Weekend Reading: Good Reads You Might Have Missed

I'm a sucker for insider accounts by folks who aren't entirely comfortable with what they've been doing, so you can guess that my favorite story from the weekend was the McSweeny's pice written by a test prep tutor (bold below).  What was yours?

Birth order and school performance: First-borns do better in school because parents discipline them more.ht.ly/qrVAQ

The evolution of backpack cool over the ages, from one strapping to two ht.ly/qrV7y Slate via @ForrestW

Minerva Strives for Affordable Elitism - NYT ht.ly/qs1Hd

One million kids signed up for the Hour of Code. Let the geeking out commence | PandoDaily ht.ly/qrXvI

Why Bill de Blasio’s Promise May Also Be His Problem -- New York Magazine ht.ly/qrXaF

Progressives should follow the Tea Party - Salon.comht.ly/qrX6B 

Ruminations from the Test-Prep Industry - Part 2 @mcsweeneys ht.ly/qrWsQ

Let the Games Begin: Students and Teachers Dive Into  SimCityEDU ht.ly/qrVU2 @MindShiftKQED

Bob Putnam, Jane Quinn, Tony Smith on Opportunity Gap (Audio) @BloombergRadio  ht.ly/qrVOv

Breaking Bad: What To Do When Good Lesson Plans Go Wrong ht.ly/qrVKF @BAMRadioNetwork

Cool and childhood: How cool evolves from grade school to high school to adulthood. ht.ly/qrVGu