Parent Cortical Mass

PCM's Top Articles of the Week

Have you been hearing about “grit” and “character education”? Watch the TED talk by Angela Duckworth, the U Penn researcher whose work launched the grit offensive, and see what you think. ● Wonder why so many tech leaders say kids need to learn to code? Mitch Resnick’s simple stories will help you understand. Then, check out the list of 40 Tools that get kids coding. ● For weeks we’ve covered parental apprehension over the use of kids’ education data. This weeks’ article will make you an expert on the topic. ● Two articles about teachers from Finland and Teach for America shed light on dissimilar approaches to teacher effectiveness. ● Unlikely political alliances are forming around doubts over the common core. After rapid acceptance by many states, a growing sentiment says, “Wait a minute!” ● This week a video showing a high school student expressing frustration at his teacher went viral.

Parenting

Why Reading Aloud to Older Children Is Valuable - Holly Korbey, Mind/Shift

"Tiger Mom” Study Shows the Parenting Method Doesn’t Work - Paul Tullis, Slate

Are We Over-Stimulating Young Children? - Marilyn Price-Mitchell, Roots of Action

Summer Babies at a Disadvantage? Not Obama, Clinton or Napoleon - Amelia Hill, The Guardian

What Parents Should Worry About This Week (Or Not) - Polly Palumbo, Momma Data

Advice for Parents About Summertime Tech - Larry Magid, SafeKids.com

Elmo Fever: Why Are Kids are So Obsessed with the Red Muppet? - Melinda W. Moyer, Slate

Learning

The Key to Success? Grit [Ted Talk] - Angela Lee Duckworth, TED

The 21St Century Skill Students Most Lack - Daniel Willingham, Washington Post

Learn To Code, Code To Learn - Mitchel Resnick, EdSurge News

How to Perform in a Clutch - Annie Murphy Paul, TIME.com

What's the Best Way to Teach Languages? - Martin Williams, The Guardian

Your Brain Catches Grammar Errors Even When You Don't Realize It - Clay Dillow, PopSci

Education

The Benefits of Character Education - Jessica Lahey, The Atlantic

Hispanic HS Grads Pass Whites in Rate of College Enrollment - Fry & Taylor, Pew Center

What is “Student Data?” Who Owns it? Why does it Matter? - Cameron Evans, Microsoft in Ed

New Report Challenges Beliefs About the Value of AP Classes - Leslie Harris O’Hanlon, Mind/Shift

Education Debate by Issue [Charts] - Education Week

What if Finland's Great Teachers Taught in U.S. Schools? - Pasi Sahlberg, Washington Post

Still Teaching for America - June Kronholz, Education Next

Republicans Should Love 'Common Core' - Frenkel and Wu, Wall Street Journal

Union Joins Opposition to Common Core Standards & Tests - Brittany Corona, Heritage

Resources

Teaching Kids to Code, 40 Tools to Learn to Code - EdSurge

Seven Books British Kids Love (and American Kids Will Too) - Sophie Brown, GeekMom

Summer Book List for Beginning Readers - Melissa Taylor, Imagination Soup

Video of Texas Student Scolding His Teacher Goes Viral - CBS News

Parents' Choice Awards: Toys, Spring 2013 - Parents' Choice

PCM's Top Articles of the Week

The most talked-about topic this week covered the feasibility of new tests used for accountability. These new high stakes tests, aligned to the academically challenging common core standards, were rolled out in NY, causing a hub bub. As predicted, parents were not happy. Find out why. ● A survey released this week clarifies 3 ways parents want to be involved in their kids’ educations. Where do you fit? ● Hear PCM's Top Influencers Bill Gates, Diane Ravitch, Arne Duncan, and Michelle Rhee talk about testing, teacher evaluations based on student test scores, and the rationale for universal pre-school. ● Learn more about curiosity, creativity, unsticking misconceptions, and the role of background knowledge to critical thinking skills. ● Be sure to read about the Digital Public Library of America!

