By Abby Abazorius | MIT News Office Professor Hal Abelson has dedicated his career to making information technology more accessible to all and empowering people — kids, in particular — through computer science. But his storied career in computer science began with Abelson coming to MIT in 1969 to pursue his interest in mathematics. “The thing I like to remind students of is that they don’t have to know what they are going to do with the rest of their life,” Abelson says. “I get a lot of emails from students in high school asking what they should be studying, and I say, ‘Gee you should be trying to do something that doesn’t even exist yet!’” Today Abelson’s work...
Following the backroads from west Sonoma up to Humboldt County, the saga of the North Coast’s long-forgotten apple orchards unfolds like a novel of lost treasure. Deep in the woods, clusters of apple trees lie buried beneath overgrown scrub oak forests or overtaken by wild blackberry brambles. You could write a book about it—or, you could make cider from the fruit, and let the juice do the talking. That’s what Aaron Brown and Colin Blackshear have chosen to do at Bardos Cider. Equally intrigued by the thrill of the hunt and the history of the once thriving apple industry, they’ll spend days clearing an abandoned orchard just to sit and talk with the owner about its past. They linger in...
Going on a nature walk for kids? Here some fun ideas to do on the nature walk and some to do after the walk. Plus, a FREE printable nature scavenger hunt! Updated September 2022 So, you’re heading out on a nature walk with the kids and you want some ideas for adding a little extra fun, interaction, or education to the experience? Here are 6 activities you can do with kids during the nature walk. And another 7 that you can do with kids after arriving back home. Photo by Andrea Martelle Activities While on a Nature Walk for Kids These ideas include ways to learn about, explore, and engage with the natural world around you, including a scavenger hunt,...
This week, Wizards of the Coast, makers of RPG D&D and Magic: the Gathering, launched their new teaching kits to bring gaming into the classroom through teachers and educators. This comes off of the launch of the newest Dungeons & Dragons Starter Set: Dragons of Stormwreck Isle, coming out on October 4th. It got me thinking about how video games and gaming are becoming more commonplace in teaching and in classrooms. I thought it was just something I was doing as a parent, but this proves there is a demand for it somewhere. With the first month of school underway, kids are already coming home sniffling, taking time off school because they are coughing and sticky. When we were kids,...
Kids will love getting their hands dirty as they tear and glue pieces of paper together, and you’ll love how easy it is to make these cute little creatures. Unlike other owl crafts that use painted leaves, these leaf owls are made with real leaves. These make cute leaf animal art and you can keep them as decorations in your home. Many of the leaves you’ll need can be found in your backyard or local park. You will find plenty of leaves if you live in an area with many trees. If you don’t, parks often have beautiful trees that drop stunning leaves! Just be sure to choose similar leaves in size and shape, so your owls look uniform. Once...
