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"Welcome to The Art of Curriculum Design. In this six month series we are exploring the why and how of curriculum design via an Arts Appreciation course created through an arts collaboration. The first few weeks were devoted to the how and why of the curriculum design process. During the current portion of the series we are looking at weekly objectives, outcomes, and assessments designed for the Arts Appreciation course. Links to the entire series can be found below. The full curriculum including daily lesson plans, handouts, and assessments will be available at the culmination of the series."

"Is there a better way to start the week than by spending all day talking and learning about more effective ways to do social studies? You're right. There isn't. I had the sweet chance to spend yesterday with a small group of social studies teachers as we discussed ways to use five under-appreciated Google tools to teach social studies."

"In the spirit of thanks we're wrapping our 2nd Annual Smart Lists with 24 sites, foundations, leaders, companies and organizations we appreciate doing great work. During October and November we released about 20 'Best of' lists, not in order, not exhaustive, just people we appreciate doing innovative work."

"I was not one of those LEGO® kids growing up. Sure, my brothers had LEGO bricks, and every so often I'd kidnap some tiny LEGO men for a make-believe game. But I didn't truly appreciate the engineering capacity of those studded plastic bricks. They were just so rigidly rectangular! As an adult, I've come to appreciate LEGO, both for its rectilinear aesthetic, and even more so, for its mathematical might. In the classroom, the tiny bricks are now my favorite possibility-packed math manipulative! Read on for a sampling of math activities that use LEGO pieces to build and reinforce key math concepts."

"May is an important month for teachers. Standardized testing kicks in gear, decisions are being made about next year's budget, and, of course, Teacher Appreciation Week. After ten years in the classroom, I've discovered that the best Teacher Appreciation gifts tend to be free- handwritten notes from students or words of encouragement from veteran teachers. My gift to you is this roundup of advice from voices in every academic discipline, as well as a heavy sprinkling of books about fictional teachers. There are some classics, some hot new titles, and a few books that might push you out of your comfort zone. Whether you are trying to up your game in a certain subject, study theory about different learning styles, or simply read a story about someone else surviving the classroom for a change, you'll find something in this list of 100 must-read books for and about teachers."

Project Management Professional's (PMP) certificate from the Project Management Institute (PMI) is the crucial step towards the corporate ladder of the project managers. It offers you the most appreciated and visible appreciation in your business. The certification increases the chances of your organization's professional growth and provides new avenues. As an efficient project manager, you validate your skills. In addition to enhancing your profit potential, it offers you a competitive position in the job market.

"As a follow up to my post, Whatever Happened to iBooks????, I thought a lot about how iBooks and the Camera may be two of the most powerful apps on the iPad, and yet the most under appreciated. In many ways, they are essentially "invisible apps.""

"A few days ago a student approached me and said he needed to talk about something, and he wanted to meet the next day at recess. I appreciated the way he reached out to me and I looked forward to the opportunity to meet with him. He came into my office with a sheepish look on his face, spoke in a quiet voice and said that he had done something he was not feeling good about. I asked him what it was, and he informed me that he had violated the technology policy by downloading some games onto his school-issued iPad, bypassing restrictions and settings. "

"For me, the most annoying part of Google Reader shutting down on July 1 is ensuring that we all continue to appreciate that understanding how to harness the power of RSS is an important skill for educators and students."

"As blended learning content continues to grow it has become increasingly difficult for teachers and administrators to decide what content to use. We appreciate this infographic put together by EducationElements on the 4 steps schools can follow when making the decision on which digital content to implement"

"The four STEM apps below all get kids moving in different ways, whether by looking up at the sky, analyzing how their own bodies move, discovering unique objects to photograph, or getting muddy at their local watershed. Sure, they may not be capturing that next rare Pokémon, but these apps will still help students appreciate the diversity of the world they inhabit."

"The oft-shared John Dewey quote "Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself." is one that resonates with progressive educators around the world. Our education system however, seems to have missed all of those tweets and Pinterest pins. In a recent podcast (listen below) with Getting Smart's Emily Liebtag, I mentioned moving students from consumers to creators to contributors. Justin Tarte had said this in my TeachThought Podcast with him earlier this year and I appreciated that language. It certainly is a great step to shift our teaching and learning from having students just consuming information to the top of Bloom's taxonomy where they are creating. That next step, however, where their creations are at least potentially adding value to their community and perhaps the world at large is powerful. While it's true that our students are indeed the future, there are real reasons why we need to remember that they are also a big part of our today and our teaching and learning should reflect that."

"My name is Kristen LaScola, and I am a 3rd grade teacher at Hudson City Schools in Hudson, Ohio. I first came across Jesse Ruben when a family member sent me one of Jesse's most inspirational songs, "We Can." Being a musician myself, I have a great appreciation for music and always use music as a tool to help my students learn. I teach one song per week in my classroom, and after watching Jesse's video, I thought it had a great message, and I knew that we had to learn it!"

"Most kids really appreciate today's technology. Want to know what the latest must-have phone is? What about the newest game or app? Often, you need look no further than the students in your classes. Many of them are passionate about using the coolest gadgets and tools. That's why teaching with cutting-edge technology can be a great way to connect with your students. The right app can make even the most boring or time-consuming subject seem interesting and understandable. Financial concepts like budgeting, buying a house, or running a business may not be the most exciting subjects for students, but it's important to teach kids financial literacy starting at a young age. ZipBooks is free accounting software that can help familiarize them with concepts around running a business. The interface is easy to grasp so students can jump right into the app with little instruction. It's not overwhelming like a lot of accounting software. Every element is labeled clearly, and there are in-app tips to help newcomers get started. There are lots of ways you could use ZipBooks in the classroom and we have outlined a couple ideas to get you started."

"Earlier today someone wrote the following in response to my post featuring a good example of a teacher and student blog, "Franklly (sic) I don't want to blog with my students. I want to talk with them face to face in class." While I appreciate that the person who wrote that comment on Facebook wants to emphasize the relationship she's trying to develop with her students, she's also overlooking the benefits of having a classroom blog. In short, it's not an "either or" proposition. You can have a classroom blog and develop face-to-face conversations with your students."

"If your a Pinterest fan, you fun just became 'more fun'. If your not a fan of the service, you have to appreciate the user experience of the whole Pinterest viewing and sharing user interface."

Virtual History Roma presents a fantastic voyage to Ancient Rome, the capital of the largest empire in the ancient world, which has been reconstructed in virtual form and which you can explore in a "full-immersion" panoramic experience. This app allows you to fully appreciate the building construction, scale and atmosphere that was Ancient Rome. At the higher end of the app market at $10.99 AU it is a bit expensive but it certain has the capacity to entice students into the ancient world. At the end of the post find good ideas for student action

"Shakespeare in Bits brings Shakespeare to life on your iPhone, iTouch, and iPad through animated, narrated re-enactments of The Bard's most popular plays. Highly recommended by secondary English teachers, the app includes full study notes, plot summaries, character notes, and language explanations, helping students better understand and appreciate the plays"