Lifelong Kindergarten: how to learn like a kid, by the co-creator of Scratch
Mitchel Resnick is one of the most humane, accomplished and prolific creators of educational technology in the world, one of the co-creators of Logo and Lego Mindstorms, and founder the MIT Media Lab's Lifelong Kindergarten group, where the open source, kid-friendly, open-ended Scratch software development tool was born; in a new book (also called "Lifelong Kindergarten: Cultivating Creativity through Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play") Resnick analyzes the extraordinary successes that have emerged from his kid-centered view of learning with technology, sketching out a future in which kids program their classroom computers, not the other way around.
Scratch predates the widespread adoption of networks and computers that kids could freely use, but from the start it was designed to be a collaborative tool, taught through a network of "Computer Clubhouses" around the world where kids gathered to engage in open-ended technological play that involved solving mathematical problems, making art, imaginative play, building working programmable robots, and mentoring and tutoring each other.
After thirty years of this kind of wonderful hands-on experience, Resnick has distilled his approach and that of his mentors and peers (notably Seymour Papert) into four principles: "Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play." Resnick urges us to move past the debates over "screen time" and the default assumption that computers are a way to pour knowledge into our kids, focusing instead on creating open sandboxes with "low floors" (easy ways to get started), "high ceilings" (ways to chain together tools tools to make sophisticated projects), and "wide walls" (lots of paths to expertise to accommodate many learning styles).
Scratch is a project that evokes real passion from its users, who amaze their teachers and parents by throwing themselves into complex, multi-day projects that rope in peers and strangers from the Scratch network in a way that is both ambitious and intensely satisfying. Rather than learning subjects through an orderly progression from basics to advanced material, Scratchers pick up knowledge -- from algebra to animation -- as needed to slot them into their projects, in a way that panics curriculum designers but produces integrated understandings that go deeper and are more useful than any linear progression.
"Lifelong Kindergarten" -- filled with interviews with Scratchers, stories from Resnick's lab, and reports from his grad students' dissertations studying Scratch and its outcomes -- is a hopeful and irrefutable alternative to the current mania for standardized curriculum, flashcards, standardized testing, and "accountability" systems that substitute rote learning and measurement for real passion and engagement.
Lifelong Kindergarten: Cultivating Creativity through Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play [Mitchel Resnick/MIT Press]
Dystopian masterpieces: The Strugatski brothers' "Snail On The Slope"
An appropriate book for this time, Soviet-era dystopian fiction grandmasters Boris and Arkady Strugatski considered Snail On The Slope “the most perfect and the most valuable of their works.” Snail on The Slope is comprised of two separate storylines, taking place in and on the edge of The Forest. Together they paint a vivid picture […]
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How To Train Your Robot, a free kids book by an engineer and his 10-year-old daughter
My buddy Ken Goldberg, a UC Berkeley professor of robotics, his 10-year-old daughter Blooma, and science communicator Ashley Chase wrote a delightful children’s book called How to Train Your Robot! Illustrated by Dave Clegg, the story, about a fourth grade robotics club, is a fun and understandable introduction to how deep learning can help robots […]
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An oral history of The Office
Andy Greene literally wrote the book on The Office. His book The Office: The Untold Story of the Greatest Sitcom of the 2000s: An Oral History is released today! Vulture has an excerpt from the book telling the behind-the-scenes story of “Stress Relief,” the two-part “fire drill” episode. Here’s a snip: Ben Silverman [producer]: The […]
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Do double the good with eco-friendly produce bags from a brand that gives back
Whether you’re living in a city that has already taken measures to reduce plastic bag use, the small silver lining of the pandemic has inspired you to make changes, or you’ve already started living a greener lifestyle, reusable produce bags are a great addition to your shopping routine. And if you’re going to invest in […]
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Are you cut out to be a COVID-19 stay-at-home teacher for your kids? Maybe these DIY projects can help.
Dealing with all the COVID-19 fallout is one of the new realities of our ever-changing world — and that isn’t likely going away anytime soon. It’s also prompted a rash of existential questions for parents. Questions like how do I protect my kids? Or how do I soothe their fears? And there’s also one of […]
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Transform your home office with this dual-use aquaponic or hydroponic water garden that's on sale
If you’re already incredibly bored in your social distancing situation, now is a great time to pick up a hobby. Actually, now’s a great time to pick up multiple hobbies, and nothing will make that easier (or nicer to look at) than this very cool AquaSprouts® Fountain: Aquaponics Water Garden. What the heck is an […]
