Selecting books for kids can be fun, but it’s not always easy. The world of children’s books is vast and as varied as its audience. Matching a young reader with the book they’ll fall in love with is itself a labor of love. Luckily, children’s authors are happy to help, and every year they publish […]

The city of Pittsburgh is a great place to be a kid. Growing up in Pittsburgh means year-round sports games, long afternoons exploring wooded parks and field trips spent in planetariums, zoos and even submarines. But our best resource of all? Our people -- especially our teachers.

If you’re a part of the Spark network, you know that we’re always on the lookout for innovative tech tools. Last week, we showcased five unique tools that helped students and adults get creative in some seriously inspiring ways. This week, we’d like to shine a spotlight on four more new digital devices. From wireless […]

If you've been following this blog, we don't need to tell you that tech tools are a great way to make learning fun. You already know this, and if you're a parent, teacher, caregiver or simply a lifelong learner, you probably have your own strategies for making the most of digital learning tools in your daily life.

Curiosity's landing on Mars has re-lit our collective imagination and will.i.am captures that spirit in song

If there's a single tool that can get kids excited about the 2012 Presidential Election, Play the Election is it.

After nearly fifteen years of therapists working tirelessly to wrestle the hellish apparition from the nation’s collective psyche, Furby is back. While the Hasbro team is excited to debut the toy’s new app features and design, the public seems to have the same reaction to Furby’s rerelease that they had after watching the tenth Jason […]

SparkTruck, an “educational build-mobile” is traveling across the country bringing unforgettable experiences to kids across the country, with stops in Pittsburgh September 12 - 15

Like super powers or gadgets designed by Lucius Fox, social media sites are tools that can be used for good or evil. In the wrong hands, they become weapons for bullying, platforms for hate, or, at the very least, black holes that easily swallow the most productive hours of your workweek. In the right hands, […]

Gamification -- what is it? Check out the five inforgraphics we've rounded up for a visual explanation.

Jackie Gerstein, Ed.D. has proposed a new learning structure that puts tinkering front and center in 'The Flipped Classroom'

The Fred Rogers Company releases a compilation DVD entitled Friends and Feelings to help children with autism build social and emotional skills.

How can we adapt teaching strategies to meet the changing needs and interests of students?

Teaching and learning by making and doing

Did you attend the Spark Network Launch Event on Monday? If you did, you got the inside scoop on the big changes that are happening here at Spark. Our friends at Pittsburgh Filmmakers are helping us create a video to document the event and to distill some of the ideas that were shared there. In the […]