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"In my work through school and organization visits, I have been fascinated to see the correlation between the speed of change and an individual who is "leading" the charge. The schools that have someone (or a group of people) helping to push the boundaries of what can be done in schools seem to move a lot quicker with a larger amount of "buy-in" through the process. As Malcom Gladwell describes in his book, "The Tipping Point", he states: The success of any kind of social epidemic is heavily dependent on the involvement of people with a particular and rare set of social gifts."

" This Copyright Decision Tool was developed by the Copyright Consortium of the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC) . The CMEC Copyright Consortium is composed of the ministers of education of the provinces and territories, with the exception of Quebec. (For further background on copyright and education, you can visit the CMEC Web pages on copyright. ) This Copyright Decision Tool is a supplement to the Fair Dealing Guidelines , created to help teachers determine whether their use of a copyright-protected work is fair dealing. The tool helps teachers assess whether fair dealing permits them to use a copyright-protected work for students without permission or payment of copyright royalties. Fair dealing is only one of several users' rights provided to educational users in the Copyright Act. For a description of other educational users' rights, see Copyright Matters! Every school board or school district should have a staff member who is familiar with copyright law. For more information, contact the ministry or department of Education Copyright Officer for your province or territory, listed here. CMEC wishes to acknowledge that the Copyright Decision Tool is liberally adapted, with permission, from the University of Ottawa's Fair Dealing Decision Tree ."

"After visiting dozens of makerspaces in preparation for our design, and now a year into our newly-built makerspace, I can offer the following recommendations to those beginning design for new builds. Not just the equipment and materials, but the architectural design. Some elements that we fought for turned out hugely important, and we found that there were some elements we missed."

"In prepping for my on-campus course this semester I felt the need to freshen up my face-to-face discussion strategies. Digging around, I discovered some fabulous pedagogical portals well worth visiting for educators, both newbie and veteran.  Take a look if you and your partner teachers seek a little inspiration for engaging learners in meaningful conversations and a few new activities."

"When my grandpa died, my grandma told me that she missed the small stuff. She had plenty of photo albums packed full of memories, but what she missed the most was waking up next to him in the morning. I remember visiting her on a hard afternoon. She had accidentally poured two cups of coffee and brought them into the family room and placed one next to his empty chair. She spent the next hour crying. This moment had me rethinking what it means to live an epic life - which is ultimately why I created the following video:"

"As Abby walked into the school building she had a sinking feeling in her stomach. It was November and she had just moved into a new community. She was nervous about starting a new school midway through the school year. This was her first day of school and she kept her eyes down, nervous, not knowing what to expect as she walked into the main office. Suddenly, the office secretary called out to her in a tone that made her skip a breath, "Where are you supposed to be?  Do you have a pass?  Move on now before the tardy bell rings and the vice principal gives you a detention for being late." Each day in school offices across the country this scenario is playing out with regularity.  Although it may come across as somewhat exaggerated, those of you who have spent any amount of time in school have probably at one time or another been witness to such an interaction in the main office area.  It is these defined interactions that has led to us to ponder this question.  Have we reached the point where we are willing to allow negative interactions to drive the level of success of our students, staff and our school? What if we were to pause, step back and view our office culture through the eyes of students, parents, guests or even staff who visit the main office? What would they say?  If we manage our interactions appropriately they will leave feeling valued and cared for and look forward to their next return trip."

"Last month I was busy visiting local schools ready for when Little N starts reception next year. One thing that really stood out was when a headteacher of one of the schools was talking about their use of technology, and how our children would grow up to do jobs that hadn't even been created yet, because technology is moving and developing so quickly. Even now Little N is learning about coding and he is only in nursery!  I sometimes feel like I am way behind when it comes to technology and the things our children learn, but there are lots of wonderful educational toys available nowadays that can help your children learn these skills, even if us parents haven't got a clue! One of the latest is the Cubetto from Primo, which hit the UK last month, and we were lucky enough to get our hands on one to review. It's the award-winning coding toy that children can use to learn computer programming and it's suitable for ages three and up."

"here are lots of ways to incorporate video into the classroom. From capturing students' attention as you kick off a lesson, to providing context for a new learning experience, teachers use videos in lots of different ways. Whether you are looking for a clip to send home to students via Google Classroom or want to connect a video link for a QR code scavenger hunt, educational 360 videos are worth exploring. 360 video gives students the power to explore a space from every angle. YouTube hosts a range of 360 video content and one of my favorites is from the BBC. On the BBC's YouTube channel you'll find different types of video options for a virtual visit to places around the world. As you search through their content you'll see that they've tagged their videos as 360 to make it especially easy to find."

