Call me crazy, but something that always brings a smile to my face is stumbling across a gorgeous typeface. There’s something truly magical about a good font. These days it’s super easy to build a collection of stunning fonts without breaking the bank. Here’s a look at 6 cute & playful fonts that will be the perfect addition to your collection. If you are looking for some new fonts for Spring – this list is for you!
6 Cute & Playful Fonts
You will find here playful and casual fonts that will be perfect for spring and summer crafts. Combine them with pastels or bold colorful palettes to create heart-warming designs for your social media. Click on the font cover or name to see its Creative Market page.
Pin me for later!
If you are browsing this post at work or just do not feel crafty right now, we have something for you too! All the fonts collected in one please on easy to pin graphic so you can save those inspirations for later.
Show us your works!
I would love to see what you will create using those cute & playful fonts. Make sure to let us know in the comments, or share your creation on social media and tag Designer Blogs.
Don’t forget to let us know which font is your favorite. Do you like graphic fonts, or would you rather see a compilation of classic fonts?
Are you adventurous when it comes to sampling new foods? Or are you a picky eater? Have you ever expected to hate the taste of something, only to discover a new favorite food? What is a memorable experience you’ve had with a new food?
Tell us in the comments, then read the related article to learn more.
Want more Picture Prompts? Find them all in this column.
Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.
Marshmallow Fluff, the brand of crème typically used in a fluffernutter, has been around since at least 1917, when a man named Archibald Query first sold it door to door in Somerville, Mass. Soon after, two friends named H. Allen Durkee and Fred L. Mower bought his formula for $500 and first marketed it as Toot Sweet Marshmallow Fluff.
… The treat is so beloved that Somerville is home to an annual What the Fluff? festival, where tens of thousands of people celebrate every possible use of the concoction, a mixture of corn syrup, sugar, egg white and vanillin.
Daily Word Challenge
Can you correctly use the word concoction in a sentence?
Based on the definition and example provided, write a sentence using today’s Word of the Day and share it as a comment on this article. It is most important that your sentence makes sense and demonstrates that you understand the word’s definition, but we also encourage you to be creative and have fun.
Then, read some of the other sentences students have submitted and use the “Recommend” button to vote for two original sentences that stand out to you.
If you want a better idea of how concoction can be used in a sentence, read these usage examples on Vocabulary.com.
Students ages 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, can comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff.
The 8th of March is International Women’s Day (IWD). A worldwide celebration of all women’s accomplishments. Consider a future where women are treated as equals. A world without prejudice, stereotypes, or discrimination. A world where diversity and equality are nurtured and celebrated. A lot of progress towards this world has already been made. But we still have a long way to go. We can achieve women’s equality by working together. International Women’s Day is also a call to action for equality for women across all aspects of life. No matter if it’s at home, the workplace, government or just being out in public. Women deserve to be respected and appreciated for everything they do. In honour of International Women’s Day, Alison would want to pay tribute to all the fantastic ladies out there and share some of their success stories.
At Alison, two of the pillars we are founded on are especially relevant to International Women’s Day.
Celebrating International Women’s Day with Empowerment.
At Alison one of the ways how we strive to better women’s lives is through empowerment. With free education and training available, we truly believe that the power to grow, achieve your goals and ultimately improve your life is within every woman.
We strongly believe in the power of free education and skills training to change people’s lives for the better and are passionate about providing a learning experience that meets all their needs and helps them to achieve their life goals
After all, knowledge is power.
Promoting Inclusivity on International Women’s Day.
One of the ways Alison works to improve women’s lives is via empowerment. With free education and training open to all, we really think that every woman has the ability to grow, attain her goals, and ultimately enhance her life.
Everyone, regardless of race, gender, or culture, has the right to a free education. This is particularly true for females. Women used to be denied access to school, but that is no longer the case, and as a result, women are transforming the world. We hope to use Alison’s technology, skills, and innovative approach to enable women all over the world make their mark in whatever profession they choose.
Let us introduce you to a few women who have gained confidence and obtained the respect and positions they deserve as a result of their studies. They have altered their life as a result of the skills, self-improvement, and information they have obtained.
Ogala Amina Maneti
Ogala Amina Maneti has a qualification in Public Administration and began taking Alison classes in 2013. Amina has completed courses in Customer Service, Procurement and Human Resources such as Fundamentals of Corporate Management. She enjoys that Alison’s courses are self-paced with no deadline for completion. Alison has given her the confidence, power, and edge when applying for a variety of jobs. She believes that she has greatly improved her CV because of her education with Alison. Don’t just take our word for it; hear it from Ogala herself.
