East Chicago Central High School history teacher Gale Carter was chosen, along with 19 other teachers, to participate in a 21-day study tour in China, administered by the National Consortium for Teaching about Asia (NCTA) and the Indiana University East Asia Studies Center. The 3-week tour included six cities (Beijing, Xi’an, Kunming, Dali, Lijiang, Shangri-La and Shanghai), three boat cruises, a midnight train ride, a ride in a rickshaw, and an unforgettable ride on a yak in the mountains of Shangri-La.

The group toured traditional sights such as the Great Well, the Terra Cotta Warriors, the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, as well as newer sights like the 2008 Olympic Bird’s Nest stadium and the Water Bubble. They also observed time-honored crafts like calligraphy and silk-, pottery- and noodle-making. Evenings were spent at cultural events like acrobatic performances, the opera and the symphony.

Public schools see decline in enrollment as charter schools grow

Fifth-grader He' Shawn Hicks works on math problems in Laura Charpentier's class at Charter School of the Dunes in Gary. The school and Thea Bowman Leadership Academy are up for renewal this year. (Photography by Heather Eidson.)

Over time, charter schools can perform just as well, if not better, than traditional public schools, proponents of charter schools said. Charter schools operate with more freedom from regulations than their traditional counterparts, and most follow a particular educational vision or charter.

There is high demand for these schools in urban areas where there is a perception that traditional public schools are not as successful. In the state, charter schools are clustered in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne and Gary. But Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett said it should not be a question of better or worse.

Sledding and ice-skating in Northwest Indiana

As a thin layer of frost makes its way across the glass and the walls creak and groan against the assault of the elements, the temptation grows. Birds do it. Bees do it. So why shouldn’t we all take the forbidding winter weather as a cue to snuggle in and reacquaint ourselves with the warm, cozy joys of the great indoors? It seems clear, after all, that Mother Nature is not terribly interested in playing with us, so perhaps it’s best to simply respect her wishes and check back in March or April when she might be feeling a bit more reasonable.

The pull of hibernation, of course, only seems to grow as we get older. A workweek spent battling the snow and ice in the course of our daily grind only serves to breed a general lack of patience with the season, making the bunker of hearth and home that much more attractive an option by the time Saturday rolls around. But here, as is so often the case, kids tend to provide the necessary sense of perspective that adults seem to lose with the passage of time.

Mentoring young girls in the underrepresented areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics

A study from the National Council for Research on Women found that although 45 percent of the work force is comprised of females, careers in science and engineering are still held primarily by men, who make up 88 percent of the work force in those areas.

For years it was a common belief that boys excelled in math and science areas and that females didn’t grasp the concepts as easily. However, a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Wisconsin, Madison, shows that girls’ performance on standardized tests now matches that of boys at the high school level. It stated that about 20 years ago, the genders were equal in those areas in elementary school, but that girls lagged behind at the high school level. That change is partly attributed to the larger numbers of girls now taking advanced math and science courses in high school.

Teen cast conveys power and emotion of WWII story

Anne Frank (Mallory Swisher) attempts to comfort Peter Van Daan (Grant Sheridan) after an embarrassing quarrel between his parents in a scene from the Lowell High School production of The Diary of Anne Frank. (Photograph courtesy of Lowell High School.)

The inspiring story of a young Jewish girl in hiding from the Nazis during World War II will come to life on the Lowell High School stage as the school’s Theatre Arts Department presents The Diary of Anne Frank by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett.

Performances are set for 6 p.m. Thursday, 7 p.m. Nov. 20 and 21, and 2 p.m. Nov. 22 in the LHS auditorium, 2051 E. Commercial Ave. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for students and senior citizens. All tickets are available at the box office 45 minutes prior to the performance.

The play brings to life the well-known and often read diary that Anne Frank wrote while in hiding for two years in Germany.

Profiles of three exceptional Northwest Indiana leaders: Tyler Goodman, Rudy Becerra and Micayla Watroba.

Tyler Goodman, 11

Tyler Goodman is a familiar face at Boys and Girls Clubs of Porter County’s South Haven Unit.

