Your child can be a Philanthropist NOW! :)

This is WAY cool! It would be great to start preparing now so as to host a great summer activity for your kid(s): Milk + Bookies -

Milk + Bookies^TM is a nationwide charitable organization that inspires children to give back, using books as its currency.

• At Milk + Bookies^TM events, boys and girls are provided the opportunity to select, purchase and inscribe books that are then donated to their peers who do not have access to books of their own. The fun-filled events feature music, story time and, of course, milk and cookies.
• We facilitate these events creating more and more experiences for children to be exposed to giving. Please visit our host-your-own page to read about the M+B class project, M+B birthday party and contact us for information on a book fair at your school.
• Milk + Bookies^TM combines two essential and worthwhile efforts: literacy promotion and service learning. While the book donations are imperative to our mission, just as important is instilling the seed of giving into each host and their young guests, sparking feelings of importance, self-confidence and the desire to give and give again.

This is such a great way to teach your kids about giving back. It seems especially important in today's society where kids seemed way more entitled. As much as secular education is important, I feel that this spirit of giving far surpasses any knowledge you can gift or teach your child. What other kinds of service activities do your children engage in?

Hmmmm....

Spotlight Interviews at Education Nation with Warren Buffett, Susie Buffett, and Melinda Gates

I watched an interview with Bill Gates and Warren Buffet on CNBC once and I've grown to love their opinions and how smart they see things. Education Nation (NBC) got to interview the Buffets and Melinda Gates this time! Such an insightful interview! Have fun watching!

Importing Talent

It is rather hard to get back into the groove of blogging after being sick for so long. I must say this second pregnancy has really taken a toil on my body! It's interesting how the human body goes through its own wears and tears. However, in my absence, I have been reading up on lots of articles and uncovered lots of new products. So...will try harder to keep it up and provide you with lots of interesting viewpoints and items!

Sean Yazbeck. Courtesy of Inc. Magazine.

I was reading the Inc. magazine the other day and came across an article about Sean Yazbeck. He won one of the seasons of The Apprentice and has since left the Trump organization to start his own company. His company - Wavsys - has had a 3-year growth of 760.1% and a 2010 revenue of $15.2 million. Not too bad! He was quoted saying: "We employ engineers and contract them out for things like setting up an antenna out in the field or writing code that will run the next generation of handsets. Our challenge has been finding the right kind of talent here in the U.S. We had to recruit engineers in Europe and Asia to find the right skill sets. That's why I am a big believer that the U.S. needs to create more opportunities to get children to study math and science."  I love that thought and agree with it 100%.

We've been having similar experiences in having a hard time finding programmers with the right skill set and great work ethic. It seems they're either missing one or the other. Can we compromise and deal with it? Sure. However, I feel strongly that in order for us to create a high quality product, we cannot allow such compromise. Recently too, I read an article hat the U.S. pumped $120 billion into rebuilding schools in Iraq. That infuriated me. It's sad that our money is going out of the country when so many of our own public schools are failing. Is everything about the U.S. education system wrong or bad? No, I'm certainly not saying that. What I'm saying is that we can always improve and we should be wanting to improve so we can keep our global competitiveness and advantage up. That's where we are failing our future generations! So how do we change that? Demand better curriculum and teachers in your schools! The parents do have the power. After all, parents are the ones who vote for our leaders who in turn create and maintain these public policies. Aside from that, always challenge your kids. Don't be afraid to. It teaches your child to learn to be competitive and not be afraid to fail. Failure is alright as long as they learn how to climb back up. Children are like sponges and can absorb information way better than an adult can! Trust that your child can be challenged and do not be complacent with simply what is taught in school!!! Supplement! Supplement! Supplement!

Global Competitiveness Ranking: International Business Times.

On a side note, The children's abridged literary classics are back at the Target dollar section! Grab yours today!

Do U.S. Students Lack International Skills?

Education Nation posted a story explaining whether U.S. students are falling behind in "global" education. What are your thoughts?

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Interesting! Is your child academically equipped to enter those fields?

Innovation starts at a young age!

