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"Apple has added a number of new Accessibility features in iOS 6 which makes the iPad even easier to use for students with reading disabilities."

"Stories bring us together, encourage us to understand and empathize, and help us to communicate. Long before paper and books were common and affordable, information passed from generation to generation through this oral tradition of storytelling. Consider Digital Storytelling as the 21st Century version of the age-old art of storytelling with a twist: digital tools now make it possible for anyone to create a story and share it with the world."

""Ever wished you could bring the real world to virtual life?" As a matter of fact, this is one wish I have never had. However, tech guru Lisa Johnson (A.K.A. techchef4u) recently waltzed into my classroom, iPad in hand, to introduce me to "augmented reality". Before my very eyes, she made things appear through the "eyes" of her iPad… that simply weren't there."

"It's easy to focus on academics and college transcripts when children become tweens and teens, but retaining the agency and creativity inherent in play is crucial for them, too. But what is the high school equivalent for the kind of inquisitive learning that happens when little kids play in the sandbox, finger-paint, build with blocks or play make-believe?"

"From Fitbits to the Apple Watch, wearable technologies have become incredibly popular with consumers. Many large organizations, intrigued by the extraordinary value that wearables can deliver, are looking to bring them into the enterprise as well. Wearables can help both large businesses and public-sector enterprises save money, boost productivity, improve safety and enhance learning, researchers and analysts say."

"A paper circuit is a low-voltage electrical circuit that is created on paper or cardboard using conductive copper tape, LEDs and a power source such as a coin-cell battery.  Creating paper circuits is a good way to teach the basics of electricity and how circuits function.   In addition to being educational, they can also be a fun makerspace project that helps to bring artwork and paper craft to life.  By adding sensors, buzzers and motors to your circuit, you can also add another dimension of interactivity.  These simple projects are great for all ages and all makerspaces."

"Apple believes that everyone can code, according to the latest initiative the company has launched.  While "Hello iPhone 7, goodbye phone jack" is what a lot of the world is saying at the moment, educators might be more interested in Apple's latest foray into computer science education with the "Everyone Can Code" initiative. As part of its ConnectED promise, Apple will bring coding education to schools, all related to its homegrown programming language Swift. "

"There's only one thing more satisfying than being part of a 3D printing project, and that's teaching others how to get involved with the additive manufacturing game. A few weeks ago, Netherlands-based 3D printer manufacturer Ultimaker launched its ambitious 3D printing Pioneer Program through which school teachers and university staff can share useful tips and resources for bringing 3D printing into the classroom, but Thingiverse, MakerBot's huge 3D printable file hub, has a fair amount of educational content of its own. MakerBot Learning, the educational division of the 3D printing company, has sifted through the database to identify the best STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) 3D printing lesson plans submitted by Thingiverse users. The various lessons, from which we have selected 15, include step-by-step instructions, photos, 3D design files, activity sheets, and more. Some of the lessons are targeted at high school students, while others are more suitable for younger learners."

Change is something that we fear or embrace. It is widely considered as the one constant in our lives. For education at present we face a deluge of reports that the pace of change shall only accelerate and its scale become more absolute. No wonder then that many teachers feel now is a good time for a move out of the profession. For others the changing face of education is seen as bringing exciting new possibilities wrapped in engaging challenges. Regardless of how reliable predictions for change may prove to be it is worth considering how individuals and groups respond to it.

"From the programmers behind Pokemon Go to the creators of chatbots, the impact of computer science (CS) is ubiquitous in our daily lives. This is because computer science education provides a way of thinking that focuses on problem solving, teamwork and a powerful way to express yourself - important skills for any career. And with a projected 1 million jobs going unfulfilled in computing-related roles by 2020, we need computer scientists from all backgrounds to bring their unique perspectives to solve real-world problems. That's why today, we're excited to announce Careers with Code in the US, a free high school "CS + X" career magazine that shows how to combine your passions, your "X", with computer science. We partnered with STEM specialist publishers Refraction Media to create a CS career magazine that illuminates the range of computer science careers and highlights the impact they have across industries. Readers can get to know people who use CS in their daily work in sometimes unexpected ways, such as Jonathan Graham. "

"If you're still adapting to millennials in the workplace, it's time to move on because the next generation of workers is here. We call them "digital natives" and their lives have always been integrated with technology. According to Marc Prensky, the author responsible for coining the term, digital natives are by definition a generation of children born into a completely digital world. As businesses prepare to welcome this new generation, we'll discuss what these businesses should know and how they can leverage the digital wisdom and tech-ready mindsets the digital natives will bring to the workforce."

