Cursive is being reintroduced in schools: handwriting is making a comeback
In April, Pennsylvania schools will return to cursive. A law was passed in February making cursive writing a mandatory subject alongside reading, history, and math. The requirement applies to public and private schools. Pennsylvania abandoned cursive in the early 2010s when it transitioned to Common Core standards. Previously, the focus was on keyboarding. Why is this necessary? According to […]
New York City schools are monitoring bathroom trips through an app
Going to the toilet during class is a normal situation. However, it may surprise you to learn that going to the bathroom is now being monitored. According to the New York Post, more than 150 public schools in New York City have connected the SmartPass system. The app records how much time a student has spent outside of class. This includes counting time in the restroom. Teachers see this in real time. [...]
Russian language for oneself: not for work, but for a child's inner growth
Why does a child need Russian if he lives in another country? Many parents in the United States and beyond wonder about this. If everything is clear with math, then not so much with language. Usually the conversation comes down to career. If you work with Russia and other countries where they speak Russian. However, this is far from the main argument. Language is a heritage Children, [...]
Schools enhance students' physical development
Children are moving less. According to the WHO, about eight out of ten schoolchildren in the world do not even reach the minimum recommended physical activity per day. Pandemic has added its own. Two years of distance education has not gone unnoticed. Earlier, experts concluded that children need a real change. Now there is another confirmation of this from the American Torrington. There, too, faced [....]
Why is a real break important for children
Imagine: For several years, you sit at a desk all day, trying not to fidget and listen to the teacher. And finally, it's recess. But instead of running outside, you stay in the building, staring at a screen. For millions of American children, this is a typical school day. According to the New York Post, there's serious talk in New York about making recess a […].
US Bank invests in teachers, not schools.
It sounds unusual, but that is how it works: a large American bank, Huntington National Bank, invested in teachers. Not in textbooks, not in equipment - in the teachers themselves. In March 2026, more than a hundred teachers in the Great Lakes Bay region became the first participants in the Ignite the Classroom program in their region. A year of teaching is [....]
Why do bilingual children often mix languages, and is it okay?
This is called code-switching. The term from a sociolinguistics textbook sounds complicated, but there is a simple meaning behind it. The human brain is complex enough that you can simply divide it into parts and store information in compartments. It doesn't work that way, especially for bilinguals who have multiple speech patterns at once. They exist side by side and both are active. The brain adapts [...]
Why is learning easier in the spring: psychology, biology, and language
The seasons change a person. Some days you may not notice it, but one day your favorite book starts to feel like an impossible burden. It's all about biochemistry. Serotonin is the main reason for the spring upswing. Its synthesis is directly dependent on sunlight. Photons hit the retina, the signal goes to the hypothalamus. As a consequence, the production of neurotransmitter increases. In winter, the daylight hours are much shorter, because of [...].
At what age is it best to start teaching a child Russian: A stage-by-stage breakdown
This question is asked by almost all parents who have bilingual children at home. Some are in a hurry - they start at the age of two, in parallel with their mother tongue. Others put it off: «Let the main language get stronger first, then we will start Russian». Who is right? If we look at how children's brains are organized, the picture is much more concrete than it seems. What is going on in the head of the [...]
Early Black Friday 2025: what discounts on Palme School tuition are waiting for you this year
You probably know what Black Friday is and what it's all about, but if you don't, we have a separate article on the subject, you can read it here. Officially, Black Friday is November 28, but the dates of discounts in the U.S. can vary: sales begin in late October and end in early December. In this article [....]