That old adage “men are from Mars and women are from Venus” may have gained some more scientific proof recently thanks to young Winona scientists. Cotter eighth-grader Cade Hansen, one of several participating in the school’s science fair Wednesday, wondered if males and females perceive things differently – in particular, optical illusions. In search of
The first thing I can remember buying for myself, aside from candy, of course, was not a toy. It was a book. It was a religious picture book about Job from the Bible, bought at Kmart. It was on one of the rare occasions when my mother had enough money to give my brothers and
Talk about your cost-benefit analysis: A newly published study co-authored by a University of Minnesota labor economist predicts that providing full-time, high-quality preschool to impoverished children under the age of 3 could entirely eliminate the achievement gap. There’s more: The study , published in the Journal of Human Resources, also found that the impact of
In an early childhood family education class on a recent Friday morning, a group of toddlers appeared to run the show. One young boy sitting at a table near the door stared down a lumpy glob of deep-blue play dough. His mom crouched in a pint-sized plastic chair beside him, watching. Behind him, another student
Every year, thousands of immigrants enroll in Minnesota public schools, but the challenges aren’t equal for all of them. As a group, the hurdles are highest for those who enter the system in high school with little or no English language and writing skills. “It’s slow going when you start that stuff at 16, 18,”
An EHJ scoping committee is pulling together data from the state and our school district about reading and math proficiency. We want our students performing at least two percent above the state averages. Minnesota students in third through eighth grade take the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs) in reading and math. According to the Minnesota Department
Imagine trying to read and solve math problems in a school where you don’t speak the language of your teacher and classmates. That’s the challenge facing roughly 65,000 students in Minnesota, or 8 percent of the student population, who are learning English as they go through the school. Despite some recent improvements in their test
A new statewide report on school readiness shows many of Minnesota’s youngest citizens face hurdles that affect their learning in kindergarten and beyond. At the root of the problem is poverty, says Richard Chase, key author of the first School Readiness report, which was prepared by Wilder Research for the Minnesota Office of Early Learning.
Coon Rapids High School has accomplished something remarkable. The achievement gap for science scores on the 2013 Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment dropped more than 40 points, thanks in part to a massive increase in proficiency among students of color. Coon Rapids Principal Annette Ziegler said relationship-based teaching at the school is one big reason for the
Burnside Elementary produces a monthly newsletter that is full of news and suggestions for parents. The third grade teachers wrote an article in the November 2013 issue about how to help kids with reading comprehension. Here are a couple of their suggestions: 1. Good Fit Books: This is very important so as to understand the