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"Like us, you're tremendously excited by the possibilities of 3D printing. Unfortunately, the landscape is cluttered with trinkets, doodads and ornaments. We're in danger of drowning in 3D printed objects that nobody wants or needs. Fight the tide of mediocrity! Let's make stuff that's actually useful! Here's a list of cool things to 3D print, right now, today. Prove to your nearest and dearest that there's an everyday and practical application of this wonderful technology."

We are driven by curiosity. It is an innately human quality that has driven us to explore, ask questions, investigate, wonder why and search for a deeper understanding. In a very fundamental way curiosity is the driver of all self-directed learning. It is our desire to find out more, unlock new knowledge and answer our questions (big ones and little ones) that compels us to learn. Sir Ken Robinson famously and provocatively asked "Do Schools Kill Creativity?". The same question might be asked about curiosity.

"One snowy January day, I asked a classroom of college students to tell me the first word that came to mind when they thought about mathematics. The top two words were "calculation" and "equation." When I asked a room of professional mathematicians the same question, neither of those words were mentioned; instead, they offered phrases like "critical thinking" and "problem-solving." This is unfortunately common. What professional mathematicians think of as mathematics is entirely different from what the general population thinks of as mathematics. When so many describe mathematics as synonymous with calculation, it's no wonder we hear "I hate math" so often. So I set out to solve this problem in a somewhat unconventional way. I decided to offer a class called "The Mathematics of Knitting" at my institution, Carthage College. In it, I chose to eliminate pencil, paper, calculator (gasp) and textbook from the classroom completely. Instead, we talked, used our hands, drew pictures and played with everything from beach balls to measuring tapes. For homework, we reflected by blogging. And of course, we knit."

"Playing with toy cars is synonymous to almost everyone's childhood. In this instructable, i decided to re-live those memories by making a simplest toy car powered by just a DC motor and a 9v battery. This project is for kids who are entering the world of DIY and need a simple project to start. This car is a sure shot DIY project that will never fail even in the first attempt. In case you decide to make this World's simplest electric car, don't forget to share your wonderful experiences in the comments section below."

"Be more chef. It is a mantra I've adopted and taken to heart these past few months as my brother lay in a hospital, seemingly impacting the world more from that bed, then many of could do with bodies that were not full of tumors and cancer. My brother was a chef in every sense of the word. He took the circumstances that life gave him and turned them into something wonderful and new and beautiful. When my brother passed away a few weeks ago, my thoughts turned to my own four children. How could I help raise them to be chefs? How could I raise them to not follow the recipes of life, but instead make their own recipes for their life? But, it is not just my kids, it is all of our kids. The question is, "Are we raising/preparing/teaching our students/children to be chefs or cooks?""

"When thinking of ways to support those who are legally blind, two supports often come to mind. Guide dogs and Braille. It's no wonder. Guide dogs provide their owners with a sense of freedom, an increased level of confidence, and a feeling of safety. Blind people who know Braille and use it find success, independence, productivity, and are more likely to find employment. Surprisingly though, of the 1.3 million people in the United States who are legally blind, only about 2% have guide dogs according to Guiding Eyes for the Blind. Also surprising is that fewer than 10 percent are Braille readers according to a report from the National Federation of the Blind. Unfortunately, these supports are currently generally reserved for the elite in our society because of cost and access. These are unfortunate statistics. Fortunately, there are low-to-no-cost technologies that provide support to the visually impaired and blind population. Five technologies to support the visually impaired and legally blind. "

"Obviously a lot can change in 15 years. We all know this, but these images put that reality into perspective for me. It makes me wonder about things. It make me ask myself, "If that's what was on the movie of the summer, what was in our classrooms? How much has changed with technology? What about in our classrooms?" Why innovate? Here's my worry: Schools that don't innovate are going to look like this, and it likely won't take 15 years to happen. In all likelihood, it's probably happening more places than we'd like to admit right now. If we don't change, we're going to end up looking like that picture appears to us now-irrelevant, a relic of the past. For some (maybe even many) what we were doing now will be nearly unrecognizable in the not so distant future. In hindsight, some of what we understood as best practice not too long ago seems that way. We can't control the fact that our schools will continue to grow, but if we don't start getting some movement now and gaining momentum today, we're going to end up so big and so settled in that our own inertia will keep us from moving forward. With each day that passes without innovation, we only make it harder to make change happen in the future."

"Dr. Seuss is gold-whimsical and visually interesting traipses through surreal worlds, and always full of life advice. And life advice is learning advice, and learning advice-well, that's why we're all here, yes? There are themes below that apply directly to the responsibilities of a teacher. Let's face it-teaching is an emotional roller coaster, and a microcosm for life itself, full of tedium and wonder, disappointment and triumph, down days and days to celebrate. Take #11 for example-you have brains in your head and feet on your choose, you can steer yourself any direction you choose-can be both encouragement to elementary students, or high school students taking themselves-and life-too seriously."

"That you probably use Wikipedia but tell your students not to is why we're here. Wikipedia has long been the bane of educators-a poster child for the 'don't believe everything you read on the internet because anyone can publish anything' movement. While making for wonderful subject matter in teaching credibility, authority, source citations, and more, the idea of actually using Wikipedia to teach explicitly teach research for an entire unit is lesson common. Luckily, the good folks at Wikipedia Education have you covered with the following (very long) unit. In the unit, students will create, edit, expand, and otherwise immerse themselves in the surprisingly complex world of public-knowledge-article editing."

