Happy Digital Learning Day 2014! Here's a guide on how to participate today and beyond (lots of recorded sessions will be shared later). Today is crammed full: an Edtech Buzzword cheatsheet, NASA's Space Math that collides math and science with the explosive force of space, and a great write up from Richard Wells about SAMR and iPad implementation. There's more.
So much free PD is coming up including #CO14 this weekend (some awesome presenters including Stephen Downes, Jackie Gerstein, Dr. Curtis Bonk, Shelly Terrell, and more. I'm presenting Saturday) and some upcoming Twitter chats from SIGML (an ISTE affiliate) next Tuesday. What are your students going to say when you teach them to search Goofram (search Google and Wolfram Alpha at the same time – thanks Leah for showing us how.)
Celly upgrades their already cool reminder platform. Robot Turtles says they teach coding before kids learn to read. A site with new fitness videos for you health teachers out there and some new apps: Brain Breaks with Go Noodle, Chronicle, and Grade Hacks. A digital Citizenship resource list from Edutopia.
It is scholarship time and Kohl's announces theirs. Microsoft is planning a big initiative to give Bing to Schools and many other apps and software programs as part of President Obama's ConnectED initiative. (Some of you might save some money.) A new survey gives US public schools a Grade C for use of technology in the classroom. Finally, in an intriguing article, filmmaking is the new activism as two filmmakers work to document student uprisings in Chile over providing free education to everyone.
Meanwhile in my own classroom, I'm kicking off some new projects – Gamifi-ed is in full swing and I'll have some work to share with you there soon — but remember the Gamifi-ED OOC starts next week and for two weeks we'll be creating Open Education Resources (OER) about gaming in the classroom. Lots of incredible educators who are using gaming now have agreed to share openly so we can build the information that builds on how games can and are actually being used to teach. (This will be a boon for college profs adding gaming to their preservice education courses.)
I've added a few inspirational quotes to the news today. Let me know if you like it.
Remember – if you don't bring it, the kids won't either. I know it's “Hump day” but make it into Bump Day as you bump up learning and hook the students.
You Rock because you teach. You have my respect and appreciation. Thank you.
;-) Vicki
Digital Learning Day is Today! Join in.
- Digital Learning Day: Resource Roundup | Edutopia
Digital Learning Day is TODAY! February 5. Here are resources and how you can celebrate this in your school this week. There will be many live seminars and webinars online as well as live broadcasts. Join in! (You can always plan something for later.
- Digital Learning Day
An awesome Pinterest Board by Edutopia with resources you can use for Digital Learning Day. This is an excellent example of how you can use Pinterest Boards to share research and best practices.
tags: dlday digital learning day digitial citizenship education pinterest bestpractices
Are you setting off on a new journey? Some people talk about all the places they're going to go while others pull up anchor and set sail.
Teach with Better Results
- A New Educational Technology Cheat Sheet for Teachers ~ Educational Technology and Mobile Learning
Awesome guide to share with teachers who are trying to figure out all of the terminology.
- Welcome to Space Math @ NASA !
Space Math by NASA with math problems relating to space. This is an excellent cross curricular for math and science as you promote STEM.
- SAMR success is NOT about Tech | IPAD 4 SCHOOLS
Excellent write up about the SAMR method and iPad implementation by Richard Wells @ipadwells. Great work here to help us understand that it is a transformation of mindset. If these things were easy everyone would do them well but as it is transformation is hard and we all have our struggles in our own schools with it.
Upcoming Free PD & Online Events
- CO14: Reinventing Writing: The 9 Tools that are changing how to teach Online Class by Vicki Davis
CO14 is happening this weekend and so many great people are presenting. It runs from February 7-9 and is free. My session is sharing how writing has been reinvented as I share the 9 tools that have changed how we teach forever (a sneak preview of my book coming out in May.) If you teach writing, work with curriculum or teach, feel free to join in. The session is at 8 am EST on Saturday morning, February 8. Anyone can join.
Lots of thoughtful presenters are speaking so check it out.
tags: education free online_course teaching pd all_teachers bestpractices
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February 11, the Special Interest Group for Mobile Learning #sigml will be hosting tweetchats during the day about a variety of topics. Sylvia Martinez and I will be talking about the maker movement at 5 pm that day. Sylvia is coauthor of the action-provoking book “Invent2Learn” — a must read for those interested in the maker movement. There are many others including Scott Merrick, Susan Wells and more who are sharing that day.
Technology to Improve Learning
- Learn With Leah: Goofram
Leah shares how Goofram works – very cool and useful information from Leah Fullenkamp. Awesome.
tags: education news search howto all_teachers
- Goofram – Search Google and Wolfram Alpha at the same time!
