Read

What We're Reading

CNN recently followed up on the story of Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teenage girl who was shot by the Taliban last October for defying their...

CNN recently followed up on the story of Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teenage girl who was shot by the Taliban last October for defying their ban on girls attending school.  The Taliban hoped to silence the outspoken girl, but the shooting only strengthened Malala’s voice around the world. She’s now out of the hospital, back in school and speaking to the United Nations this summer. As Mrs. Bush said last October, Malala’s story reminds us all to have the courage to speak up.

This weekend marks the start of the 2013 Warrior Games, a competition involving more than 200 wounded American military members in Colorado Springs. They will compete in five U.S. teams representing the Army, Marine Corps, Navy/Coast Guard, Air Force and Special Operations and in seven sports including archery, cycling, shooting, sitting-volleyball, swimming, track and field and wheelchair basketball. USA Today features the powerful stories of a few of the Games’ competitors and American heroes.

The Education Reform team passed along an article that looks at the impact a student’s environment can have on his or her ability to learn.  Based on neuroscience and cognitive psychology research, an academically challenging but supportive environment boosts both a child’s ability to learn and cope. The George W. Bush Institute’s Middle School Matters program supports the idea and provides research references and practices in our Middle School Matters Field Guide that can influence the middle grade student’s social-emotional needs.