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"Millions of people-perhaps you're one of them-have watched viral videos of a Scottish granny collapsing in laughter while she reads to a baby. Comfortable on a sofa with her grandson, Janice Clark keeps cracking up as she tries to read "The Wonky Donkey" and, in a second video recorded a few months later, "I Need a New Bum." Her raspy burr sounds great, and she's fun to watch, but the real genius of the scene is what's happening to the baby. Tucked beside her, he's totally enthralled by the book in her hands. In the second video especially, because he's older, you can see his eyes tracking the illustrations, widening in amazement each time that she turns the page. He's guileless, unaware of the camera. He has eyes only for the pictures in the book. What's happening to that baby is both obvious and a secret marvel. A grandmother is weeping with laughter as she reads a story, and her grandson is drinking it all in-that's obvious. The marvel is hidden inside the child's developing brain. There, the sound of her voice, the warmth of her nearness and, crucially, the sight of illustrations that stay still and allow him to gaze at will, all have the combined effect of engaging his deep cognitive networks. "

"You just cannot ignore the fact that when you think about searching online for your assignments and projects, the first name that comes to your mind is Google. However, when it comes to academic research, Google search engine does not serve the purpose as it does in most cases. Its search results are not perfect some times. This doesn't mean that it is the end of the world for students trying to collect academic data online. Apart from Google, there are a number of search engines that are especially designed for the purpose of academic research. They can help you get your hands on relevant information without going through irrelevant or low-quality pages. Given below is a list of some of the best academic search engines that will help you get the research material you want quickly and easily, and without compromising on quality."

"This year has been a marathon for teachers. They've faced constant changes and big challenges at every turn. It's been hard to teach into the abyss of black screens and muted microphones or navigate the hybrid landscape with our attention split between students at home and in person at the same time. Or the challenge of keeping students socially distanced with the constant reminders to keep their masks on. We miss the little things like fist bumps and high fives and the smiles on students' faces when they have that "aha" moment. Teaching has been a marathon. However, at the end of this marathon, there are different levels of tired. Some people are simply exhausted. They have crossed the finish line and they are placing their hands over their head with a mix of gratitude that it's over and a sense of pride over facing a huge challenge. These teachers are worn out and need rest. Other teachers are injured. These teachers have finished the marathon but they're hurting. They have experienced is genuine injustice and it has shaken them to core. Many have faced trauma. These teachers need more than just rest. They need healing. I made this continuum for myself to think through whether I'm tired or actually injured. This isn't scientific or research-based. It's just a tool I made for myself years ago and I thought I'd share it. You can see it in the video below:"

"IN BRIEF Anxiety about the effects of social media on young people has risen to such an extreme that giving children smartphones is sometimes equated to handing them a gram of cocaine. The reality is much less alarming. A close look at social media use shows that most young texters and Instagrammers are fine. Heavy use can lead to problems, but many early studies and news headlines have overstated dangers and omitted context. Researchers are now examining these diverging viewpoints, looking for nuance and developing better methods for measuring whether social media and related technologies have any meaningful impact on mental health."

"Teaching financial literacy to teens can be made more effective and engaging by using real-world examples, such as interactive apps and hands-on activities like budgeting classroom dollars or planning events within a fixed budget. For instance, when I was younger, my parents set up a "family bank" where I earned interest on my allowance, helping me understand the value of saving and managing money from an early age."

"Craig Badura, a PK-12 Integration Specialist in Aurora, Nebraska, has developed a series of App Task Challenges. Each challenge is a an easy to follow guide that gives teachers the opportunity to create products with an app. You can read more about App Task Challenges on Craig's Comfortably 2.0 blog. Below are four of Craig's App Task Challenge guides. Craig is working on more of them, so follow him on Twitter to find out when he publishes new ones."

"[This is part of the Infographic Design Series. Check out the other posts!] Good visual arrangement for infographics is putting together graphic and visual elements in a manner that draws your reader's attention. The key to achieving simple, elegant and attractive content are ample whitespace and a well arranged layout. What is whitespace? White space is as its name defined-space that is unmarked in a piece of infographic or visual representation. It could be margins, padding or the space between columns, text and icons and design elements. Whitespace matters to create visually engaging content A page crammed full of text and images will appear busy. This makes the content difficult to read. It makes you unable to focus on the important stuff too. On the other hand, too much of white space can make your page look incomplete. It is always crucial to remember visually engaging content is usually clean and simple. Here's an example of what I mean. whitespace-matters Understanding common infographics layouts help ease visual arrangement Infographic layouts refer to the arrangement of your visual elements and your content. When you begin working on a piece of infographic, you should have a story to tell hence, you will need to select a layout that best suits your story. Using the right layout will ensure good readability and convey your message well. We have put together a cheat sheet for your quick reference to the right arrangement to use, here are six common ones you can quickly work with. Infographic Layout Cheat Sheet Useful Bait: Works well with most types of data. Rather than focusing on design, it works more for practicality, thus making it easy to read. For instance, a reference sheet where you can print it out and use it over and over again. If your content has many subtopics to a main subject, this layout enables you to segregate them into clean chunks that are easy to consume. Versus/Comparison: This layout is typically split vertically to

