Speakaboos Blog » 2009 » March

Guest Blogger/Intern Darwin – Aliens at the Circus

Andrew — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 21:14:12 +0000

The first time I went to the circus I was about 5 years old. I saw all these amazing people doing all these cool things that, in some way, scared me because I had never seen them before. Because their faces were painted and they were dressed up kind of funny, I thought they were aliens–since at that age that was the only explanation I had of why they could do all this amazing stuff like jumping from one rope to another while someone was holding their hands. I told my mom and dad that I wanted to leave because I got a “little” scared. They made me stay until the end of the show. One of the people who worked at the circus was a friend of my dad so at the end of the show we went to see him. I hid behind my mom’s back. My dad’s friend, Jeraldo, grabbed me and put me on his shoulders. At that time I had lost my fear because I realized that he was a person just like me or anyone else.Darwin is Speakaboos’ high school intern. Check back next Tuesday for his next entry!

RECALL – Maytag and other refrigerators with fire hazard

Andrew — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 11:39:32 +0000

Maytag is recalling 1.6 million refrigerator/freezer units due to an electrical problem that may cause overheating and fire. The refrigerators were sold between January 2001 and January 2004, under the brands Maytag, Jenn-Air, Amana, Admiral, Magic Chef, Performa by Maytag, and Crosley.Please check your refrigerator and see if the serial number matches the ones listed in this recall notice: Maytag recallThe link includes information on how to get a free in-home repair if your refrigerator is affected.

Guest Blogger/Intern Darwin – Introduction

Andrew — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 19:57:01 +0000

Meet Darwin, Speakaboos’ high school intern. Darwin is from the Dominican Republic, and is a particularly ambitious 11th grader.Darwin’s school, the International High School at Lafayette in Brooklyn, encourages its students to reach out to different activities outside of the classroom, and requires all students to take on an internship for 12 weeks during 11th grade.So far Darwin has been a big help around the office, and as a part of his internship tasks, we’ve asked him to contribute to our blog so that our users can get a taste of his unique perspective. Here’s what he has to say:Lives of Teenagers – by DarwinMany adults think that they are the only ones who have issues in their lives. My name is Darwin, I’m sixteen years old and I’m a high school student. Sometimes I wonder why adults think that only their lives are tough. If you are an adult, you should know that we also have our own problems. Let me tell you my story.Every Monday and Wednesday I have to wake up at 6am so I will have time to take a shower, eat breakfast and arrive to school just in time.Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays I have to wake up at 5:30am in order to go to College Now. College Now is program inside and outside school, which provides me with college credits without having to pay for the classes given. Teachers give us the same stuff that they would give to a college student. One of the classes that I am involved in is sociology, which is a pretty interesting subject that helps me understand more how society works.Because I want as much college credit as I can before I get to college, I’m also involved in another College Now class in Kingsborough Community College (KCC) called BEH70. This class is kind of similar to the other class that I am studying except that in this class I am suppose to investigate any topic I want and at the end we will put it in a science competition. This class is offered every Thursday from 2:40pm- 7:20pm. The BEH70 course lasts until my senior year and the sociology one will end around June. Hopefully, in total, I will receive 11 college credits at the end of these classes. If I decide to drop out of the classes, I won’t receive any credits at all, no matter how much work and effort I put in the classes.Because I am in 11th grade, my school requires all of us students to start going to internships. Right now I am working for Speakaboos, which is one of the best internship sites someone could ever have. At the end of every week we are expected to have worked 12 hours. At the end of the school year we are expected to have a worked 144 hours.When I have homework from both College Now courses and my high school it’s a nightmare for me, the only problem is that I am awake! I remember the first time I stayed up until 4am to complete all my homework–I had to wake up at 5:30am.And to think that many adults think that they are the only ones with busy lives.Check back next Tuesday for more from Darwin

Video: Six-year old demonstrates amazing intelligence

Andrew — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 20:34:23 +0000

As dubious as it is to say that a test can measure “intelligence,” nobody can argue with the fact that six-year old Pranav Veera of Ohio is one smart kid. He has a photographic memory and an IQ of 176, 16 points higher than Albert Einstein. Watch as he demonstrates how he can determine the day of the week of any date in his head, and his ability to recite tons of information from memory.From Cincinnati.com:

Huffington Post calls Speakaboos”creepy”

Andrew — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 14:42:39 +0000

Ok, well, they didn’t call the site creepy, just Crispin Glover’s reading. We happen to love Mr. Glover’s unique interpretations of “Little Miss Muffet” and “Jack and Jill,” and hope that parents out there get a kick out of them too, but we were a bit miffed that author Alex Leo chose to highlight Charlie’s Angels as Mr. Glover’s “best-known” work. In any case, we are honored to be featured in such a quality publication, regardless of context.Here’s the story: Crispin Glover’s Creepy Reading Of Miss Muffet (VIDEO).

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with Oscar Wilde

Andrew — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 12:25:51 +0000

Though author Oscar Wilde eventually found fame as a playwright in London, he was actually born in Dublin as Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde.The Irish author was also known for his collection of rather dark children’s stories, some of which have been adapted on Speakaboos:The Selfish Giant The Nightingale and the RoseHappy St. Patrick’s Day!

11-year old sells McDonald’s Happy Meal toy collection for $11,000

Andrew — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 12:32:20 +0000

The title says it all folks! Story from the UK Daily Mail:Entrepreneurial 11-year-old £8,000 richer after selling McDonald’s Happy Meal toy collection | Mail Online.

The Girl In the Window

Andrew — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 14:32:07 +0000

Today I came across an old article from the St. Petersberg Times that is a must-read for anyone who has ever cared for, taught, or worked with a young child. This story is impossible to describe simply, so you’ll just have to read the whole thing here.

New Study: ADHD kids get less sleep

Andrew — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 14:11:42 +0000

A new study by Canadian researchers suggests that simply increasing a child’s nap time may help alleviate symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. The study showed that average total sleep time per day for the 15 ADHD children in the study was 33 minutes shorter than the 23 control children.”I do not believe that sleep per se is the cause of ADHD but it may make the symptoms worse in children with sleep problems,” said lead author Reut Gruber of the Douglas Mental Health University Institute.Now I know what a lot of you are thinking–maybe kids with ADHD just have a harder time sleeping than other kids. But at the very least we can take this study as a reminder that there are often simple solutions to complex problems.Full Story: Sleep linked to ADHD symptoms in children – UPI.com

Gender stereotypes in education – will boys be boys?

Andrew — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 13:55:09 +0000

We all know what they say–girls don’t like math and science, boys don’t like reading. A new article in the Wilmington News Journal says as much.The article discusses how a school librarian Christy Payne and teacher Kristine Colazzo recently put on a “Boys and Books Conference” to promote reading among middle school boys. The conference featured reading sessions with male role models such as dads, football players, and costumed characters like Darth Vader (since “traditionally” it is mothers, not fathers and evil galactic rulers, who read to children), and aimed to encourage reading using non-traditional texts like graphic novels and non-fiction books about sports.The best quote? “I have moms come to me and say, ‘He’s not reading. I can’t get his head out of Sports Illustrated,’ “Payne said. “But that is reading.”Maybe we don’t have very much to worry about after all. Except for boys thinking that they have to like sports to be “normal”…