Parenting

Toddlers and Touchscreens: Scourge or Salvation? - Anya Kamenetz, Hechinger Report

Not All Parents Want To Be PTA Moms - Joanne Jacobs, Linking and Thinking on Education

Organizations Vie for Parent Attention with 'Report Cards' - Michele Molnar, Education Week

Authoritarian Parenting: What Happens to the Kids? - Gwen Dewar, Parenting Science

The Kids Are Not Alright? - Polly Palumbo, Momma Data

The Girl Scouts' VERY Cool New Badge - Krystie Yandoli, Huff Post Teen

Helping Your Kids Avoid Alcohol Pitfalls in Shift to College - Cleveland & Ward, EurekaAlert!

Measuring College Prestige vs. Price - Paul Sullivan, New York Times

Learning

How to Stimulate Curiosity and Promote Learning - Annie Murphy Paul, TIME

Why Teenagers Really Do Need an Extra Hour in Bed - Russell Foster, New Scientist

How To Unlearn Mistaken Ideas - Annie Murphy Paul, The Brilliant Blog

Misconceptions about Critical Thinking and Knowledge - Lisa Hansel, Core Knowledge Blog

Is It Possible to Measure Creativity? - Elizabeth Blair, Mind/Shift

Education

Test Resentment and the Politics of the Common Core - Dana Goldstein

In an Era of Global Competition, What Exactly Are We Testing For? - K. Schwartz, Mind/Shift

Michelle Rhee and the Unproven Teacher Evaluation - Karin Klein, L.A. Times

Bill Gates On Education: "We Can Make Massive Strides" - Anya Kamenetz, Fast Company

Clueless Bill Gates, Redux - Diane Ravitch, Diane Ravitch's Blog

High-Quality Preschool is a Sure Path to the Middle Class - Arne Duncan, Washington Post

How High-Poverty Schools Are Getting It Done - Karin Chenoweth & Christina Theokas, ASCD

What Education Reform Looks Like - Joel Klein, Wall Street Journal

Questioning the Mission of College - Frank Bruni, New York Times

And the National Teacher of the Year Is... - Elizabeth Chuck, U.S. News

Resources

U.S. News Releases 2013 Best High Schools Rankings - Kelsey Sheehy, U.S. News

Presenting ... the Digital Public Library of America! - Rebecca J. Rosen, The Atlantic

Life360 Wins as Smartphones Become Family Utilities - Ryan Kim, GigaOm

5 Tools to Help Your Child Learn the Pencil Grip - Andrea Updyke, BabyCenter

Shakespeare's Sonnets - A Terrific App (ages 14 +) - Mary Ann Scheuer, Great Kid Books

PCM's Top Articles of the Week

This week the bombings in Boston occupy our attention. Articles here provide useful advice on how to talk to your children about these events. ● Other topics explored this week are girls and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math,) coding in schools, and the two parent education movements of ‘opting-out’ of and the ‘parent trigger.’ ● Dana Goldstein’s article on the history of philanthropy in education will increase your cortical mass about philanthrocapital. ● Washington Post’s education reporter, John Morrow, wrote an unexpected and sticky article, "Michelle Rhee's Reign of Error," about the investigations about possible cheating on high-stakes tests. ● Find articles on the importance of talking to your child, the interplay between IQ and the hours invested to gain expertise. ● Data on college acceptance rates this year will surprise you.

Parenting

How Parents Are Explaining The Boston Tragedy To Children - Joy Resmovits, Huff Post Parents

Cooperation After a Tragedy - Melanie Tannenbaum, Scientific American

How Teenagers Spend Money - Derek Thompson, The Atlantic

How Parents Around the World Describe Their Children, in Charts - Olga Khazan, The Atlantic

Four Myths About the Millennial Generation - Chelsea Clinton, TIME

Can Building Toys for Girls Improve Math and Tech Skills? - Diana Kapp, Wall Street Journal

Why Your 8-Year-Old Should Be Coding - Jolie O'Dell, VentureBeat

Learning

The Power of Talking to Your Baby - Tina Rosenberg, New York Times

What Are The Habits Of Mind? - TeachThought

The 'Reading Brain' Science of Paper versus Screens - Ferris Jabr, Scientific American