Design studio aruliden, together with Bernhardt Design, conceived Tools at Schools as an initiative to teach eighth graders the value of design as a problem-solving tool at The School at Columbia University. Forty-four eighth grade students were immersed in the entire design process, from research to ideation to 3D modeling and ultimately launch. What started as a simple effort to get involved in the community grew into a much larger realization that design has a role in the classroom. Their success was not only in their concepts, but in the awareness each student gained in the process. The result was a collaborative vision of today’s classroom – designed for kids by kids. Wouldn't you love to see programs like this at your local schools?


Tools at Schools : Introduction to Project from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Tools at Schools : Research and Big Ideas from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Tools at Schools: Final Design and Mockup from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Tools at Schools: 3-D from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Tools at Schools : Modeling from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Tools at Schools: Final Project Launch at ICFF from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Excellence in Education

Shanghai's secondary school students were the top performers in the PISA 2009 tests. Chinese society as a whole is committed to excellence in education, and Shanghai's education authorities consistently seek ways to help low-performing schools and students improve their results.

Programme for International Student Assessment (2009)[1] (Top 10; OECD members as of the time of the study in boldface)
Maths	Sciences	Reading
1.  Shanghai, China 600 2.  Singapore 562 3.  Hong Kong, China 555 4.  South Korea 546 5.  Taiwan 543 6.  Finland 541 7.  Liechtenstein 536 8.  Switzerland 534 9.  Japan 529 10.  Canada 527	1.  Shanghai, China 575 2.  Finland 554 3.  Hong Kong, China 549 4.  Singapore 542 5.  Japan 539 6.  South Korea 538 7.  New Zealand 532 8.  Canada 529 9.  Estonia 528 10.  Australia 527	1.  Shanghai, China 556 2.  South Korea 539 3.  Finland 536 4.  Hong Kong, China 533 5.  Singapore 526 6.  Canada 524 7.  New Zealand 521 8.  Japan 520 9.  Australia 515 10.  Netherlands 508

The Finland Phenomenon

Finland's education system has consistently ranked among the best in the world for more than a decade. The puzzle is, why Finland?
A new documentary about this phenomenon looks very interesting.  Check out the trailer and interview with the director.  What are your thoughts?

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Should Parents be Accountable for Kids' Bad Grades?

WHAT DO YOU THINK?



This topic bugs me especially when a parent tells me that school is more than enough for their kid(s). Based on our current education system, even if your child goes to an expensive private school, it is still not enough. If your child excels in school, perhaps the question to ask is: "Is it sufficient for my child to compete on a global level?"  I believe ANY advantage we can give our children is better than "just enough".  This is definitely something I feel fiercely about. Parents NEED to be accountable for children's success. The question though....is "what do you think?"

Mental Math

One of the huge benefits from learning math using the abacus, is the ability to calculate mentally. Inception Learning is bringing all the benefits of abacus learning integrated with new online technology. The company will be launching their product this fall. Check out www.abacusprodigy.com and also check out our Facebook page for giveaways and latest news updates. In the meantime, check out these videos of children learning mental math utilizing abacus learning.

Giveaway Winner!

Thanks for all your support and love!!! We will make a difference in education and want you all to continue on this journey with us. There will be more Giveaways throughout the month so stay tuned! For more exclusive content about Inception Learning and our product - Abacus Prodigy, please visit our Facebook Page!

It's my Birthday, an exciting new venture ...AND a Giveaway!

Can this day get any better? First off, I love birthdays! It's just so fun to have a cake...especially a big round, fudgy, chocolate one from Costco....hint hint to my hubby! Plus, it's a great excuse to indulge in such a delicacy! I also think chocolate just makes you feel young and makes the world go round! K....be prepared for a nice long post! It's only because we have such exciting news to share! Next up:

