Amy's Academics

05/14/2026

05/14/2026

A new report released Wednesday suggests students in U.S. schools are performing worse than their peers a decade ago, and it isn't entirely due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read more: https://abcnews.visitlink.me/EpB5tw

05/06/2026

Unlock potential with inclusive hiring 💼✨

Join us June 3 for a Lunch & Learn with Illinois Valley Industries—great food, powerful insights, and a stronger community.

Reserve your spot today! https://www.chamberdata.net/webforms/EvtListing.aspx?dbid2=ilgrun&evtid=21940&class=B

05/06/2026

Free opportunity!

05/06/2026

Rebecca Kockler is right — and the research backs it up.

Only 30% of 8th graders in the U.S. read proficiently. Many need explicit instruction in multisyllabic decoding and morphology — skills too often dropped after 3rd grade.

Brainspring's Structures® training equips grades 4–12 educators to deliver exactly that: explicit, multisensory, Orton-Gillingham instruction built for older struggling readers.

35+ years in literacy. Dually accredited by IMSLEC and IDA.

Read the K-12 Dive coverage: https://www.k12dive.com/news/older-readers-literacy-academic-standards-AERDF-report/815682/

Older readers don't age out of needing structured literacy. Learn more 👉 https://brainspring.com/structures-iiod/

05/06/2026

05/05/2026

I share this research at school meetings frequently.
Do NOT tap out words!!! It makes it more difficult to learn to read.

04/28/2026

The Los Angeles Unified School District’s board voted to restrict students’ use of laptops and tablets in class and encourage pen-and-paper assignments instead, making it the first major American school system to do so.

The sweeping resolution, which passed 6-0 with one recusal, requires the district to create a screen time policy for each grade and subject, prohibit students in first grade and younger from using devices, clarify the process for parents to opt their child out of using technology at school, and audit its education technology contracts.

The resolution is a remarkable change in direction for the nation’s second-largest school district following several years of investment in education technology, or ed tech, which was championed by Superintendent Alberto Carvalho.

Read more: nbcnews.to/4vGgsbT

04/28/2026

A small but groundbreaking study from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology used advanced 256-electrode EEG nets to peek inside our brains while writing. They found when you write words by hand, brain regions light up in elaborate patterns--- connecting visual, motor, and sensory inputs in a symphony of engagement. But when you type those very same words, reaction in these vital areas is more minimal. The physical act of forming letters—feeling the pen, applying pressure, seeing thoughts emerge into unique shapes you create—demands a complex sensorimotor experience that deeply engages your brain, enhancing learning, memory, and even fine motor skills in ways simple key presses just can't replicate.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38343894/