You can search Google and Wolfram Alpha at the same time. This is a handy tool for educators and students alike. Wow. (I wonder how long Google and Wolfram will let it stay – awesome while it lasts, though.)
- Celly Blog | The Next Celly
I love Celly for notifications (similar to Remind 101) – this is what I use for my school and to connect with parents and students (without having to give out your cell phone.) Here's the tutorial and now you can share pics which means you can snap a picture of your homework board and send it out. Awesome.
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A coding game for little kids. I don't know about teaching them to program before they learn to read, as it claims, but I do know that many are ready and moving head to teach their kids to code and that is awesome.
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Exercise Videos For Kids | Adventure To Fitness
A website to share with health and PE teachers with games, videos and other activities to promote fitness.
- Brain breaks kids love – GoNoodle
I don't know that I'd market “brain breaks” as a way to get “classroom control” but I guess that is what some teachers want. I am fascinated by how Brain Breaks are trending on Twitter as many teachers are using them so I guess I”m going to sign up for Go Noodle and see what the fuss is about. Any of you using this tool/ website?
tags: education brain teaching apps all_teachers
- Power House Education
Interesting app called “Chronicle” for tracking and including artifacts for how students are learning and improving. With students turning in all kinds of documents and work, this is an intriguing way to track it.
tags: education edu_newapp app bestpractices
- Digital Citizenship: Resource Roundup | Edutopia
Digital Citizenship resources and thoughts to help you as you plan.
tags: education news digitalcitizenship
- Get Better Grades, Starting Today! – Grade Hacks
Grade hacks is a website that helps students with study skills and more. (I have a few promo codes, Speakpipe or message me and I'll give you one if there's one left.)
Remember to be kind to yourself and love yourself. Teaching is hard. We all make mistakes. Admit them, apologize and move on and hopefully let others do the same. Teaching is so much better when you love others but you also have to love yourself.
Scholarships and Contests
- Kohl's Cares® Scholarship Program
Scholarships for students who are volunteering and making a difference in their community.
tags: education scholarship community service servicelearning
Tech Ed News that People Are Talking About
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Microsoft Responds to ConnectED – The Official Microsoft Blog
Microsoft has announced an initiative as part of the ConnectED movement in the US. Here are the details:
“Windows 8.1 Pro Operating System: One of the most powerful and flexible operating systems for education, it provides the ability for students and teachers to use education apps and Microsoft Office, search for information across their device and the web, and is optimized for touch, education apps, research, productivity and digital inking, critical keys to better learning outcomes.
Office 365 Education Communication and Collaboration Tool: Email, sites, online and offline document editing and storage, IM, and web conferencing capabilities for all you students for free. Plus 5 copies of Office for free for more than 12 million students at qualified institutions.
Partners in Learning Network Teacher Training and Resources: Partners in Learning provides educators with a network of nearly 1 million educators from 136 countries. It offers them a forum where they can share ideas, find free lesson plans to inspire classroom learning and develop professionally.
Bing for Schools Ad-free search: An ad-free digital literacy platform aimed at helping students learn important digital skills based on access to a connected computing device, daily common-core aligned lesson plans, and a safe, private environment where search history will not be mined for data.
Student training and resources: Microsoft IT Academy: For roughly 2,000 high-needs schools, Microsoft is providing academic institutions and their educators, students, and staff with digital curriculum and certification for fundamental technology skills.
Affordable Broadband from EveryoneOn: A critical component to connected learning, Microsoft’s non-profit partner EveryoneOn is offering home Internet service for as low $10 to the 36 million Americans living in low-income communities.” -
Lead Commission Report: Broadband Access Survey
A study in the US gives US public schools a grade of “C” and says that there is not enough access to technology in schools. I think critical mass is building and demanding excellence in innovation in technology – of course, there is a price tag for this demand and with coffers shrinking it will require lots of creativity and hard work. Interesting study to share with policy makers.
World News and Education
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Chile’s Student Uprising: ‘There’s a Story to Be Told’ | International Political Forum
Increasingly activists are becoming filmmakers because video is the modern essay – traveling further than pamphlets by Patrick Henry, showing people in action fighting for freedom – or, in this case, free education in Chile, tends to cause change. Fascinating read and case study.
“Roberto’s son Pablo, born and raised in the UK, has worked on several documentaries on Latin America. He produced the documentary ‘Inside the Revolution: A Journey Into the Heart of Venezuela’, released in August 2009 by Alborada Films, and ‘The Colombia Connection’, released in November 2012. He has covered Latin America for various media outlets, including Al Jazeera English, the Guardian and the BBC.I spoke to Pablo about their forthcoming documentary on Chile’s student movement and their crowdfunding campaign.”
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
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