Inspirational and good news.
I LOVE CLOUDS!
They are quite amazing and very often overlooked because we just see them day by day. And I looked into clouds and found there is something called the Cloud Appreciation Society and they have a great website full of amazing images of clouds, cloud art, cloud poetry and memorabilia!
Oct. 24th is United Nations Day, and to celebrate LibriVox collected the UN Declaration of Human Rights in 21 Languages. You can download audio files of LibriVox volunteers reading the declaration at LibriVox.
“The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was ratified in 1948 by the United Nations General Assembly. It defines the fundamental rights of individuals, and exhorts all governments to protect these rights. The UN has translated the document into over three hundred languages and dialects. This audiobook includes readings in 21 languages, by LibriVox volunteers.”
The United Nations wants people around the world to remember that we are all humans and that we should all get along. Today many schools will celebrate the diversity of human culture.
In Costa Rica, UN day is a holiday, awesome!
If research is to be believed, your kids may start coming home with less homework. For younger students, a few schools are reducing the number of repetitive exercises given, and replacing them with assignments designed to engage the mind.Â
Years of research supports the idea that there is no link between grades and the amount of homework assigned. In a study covering 50 countries, students with the highest grades (such as Japan and Denmark) did very little homework, compared to children with the lowest grades (such as Greece and Iran), who did lots of homework. Due to various research reports, some teachers and parents now see no need to assign a lot of afterschool work in the early and middle grades.Â
Harris Cooper, one of the leading researchers on homework in the United States, firmly believes in extra schoolwork. “Kids at all grade levels are going to benefit from practice,” he states. “…If it’s practice that gets you to Carnegie Hall, homework’s going to help.”
However, he acknowledges that too much does not mean better grades. His rule of thumb: children shouldn’t do more than 10 minutes of homework for each grade.  For example, a Grade 2 student should have only 20 minutes of homework; a Grade 7 student, 1 hour and 10 minutes.
At Vernon Barford Junior High in Edmonton, teacher Judy Hoeksema now assigns half the work she did last year. “We’ve all been under this illusion that lots of homework creates good study habits for the future,†the math teacher of 26 years says. “Now, we’ve realized it isn’t making much difference.â€
As a bonus for scaling back homework, many families are seeing  increased quality time for children and parents , less household stress, and less physical stress on their kids due to less books being carried.
In Oslo there is a show on at the natural science museum that looks at homosexual behaviour in animals. Families and single people alike are enjoying the exhibit!
“But there has been strong interest in an aspect of animal behaviour the museum says is quite common.
It says homosexuality has been observed among 1,500 species, and that in 500 of those it is well documented.
The exhibition – entitled Against Nature? – includes photographs of one male giraffe mounting another, of apes stimulating others of the same sex, and two aroused male right whales rubbing against each other.”
They say, “Everyone who visits Hawaii wants to live there.” A good reason to move: free access for residents to Hanauma Bay, a blue jewel in the eye of every snorkeler and scuba diver.
Located in Oahu, near Waikiki, Hanauma Bay was declared a protected marine life conservation area and underwater park in 1967. The bay floor is actually the crater of an ancient volcano that flooded when the exterior wall collapsed and the ocean rushed in. Because of the physical makeup, the water is almost always calm — except for the kids (and adults) who scream excitedly when coming upon sealife.  Visitors are almost never disappointed, being able to swim amongst fish, some the size of their heads!
All first-time visitors watch a video before heading to the beach. The presentation highlights a few conservation points, such as:
The number of daily visitors is limited, in order to preserve this natural sea park. So, people are encouraged to arrive early (it’s open by 7a.m.). The educational site for Hanuama bay can be found here.