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Google Chrome is such a great resource for students. First things first, the browser allows users to sign in to Chrome anywhere and bring up bookmarks, history, and settings, an incredible feature for students on-the-go who are using multiple computers. In addition to this useful feature are a wealth of awesome extensions that students can use to save time and concentrate their efforts. We've found 21 time-saving Chrome extensions that students can put to use, from note-taking apps to books, citations, and reminders.

Although Scratch Day is on a Saturday, I thought that it might be useful to list some classroom resources that can be used in lessons before / after the day itself and, of course, at other times of the year too. I hope that this is useful if you want to use this great software for the first time… or if you're looking to extend what you can already do with Scratch.

I have teachers ask me frequently about app recommendations for different subject areas. "What app could I use to teach subtraction?" "What app would you recommend for my students to practice writing?" "I want to use iPads in my Science class. What app is good for that?" I usually sigh to myself, when I receive questions like that. While I am not against in suggesting apps ( which I love doing), I am not comfortable with the level of disconnect between the teacher (who knows her/his students best) and the curriculum related skills and objectives and pedagogical relationship that needs to be in place for an app to be a match to use in a classroom or with an individual learner.

Welcome to the Apps User Group website. Our purpose is to connect and assist schools in the use of Google Apps for Education. The site contains resources for implementing and using Google Apps, news from the Google blogs, links to schools that use Google Apps, a discussion forum, and more. All uses are encouraged to share resources, ideas, questions, and comments.

An easy-to-use, free tool. Go to the main page and sign in using your Facebook or Twitter account. Once logged in you can click on record and start talking . You have up to 30 seconds of recording length so you may need to prepare a script. When your audio message is ready Qwips generates a URL for you so that you can use to share your messages. You can embed it on your blog or share it with others via email. You can also use your audio message as an image caption.

Helping to make New Zealand digital content easy to find, share, and use. We aim to make New Zealand digital content more useful. This includes helping people use digital material from libraries, museums, government departments, publicly funded organisations, the private sector, and community groups. Use this site to: Find NZ digital material that is hidden or buried on the internet Search across more than 20 million digital items to discover New Zealand treasures such as amazing aerial photos, old posters and memorabilia, newspaper clippings, artworks, and publications. Items are contributed from partners including Te Papa, the Alexander Turnbull Library, Auckland Art Gallery, Te Ara, NZ On Screen and many many more.

"This site has been put together by a small group of teachers and teacher educators convened by the DfE's Teaching Agency and chaired by Bob Harrison. Our aim has been to curate a collection of resources for use by those training teachers to deliver the new primary computing curriculum, whether for trainees' individual use, for use in lectures and workshops or for trainees to use as resources for their own lessons when working in school."

"The map uses freely available data retrieved Alexa on August 12th, 2013. The company has provided website analytics since 1996. Alexa collects data from millions of Internet users using one of over 25,000 different browser extensions, and the data used for this visualization were calculated "using a combination of the estimated average daily unique visitors to a site and the estimated number of pageviews on that site from users in that country over the past month"."

If you're a web-oriented person, there's a good chance you have used some image editing software like Adobe Photoshop. But for most blogging and web content, you simply don't need the array of tools available on Photoshop. There are about 10-20 tools in everyone's toolbox that get the most use. So rather than firing up Photoshop to use them, why not use an image editor that's already built into YOUR website?

"DropDAV lets you access Dropbox without the Dropbox app. It stands between the Dropbox API and WebDAV clients, giving your Dropbox a seamless WebDAV interface. It was developed specifically for use with Apple's iWork suite for iPad, and works smoothly with every other WebDAV client. Use DropDAV anywhere a WebDAV server is supported and add more uses to the most useful file service in the world."

Great complimentary online tool to Dropbox, adds a file service that helps you to secure access to files in Dropbox with an iPad.

"US Copyright laws may be years behind the fast-paced world of social media and blogs, but they still control how a copyrighted work can be used. And while there are aspects of Copyright law that have "gone digital," the Digital Millennium Copyright Act doesn't provide anything new when it comes to explaining how to properly use another person's photos or images online. And because most people won't read the law and even those who do may not understand exactly what it means, I offer you these to help you:"

This is a fabulous introduction to using Diigo in schools. "Welcome to Student Learning with Diigo. This site was completed in partial fulfillment of the requirements of of ISLT 9440, Learning with the Internet, a graduate class, during the Fall 2010 from the University of Missouri. Educators, worldwide, have enjoyed the use of this social bookmarking site. Diigo is a great web-based tool for teachers to utilize, to motivate, and to engage students of all ages in the learning process. We invite you to explore the various features of Diigo. Become educated and informed on the powerful use of Diigo for student learning. Learn how this research tool can enhance classroom instruction and promote higher levels of student collaboration. As you navigate through our site you will see examples of valuable lessons and resources, all displayed for your use. Set up your account now. This research tool is every educator's dream."

