Nonfiction4Life

Engineering professor and bestselling author Barbara Oakley, PhD, with neuroscientist Terrence Sejnowski, PhD, bring us a handbook for Learning How to Learn: How to Succeed in School Without Spending All your Time Studying. This guide is all you need to tackle your least favorite subject in school or take on that class you’ve been dreading. The authors, also co-instructors of the wildly popular online courses “A Mind for Numbers” and “Mindshift,” share techniques that train our brains to take on the hard stuff. Written for students from grade school to high school, Learning How to Learn breaks down the science of how our brains process and recall information and reveals how to make the most of our studying time.

00:15   Barbara Oakley, author of Learning How to Learn

00:30   Book aimed at the younger set but valuable for all ages

00:55   Oakley teaches the world’s most popular MOOC (massive open online course)

02:05   Shares her story of being a “lopsided learner”

02:30   Liked books but hated math; chalked it up to not having “the math gene”

03:20   Joins Army to study Russian at the Defense Language Institute

03:30   Becomes a Signal Core Officer with no experience in technology

04:50   Learns remedial algebra and eventually becomes a professor of electrical engineering

05:20   “It’s really possible to change your brain!”

06:20   Becoming proficient in video games can improve attention and focus

08:00   Video games (approved by FDA for older adults) improves metabolism

09:20   Small short-term memory improves creativity

11:20   Poor working memory forces us to simplify and compress information

12:45   Taking breaks from learning

13:15   Procrastination common worldwide

13:40   Having to learn something unpleasant activates pain center of the brain

14:00   Using the “Pomodoro” study technique to alternate learning with rewards

15:00   Learning modes: focus vs. diffuse

17:00   Learning new things keeps mind supple and open

17:55   Reading means we always have something to talk about, a way to find commonalities

18:20   Oakley lunches with Cormac McCarthy (Pulitzer author, genius, and true polymath)

19:20   Learning more gives us overlays for what we already know

19:55   Some anxiety accompanying test-taking can be helpful

20:25   Two reasons tests can cause anxiety

22:15   How to move material from the page to our brains (long-term memory)

22:35   The key to good test performance: active practice (recall from our own brains)

24:00   Oakley defines “active learning”

26:00   What’s the best kind of recall practice?

27:15   “Picture Walk”: paging through chapter subheadings & pictures to get a framework

29:30   Forty percent of our brain is visual

30:15   Westerners tend to struggle with math; Easterners tend to struggle with language

30:45   Practice using a variety of methods to build up neural circuits

31:35   Are there any shortcuts to practicing?

33:00   “Eat your frogs first,” a test-taking strategy for attacking hardest problems

36:50   Not getting enough sleep will negate all other efforts to learn

38:15   Sleeping allows brain cells to shrink and have toxins washed away

39:15   Recommendation: Coursera (100% online learning from the world’s best universities and companies); AKA: “MOOCs” – massive open online courses 

BUY Learning How to Learn: How to Succeed in School Without Spending All Your Time Studying; A Guide for Kids and Teens

For free online learning in almost any subject, check out Coursera.

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• Music Credit
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BRIAN CURTIS, author of FIELDS OF BATTLE: PEARL HARBOR, THE ROSE BOWL, AND THE BOYS WHO WENT TO WAR, captures the true story of the one-and-only Rose Bowl Game played outside of Pasadena, California. The bombing of Pearl Harbor had ripple effects, including in the world of football. But this story goes beyond football. Curtis follows dozens of the players into more fields of battle. We see the WWII theaters turn young athletes into men as they fight with extraordinary valor. Following the war, they fight to live ordinary lives.

00:15   Honoring Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day in America

00:20   Intro to Brian Curtis, author of Fields of Battle: Pearl Harbor, The Rose Bowl, and the Boys Who Went to War

01:25   Book endorsed by the late Senator John McCain

01:45   Curtis discovers this little-known story through “Did You Know?” fact

02:45   Book begins as Sports Illustrated article; morphs into military war story; becomes a human-interest story

04:00   Curtis’s deep dive on WWII uncovers veterans' struggles in dealing with the harshness of war

06:00   What made these men great?

