One of the best ways you can spend your money is on travel. Go out there. See the world. It’s with that philosophy in mind that we kick off this week’s speedlink with Lisa Bettany. She recounts her safari experience at the Makanyane Game Reserve in the northeastern part of South Africa. Seeing these majestic animals in their natural environment is life-changing, especially when you are realize that you become the bottom of the food chain.
Continuing with our wanderlust, we follow Cherri Megasko over to New Zealand to see the glowworm caves of Waitomo. Navigating through the “labyrinth of limestone caves,” you are treated to the most spectacular sight of glowworms lighting up all around you. The stalagmites and stalactites are pretty magnificent too and exploring the caves is really something you need to experience in person. It seems so peaceful and serene.
A common challenge you may encounter on your worldly travels is a language barrier. It’s something I’ve dealt with in places like Taiwan and Italy. It helps when kids learn more languages while they’re still young and Stephen Greene has pointed out that WhatsApp can actually be great for language development. His son, who speaks Portuguese at home, is motivated to learn and speak more English so he can send voice notes to family living in the United Kingdom.
Speaking of children and learning, educator Damien Riley questions whether homework is always helpful. A big problem that he has observed is that the homework can be “disconnected” from the lesson the student received earlier that day. For better or for worse, a child’s homework also becomes work for parents. They’ve got to help and, when and if they don’t, the child can suffer an unfair disadvantage compared to his peers.
Of course, learning doesn’t stop as soon as you step out of the classroom. Concluding our wanderlust-themed collection of posts this week, business consultant Anthony Taylor explains how the recent changes to Instagram can teach you about business strategy. Simply showing up in the feed by default is something Instagrammers can no longer take for granted. Just like Facebook, they need engagement in the form of likes and comments. How are you connecting with your customers?
the world is meant to be explored! Thanks for giving us a boost MIke!
Most homework does nothing for student growth. Unfortunately, perceptions die hard and parents are demanding more homework. Usually this means worksheets they don’t understand. Sad. I assign reading in a chapter book and practicing multiplication facts on cards (3-4th grades). And, because of ardent parent requests, 2 worksheets a night.