“Using new music written by OK Go, the video was conceived and directed by Al Jarnow, a pioneer stop-motion animator who made numerous classic educational and experimental short films in the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s for Sesame Street, Electric Company, 3-2-1 Contact, and other shows.

via swiss-miss via brain pickings

I bring the peat fire, wet blacktop, bodies of spiders curing in corners, rosemary, the grass wet in the morning.

I bring a wool cloth, a linen cloth.

In the dark part of the year we find a scratch of light where we can get it. The stars are brilliant. The snow when we have it shines. We are walking together in the darkness, in silence or talking, the sounds of birds and animals, the hanging boughs of yew with their bright red, translucent berries.”

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“For the dark part of the year, I bring you a calendar full of drawings from my travels this year. I bring you warm words, bunnies flying kites, robins & rosehips, the Belgian winter. I bring you my child-self, and early mornings in a kitchen an hour outside Ghent. I bring the young women working in warm, bright cafés at winter’s early nightfall. I bring you something to read with your tea or coffee, on the bus or walking to work (careful, there!).”

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WORDS & ILLUSTRATIONS by the warm & oh so creative EIREANN LORSUNG

DESIGN FOR CHANGE “is the largest global movement designed to give children an opportunity to express their own ideas for a better world and put them into action.

Children and adults learn through the Design for Change Challenge that “I Can” are the two most powerful words a person can believe. Children who have discovered this are changing their world.

This year, Design for Change reaches 33 countries and over 300,000 schools inspiring hundreds of thousands of children, their teachers and parents, to celebrate the fact change is possible and that they can lead that change!

The challenge asks students to do four very simple things : Feel, Imagine, Do and Share. Children are dreaming up and leading brilliant ideas all over the world, from challenging age-old superstitions in rural communities, to earning their own money to finance school computers to solving the problem of heavy school bags – children are proving that they have what it takes to be able to ‘design’ a future that is desired.”

Kiran Bir Sethi. Founder. Design For Change School Challenge

Happy Summer Everyone! Thank you for providing me with inspiration, sharing your knowledge, broadening the world of education online – to those of you who contribute on a daily basis, a BIG high FIVE, full of respect – and for all that you give to the children in your life.

Jolayne

Working for a school which is owned by an apparel company means that we have an ample supply of fabrics, buttons and ribbons, hence my weekly check in’s with the workroom’s blog make something. Houses inspires me!

Agne’s Houses. Machine Paper Foundation Piecing : Houses. the workroom.Toronto, ON.May 2011

“At the INK Conference, Arvind Gupta shares simple yet stunning plans for turning trash into seriously entertaining, well-designed toys that kids can build themselves — while learning basic principles of science and design.”

Oh my… just discovered these TUTORIALS!

READ The Four Secrets of Playtime That Foster Creative Kids

The Alphabet Song by The LMNOPs from The LMNOPs on Vimeo.

“The mission of The LMNOPs is creating music that’s fun for kids and not annoying to their parents. The Alphabet Song is the first on the LMNOPs debut album. Help support the album at thelmnops.com. The LMNOPs are Zach Reasoner, Todd Gummerman and Laura Gummerman”

Human Development Report 2010 —20th Anniversary Edition
The Real Wealth of Nations: Pathways to Human Development
(Full report PDF available HERE)

The first Human Development Report in 1990 opened with the simply stated premise that has guided all subsequent Reports: “People are the real wealth of a nation.” By backing up this assertion with an abundance of empirical data and a new way of thinking about and measuring development, the Human Development Report has had a profound impact on development policies around the world.

This 20th anniversary edition features introductory reflections by the Nobel Prize–winning economist Amartya Sen, who worked with series founder Mahbub ul Haq on the conception of the first Human Development Report and contributed to and inspired many successive volumes.

The 2010 Report continues the tradition of pushing the frontiers of development thinking. For the first time since 1990, the Report looks back rigorously at the past several decades and identifies often surprising trends and patterns with important lessons for the future. These varied pathways to human development show that there is no single formula for sustainable progress—and that impressive long-term gains can and have been achieved even without consistent economic growth.

Looking beyond 2010, this Report surveys critical aspects of human development, from political freedoms and empowerment to sustainability and human security, and outlines a broader agenda for research and policies to respond to these challenges.

As Amartya Sen writes: “Twenty years after the appearance of the first Human Development Report, there is much to celebrate in what has been achieved. But we also have to be alive to ways of improving the assessment of old adversities and of recognizing—and responding to—new threats that endanger human well-being and freedom.“

The 20th anniversary edition is a response to that human development imperative.”

(Canada 8th in ‘Quality of Life” ranking)

Issue 19 “examines the use of outside space across the EU and considers the benefits that unstructured play and the natural environment offer to young children and the implications for pedagogical approaches and support.

Includes articles on how to develop outdoor spaces and encourage more extensive use of the natural environment in risk averse societies and examines the positive influences on children’s health and wellbeing.”

Contents include:

*Comparative table of outdoor space standards and services for young children in selected European countries *Encouraging more outdoor physical activity – Bødo, Norway *Outside the school: A world full of possibilities – Catalonia *Let’s play in Brussels! *Outdoor play at the core of health promotion – Sweden *Promoting traditional outdoor games for the well-being of children – Romania *Introducing children to outdoor living- Denmark *Pedagogy: The art of handling risks, not avoiding them – Germany *If the whole world could see me, they would see that I was smiling – Croatia *Where was your favourite place to play as a child? – England *Gender differences in playgrounds – Northwest Greece *Street life – Rome, Italy *Playing outdoors in natural spaces – Scotland & Italy.

Click here to buy!