Media Monday: The First Lady’s Diary

First Lady Michelle Obama hugs a student during a tour of the WISE Summit Learning Labs during the 2015 World Innovation Summit for Education at the Qatar National Convention Centre in Doha, Qatar, Nov. 4, 2015. (Official White House Photo by Amanda Lucidon)

“You have no idea how powerful your voice can be if you choose to use it.”

On this Media Monday I’d like to recommend a terrific “diary” by First Lady Michelle Obama about her trip to Qatar and Jordan to visit schools and speak at a global summit on education.  All the posts are written for young people of middle and high school age.  

The diary may be of special interest to students right now because one of the schools Mrs. Obama visits in Jordan includes many children whose families are refugees from Syria.

The posts discuss girls’ education in particular, addressing the question of why as many as 62 million girls in the world are not in school.  In clear, direct language and many beautiful photos, Mrs. Obama explains some of the circumstances that hold girls back from reaching their full potential, including lack of money, violence, and cultural prejudices.

For those who might want to learn more, she also mentions a White House–supported program that allows teachers and researchers to be involved in supporting education for girls all over the world and lets kids and community groups be involved by raising money for Peace Corps schools that empower girls. The program is Let Girls Learn.

And for kids who are interested in where the First Lady is going next, they can follow her on Twitter @FLOTUS or on Instagram @MichelleObama.

Shelley Sperry
 

Media Monday: Crash Course

I’m a fairly recent convert to the wonders of YouTube as part of my regular media diet, but like many converts, I’m now an evangelist. For my own work, I take advantage of YouTube regularly to watch clips from nature and science documentaries, with the BBC and NOVA as the gold standards. But often, it’s just a 5- to 15-minute “explainer” young learners need, and YouTube has got ’em by the thousands. Today I’d like to point you toward a couple of channels that specialize in short science videos aimed specifically at kids.

The Crash Course Kids channel is full of clever, colorful, animated videos on science topics designed for elementary-school-age kids at about fifth-grade level. What is gravity? What’s the difference between weathering and erosion? What do plants need to grow? The answers are here, usually in 5-minute chunks that are easily added into a school day or study time at home.  Host Sabrina Cruz is terrific— enthusiastic, funny, and proud to call herself a nerd.

If Neil deGrasse Tyson is the reigning rock star of the astronomy world, Phil Plait is its Pied Piper. I would follow Phil anywhere. His Crash Course Astronomy series is information-packed and addictive. The format of a host who uses illustrations and animations to explain a scientific concept is similar to that of the Crash Course Kids channel, but Phil’s explanations are designed for middle and high school students and adults, with lessons usually 10–15-minutes long. He covers things like cyclical phenomena in the universe, how telescopes work, and everything you ever wanted to know about binary and multiple stars but were afraid to ask.

Watch and listen to Sabrina and Phil, respectively, explaining different kinds of stars:
 

The Crash Course empire on YouTube was started by YA novelist John Green and his environmental scientist/musician brother Hank. It now includes courses in history, psychology, literature, economics, and any number of other topics, so if you like the science channels above, you may want to check out more. Happy watching!

Shelley Sperry
 

Media Monday: Slate’s podcast on getting into college

Envelope by iStock. Photo illustration by Holly Allen.

This is the first entry in our new Media Monday series, in which contributor Shelley Sperry briefly reviews noteworthy media coverage of education issues and other resources of interest to our readers. Shelley is a writer, editor, and researcher based in Alexandria, Virginia, who was recently spotted in Yellowstone National Park working on assignment for National Geographic.
 

Because it’s that time of year, when many high school students are thinking about college, I want to alert you to a new podcast designed to help students and their parents navigate common questions.

Getting In is a podcast from Slate magazine that follows a diverse group of high schoolers through the process of applying to colleges. The host, Julie Lythcott-Haims, is a former Stanford University dean, and she brings in terrific, plain-talking experts to answer listener questions.  The episodes are short (around 15 minutes), but packed with real-life drama, the voices of students themselves, and practical advice on topics ranging from the value of extracurricular activities to “easy As vs. hard Bs” and writing the dreaded college essay.

Check it out via your favorite podcast app or on the home page here.