Might help create a blended classroom, even when you have to share the blender.  Common sense advise for the real world of underequipped classrooms and stretched thin teachers.

"Excitement about school makerspaces has been in the air, but many educators eager to create hands-on learning spaces in their schools still aren't sure how to get started or why it's worth the effort. New Canaan High School librarian Michelle Luhtala recently jumped headfirst into creating a makerspace in her library and documented what she learned, how her space changed and how it affected students along the way. Her experience was very different from elementary school librarian Andy Plemmons, whose makerspace started with a 3-D printer obtained through a grant and blossomed into a core teaching resource at his school."

"There is an awful lot of hot air blown about accessing student work from "class sets" of iPads, via email, WebDAV, Dropbox etc etc. A little known and cool method is this… We all know that we can share via iTunes over USB to any Mac/PC with a recent version of iTunes. Well would you believe the same thing works without a cable and it doesn't have to be the Mac/PC that manages the devices. It means that any teacher can access all the students files on a device that has been "Saved to iTunes". You can even pick up the work, mark it and hand it back to the iPad whilst the iPad is still being used by the kids (unbeknown to the user!)."

"Call it an industrial evolution. As the maker movement outgrows the garage and shifts into popular culture, anyone with an internet connection can click into a world full of creative possibilities. That includes kids, some of whom can code, craft, and build with the best of us by elementary school. A slew of websites, fairs, and maker's guilds are available to introduce kids to the basics of design and engineering, and tech-savvy parents often bring their children into the fold by starting with small projects. Experimental schools, such as the Tinkering School or Brightworks Academy in San Francisco, are also tailoring their curricula towards hands-on skills aimed specifically at boosting fluency in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math). But you don't need a formal program or DIY-fluency to empower your kid to chase their creativity. All they need are some interesting tools, a little guidance, and the space to pursue their passions. For the parents of some kids, like Alonzo King, 12, that means letting him tear apart cassette players and see what he can build out of the parts. For others, like the parents of Miles Hacker (yes, that's his real name), 10, that means waking up to a living-room-sized spider web that their son made from a roll of tape."

"Recently our administrators were given iPads to use in order to increase efficiency. After soliciting my PLN and doing some hands-on research I have compiled a 'getting started' app list. Here are the apps I encourage you to check out if you are just getting started with using your ipad."

"Educators are beginning to see the potential of using mobile devices and apps for ongoing professional development as well as to improve literacy and cognitive development for learners. Apps are equipped with several features that motivate learners to create stories, presentations, and projects that are hands-on and use their creativity as well as their critical thinking skills. Once an app is downloaded, many features can be accessed without an Internet connection. Educators can also use various apps at conferences to connect with other educators or capture a presentation. Below are the various apps nominated by teachers for an Edublog Award so they must be worth checking out. Each has a link and a description. Make sure to check out the Edublog Awards for blogs, wikis, and web tools that teachers worldwide have recommended."

"ome of the most important subject areas and activities we want students to learn are the very ones that are left out of many schools: the arts, computer programming, and learning to making things by hand."

"Evernote Food makes it easy to use your iPad or iPhone as a digital cookbook, and a new feature for iOS users makes following a recipe even more seamless. Now, when you've opened a recipe you plan to make, your display won't go to sleep while you're cooking. You can follow a recipe without needing to re-enter your passcode to unlock your screen, creating a more efficient cooking process - and less flour on your device when you're ready to clean up."

"Graphic design students require a variety of tools in their arsenal at all times, ranging from high-end laptops to smartphones. Most K-12 schools and higher-ed institutions, however, are focusing on the use of tablets. This is because designers are now able to use more of a 'free hand' in tablet use due to the availability of additional screen space. This is especially helpful in item personalization and logo branding, for mechanical engineering, as well as custom t-shirts or other commercial products, and perhaps most of all web design."

"Using tech tools that students are familiar with and already enjoy using is attractive to educators, but getting students focused on the project at hand might be more difficult because of it."