06:30   Some football players go to basic training within hours after finishing a game

07:30   Ordinary guys from all backgrounds end up in pivotal battles

08:00   Extraordinariness found in how they live ordinary lives after the war

08:30   William Few, President of Duke University, predicts they’ll develop true character in storms

09:15   Winds of WWII blowing before Pearl Harbor is attacked

10:00   America ramping up for what most believed would be eventual involvement in WWII

11:30   Pearl Harbor bombing, just weeks before the 1942 Rose Bowl, creates chaos

12:30   Governor cancels the Rose Bowl game in deference to military authorities

13:30   Transferring Rose Bowl game and Rose Parade is a logistical nightmare

13:45   Should a game be played at all when war is raging that boys will soon enter?

14:20   Wallace Wade, Duke Head Coach, lobbies to move the Rose Bowl game to North Carolina

15:00   Should the Japanese scare them away from traditional game and festivities?

15:20   Similarities to September 11

16:00   Setting a precedent for the American spirit to supersede the threats of war

16:15   Duke Coach Wallace Wade: discipline and excellence paramount

17:45   Shocks the world when he leaves the University of Alabama to go to Duke University

18:45   Wade ends up sacrificing to serve his country

19:05   Oregon State Coach Lon Stinar, a “player’s coach”: laidback style, witty

20:55   Tracks approximately 80 players who participate in 1942 Rose Bowl game

21:25   Curtis asks three key questions to pare down the characters in the book

22:10   Charles Hanes, Jr., a key character, both player and military hero

22:35   Curtis follows the men from football fields to battlefields and to life after the war

24:25   Jack Yoshihara, Japanese American on OSC team who didn’t get to play

24:35   Yoshihara a symbol of racist America (Japanese internment camps)

26:00   Federal agents disallow Yoshihara’s participation with OSC team

27:45   Janet, from South Pasadena, has strong connections to Rose Parade and Rose Bowl

28:25   West Coast team once allowed to choose its opponent

29:45   Selling tickets almost paramount to choosing the competition

30:15   How has the game of football changed since 1942?

32:00   How has the game has remained the same?

33:20   Most players-turned-troops had never seen death

33:45   OSC players have first exposure before being shipped off to battle

35:45   Frank Parker and Charles Hanes are opposites

36:50   Parker and Hanes meet in Italy; discover a mutual connection to 1942 Rose Bowl game

37:35   Parker rescues Charles Hanes but Parker tells no one of his heroics

38:45   Reunite 50 years later in Corvallis, Oregon; Hanes attends to thank Parker

39:30   After the war, Parker and Hanes’ lives take very opposite directions

40:30   War affects people differently

41:15   Jack Yoshihara’s contribution is a life well lived

45:15   Curtis comes to see the football metaphor for war as insulting

47:00   Recommendation: Little Free Library

BUY Fields of Battle: Pearl Harbor, the Rose Bowl, and the Boys Who Went to War

Find or build a Little Free Library!

Connect with us on social media!

• Facebook
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• Twitter
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Special thanks…

• Music Credit
• Sound Editing Credit

BRIAN CURTIS, author of FIELDS OF BATTLE: PEARL HARBOR, THE ROSE BOWL, AND THE BOYS WHO WENT TO WAR, captures the true story of the one-and-only Rose Bowl Game played outside of Pasadena, California. The bombing of Pearl Harbor had ripple effects, including in the world of football. But this story goes beyond football. Curtis follows dozens of the players into more fields of battle. We see the WWII theaters turn young athletes into men as they fight with extraordinary valor. Following the war, they fight to live ordinary lives.

00:15   Honoring Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day in America

00:20   Intro to Brian Curtis, author of Fields of Battle: Pearl Harbor, The Rose Bowl, and the Boys Who Went to War

01:25   Book endorsed by the late Senator John McCain

01:45   Curtis discovers this little-known story through “Did You Know?” fact

02:45   Book begins as Sports Illustrated article; morphs into military war story; becomes a human-interest story

04:00   Curtis’s deep dive on WWII uncovers veterans' struggles in dealing with the harshness of war

06:00   What made these men great?