Morgan Ballou
In her video testimony, Morgan tells us she was a high school dropout. She started looking into online learning to further her education and make her way into the work force. Through Alison, she completed courses in C-Programming, Trademarks and Copyright, and Investment. She and Investment has also completed a Diploma in Legal Studies and a Diploma in Psychology. Alison has helped her gain the skills needed to earn her way into Harvard’s HBX online learning initiative and her current position with the Legal Association of Professionals.
Oluyemisi Onyegbula
Oluyemisi Onyegbula works as an online coordinator and sales trainer for Multipro, a Lagos-based Nigerian company. She discovered Alison when she started her current job. Because she didn’t have much experience in the field, she found just what she needed in Alison with courses on Warehouse Management, Human Resource Management and Business Intelligence Systems. Thanks to these free courses, she became an asset at Multipro and we wish her many more years of success.
Now those are what we call success stories!
Wishing all of you a happy International Women’s Day.
You’ve probably heard that there’s a gender pay gap: In the U.S., women of all races earn on average 82 cents for every $1 earned by men of all races, according to the most recent Census Bureau data.
Women in high-paying industries like tech are not immune to this unreasonable norm.
Equal Pay Day is March 15, and the date represents how far into the year women would need to work in order to earn what men did the previous year (that date is even later in the year for women of color). Here’s how the gender wage gap affects the tech world, plus key facts that you should know about the persistent issue.
The wage gap is larger for marginalized populations
It’s important to point out that the wage gap disproportionately affects most women of color: Black women get paid on average 61 cents for every dollar that their white male counterparts are paid, Native American women make 60 cents for each dollar, and Hispanic or Latina women make 54 cents for every dollar.
We also know that there’s a pay disparity for LGBTQ+ workers, although there’s very little data available to shed light on what trans and nonbinary people earn compared to cisgender counterparts. A 2022 survey of 6,800 people from the Human Rights Campaign found that trans men and nonbinary or gender-nonconforming people earn 70 cents for every $1 the typical worker earns, and trans women earn 60 cents to the dollar.
The gender pay gap exists across industries
One common explanation for the pay gap is something called “occupational segregation,” which is the idea that certain jobs are dominated by a demographic group, explains Nicole Smith, a research professor and chief economist at the Georgetown University Center in Education and the Workforce. Male-dominated fields — like tech, for example — tend to pay better than ones where women make up the majority, regardless of the level of skill or experience required for the roles.
As more women enter higher-paying professions, you’d think that it’d help narrow the pay gap. “Careers in science and STEM pay well for women — but despite this fact, the gender wage gap still exists,” Smith says.
In tech, specifically, men were offered higher salaries than women for the same job title at the same company 59% of the time, according to a 2021 survey from Hired. On average, women were offered salaries 2.5% less than the ones that men were given for the same roles, the survey found.
The pandemic widened the gap
Women suffered more job loss during the pandemic than men, with more than 5 million women losing jobs since February 2020. “This reduction in labor force participation rate for women is not only as a result of women’s desire to remove themselves from the risk of the pandemic, it’s just the way the household is structured,” Smith says. Women often assume the “invisible labor” that comes with taking care of a household, and the pandemic only exacerbated this phenomenon.
Some more hopeful news, however: Of the women who plan on eventually returning to the workforce, 8 in 10 say that they want to change careers and pursue STEM, according to a 2021 survey from MetLife.
It could take more than 250 years for the pay gap to close
“Ever since women entered the workforce in significant numbers post World War II, there was a difference in the earnings and the wages of women compared to men,” Smith says. And the pay gap doesn’t seem to be going anywhere: Research from 2021 predicts that it’ll take 268 years to close the economic gender gap, according to the World Economic Forum.
10 steps (at every level) that would help close the pay gap
Closing the pay gap will take more than just recognizing Equal Pay Day or encouraging women to “ask for more” when negotiating their salaries.
“A lot of times, the advice women get is, ‘You need to do a better job of negotiating, be more assertive, be more confident, don’t sell yourself short,'” says Catherine Ashcraft, senior research scientist with The National Center for Women & Information Technology. “Everyone could obviously benefit from learning negotiation skills, but that is never going to solve this problem.”
What individuals can do:
Be informed about what someone with your job title and experience level makes where you live, Smith says. “You need to know what your worth is,” she says. You can use sites that cull salary data (like Glassdoor, Levels, and Scorecard) to glean this information.
