The Scout Report -- Volume 25, Number 18

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), first released in 2013, are K-12 science education standards that were developed to take advantage of students' innate curiosity and enable them to "learn science by doing science." Along with new standards comes a need to update how students' learning is assessed. Teachers and administrators who are interested in the NGSS (or who are already using them) may find Seeing Students Learn Science helpful in integrating assessments into their science curricula. This 2017 report from the National Academies Press, authored by Alexandra Beatty and Heidi Schweingruber, provides examples of assessment formats and ways to incorporate them into classroom activities, as well as suggestions for interpreting and using the assessment information. This report also offers "ideas and questions educators can use to reflect on what they can adapt right away and what they can work toward more gradually." Those interested can read the 124-page report online or download it as a PDF for free at the above link; it is also available to purchase in hard copy or as an eBook. [JDC]

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Frederick Law Olmsted (1822-1903) is perhaps best known as the acclaimed and influential landscape architect who designed Central Park in New York City, but his activities and influence extended far beyond that. In addition to being the founder of landscape architecture, Olmsted was also an urban and suburban planner, conservationist, writer, and reformer, as well as an early advocate of the need for public green spaces in urban environments. Readers interested in learning more about Olmsted's life and activities should visit this collection of his personal papers, which was digitized by the Library of Congress and made available to the public in July 2018. This broad-ranging collection contains about 24,000 items (approximately 47,000 images) and spans the years 1777 to 1952, with the majority of items dating from 1838-1903. Some of what readers will find here includes family journals and personal correspondence, documents from Olmsted's travels to Europe and China, and numerous items relating to Olmsted's career as a landscape architect, such as project proposals, drawings, maps, and design recommendations. Visitors will also find numerous links to relevant teaching resources and finding aids. [JDC]

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Readers who appreciate the beauty of mathematics but who are also short on time may want to check out Maths in a Minute. This article series from Plus Magazine (last featured in the 8-22-2014 Scout Report) "explores key mathematical concepts in just a few words." Here, visitors will find dozens of fairly short pieces explaining a wide variety of mathematical concepts in approachable ways. Recent topics include the math behind Sydney's famous opera house, an exploration of the best method for sorting a stack of pancakes by size using only a spatula, and an introduction to the concept of higher dimensions. Articles are typically accompanied by images and links to additional information for those who would like to explore further. Many of the Maths in a Minute pieces are written by the magazine's editors, Marianne Freiberger and Rachel Thomas, and the series also occasionally features contributions from guest mathematicians. [JDC]

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As society has become more aware of the importance of mental health, a number of mobile apps purporting to provide mental health benefits have entered the marketplace. But, how credible are they? And how reassuring are their privacy policies (particularly in the wake of events such as the Equifax data breach)? One resource which aims to answer these questions is PsyberGuide, a project of the non-profit organization One Mind, which advocates for collaboration in neuroscience. This project is intended to "help people make responsible and informed decisions about apps and other digital tools for mental health by providing unbiased reviews." As of this write-up, PsyberGuide has 187 apps and digital tools on its list, which includes ratings for their credibility based on scientific research, their user experience, and the transparency of their privacy policies. Many apps also have in-depth reviews written by relevant medical experts. By default, the list is sorted by credibility, but visitors can also sort it by name, user experience, or transparency. Results can also be filtered by platform, cost (many of the listed apps are free), intended audience, treatment type, and health condition. [JDC]

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The Frans Hals Museum operates from two sites in Haarlem, the Netherlands, that were united under the Frans Hals Museum name in 2018: the Hof and the Hal. The Hof houses works collected by the city beginning in the 1600s and the Hal exhibits contemporary art. In 2013, the museum celebrated its centennial; Curator of Modern Art Antoon Erftemeijer stated that because the collection at the Frans Hals Museum was established over 400 years ago, it could be called the "oldest art museum in the Netherlands." The online collection allows visitors to explore digital versions of over 12,000 artworks and historical objects and can be browsed by color, time period, medium, and artist. There are also listings for current exhibitions, such as Museum in Bloom, where floral arrangements are paired with works of art throughout the museum. Another current exhibit is Haarlem Heroes: Other Artists, which includes additional artists whose work make up the collections, such as Judith Leyster's Portrait of an Unknown Woman, 1635. The museum's website is highly optimized for mobile viewing; for some viewers, the site may be easier to use on a phone or tablet than a computer. [DS]

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In 1992, the US Congress designated May to be celebrated annually as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month, intending it to honor the heritage of the entire continent of Asia as well as the many cultures of Micronesia and Polynesia. Here, visitors will find a web portal featuring a large collection of digital resources related to this commemorative month, drawn from participating agencies such as the Library of Congress, the National Archives, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. For example, under the exhibits and collections tab, readers will find links to dozens of resources about the Asian-American experience from the perspectives of a variety of cultures, as well as information about different parts of Asia and the Pacific Islands. Educators may be interested in the for teachers section, where they will find links to numerous resources that may be useful in the classroom. Other parts of this site feature audio, video, and images of interest to general audiences. As this project notes, "This site presents only a sample of the digital and physical holdings related to Asian/Pacific heritage available from the Library of Congress and other participating agencies," and it provides an excellent starting point for anyone interested in this topic. [JDC]