Since becoming a member three years ago, Goodman has become a regular, going to the club each day it is open. When he’s not meeting friends or playing in the game room, he likes helping out the staff. He’ll pitch in to clean up messes, pick up in the lounge or even work the phones at the front desk if asked.

His club dedication has been recognized three times with a Member of the Month award, which recognizes members for outstanding behavior and positive involvement in the club.

THIS WEEK’S FEATURED EVENT

Nov 21: Winter Lights
Sunset Hill Farm County Park, Valparaiso | The Winter Lights celebration at Sunset Hill Farm will include music, crafts, cookie decorating, a visit from Santa, a holiday reading corner and many other children’s activities. The event will conclude with fireworks. Find out more here.

ALSO THIS WEEK

• Ongoing: Holly Days in downtown Valparaiso

• Ongoing: Santa Claus in Crown Point in the Lower Level Courthouse Shops of Old Courthouse in Crown Point

• Through Nov 29: Kids Activities and Stories at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore Visitor Center

• Through Dec 6: Dooby Dooby Moo at Lifeline Theatre in Chicago

• Through Dec 20: The Christmas Schooner at the Center for the Visual and Performing Arts in Munster

• Through Jan 10: A Christmas Story Comes Home at the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority in Hammond

• Through Mar 14: Free Ice Skating at Millennium Park in Chicago

• Nov 20: Annual Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony on the east steps of the Old Courthouse in downtown Crown Point

• Opens Nov 20: Snow Much Fun at the Chicago Children’s Museum in Chicago

• Nov 20-Dec 6: Roald Dahl’s Willy Wonka at the Chicago Street Theatre in Valparaiso

• Nov 20-Jan 3: Christmas around the World and Holidays of Light at the Museum of Science and Industry of Chicago

• Nov 21: 8th Annual Holiday Shopping Spree & Craft Show at the Kahler Middle School in Dyer

• Nov 21: Snow White at The Center for Performing Arts at Governors State University

• Nov 21-22: The Nutcracker at East Chicago Central High School

• Nov 24: Up at the Lake County Public Library in Hobart

• Nov 25-29: Orak Shrine Circus at Hammond Civic Center in Hammond

• Nov 26: State Street Thanksgiving Day Parade on State St from Randolph to Congress in Chicago

It’s hard to believe, but soon the holidays will be here, and we find ourselves smack dab in the middle of a recession, some of us living on a shoestring. For many people, there won’t be the usual big splashy holidays, but rather, we pray for good weather and hope the economy will bounce back.

For families with children, this recession is particularly taxing. Children are the forgotten victims. And yet, they endure perhaps not enough food, no new clothes or shoes, frequent moving to lower rent places which means constant changing of schools. Changing schools is traumatic for children and can contribute to them earning poor grades. A certain apathy about school descends on them.

Recession, and its subsequent consequences, is a difficult concept for children to grasp. Not only can it affect their education, but their health, psychological development, and medical care.

Meals. Bedtime. Discipline. The reasons parents clash over the kids are endless, especially now that more unemployed dads are filling in for back-to-work moms as the bad economy grinds through a second year.

Nerves are definitely taut on today’s home front, compounding the challenge for parents looking to navigate and negotiate disparate views on child-rearing.

“I’ve never seen such stress in parents and families,” said Michele Borba, a psychologist and mother of three boys who has written 22 books on parenting. “The recession is causing stress, number one. And number two, it’s a pressure-packed world. Parents are very often at that level when they think being a to-do list is more important than who they are.”

Indiana Youth Ballet presents The Nutcracker

The colorful and comical Mother Ginger scene from Indiana Youth Ballet’s 2008 production of The Nutcracker features some of the youngest cast members from Northwest Indiana and Chicagoland. (Photograph provided by the Indiana Youth Ballet.)

Featuring dancers from Crown Point, Merrillville, Munster, Griffith and other communities throughout Northwest Indiana and suburban Chicago, Indiana Youth Ballet will present its 14th annual production of “The Nutcracker” this week at East Chicago Central High School’s auditorium, 100 W. Columbia Drive.

This is a holiday classic that has become a tradition for families across the globe. Also a tradition for IYB, it offers the story of a young girl named Clara and her very special gift, a beautiful nutcracker.