The past year has been nothing short of craziness. We have been trying to build up a new business - Inception Learning. We actually did come up with the name before the movie Inception came along. I guess great minds think alike! Christopher Nolan....we have the same ingenuity! :)  Our product is called Abacus Prodigy. We have since developed an electronic Abacus keyboard - Soropad that will be connected to our online digital platform. There, kids ages 3-8 (we be continually expanding to fit ages 9 and up) can learn Math with a strong Abacus foundation, along with a full Math curriculum, using top problem solving techniques from China, Singapore, and Korea! Our site: www.abacusprodigy.com will incorporate virtual tutors, practices, games, music, animations, videos, and assessment tests. We're still fixing a minor glitch on Mozilla Firefox. So for the next few days, it's best viewed in Google Chrome. Doesn't most of everyone use Chrome anyways? Maybe this is the PC vs. Mac talking in my head! lol... It's definitely exciting as we have been HATING the school system for a very long time. I think in Asia, it was way too academic and here-way too much focus on play and sports. I feel there's needs to be a good middle for the children to be well-rounded and be academically, physically, and socially capable! Hopefully, our products will help close up that gap! I believe that Math should be fun!!!  Why not? It can be fun solving difficult problems. Math also teaches children to solve problems creatively...which I feel is SO important in everything we do nowadays! Yes! Creativity is a MUST. The great thing about Abacus learning is that it teaches children conceptual skills at a very young age. I see the kids who have gone through my program approach things in a very different light. I LOVE the innovative spirit such kinds of learning helps instill in young children!!! 

Plus, we'll also be launching our ONE Revolution campaign the next few days! Stay tuned for that one! You'll LOVE it!

Our new Facebook page is also up: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Inception-Learning/128128180594552. Please please please do help us spread the word through your very own Facebook, twitter, blogs, emails, whatever it is!!! Keep following our Facebook and blog as we will keep launching new and exciting things the next couple weeks and months!

If you become a fan, you get entered into our Giveaway! Plus, if you refer a friend to be a fan, post this on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc... you get an additional entry for each thing extra you do! So basically if 10 friends of yours become fans, you will get 1 entry plus 10 additional ones. Please comment on either our blog or Facebook page to let us know what you did to help spread the word to ensure your entry! The Giveaway will end May 15...which equates to PLENTY of chances for you to have multiple entries!  Here's what you stand to win:

A Melissa and Doug Wooden TOY Abacus

Waiting for Superman DVD, which comes with a $25 DonorsChoose.org Giftcard

1 REAL Soroban/Abacus Instrument

On a side note, I would be lying if I didn't admit that starting a business takes up a lot of time and energy - both physical and mental. It's also been difficult juggling as a mom, wife, and starting a new venture. The nice part is I get to do this with my husband which definitely makes things easier. We take turns doing developing the business and taking care of our sweet boy Talon. Talon definitely gets a great amounts of attention of both momma and da-da because of this arrangement. We get to work from home too so that helps with the juggling! In addition, I was recently called to my church's women's organization as a secretary! Talk about double duty! But, I know with hard work and sacrifice comes great blessings! As tired I am by the end of the day, it is so exciting and fulfilling to know that Abacus Prodigy will help a great deal of kids start LOVING Math! 

A World of Learning

This is an interesting short documentary about how technology is influencing our classrooms and affecting the way our children learn all around the world.  It mainly focuses on the use of the electronic white-board. Check it out.

A World Of Learning from David Betteridge on Vimeo.

KNO Tablet

There's a company named Kno that is creating a tablet for students.  It appears the textbooks are loaded onto the tablet and the student can take notes and highlight things right on the tablet.  It looks really cool!  Check out the videos.  www.kno.com

Changing Education Forever from Kno Tablet on Vimeo.

Virtual Schools

Texas lawmakers are considering new legislation to make creating virtual high schools possible.  If it passes, students could enroll in these virtual high schools and go through 4 years of high school without ever having to sit in a classroom.  Current Texas law only allows high school students to enroll in a maximum of 2 virtual classes per semester.



Students wanting to use virtual learning is growing in Texas.  In other states, virtual schools are thriving.  In Florida, for example, there have been over 220,000 course enrollments in their virtual schools.  Check out this article for more information.



Would you want your child in a virtual school?

School Pride

Waiting for “Superman” teamed up with NBC’s “School Pride” to ask students a Hollenbeck Middle School in Los Angeles what education means to them.

Changing Education Paradigms