In addition to having a mentor who you can turn to for questions about your career, it’s also helpful to have a “sponsor,” or someone who works within your organization and can take a more active role in your development, Ashcraft says. “Sponsors go a step further than mentors: They make sure that your work gets seen in the right places, at the right time, by the right people,” she says. “They’re advocating for you in the larger organization.” As Harvard Business Review puts it, sponsorship is like “phase two of mentorship.”
Salary transparency, or talking about how much money you make, is key to getting rid of the gap, because keeping that information secret only reinforces discrimination. (Good to know: Employees have the legal right to discuss information about salaries and wages. Policies that ban employees from talking about pay are unlawful under the National Labor Relations Act.)
Often in workplaces there are biases in task assignment, Ashcraft says. “It’s something managers don’t think about very often; they kind of just give tasks away to whomever speaks the loudest or asks for the task,” she says. As a result, women often get the short end of the stick. “Having managers consciously examine who they’re giving the task to and looking for patterns and those kinds of biases is huge,” she says.
What companies can do:
There’s a phenomenon economists refer to as the “motherhood penalty,” which basically means that women are often at a disadvantage when it comes to wages and promotions after having a child. But equitable parental leave policies (for birthing and non-birthing parents) could help fix this. In fact, research shows that when both parents in a two-parent household are able to stay home following the birth of a child, it not only increases a mother’s pay in the short-term, but also bolster’s the entire household’s financial well-being. “This idea that someone is at home taking care of your children, while the other parent is working and providing for everyone is just a giant lie,” says Danny Roberts, Senior Technical Recruiter at Codecademy. “The burden often falls on women still because of our cultural expectations.”
In terms of hiring practices, “it’s so important for companies to establish equitable compensation bands that are competency-based,” Danny says. In other words, the salary range for a particular position is determined by a person’s ability to demonstrate mastery and successful outcomes with tangible results and data, he says. Salary bands — clearly defined pay ranges that are determined by data — help ensure salary equity across the board, he says.
Companies also need to take a close look at their raise structures and approval process. Research shows that even though women ask for raises just as often as men, “women are significantly less likely to get a higher offer or to get a raise,” Ashcraft says. “They’re told no at a significantly more frequent rate than men are even when they ask.”
What society can do:
Want to learn more about how to navigate the job market? Check out our Career Center for tips from recruiters, code challenges to prepare you for interviews, and more.
When people think of programmers and technologists, they often picture introverts who sit in front of a computer all day. And sure, some programmers are introverts (just like some people are introverts). But there are actually plenty of situations where a programmer has to present in front of a group, like during a whiteboard interview.
For some folks, this is a very stress-inducing experience: Your heart races, your hands shake, your mouth dries up, and your body sweats. This common experience is a form of performance anxiety, which is characterized by apprehension and fear of the consequences of being unable to perform a task.
Luckily, there are strategies that can help you feel at ease, so you can focus on showcasing your skills — here are some tips and tricks to try.
Practice and plan
Put some effort into preparing for your interview so there are no surprises: Plan what you’re going to eat the morning of, review the material regularly, and complete coding challenges for hands-on practice.
Then, practice by doing a run-through. For example, say you’re going into a whiteboard interview where you’re expected to explain your approach as you answer a problem to demonstrate your problem-solving and communication skills. Practice by describing your process while doing a task that’s totally unrelated to coding, like applying your makeup or cooking a meal.
“If you take the time to practice talking out loud these steps, this will make you a better communicator,” Farish, a developer in California tells Codecademy. “Talking out loud about it will make you think about the steps you might have missed.”
Harnessing your energy and trying to get excited is more effective than trying to calm down. In a Harvard study on performance anxiety, students were given a challenging set of math problems to complete. Half the group prepped with the mantra, “Try to get excited,” while the other half said, “Try to calm down.” The students in the “excited” group answered more math problems correctly, and said they felt confident in their skills afterwards. So, even if deep down you’re dreading this interview, telling yourself that you’re excited can lead to actual excitement.
Think about your purpose
A big reason why job interviews can be so nerve-wracking is because it often feels like you’re being judged — and in some ways, you are.
But instead of getting wrapped up in thoughts about how you’re being perceived, shift your focus to what your “true purpose” in the conversation is, suggests Janet Esposito, a licensed clinical social worker and performance anxiety specialist. The interview is really an opportunity to share your talent and perspective, so concentrate on why you’re there and the value that you’re bringing to the conversation.
Quiet negative self-talk
The way you talk to yourself can have a profound effect on your self-esteem and ultimately your performance. Studies have shown that people with low self-esteem tend to experience test anxiety, or tension and nervousness around taking a test that stems from fear of failure.
