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While there will never be a replacement for a paper book with dog-eared pages, hand written notes in the margins, a broken spine and a proudly worn cover with a hint of dirt and stains, there is an exciting new option to transform the practice of reading to make it more social and collaborative.  Subtext is an intriguing iPad application that allows users to read books collaboratively.  While reading, participants can insert text, emotions, questions, links and thoughts into the margins of the book.  When other readers jump into the text they can see the notations and reply to the existing thoughts in a discussion thread that is neatly tucked away into the margins of the text.

The invention of the tablet PC has created a new medium for book publishing. Interactive books are everywhere, and have revolutionized the way people consume the printed word. With the recent software available to allow easy creation of interactive books and with the race to bring these products to market, there seems to be a more and more dilution of quality and a loss for the meaning of interactivity. When publishers create new eBook titles or convert a traditional printed book to a digital interactive eBook, they often miss the added value this new medium can provide.

Our goal with Duolingo is to provide the absolute best language learning service out there (and also make it 100% free!). In this post I want to talk about something that we believe is fundamental towards this goal: students must be able to read and write complete sentences and be given immediate detailed feedback about their answers. When we started working on Duolingo we noticed that most language learning methods outside of the classroom didn't do this. Some never provide you with any feedback (think of books or the audio tapes from the 1980s), while other more "interactive" ones only provide you with feedback on single words or multiple choice questions. As any educator will tell you, having students read and write complete sentences by themselves, and then get detailed feedback, is significantly better for learning.

This is a neat website for finding all the FREE AMAZON BOOKS!

"Want to be a reporter? Join ABC News journalist Del Irani as she takes behind the scenes of a newsroom and shares rare insights into the skills you need to find and tell the story. Sign up to the Splash newsletter for details of our 90-second news storytelling challenge, where you will tell the story. #ABCSplashLive"

"Letters of Note is an attempt to gather and sort fascinating letters, postcards, telegrams, faxes, and memos"

Online library of picture books that kids can read independently or as a read along. Great for K-2. Books can be personalised with students names. Register for free if you want to save/share your books.

Capture what you do your screen and microphone audio, record, edit, share online. You can add titles and cut out poor clips. Stores online as you create, rather than to desktop. Flash player. Free while in beta.

"Revision is a critical piece of the writing process-and of your classroom curriculum. Now, Google Docs has partnered with Weekly Reader's Writing for Teens magazine to help you teach it in a meaningful and practical way. On this page, you will find several reproducible PDF articles from Writing magazine filled with student-friendly tips and techniques for revision. You'll also find a teacher's guide that provides you with ideas for how to use these materials with Google Docs to create innovative lesson plans about revision for your classroom."

Great videos to use in class

A stick figure comic of the play originally by Shakespeare, but adapted by Dan Carroll

How about perhaps getting students to adapt another play in this way? A whole year group maybe could make some inroads? Re-organising and rethinking content in this way would surely help with understanding and might entice in some of those reluctant Shakespeare-ophobes.

Pinky Dinky Doo harnesses the power of television, print, and interactive media to promote reading and imaginative storytelling. To achieve this, Pinky invites children to participate in funny and fantastic stories, games, and songs that support critical early literacy skills.