06:30   Some football players go to basic training within hours after finishing a game

07:30   Ordinary guys from all backgrounds end up in pivotal battles

08:00   Extraordinariness found in how they live ordinary lives after the war

08:30   William Few, President of Duke University, predicts they’ll develop true character in storms

09:15   Winds of WWII blowing before Pearl Harbor is attacked

10:00   America ramping up for what most believed would be eventual involvement in WWII

11:30   Pearl Harbor bombing, just weeks before the 1942 Rose Bowl, creates chaos

12:30   Governor cancels the Rose Bowl game in deference to military authorities

13:30   Transferring Rose Bowl game and Rose Parade is a logistical nightmare

13:45   Should a game be played at all when war is raging that boys will soon enter?

14:20   Wallace Wade, Duke Head Coach, lobbies to move the Rose Bowl game to North Carolina

15:00   Should the Japanese scare them away from traditional game and festivities?

15:20   Similarities to September 11

16:00   Setting a precedent for the American spirit to supersede the threats of war

16:15   Duke Coach Wallace Wade: discipline and excellence paramount

17:45   Shocks the world when he leaves the University of Alabama to go to Duke University

18:45   Wade ends up sacrificing to serve his country

19:05   Oregon State Coach Lon Stinar, a “player’s coach”: laidback style, witty

20:55   Tracks approximately 80 players who participate in 1942 Rose Bowl game

21:25   Curtis asks three key questions to pare down the characters in the book

22:10   Charles Hanes, Jr., a key character, both player and military hero

22:35   Curtis follows the men from football fields to battlefields and to life after the war

24:25   Jack Yoshihara, Japanese American on OSC team who didn’t get to play

24:35   Yoshihara a symbol of racist America (Japanese internment camps)

26:00   Federal agents disallow Yoshihara’s participation with OSC team

27:45   Janet, from South Pasadena, has strong connections to Rose Parade and Rose Bowl

28:25   West Coast team once allowed to choose its opponent

29:45   Selling tickets almost paramount to choosing the competition

30:15   How has the game of football changed since 1942?

32:00   How has the game has remained the same?

33:20   Most players-turned-troops had never seen death

33:45   OSC players have first exposure before being shipped off to battle

35:45   Frank Parker and Charles Hanes are opposites

36:50   Parker and Hanes meet in Italy; discover a mutual connection to 1942 Rose Bowl game

37:35   Parker rescues Charles Hanes but Parker tells no one of his heroics

38:45   Reunite 50 years later in Corvallis, Oregon; Hanes attends to thank Parker

39:30   After the war, Parker and Hanes’ lives take very opposite directions

40:30   War affects people differently

41:15   Jack Yoshihara’s contribution is a life well lived

45:15   Curtis comes to see the football metaphor for war as insulting

47:00   Recommendation: Little Free Library

BUY Fields of Battle: Pearl Harbor, the Rose Bowl, and the Boys Who Went to War

Find or build a Little Free Library!

Connect with us on social media!

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Twitter
• YouTube

Special thanks…

• Music Credit
• Sound Editing Credit

Cara Brookins, author of Rise: How a House Built a Family, breaks the shame of silence common among domestic violence victims. Ten years after she and her four children build a 3500 square-foot house with the help of YouTube videos, Brookins tells what went into the house besides nails, doors, and windows. She also shares the triumphs and lasting love and friendship the family forged through the gritty, hard work of constructing a house while they rise above their past and rebuild their home and family.

00:20   Intro to author Cara Brookins, author and single mother who builds a house using YouTube tutorials

00:40   Story goes viral; viewed more than 2 billion times!

