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"Adding annotations to YouTube videos is a good way to add little bubbles of information to a video or to create a series of choose your own adventure videos. A great example of using annotations in student-produced videos can be found here. In the video embedded below I provide directions for adding annotations to your YouTube videos. You can also find screenshots of the process in this post."

"In his new book, Raising Kids Who Read, Daniel Willingham wants to be clear: There's a big difference between teaching kids to read and teaching them to love reading. And Willingham, a parent himself, doesn't champion reading for the obvious reasons - not because research suggests that kids who read for pleasure do better in school and in life. "The standard things you'll hear about why kids should read I actually don't think are very strong arguments," he says. "Because if the goal is to become a good citizen or the goal is to make a lot of money, I can think of more direct ways to reach those goals than to read during your leisure time." Willingham wants his kids to love reading because, he says, "for me it's a family value. It's something that I love, something that I find important. I think I gain experiences I wouldn't gain any other way by virtue of being a reader. And so naturally I want my children to experience that." The professor of psychology at the University of Virginia uses his new book to map out strategies for parents and teachers hoping to kindle that same passion for reading."

"ner Driven Community," a disruptive approach led by self-directed learners, in a community tightly bound by personal covenants and contracts, using the full power of the internet to craft a transformative, personalized learning path."

"This recent tweet from Darren Kuropatwa has had me thinking about digital citizenship. As the Internet becomes an increasingly important part of all of our lives, children are spending more time online as well. And they are doing this largely without any guidance about what is responsible or appropriate online. While my six- and seven-year old students don't yet even understand the words "digital" or "citizenship," they also need direction and support as they explore online spaces. In fact, they need this instruction even more than their older counterparts."

"In spite of the before-mentioned dynamics, Kindergarten classrooms are really magical places where kids are able to collaboratively and independently create and design. Kids move like a well-oiled machine from one center to the next with very little if any teacher direction. These students, most of whom have never been a part of such madness, are able to find structure and are able to be trusted to do the right thing. Students are able to 'playfully work together and learn about the creative process: how to imagine new ideas, try them out, test the boundaries, experiment with alternatives, get feedback from others, and generate new ideas based on their experiences.' Kindergarten classrooms are a hotbed for makers and the maker movement. Kindergarten classrooms are spilling over with exploration and discovery. Kindergarten classrooms beam with pride as kids put their best efforts forward to please their teachers and expand their knowledge of the world. Kindergarten classrooms are indeed a magical place. "

"The other day, I noticed one of my daughters playing a puzzle type game on my iPad. It was obviously challenging and often frustrating but she kept at it regardless. The game was direct problem solving and my girl was deeply engaged. It was then I had an idea. If any learner who found themselves disengaged from a school task had permission to select from a list of problem-solving, "brain igniting" games, it might mean they return to the task more energised to tackle it or suggest other solutions."

"As more and more users turn to their phones and tablets for everyday computing tasks (email, Web browsing, even word processing), there's one aspect that often seems elusive: printing. After all, it's not like you can plug in a USB printer, and even if you have a Wi-Fi model connected to your home network, it may not show up when you search for printers within iOS. Fortunately, it's pretty simple to print just about anything from your iPhone or iPad, and to just about any printer. For starters, check out Sharon Profis' tutorial on printing wirelessly from any iDevice, which shows how to get connected to AirPrint and non-AirPrint printers alike. What remains is the nuts and bolts of how to print various kinds of items from various apps (a process that's not always consistent across iOS). For example, want to print a document from the newly updated Word for iPad? Or a set of directions from Google Maps? How about a magazine page? Here's a simple rundown of how to print just about anything."

Have you ever felt that your online students needed more direction on how to approach a discussion board? Have you thought that with just a bit more assistance students would really engage in the forum and take it to the next level, rather than just do the minimum required to get points?

Yontoo Trojan, detected by noted security company Dr. Web is blamed for tracking the browsing behaviors across a range of popular browsers like Safari, Chrome, and Firefox. It may pretend as a media player, download manager, or other plug-in, thereby directing you to some maliciously crafted Web sites disguised as sources for file sharing and movie trailers.

Most of the times you find the Windows Update dialog pop up which direct you to reboot your computer. But, this is a real hindrance when you are very busy.

"Elementary school has always looked a little bit like training for a traditional office job: You show up at 8 or 9, sit at your desk, and fill out paperwork for most of the day. An average third grader might spend as much as six hours sitting in the classroom--only a little less time than the average office worker spends sitting at work. But as more offices realize that sitting all day long is actually pretty terrible for health and productivity, how long will it take schools to catch up? While some elementary schools no longer have recess, and people like New Jersey Governor Chris Christie argue that school days should be even longer, a few schools are already moving in a different direction. Some are testing out standing desks, and realizing that a little bit of activity can actually improve attention spans. Others, like Ward Elementary in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, are starting to fill classrooms with exercise bikes, so students can work out while they learn."

