Are you ready to break out of the lesson-and-worksheet rut? Use The EduProtocol Field Guide to create engaging and effective instruction, build culture, and deliver content to K-12 students in a supportive, creative environment.
Astrophysicist and author Mario Livio investigates perhaps the most human of all our characteristics—curiosity—in this “lively, expert, and definitely not dumbed-down account” (Kirkus Reviews) as he explores our innate desire to know why. Experiments demonstrate that people are more distracted when they overhear a phone conversation—where they can know only one side of the dialogue—than when they overhear two people talking and know both sides. Why does half a conversation make us more curious than a whole conversation? “Have you ever wondered why we wonder why? Mario Livio has, and he takes you on a fascinating quest to understand the origin and mechanisms of our curiosity. I thoroughly recommend it.” (Adam Riess, Nobel Prize Winner in Physics, 2011). Curiosity is not only at the heart of mystery and suspense novels, it is also essential to other creative endeavors, from painting to sculpture to music. It is the principal driver of basic scientific research. Even so, there is still no definitive scientific consensus about why we humans are so curious, or about the mechanisms in our brain that are responsible for curiosity. In the ever-fascinating Why? Livio interviewed scientists in several fields to explore the nature of curiosity. He examined the lives of two of history’s most curious geniuses, Leonardo da Vinci and Richard Feynman. He also talked to people with boundless curiosity: a superstar rock guitarist who is also an astrophysicist; an astronaut with degrees in computer science, biology, literature, and medicine. What drives these people to be curious about so many subjects? An astrophysicist who has written about mathematics, biology, and now psychology and neuroscience, Livio has firsthand knowledge of his subject which he explores in a lucid, entertaining way that will captivate anyone who is curious about curiosity.
WINNER OF THE PORCHLIGHT BUSINESS BOOK AWARD • “A delightful, compelling book that offers a dazzling array of practical, thoughtful exercises designed to spark creativity, help solve problems, foster connection, and make our lives better.”—Gretchen Rubin, New York Times bestselling author and host of the Happier podcast In an era of ambiguous, messy problems—as well as extraordinary opportunities for positive change—it’s vital to have both an inquisitive mind and the ability to act with intention. Creative Acts for Curious People is filled with ways to build those skills with resilience, care, and confidence. At Stanford University’s world-renowned Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, aka “the d.school,” students and faculty, experts and seekers bring together diverse perspectives to tackle ambitious projects; this book contains the experiences designed to help them do it. A provocative and highly visual companion, it’s a definitive resource for people who aim to draw on their curiosity and creativity in the face of uncertainty. Teeming with ideas about discovery, learning, and leading the way through unknown creative territory, Creative Acts for Curious People includes memorable stories and more than eighty innovative exercises. Curated by executive director Sarah Stein Greenberg, after being honed in the classrooms of the d.school, these exercises originated in some of the world’s most inventive and unconventional minds, including those of d.school and IDEO founder David M. Kelley, ReadyMade magazine founder Grace Hawthorne, innovative choreographer Aleta Hayes, Google chief innovation evangelist Frederik G. Pferdt, and many more. To bring fresh approaches to any challenge–world changing or close to home–you can draw on exercises such as Expert Eyes to hone observation skills, How to Talk to Strangers to foster understanding, and Designing Tools for Teams to build creative leadership. The activities are at once lighthearted, surprising, tough, and impactful–and reveal how the hidden dynamics of design can drive more vibrant ways of making, feeling, exploring, experimenting, and collaborating at work and in life. This book will help you develop the behaviors and deepen the mindsets that can turn your curiosity into ideas, and your ideas into action.
Incredible Paleo Meals Don’t Have to Be a Labor of Love Amanda Torres, author of Latin American Paleo Cooking and founder of The Curious Coconut, simplifies the Paleo diet with these quick and delicious gluten- and dairy-free recipes. This mouthwatering collection will help you conquer Paleo cooking any day of the week. Her recipes focus on what Paleo should be—a variety of colorful vegetables and fresh meats. No finicky or extravagant Paleo-ified replacement meals, no hard-to-find specialty ingredients, no special occasion treat recipes—just the backbone of a healthy, wholesome, nutrient-dense diet. This book teaches you how to cook a ton of commonly available vegetables in a way that you and your family will actually want to eat (and ask for seconds). Amanda’s cooking isn’t “good for being Paleo,” it’s good food, period. Helpful charts also pair side dishes with mains that have similar cooking times and preparation methods, so you can batch cook and make a whole meal, all at once, using only your stove—no other appliances needed. Making healthy, tasty meals just got a whole lot easier (and faster) thanks to this much-needed guide to simple and vibrant Paleo cooking.
