Kidsburgh : Buzz

Why is Pittsburgh called the "EdTech Hive" in this piece in Education Week? For dozens of reasons, from the recent launch of Hive Pittsburgh to the new TechShop and very popular MakeShop (at the Children's Museum).

"Pittsburgh educators, innovators and organizations have come together to form the Kids+Creativity Network--more than 100 organizations, including public school districts, non-profit groups, libraries, museums, afterschool programs and neighborhood community centers--which is committed to remaking learning in the greater Pittsburgh area."

More than a long and impressive list, the many and varied organizations and activieis are fast becoming a hub that's the envy of other cities.

Read the full piece here.

"Clearly, Pittsburgh is no stranger to revolutions," writes Leah Lizarondo Shannon. "And so it is only appropriate that Pittsburgh be the first to take on Jamie Oliver’s challenge to create a city-wide Food Revolution. At the One Young World Summit in Pittsburgh on October 2012, seven thought leaders, from different sectors raised their hands and accepted the charge.
While Huntington, WV and Los Angeles, CA were the first cities to experience such a revolution, Pittsburgh, PA is the first city to essentially, lead itself into it.

The revolutionaries are approaching change from different fronts, covering the city in initiatives that range from top-down to totally grassroots. Here are the magnificent seven:..."

Read the full article here.

How much fun is Kidsburgh for kids?

Read the story here.

"As America reeled from the news of the shootings at Sandy Hook, parents looked for a way to explain the unexplainable to their children. But they also needed an explanation for themselves — someone to help process the magnitude of what it means to live in a world where 20 children can be gunned down amid storybooks and crayons.

That person was — and will always be — Fred Rogers, known to children everywhere as Mister Rogers. After 170 Million Americans for Public Broadcasting shared the children’s television host’s quote about helpers, along with an image of a tiny boy cradling Mister Rogers’ face in his hands, each looking lovingly into each other’s eyes, it began to go viral on Facebook. As of this writing, it has been “liked” more than 48,000 times, and shared more than 88,000 times. It has more than 1,500 comments, many of which echo this sentiment, expressed by Dianne Quigley: “WE can be the helpers...by creating a fabric of love, generosity, understanding and compassion. Smile and help someone today.”

Read the full Washington Post story here.

"Pittsburgh is a really cool city, unlike any I’ve ever been in before," writes the author who brought her family to town for a three day visit." Read what she has to say about everything from our bridges, which her kids deemed very cool, to the clean and well-lit downtown and the thriving street scene.

Read the full story here.

"The Greater Pittsburgh Region is a 21st century model of a creative, collaborative, and connected community committed to creating remarkable learning experiences for children and youth that enhance achievement in science, technology, and the arts.

Researchers, university labs, cultural institutions, and child-serving agencies are working across disciplines to forge dynamic partnerships with educators and administrators of public, private, charter, and virtual school systems, civic leaders, and the burgeoning entrepreneurial private sector focused on technology and media.

With millions of dollars invested, thousands of children and youth engaged, hundreds of dedicated practitioners active in dozens of organizations, and a thriving ecosystem to support and sustain this work, Pittsburgh's approach has yielded tangible results for children, youth, and the community at large..."

Read the full story here.

A group of 36 Pittsburgh high school students underwent journalism boot camp training to better report on numerous stories from the four day One Young World summit. See the Pop City story about Pittsburgh Youth Media here.

See all their stories here.

In honor of the United Nation's international Day of the Girl, the students of The Ellis School were asked, "What do you wish that adults would work for to make the world a better place for girls?"  See thee range of responses in this unscripted video then help share their message. What will you do to make the world a better place for girls and young women? 

Click here to view the video.

90. 5 WESA reports on this story:

"There’s an old notion that girls are not as good at math and science as boys. That thought still persists today even among teachers – according to a study by the University of Texas.  Girls and educators in the Pittsburgh region are working against that stereotype.

“Girls can do anything that guys can do, and maybe even better…especially science,” was the answer given by a group of girls at Carnegie Science Center’s Click! Camp for Girls, when asked if they thought boys were better at math and science."

Read the full story and listen here.

Once upon a time, two people met for coffee. From that one meeting sprang forth an entire movement based on Kids + Creativity, based in Pittsburgh. Read the quite amazing story and what this group has managed to accomplish so far.

Read the full story here.

In 2010, there were 31,386 homeless children in Pennsylvania, writes Ralph da Costa, president of the Institute for Children, Poverty and Homelessness. "To put this number in context, that is more than the entire University of Pittsburgh student body.

"Some of these homeless families are living in shelters. Many more are in motels, and doubled up, living two or more families in an overcrowded apartment. This instability would make it hard for anyone to learn.

"And though the nation is technically in recovery, the numbers of homeless children have risen. In Pennsylvania, there was a 46 percent increase in the number of children and youth experiencing homelessness from the 2008-09 school year to the 2009-10 school year.

The good news, he reports, is that in Pittsburgh and throughout Alleghany County, HCEF has inspired a coalition that includes U.S. Attorney David Hickton and many other passionate stakeholders. "Sadly, in most of the country, this community-wide buy-in has not yet happened."


Read the full story here.

Check out these great videos from middle school and high school students and vote for your favorites!

Voting goes through May 15th. Then join the fun at the Heinz History Center at 2:00 on May 20 for the first ever "Take a Shot at Changing the World" Film Festival where the winners will be announced. Winning films will be screened, and the films of all attendees who RSVP by May 15th will be featured on the big screen. Get your free seat by e-mailing Rachel@steeltown.org

See videos here.

The questions have consumed educational researchers for years: how do children learn, and what are the best ways to teach them? Should the emphasis be on practicing basic skills, or on encouraging deep understanding and conceptual thinking, or both? 

“Considering there are many different kinds of knowledge we want our children to acquire, what are the best ways to get them there?” says Kenneth R. Koedinger, professor of human-computer interaction and psychology at Carnegie Mellon University.  “We are looking to develop concepts about what is the right way to teach and to learn.”

Scientists at the Pittsburgh Science of Learning Center, a collaboration between Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh, and its research facility, LearnLab, are seeking these answers through a series of studies using classrooms in more than 50 schools and colleges in the Pittsburgh area and around the country.  


Read the full story here.

The Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children’s Media at Saint Vincent College today launched a unique website that provides high quality digital media resources for early learning teachers, family child care providers, and families of young children birth to age five, free of charge.

The Fred Rogers Center Early Learning Environment— “Ele”, pronounced “El-­-Lee”) for short—includes:

A library of more than 100 ebooks, digital games, videos, music, mobile apps, and other activities selected as quality resources that support learning and literacy development. Some activities help adults support children’s language and literacy skills; others are designed for use by adults with children.

An online community where teachers, families, and others can ask questions, and connect and share with others who care about issues affecting young children.

By signing up for a free Ele account, users can organize the site’s resources around their own needs and interests, and then share them by creating Play!Lists. All resources include research-­-based suggestions and information on how and why to use Ele’s activities, under the headings, “Talk About It” and “Why This Is Important.”

Visitors meet Ele, an avatar that serves as the site’s friendly “guide.” Activities are easily searchable by age, educational setting, and media type; each activity includes accompanying user tips.

See the site here.

When this vacation blogger came to Pittsburgh, she wondered why they called it Kidsburgh. After her family visit, which included the Aviary, Primanti's and the Science Center, she knew why.

Read the full story here.