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Viral: Teacher’s New Homework Policy draws Praise

Posted on August 24, 2016

A Texas teacher’s note to parents is going viral, thanks to a student-friendly approach to homework that seems to be going over well with parents, too.

Facebook user Samantha Gallagher shared a photo of the note, which her daughter’s teacher gave students, establishing the class homework policy.

“After much research this summer, I am trying something new,” the note begins, KTLA sister station WGN reports. “Homework will only consist of work that your student did not finish during the school day. There will be no formally assigned homework this year.”

Continue reading.

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What People On the East Coast Name their Babies

Posted on August 19, 2016

Posted by Laura Woods

Rich with history, the East Coast is characterized by a fast-paced lifestyle, true seasons and an appreciation for exciting, urban landscapes. Whether you call this part of the country home, or you simply dream of life on the Atlantic, giving your little boy or girl a name prevalent in these states can be very meaningful.

In order to identify the names that are most common on the East Coast relative to the rest of the United States, MooseRoots used data from the Social Security Administration to find the top names in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida in 2014. We only included names with at least 1,000 occurrences, and compared the frequency of each name on the East Coast with the rest of the U.S. Finally, we compiled a list of names most likely to appear in states on the East Coast, and ranked the list from lowest to highest frequency relative to the rest of the country.

While some names, like Taylor or Morgan, might not surprise you, the list sheds light on heritage patterns among Americans. According to a U.S. Census Bureau survey, counties with the most people claiming Italian heritage live on the East Coast, with concentrated communities located in New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Unsurprisingly, such patterns are reflected in the list, where you’ll find names like Gianna and Valentina.

Note: All values are rounded to the nearest tenth.

Download MooseRoots’ app on the Google Play Store for information on thousands of baby names.

#40. Robert

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 36.7%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 44.3

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 32.4

Defined as “bright,” “fame” and “famous,” Robert ranked No. 61 nationwide.

#39. Timothy

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 37.3%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 20.2

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 14.7

The English name Timothy, meaning “God” and “honour,” earned the rank of 135 nationally.

#38. Connor

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 37.5%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 48.8

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 35.4

Connor, a name of Irish origin, was very common among baby boys on the East Coast in 2014, and earned the national rank of 52.

#37. Nathaniel

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 38.4%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 29.0

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 21.0

The English form of the New Testament name meaning “God has given,” Nathaniel ranked No. 94 among male babies in the U.S. in 2014.

#36. Christopher

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 39.1%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 70.4

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 50.6

Christopher, meaning “Christ,” earned the rank of No. 30 nationwide in 2014.

#35. Anthony

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 39.6%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 79.1

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 56.6

Defined as “flower,” the Latin name Anthony ranked No. 21 nationally in 2014.

#34. Matthew

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 39.9%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 88.3

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 63.1

Matthew, a Hebrew and Irish name meaning “gift of God,” ranked No. 16 among baby boys in the U.S. in 2014.

#33. Jeremiah

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 40.0%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 46.8

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 33.4

The name Jeremiah means “appointed by God” in Hebrew and ranked No. 56 among newborn boys for the entire U.S.

#32. Jason

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 41.3%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 38.4

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 27.1

A name with English and Greek roots, Jason earned the rank of 75 among male babies nationally in 2014.

#31. John

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 43.1%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 74.7

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 52.2

John, a form of the Hebrew name meaning “God is gracious,” ranked No. 26 among boys in 2014.

#30. Declan

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 43.2%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 23.3

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 16.3

Though the Irish name Declan was very common among male newborns on the East Coast, it only earned the rank of 122 countrywide in 2014.

#29. Thomas

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 43.9%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 49.4

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 34.3

An English, French and German name meaning “twin,” Thomas ranked No. 54 nationwide in 2014.

#28. Michael

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 46.5%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 110.6

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 75.5

A name meaning “who is like God?” in Hebrew, the English name Michael ranked No. 7 nationally in 2014.

#27. Lucas

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 48.3%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 88.2

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 59.5

The name Lucas ranked No. 19 among newborn boys in the U.S. in 2014.

#26. Joseph

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 49.3%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 88.2

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 59.1

The English form of the Biblical Hebrew name meaning “(God) shall add (another son),” Joseph has English, French and Hebrew roots. The name ranked No. 20 in the U.S. in 2014.

#25. Zachary

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 49.7%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 37.9

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 25.3

A name of English origin, Zachary was prevalent among male newborns on the East Coast, and earned the rank of 82 nationwide in 2014.

#24. Colin

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 57.2%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 22.2

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 14.1

Colin, a nickname for the medieval form of Nicholas, ranked No. 140 among baby boys in the U.S. in 2014.

