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This is the initial list of educational favorite apps as collected by ADEs

Communication skills are critical for today's students. Reading, writing and the ability to tell a story set the stage for success. The Hub, a new TV destination dedicated to bringing kids and families together, is partnering with Discovery Education to support teachers in this important endeavor. Here you'll find inspiration to engage and inspire your budding writers. Meet the artists, editors and writers that bring good stories to life-and watch your students' communication skills soar!

Google®/Moodle™ Integration Collaborate and share projects or materials with others using Google® Apps or Moodle™ learning management systems (pilot program only).

"The Virginia Department of Education has been involved in the development of apps that are available in the Apple App Store for downloading. Through these activities, the following apps have been developed by collaborators:"

Using Skype in the Classroom Desktop Voice and Videoconferencing Software in Education Discover how to communicate and collaborate with friends, colleagues, resource experts, and other classrooms using Skype. Skype is a program that allows users to communication with voice, videoconferencing, or chat for free between computers. Create a Skype account, add contacts, and conduct free audio and video conferences between computers. Explore creative ways to use this tool to enhance teaching and learning.

Here are five ideas that will help you begin building your own personal learning network. 1. Read blogs related to your passion. Search out topics of interest at http://blogsearch.google.com and see who shares those interests. 2. Participate. If you find bloggers out there who are writing interesting and relevant posts, share your reflections and experiences by commenting on their posts. 3. Use your real name. It's a requisite step to be Googled well. Be prudent, of course, about divulging any personal information that puts you at risk, and guide students in how they can do the same. 4. Start a Facebook page. Educators need to understand the potential of social networking for themselves. 5. Explore Twitter (http://twitter.com), a free social networking and micro-blogging service that enables users to exchange short updates of 140 characters or fewer. It may not look like much at first glance, but with Twitter, the network can be at your fingertips.

via http://freetech4teachers.blogspot.com/2008/12/secret-builders-virtual-world-for-ages.html SecretBuilders is a virtual world for children 5 to 14 years old powered by a web 2.0 community of children, parents, educators, writers, artists and game developers. On SecretBuilders, children will explore virtual lands, undertake quests, play games, maintain a home, nurture a pet, and interact with their friends. Three features which form the backdrop for SecretBuilders distinguish it from other online worlds: * Children learn through immersing themselves in the stories, themes, and concepts from the best in literature, arts and humanities. They will interact with famous historical and fictional figures and be introduced to content and characters from world civilization and the great thoughts and ideas of human creativity. * Children will create this site, not just consume it. They are directly involved in creating this world with their ideas, critiques and contributions on virtually every aspect of the site and many of their ideas will be implemented! * Children publish their works - writings, art, videos - making SecretBuilders their own personal store of creativity. They can invite friends and family to view their works, and comment upon them. Seeing their works published and enjoyed by others instills tremendous for self-confidence as well as motivation to do more.

A virtual drum roll please… We are thrilled to officially open the application process for the Discovery Student Adventures Pilot Program. Join us as we discover more of our incredible planet earth together with adventure trips to Australia, South Africa, and China. In order to participate in this pilot trip, you must be a STAR Discovery Educator. Not only are you able to take part in this once in a lifetime opportunity, each STAR selected will be able to choose four of their students to join them on the adventure! This is at no cost to you or your students! So with no further ado… here's the official wording and post importantly the link to apply.

This is a must listen. A look at the future of leadership. Posting discussions and policy online for public viewing rather than locking it behind passwords or even keeping it hidden. Transparent and accountable leadership is BETTER leadership even for education.

A bilingual site for families and educators of English language learners

The TechMatrix is a powerful tool for finding educational and assistive technology products for students with special needs. See the Find Product menu for other search options. Create a customized matrix by subject and/or learning support. Send your customized matrix to a friend or colleague. Learn what questions to ask and how to make informed decisions in the Consumer Guide.

...The way to do this is to have a blank Smart Notebook page open in transparent view over BrainPOP. Transparent view can be activated by clicking on "View" then selecting "Transparent Background." ...

...The way to do this is to have a blank Smart Notebook page open in transparent view over BrainPOP. Transparent view can be activated by clicking on "View" then selecting "Transparent Background." ...

"What this tool can do for you: * Help you better understand how to determine the "fairness" of a use under the U.S. Copyright Code. * Collect, organize & archive the information you might need to support a fair use evaluation. * Provide you with a time-stamped, PDF document for your records [example], which could prove valuable, should you ever be asked by a copyright holder to provide your fair use evaluation and the data you used to support it. [why is this important?] * Provide access to educational materials, external copyright resources, and contact information for copyright help at local & national levels."