Running through all the potential worst-case scenarios before an interview or test will only trip you up more when the time comes. Catch when you’re doubting yourself, and replace those thoughts with positive affirmations. For example, instead of thinking, They’re going to ask me something I don’t know the answer to and I won’t get the job, tell yourself, I’m prepared to handle whatever they throw at me.
Let go of perfectionism
Part of coding is learning to get comfortable with failure, and a similar tenet is true when you’re combatting performance anxiety: “Give up trying to be perfect and know that it is okay to make mistakes,” Esposito writes in a post for the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. “Be natural, be yourself.”
In a technical interview, if an interviewer asks you a question you don’t know the answer to, don’t fret. Not knowing the answer isn’t a sign of failure, it’s an opportunity to flex your problem-solving skills. You can confidently tell your interviewer that you don’t know, but then take your time explaining the steps you’d take to find the answer.
Sarai G., a Senior Curriculum Developer at Codecademy suggests reframing the idea of failure altogether:
“One mental reframe I now use: If I try and fail, I’ll be in the same place I would have been if I didn’t try at all. At least, if I try, there’s a chance at success. Realizing that failure usually has the same exact result as not trying at all has helped trying and failure seem less ‘scary’ to me. After all, not trying isn’t scary, so why should failure be?”
Looking for more career advice? Check out our Career Center for interview prep, portfolio projects, and more.
You dazzled in interviews and crushed the take-home test. Now comes the tricky part: Negotiating your salary.
Negotiation is your chance to advocate for yourself and ask for what you’re worth, explains Ariel Lopez, a former tech recruiter and career coach in Atlanta. A lot of people dread negotiation, because it can feel uncomfortable or intimidating — but done the right way, it can be a game-changer, she says.
Knowing what to expect is half the battle when it comes to negotiation conversations. You should be prepared with a salary range in mind, because recruiters typically ask what you’re hoping to make, says Harmeet Parmar, Senior Technical Recruiter at Codecademy. The rest is really just a conversation: “Negotiation is very centered around your style and what your personality is like,” Harmeet says.
Here are some lines that you can use to confidently communicate your salary requirements, leverage better job benefits, and ultimately get the job offer you deserve.
“Everything that I’m interviewing for falls between $X and $X.”
Why it works: This framing is key when you’re communicating salary requirements, because it takes the onus off of you, Ariel says. “Instead, the market is what is deciding what you should be paid,” she says.
It also lets recruiters know that you’re interviewing elsewhere, which is a good thing, because companies like candidates and job seekers who are in demand, Ariel says. A statement like this adds a level of urgency and intrigue, and is a reminder that you have other options and potential offers on the table, she says.
“I don’t know enough about the role and responsibilities to be able to provide a salary range at this time. Do you have a range in mind in terms of total compensation and what that would look like?”
Why it works: When a recruiter asks what you’d like to make, one way to defer is to flip the question back onto them. “There’s value in turning that around to them and asking what the job offers itself,” Harmeet says.
That said, it’s important to be very clear about what your expectations are; you can’t be so tight-lipped that you never tell the recruiter what you need to be making. “A lot of people want to get into this song and dance and don’t want to reveal too much,” Harmeet says. “And they have a certain threshold that they need to meet that the recruiter never ends up finding out, because they wanted to be coy about that.”
Another strategy: Talk less than you think you need to, Ariel says. Many people tend to talk to fill awkward silences. But the more you say, the more the recruiter can infer what you’re making, where your values lie, and how firm you are in this type of conversation. That doesn’t mean you have to lie, but the point is to “have enough conviction and belief in yourself to be asking for things,” she says.
“Based on the market, I’m seeing $X for this position. Is $X your true cap?”
Why it works: Just like you have an ideal salary in mind going into a negotiation, a recruiter knows what the budget is for the role. Unfortunately, recruiters often present a range that’s lower than the actual one, Harmeet says.
Given that, it’s wise to inflate your range, so that your baseline is higher than the number that you’re willing to settle for, Harmeet says. (Ariel suggests aiming for a salary that’s about 20% more than what you currently make.) For example, if you need to make at least $180k, providing a salary range between $200k and $220k ensures you’re above that baseline salary.
“Odds are, if you’re too high the recruiter will try to level-set with you,” Harmeet says. “Especially if they think that you’re viable talent: They want you to join, so they’re going to try and do what they can to make it work.”
