Youthlearn News Archive 2005

The 2005-06 Kids In Need Teacher Grant applications will become available July 15. This year more than $105,000 is being offered in grants to certified K-12 teachers at any public, private, or parochial school in the U.S. The grants are from $100 to $500 for innovative classroom projects.

National sponsors of the program are Jo-Ann Stores, Inc. and Office Depot. Regional sponsors include Fred Meyer, Publix, and Price Less Drug Stores.

The website currently has the guidelines posted, which teachers can use to prepare to apply.

The National Association of Extension 4-H Agents (NAE4-HA) is pleased to announce the creation of an exciting new multidisciplinary applied research and practice on-line journal, Journal of Youth Development~ Bridging Research and Practice.  This journal will be focused on the development of school-aged youth through the transition to adulthood (ages 6-22).

By Madeleine Lim
"A youth video program can be a creative and powerful tool. In addition to technology and multimedia skills, programs encourage creative expression, teach youth to set achievable goals, create collaborative work environments, and build self-esteem. Read about ways to start your own youth video program.

A research institute in Pensacola, Fla., is taking concept-mapping software designed in part to preserve scientists' knowledge and is giving it to schools worldwide at no cost, as a tool to help children learn.

A free collection of online field trips and other web-based learning materials has been shown to boost reading levels and help improve test scores among middle-school students, according to the results of a scientifically based research study from Maryland Public Television (MPT).

Approximately 400 seventh and eighth graders from two Maryland public middle schools--one urban, one rural--participated in the study, which took place during the 2003-04 school year and was released in late April.

MENTOR/National Mentoring Partnership has just released a comprehensive tool kit that shows organizations How to Build a Successful Mentoring Program Using the Elements of Effective Practice. The new tool kit offers step-by-step instructions that programs can follow to implement and adhere to the four components of the Elements—Program Design and Planning, Program Management, Program Operations and Program Evaluation. It also contains a CD with more than 160 tools and templates that mentoring programs can customize to suit their individual program needs.

Whether you're familiar with these resources or not, they're good to keep in mind if you're involved in youth and/or child development programs.

Even in a nation where most every school has Internet access and computer use often starts by nursery school, teachers of technology see a warning message flashing.
For students in elementary and secondary schools, states have few developed standards or required courses in computer science — a field that goes beyond basic literacy to encompass hardware and software design, real-world applications and computers' effect on society.

Such lean coursework means that many students don't have the chance to study the science of computers until college, where a declining number are majoring in the s

Today's high-stakes tests are inadequate tools for measuring the kinds of skills students will need for success in the global, technology-driven workplace, according to a group of key business and education leaders.

After-school programs have become a central part of many school communities and programs throughout the country. They provide working parents with a safe place for their children to stay in those critical after-school hours, and they provide low-income students with access to programs and services their families may not otherwise be able to afford.