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As part of its Teaching with Historic Places program, the National Park Service has created this lesson plan centered around Iolani Palace in Honolulu, Hawai'i. Now designated as a National Historic Landmark, Iolani Palace was "the official residence and capitol of the last ruling monarchs of the Kingdom of Hawai'i" prior to the United States taking control of the Hawaiian islands in 1898. In this lesson, students use primary and secondary source documents, as well as maps and historical photographs to learn about this history of the annexation of Hawai'i from both the American and the Hawaiian perspectives. This lesson plan is designed to be used with students in grades 5-12, and it is aligned with National History and National Social Studies Standards. Here, visitors can download the full 44-page lesson as a PDF, which includes readings, question sets, and post-lesson activities for deeper engagement. Readers will also find downloadable image files used in the lesson and links to several other relevant online resources. This lesson was published in 2016 and written by Ben Hurwitz, who at the time was a doctoral candidate in history at George Mason University, and edited by Teaching with Historic Places staff. [JDC]

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Asian America: The Ken Fong Podcast describes itself as "a weekly show that explores the cultural, artistic, historical, and spiritual aspects of the Asian American community." Since May 2015, third-generation Chinese American and retired pastor Ken Fong has interviewed "movers and shakers in the Asian American community." This wide-ranging group includes well-known figures such as actor and activist George Takei (Episode 142) and Broadway and television actress June Angela (Episode 126). Also included are some you may not have heard of, such as Sarah Park Dahlen, an associate professor of library science at St. Catherine University (Episode 144), and diversity expert and teacher Rosetta Lee (Episode 118). Episodes typically range from 60 to 90 minutes in length, and each begins with Fong sharing a personal anecdote and some of his own musings before moving into the main interview, which Fong conducts with skill, sensitivity, and humor. Those interested can stream or download episodes at the link above and listeners can also subscribe to Asian America via Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, and other podcast platforms. As of this write-up, more than 180 episodes are available. [JDC]

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Librarians, teachers, parents, and caregivers may all find Kitaabworld to be a helpful resource on children's literature that features South Asian cultures. The site notes that "kitaab" means "book" in multiple South Asian languages and thus inspired its name. Kitaabworld aims to "mak[e] South Asian children's literature more accessible and easily available in the US," as well as "to spread awareness about South Asian culture, and provide resources for teachers, librarians and parents." Visitors to Kitaabworld may want to start by checking out the site's blog, where they will find curated book lists on themes such as diversity, various South Asian cultural holidays, and books that feature Muslim kids as heroes, as well as interviews with authors and articles on South Asian publishers. Educators may also be interested in Kitaabworld's collection of free lesson plans centered around South Asian literature, which are organized thematically and indicate the intended age range. Most (if not all) of the featured books are also available to purchase for those interested. Launched in 2016, Kitaabworld was founded by Gauri Manglik and Sadaf Siddique. [JDC]

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A project of the Diasporic Vietnamese Artists' Network, diaCRITICS is a group blog that "highlights art, literature, and stories from writers, artists, and culture-makers of the Vietnamese and Southeast Asian diaspora, on and from all shores." First-time visitors to diaCRITICS may like to begin by navigating to the about section for a helpful overview of this project's mission and the scope of their work. The blog's content is wide-ranging and includes reviews of books and performances, essays exploring aspects of diasporic identities and experiences, and profiles interviewing (mostly) artists and writers in the diasporic community. Creative formats such as poetry, original fiction, photography, and comics can also be found here. While the majority of diaCRITICS is written in English, those who speak (or are learning) Vietnamese may be pleased to know that one section of the site is written in that language. diaCRITICS was founded by the Vietnamese-American author Viet Thanh Nguyen, who is perhaps best known for his Pulitzer-winning debut novel The Sympathizer. [JDC]

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We last featured this remarkable digital archive in the 1-26-2018 Scout Report, and it continues to be an excellent resource for anyone wishing to learn about this period of history and the people it affected.

From the University of California's Bancroft Library, with financial support from the National Park Service, comes this powerful digital archive dedicated to the experiences of Japanese-Americans who were incarcerated in internment camps during World War II. This collection features almost 150,000 documents, including papers, photographs, maps, and personal archives from the Bancroft Library. These documents have been digitized by Calisphere and the Online Archive of California. The collection includes the personal papers of writer Yoshiko Uchida (Invisible Thread; Picture Bride), who was interned at camps in California and Utah; the papers of California attorney general Robert Walker Kenney; and a collection of recorded interviews with individuals who spent time in internment camps (available in the multimedia section). In addition to viewing this collection through Calisphere and the Online Archive of California, visitors can explore this collection by internment camp via an interactive map.

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