School

Today on Word of Mouth, we're digging in to the fraught relationship between the gear industry and gender with Outside/In. When do women actually need something different and when are companies just looking to make more money by selling women a product that is essentially the same thing... but smaller and pink? And what do you do if the available products - pink or not -  don't fit your body at all?

Sexting, sex bracelets, sex parties, the media would like you to believe twenty-first century teenagers are out of control, or are they?

Today’s show takes an objective look at teenage sexual behavior, and finds out what’s behind all the media hype. Then, we’ll hit the classroom and hear from a psychology professor who conducted an experiment of her own: offering students extra credit in return for a phone free environment.

Listen to the full show and Read more for individual segments.

Junior high school can be an awkward, unsettling experience for anyone. Especially for teachers; imagine having survived it once, then witnesses cavorting teens finding their way over and over again. Jessica Lahey is an English, Latin, and Writing teacher at Crossroads Academy in Lyme, New Hampshire. She also writes about education and parenting for the New York Times and other publications, and on her blog, Coming of Age in the Middle. Her article, “A Dress-Code Enforcer’s Struggle for the Soul of the Middle-School Girl” was recently published in The Atlantic and she joins us to discuss the worry over dress codes and the chaotic middle years.

Back-to-school season means new notebooks, pencils, and pens, and for at least one very lucky kid – a brand-spanking new lunchbox.  J.M.

There's a new trend in locker bling, as The New York Times' Elissa Gootman explains. But is the trend frivolous, or kind of awesome?

Special thanks to LockerLookz for lending us some bling to try out in our workspace lockers, and to intern Emma Ruddock for giving our office a bit of middle school pizzazz.

Photo gallery by Emma Ruddock for NHPR

The American Presidency remains the most powerful office in the world…and one that any American-born child can aspire to. One of our listeners recently shared an interesting item on our Facebook page…an essay her daughter wrote for her third grade class at the Rumford School in Concord, New Hampshire. The subject: “If I were president, I would...”

We're pretty sure that Emma's answer betrays a realpolitik far beyond her nine years of age.

Public health officials have confirmed a case of tuberculosis at Dane Elementary School.

Director of Public Health, Dr. Jose Montero, says the infected child, a kindergarten student, likely contracted the illness from an adult who was exposed to the dangerous bacteria abroad. Most TB is treatable and is spread through the air. Montero says the adult was treated effectively.

In rural towns, getting to school isn't always as easy as the walks I used to take in suburban Long Island. Small towns rely heavily on parents to give kids rides, and on kids taking lengthy bus rides...not exactly the healthiest option at a time when childhood obesity rates are climbing exponentially.