Kids on TV: Good for Kids or Just Good TV?

I was flipping through Hulu Plus this morning and came across a new show: "MasterChef Junior." I'd seen some ads for it and I love "Top Chef" (not "MasterChef" or "Hell's Kitchen"--Ramsey, who is the judge on those as well as "MasterChef Junior" is way too mean for my taste), so I gave it a whirl. Much to my surprise, I actually liked it! It was entertaining, nice to see kids who can be creative and think critically, Ramsey was actually nice, and it was well produced. With a warm, fuzzy feeling inside, I turned off the TV and went about my morning.

And then I got to thinking (much to my chagrin!).

Regardless of whether these kiddos are actors or not (there is apparently some controversy over this right now), is being on shows like this one good for them? Yes, they're making money and making a name for themselves at that age, which our society values and respects, sure. But is it good for the kids? "MasterChef Junior" is by far the best kid-involved show I've seen--there's no yelling (yet), swearing (yet), or making kids feel like they're horrible people (yet). But what does it do to the kids psychologically? Is being on TV something we should encourage and push our kids to do?

When I was in college, my sister and I found the "Toddlers and Tiaras" YouTube channel. It was like watching a car crash--we couldn't look away! We spent an entire Saturday morning watching "Toddlers and Tiaras" episodes. In my opinion, some of what those kids go through could easily be classified as child abuse. But in our society, it's just thought of as "beauty is pain" and we want our little girls to learn to do whatever it takes to be "glamourous" and "beautiful." But those kids are being massively messed with! I don't know how long that show's been on now, but I would love to see a 10 year reunion of those girls and find out how being on "Toddlers and Tiaras" and being in homes like that has affected them. I'm willing to bet that they're not well-balanced young women with high self-esteem.

Another show that involves kids is "DanceMoms." I can't even make it through an episode of it because it's so horrible. The main mom is verbally abusive to the kids and the other moms. What is "DanceMoms" teaching our society? That it's okay for moms to treat their little girls like crap because they "want what's best" for their kids? And what does it teach our kids? That it's okay if mommy yells at you and makes you cry? That if you're not good enough it's better to not try instead of going on stage and doing your best even if you mess up?

We need to think as a collective society: parents, kids, acting studios, "talent" agents, etc: Would we like make a quick buck on a television show that gets good ratings regardless of the content? Or would we rather raise kids in healthy environments and maybe not make as much money because we're not exploiting them for high TV ratings?

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi

Pi for Kids!

Happy π Day!!! I am a huge fan of Pi! I'm pretty sure I still hold the record at my old high school for Most Memorized Digits of Pi: 279! :-) I had braces that year and for the colored bands on them that month, I assigned each number a color and then had the colors put on my braces in order. Let's just say I wasn't in the "cool club" during high school...I did get my extra credit, though...ha!

I have always loved numbers! For as long as I can remember I've loved patterns in numbers, putting numbers to music, and just messing around with mathematic symbols to make fun things. But kids don't fall in love with numbers very often (most of the time, through no fault of their own--but talking about the way our education system teaches math is for another day!). So I thought that I would take today, it being a math kind of day, to share an awesome way to teach kids about π.

When you verbally ask a kid what "pi(e)" is, they will almost certainly tell you it's a dessert, and then proceed to share their favorite kinds of pie with you. Here's the coolest way to introduce π as 3.14 to kids in a way they will remember.

Write "PI.E" with a pointy "P" and a period between the "I" and the "E". Ask your kids what they read: "pie" should be the answer along with a lot of OCD kids saying that you wrote your "P" wrong and put the period in the wrong place. Be patient with those kids. I was one of those kids. :-)

Hold up a hand mirror to the right of "PIE." Suddenly, "PI.E" becomes "3.14"! Amazement should ensue. 

Do NOT write "PIE" with a rounded "P" or you will get "3.19" which defeats the purpose. Your students will remember what they see first, so if the first thing they associate with "pi(e)" is 3.19, they will struggle with changing that to 3.14.

If you're teaching an entire class this concept and can't get hand mirrors for all your kids, either trade off with the hand mirrors you have or bring in a big mirror and you can do this on the whiteboard or Smartboard and everyone can see! In my experience, kids remember best if they do it themselves, so individual mirrors would definitely be ideal.

Keep in mind that this does not teach your kids that 3.14 is symbolized by "π" or even that 3.14 is "pi" and not "pie." It teaches them aurally that 3.14 is "pi(e)". Have this activity be the attention grabber of your lesson before you continue with the π and explaining irrational numbers and all that.

In one of the captions above, I mentioned that your kids remember what they see first. So that means that they've now associated "p-i-e" with 3.14. This is a good time to introduce the symbol "π".

This is a worksheet/coloring sheet I made where the kiddos can write what kinds of "pie"
the icons represent under each image.