How to Stimulate Curiosity - Annie Murphy Paul, The Creativity Post

Power Can Overcome Negative Stereotypes - Rick Nauert, PsychCentral

Learning Strategies Beat IQ in Predicting Achievement - Scott Barry Kaufman, Scientific American

Education

From Carnegie to Gates - Dana Goldstein, Smithsonian Magazine

Your College Major Is a Minor Issue, Employers Say - Melissa Korn, WSJ

Michelle Rhee’s Reign of Error - John Merrow, Washington Post

To Attract More Girls to STEM, Bring Storytelling to Science - A. Kuchment, Scientific American

At Last! A Computer Science Course for All Kids - Julia Steiny, Education News

Policy Focus on Standardized Tests Leads to Opt-Out Parent Movement - Lyndsey Layton, WP

Parents Choose Unique School Takeover Model in ‘Trigger’ Vote - N. Lindstrom, Hechinger Rpt

Education Leaders Weigh In On Parent Engagement, Privacy Issues - Michele Molnar, Ed Week

With Police in Schools, More Children in Court - Erik Eckholm, New York Times

Resources

Spring 2013 Parents' Choice Awards: Audio, TV, Apps, Small Screen - Parents' Choice Awards

Colleges Report 2013 Acceptance Rates - Tanya Abrams, New York Times

8 Great Twitter Accounts for Students to Follow - Laura Bates, Fractus Learning

A New Way To Find The Best Educational Apps For Kids - Sarah Perez, TechCrunch

10 Must-Have Photo-Editing Apps for Smartphones and Tablets - The Online Mom

PCM's Top Articles of the Week

This week articles from well-knows Alison Gopnik, David Brooks, Fareed Zakaria, and Wendy Kopp offer useful information for parents. Gopnik explains how brain processes for creativity and executive function conflict. Brooks and Zakaria reflect on higher education because right now parents of high school seniors are living in stressed anticipation of the “fat or thin envelop” from college admissions. Wendy Kopp, founder of Teach for America, makes public her case for why technology can’t and won’t replace teachers. Last week’s viral hit, “The Reasons my Son is Crying,” will crack you up!

Parenting

Touch Screen Time? Worry About Parents, Not Kids - Sarah Goodyear, Atlantic Cities

Warren Buffett Gives Financial Advice to 10-Year-Olds - Tyler Gray, Fast Company

Paying for Your Child's College Education Isn't Giving a 'Free Ride' - Mara Shapiro, Huff Post

Is TV Viewing the Unhealthiest Screen Time For Kids? - Richard Rende, Red Hot Parenting

Do Today's Parents Need to Relax? - Matt Gross & Theodore Ross, The Atlantic

The Reasons My Son Is Crying, Greg (& Charlie) Pembroke, Tumblr

Learning

How the Brain Curbs Creativity - Alison Gopnik, WSJ

Why Kids Benefit When They Teach Others - Gwen Dewar, Parenting Science

How to Stimulate Curiosity - Annie Murphy Paul, MindShift

Don't Sleep It Off - Tori Rodriguez, Scientific American

Brain-Training Games Don't Actually Make You Smarter - Gareth Cook, The New Yorker

Short Lectures, Frequent Quizzes Maximize Online Learning - Rick Nauert, Psych Central News

Education

Let's Set a Nat'l Standard for Students—Pass the U.S. Citizenship Test - R. Pondiscio, Atlantic

Computers Can't Replace Real Teachers - Wendy Kopp, CNN

What Is a University For? The Practical University - David Brooks, New York Times

The Thin Envelop Crisis - Fareed Zakaria, TIME

Did Bill Gates Just Reverse Course? - Diane Ravitch, Diane Ravitch's Blog

Mom: Why I Won't Let My Son Take High-Stakes Standardized Test - Valerie Strauss, Wash Post

Tests and Tiger Moms - Thomas Sowell, RealClearPolitics

The School 'Discipline Gap', 1 In 4 Black Students Suspended - Joy Resmovits, Huff Post

Principal Warns Parents About Common Core Tests - Carol Burris, Wash Post

Resources

Poems to Learn by Heart, by Caroline Kennedy - Publishers Weekly

Young Mark Twain's Little-Known, Lovely 1865 Children's Book - Maria Popova, Brain Pickings