"The CSER Digital Technologies MOOCs (Massively Open Online Courses) are free online courses, designed to support Australian teachers with implementing the Australian Curriculum: Digital Technologies. These are free online courses that provide teachers with background knowledge about concepts and topics in the curriculum, as well as practical examples that can be tried in the classroom. We bring together existing resources, our own developed resources as well as existing teacher ideas."

The maker movement and with it maker-centered learning brings new possibilities and challenges into the classroom. It has spawned makerspaces and students are busy designing and making products. The danger with all this frenzied making is that it is very easy to miss the point, to focus on the product and not the journey.  

"I am very pleased today to bring you a tutorial on how to work with my favorite-est crafting material of all:  CARDBOARD!! C.A.R.D.B.O.A.R.D !!!!"

"If it's true, in Sir Ken Robinson's words, that "Creativity is not an option, it's an absolute necessity," then it's that much more imperative to find ways to bring creativity to learning. But first, we have to understand what conditions foster true creativity. One definition that scientists have agreed upon for creativity is the ability to create something that's both novel as compared to what came before, and has value. "It's this intersection of novelty and value, a combination of those two features that's particularly important," Dr. Robert Bilder, a psychiatry and psychology professor at UCLA's Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. In any system, there are forces pushing towards organization and others introducing unpredictability. A truly creative idea straddles both of those states."

"Coding brings young children rich opportunities for language development and the "notion of learning from mistakes," says Chip Donohue, the dean of distance learning and continuing education at the Erikson Institute in Chicago, a graduate school in child development. "We actually don't do enough of that with young kids." The sequencing and patterns involved in programming reinforce skills that have always been taught in the early years, but now also create "habits of mind that are essential for the 21st century," adds Donohue, also senior fellow at the Fred Rogers Center, which provides resources and information on media use with young children. When children code together, they are also learning from each other. "In the process of learning to code, people learn many other things. They are not just learning to code, they are coding to learn," Mitchel Resnick, professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab, wrote in an EdSurge article. "In addition to learning mathematical and computational ideas (such as variables and conditionals), they are also learning strategies for solving problems, designing projects, and communicating ideas." Resnick adds that these skills are useful to everyone "regardless of age, background, interests, or occupation.""

"When I talk to other librarians and educators about starting a school Makerspace, one of the most common things I hear is: "I'd love to do (insert cool Maker activity) at my school, but we don't have a budget for that".  What many people don't realize is that the idea that you need a lot of money to start a Makerspace is a myth. All you need is to have vision, ingenuity, and resourcefulness. A lack of funds is no longer an excuse for keeping your students from experiencing the empowerment of bringing the Maker Education Movement into your program."

"The journey of building and maintaining a makerspace in our school is never-ending. Less than one year ago, we opened the doors of our Learning Lab Makerspace to our students, who have since experienced creating, tinkering and play. While still in its infancy, our Learning Lab has gone through a major transformation into the makerspace and yet has still continued to change based on our students' interests and needs. We have built the maker mindset from the ground up in our school, with teachers finding new ways to use the space to empower students to solve problems and with students finding their creative side as they tinker and explore. The space has grown in materials and ideas and even our parents are intrigued by what happens in there, bringing donations of supplies so that our students can continue to make. Even though our makerspace has seen its changes, there are materials that have become staples. Some of our must-haves are consumables, where students create ideas and projects in the art station. Other must-haves are not consumables, but are always in use. Here is our top ten list of elementary makerspace must-have materials."

"One of my favorite places to learn about new apps each year is the AASL Best Apps For Teaching and Learning.   I know all of the thought and knowledge that goes into selecting these 25 apps each year, so the list to me is one of the most special ways to bring the best of the best into the library and classroom. In the last four years, AASL has announced 100 apps but there are several that stand out for me. One of them is the Buncee app! "

As teachers we hope our lessons are engaging and that our students are engaged. We understand that positive learning experiences are more likely to occur when we are engaged cognitively and affectively by what we are doing and that when we are, new ideas and skills are more likely to stick. Engagement is an important consideration in learning and as such it is worth taking time to consider what it means to be engaged and perhaps how we bring the benefits of engagement to our teaching and our learning.