In this edition:
Why your kid's next obsession might be Ancient Greece
The "boring" path to millions (no hoodie required)
Spelling struggles? We've got solutions
💡 THOUGHT
When Bees Lead to Euclidean Geometry
The best learning moments are rarely planned a semester in advance. One curious question snowballs into a geometry obsession, and suddenly you're ordering Euclid on Amazon Prime. That's open education done right.
📊 TREND
Main Street Millionaires
While most career counselors are still pushing the "college or bust" narrative, Codie Sanchez is building a media empire around a contrarian idea:
For most people, "boring" businesses like plumbing, electrical work, and local services are a faster and safer path to wealth than fancy degrees or Silicon Valley startups.
She’s on “a mission to help 1 million people become financially and philosophically free.”
In her new book Main Street Millionaire, Sanchez demolishes the myth that you need a revolutionary app idea or a prestigious MBA to build wealth. Instead, she advocates for buying existing, profitable businesses – the ones providing actual services people need – and then growing them.
For a taste of her trademark contrarian thinking, check out this recent thread on a British entrepreneur who turned a wire basket manufacturer into the world’s largest ad agency.
🛠️ TOOL
When Writing's a Wrestle
An OpenEd parent recently reached out about their second grader struggling with writing and spelling (while crushing it at reading). If this is you, here's our crowd-sourced wisdom from our parent/teacher community:
Top picks:
The Good and the Beautiful: Lives up to its name with gorgeous materials and systematic instruction that somehow manages to make spelling... dare we say it... beautiful?
Spelling Power: The Swiss Army knife of spelling programs - one book, all grades, and activity cards that turn practice into play
IEW (Institute for Excellence in Writing): Because sometimes structure is your friend
Night Zookeeper: For when you need spelling practice with a side of whimsy
(MEME) OF THE DAY
The scientific method in action.
That’s all for today!
– Charlie (the OpenEd newsletter guy)