A Video Game That Teaches How to Program in Java - Kurzweil News

Hakitzu Lets You Fight Robots and Learn Coding, Too - Tristan Kruth, Technapex

The 50 Best Public High Schools in the U.S. - The Best Schools

Teaching Kids Foreign Languages with a Most Genius App - Stephanie Mayers, coolmomtech

PCM Top Articles of the Week

The indictment of 35 educators in Atlanta’s testing scandal is big news this week. Should we blame the use of high-stakes testing in accountability and teacher effectiveness polices? Or, is this just a case of classic cheating? ● PCM Top 10 Influencer, Bill Gates, whose foundation funds research to improve teaching, wrote an op-ed on using student test scores for teacher evaluations. He urged a better balance between the “urgency for change” and the need for fair systems. ● Also in education, learn about recent voucher victories, conservative vs. progressive education reforms, and President Obama’s brain mapping plan. ● Find out how student engagement and flow differ, how gestures help learning, why ADHD diagnoses are increasing, and how we can educate students for careers in an era of uncertain career paths. ● Check out the amazing Lego constructions.

Parenting

You Can’t ‘Have It All’ & More of Feminism’s Outdated Phrases - Ellen Galinsky, The Daily Beast

More on Toddlers, Touchscreens and Learning - Lisa Guernsey, New America Foundation

What Does a Tablet Do to the Child’s Mind? - Nick Bilton, New York Times

Is Heading A Soccer Ball Dangerous? - Richard Rende, Red Hot Parenting

More Diagnoses of A.D.H.D. Causing Concern - Alan Schwarz and Sarah Cohen, New York Times

Even Multiple Vaccines Don't Cause Autism, CDC Says - Sarah Sparks, Ed Week

First Take: Can Your Children “Design Their Own Professions?” - Raising Modern Learners

Learning

Kids Learn Better from Adults Who Talk with Their Hands - Gwen Dewar, BabyCenter

Mastering Emotions by Sharpening Memory? It Just Might Work - Melissa Healy, L.A. Times

Is Quality Pre-Kindergarten the Key to a Better Vocabulary? - Bonnie Rochman, Time

5 Learning Principles Embedded in Video Games - Tina Barseghian, Mind/Shift

How Meditation Might Boost Your Test Scores - Jan Hoffman, New York Times

Easing Brain Fatigue With a Walk in the Park - Gretchen Reynolds, New York Times

Education

Ex-Atlanta Schools Chief Charged in Cheating Scandal - Michael Winerip, New York Times

What’s Really Scandalous About the School Testing Scandal - Erika Christakis, Time

A Fairer Way to Evaluate Teachers - Bill Gates, Washington Post

A Victory for School Choice - Michael Gerson, RealClearPolitics

Vouchers Don’t Work: Evidence from Milwaukee - Diane Ravitch's blog

Why Conservatives Should Support the Common Core - K. Porter-Magee & S. Stern, Nat'l Review

How to Build a Progressive Education Movement - David Bernstein, Education Week

Beyond Student Engagement: Achieving a State of Flow - Elena Aguilar, Edutopia

Obama Goes Public With Brain-Mapping Plan - Greg Miller, Wired

Resources

The 21 Coolest Things Ever Made Out Of Lego - Jack Shepherd, BuzzFeed

Raise A Reader: A Parent Guide to Reading for Ages 3-5 - Zoë Kashner, Scholastic

Nostalgia Sounds Good: The Return of Golden Records - Parents' Choice

My Favorite Audiobooks for Kids from Greathall - Melissa Taylor, Imagination Soup

PCM's Top Articles of the Week

An article about Carol Dweck's mindset theory, applied to talent, asks how a growth mindset can impact creative achievements. ● Does sharing family meals together have a positive effect on children? Two studies draw different conclusions. ● There's surprising news on language dancing, and the “30 million word gap” discovered by Hart and Risley more than a decade ago. In “unprecedented scope and audacity” Providence, RI plans to use the entire city to test the theory. Read how. ● A joint statement, made by Randi Weingarten and Vicki Phillips, Ed Director at Bill Gates’ Foundation, on teacher evaluations, caught eduwonks off guard. Diane Ravitch responds. ● Get informed on ability grouping, school report cards, vouchers, and the unlikely political alliances against the common core. ● Don’t miss the giant Mindcraft map, the size of Los Angeles!