01:20   Building the house feels like a natural, obvious decision

01:35   Once married to one man with paranoid schizophrenia and another one that's abusive

02:40   Motivations to build the house go beyond getting a roof overhead

03:00   Kids had seen nothing but terror for a decade

04:00   Crafty family makes a small model of dream house using sticks and bits

06:40   Wants all the children to have the satisfaction and success of building

07:25   Toughest challenge: “absolutely the foundation”

08:00   Physical challenges include building muscles and facing bad weather

08:30   Emotional challenges include trying to develop healthy communication skills

09:30   Unintended consequence: heavy sacrifice of time

10:30   “Mommy guilt” wiped away by kids’ future courageous choices

12:15   Writing story releases shame; empowers Brookins to heal and build a better life

13:30   Her divorced parents are her most unexpected helpers

14:45   Having another adult on site incredibly reassuring

15:30   Family learns to stop hiding things (feelings, experiences)

16:15   Trauma causes a family to pull bad inward and hide the good things

17:20   Constructing the house releases laughter, humor, and, eventually "the tough stuff"

19:30   Physical threats from ex-husband continue while the family builds the house

21:10   Now, Brookins most proud of all the juggling she managed

22:00   To earn very needed money, she writes newspaper articles with her eyes closed

23:00   The house ("Inkwell Manor") more than a place to live

23:10    Wants to have peace of mind about what she gives her children to take out into the world

23:45   Today, family strength still comes through constant communication

25:00   Brookins now keynote speaker about leadership, procrastination, big goals

25:30   Main message: You can build a better life--exactly the life you want!

26:15   Recommendations: three articles about resilience and strengthening families

BUY Rise: How a House Built a Family

Three Articles About FAMILY RESILIENCE:

1. Family Stories That Bind Us
2. What Makes Families Resilient
3. The Secrets of Resilience

Connect with Nonfiction4Life on social media:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Twitter
• YouTube

Special thanks…

• Music Credit
• Sound Editing Credit

Cara Brookins, author of Rise: How a House Built a Family, breaks the shame of silence common among domestic violence victims. Ten years after she and her four children build a 3500 square-foot house with the help of YouTube videos, Brookins tells what went into the house besides nails, doors, and windows. She also shares the triumphs and lasting love and friendship the family forged through the gritty, hard work of constructing a house while they rise above their past and rebuild their home and family.

00:20   Intro to author Cara Brookins, author and single mother who builds a house using YouTube tutorials

00:40   Story goes viral; viewed more than 2 billion times!

01:20   Building the house feels like a natural, obvious decision

01:35   Once married to one man with paranoid schizophrenia and another one that's abusive

02:40   Motivations to build the house go beyond getting a roof overhead

03:00   Kids had seen nothing but terror for a decade

04:00   Crafty family makes a small model of dream house using sticks and bits

06:40   Wants all the children to have the satisfaction and success of building

07:25   Toughest challenge: “absolutely the foundation”

08:00   Physical challenges include building muscles and facing bad weather

08:30   Emotional challenges include trying to develop healthy communication skills

09:30   Unintended consequence: heavy sacrifice of time

10:30   “Mommy guilt” wiped away by kids’ future courageous choices

12:15   Writing story releases shame; empowers Brookins to heal and build a better life

13:30   Her divorced parents are her most unexpected helpers

14:45   Having another adult on site incredibly reassuring

15:30   Family learns to stop hiding things (feelings, experiences)

16:15   Trauma causes a family to pull bad inward and hide the good things

17:20   Constructing the house releases laughter, humor, and, eventually "the tough stuff"

19:30   Physical threats from ex-husband continue while the family builds the house

21:10   Now, Brookins most proud of all the juggling she managed

22:00   To earn very needed money, she writes newspaper articles with her eyes closed

23:00   The house ("Inkwell Manor") more than a place to live

23:10    Wants to have peace of mind about what she gives her children to take out into the world

23:45   Today, family strength still comes through constant communication

25:00   Brookins now keynote speaker about leadership, procrastination, big goals

25:30   Main message: You can build a better life--exactly the life you want!

26:15   Recommendations: three articles about resilience and strengthening families

BUY Rise: How a House Built a Family

Three Articles About FAMILY RESILIENCE:

1. Family Stories That Bind Us
2. What Makes Families Resilient
3. The Secrets of Resilience

Connect with Nonfiction4Life on social media:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Twitter
• YouTube

Special thanks…

• Music Credit
• Sound Editing Credit

Emmy-award winning sportswriter Amy Bass shares One Goal, the story of a high-school soccer team uniting the racially divided town of Lewiston, Maine. With many Somali refugees on the roster, this underdog team wins not one but two state championships! But to reach that level, both the team and the town have to flex in order to accommodate and embrace new talents, skills, religion, passion, and soccer styles. In the process, we see A Coach, a Team, and the Game That Brought a Divided Town Together.

