Good morning! We have a teaching resource focused on President Trump’s campaign to seize Greenland, a collection of student comments about the pressure to be perfect, and a contest inviting students to create their own “curated list.” — The Learning Network
A different kind of review contest
Our “My List” contest, which runs until Feb. 25, invites students to choose three to five works of art or culture to group in some way, and then tell us why we should — or shouldn’t — check them out.
For last year’s contest, students created lists of middle-seat-approved films to catch on your next flight, iconic teen dramas that defined the 2000s, and the worst songs to play at a school dance. We’re excited to see what curated collections students create this year!
Recent Times reporting about schools
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| Attitudes toward artificial intelligence are evolving, with some academic groups saying students must learn how to use it critically. |
More teaching resources from The Learning Network
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| The Britney Spears doll that Zachary Gordon-Abraham’s mother gave him when he was a child proved a catalyst to his collecting thousands of items of the pop star’s memorabilia. Noah Kalina for The New York Times |
Classroom activity: What’s going on in this picture?
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| David Guttenfelder/The New York Times |
Each week in our “What’s Going On in This Picture?” feature, we invite students to look closely at an image, stripped of its caption, and join the moderated conversation about what they see. Educators from the organization Visual Thinking Strategies will be responding to students about the photograph above in our comments section on Monday, Jan. 26. Over 100 students have already posted what they see.
Before you go, see what teens are saying about the pressure to be perfect.
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| Rory Doyle for The New York Times |
The 200-plus teenagers who responded to our question about the pressure to be perfect told us they feel it not just at school, but also at home, on playing fields and on social media. Here are a few of the many responses:
You often get told your whole future depends on the grades you get in high school. They determine whether you get into a college you really like or don’t. Then, when you get to college, you have the stress of finding a job that will pay well and set you up for the rest of your life. I feel like life is a constant loop of stress and pressure to do better. — Kylie, Norwood MA
In my own personal experience as a high school football player, I feel as if every mistake I make on the field is hurting my team and killing my future dreams of playing college football. This makes football season very difficult for me and often lessens my passion for the game and can negatively affect how well I play. Another example of me trying to reach perfection is playing through injury. The beginning of my sophomore season I suffered a gruesome knee injury, I felt like I had let my team down. I didn’t want to be looked down upon as the young, injured player who couldn’t make an impact in the game. So I braced it up, took medicine and persevered through adversity for the rest of the season. In the end, I had to get surgery and walked with crutches for three months, just because I wanted to be perfect. — Reese, Ellisville
As a musician, doubt and fear are one of my biggest barriers. Shaky fingers and sweaty palms always find their way into performances. However, when I overcome the fear and accept the imperfections, I find that that is when my musicality truly comes out. — Ruoyi, Virginia
We’d love your feedback on this newsletter. Please email thoughts and suggestions to LNfeedback@nytimes.com. More next week.