Parenting

A Parent Guide to Teachers’ Unions - Paula Bolyard, PJ Media

Families May Want to Create a Mission Statement - Bruce Feiler, New York Times

Is the American "Boy Crisis" Fictional? - Judith Warner, Time

The Many Myths About Mothers Who 'Opt Out' - Nanette Fondas, The Atlantic

Myth of Family Meals in Parent-Child Bonding Gets Debunked - Carrie Arnold, Scientific American

Family Dinners Boost Teens’ Mental Health - Cynthia Lee-McGill, Futurity.org

The Touch-Screen Generation - Hanna Rosin, The Atlantic

Learning

What Research on Babies and Pointing Reveals - Nicholas Day, Slate

Children Should Be Allowed To Get Bored, Expert Says - Hannah Richardson, BBC News

Scientists Unravel How Kids Learn Math, 1st Grade Is Key - Lauran Neergaard, Washington Post

Mindfulness Improves Reading Ability, Working Memory, and Task-Focus - Science Daily

Talent Isn’t Fixed and Other Mindsets That Lead to Greatness - Jocelyn K. Glei, 99u.com

How to Increase Our Stamina to Learn - Annie Murphy Paul, Time

Education

Providence, RI Plans to Shrink 'Word Gap' with $5M Grant - Ben Zimmer, Boston Globe

Left, Right Unite Against Common Core - Andrea Neal, Indianapolis Star

Let's Go Back to Grouping Students By Ability - Barry Garelick, The Atlantic

Parents Relying on School Report Cards Can Be Confused - Michele Molnar, Education Week

BYOT: Some Schools Urge Students to Bring Their Own Tech - Matt Richtel, New York Times

6 Steps to Effective Teacher Evaluations - Vicki Phillips & Randi Weingarten, New Republic

Weighing in on the Weingarten-Gates Article - Diane Ravitch, Diane Ravitch's Blog

With Vouchers, States Shift Aid for Schools to Families - Fernanda Santos & Motoko Rich, NYT

Good News about Low-Income Students - Caroline M. Hoxby, Brookings Institution

Resources

Here Comes Peter Cottontail, Like You've Never Heard It (Free Music Download) - coolmomtech

How Fans Recreated Game of Thrones in a Minecraft Map the Size of LA - Laura Hudson, Wired

How Do I Get My Kids Started on Minecraft? A Parents' Primer. - coolmomtech

Sylvia Plath's Little-Known Vintage Children's Book - Maria Popova, Brain Pickings

Ten Tips for Selecting Great Games - Stevanne Auerbach, Huff Post Parents

PCM's Top Articles of the Week

The conversation about women and family/work balance, initiated a few weeks ago with the release of Sheryl Sandberg book, Leaning In, continues. Lisa Miller's article, "The Retro Wife," fanned the flames. How will the women of these times tackle the problem? ● Learn more on executive function, letting kids fail, and the CDC report on the prevalence of autism. ● Find out when kids are ready to cross the street, and why. ● Education topics discussed this week included ability grouping and tracking, suspension policies, and (heheh) the test scores of state legislators, city counselors, and academics on a New England high school graduation exam. ● Do you use the Getting Things Done system at work? Read how to apply it to parenting.

