Taking kids to "grown-up" movies

My friend Tony (I met him at the Telluride Film Festival and though I like to refer to him as "my friend Tony" he is only that in my imagination) has written an excellent article in today's New York Times on taking kids to movies. Talk about lifelong learning--kids thrive on challenging thematic matter just as adults do.

And may I heartily agree with Tony's views on Persepolis, Juno, Diving Bell and the Butterfly (photo at right), No Country for Old Men, and Into the Wild. All films not to be missed.

7.5 habits

Easy for me is number 1:
Begin with the end in mind (which was why my first post had nothing to do with the actual directions for the excersise--I'm not big on the details).

And number 3:
View problems as challenges. If I didn't view problems as challenges and as learning experiences, I'd probably be tearing my hair out!

Actually the only one that might be difficult is number 5:
Create your own learning toolbox. I'll do this in some way, but it won't be something I spend any time thinking about.

Musings on Highly Successful Lifelong Learners

I'm glad to hear that lifelong learning includes "yoga, cooking, dancing, and reading"--I'm all about those activities! I think movies should be added to the list however.

Libraries can provide our constituents with many different opportunities for lifelong learning. There are the traditional individual opportunities at the library--read a book, newspaper or magazine, research a new car, fill out an online job application--but I like the group learning experiences even better. Before the holidays we screened The Fire Next Time, a documentary about the Flathead that focuses on the strife between different groups in our community. After the screening at the Whitefish Branch there was a fascinating discussion about growth, streamside setbacks, sustainable logging, the changing face of the Flathead. I learned a LOT, most of which came from 25 - 40 yr. old men who either grew up here or who have worked in the northwest outdoors for many years. This was a good example of accidental learning; the stage was set but I had no idea what to expect. A very SUCCESSFUL learning experience!

And the screening has even sparked some pretty contentious comments at our weekly newspaper, the Flathead Beacon, since they ran a story after the screening at the Main Library. It's almost embarassing, these comments; I'm almost regretting embedding the link. But we can learn from these comments too.