for such child substitutes as expensive cars, clothes, homes, entertainment, and travel. Increasingly in the wealthy countries both spouses work, increasing the opportunity costs to both parents of raising children.  …

There is no necessary connection between population and economic growth. The sharp decline of Europe’s population because of the Black Death is thought to have increased per capita incomes significantly by reducing the ratio of people to arable land, resulting in improved nutrition.

Viewing humans as economic “goods” is ________ (fill in the blanks with your own answer).

The Politics of Play [Article]

In the Politics of Play, Jay Griffiths emphasises the need for risk for children while playing: 

The true opposite of obedience is not disobedience but independence. The true opposite of order is not disorder but freedom. Most profoundly, the true opposite of control is not chaos but self-control

While children must learn to control themselves, what they can never control is luck. They must learn how to live with it, how to dance with chance and mischance. Children recognize life is a huge adventure, and they must accept the dare.

Three conversations for parents: navigating networked publics [Article]

This short article is probably more suited for parents of young children:  Microsoft researcher Dana Boyd has some advice for parents who are struggling with their children’s use of social media: she reminds us that the advice that children need to negotiate networked publics parallels advice that parents have always given when their children encounter public spaces. The networked society that we live in today may feel radically different, but many youth are struggling with the things they’ve always struggled with.They’re trying to figure out who they are and how they fit into the bigger world. They want to hang out with friends, but they’re also trying to figure out the status games of their peers.