Parenting

Modern Parenthood, Balancing Work & Family - Kim Parker & Wendy Wang, PewResearch

The Retro Wife - Lisa Miller, New York Magazine

The Retro Wife Opts Out: What Has Changed and What Still Needs To - Lisa Belkin, HuffPost

Finding the Next Sheryl Sandberg - Jonathan Wai, Psychology Today

After Steubenville, Raising Children Who Will Speak Up - Avital N. Nathman, NYT

My Child Can't Read! - Peg Tyre, GreatSchools.org

Is Divorce Bad for Children? - Arkowitz & Lilienfeld, Scientific American

Learning

Improving Executive Function - Annie Murphy Paul, Creativity Post

The Marshmallow Test - Steven Novella, Neurologica

How Middle School Failures Lead to Medical School Success - J. Lahey & T. Lahey, The Atlantic

Why Do Some Children Struggle with Math? - Daniel Willingham, Science & Education Blog

Do 1 in 50 Kids Have Autism Spectrum Disorder? - Richard Rende, PhD, Red Hot Parenting

Sleep, the Adolescent Brain, and Mature Thinking - ScienceDaily

Why Kids Don't Notice Approaching Cars - Gwen Dewar, PhD, BabyCenter

Education

How Your School Compares Internationally - Stu Silberman, Education Week

Why Do We Suspend Misbehaving Students - Brian Palmer, Slate

More Teachers Are Grouping Kids by Ability - Greg Toppo, USA Today

Fight About Obama's Pre-K Plan Is Not Just About Money - Barbara Beatty, Huff Post

Minecraft in School? How Cool! - Christina Barron, Washington Post

Experts Make a Case for Later School Start Times - Gina Cairney, Education Week

60% of Adults Who Took Standardized Test Bombed - Valarie Strauss, Washington Post

Who's Afraid of Big Data? - Aaron Pallas, Hechinger Report

A Survey of Parents About College - Scott Jaschik, Inside Higher Ed

Resources

Minimalist Parenting: Getting Things Done Meets Childrearing - Cory Doctorow, Boing Boing

20 Terrific Presentation Tech Tools for Kids - Erik Klein, Kleinspiration

Kids Can Vote for Children's Choice Book Awards - Maryann Yin, GalleyCat

The Awesome PBS Parents Play & Learn App. Are You Surprised? - coolmomtech

Supporting Students Reading Shakespeare, 2 Apps - Mary Ann Scheuer, Great Kids Books

8 Best Apps for Preschoolers on Both iOS and Android - coolmomtech

PCM's Top Articles of the Week

The hot topic this week was Universal Pre-K, (a PCM Top 10 Education Policy), put forward by the President in the SOTU. The question: Is Pre-K worth the cost? Hear from James Heckman, the Nobel laureate in economics whose bedrock research the President mentioned, Fareed Zakaria, and Ellen Galinsky, a work and family scholar. ● Get familiar with research findings issued this week on early exposure to math concepts, educational TV, and GPA. ● Read current information about bullying, how confusion aids learning, testing into gifted programs, and schools’ hypersensitive reactions to kids faking gunplay. ● Don’t miss the video of the amazing 3D doodling pen.

Parenting

What the Heck is Your Kid's Teacher Talking About? The Glossary - Emma Brown, WashPost

Bullying, Can We Teach Kids Not to Be Bystanders? - Emily Bazelon, Slate

Schools Wrangle with Tolerance for Kids Faking Gunplay - Michael Rubinkam, AP, USA Today

From 'Flipped Classrooms' to Flipped Households - Anne Collier, NetFamilyNews

Don't Rule Out Having Children Because You Want a Career - Anne-Marie Slaughter, The Atlantic

Helicopter Parenting and Kid's Self-Image - Rick Nauert, PhD, PsycCentral

Learning

Early Exposure to Math Concepts Is Vital to Avoid Innumeracy - Celia Baker, Deseret News

Hanging Out with Smart Students Ups GPA - Karen Hopkin, Scientific American

What Predicts College GPA? - Daniel Willingham, Science and Education Blog

Why Feeling Confused Will Help You Learn Better - Annie Murphy Paul, Brilliant Blog

3-Year Olds Know Better Than You Give Credit - Christie Nicholson, Scientific American

What Do Educational TV Shows Really Teach Preschoolers? - ScienceDaily

Education

Schools Ask: Gifted or Well-Prepared? - Jenny Anderson, New York Times

How Charters Get the Students They Want - Stephanie Simon, Reuters

Equal Opportunity, Our National Myth - Joseph E. Stiglitz, New York Times

Beat Inequality with Preschool - Fareed Zakaria, CNN

Preschool for All: Getting It Right - Ellen Galinsky, Huffington Post

James Heckman, Nobel laureate in Econ, on Preschool Research - Christina Samuels, Ed Week

