Book Reading - July 8

Join author Stephenie Peterson and Boolean Girl for a book reading and an afternoon of fun!   In Nellie Nova Takes Flight, Nellie appears to be a normal nine-year-old girl. But Nellie is not "normal." Nellie is an amazingly gifted scientist who lives in a family of amazingly gifted scientists. One day, her brother, Niles, who is 11, teases her (as all respectable big brothers do). This time, however, Niles goes too far when he tells Nellie that girls are silly and no woman has ever changed the world. This sets off a spark of an idea in Nellie's most amazing mind and sends her down the path to create a time machine and meet wonderful women who made a mark on the world. First stop, Amelia Earhart! With a few bumps along the way and a government agency out to steal her technology, Nellie and Niles are in for an incredible adventure! Stephenie is extremely passionate about girls in STEM and has agreed to read from her book and talk to the kids a bit about the writing process. Books will be available for purchase. Register online now! Date: July 8, 2016   Time: 1-2:30 PM  Grades: 3-8  Cost: FREE (students enrolled in camp are already registered) Location: Barrett Elementary School 4401 N. Henderson Road Arlington, VA 22203

Summer Reading for Young Women

Whether you’re outside enjoying the heat or taking refuge in your air conditioning, summer can be the best time to catch up on your reading. In case sitting at the beach with a great read isn’t enticing enough on its own, we’re offering 25% off the list price of the titles below. Use code READ25 now through July 31, 2016 to take advantage of these savings!

Women's Adventures in Science Explore the 10-Book Set » Bone Detective: The Story of Forensic Anthropologist Diane France $19.95 $14.96 Gorilla Mountain: The Story of Wildlife Biologist Amy Vedder $19.95 $14.96 Robo World: The Story of Robot Designer Cynthia Breazeal $19.95 $14.96 Nature's Machines: The Story of Biomechanist Mimi Koehl $19.95 $14.96 Gene Hunter: The Story of Neuropsychologist Nancy Wexler $19.95 $14.96 Space Rocks: The Story of Planetary Geologist Adriana Ocampo $19.95 $14.96

Probably too late for local proms

Challenging Duckworth's Promotion of "Grit"

by Nicholas Tampio for AEON:

Teaching ‘grit’ is bad for children, and bad for democracy

Guian Bolisay/Flickr

According to the grit narrative, children in the United States are lazy, entitled and unprepared to compete in the global economy. Schools have contributed to the problem by neglecting socio-emotional skills. The solution, then, is for schools to impart the dispositions that enable American children to succeed in college and careers. According to this story, politicians, policymakers, corporate executives and parents agree that kids need more grit.

The person who has arguably done more than anyone else to elevate the concept of grit in academic and popular conversations is Angela Duckworth, professor at the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania. In her new book, Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, she explains the concept of grit and how people can cultivate it in themselves and others.

According to Duckworth, grit is the ability to overcome any obstacle in pursuit of a long-term project: ‘To be gritty is to hold fast to an interesting and purposeful goal. To be gritty is to invest, day after week after year, in challenging practice. To be gritty is to fall down seven times and rise eight.’ Duckworth names musicians, athletes, coaches, academics and business people who succeed because of grit. Her book will be a boon for policymakers who want schools to inculcate and measure grit.

There is a time and place for grit. However, praising grit as such makes no sense because it can often