Since MIT's Lifelong Kindergarten group released Scratch in 2007, kids ages 8 to 13 have built more than 2.2 million animations, games, music, videos and stories using the kid-friendly programming language.
Scratch allows kids to snap together graphical blocks of instructions, like Lego bricks, to control sprites-the movable objects that perform actions. Sprites can dance, sing, run and talk.
Now, with a grant from the National Foundation of Science, Lifelong Kindergarten is collaborating with Tufts University's DevTech Research Group to make Scratch Jr, a new version aimed at kids in preschool to second grade. The expected launch date is summer 2012.
"Faculty development is a crucial and vital component to any college or university. For institutions with geographically dispersed faculty who are teaching online, in some cases for the very first time, faculty development takes on a new level of importance. Here the challenges are not only ensuring instructors understand the technical aspects of teaching online and have the instructional skills to meet online learners' needs, but also instilling a sense of community."
These folks promote a "computer-free" computer science curriculum. Agree or disagree, this is probably useful to keep for times whenever the network gives up the ghost.
"Each Unplugged activity is available to download in PDF format, with full instructions and worksheets. Background sections explain the significance of each activity to computer science, and answers are provided for all problems. All you need for most of these activities are curiousity and enthusiasm. There are photos and videos showing some of the activities in action, and we've collected links to other useful resources.
The activities are primarily aimed at the five to twelve year-old age group, but they are by no means restricted to this age range: we've used them to teach older children and adults too, with little modification."
"Turn your students into historians with primary-source based activities that develop historical thinking skills. Activities are ready to use in your classroom. Or alter an existing activity to fit your unique needs. Exchange primary source documents and modify activity instructions. "
BTW - I'm using CiteBite to be able to link to the specific spot on the page. Citebite installs and then appears under your right click menu to allow you to link to the specific spot.
"Skype is a great way of calling people from all over the world. However, it lacks the call-record feature. One way to utilize this feature is to use the MP3 Skype Recorder program.
This software can automatically record all your incoming and outgoing Skype calls. The output audio's format is MP3, so it's easy for you to listen and share the recorded call. You can use it as a podcast or as an instructional audio."
"The report found that the use of Web 2.0 tools such as blogs, podcasts, wikis, and comics-creating software can heighten students' engagement and enhance their writing and thinking skills in all grade levels and across all subjects."
Disruptive innovations transform products or services into something so simple that anyone can use them, creating what Christensen called "asymmetric competition."
...half of all instruction will take place online within the next 10 years--and schools had better get into the online-learning market or risk losing their students to other providers.
Until now, the providers of online instruction have catered primarily to areas of "non-consumption" in education, Christensen said, such as credit recovery, AP courses, and home-schooled or homebound students.
But that will change once online instruction reaches its tipping point--and if schools want to compete for these "customers" (their students), they should consider partnering with an online-learning provider or starting an online program of their own.
In School 2.0, the learning ecosystem includes not just a school building, but also the combination of home, school, and community that collaborate to bring the wider world into day-to-day instruction and provide a rich array of learning opportunities.
Mapping the Beat: A Geography through Music Curriculum for upper elementary school, integrates geography and music instruction into a single body of lesson plans. At the heart of this program are three concepts-environment, identity, and movement-taken from the standards outlined in Geography for Life, the national geography standards.