Laura Bush Pursues Ambitious Education Agenda - Peter Meyer, Education Next

Sal Khan on His Famous Online Academy - Valerie Strauss, Washington Post

Interview with Daniel Pink: Teachers as Persuaders - Larry Ferlazzo, Education Week

Resources

2012 Cybils Book Awards Announced! - Cybils.com

2012 Cybils App Awards Announced! - Carisa Kluver, Digital Media Diet

Toy Fair 2013: What's New in Lego - Amy Craft, GeekMom

Oscar Week: 7 Resources on Film Literacy - Matt Davis, edutopia

New Picture Books I'm Loving - Melissa Taylor, Imagination Soup

3D Doodling Pen Lets You Draw Objects [1 min. Video] - NewScientist

Free Kits Help 10-Year-Olds See Their DNA - Helene Brazier-Mitouart, Scientific American

Top Children's Book Award Winners (2012)

These books are the 2012 winners of PCM's Top 10 Children's Book Awards. You can depend on their high quality. The Hans Christian Andersen Award, considered the “Nobel Prize" in children's literature, is given to both an author and an illustrator for their lifelong contribution, not to one of their specific works.

1. Newbery Medal Winner for 2012

Dead End in Norvelt By Jack Gantos For Ages 10-14 The importance of history and reading (so you don’t do the same “stupid stuff” again) is at the heart of this achingly funny romp through a dying New Deal town. While mopping up epic nose bleeds, Jack narrates this screw-ball mystery in an endearing and believable voice.

2. Caldecott Medal Winner for 2012

A Ball for Daisy Written and Illustrated by Chris Raschka For Ages 3-8 In a wordless book with huge children’s appeal, Chris Raschka gives us the story of an irrepressible little dog whose most prized possession is accidently destroyed.

3. Hans Christian Andersen Award Winners for 2012

María Teresa Andruetto Author Award From Argentina The awards jury cited Andruetto’s “mastery in writing important and original works that are strongly focused on aesthetics. Her books relate to a great variety of topics, such as migration, inner worlds, injustice, love, poverty, violence or political affairs.” She was selected from a list of 27 nominated authors.

Peter Sis Illustrator Award From Czech Republic The jury praised Sís’s “extraordinary originality and deep creative power to relate highly complex stories that can be interpreted on many different levels,” noting “his use of different design and artistic techniques.” He was chosen from 30 nominated illustrators. He is the first children’s book illustrator to win the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship.

4. Horn Book Awards for 2012

Extra Yarn By Mac Barnett, Illustrated by Jon Klassen Picture Book Award Winner, for ages 4-7 When young Annabelle finds a small box containing a never-ending supply of yarn of every color, she does what any self-respecting knitter would do: she knits herself a sweater. Then she knits a sweater for...

No Crystal Stair By Waunda Micheauz Nelson, Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie Fiction Award Winner, for ages 12+ Lewis Michaux opened the National Memorial African Bookstore in Harlem at the end of the Great Depression with an inventory of five books and a strong faith that black people were hungry for knowledge. His store became a central...

Chuck Close: Face Book Written and illustrated by Chuck Close Nonfiction Award Winner, for ages 8+ Chuck Close’s art is easy to describe and especially attractive to children because he creates only portraits—in almost every possible medium...In this Q&A–style narrative, Close himself answers with a clear voice without a hint of famous-artist self-aggrandizement or angst.

5. National Book Award-Young People's Literature, 2012

Goblin Secrets By William Alexander For Ages 8+ Rownie, the youngest in Graba the witchworker's household of stray children, escapes and goes looking for his missing brother. Along the way he falls in with a troupe of theatrical goblins and learns the secret origins of masks. Now Graba's birds are hunting him in the Southside of Zombay, the Lord Mayor's guards are searching for him in Northside, and the River...

6. Coretta Scott King Award for 2012

Heart and Soul By Kadir Nelson Author Award Winner, for ages 10+ The story is told from the viewpoint of an elderly woman who shares her life story while highlighting pivotal historical events including abolition, the Great Migration, World War II, and the Civil Rights movement.

Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom Illustrated by Shane W. Evans Illustrator Award Winner, for ages 4+ Effective interplay of dark and light—dark blues and greens that represent fear and oppression; bright golds that signal the joy of freedom—characterizes this portrayal of a band of slaves’ nighttime escape. They run, rest, get help from others, and...

7. Jefferson Cup Award for 2012

Okay for Now By Gary D. Schmidt Young Adult Award Winner, For Ages 10+ Schmidt is able to sensitively craft a story about a fractured family that starts to put the pieces together in ways that are perhaps a little unexpected. There are moments in this book that will make the reader cry interwoven with moments that will lead to laughter, making it a wonderful story that deserves...

Balloons over Broadway By Melissa Sweet Juvenile Award Winner, for ages 4+ Melissa Sweet takes the true Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade and uses watercolor paintings and mixed media collage to bring this story to life.

8. Pura Belpre Award for 2012

Under the Mesquite By Guadalupe Garcia McCall Author Award Winner, for ages 12+ Garcia McCall, writing in emotionally riveting free verse, gracefully conveys the experience of growing up in a bicultural community in Texas with geographical accuracy and a radiating authentic voice for its main protagonist 14-year-old Lupita, the oldest of 8 children who is dealing with her mother’s terminal illness.

Diego Rivera: His World and Ours Written and illustrated by Duncan Tonatiuh Illustrator Award Winner, for ages 5+ Highlights the accomplishments of Mexican painter, activist, and muralist Diego Rivera. Through eye-catching digital collage, Tonatiuh juxtaposes contemporary Mexican life with the past.

9. The Hugo Award for 2012

Among Others By Joe Walton For Young Adults Startling, unusual, and yet irresistibly readable, Among Others is at once the compelling story of a young woman struggling to escape a troubled childhood, a brilliant diary of first encounters with the great novels of modern fantasy and SF, and a spellbinding tale of escape from ancient enchantment.

10. Children's Choice Book Awards for 2012

Three Hens and a Peacock By Lester L. Laminack, Illustrated by Henry Cole K-2 Book of the Year Nothing unusual ever happened on the Tuckers farm. Until the day that peacock showed up...When a glamorous visitor lands unexpectedly in their midst and begins attracting customers, three hardworking hens protest: How come we do all the hard work and he gets all the attention?

Bad Kitty Meets the Baby By Nick Bruel Grade 3-4 Book of the Year Kitty's owners are home with a big surprise for Kitty. But what is it? Kitty, reeling in horror, thinks it’s a . . . dog. The neighbor cats are convinced it’s a cat. But we all know that it’s really a BABY! With Nick Bruel’s trademark mix of antic humor, this may be the funniest Kitty book yet, and the one that hits closest to home.

Bad Island By Doug TenNapel Grade 5-6 Book of the Year Something on this island is up to no good? When Reese is forced to go on a boating trip with his family, the last thing he expects is to be shipwrecked on an island-especially one teeming with weird plants and animals. But what starts out as simply a bad vacation turns into a terrible one, as the castaways must find a way to escape...

Clockwork Prince: The Infernal Devices, Book 2 By Cassandra Clare Teen Book of the Year True love is shrouded in secrets and lies in the #1 New York Times bestselling second book of the Infernal Devices trilogy. In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced...

Diary of a Wimpy Kid 6: Cabin Fever By Jeff Kinney, for ages 9+ Author of the Year Greg Heffley is in big trouble. School property has been damaged, and Greg is the prime suspect. But the crazy thing is, he's innocent. Or at least sort of. The authorities are closing in, but when a surprise blizzard hits, the Heffley family is trapped indoors. Greg knows that when the snow melts he's going to have to face the music...

Wonderstruck By Brian Selznick Illustrator of the Year Playing with the form he created in his trailblazing debut novel, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Brian Selznick once again sails into uncharted territory and takes readers on an awe-inspiring journey. Ben and Rose secretly wish their lives were different. Ben longs for the father he has never known. Rose dreams of a mysterious actress...