00:15   Intro to Amy Bass, author and sportswriter

01:20   Multiple meanings of the title, “One Goal”

02:30   Bass has a personal connection to the town of Lewiston, Maine

03:30   She spends four undergraduate years at Bates College in Lewiston, unaware of the middle school across the street

04:45   At the beginning of the 21st century, Somali refugees slowly begin populating the town

05:10   The influx causes every group in town to face certain fears

05:55   The Somali diaspora includes some of today's 60 million displaced people

06:25   Demographic changes create fears about differences

07:00   Even the school cafeteria accommodates new diets

07:30   Refugees represent a particular kind of immigrant

08:30   Some immigrant stories about assimilation; this is a story of negotiation

08:50   Coach McGraw emphasizes the “advantage of the ball” and putting the game first

09:05   The very nature of the game enables everyone to work out dissimilarities, aiming for "one goal"

09:40   Tolerating vs. embracing differences

10:15   Lewiston team capitalizes on variations in how to play, talents, passion

10:30   Leveraging competitive advantages often creates the most successful teams

11:30   McGraw flexes to meet challenges

12:00   Team members’ challenges include PTSD, poverty, confusion, isolation, instability

13:00   Coach Mike McGraw, a legend in Lewiston, is a combo of both heart and head

14:45   While the players understand their parents’ sacrifices, they also want to win soccer games

15:55   Ironic forgetfulness pervasive among Quebecois immigrants, now long-settled in Lewiston

17:00   Somali refugees pour into Lewiston in an unplanned way

18:45   Coach McGraw deals with players' torn loyalties (between team and family)

20:00   Partnership of team is also a partnership with community = one goal

21:20   Understanding Islam; respecting Ramadan and commitment to daily prayers

22:10   Athletic Director Jason Fuller sets the bar high to accommodate athletes

23:10   Dealing with signing permission slips, getting physicals

24:00   All players learn team cheer (in Arabic and Swahili)

25:00   “Direct Soccer” (AKA “boot and scoot” or “kick and chase”)

25:50   “Possession Game” (played in Kenyan refugee camps) a sophisticated, unselfish style

27:00   Lewiston team just wins its third state championship!

27:30   Four players all help score the final goal (thanks to Lewiston Sun Journal)

28:55   “Soccer first”

29:05   U.S. only second only to China in kids participating in soccer

30:20   Sports are never just about sports; they involve many community members

31:30   Community is work!

32:30   Last-minute postscript includes the 2016 state-championship victory

34:45   Netflix owns movie rights to One Goal: A Coach, a Team, and the Game That Brought a Divided Town Together

35:45: Recommendation: www.JustServe.org (volunteer website)

BUY One Goal: A Coach, a Team, and the Game That Brought a Divided Town Together

Find volunteer opportunities at JustServe.org!

Connect with Nonfiction4Life:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Twitter
• YouTube 
• Website

Special thanks…

• Music Credit
• Sound Editing Credit

Emmy-award winning sportswriter Amy Bass shares One Goal, the story of a high-school soccer team uniting the racially divided town of Lewiston, Maine. With many Somali refugees on the roster, this underdog team wins not one but two state championships! But to reach that level, both the team and the town have to flex in order to accommodate and embrace new talents, skills, religion, passion, and soccer styles. In the process, we see A Coach, a Team, and the Game That Brought a Divided Town Together.

