Getting a child to read can be a really daunting task. I know from experience since I was one of those kids who didn’t really like to read. When I was younger, I’d rather twiddle my thumbs than read a book. Every summer my father stowed the TV away, so all I could do was twiddle my thumbs or read.
Are we defined by the era of music into which we’re born or the music we listen to? Some days I like to think the former, and other times, I like the sounds of the latter. Then, I realize that the era into which I was born was full of really silly things. But, to be honest, it just depends. While I’m "technically" an 80s kid, my childhood existed in the 90s.
What can’t music do for us? It entertains, makes us laugh, makes us cry, and helps us feel better when we’re feeling down. It can bring us together. It can do many things for us, but one thing music doesn’t really get much credit for is what it can do for our brains' development.
For kids learning music at an early age, it can improve their abilities in mathematics, sculpting, and navigation in a few key areas.
I found myself stuck at home last Friday night. I'm pretty sure we all were asking Mother Nature what she'd had for breakfast that morning, but there are worse things than snow in May.
Okay. Maybe there isn't really anything worse than snow on May 3rd. However, back to my little tale, picture this: I was stuck at home and I didn't feel like watching anything that I'd already owned, but I didn't want to watch anything on the computer through YouTube, especially since I wanted something more movie-like than just short clips.
Ken Follet, author of thrillers and historical novels, said it best when he noted the power that a great story can have over a reader. He said, "If they're hoping it will turn out this way, and fearing it will turn out that way, they're going to turn the page." Follet knows what he is talking about, as he was just awarded the Grand Master prize by the Mystery Writers of America, which honors an author’s body of work.
I never thought about what my experience of the world would be if I couldn’t see until I watched the movie Dare Devil. After that, I tended to assume that a person unable to perceive the world around him or her thought sight must have some sort of similar experience of sight given from his or her brain, kind of like the graphics of a computer game.
Sometimes, events occur that shake my image of the world. The bombs that exploded at the Boston Marathon and the explosion at a fertilizer plant in West Texas are examples. They left me with an unfocused image, causing me to reflect and rethink.
I have found two books whose main characters face life shattering events beyond their control. Both novels lend me insight into the human condition and help me regain a little clarity.
Some days, when I think of how busy we are at the Parkville Branch, I consider the Library of Congress (LOC), which contains 35 million books, to clarify my perspective. Not only does the LOC contain books, it has 5 million maps, 68 million manuscripts, and its online catalog provides a database of some 12 million items from its collections.
Relax, the Library Has Your Back: A Few Tips for Taking a Test
Woe to the days of studying and cramming information into my head the night before a major, (and possibly) standardized test. I was never really a good test taker, and I don’t propose that I am now a better one after taking enough of them, but I do know that there are some things to make it a little easier when the test day comes.
