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Resources
Children's Books
Mingo Learns… is a series of personal growth books with activities to help children overcome challenges, build self-confidence, and improve academically so they can have a better chance for success in life. Click on links to read books online. Printed copies are given free of charge to students in our expanded learning programs. Please support this effort with your donations.
Mingo Learns Critical Coping Skills
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Parents and Caregivers Handbook
This Handbook was formulated to help parents and guardians in their quest to improve children's language and reading skills. It also contains bonus information about scholarships and grants.Click on link to read book online.
Other Books
The below books were written for inspirational purposes. Click on links to read or purchase books.
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Your donations help with printing cost, so we could continue to give free books to students and caregivers in our programs. For a printed copy of any book listed on this page that is not sold on Amazon, place your order using this donate link and add order details in the Comments Section. A suggested donation for each catagory of printed books with shipping and handling to a US address is listed below:
Mingo Learns ...Series $10.00
Parents Handbook $24.95
Other books $19.95
A Case for More Reading, Math, and Science
The State Board of Education DC echoes the sentiment of prominent researchers that Reading is a critical component of academic success. However, many young people require additional assistance to develop this fundamental skill in early elementary school including:
(a) The National Center for Learning Disabilities, announces that students with learning disabilities are about ten percentage points behind their fellow classmates, are three times as likely to drop out of school, and have higher rates of absenteeism and suspension.
(b) The Children’s Reading Foundation believes that one of the most important predictors of school success is reading proficiently by the end of third grade. Without a strong foundation in reading, children are left behind at the beginning of their education. They lag in every class, year after year because more than 85 percent of the curriculum is taught by reading. And by the end of third grade, 74 percent of struggling readers won’t ever catch up. In fact, one of the most important predictors of graduating from high school is reading proficiently by the end of third grade.
(c) Renaissance Learning researchers discovered that in order for students to build and strengthen their vocabularies, they need repeated exposure to words in a variety of contexts. Students get that exposure through reading—every day. The impact of spending a few extra minutes per day reading can be startling over the long term. Data show that students who spend more than 30 minutes reading each day are exposed to many more words over the course of their schooling. Time spent reading is a long-term investment in vocabulary exposure.
(d) An Erikson Institute 2012 case study for more rigorous instruction to close the achievement gap confirmed the need to improve academic performance beginning in the early years. In fact, a wealth of research indicates that children’s early cognitive development is strongly related to their academic achievement in school, and academic achievement in kindergarten through third grade is a predictor of high school graduation. Looking at third grade achievement by race, 14% of white students, 39% of Latino students, and 42% of black students do not meet reading standards, and 6%, 19%, and 28%, respectively, do not meet math standards.
(e) The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistic (BLS) asserts that Employment in occupations related to STEM—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—is projected to grow to more than 9 million between 2012 and 2022. Those growing occupations require significant science or mathematics training to successfully compete for a job. However, as jobs requiring a solid background in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are growing – more students are choosing not to major in these areas as follows:
- Enrollment in undergraduate degree programs in computer sciences is more than 50 percent lower than it was five years ago.
- Only 8% of all degrees awarded in the U.S. were in engineering, mathematics or the physical sciences.
- The US ranks 20th internationally based on our share of graduate degrees awarded in engineering, computer science, and mathematics.
- More than 90 percent of all scientists and engineers live in Asia.
If students continue to pursue degrees and careers in fields other than STEM related areas, the U.S. will find it difficult to compete in the global economy or meet its future workforce needs in STEM fields.
Helpful Links
State Board of Education (SBOE)
The State Board of Education conducts high-quality policy research and analysis to support its advisory and approval functions. Board members utilize the most current research on the state of public education in the District of Columbia and nationwide in order to make informed decisions on behalf of the District’s residents.
NASA STEM Engagement
NASA STEM Engagement site consists of a myriad of information and activities for educators and students that are meant to Inspire, Engage, Educate, and Employ the Next Generation of Explorers.
National Science Foundation (NSF)
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering.
Goddard Space Flight Center Education Programs
These education programs are designed to increase the application of STEM skills and familiarize students with STEM careers.
SISTER - Summer Institute in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Research
The Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland offers a five day summer
institute for the purpose of providing opportunities for middle school girls to explore
non-traditional career fields with research scientists, mathematicians and engineers.
The U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science
The Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists offers a paid pre-service summer internship program for students who have decided on a teaching career in mathematics or science.