00:15   Intro to Amy Bass, author and sportswriter

01:20   Multiple meanings of the title, “One Goal”

02:30   Bass has a personal connection to the town of Lewiston, Maine

03:30   She spends four undergraduate years at Bates College in Lewiston, unaware of the middle school across the street

04:45   At the beginning of the 21st century, Somali refugees slowly begin populating the town

05:10   The influx causes every group in town to face certain fears

05:55   The Somali diaspora includes some of today's 60 million displaced people

06:25   Demographic changes create fears about differences

07:00   Even the school cafeteria accommodates new diets

07:30   Refugees represent a particular kind of immigrant

08:30   Some immigrant stories about assimilation; this is a story of negotiation

08:50   Coach McGraw emphasizes the “advantage of the ball” and putting the game first

09:05   The very nature of the game enables everyone to work out dissimilarities, aiming for "one goal"

09:40   Tolerating vs. embracing differences

10:15   Lewiston team capitalizes on variations in how to play, talents, passion

10:30   Leveraging competitive advantages often creates the most successful teams

11:30   McGraw flexes to meet challenges

12:00   Team members’ challenges include PTSD, poverty, confusion, isolation, instability

13:00   Coach Mike McGraw, a legend in Lewiston, is a combo of both heart and head

14:45   While the players understand their parents’ sacrifices, they also want to win soccer games

15:55   Ironic forgetfulness pervasive among Quebecois immigrants, now long-settled in Lewiston

17:00   Somali refugees pour into Lewiston in an unplanned way

18:45   Coach McGraw deals with players' torn loyalties (between team and family)

20:00   Partnership of team is also a partnership with community = one goal

21:20   Understanding Islam; respecting Ramadan and commitment to daily prayers

22:10   Athletic Director Jason Fuller sets the bar high to accommodate athletes

23:10   Dealing with signing permission slips, getting physicals

24:00   All players learn team cheer (in Arabic and Swahili)

25:00   “Direct Soccer” (AKA “boot and scoot” or “kick and chase”)

25:50   “Possession Game” (played in Kenyan refugee camps) a sophisticated, unselfish style

27:00   Lewiston team just wins its third state championship!

27:30   Four players all help score the final goal (thanks to Lewiston Sun Journal)

28:55   “Soccer first”

29:05   U.S. only second only to China in kids participating in soccer

30:20   Sports are never just about sports; they involve many community members

31:30   Community is work!

32:30   Last-minute postscript includes the 2016 state-championship victory

34:45   Netflix owns movie rights to One Goal: A Coach, a Team, and the Game That Brought a Divided Town Together

35:45: Recommendation: www.JustServe.org (volunteer website)

BUY One Goal: A Coach, a Team, and the Game That Brought a Divided Town Together

Find volunteer opportunities at JustServe.org!

Connect with Nonfiction4Life:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Twitter
• YouTube 
• Website

Special thanks…

• Music Credit
• Sound Editing Credit

Blended: Using Disruptive Innovation to Improve Schools by Heather Staker (with co-author Michael Horn), is a practical field guide for implementing blended learning. While grounded in Clayton Christensen’s theory of disruptive innovation, this dynamic reference book will not be easily outdated. Real-life examples, clear learning models, and sensible advice for all stakeholders implementing blended learning make the book more than just a one-time read. In short, Staker articulates both a vision and plan that empower next-generation learners and reenthrone teachers as coaches and mentors.

00:15   Intro to Blended: Using Disruptive Innovation to Improve Schools

00:45   The wave of our educational future

00:55   Intro to Heather Staker, Founder and President of Ready to Blend

01:15   Also wrote companion book, The Blended Workbook (2017)

02:45   Book based on Clayton Christensen’s theory of “disruptive innovation”

03:40   Sustaining vs. disruptive innovations

04:25   Disruptive innovations offer a new value proposition and improve over time

05:10   What blended learning is and what it isn’t

05:45   Disrupting Class (2008) by Clayton Christensen, Michael Horn, and Curtis Johnson

06:00   Online learning, a technology enabler, poised to disrupt traditional class

07:00   Accessibility gives online learning its foothold

08:00   Key to academic achievement and overall well-being

08:50   First time disruptive technology has entered K-12 since the printing press

10:40   “Paris” metaphor can help persuade stakeholders to embrace blended learning

11:50   Focus on the “why” of redesigning schools 

13:00   Efficiency: technology enables the blended approach

14:40   Agency: students no longer passive, sit-and-get learners

15:35   Inhumanity of current model: teachers now free to be individual mentors, coaches

17:00   Occasionally, pre-convinced parents advocate for blended learning

18:00   Online courses can fill a gap when no other option is available

18:45   Using electronic devices in school can meet some resistance

20:30   Nuanced rules for using electronic devices

21:35   Who are the teachers adopting blended learning?