I use TweetDeck. It is a useful tool for following along during a Twitter chat as it allows you to build columns that help to keep track of the many different feeds, notifications, mentions, etc. It can be difficult to check out the resources shared and keep up with it all. There are many methods for 'saving' the resources shared. Kelly Fitzgerald @LISDTechie uses the collections feature in TweetDeck to gather those resources to review at a later time. Here she offers advice about how to add a collection and start saving those wonderful resources people are sharing.

Buy Bing Ads Accounts Introduction Any company that wants to be successful online must have a strong advertising plan, and Bing Ads is a fantastic choice. Businesses can design ad campaigns using Bing Ads that specifically target visitors who are looking for particular terms on the search engine. Why should you use Bing Ads? There are various advertising platforms to pick from when you want to promote your business online. They are not all made equal, though. Bing Ads is a platform that has a lot of benefits over other platforms, making it a wise choice for companies of all sizes. Here are several justifications for using Bing Ads: You'll connect with a new audience: Google may be the most widely used search engine, but that doesn't imply everyone uses it. In actuality, a large number of individuals utilize alternative search engines like Bing. You can reach a new audience using Bing Ads advertising that you might not be able to do so through other channels. Buy Bing Ads Accounts Bing Ads costs less: Bing Ads also typically costs less than other ad networks, which is a benefit. This is why you can get your advertising in front of consumers for less money as there is less competition on Bing advertising. You'll spend less money overall: Bing Ads is not only more affordable than other services, but you'll also get better value for your money. This is because Bing adverts gives you the ability to target your adverts more precisely, increasing the likelihood that you'll speak to individuals who are genuinely interested in what you have to offer.

Buy Bing Ads Accounts Introduction Any company that wants to be successful online must have a strong advertising plan, and Bing Ads is a fantastic choice. Businesses can design ad campaigns using Bing Ads that specifically target visitors who are looking for particular terms on the search engine. Why should you use Bing Ads? There are various advertising platforms to pick from when you want to promote your business online. They are not all made equal, though. Bing Ads is a platform that has a lot of benefits over other platforms, making it a wise choice for companies of all sizes.

"Vidora's newly released iPad app actually uses Airplay intelligently, like a natural extension of its video discovery and curation service. Seriously, Vidora's Airplay integration is how I'd imagine Apple TV's UX if Apple wasn't scared of cannibalizing iTunes video sales and started sorting content based on making it easier for users to find things. (Sort of like what would happen in a bizarro world if Woz was calling all the shots at Apple.) Also, Vidora's Airplay integration means you don't have to use the Apple remote, since all navigation happens via your iPad." Pity it is only available in the US Store.

"Take your professional learning community to the next level by using Google Docs to collaborate with colleagues. Google Docs is an online office suite that allows you to create, edit, share, and publish documents, including spreadsheets and presentations. Because everything is stored and even modified on the web, Google Docs makes it easy to collaborate with colleagues - and even to edit the same document from multiple computers simultaneously. This session will focus on the use of Google Docs to promote and support collaboration within a PLC, including strategies for creating common assessments, sharing best practices, and capturing the conversation - even between meetings. Google Docs can even be used for data collection and analysis. This one tool can revolutionize the way your PLC collaborates. And it's free. (This is a hands-on DOUBLE session: 2.5 hours.)"

"It is pretty much a given these days that students have mobile phones, tablets, and e-readers. Leveraging what your students already have and already know how to use is a smart idea - even if you aren't implementing a full-on BYOD classroom environment. There are many ways to have students use their mobile devices in the classroom in a format geared towards learning rather than for leisure. The infographic in this post takes a look at ten fairly general ways to use devices in the classroom. The general nature of some of the recommendations makes it a great starting point if this is a newer concept for you or for a particular group that you're working. "

Updated Cell Phone Agreement--Celly Friendly and Safe for Educators Updating the cell phone agreement for nonteaching school personnel as found on page 122 of "Teaching Generation Text: Using Cell Phones to Enhance Learning" is a joy due to the use of Celly.  When using Celly there is no exchange of personal phone numbers.  All of the texts go through the Celly site and are documented, which adds a further safety net for educators concerned about texting with students. 

For the last couple of years Vimeo has offered free music to download and re-use in your video projects. Now YouTube is offering the same thing through the YouTube Audio Library. This library is slightly different than the free music available when you use the YouTube slideshow creation tool. The music in the YouTube Audio Library is music that you can download to use in projects online and offline. You can search the library of music according to genre, mood, instrument, or duration. You can listen to the tracks before downloading them as MP3 files.

"From the new iPhone 4 to the Flip HD cameras, it's never been easier for teachers to have a classroom full of video cameras. In fact, your principal won't even mind since all of these high-tech video cameras won't cost the school a penny. There are likely hundreds of ways to use a video camera in the classroom. Tom Barrett has come up with dozens of creative ways to use video cameras in the classroom, and we've embedded his presentation below."

Some great uses of an iPhone or Flipcam video.