Author Archives: CircleReader

Bugs Bunny Stole My Cognitive Surplus!

or, What's all the hubbub, Bub?

Bugs Bunny's first appearance, July 27th, 1940, was nominated for an academy award.
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Every Title the Story of a Reader

or, How to measure a year of reading

In How Do You Measure a Year of Reading?, the true measure of Donalyn Miller's students' reading is shown in the challenges they set themselves, the new patterns & experiences they explored, and the richness of the "you had to be there" moments they shared.
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The Play’s the Thing

or, Shakespeare in Space

That we can watch such things for free over the internet via PBS is something for which I am immensely grateful. That this is just one more story we share as a family - that's priceless.
Posted in Arts & Literature, Local Life, Reading Around | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Boy. Dog.

Classic

A couple scenes from life with the new puppy.
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Madison Reads Leopold, 2010

"Yearly, the feathered tempest roared up, down, and across the continent, sucking up the laden fruits of forest and prairie, burning them in a traveling blast of life....Today the oaks still flaunt their burden at the sky, but the feathered lightning is no more."
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ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

or, The First Meme

Acrostics -- lists and songs arranged alphabetically -- are of course a venerable tradition, uniting the ancient author of Psalm 119 with the youngest child learning to sing the ABC Song. One could say that the alphabet is the first & primary meme, the source behind every other, a natural fit for the blogosphere.
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Reading Aloud: the Words Endure

or, The Cosmic Bedtime Story

Our family's evening reading together was no more -- and no less -- difficult than all the other things we do together as a family. Day in & day out, this practice of reading builds up a foundation and a bulwark that will strengthen and protect us throughout our lives. Day in & day out, we parents are building up our children, our schools, and our communities, guarding them from a multitude of evils, just by reading aloud.
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Little Things

or, The Lives of the Flu Cell

For me, microbiology always communicates a sense of secret revelation - it is so intimate, our very flesh & blood, and yet so intricate and strange. What a wonder to be able to see some small portion of the invisible entities that underlie our physical life! Here's an animation of a flu virus attack, from Zirus, Inc. via NPR.
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Remebering Labor, Entering Rest

To truly make this a holiday, to truly rest in praise of the goodness, truth, & beauty of Labor Day, requires contemplation.
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Better Widgets with Science!

WordPress version 2.8 was released earlier this month, and whether the developers actually read them or not, I’m glad that they seem to have implemented my suggestions for a cognitive science-based redesign for WordPress Widgets. In WordPress 2.5 Widgets: Taking the Load Off Your Mind, I argued that what a user sees on the back [...]
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