22:25   Learning models (station & individual rotation, flipped) breathe new life into the classroom

22:40   Some teachers pioneer flex model, moving as “guide on the side”

23:20   Cage-busting leaders can drive online learning vision forward

24:25   Going after the “low-hanging fruit” in your educational environment

25:00   Educators: look for non-consumption areas (where there’s nothing at all)

26:00   Parents: implement after-school options, create flexible in-class arrangements

28:30   Common pain point: teachers feel replaced

30:25   First, articulate outcome (What student experience do you want?)

31:20   Students given control and accountability for own active learning

33:30   Teachers’ new role (just now being articulated) includes coaching

34:45   Benefits extending beyond the classroom

35:35   Equipping students with complexities yields lifelong learners

36:10   Risk: exposure to technology and virtual destinations not in learners’ best interest

36:30   Turning lifelong learners into “long life” learners

37:30   Recommendation: “Cool Facts” app (~12K fun, nonessential facts)

BUY Blended: Using Disruptive Innovation to Improve Schools

Get the Cool Facts app!

Connect with Nonfiction4Life on social media:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Twitter
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Special thanks…

• Music Credit
• Sound Editing Credit

Blended: Using Disruptive Innovation to Improve Schools by Heather Staker (with co-author Michael Horn), is a practical field guide for implementing blended learning. While grounded in Clayton Christensen’s theory of disruptive innovation, this dynamic reference book will not be easily outdated. Real-life examples, clear learning models, and sensible advice for all stakeholders implementing blended learning make the book more than just a one-time read. In short, Staker articulates both a vision and plan that empower next-generation learners and reenthrone teachers as coaches and mentors.

00:15   Intro to Blended: Using Disruptive Innovation to Improve Schools

00:45   The wave of our educational future

00:55   Intro to Heather Staker, Founder and President of Ready to Blend

01:15   Also wrote companion book, The Blended Workbook (2017)

02:45   Book based on Clayton Christensen’s theory of “disruptive innovation”

03:40   Sustaining vs. disruptive innovations

04:25   Disruptive innovations offer a new value proposition and improve over time

05:10   What blended learning is and what it isn’t

05:45   Disrupting Class (2008) by Clayton Christensen, Michael Horn, and Curtis Johnson

06:00   Online learning, a technology enabler, poised to disrupt traditional class

07:00   Accessibility gives online learning its foothold

08:00   Key to academic achievement and overall well-being

08:50   First time disruptive technology has entered K-12 since the printing press

10:40   “Paris” metaphor can help persuade stakeholders to embrace blended learning

11:50   Focus on the “why” of redesigning schools 

13:00   Efficiency: technology enables the blended approach

14:40   Agency: students no longer passive, sit-and-get learners

15:35   Inhumanity of current model: teachers now free to be individual mentors, coaches

17:00   Occasionally, pre-convinced parents advocate for blended learning

18:00   Online courses can fill a gap when no other option is available

18:45   Using electronic devices in school can meet some resistance

20:30   Nuanced rules for using electronic devices

21:35   Who are the teachers adopting blended learning?

22:25   Learning models (station & individual rotation, flipped) breathe new life into the classroom

22:40   Some teachers pioneer flex model, moving as “guide on the side”

23:20   Cage-busting leaders can drive online learning vision forward

24:25   Going after the “low-hanging fruit” in your educational environment

25:00   Educators: look for non-consumption areas (where there’s nothing at all)

26:00   Parents: implement after-school options, create flexible in-class arrangements

28:30   Common pain point: teachers feel replaced

30:25   First, articulate outcome (What student experience do you want?)

