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We can use Common Sense Media's Internet safety information and discourage use of the book ratings, right?

Common Sense Media improves the lives of kids and families by providing independent reviews, age ratings, & other information about all types of media.

This article is actually a blog on connetivism. THe author of this post focuses on "sensemaking". He defines it as, sensemaking is an activity that individuals engage in daily in response to uncertainty, complex topics, or in changing settings. sensemaking is not about truth or right from wrong, bu rather about making information make sense.

Here is a great blog site from George Siemens where he posts on various topics in education and their relativity to connectivism. The blog has not been updated in some time, but there is still a lot of great info on the site.

This website page is the perfect summary of what Connectivism is and what it really represents. Stephen Downes states, "Learning is the creation and removal of connections between the entities, or the adjustment of the strengths of those connections. " This is probably the best resource I have found for truly understanding what Connectivism really is.

This article examines PLEs with a working definition of "a combination of social media-enabled systems, applications, and services which help learners to take control of their learning by aggregating, manipulating, and creating digital contents and learning artifacts, and sharing them with others." It advocates for an atmosphere of learning that is far different than the traditional sense; one that is driven by student-led activities and exploration.

This article is a guest post by a student who describes her PLN. It is an interesting self reflection about how this student realized she had a PLN without ever actively creating it. The article goes on to discuss how she developed her PLN and the major pieces that are in it.

I love that you included a student's perspective on PLN. I particularly liked her perspective on Internet Safety. My favorite quote is one we should all remember, "Common sense is a valuable thing".

Bryan, I really appreciate this article. Maybe because I can identify with Conner Wood's journey into blogging and PLNs. His revelation of a group of people he can trust thousands of miles apart connected by the Internet and his desire to meet them resonates with me. Many times I have wanted to meet my own cohorts. Wood's reflection on the quality of his selection of progressive educators is not lost on me either. His desire to opening your PLN to a variety of fields mirrors my own. "One can have a network of the top people in one's own field, but if one cannot talk to those people about anything else, what is the point?" Pinging your PLN for the "personal" as well as "learning" seems a recurring theme.

Research regarding the benefits of being a member of a community of practice. While the information seems a bit forced (the communities of practice used for the study were exclusively face-to-face communities), the benefits of being a member of a community of practice still seem valid. According to the study, they are (1) autonomy and freedom to think beyond, (2) sources to ideas, (3) sounding board, (4) intellectual discussion, (5) like-mindedness, (6) alternative perspective and cross-pollination of ideas, (7) overcoming intellectual isolation, (8) move towards collaborative research, (9) response to research pressure, (10) synergy and leverage, (11) time and energy saving, (12) an informal ground for learning and training, (13) fostering of tangible returns, (14) driving research, (15) opportunities to met, (16) networking, information sharing and updates, (17) support and guidance, (18) sense of belonging, (19) identity, and (20) intrinsic fulfillment. As the article is about higher education, there are certainly some benefits that are more specific to their context, but I think the findings of the article are still valid.

I stumbled across the video that a former student created that shows the differences of CoPs, Connectivism, and PLEs. What is cool is that the author uses only pictures, music, and written text to define them - no dialogue.

I watched this because it was made by a former student. It was nice because it was different - the no words was a nice touch. I wasn't really a fan of all the images and I think they only made sense because I am watching this last. If I watched this first, I am not sure I would be much wiser. Not a criticism of the video per se, just didn't do a lot to further my rather limited knowledge. Sorry Matt! ;-)

I watched the video and now need to go improve my presentation. The student did a great job of finding images that exemplified the topic. Even knowing this was for module 2, I kept waiting for words, not because I didn't get the message but I think people (teachers and students alike) are just so used to having words to rely on.

Digital citizenship for elementary students through game-based learning.

A collection of videos and activities to practice digital citizenship for elementary and middle school students.

A collection of FAQ by grades for parents and students. Also access to other CommonSense Media tools. I recommend the iTunes ebooks that are free and interactive for students and teachers.

Resource for classrooms to practice digital citizenship, includes videos, games and real life statements for children.

​Each day of the school year I present my students with an estimation challenge. I love helping students improve both their number sense and problem solving skills. I'd like to share the estimation challenges with you and your students. Happy Estimating! Enjoy, Andrew Stadel

A list of apps and websites for teaching social studies. There are snapshots of the resources with grade level and pricing. There are also active links to the different resources.

This blog explains what creative commons is, why it matters within the classroom, and spells out the ins and outs of what teachers and students should and should not use for resources.

Spreadsheet software offers users a wide variety of tools and features. From organizing data and creating charts to computing complex math formulas, the possibilities are endless. Knowing where to begin and how to make sense of it all can be a daunting task. This resource serves as a beginners guide for those wanting to learn how to operate Google sheets.