#23. Patrick

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 57.7%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 20.6

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 13.1

The name of the patron saint of Ireland, Patrick has English, French and Latin roots. In the U.S., it ranked No. 153 in 2014.

#22. Savannah

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 57.9%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 44.2

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 28.0

The name Savannah ranked highly among East Coast girls in 2014, and was also popular throughout the country, earning the national rank of No. 39.

#21. Avery

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 58.4%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 77.7

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 49.1

Avery, a name of English and French origin, ranked No. 13 among female newborns in the U.S. in 2014.

#20. Kayla

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 58.8%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 24.4

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 15.4

Kayla, a Yiddish name, ranked No. 102 nationally.

#19. Ashley

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 60.7%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 29.3

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 18.3

Defined as “ash and wood,” the English name Ashley ranked No. 87 for the entire U.S.

#18. Justin

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 60.9%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 31.6

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 19.7

A name of English origin, Justin ranked No. 96 for the entire U.S.

#17. Brianna

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 61.9%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 29.9

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 18.5

A name with Irish roots, Brianna was very common among newborn girls on the East Coast in 2014, and was also prevalent nationwide, earning the overall rank of No. 85.

#16. Leah

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 62.6%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 46.7

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 28.7

Leah means “languid” in Hebrew and ranked No. 35 among girls throughout the country, in 2014.

#15. Madison

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 64.2%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 86.8

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 52.9

The name Madison ranked No. 9 nationally in 2014.

#14. Alexandra

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 65.5%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 28.1

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 17.0

Alexandra, a name with Latin, Roman and Romanian roots, ranked No. 92 among female newborns nationally in 2014.

#13. Morgan

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 68.6%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 26.0

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 15.4

While Morgan ranked highly among newborn girls on the East Coast in 2014, this English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh name only ranked No. 101 for the U.S. as a whole.

#12. Nicholas

Gender: Male

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 70.6%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 56.4

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 33.1

Meaning “people” and “victory,” the English name Nicholas ranked No. 57 among all newborn boys in the country.

#11. Taylor

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 73.7%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 33.9

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 19.5

Taylor, meaning “to cut,” ranked No. 77 among female babies nationally in 2014.

#10. Sarah

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 74.3%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 41.8

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 24.0

Defined as “princess,” the English, Hebrew and Jewish name Sarah ranked No. 50 among baby girls in the U.S. in 2014.

#9. Julia

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 75.8%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 32.5

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 18.5

The English and Latin name Julia ranked No. 86 among girls in the U.S. in 2014.

#8. Quinn

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 76.5%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 23.1

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 13.1

Despite the popularity of Quinn among female newborns on the East Coast, the name only ranked No. 126 throughout the U.S. in 2014.

#7. Skylar

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 78.8%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 43.6

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 24.4

The name Skylar means “scholar,” and ranked No. 48 across the country.

#6. London

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 79.3%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 30.2

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 16.8

The name London was very common among East Coast girls in 2014, and it was also prevalent throughout the U.S., earning the rank of No. 93.

#5. Valentina

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 86.6%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 26.7

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 14.3

The feminine form of Valentine, the name Valentina ranked No. 112 among girls in the U.S. in 2014.

#4. Gabriella

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 89.9%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 49.5

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 26.1

Gabriella, a name of Hebrew, Portuguese and Spanish origins, earned the rank of No. 232 among baby girls in 2014.

#3. Peyton

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 94.7%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 44.5

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 22.8

Peyton ranked No. 56 among baby girls in U.S. in 2014.

#2. Gianna

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 97.8%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 31.2

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 15.8

Gianna, an Italian name, ranked No. 95 among female babies in the U.S. in 2014.

#1. Riley

Gender: Female

Percent More Likely to Be a East Coast Baby: 122.4%

East Coast Babies per 10,000: 54.6

U.S. Babies per 10,000: 24.6

Defined as “clearing,” “rye” and “wood,” Riley was popular across the U.S, ranking No. 47 among all female babies.

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Yes, Here’s Another Article Shaming the ‘Bump Watch’ Press

Posted on August 19, 2016

Le sigh.

Last month, author Chimamanda Ngozi-Adichie revealed that she had kept her recent pregnancy private. “I just feel like we live in an age when women are supposed to perform pregnancy,” she told the Financial Times. “We don’t expect fathers to perform fatherhood.”

And what did that noble move and statement spawn?

Yet another blistering op-Ed about the bump watch press.

In a new piece in Qz, titled “Modern obsession with pregnancy is just another attempt to control women’s bodies“, writer Phoebe Bronstein criticizes the world’s fascination with celebrity pregnancies.