31:20   Students given control and accountability for own active learning

33:30   Teachers’ new role (just now being articulated) includes coaching

34:45   Benefits extending beyond the classroom

35:35   Equipping students with complexities yields lifelong learners

36:10   Risk: exposure to technology and virtual destinations not in learners’ best interest

36:30   Turning lifelong learners into “long life” learners

37:30   Recommendation: “Cool Facts” app (~12K fun, nonessential facts)

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In Flags of Our Fathers, James Bradley captures the compelling true story not only of his father John Bradley but also of the five other Marines who planted an American flag atop Mt. Suribachi in Iwo Jima, Japan. These men simply raised a flag to mark their victory. However, with the help of photographer Joe Rosenthal, this particular moment was immortalized forever. Even on the very day of its first printing, The Photograph ignited unprecedented patriotism. Indeed, The Photograph would quickly become the most reproduced photo in history and the model for the world's tallest bronze monument. Yet, it would also be fundamentally misunderstood. In Flags of Our Fathers, James Bradley explains why.

00:15   A special Veterans Day podcast

00:25   Intro to James Bradley, author of Flags of Our Fathers

00:30   Story of six men who fought in Battle of Iwo Jima and raised a flag on Mt. Suribachi

00:45   Moment immortalized by photographer Joe Rosenthal

01:05   Bradley, historical nonfiction author specializing in WWII Pacific Theater

02:10   “The only thing new in the world is the history you don’t know.” – Harry S. Truman

2:30   Bradley unaware of his father’s part in WWII history and reality of Iwo Jima

03:45   Why veterans tend to not discuss war

04:30   Horrors of war incomprehensible and repulsive to civilians

05:45   “The real heroes of Iwo Jima are the guys who didn’t come back.” – John Bradley

06:10   Flag-raisers put on tour by President Truman (survivors vs. heroes)

06:45   “Doc” Bradley’s friendship with bosom buddy Iggy, a clumsy misfit also from Wisconsin

07:15   When Iggy is tortured to death, “Doc” has to identify the body and inform the family

09:00   Book organized around biography of each of the six flag raisers

09:30   Sergeant Mike Strank works to get the “boys” home to their mothers

10:15   All the men accustomed to hard work and some form of religion

11:00   Marines turn small-town mama’s boys of the ‘30s into a fighting spearhead

11:30   Native American Ira Hayes – most prolific letter-writer of all; intensely shy; volatile

12:30   Difficult time to be an Indian; mocked as “Chief Falling Cloud”

13:15   Hayes very literate and articulate, but lives an interior life as a cotton picker

14:15   Bradley joins John Wayne on Hollywood movie set of The Sands of Iwo Jima

15:55   Who is San Franciscan photographer Joe Rosenthal?

17:00   Famous flag-raising on Mt. Suribachi actually a very ordinary, non-event

18:00   “It was the happiest moment of my life.” – John Bradley, speaking of the first flag-raising

19:00   Second flag raising, accidentally captured in Rosenthal photo, ignites the populous

19:45   The Photograph has electrifying effects at home, but not among the troops

21:00   Three surviving flag raisers enlisted to go on a bond tour to help pay for the war

21:10   Flags of Our Fathers movie by Clint Eastwood – fourth movie based on The Photograph

21:20   Fame of The Photograph emblazoned everywhere – Americana!

22:20   Famous photo is fundamentally misunderstood

22:45   “It was about as significant as going to the post box to pick up the mail.” – Rene Gagnon

24:10   Battle of Iwo Jima – one of the most vicious in all of history

24:50   James Bradley has a personal connection to Japan via Notre Dame program

26:10   Humble, quiet Japanese culture would have resonated with John Bradley

26:45   Bradley returns to Iwo Jima, Japan with mother and three brothers

27:35   “You can’t write about a battle until you walk the battlefield.” – Stephen Ambrose

28:15   John Bradley awarded Navy Cross for his actions on Iwo Jima

30:15   Takes Americans five days to get from beach to top of the mount

31:00   How John Bradley taught patriotism and religion in small-town Wisconsin

32:00   How the flag raisers want would want to be honored on Veterans Day

32:30   Recommendation: Taking Chance, a 2009 movie (historical war drama with Kevin Bacon)

Trailer for "Taking Chance"

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