"To quote Bob Dylan, the times, they are a-changin'. We wonder, though, if teachers have the dispositions needed to make fundamental changes to their teaching practices in order to respond constructively to our changing times, especially when those changes reveal that what they were doing was less effective than their egos thought they were. The way we teach is often a statement of who we are. If someone questions our practices, it's like they're questioning our value as teachers. Our classroom instruction, including assessment and grading, technology integration, student-teacher interactions, and more, are expressions of how we see ourselves; they are our identity. Can we navigate these frequently troubled waters without invoking self-preserving egos and drowning in resentment?"

"Social media overload is real. Being a connected educator can be overwhelming, especially if you have been given a ton of information at once. Do you ever wonder how colleagues stay so connected and make it look so seamless? Let me let you in on a little secret. They all use sites and/or apps to manage their connectedness. Some apps, like Instagram, allow you to set up this feature in the app. Other times, using a different site and/or app is more ideal. I'm sharing a few of my favorite sites and apps to manage my connections, and I'll also share one that came up repeatedly when I asked my PLN for their favorite social media management apps."

"ike us, you're tremendously excited by the possibilities of 3D printing. Unfortunately, the landscape is cluttered with trinkets, doodads, and ornaments. We're in danger of drowning in 3D printed objects that nobody wants or needs. Fight the tide of mediocrity! Let's make stuff that's useful! Here's a list of cool things to 3D print, right now, today. Prove to your nearest and dearest that there's an everyday and practical application of this wonderful technology. Updated monthly under the guise of our very own printocracy, each month we remove the five least clicked models and replace them with five new printables. As the year trudges on, there will always be something new, and the uninteresting items drift away. Simple!"

It is tempting to make predictions of the skills that our students will need beyond their time at school. Such wondering can be a useful guide as we contemplate what we shall focus on with our curriculum. Unsurprisingly, there is no shortage of predictions for future skillsets published by educators, economists and analysts. What might we learn from such lists, and how should education systems respond?

"We are starting a journey into the new terrain of parenting in response to school closures and home-bound learning opportunities for students. As we know that our children call many different types of places home, with varying degrees of access to resources and experiences, we want to be mindful of not projecting a "right way" or "best way," and be more intentional of providing some resources and considerations that we hope to be useful. We want to acknowledge and curate great resources that are coming together in our communities. Many started from educational services and companies but also more grassroots support from teachers, often out of concern for their students. First and foremost, as a parent, it is not your responsibility to be the teacher right now. It is helpful for you to support and encourage your child to continue exploring questions and keep up a reading practice and attempt to solve problems- but it is most important that you provide them space to connect, feel, wonder, try, and find refuge in these uncertain times."

"Please, No More Professional Development! By Peter DeWitt on April 17, 2015 8:10 AM Today's guest blog is written by Kristine Fox (Ed.D), Senior Field Specialist/Research Associate at Quaglia Institute for Student Aspirations (QISA). She is a former teacher and administrator who has passion for teacher learning and student voice. Kris works directly with teachers and leaders across the country to help all learners reach their fullest potential. Peter DeWitt recently outlined why "faculty meetings are a waste of time." Furthering on his idea, most professional development opportunities don't offer optimal learning experiences and the rare teacher is sitting in her classroom thinking "I can't wait until my district's next PD day." When I inform a fellow educator that I am a PD provider, I can read her thoughts - boring, painful, waste of time, useless, irrelevant - one would think my job is equal to going to the dentist (sorry to my dentist friends). According to the Quaglia Institute and Teacher Voice and Aspirations International Center's National Teacher Voice Report only 54% percent of teachers agree "Meaningful staff development exists in my school." I can't imagine any other profession being satisfied with that number when it comes to employee learning and growth. What sense does it make for the science teacher to spend a day learning about upcoming English assessments? Or, for the veteran teacher to learn for the hundredth time how to use conceptual conflict as a hook. Why does education insist everyone attend the same type of training regardless of specialization, experience, or need? As a nod to the upcoming political campaigns and the inevitable introduction of plans with lots of points, here is my 5 Point Plan for revamping professional development. 5 Point Plan Point I - Change the Term: Semantics Matter We cannot reclaim the term Professional Development for teachers. It has a long, baggage-laden history of conformity that does not

"As enthusiastic as I am about makerspaces in education, at some point, we have to take the training wheels off. There are thousands of maker products on the market that come with project guides, activity kits, and curriculum guides. And that is wonderful! But we're forgetting that those guides and kits are just TRAINING WHEELS. They were just meant to give you the foundation skills and confidence needed to take it to the next level. So what is the next level, you ask? YOU TELL ME.   That is the whole idea of the maker movement and sometimes I feel we are totally missing it.  "

"Wondering how to effectively engage students in interactive learning? Before we explore five steps to game-based learning with Minecraft: Education Edition, let's recall why engagement remains important. If students don't care, they fail to learn. Some of the top ways to engage students include:"

chool camps are a wonderful opportunity to observe how our students handle the challenge of a different learning setting. Away from the norms and familiar settings of the classroom, we see students in a different light. For the students, camps are an exciting and for some frightening challenge. For teachers, they are an outstanding assessment tool that should inform our practices long after camp is over. 

"Some folks know that I started my education career as a middle school Social Studies teacher in Charlotte, North Carolina. If I was still doing that now, I would be incredibly excited because so many wonderful resources would be available to my classroom. For instance, if I was teaching Social Studies today…"

"Are you wondering which devices will support iOS 11? While iOS 11 includes a variety of new features and refinements to the Apple operating system, only certain model iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices will support the iOS 11 release. Fortunately the compatible devices list for iOS 11 is fairly sprawling, and while a few devices did not make the list you will find that most modern iPhone and iPad hardware will support the latest release when it debuts in the fall."