Bronstein pens:

As Renee Cramer writes in Pregnant With the Stars, her book about celebrity pregnancies, “The pregnant female body has gone from being an embarrassing reminder that women had sex and therefore private state of being to being considered public property for regulation and commercial property to be celebrated as sexy.” This obsession translates into a constant baby-bump watch. Now pop culture is dominated by absurd conversations about which celebrities do pregnancy best—Beyonce or Jessica Simpson? Christina Aguilera or Chrissy Teigan? Certainly not Kim Kardashian, whose pregnancy fashion received plenty of negative coverage.

At the root of these evaluations is an impulse to shame women who fail to perform pregnancy in a sufficiently glowing and feminine fashion. At the same time, such conversations frame pregnancy as a kind of style choice: the newest (or oldest) accessory.

Ok. Sure. Is it really that deep, Ms. Bronstein?

Aren’t you essentially shaming the press and blogs for writing on a topic you think shames women? It’s all shaming.

And isn’t the word “shame” (and “[fill-in-the-blank] shaming”) being overused to the point they are becoming cliche and borderline meaningless?

Ok. I may be biased.

Read the entire piece here if you’d like.

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Back to School: These States have Most & Least School Bullying

Posted on August 16, 2016

With back-to-school season upon us and more than 160,000 children missing school every day in the U.S. out of fear of being bullied, the personal-finance website WalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of 2016’s States with the Biggest Bullying Problems.

To identify the states where bullying is most pervasive, WalletHub’s analysts compared 45 states and the District of Columbia across 17 key metrics, ranging from “bullying-incident rate” to “truancy costs for schools” to “percentage of high school students bullied online.”

Here are the top and bottom states for pervasiveness of bullying.

Best vs. Worst

The District of Columbia has the lowest percentage of high school students who were bullied on school property, 12.08 percent, which is 2.2 times lower than in Nebraska, where the percentage is highest, 26.28 percent.

The District of Columbia has the lowest percentage of high school students who were bullied online, 7.86 percent, which is 2.7 times lower than in Idaho, where the percentage is highest, 21.08 percent.

Maine has the lowest percentage of high school students involved in a physical fight on school property, 4.85 percent, which is 2.8 times lower than in the District of Columbia, where the percentage is highest, 13.81 percent.

Kansas has the lowest percentage of high school students who missed school because they felt unsafe at school, 3.80 percent, which is 3.4 times lower than in Louisiana, where the percentage is highest, 13.10 percent.

Vermont has the lowest percentage of high school students who attempted suicide, 5.88 percent, which is 2.2 times lower than in Louisiana, where the percentage is highest, 13.10 percent.

To read the full report and to see where your state ranks, please visit WalletHub here

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Study: Pain Pill During Pregnancy Linked to Behavior Problems in Kids

Posted on August 15, 2016

Women who take the common pain reliever acetaminophen during pregnancy may be more likely to have children with behavior problems than those who don’t use the drug, a British study suggests.

Researchers analyzed survey data from about 7,800 mothers and found more than half of them took acetaminophen at some point during pregnancy.

Overall, about 5 percent of their children had behavior problems by age 7. The odds of hyperactivity, conduct issues and emotional problems were all higher among the offspring of women who reported using acetaminophen while pregnant, the study found.

This doesn’t necessarily mean pregnant women should avoid taking acetaminophen, however, said lead study author Evie Stergiakouli of the University of Bristol in the U.K.

“It is still appropriate to use acetaminophen during pregnancy because there is a risk of not treating fever or pain during pregnancy,” Stergiakouli said by email. “Other pain medications are not considered safe to use during pregnancy.”

The study doesn’t prove acetaminophen, also known as paracetamol, directly causes developmental issues in children, noted Dr. Hal Lawrence, executive vice president and chief executive of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).

“Behavioral disorders are multifactorial and very difficult to associate with a singular cause,” Lawrence, who wasn’t involved in the study, said by email. “The brain does not stop developing until at least 15 months of age, which leaves room for children to be exposed to a number of factors that could potentially lead to behavioral issues.”

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Hijarbie Creator Tributes Hijab-wearing Olympic Athletes (#RioOlympics)

Posted on August 14, 2016

The Nigerian fashion blogger behind Hajarbie styled new Hijarbies after the two athletes who competed in the Rio Olympics in a hijab: sprinter Kariman Abduljadayel, the first Saudi Arabian woman to compete for her country and American fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad, the first US athlete to compete in a hijab.

Those two are the latest styled creations of Haneefah Adam, a 24-year-old from Ilorin, Nigeria, who said she started dressing hijarbie because she too wanted a Barbie doll she could relate to as well.

“Ibtihaj Muhammad is the first US Muslim Olympian to compete while wearing hijab. She has won a bronze medal in #Rio2016. Super proud!” she captioned a photo of Muhammad.

