The Brain... The News... Fodder for the Curious... Best Books...That's all for 2009

How many times have you wondered: what is REALLY going on inside that teenager's brain? (Or your spouse or your friend or the crabby person standing in line in front of you ...)  Here are a couple of articles that shed some light on this persistent quandary.

• Reading and the Brain--What happens in the brain when we read?  READ this article and get an introduction to a fascinating new book: Reading in the Brain: The science and evolution of a human invention by Stanislas Dehaene

• "What is the Web Teaching our Brains?"   Are we being re-wired? Is that a good thing?  It seems that some tasks such as blogging (yeah) are actually beneficial...others promote anxiety. 

News!  Democracy depends on an informed public, so it is vital that we teach students how to read and interpret the news from a wide variety of perspectives.

• Check out this interactive website Play in the News that takes headlines and creates simulation games 

• Some news about news from Google.  Read about this proposal to limit how many articles readers can read using Google News.  There are NO limits when you use Paly's online database EBSCO.  See the Library Database page for information. 

A Couple of Great Curriculum Resources and Fodder for the Curious

• Shakespeare Searched lets users type in themes or words and find quotes from the Bard's works as annotated by the Folger Shakespeare Library

• The power of images comes to light while searching The Bettmann Archive.  Founded in Otto Bettmann's bedroom in 1936, this rich archive of photos and ephemera follows the history of the United States and the world from the mid-19th century.

THE END (for 2009 that is) Great books and my favorite video clip of the year....

• THE 100 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR!  according to the NY Times.  My top Five are listed below:

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins-Wild dystopian fantasy for young adults and adults.
2. Joker One by Donovan Campbell--A sobering memoir about a tour of duty in Iraq written by a Marine platoon commander. 
3. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein--Told from a dog's point of view, this is a family story about love, loyalty, loss and redemption.   
4. Shiver by  Maggie Stiefveter --If you are wondering what to get for an avid twilight reader, this story about a hunky werewolf and a teen girl will be a sure-fire hit.  
5. Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell--What does it take to be successful in this competitive world?   Some surprising conclusions..

• Best TED Lecture-- Dan Gilbert asks, "Why are we happy?"

Have Happy & Healthy New Year!