[YL] YouthLearn Newsletter, Issue 121

Wed Oct 24 10:18:35 EDT 2007

YouthLearn
Newsletter, Issue 121 - October 24, 2007

The YouthLearn Newsletter compiles the latest entries to the YouthLearn News Blog. This innovative service to the YouthLearn community highlights youth, education, and technology news, tools, and resources. We hope this assists you in your important work. Please feel free to share this resource with friends and colleagues, and visit the News Blog often! http://news.youthlearn.org <http://news.youthlearn.org/> 

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News 

New Study Provides More Evidence of Parents' Role in Academic Success
"Apparently it doesn't much matter whether low-income, urban students attend a public or private high school, reports Greg Toppo in USA Today. In actuality, the biggest factors determining a student's academic success are whether their parents take part in their education, earn enough money to offer enriching experiences and have high aspirations for their kids, according to a new study released by the Center on Education Policy. The findings, which examined 12 years of data from more than 1,000 young people, found that while SAT scores of students in private schools are higher than those of their public-school peers, their overall performance in math, reading, science and history was no better."
URL: http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-10-09-public-private_N.htm <http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-10-09-public-private_N.htm> 
Referred by: PEN Weekly NewsBlast

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Funding 

General Mills Foundation Invites Applications for Healthy Kids Grant Program
"The General Mills Foundation, in partnership with the American Dietetic Association Foundation and the President's Council on Physical Fitness, is accepting applications for the Champions for Healthy Kids grant program. This national program will award fifty grants of $10,000 each to community-based groups across the United States that develop creative ways to help youth adopt a balanced diet and physically active lifestyle. Applicant organizations must be nonprofit... Local organizations that work with youth are encouraged to apply because their programs are more likely to be sustainable. These may include park districts, health departments, government agencies, Native American tribes, municipal organizations, churches, schools, YMCA's, Boys & Girls clubs, and so on." Deadline: January 15, 2008
URL: http://www.generalmills.com/corporate/commitment/champions.aspx <http://www.generalmills.com/corporate/commitment/champions.aspx> 
Referred by: Foundation Center 

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Resources 

Month of the Young Adolescent
"The National Middle School Association is leading the celebration, once again, of the Month of the Young Adolescent. At their MOYA website, you'll find ideas about ways to celebrate, sample proclamations, and our favorite - the online publication Expressions from the Middle -- which features student artwork with middle grades themes. If you're looking for colorful MS illustrations for those otherwise boring PowerPoints, this is a great resource! There's also a link to send submissions for next year's MOYA student art competition."
URL: http://www.nmsa.org/moya/Overview/tabid/1172/Default.aspx <http://www.nmsa.org/moya/Overview/tabid/1172/Default.aspx> 
Referred by: MiddleWeb

Technology Help the Old-Fashioned Way
Common Craft "makes simple 'papercraft' tutorials designed to teach users about digital concepts.' Turns out that a papercraft tutorial is a video presentation in which a knowledgable person simply explains a digital tool or concept, using a whiteboard (the dumb kind) and a marker! If you're a visual learner, or just like the idea of 'simply,' explore some of the tutorials at the Common Craft website. The most recent is Social Bookmarking (on the homepage)." They also offer video tutorials on Wikis and RSS.
URL: http://www.commoncraft.com/show <http://www.commoncraft.com/show> 
Referred by: MiddleWeb

Five Reasons Why Evaluation Can Help Out-of-School Programs
"Child Trends released two new briefs in its series on practical evaluation methods for out-of-school time programs: 1) Why Conduct a Program Evaluation? Five Reasons Why Evaluation Can Help an Out-of-School Time Program... This brief defines program evaluation; addresses common concerns program managers and practitioners have regarding evaluation; and outlines five major reasons why conducting a program evaluation can benefit an out-of-school time program. 2) Five Steps for Selecting an Evaluator: A Guide for Out-of-School Time Practitioners... This brief describes different types of evaluations and outlines five steps for selecting an evaluator that can benefit a program in the long run. It also provides some tips on the cost of evaluations."
URL: http://www.childtrends.org/researchtoresults

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Activities 

Halloween Crafts and Activities
Just in time for Halloween and all the creative energy kids bring to this holiday, check out EnchantedLearning's Halloween K-3 Theme page. "These crafts projects are for preschool, kindergarten and elementary school children. The crafts use materials found around the house, like egg cartons, cardboard, paper, boxes, string, crayons, paint, glue, etc."
URL: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/halloween/ <http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/halloween/> 

Video Postcards to PBS
Via the popular Arthur and Buster characters, PBS invites kids to produce and send in original video clips. "Hey! Buster and Arthur here. Would you like to see yourself on TV or the Web? Well, here's your chance to send us YOUR video postcard. Arthur and I want to learn about your world. What's it like to be you?... We want one-minute videos that you film and edit. Your movie can be about anything you'd like to share! Maybe it's your family, your friends, your hobby, your pet, or your neighborhood. Maybe it's a one-minute mystery or comedy, or an animation. Whatever it is, we'll choose some of your postcards to appear on the Arthur TV show! Others will be shown on this Web site."
URL: http://pbskids.org/buster/pfy/index.html <http://pbskids.org/buster/pfy/index.html> 

We welcome your feedback!

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YouthLearn
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This newsletter is produced by the YouthLearn Initiative at EDC especially for
members of the YouthLearn discussion group. Every two weeks, the newsletter is
compiled from the entries in the YouthLearn News Blog <http://news.youthlearn.org/> , including summaries
from various sources that YouthLearn staff periodically review.

Past newsletters are archived at http://www.youthlearn.org/resources/newsletter/index.html <http://www.youthlearn.org/resources/newsletter/index.html> . 

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