Mini Hijab Fashion hijarbie • Instagram photos and videos

“Sprinter Kariman Abduljadayel?inspires us with her effort and journey; as the first Saudi Arabian woman to compete for her country in #Rio2016,” she wrote of Abduljadayel.

“I’d never seen a Barbie with a hijab before,” Adam told Quartz, explaining that she wanted to dress the iconic plastic doll in a way that represented her own style. The pharmacology student designed and stitched Hijarbie’s new clothes herself.

Haneefah Adam is the creator of Hijarbie

In interviews with Mic and BuzzFeed, Adam explained that the designs are often inspired by looks worn by popular Muslim fashion bloggers.

“I was mulling about the idea for about three months while I was still studying for my master’s degree in the UK.

When I got back to Nigeria, I went to the mall, purchased a doll, dressed it up, documented it and here we are,” she told Style.Mic.

Hijarbie’s account boasts 71,000 followers and Adams’ Instagram account too has 18,000 followers.

“I want [girls] to be inspired — this is about having an alternative and creating an awareness of having toys that adopts your religion and culture and in your own likeness, which at the end of the day, leads to an improvement in self-esteem,” she told Mic.

Photos: Quartz, Instagram

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The Baby Name Simone is Ranked #821 in Popularity in the US, But that will Change Soon

Posted on August 12, 2016

A lot of people are predicting that Simone will be a very popular baby name soon. Thanks to the two Simones who made history yesterday.

Last night, at the Olympics American Simone Biles won gold in the All-Around Women’s Gymnastics finals and Simone Manuel won a gold medal in the women’s 100 meter freestyle finals and became the first Black woman in history to earn an individual Olympic medal in swimming.

(Manuel also earned two silver medals with the US 4×100 Freestyle and the 4×400 Freestyle relay team earlier this week and Biles holds the most Gold Medals in World Championship in gymnastics history (10) and the most medals World medals in US History (14) and is not yet done making Olympic history.)

Before yesterday’s trailblazing moments, the name Simone was actually slowly declining in popularity in America. It is ranked 821 in baby names according to US Census Bureau and Social Security Administration data.

The name is of Finnish, French, Icelandic, Italian, Scandinavian, and Spanish origin.

It was most popular in Denmark in 2001 when it made the top 200 list at number 44.

In 2015, of all states the name was popular in New York and Washington State.

But as a lot of people on the Internets have already said, we too anticipate its stock will be rising pretty soon! Check back with us next year when we confirm!

More visualizationdata, compliments of Moosetrack

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Finally! Single Parent Emojis are Here

Posted on August 11, 2016

Well it is about time! Bustle reports:

According to the Apple Newsroom press site, the iOS 10 emoji updates will add new family options, which include single-parent families. You can choose a family with just a mom or just a dad, and have multiple options with the number of children. The newest batch of emoji families will still only come in the standard yellow option.

The choice to feature a single-parent emoji is especially important in terms of representation. According to a study from the Pew Research Center, less than half of kids in the U.S. have a “traditional family,” and at least 34 percent of children live in a household with an unmarried parent. The study also clarified that in most of these cases, the unmarried parent also does not have a partner.

I’ve been avoiding updating to the newest operating system but now I know about this, I might actually update tonight! Good job Unicode!

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Sadly, Zika claims Life of Texas Baby

Posted on August 10, 2016

The Zika virus has claimed the life of a Texas baby,health officials reported Tuesday.

The baby, whose mother had traveled to Latin America during her pregnancy, died shortly after birth. The infant was born with microcephaly, a condition in which a baby’s head is abnormally small and, in most cases, brain development is incomplete.

The baby was born in Harris County, which includes Houston. It’s the first Zika-related death in Texas.

Zika-related brain damage in fetuses “is one of the saddest congenital birth outcomes imaginable,” said Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. “The case highlights that ZIka is not just producing babies with small heads. . . .We should expect many similar deaths, and also stillbirths.”

Fifteen babies in the U.S. have been born with Zika-related birth defects, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Seven women have lost pregnancies due to Zika. Those numbers could grow. Nearly 1,000 pregnant women in the continental U.S. and territories have been infected with Zika.

Miami is battling a local Zika outbreak in the Wynwood neighborhood that has infected 21 people, according to the Florida Department of Health.

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Rio Olympics: The 10 Moms On the US Team

Posted on August 8, 2016

Being a mother is said to be a full-time job; so is being an Olympian. The thought of trying to be both would sound like a daunting task to most people.

These 10 Olympic athletes have proven that they can excel in both roles. Meet the 10 Team USA moms who are going for gold at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

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