""Imagine that your mind is a television," I told the small group of students I was visiting at the rural Oregon school where I worked as a counselor. "And you have a remote." I then asked them to change to a sad channel and notice how it made them feel. "Now let's change it to a happy channel." How did that feel? What differences did they notice? We practiced this for a while, the students taking turns to see how all sorts of different channels made us feel. We tried it while holding a yoga tree pose. The students noticed that certain thoughts made it easier to balance; others made it harder. What they were learning, of course, was how to be mindful of their thoughts and how those thoughts affect their bodies. They were also learning that they could direct their thoughts - that none of us is ever stuck on just one channel; that mindfulness gives us tools for dealing successfully with all manner of challenges and difficulties."

"Official Chrome extensions are supports for other Google products. They come with another side benefit - they are automatically authenticated and safe. The Chrome Web Store is safer now than before, but it can still be the Wild West for malicious extensions developers. Maybe you know about some of these official extensions…maybe you don't. Either way, let's visit the little corner on the Store that holds some of the best official extensions you should use. We start with the most beautiful of them all…"

" The Fabulous Field Trip Guide: Mobile Learning and QR Codes 7/6/2016 12:10:00 AM By Shelly Terrell "You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose."- Dr. Seuss, Oh, The Places You'll Go! In 2012, I visited the British Library with Terry Freedman. I was astounded by how much interaction I was able to have with the exhibits. I got to experience the exhibits with 3D glasses, touch tabletop screens, and scan QR codes. As I venture to more museums, landmarks and national parks, I have noticed how these sites are making their exhibits more engaging by adding a mobile component. Before planning your next field trip, discover ways the site is integrating QR codes, mobile apps, and . Check out my recommended apps and tips below along with a slide presentation (free to download) and bookmarks. Check out the rest of The Fabulous Field Trip Guide with suggested activities, virtual field trips, and virtual reality and augmented reality apps and web tools."

" What are MakerSpaces? Makers build, fix, and create. They are students, teachers, tinkerers, cooks, technology buffs, architects, crafters, performers, hobbyists, builders, artists, engineers, scientists, and writers. They use the MakerSpace to solve real life problems with access to tools and materials. A MakerSpace is not confined to a school setting but can also be a community space like a public library where community members off all ages, means, and abilities can design, prototype, and create original works. On March 18th and 19th, we celebrated New Jersey Makers Day, and I had the opportunity to visit a number of different Maker events in various communities. These are some themes and big ideas that I noticed in my travels. Perhaps these big ideas will inspire you to create your own MakerSpace makeover in your own classroom, school, or local community."

"The Arduino/Genuino 101 is a learning and development board which contains the Intel® Curie™ Module, designed to integrate the core's low power-consumption and high performance with the Arduino's ease-of-use. The 101 adds Bluetooth Low Energy capabilities and has an on-board 6-axis accelerometer/gyroscope, providing exciting opportunities for building creative projects in the connected world. More information about the technical specifications and documentation can be found on the Arduino/Genuino 101 main page. The Arduino/Genuino 101 is programmed using the Arduino Software (IDE), our Integrated Development Environment common to all our boards and running both online and offline. For more information on how to get started with the Arduino Software visit the Getting Started page."

" recently had a chance to visit a local high school that offers a music technology course. The course focuses on GarageBand and its many resources for Mac. I want to create a course similar to that course, but I want to use the iPad instead."

"Last Thursday was a great day of professional development as 30 educators from around the Northwest visited Westside's iPad Open House. This was an opportunity for IT directors, teachers and administrators to see students in action and learn about the process of deploying a 1-to-1 iPad program."

"There is no doubt that learning is central to thinking at ESSA Academy. A visit is based on talk of pedagogy and enhancing student life (iPad and Pedagogy). However, there are many lessons to be learned about the implementation of new technology in a school and ESSA, in particular Abdul Chohan, are very happy to help."

"There is a running theme on this blog - 'it's not about the device'. I expected this view to be challenged by a visit to Essa Academy in Bolton where they refer to an 'ecosystem' using Apple technology. I was prepared for technological practice that would be difficult to comprehend and a new building with an infrastructure we couldn't hope to replicate. I couldn't have been more wrong."

"Zip! Zap! Zoom! My library is anything BUT quiet during our recess time. Of course students are visiting and sharing about books they love. But they've also had a great time exploring iPads this year. Students read picture book apps, explore nonfiction book apps, and play math games to practice basic math facts."

"Last weekend, I took a small vacation to Montreal. While I like to travel, I am not an ambitious sightseer. The exception to this is when the sights I see involve food. I love food. It was a real treat to visit the Jean-Talon Market (French: Marché Jean Talon), which is a historical farmer's market located in Montreal's Little Italy district. I decided to use this gastronomic excursion as the object model for this week's app synergy use."