“Thank you for your transparency around salary ranges. I’m grateful that you advocated for me.”
Why it works: Your relationship with a recruiter shouldn’t feel adversarial. It’s important to express your gratitude and maintain a civil relationship. “You want recruiters to be on your side, because ultimately they’re going to be advocating for you when it comes to the offer,” Harmeet says.
Put another way, if you’re disappointed by the offer, don’t shoot the messenger. Keep in mind that recruiters are also motivated to complete the negotiation process so they can move on. “If anyone’s on your side to try to get this thing wrapped up with a pretty bow, it’s the recruiter,” Ariel says.
“My current company offers a 401K match, and without that benefit I’m missing out on $X. How can we work on bridging that delta?”
Why it works: Mention what you’re potentially leaving behind, including monetary benefits and other perks and benefits, Harmeet says. “Be able to probe them on the entire compensation plan,” Harmeet says. For example, does the company offer stock options, which allow you to buy shares of the company’s stock at a discounted price? Or are you eligible to receive a bonus in the position?
Don’t forget that you can negotiate things outside of just the money, like your allotted paid time off, discounts for gym memberships, job titles, and work-from-home stipends. “Use anything and everything in that realm to see if you can gain a little bit more,” Harmeet says.
“This is well below what I’m looking for in my next role. Let me know if there’s anything I can provide to build a business case for this.”
Why it works: It’s a bummer to get excited about a job only to be offered a salary that’s below your bottom line. “There’s a few things to ask yourself: How bad do you want to work at this company? Is it more about the money or is it more about something else?” Ariel says. For instance, is this an up-and-coming startup that could pay off in a few years? Or is it a huge name that would elevate your profile?
If you decide the opportunity is still worth pursuing, you can offer to put together a “business case” that documents in hard facts why you should be earning more money. For example, can you point to stats from your previous job that illustrate the tangible impact and benefit you had on the team? Or, is there market data that you can pull from sites like Glassdoor and Levels about how much other people make in similar positions? (You can think of this like having receipts.)
Sometimes, you have to make a decision because of the money — and that’s okay. If money is a big factor in your job search, don’t shy away from saying that to the recruiter, Harmeet says.
“I’ve had several conversations with people where they’ve told me: ‘Money is not a factor,’” he says. “And then, when we actually talk about it, it’s a big factor and they get upset. So don’t do that.”
Looking for more tips for navigating a career change? Check out our Career Center for interview prep, portfolio projects, and more.
Register for the live webinar on March 24 at 4 p.m. Eastern.
“Black History, Continued” is an ongoing series from The New York Times that explores pivotal moments and transformative figures in Black culture and examines how the past shapes the present and the future. “We believe the story part of Black History is vital because, like elements in a periodic table, each story is a building block of possibility,” Veronica Chambers, the Narrative Projects editor, writes in announcing the series.
In this webinar, educators will hear from Ms. Chambers about how each installment in the “Black History, Continued” series is selected and created. We’ll also discuss how this series and related resources can be used in the classroom for teaching and learning.
The Learning Network has created an extended lesson plan to help teachers use the series in their classrooms, both during and after Black History Month. It includes a writing prompt, five Lessons of the Day using different articles from the series, and activities to help students reflect upon and share what they have learned.
C.T.L.E. credit is available for New York educators. All participants will receive a certificate of completion.
Register now to join our live webinar or to receive a link to view the on-demand recording.
2. What is peat not good for? What is it good for?
3. Why is peat “the world’s best carbon sink”?
4. How is peat able to hold so much carbon?
5. Why has so much peatland been destroyed around the world? Give at least three reasons.
6. The article says that a disturbed peatland “can become a villain.” What does that mean?
7. What is the best way to heal a peatland?
8. Why is it so important to protect peatlands?
Going Further
What else do you want to know about peat and its ability to fight climate change?
The New York Times’s Headway initiative, which investigates challenges around the world and how to solve them, is inviting readers to submit their questions about the muddy wetlands:
Over the next few weeks, we’re collecting all your questions and curiosities about peatlands. No question is too big or too small. We’ll gather all of your responses and consult the most knowledgeable people we know on the subjects of peatlands, wetlands and climate change. We’ll message you back with what we’ve found.
On your own, or as a class, brainstorm responses to the following questions posed by Headway:
If you are doing this activity as a class, after you have brainstormed as many ideas as you can, choose at least one question your class has about peatlands and one important environment in your community to share.
Then, you can submit your answers via the form at the bottom of the article. Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, may submit their responses using the form. Teachers and parents can submit on behalf of younger students.