George celebrates Ramadan with his friend Kareem. “A groundbreaking new book that also tries to span the cultural chasm for a new generation.” —The New Yorker George helps Kareem with his first fast and joins in the evening celebration of tasting treats and enjoying a special meal. Then George helps make gift baskets to donate to the needy, and watches for the crescent moon with the man in the yellow hat. Finally, George joins in the Eid festivities to mark the end of his very first Ramadan. This playful book makes a great holiday gift for all fans of Curious George—those who celebrate Ramadan, and those who are learning about it for the first time. “To help overcome Islamophobia and foster mutual respect, acceptance and understanding, teachers, parents, community leaders and librarians can use books like these to educate children about Muslims while enhancing religious literacy.” —The Huffington Post “I hope [this book] makes it into the hands of Muslim children who need it and any child curious about Ramadan and Islam. Parents, this is how we teach love.” —Read It Real Good
A fun yet provocative look at the importance of staying curious in an increasingly indifferent world Everyone is born curious. But only some retain the habits of exploring, learning, and discovering as they grow older. Those who do so tend to be smarter, more creative, and more successful. But at the very moment when the rewards of curiosity have never been higher, it is misunderstood and undervalued, and increasingly monopolized by the cognitive elite. A "curiosity divide" is opening up. In Curious, Ian Leslie makes a passionate case for the cultivation of our "desire to know." Drawing on fascinating research from psychology, economics, education, and business, Leslie looks at what feeds curiosity and what starves it, and finds surprising answers. Curiosity is a mental muscle that atrophies without regular exercise and a habit that parents, schools, and workplaces need to nurture. Filled with inspiring stories, case studies, and practical advice, Curious will change the way you think about your own mental life, and that of those around you.
This oversized paper-over-board concept book takes toddlers all over George’s world and theirs. Each page features a different concept: counting, shapes, opposites, emotions, family, jobs, homes, transportation and lots of new words! From morning to night, city to country, home to town and back again, little readers can follow George as they learn more about their own worlds. Just the right book for toddlers learning to talk to help build their vocabulary.
The inspiring story of Rex, a boy who is not only blind and autistic, but who also happens to be a musical savant. How can an 11-year old boy hear a Mozart fantasy for the first time and play it back note-for-note perfectly-but struggle to navigate the familiar surroundings of his own home? Cathleen Lewis says her son Rex's laugh of total abandon is the single most joyous sound anyone could hear, but his tortured aversion to touch and sound breaks her heart and makes her wonder what God could have had in mind. In this book she shares the mystery of Rex and the highs, lows, hopes, dreams, joy, sorrows, and faith she has journeyed through with him. Endorsements "This memoir documents a musical savant in a way we have not seen before, allowing us to reconsider the limits we place on people with disabilities. Highly recommended for all public libraries and academic libraries with autism and special needs collections." -- Library Journal, 11/25/2008 "Two of the most extraordinary and uplifting people I have ever known. Their story shows the amazingly moving struggle and success that proves love and faith can achieve miracles." -- Jane Seymour, actress, artist, author, and entrepreneur "The remarkable story of a mother's love and a child's indomitable spirit, told in a writer's style that riveted me to the page, is singularly the most important work ever written on the relationship between a parent and a child with disability. For me, as a person who happens to be blind, the experience of reading Rex was an eye-opener I will never forget. Bravo, Cathleen! Bravo, Rex. Your work and your lives will forever change the future of disability in America. -- Tom Sullivan, author of Adventures in Darkness and Together
Textbooks are symbols of centuries-old education. They're often outdated as soon as they hit students' desks. Acting "by the textbook" implies compliance and a lack of creativity. It's time to ditch those textbooks--and those textbook assumptions about learning In Ditch That Textbook, teacher and blogger Matt Miller encourages educators to throw out meaningless, pedestrian teaching and learning practices. He empowers them to evolve and improve on old, standard, teaching methods. Ditch That Textbook is a support system, toolbox, and manifesto to help educators free their teaching and revolutionize their classrooms.
These stories are written to help students focus on the use of language and structure where key aspects such as mood, characterization and setting are evoked in a short space of time. There are activities for exploring the stories at word, sentence and text level, with speaking and listening tasks.