A day that I thought would never come finally arrived in the first half of 2013. I bought an eReader. Without disclosing the brand directly, let me just say that it comes from a huge online retailer of books (and just about everything else under the sun). And while it is more than just an…
Technology
Gotta Watch It!
I was pondering what to write about for today’s blog and looked for inspiration by searching the Internet for “historic events on December 18.” Amid a wealth of frankly depressing options, I found this little gem. On this date in 1966, Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! aired for the first time on CBS….
How Fast Is the Future Arriving?
Mix tapes. They were the best. I used to spend hours and hours putting together what I consider to be some of the world’s best music mixes ever. Ever. Without dispute. I was to the mix tape what a modern deejay like Deadmau5 is to electronic dance music. The advent of the recordable CD (or…
More on Teachers, Students, and Technology
Sometime back in the 16th century, a Saxon nobleman was heard to declare, “The future is digital!” A few years later, in 2011, The Mailbox responded with our first mobile app, Holidays and Seasonal Celebrations. In 2012, still hearing the clarion call of that prescient aristocrat, we added Kids in the Kitchen and Seasonal Songs….
Everything Old Is New Again?
I read this morning that the last typewriter manufacturer is closing its doors. Then I read that the last typewriter manufacturers are, in fact, still open. The one reported factory closure is in India, so there are no more Indian typewriter manufacturers. But they still build them in China, Japan, and Indonesia. Erroneous reports of…
Girls and Boys and Math and Science
Stepping into Mrs. G.’s classroom was like stepping into another dimension for me. By merely walking through our adjoining closet, I could appear at the front of her room and quickly get questions answered or share important news. Mrs. G. taught math. I taught language arts. Our classrooms connected. Our subject matter? Not so much….
A Can of Worms: Education Reform and Technology
Despite the risk of opening a can of worms in our third post at the Upper Grades Exchange, I am going to talk about two things. Here, there, and everywhere in education circles, two refrains are heard over and over again: “Reform is a must” and “It’s technology or bust.” Recently over at our sister blog, Be…