"Online abuse directed at teachers by parents has doubled in the last year due to an increase in the use of social media platforms like Snapchat and Instagram. In the last year, 40 per cent of teachers said they had been the victims of cyber bullying by parents, compared to 21 per cent a year earlier, a new survey has found. Threats made by parents also rose by 8 per cent from 2014. The increase coincides with the growing popularity of social media platforms like Instagram and Snapchat, with abuse on both rising 5 per cent from a year earlier. Most remarks are either abusive, sexist, racist or homophobic and are made in relation to a teacher's looks, competence or sexual orientation."

"Google Maps is an excellent tool to use with students to develop their spatial thinking. Beyond getting driving or walking directions, this tool enables students to discover the world right from their classrooms. It is also a very good way to teach students about geography concepts, distance measurement, map readings and other fundamentals of mapping such as longitude, latitude, locations and many more."

"Google Forms allows you to create pages so that all of the questions are not all on one screen. In some circumstances the questions do not apply for every student. If students answer no they are not participating in a sport the section of questions about which sports the student participates in can be skipped. If you are using a Google Form as a formative assessment quiz you can direct students to a page with instruction on the topic if they get the question wrong or go to the next question if they get the question correct."

"Lightbot is an addictively fun puzzle game that is the perfect platform for introducing programming concepts to your students. Using sequential commands, students create simple programs to direct their Lightbot (Girlbot or Boybot) through a 3-dimensional grid on their mission to 'light up' the world of tiles. With no explicit coding required and a fun and tactile interface, Lightbot is an excellent starting point to get your class on the path to programming."

"The embracement of the maker movement is being seen in K-12 schools and districts across the world. As a result, makerspaces are being instituted to allow students to tinker, invent, create, and make to learn.  A makerspace can best be defined as a physical place where students can create real-world products/projects using real-world tools in a shared work space. With natural connections and applications to STEAM areas as well as a focus on self-directed, inquiry-based, and hands on learning, it is difficult not to appreciate and admire the positive impact that makerspaces can have on all students.  In times when many schools and districts have cut programs such as wood/metal shop and agriculture, makerspaces provide a 21st Century alternative to meet the learning needs of our most at-risk students.  "

"Why use video games in the classroom as teaching tools? Let's be clear-we've come a long way from Asteroids and Space Invaders. The modern capabilities and designs of computer games provide endless opportunities for meaningful learning experiences. Used appropriately and effectively, technology can make a difference in students' lives and affect their attitude toward school in a positive way. So ditch the old stereotypes and misconceptions you may have about the ill effects of video games and reframe your perception in the light of using them to enhance learning. Gamification of classrooms isn't a new idea. The components of the gaming world lend themselves well to self-directed learning, because gaming taps into the variables which inherently motivate the desire for progress. In fact, using a set of constructs called game mechanics one could conceivably create situations that enhance learning by incorporating the kinds of motivating strategies found in today's best video games. Whether you choose to "gamify" your physical classroom all the way or only use video games as an occasional learning enhancement, making learning fun will positively reinforce students' experiences of school. Here are some suggestions on how to successfully use video games in the classroom."

"What strategy can double student learning gains? According to 250 empirical studies, the answer is formative assessment, defined by Bill Younglove as "the frequent, interactive checking of student progress and understanding in order to identify learning needs and adjust teaching appropriately." Unlike summative assessment, which evaluates student learning according to a benchmark, formative assessment monitors student understanding so that kids are always aware of their academic strengths and learning gaps. Meanwhile, teachers can improve the effectiveness of their instruction, re-teaching if necessary. "When the cook tastes the soup," writes Robert E. Stake, "that's formative; when the guests taste the soup, that's summative." Formative assessment can be administered as an exam. But if the assessment is not a traditional quiz, it falls within the category of alternative assessment. Alternative formative assessment (AFA) strategies can be as simple (and important) as checking the oil in your car -- hence the name "dipsticks." They're especially effective when students are given tactical feedback, immediately followed by time to practice the skill. My favorite techniques are those with simple directions, like The 60 Second Paper, which asks students to describe the most important thing they learned and identify any areas of confusion in under a minute. You can find another 53 ways to check for understanding toward the end of this post, also available as a downloadable document."

"There's so many amazing books coming out now related to starting a school makerspace, and many of them are fantastic.  But for this post, I want to take a look back and focus on the five books that had the biggest impact on me as I was planning and creating my makerspace at Stewart Middle Magnet School.  This was back in late 2013/early 2014, when there wasn't a ton of stuff out there that specifically focused on school makerspaces.  Even without a direct focus on library makerspaces, these books still had a profound impact in shaping my thinking about creating an innovative, playful learning environment."