Have your students color the π symbols as if the symbols were the previous kinds of pie. Let them be as creative as they want! If some kid does brown on the apple one and doesn't put a leaf on top, ask why first before giving them no points. They may have been doing a lattice-top apple pie or apple pie filling--neither of which are red or have leaves. If some kid leaves the chocolate one white and then tells you it's a white chocolate pie, don't tell them they have to color it brown. Ask them if there's anything that goes with white chocolate that they could draw inside the symbol (eg. raspberries). If you challenge your smart-alecs to take it a step further, they will become your super-stars. 99% of the time, the reason they're smart-alecs is that they're smart and they're bored. Ask me how I know. :-)

It's fun, it's not complicated for your kids to complete, it's easy for you to grade, and they will start associating the symbol π with "pie." You've shown them "pi" on their worksheet, but you haven't drawn attention to it.

After they're done coloring, put a π symbol on the board and ask them what symbol it is. "Pi(e)" will be the verbal answer. Then ask them how it's spelled. You're going to have one or two kids who actually read the title of the worksheet. Let them be thrilled that they know how to spell it! Write it on the board and ask your students, "Do you like p-i-e more or p-i more?"

Note: If some kid says "p-i" you've got a brown-noser. :-) Just kidding! Don't give them attention for it, though, if they do say, "p-i". The only reason they're saying that when they don't even have a firm grasp on what π is, is to get attention.

Back to the lesson: "Do you like p-i-e more or p-i more?"
"P-I-E!!!"
"So would which one would you want more of, p-i-e or p-i?"
"P-I-E!!!"
"Does p-i-e or p-i have more letters?"
"P-I-E!!!"
"So how do you spell this symbol?" Point to symbol on board.
"P-I!!!"
"How do you spell it?"
"P-I!!!"
"How is this symbol spelled?"
"P-I!!!"

It works out pretty well. Now, if you're introducing π to your class, you've almost certainly introduced the "approximately equals" sign: ≈. So at this point, go ahead and write, "π ≈ " on the board. Ask the class if they remember (from the mirror activity) what number should go there. This is a stretch because your kids have not seen this setup. You should have a couple of kids who remember, though! 

At this point, you can leave it at that and eat your pie (if this is a young class and you're simply celebrating Pi Day), or you can eat your pie while you go on to explain irrational numbers, circumference, or anything else you're planning on talking about that lesson. 

Don't forget to have your pi digit recitation! In elementary school it's very typical for kids to memorize 50 digits for extra credit. Make sure you give your kids a paper of the first 1000 or so digits at least a week before so they know about it and can prepare. And give every kid that memorizes the amount of digits you've set as the minimum extra credit, not just the kid who memorizes the most digits. In high school, it's not typical for kids to memorize any, because by that point in their lives, they have "cooler" things to do. Still, if you make it a competition at the middle and high school levels, you'll get a few bites. Make a trophy, keep tabs on who is the reigning champion of π, do anything you can to make it a thing.

I hope this has helped and gives you all some cool ideas! Do spinoffs, use my stuff, make it better! Make your goal to help kids have fun with numbers! Happy Pi Day! :-)

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi

Are Public Schools Pushing Our Little Kids Too Much?

I hung out with a few kids a couple weeks ago and was surprised that a four-year-old didn't know all her letters. This morning I was talking about this kid with my mom, who is a preschool teacher at the University of Louisville's preschool, as well as a reading education specialist. She said that kindergarten is when kids really need to start learning their letters and possibly start learning to read. I looked it up after we got done talking, and on WebMD, it says that ages 6-10 is when kids should start reading. 

My mom told me, however, that their school is getting a lot of pressure to teach more reading and pre-reading techniques because the state is redoing the kindergarten screening procedure. There is now concern that kids are going to start being turned away from kindergarten classes if they don't know the alphabet or know how to read before they are screened for kindergarten. Now, if a kid's brain isn't ready to learn the alphabet, the kid isn't going to learn it. What is it going to do to kids if they are put in remedial groups starting in kindergarten? This is going to completely kill their self-esteem. All kids learn at their own rate. If the official age to learn to read is 6-10, then that means that kids should be able to read by the end of third grade. Third grade. Not kindergarten, not first grade, not before kindergarten!

My sister didn't start reading until first grade. My parents knew that she would be put in Title 1 and dubbed a "slow kid." So, both my sister and I were home schooled for a couple years. My parents held me out because they didn't think it would be good for me to be in public school and my sister to be home schooled; my sister might develop an inferiority complex if that were the case. Mom taught us at home, and it was great for both of us. My sister learned how to read close to the end of her first grade year, and the next year we were both put in public school. She was always within the top 5% of her class for the next 10 years of her public education!

My sister (left) and me playing when we were kids.

If my sister had been put in public school and forced to learn to read before she was ready,  she never would have learned it well at all. She would have been put in Title 1 and always been around kids who weren't even close to her intelligence level. She never would have been integrated in reading class and once she "learned" that she was "slow," there is no way of telling if that mentality and that learned behavior of not understanding concepts would have spilled over into other subjects.

Let your kids play. If they start picking letters out when they're 18 months old, great. If they don't, it's okay. Kids are supposed to play when they're young. The brain at the preschool age is working on learning social behaviors and how to interact with other people. If you are inundating little kids with stuff their brain isn't capable of learning, they won't learn the way they're hardwired to learn. Let them go play. Playing is the whole point of being a little kid, and it really seems like we are trying so hard to make them "smart" that we're not letting them be kids. 

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi